2013 Winners

Announcing the 2013 Winners of the Second Annual PureBond Quality Awards

Twelve winners in four project categories, Residential Kitchen, Residential Bath, Residential Other, and Commercial, were chosen by a team of expert judges. Selections were made based on use of PureBond® hardwood plywood in a project that lead to a quality finished project.

“The PureBond Quality Awards is a way for Columbia Forest Products to annually recognize the world-class work being produced by our PureBond Fabricator Network members,” said Director of Marketing Todd Vogelsinger. “We created a partnership of craftsmen who build quality custom woodwork for residential and commercial clients using our flagship PureBond brand of hardwood plywood. For the past several years, we’ve admired their work so much, that we thought an annual competition would be a great way to spotlight their accomplishments.”

Residential Kitchen

• First Place : Fitucci Cabinets
• Second Place : Fairfield County Millwork
• Third Place : Rivendell Woodworks, Inc.

Residential Bath

• First Place : Lewis & Weldon Custom Cabinetry, LLC
• Second Place : Wm. H. Fry Construction
• Third Place : Fitucci Cabinets

Residential Other

• First Place : d. KISER design.construct, inc.
• Second Place : NR Hiller Design, Inc.
• Third Place : Fairfield County Millwork

Commercial

• First Place : Fairfield County Millwork
• Second Place : Bradco Kitchens
• Third Place : K&Z Cabinet Co., Inc.

Residential Kitchen

The first place winner of the Residential Kitchen category is Fitucci Cabinets of Van Nuys, CA. The winning design was for an oceanfront contemporary which highlighted an open floor plan that used natural surfaces, such as walnut cabinetry and PureBond cases throughout the home to echo the spectacular ocean views and create a functional yet beautiful living space.

“Awareness of green products for the construction industry has been on the rise. For me as a cabinetmaker who uses ONLY PureBond panels for my box construction, this is a very important sales point. I found this to be a very important tool in the presentation of my product and this project was no different.” Says Eric Fitucci of Fitucci Cabinets.

The second place winner is Fairfield County Millwork of Bethany, CT with an impressive kitchen featuring knotty pine cabinets, paneling and trim that used PureBond Maple hardwood plywood. Third Place goes to Rivendell Woodworks, Inc. of Concord, CA with a lovely kitchen created using pre-finished PureBond hardwood plywood.

Residential Bath

The first place winner of the Residential Bath category is Lewis & Weldon Custom Cabinetry, LLC of Hyannis, MA. The winning design was for a new construction located near water, so with that in mind, a fabulous bath was created that not only gave the family the functional space that they requested but in conjunction with all wood materials, which included our White Maple PureBond hardwood plywood, gave them a moisture resistant environment.

“The clients home was located near the water so they wanted an all wood product that was moisture-resistant, produced in the U.S and was created formaldehyde-free, an exclusive from PureBond. And with the widest variety of quality veneers and reliable cores found anywhere, why would we choose anything else?” per Lewis & Weldon.

The second place winner is Wm. H. Fry Construction of Cupertino, CA with a luxurious guest bath featuring PureBond hardwood plywood backed with Maple. Third Place goes to Fitucci Cabinets of Van Nuys, CA with a lovely contemporary bath with cabinetry made with our PureBond.

Residential Other

The Residential Other category which was open to projects like built-ins, furniture and closet systems, was won for the second year in a row by d. KISER design.construct, inc. of Omaha, NE, a small custom studio. The winning entry is one in which d.KISER assisted an architectural firm in designing many of the homes special features in addition to the just cabinetry. The piece de resistance (and the winning entry) is the fireplace made with Hickory PureBond that also houses the entertainment center and functions as a hallway blocking the public space from the private.

“The Purebond product we used met the needs of the client by being low VOC and having no added formaldehyde. This was a concern because they have two young children. In addition when people see the space and the talk becomes technical, it is a nice point to say that the soy based adhesive used in the panels was inspired by mussels sticking to rocks in the Pacific Ocean.” said Doug Kiser of d. KISER.

The second place winner with a wonderfully creative furniture submission of a “Sneaky Bar” was NR Hiller Design, Inc. of Bloomington, IN. Third places goes to Fairfield County Millwork of Bethany, CT for a knotty pine trophy room.

Commercial

The Commercial category was open to any commercial application, which resulted in a winning submission courtesy of Fairfield County Millwork of Bethany, CT. The winning entry is the world headquarters for Peoples Bank located in Bridgeport, CT and features a radius teller line and a custom round circulation desk using Santos Rosewood and Wenge veneer over a pre-finished Maple PureBond core.

Fairfield notes that “Air quality and sustainable resources are a re-occurring theme as to what matters most to our clients PureBond panel products with no VOC’s offers the best of both worlds, a quality product that is environmentally friendly and managed from sustainable renewable resources.”

The second place win was taken by Bradco Kitchens of Los Angeles, CA with a working kitchen for Sur La Table, a major retailer of high-end cookware, bake ware utensils and small appliances. Third place went to K&Z Cabinet Co., Inc. of Ontario, CA for the LA Harbor College, Science Complex.

The panel of PureBond Quality Awards judges included William Sampson, the editor of CabinetMaker+FDM Magazine, with a lengthy history in publishing, woodworking and business; Eric Pfeiffer, an award winning product designer and co-author of “Bent Ply: The Art of Plywood Furniture;” Whitney Gainer and Ashley Turner, the two sisters behind the Shanty2Chic blog which teaches followers how to transform their homes on a budget with DIY projects and How-To Tutorials, and Kiersten Hathcock, the creator and creative mind behind the popular and eco-friendly Mod Mom Furniture line.

The criterion for the winners was simply demonstrating “quality” use of PureBond hardwood plywood. “The contest has grown and we received about 50 percent more entries this year, all of which were impressive and instructive,” said Todd Vogelsinger. “We are very pleased with the participation among our PFN members and plan to hold the contest again in 2014.”

First place winners received a $1,000 Visa gift card. The second and third place winners receive $250 and $100 Visa gift cards respectively.

Columbia’s formaldehyde-free PureBond® technology was a major breakthrough in the engineered wood panel market. Developed by Columbia Forest Products in conjunction with scientists at Oregon State University, the first PureBond® hardwood plywood panels were produced in 2005. Since then, more than 50 million have been shipped.

PureBond® formaldehyde-free technology continues to be a market differentiator for woodshops that cater to a health-conscious clientele. Over 850 fabricators have joined the PureBond Fabricator Network to identify themselves as leading-edge suppliers who are thoughtful about the materials they use and the concern customers have with good indoor air quality and home resale value.

To join the PFN, click here.