2594 



Chapter 22 



Figure 22-1 3. — Location of principal kitchen cabinet manufacturers in the United States. 

 (Drawing after Lindell and Klippel 1972.) 



period, purchases of hardwood lumber and plywood decreased from 53 to 43 

 percent of total raw material cost (fig. 22-14). 



Purchases of cabinet doors and door skins were about 17 percent of total 

 purchases in 1970. (A door skin is the outer visible sheet of material on a panel 

 door.) Hardwood plywood doors were dominant, accounting for nearly two- 

 thirds (by value) of all cabinet door purchases. Plastic and plastic-overlaid doors 

 made up another fourth; the rest were of softwood plywood and miscellaneous 

 materials. About 42 percent of the purchased hardwood plywood doors were 

 birch, and nearly 30 percent were oak. Maple, cherry, walnut, and other hard- 

 woods made up the remainder. 



FURNITURE PLANT LOCATION 



As noted previously, 46 percent of the workforce in the furniture industry is in 

 the South. From a poll of furniture manufacturing firms in Virginia and North 

 Carolina, Brock and Hilliard (1977) found that the primary consideration in 

 locating new plants was availability of skilled and unskilled labor. Other impor- 

 tant requirements included transportation facilities, accessibility to regional 

 markets, and availability of raw materials. Many furniture plants, particularly 

 small ones in West Virginia, were located in a particular place because that place 

 was the owner's home. 



