Equipment & Studio

The Center provides students with the opportunity to develop their interests and skills in woodworking and furniture making in a safe and stimulating environment. Students have access to a well-equipped 7,000 sq ft studio that was significantly expanded and renovated in 2005. The studio includes two bench rooms, two machine rooms, a sanding room, a fully ventilated finishing room, a technology area that features computer controlled equipment, a dedicated library and resource area, and an entire studio available for turning. The facility also includes dedicated bench spaces for the faculty and the Resident Artist/Educator. The studios provide ample room and bench space for each student, along with personal storage for work-in-progress. The studio is well ventilated with its own dust collection and filtering systems.

The Center facilities include:

Primary Power Machine Shop  All machines are commercial grade
• New Additions: Felder slot mortiser with square chisel attachment; General International 1/4" to 4" dia. spindle sander
• The shop is fully exhausted, vented, and air conditioned
• SawStop 10" blade/8hp table saw, with extended beds
• 10" blade/5 hp Powermatic table saw, with extended beds
• 22" planer, with helix head
• 12" jointer
• 10" miter saw
• end-tenoner
• 3 drill presses and full compliment of bits
• 4 bandsaws, ranging from 12" to 30"
• router table
• Festool Domino joining system
• tilting plywood/sheet goods cart with hydraulic lift to counter/table saw height
• compressed air
• sink

Undergraduate Bench Room and Power Tool Shop
• bench and table work areas, each with a vise, for 13 students
• fully exhausted, vented, and air conditioned
• significant storage, for shop and individual students
• self–sufficient power machine shop area
• 10" blade mid-size/contractor's SawStop table saw
• 12" planer
• 8" jointer
• 3 band saws
• 2 drill presses
• 2 disc & belt sanders
• clamp/glue-up area
• 10" miter/chop saw
• full compliment of hand tools for a class of 12
• glue-up table
• sink
• and SUN!

Graduate Bench Room
• 10' x 12' work areas and European style benches for each of 7 students and Resident Artist/Educator
• cabinet tool storage for each of 7 students
• pull down projection screen
• woodworking clamps
• glue-up/joinery table
• hand and power tools for joining, shaping, and finishing

Extended Graduate Area  The "Gray Space"
• critique area
• furniture photography area, with pull down back drops
• photography light/boom with lightbox head
• upholstery area with sewing machine

Lathe/Turning Studio
• 13 wood/turning lathes, high capacity, state-of-the-art
• fully exhausted and air conditioned
• dual head electric water stone and buffer/honing sharpening system
• 3 dual head grinders/sharpeners
• full compliment of turning tools for a class of 13
• 4-jaw chucks, full compliment for 10 lathes
• 10" blade, sliding bed table saw and dedicated exhaust venting

Sanding Room
• fully exhausted, vented, and air conditioned
• down-draft hand-sanding vacuum table, independent/free-standing
• 2 Festool portable sanding stations
• 6" x 30" horizontal belt sander
• 2 spindle sanders
• 24" horizontal surface sander
• 2 combination disc and belt sanders
• disc sander

Tech Bay
• fully exhausted, vented, and air conditioned, with additional direct exhaust
• Epilog "Helix" 40-watt laser cutter/engraver with dedicated laptop and software
• 48" x 48" CNC router and dedicated software
• 16" dia. x 36" CNC lathe steam chamber with direct steam line, 10" dia x 8' long
• compressed air
• vacuum bag-type press, 48" x 48"
• overhead garage door to loading dock, as well as separate/direct access into 3-D Design and the building elevator Finish Room (12' x 18')
• explosion proof
• dedicated make-up air
• end-wall filtered exhaust
• storage cabinets
• 2 spray guns
• compressed air
• direct double-wide doors allow access to/through to shop and to hallway/exit

Dedicated Resource Center
• Over 250 volume library, including lifetime collections of Fine Woodworking, American Woodworker and American Craft, with texts on design, history, construction, finishing, woodturning, architecture, creativity and marketing; CD/DVD collection of contemporary woodturners & methods, and the digital archive of Fine Woodworking
• 2 powerful PCs, with 24" flat screen displays
• modeling/cutting software
• 11" x 17" format scanner
• color and B&W printers
• digital projector
• digital camera
• display case with furniture capacity, LED spot lights and electrical outlets

Wood Storage Room
• wood for students, both commercially prepared and for sale, as well as, Center-cut wood
• radial arm saw, with dedicated exhaust

Metal Working Studio (in-progress)
• sheet metal bender
• pipe/tube bender
• bandsaw
• drill press
• overhead door giving direct access to Sprowls Hall loading dock