What wastage % should I use for solid hardwood vs sheet goods?
Treat them as separate material types. Solid hardwoods with grain or knot constraints typically run 15–22%, with figured species (curly maple, rippled sapele, fiddleback) at the upper end. Engineered sheet goods such as MDF and birch ply usually run 5–8% on simple cut-lists, rising to 12–15% when grain match or veneer-direction is enforced. The single most useful change is to stop applying one number across the catalogue and start tracking actual wastage per species; after three months you have your own benchmark, not Janss Lumber's.
Glossary: wastage percentage→
How do I price CNC time vs hand-assembly time?
Build them as separate rate cards. Machine time carries tooling wear, consumables, energy, depreciation and operator supervision; hand assembly carries skill premium and finishing time. Activity-based costing (Saylor Academy, Corporate Finance Institute) is the formal framework — but practically, a joinery shop only needs three to five rates: bench, machine, finishing, install, and supervision. Each rate should be loaded (wages + statutory + benefits + non-billable absorption). When the quote splits hours across rates, machine margin stops getting given away as bench labour.
Glossary: variance→
How do I track offcuts across jobs without it becoming a paperwork burden?
Track only what is reusable. A 1.2 m piece of oak in a profile your shop runs regularly is worth logging; a 60 mm trim end is not. The practical rule used in shops with mature offcut systems: log if the residual length is at least the smallest commonly-cut component for that species (often around 300 mm for solid timber, 600 mm for sheet goods). Slabr's Inventory module records species, thickness, width and length so the next quote can pick the offcut up at proper cost — preserving cost on the originating job rather than transferring free material forward.
Glossary: offcut→
What’s a healthy gross margin for kitchen joinery?
Gross margin in custom kitchen joinery is highly geography- and positioning-dependent, so any single number is illustrative rather than benchmark. Pro Builder and Procore publish primers showing residential construction trades commonly target 25–35% gross margin on installed work, with bespoke custom shops at the upper end of that range and volume cabinetry below it. The number that matters is whether your closeout margin matches your quoted margin — a 30% quoted job that closes at 18% is the leak, not the headline target.
Glossary: gross margin→
How do I handle change orders mid-build?
Treat every change as a documented variation linked to the original quote. Industry standard contracts (AIA A201 Article 7, NEC4 Clause 61.3) require notice and pricing of changes before the work proceeds — late notice is exactly how change scope ends up unpaid. In Slabr, a change spawns a quote revision against the same job with a separate margin line; the client approves the revised total in the portal, the spec snapshot updates, and the production floor sees the revised drawing. The original closeout report shows base scope vs variation revenue separately.
Glossary: sign-off→
Can I import my supplier price list?
Yes — supplier catalogues import via CSV with species, profile (width × thickness), grade, unit (lin.m, m², sheet), and unit cost. Slabr keeps cost history per supplier so price moves are versioned: when a timber merchant raises sapele 8%, your saved quote templates flag the impacted lines for review rather than silently re-pricing approved work. Sheet goods, hardware, edge banding and finishing consumables sit in the same catalogue, each with their own wastage factor.
Glossary: bill of materials→
