Bill Van Ooyen convened the meeting at 2:30 p.m. Six Additional board members attended including Forrest Fetherolf, Scott Sturman, Dave Sears, Grant Lewis, Dan McLean and Dick Hollis for a grand total of 30 members.

Secretary (Dick Hollis)

The minutes from the September General Meeting were reviewed and approved.

Treasurer (Grant Lewis)

Grant informed the members that Woodchips current balance as of October 12th is $17,797.10. Grant provided a verbal breakdown of revenue and expenses at the request of Bob Haughey.

Membership (Dan McLean)

Woodchips currently has 177 members. The membership includes 41 Foremen (14 are also Monitors) and 30 Monitors. Three additional members joined the club since last month’s minutes. Dan reported that members used the shop on 534 occasions in the month of September.

OLD BUSINESS

Operations (Scott Sturman)

Scott informed the members that a new dado set is available to be used while the existing dado blades are re-sharpened. Scott reminded the members to place tools back in the location which they were removed.

Teo Oruc has been qualified to teach using the dovetail jig. If members would like to be taught and certified to use the jig, they should contact Teo for instruction. As a reminder, clusters 2, 10, 11 and 12B are “by request only.” If a member requires instruction for one of these clusters, contact the individual instructor to arrange a time.

Shop Projects (Forrest Fetherolf)

Forrest informed the members that there have been 50 projects completed so far this year and one project currently in production. Forrest has cut back on promoting shop projects due to the Holiday Project taking precedence.

NEW BUSINESS

Scheduling

Many thanks go out to both Bob Tank and Mike Maxwell for their help in organizing and maintaining the Foremen and Monitor schedules.

Foremen/Monitor Oktoberfest

Many thanks go out to Bob Tank and Ellen Burnell for their hospitality and efforts in making this year’s Foreman, Monitor Instructor appreciation Oktoberfest a success.

Safety (Dave Sears)

Dave reiterated the requirements for wearing safety glasses and urged all members to wear them properly. Dave also reported that there had been damage to a wide belt sanding belt and a Sawstop cartridge had been activated. The Woodchips Board is discussing these issues.

Improved Shop Environment (Ken Andersen)

Ken Andersen informed the members that the air “sock” for the dust collector has been installed and has produced positive results. The sound levels have been reduced from 94 decibels to 68 decibels. Re-insulation of the shop ceiling is still in the 2012 budget.

Shop Cleanliness (Eckhard Fadtke)

Eckhard produced several photos of areas near the lathes that were left with messes and required cleanup. Many tools are not being returned to their proper place and are susceptible to damage and abuse. Please pick up after yourself and think about your fellow Woodchips member.

Holiday Projects (Marcia Goldstein)

Marcia reported that the Holiday Projects seem to be on schedule and the team has produced approximately 487 cars so far. Eckhard reported that he has created approximately 165 boats at this time.

2012 Board Nominations (Bill Van Ooyen)

Bill informed the members that nominations for board positions for 2012 will remain open until next month’s General Meeting at which time a vote will be held to elect a new 2012 Board.

New Financial Reporting Procedures (Grant Lewis)

Grant informed the members of the new reserve account guidelines and asked for a vote of members to approve opening and funding a new account. The members unanimously approved opening the account and funding it with an initial $5,000. Further funding will be discussed at the end of the year to take full advantage of the tax deferrement available to the club.

Shop Usage (Don Schramski)

Don brought an issue to the floor regarding the sporadic use of the shop by many members. His claim is that by not utilizing power tools on a continuous schedule, the operator may lose his or her familiarity with the tool and possibly contribute to an unsafe condition. Don provided the following motion to be voted on: “I propose: Starting January 1st, any member who has only minimally used the shop, as indicated by signing into the data base at the monitor's desk three times or less in the previous calendar year, will have all clusters revoked, except Shop Orientation, and must re-take all clusters pertaining to all machines or tools the member intends to use.”

Upon further discussion, the members elected to table the motion until next month’s General Meeting so that further evaluation and discussion may take place amongst the members to decide their vote. All members are urged and encouraged to attend the next General Member Meeting and cast a vote for this most important issue.

Shop Projects Use of Shop (Bob Haughey)

Bob brought up an issue regarding the number of shop projects being produced in the shop at any given time. Discussion was held by the members and concluded that there are many pros and cons regarding this issue. The general consensus by the members was that the acting Foreman would be responsible to have any shop project relocated and or removed if any member complained that the project was interfering with his ability to work on his or her project. Dick Hollis will send out a reminder to all Foremen that they have the responsibility to act in the members best behalf in such cases.

The meeting adjourned at 3:50 pm.

Dick Hollis

Woodchips Secretary