Press Releases

For media inquiries, contact:

Canyon Creek Cabinet Company
16726 Tye Street SE
Monroe, WA 98272
Phone: (360) 348-4973
Fax: (360) 348-4810
mediainquiries@canyoncreek.com

February 2008

Environmental Agencies Visit Canyon Creek to Review Their Lean & Environmental Successes Over the Past Year

Monroe, WA - February 2008

On February 13, 2008, representatives from four different environmental agencies toured Canyon Creek Cabinet Company to review how the company has incorporated lean and environmental functions into their operations over the past year. As part of the EPA's Lean and Environmental Grant Project, Canyon Creek received funding in 2006 to participate in a pilot program designed to explore, measure and report the benefits of integrating environmental factors into a Lean Implementation Plan. Three of the 10 visitors to Canyon Creek traveled from Washington DC to Washington State to get a first-hand look into how Canyon Creek has utilized the grant funding to improve lean processes throughout its plant.

During the presentation and plant tour, the group was informed of the ways in which the grant has helped Canyon Creek to utilize lean tools—such as value stream mapping—to reduce material handling and assembly, improve product quality and minimize environmental waste. Canyon Creek has an ongoing lean process improvement program and has been addressing environmental issues in their business practices since 1990, winning national and state awards for their efforts and commitment nearly every year.

According to John Earl, environmental manager for Canyon Creek, "I'm really proud of our achievements. It's great they recognize the success of our programs and want to use Canyon Creek as a role model for other companies interested in making changes for better efficiencies and to reduce their impact upon the environment."

Canyon Creek Cabinet Company, located in Monroe, Washington, is a leading manufacturer of affordable custom frameless and framed style cabinetry for kitchens, baths, home offices, entertainment centers, and other rooms in the home. Earning its ISO 9001:2000 quality assurance certification in 2003, Canyon Creek has created one of the most extensive lines of custom cabinetry available.

Canyon Creek has been a recognized leader in the kitchen and bath industry since 1981 and has won many industry awards for its cabinetry and environmental practices. Canyon Creek markets its cabinetry to designers, builders and a select network of dealers and has sales offices and representatives throughout its distribution area.

Canyon Creek Undergoes Laser Paint Training to Improve Finish Application While Reducing Materials & Waste

Monroe, WA - February 2008

Canyon Creek Cabinet Company recently completed a three-day training program funded by the EPA's Lean and Environment Grant Project to train its spray technicians in the use of the LaserPaint® spray gun device. The LaserPaint® tool attaches to a spray gun and features a laser beam that passes through a beam splitter, producing two laser beams that are then projected onto the wood surface. When the spray technician holds the spray gun at the optimal distance, the two laser beams will turn into one dot. The technician then uses that single reference dot throughout the entire spray operation to reduce overspray and improve transfer efficiency.

According to the EPA's Environment Technology Verification program, the technology used by LaserPaint® can increase transfer efficiency by up to 38%. Transfer efficiency is important because it reduces material usage and has environmental benefits by decreasing air and waste emissions.

According to Allan Mustard, Canyon Creek's finishing manager, "This is a great tool for all our sprayers to be trained in the same manner of finish application and will help us to maintain finish consistency and quality throughout the cabinet parts. We also videotaped the training so that we can teach any new technicians the correct techniques right from the beginning and maintain precise control of the fluid flow."