54 People, 9 stops, 2 days, 1 GREAT Trip!  

Hammond Lumber Company’s commitment to training truly extended beyond borders this year, with an organized trip of 54 employees who on average have been with the company fewer than 2 years plus a hand full of veterans with more years’ experience. This trip allowed our newer employees to witness quality manufacturing from select vendors that produce windows, doors, decking, siding, shingles, stairway systems and more. The trip consisted of employees from most of our Hammond Lumber stores including all departments; sales, marketing, drafting, yard workers and merchandisers.

First Stop: Duralife Decking!

The Duralife decking factory tour in Biddeford, Maine is an impressive manufacturing facility with quality control and automated processes.  They deliver a consistently high-quality product to the customer who demands the best quality available. Step-Clip is a new product that was presented and tested on the tour, it will save DIYers and contractors significant time (up to 50%) and money when they’re building decks in 2018.

Huttig Building Products, Saco Maine

Huttig representatives demonstrated the latest Therma-Tru products, which included pre-finished doors and flushed glazed slabs. Factory -pre-finishing is a time-saving process for contractors and homeowners, allowing them to select a preferred stain or paint during the order process and receive a finished product ready for installation upon delivery. Following the presentation, Hammond was given a tour of Huttig’s facility where they assemble all components of doors (custom and standard size) to create the finished product.

CertainTeed Shingle Manufacturing Plant, Norwood, MA

Employees witnessed the manufacturing process for CertainTeed asphalt shingles, from start to finish. This company takes pride in lean manufacturing practices to reduce waste and they have made great strides to convert what was once an asphalt landfill into a power generating solar farm! On top of being environmentally responsible, they have an impressive safety record, given the high volume of product and work hours needed to keep up with demand.

Marvin at 7 Tide Showroom, Seaport area of Boston, MA. 

Touring this high-tech showroom, employees immersed themselves in a one of a kind design experience in the Innovation District of South Boston. Visitors discover style possibilities and collaborate on window and door designs in a high tech, high touch environment, while still enjoying a cozy home-feeling environment.

Cleary Millwork, Somerset, MA 

Cleary offers creative solutions by offering many customized prebuilt door and stair systems, including high-end Cooper Stairs, and Captiva Doors. While touring the facility, the group saw the complete process of assembling and finishing staircases and witnessed the complete manufacturing process from raw slabs to assembly for custom doors. Cleary is recognized for their Masonite exterior & interior doors.  The group toured their assembly shop, as well as their pre-finish paint department with state of the art technology.

Reeb Millwork Facility, Smithfield, RI 

The Hammond group got the full tour of REEB’s state of the art learning center and door manufacturing facility. President, Dan Schaffer, and family ownership group member, Josh Ruhle, addressed the group about the long history of Reeb and their plans for continued improvement in 2018. Their manufacturing process has a uniquely efficient design, with the production in the center of their state of the art facility and the supporting processes feeding in and out.

Lockheed Windows manufacturing plant, Pascoag, RI 

Lockheed is a large facility that produces high end vinyl replacement windows, new construction windows and highly engineered custom windows for commercial projects. The group witnessed, from the beginning stages, how all the parts and components come together to create a finished product.

Coastal Forest Products, Bedford, NH 

Here is where Coastal Forest Products houses their Pre-stain/color-matching facility, along with the bulk of their overall inventory. The tour group caught a live snapshot of the EB TY hidden deck fastening system being milled into Red Balau Wood, high-end wood decking. The Warehouse and Yard were well stocked with high-quality products like LP SmartSide, Duralife Decking, Versatex Trimboard, Western Red Cedar Decking and more.

Product Knowledge Translating into Better Customer Care

The Hammond crew returned, energized with a more informed perspective that will add value and enhance the customers’ overall experience. Hammond Lumber has always found creative learning opportunities that will make a lasting impact on its employees, and this tour builds on that commitment.

A special thanks to the vendors who hosted our team with demonstrations, education, tours, food, and hospitality.  This was a unique experience that no participant will soon forget!