Final Days Abroad

The morning broke on my last full day in Germany with the first real hint of wintry weather. High on the hillsides tree branches were covered with frost. First thing on the agenda was a trip to the Festool manufacturing facilities. We toured the plants and got a ground floor view of how the tools are made and the super efficient methods in place to create them.
Then we went back to Festool’s headquarters for a discussion of the importance of exceptional quality and the methods they use to ensure it and test for it. Dr. Hartmut Frei, the head of Festool’s quality assurance program began by giving us some definitions of what exactly quality is: to the worker, to Festool and to their customer. I have to say that I was worried the Dr. Frei’s quiet demeanor portended a less than scintillating lecture. But as soon as he started talking about the testing done to determine tool durability, my fears were allayed. Dr. Frei’s eyes lit up and he became much more animated as he began flinging expensive power tools around to room and bouncing them off the floor to demonstrate the abuse they put the tools through prior to their initial production runs. He employs an entire staff of people whose only job is to break Festool tools by misusing them. It was enlightening and entertaining.
After that, we embarked on a tour of a local furniture making company. They are a customer of Festool and use Festool products in their production. They produce modern styled furniture of solid hardwoods. After we went through their shop, we then visited their showroom. It was very impressive.

While the day’s events were enlightening, it was a long day of activity. The visit to Festool opened my eyes to their heartfelt philosophy that Festool holds to. Exceptional quality in power tools creates durable tools that enable woodworkers to be more effective. This creates a value equation that works exceedingly well for both the customer and the toolmaker. What became crystal clear is that the folks at Festool believe in this methodology completely. And their success over the last several years seems to be all the proof that is needed.

Photos top to bottom: Frost on a German hillside. An example of high quality furniture. Festool drill drivers on a well used workbench. Woodworking editors on a workshop tour. Some clever shop made knock-down joints fixtures. A cabinetmaker apprentise working on a bed frame.