National Hardwood Magazine - Christmas 2022

CORLEY MANUFACTURING Continued from page 27
A rebuilt CNC mill with a 24-ft. x 7-ft. x 4-ft. capacity
is shown machining a carriage frame.
gineering. It’s a different workforce now,
said Jack, than before the company embarked
on its progressive evolution of internal
improvements. Jack commented,
“For a century we, like most businesses, existed on common knowledge
handed down generation to generation. But today’s workforce is
not going to allow that to continue. They want to know they are working
for a company that is ever-evolving and investing in smart technology,
and documenting procedures rather than relying on the generational
knowledge.”
Concise, accurate software in tandem with today’s cutting tool technology,
said Jack, “is allowing processes to speed up exponentially. The
proven theory is that we stay relevant to our customers by turning out
more equipment faster. Supply chain issues, getting materials fast – all
of this plays a role. And in a manner, we, like many companies contribute
to the supply chain issues because where in the past we may have
ordered 10 pieces of material, today we buy 40 so we have plenty on
hand. But it’s necessary to do that. Our investment in our inventory is
probably up 45 percent in the last 24 months.”
Products manufactured are many. Chuck stated, “Our product line
ranges from the log conveyors to the trimmer and, for the most part,
everything in between. The list includes optimized carriages, carriage
drives, band mills, line bar resaws, horizontal resaws, conventional
edgers, optimized edgers, gangs, trimmers, as well lumber handling
equipment.
“We are to a degree a custom-built machinery manufacturer. We do
not have a cookie cutter approach. We build machines to fit our custom-
Corley has made major capital investments in CNC machine tool
technology, beginning with a large lathe, and followed by a large
capacity bridge mill machining center. Pictured is a bridge mill's
fourth axis finishing up a carriage wheel.
ers’ individual needs and operation. We’ll do our best to
accommodate our customers.”
Part of that quest to accommodate the customer is
embodied in Corley's efforts to provide accurate optimization
support. To do that, they purchased Lewis Controls
in 1981. Lewis was founded over 50 years ago and
in '81 Corley recognized the value Lewis would bring onboard.
Chuck commented, "With the expertise in scanning
and optimization available through Lewis Controls,
we have been able to improve our machinery as new
technology becomes available.
Jack offered, "We are not going to be the low-price
leader in everything, but if we provide the best longterm
value to our customers, then we have achieved
our goal – and if that means a piece of our equipment
performs well on the job for 25 to 30 years, our goal has
been met."
Corley Mfg. has support technicians available by
phone 24/7. They also have experienced depth in their
key positions, such as sales. These include Keith Price,
Jim Burris, Doyle Kitchens and Rick Gerard.
Not only does Corley install equipment within the
U.S., but they have installed several systems in British
Columbia, South Africa, South America and Europe.
Corley has been a long-standing member of several
lumber industry associations. Among them are: National
Hardwood Lumber Assoc., Hardwood Manufacturers
Assoc., Appalachian Hardwood Manufacturers Inc., Indiana
Hardwood Lumbermen's Assoc., Kentucky Forest
Industries Assoc., Virginia Forest Products Assoc. and
Southwestern Hardwood Manufacturers Club.
Memberships in industry associations are an investment,
and a worthy one for a company that continues to
improve and grow, noted Chuck. n
To learn more, visit www.corleymfg.com.
Have a Happy Holiday!
We appreciate your patronage and thank you for your friendship.
We specialize in manufacturing fine, plain sawn Walnut, and rift and quartered White
Oak. We also produce Red Oak and Soft Maple lumber, and, all our lumber is sawn in 4/4
through 12/4 thicknesses, sold green and rough. The lengths of our lumber are from 6 feet
up to 14 feet. We produce about 3,000,000 board feet of lumber a year. To better serve
you we also have modern sawmill equipment such as a McDonough 7-foot, 17 degree slant
headrig, a Cleereman carriage and a Pendu four saw edger.
Call us at (641) 722-3348 when we can be of service!
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