Friends, family, program sponsors and members of the Conestoga community joined graduating students in the Woodworking Technician program on April 27 for the annual student showcase. The showcase featured students’ year-end projects which were judged to determine the winner of the Best in Manufactured Product award.
Vincent Solis won the Best in Manufactured Product Award at the Woodworking Student Showcase on April 27.
Completed projects took more than 100 hours of shop time to finish and included a variety of coffee tables, cabinets, console tables and a jewelry box. Students took inspiration for their work from a variety of sources.
“I designed this in memory of my late mother,” explained Sung Kyong Un, who crafted the jewelry box. “She could not afford nice pieces. For my project I took the box she used and I remade it properly.”
The box included a fold down vanity mirror that rested atop two drawers. Un said the attention he gave to the many mitred edges and the continuous wood grain around the piece presented the greatest challenges.
Judging was completing by faculty members who based their scores on product design and development, craftsmanship and presentation. First place was awarded to Vincent Solis for his piece, the Curvy Console, made of African Mahogany, White Ash and European Sycamore. Solis received $350 and will advance to the Tech@Work competition on May 2, an event that judges final year projects in a variety of technology-related programs.
Brothers Mike and Devin Gallagher finished in second and third place and received prizes of $150 and $50. Mike’s second place coffee table featured a unique waterfall design, while Devin completed a Japanese-inspired coffee table.
During the awards ceremony, Mike Diamond, associate chair of Engineering Technology & Trades Training, extended thanks to faculty, support staff, parents and sponsors and congratulated students on their impressive work.
Dominique Gowin, a Woodworking Technician graduate now employed with award sponsor FS Tool, also congratulated the winners. Livio Passalent of the Architectural Woodwork Manufacturers Association of Canada (AWMAC), Ontario Chapter, presented a $1,000 cheque to the Woodworking Centre. The funds were raised through AWMAC’s annual Al Sparling Memorial Golf Tournament. Sparling was a faculty member in the Woodworking program.
Students in Conestoga’s Woodworking Technician two-year diploma program receive a solid foundation in the skills and technology involved in the manufacture of furniture, cabinets and architectural millwork and training in modern manufacturing techniques.
Conestoga’s Woodworking Centre of Ontario is a 50,000 square foot facility at the Doon campus that ranks among the world’s top woodworking training centres. Students have access to custom woodworking and production training as well as the latest in Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and drafting technology.
For more information, visit the Centre's website.