Executive conference explores industry trends.

Peter Kleinschmidt, president of Stiles Machinery Inc., said he predicts new furniture factories will spring up in the United States in the next three to five years. The sad news, Kleinschmidt said is that those plants will be owned by Chinese furniture companies, which will move into domestic manufacturing ala the Japanese auto makers.

Kleinschmidt added that the prospect of new U.S. manufacturing facilities and their contributions to local job and tax bases, is not all bad. Still, he said, "It doesn't have to be this way."

Kleinschmidt noted that 48 percent of all furniture sold in the United States last year was imported, with China leading the way. "The loss of the U.S. manufacturing sector and particularly U.S. furniture makers has been hit strong by this trend, which I call the 'China Syndrome.'"

To turn things around, Kleinschmidt said, "American manufacturers must proactively deal with these challenges. A very large sector of the industry is in a wait-and-see pause. They think business is worse than it is." He noted that the robust housing market should tell them otherwise.

"We have to make players more aware of the technology that exists" that can make their businesses more globally competitive, Kleinschmidt said. He lamented that more woodworkers from Turkey visited Ligna-Plus, the world's largest exhibition for woodworking machinery held May 25-30 in Hanover, Germany, than did from the United States.

Kleinschmidt said U.S. furniture manufacturers must upgrade their plants and design products that can be shipped more quickly. "If you want to compete with the Chinese, you must be able to produce and deliver products faster than five weeks," he said.

Steve Waltman, vice president of sales for Stiles Machinery, said furniture makers should not expect government officials to resolve their competitive problems with off-shore producers. "The government did not get us into this problem and it shouldn't be responsible for getting us out of it," he said.

"If our own industry has given up, why should the government be interested in trying to save it?" Kleinschmidt added. "You have to have a passion, a desire to make it happen. The risk of inaction is far greater than the risk of taking action."

Second Executive Conference

The press conference with Kleinschmidt and Waltman preceded the second annual Executive Briefing Conference, "What's Next: Expanding Technology 6.1," hosted by Stiles and Grand Valley State University and held June 18-19 in Grand Rapids.

The 1 1/2-day conference was an opportunity for woodworking executives to obtain ideas for improving their businesses. It featured a keynote address and six briefings, plus networking opportunities. Program highlights included:

* Keynote speaker Peter Schutz, former president and CEO of Porsche AG, said he learned he could get "extraordinary results from ordinary people" by setting clear goals and letting them figure out how to best meet them.

* Art Raymond, president of A.G. Raymond & Co., urged companies to utilize performance measurements when setting goals so that everyone in an organization understands the company's objectives and progress toward meeting them.

* David Grubb, consultant with David C. Grubb Assoc., discussed how computer software simulation programs priced as low as $1,000 can be used to evaluate equipment purchases and to identify and eliminate manufacturing bottlenecks.

* Joseph Cannon Jr., owner of CAS America, talked about the importance of investing in employee development. He said a commitment to education and training has helped his commercial cabinet company double productivity per employee since 1997.

* Gary Wernlund, regional sales manager of Stiles Machinery, reported on machinery and technology highlights at Ligna-Plus in Hanover, Germany.

* Kap Choi, program manager of FANUC Robotics, presented ideas for integrating robots in woodworking operations to improve productivity and ease ergonomic and safety concerns.

* Rick Kamel, public relations director of Felder Communications Group, explained how the media shapes public perception and why people should be wary of believing everything they see and read.

* Gunter Geiger, president of Gunter Geiger Systems Ltd., challenged wood product companies to optimize their products, processes and operating systems to avoid becoming "Jurassic manufacturers."