Business Opportunities
The WCMA offers several ways to create and identify new business opportunities for member companies.
Each fall, WCMA members tour the production facilities of component, furniture, cabinet, millwork, and related manufacturing companies. These plant tours provide members with a unique opportunity to observe other manufacturing operations and exchange ideas in a friendly atmosphere.
The Annual Conference also includes an educational session designed to cover important topics of interest to component manufacturers including: profitability; costing; markets trends & forecasts; worker safety; certification; human resources; sales & marketing strategies; and technological advances in the industry.
Trade Promotion
The WCMA sponsors several promotional programs for the purpose of promoting the products of our industry and generating more business for our members. Our promotional activities include:
Newsletters and Industry Updates
Newsletters are published to provide our members with useful information concerning WCMA activities and meetings; general business conditions; equipment & products for sale, and major industry developments. Industry updates are sent to all WCMA members on a regular basis via email and provide timely updates on issues affecting component manufacturers. These updates often include statistical data, interesting articles, labor relations news, etc.
Government Relations
The WCMA works closely with our allied associations to protect the wood products industry from unfair or unwarranted legislation or regulations that would have an adverse effect on our industry. The WCMA has been actively involved in removing international trade barriers, wood dust regulations, and the timber supply issue.
Eligibility
Membership is open to any company that manufacturers wood parts. Membership shall be limited to those manufacturers who operate woodworking plants in North America (US, Canada and Mexico) that add significant value in processing wood parts.
Value
Membership in the WCMA pays for itself! Click here to see the value of WCMA member benefits!
The WCMA offers several ways to create and identify new business opportunities for member companies.
- Networking - The number one benefit of membership in the WCMA, according to our members, is the multitude of networking opportunities we offer throughout the year. We strive to offer our members the opportunity to network with other manufacturers across the nation in a non-competitive atmosphere through trade shows, on-line discussion forums, roundtable dinners, plant tours, and other social events. Many WCMA members also take advantage of the opportunities to do business with each other.
- Sales inquiries - Sales leads from component buyers are received by the WCMA on a daily basis. The WCMA responds to each inquiry by sending the customer a list of WCMA members who can produce the component products sought. The specifics of each sales inquiry are forwarded to WCMA members weekly.
- Website Source Guide - The WCMA Source Guide uses a system that can compare a component buyer's needs with our member profiles. This service is provided free of charge to all dimension and component buyers who visit our website. Information from these potential component buyers is sent to all WCMA members for follow up.
- Website Member Listing - Each WCMA member has their own page on the WCMA website with contact information, logo, products produced, machining and species capabilities, as well as a link directly to each member's website.
Each fall, WCMA members tour the production facilities of component, furniture, cabinet, millwork, and related manufacturing companies. These plant tours provide members with a unique opportunity to observe other manufacturing operations and exchange ideas in a friendly atmosphere.
The Annual Conference also includes an educational session designed to cover important topics of interest to component manufacturers including: profitability; costing; markets trends & forecasts; worker safety; certification; human resources; sales & marketing strategies; and technological advances in the industry.
Trade Promotion
The WCMA sponsors several promotional programs for the purpose of promoting the products of our industry and generating more business for our members. Our promotional activities include:
- Trade Shows - The WCMA exhibits at several domestic and international trade shows each year with displays highlighting the various products produced by WCMA member companies. Free copies of the WCMA's Wood Components Buyer's Guide are distributed to interested component buyers and users who visit the association's booth. Sales leads are collected for specific component needs and are passed along to all WCMA members for follow up.
- Involvement with the Real American Hardwood Coalition (RAHC) - The RAHC is engaged in a multi-million dollar promotion campaign that’s designed to inspire and educate consumers on the benefits of Real American Hardwood products. With widespread support, the RAHC unites the collective efforts and resources of the industry to advance American hardwoods as the Naturally Authentic choice. Because
- Wood Components Buyer's Guide - The WCMA's Buyer's Guide is published and released for distribution at IWF and used for all subsequent trade shows and conferences. All WCMA members receive a free listing including contact information, products produced, and machining capabilities. Buyers use this handy reference source to identify suppliers who can make the dimension & component products they need. This Buyer's Guide gives WCMA member companies broad exposure to a wide variety of wood component buyers. This is both a printed edition and a digital online version that can be accessed throughout the year.
- Advertisements - The association supports its members through the use of WCMA advertisements placed in the annual directory and buyer's guide issues of the major woodworking magazines.
- Rules & Specifications for Dimension and Woodwork - The WCMA establishes and maintains rules for measurement and the inspection of component products. A necessary addition to any plants, the Rulebook covers dimension and component grading rules, tolerances, and claim procedures for domestic and export trade. It also serves as a guideline for buyers of dimension and component products when specifying their component products.
Newsletters and Industry Updates
Newsletters are published to provide our members with useful information concerning WCMA activities and meetings; general business conditions; equipment & products for sale, and major industry developments. Industry updates are sent to all WCMA members on a regular basis via email and provide timely updates on issues affecting component manufacturers. These updates often include statistical data, interesting articles, labor relations news, etc.
Government Relations
The WCMA works closely with our allied associations to protect the wood products industry from unfair or unwarranted legislation or regulations that would have an adverse effect on our industry. The WCMA has been actively involved in removing international trade barriers, wood dust regulations, and the timber supply issue.
Eligibility
Membership is open to any company that manufacturers wood parts. Membership shall be limited to those manufacturers who operate woodworking plants in North America (US, Canada and Mexico) that add significant value in processing wood parts.
Value
Membership in the WCMA pays for itself! Click here to see the value of WCMA member benefits!