Students on the HND Practical Product and Spatial Design course were lucky enough to visit Lawcris in Leeds, to see first hand their impressive Creative CNC department.

The woodworking industry is extremely diverse, so this visit provided the students with the level of information they need to make an informed career choice ahead of leaving the two year course . As woodwork encompasses a number of vocations, some site-based, others in a workshop and like every business, has the day-to-day occupations like management, accounts, marketing, sales; it was important that the students are armed with the right information and there is no better way than visiting the industry experts and seeing it first hand.

Lawcris invited the students and staff along to follow them through regular daily operations at their main 167,000 sq ft site in Cross Green, Leeds and  were given a detailed tour of the warehouse which stores five million pounds worth of panel products. With 28 forklifts and 7 loading bays, the students were able to witness the mammoth operation that sees Lawcris manage over 500 deliveries on a daily basis.

As the Practical Product & Spatial Design course gives students the opportunity to investigate and experience design using CNC machinery to realise contemporary projects, students were very keen to see how Lawcris’ Creative CNC department fulfil designs and orders, from concept CAD drawings to realised finished products.

They then ventured off to the Creative CNC facility, located on a nearby site. Stuart Hall, General Manager, met and took them through the different departments within their CNC operation: Cutting, Edging and Routing, explaining their use of Magi-Cut software and presenting each piece of machinery in detail.

Neil McCormack, Course Leader, said of the visit “Allowing students to see the daily operation and build up their knowledge of the different skills required to run a company of this size is invaluable. We only have an 8 x 4 size CNC and giving the students the opportunity to see full size routers in operation is fantastic. Many questions were answered and the students went away buzzing with many ideas of how they want to progress in their training.”

Lawcris has an enviable reputation as one of the most successful independent companies supplying panels and panel services to the UK market. Lauren Barker, Head of Marketing, adds, “We always support any chance to unite and inspire anyone looking to get into our industry. The students experienced things that cannot be taught in the classroom as well as gaining contacts that they may not have been exposed to. We loved meeting them, it was really encouraging. They are our future.”