Our Process
A Farm to Cabinet Process
Step 1: The Wood
First things first. Buy up hardwoods. Lots of them. I tell everyone we are a “woods to home” cabinet shop. We start purchasing hardwoods and logging them during the slow months November – March. The process is much easier during the cold months when the ground is frozen and collecting the logs is made easy by not fighting the mud. The Indiana Hardwoods are full of Black Walnut, Hickory, Soft Maple, Cherry Poplar and Oak.
Why do we log our own wood? To keep the price down. By logging, milling, drying and processing our own hardwood we are able to keep the overall price of the cabinets down. I would say this is just one of the major factors that set us apart from any other cabinet factory.
Rabers is at the pinnacle of the cabinet making industry. Even among the Amish community, Rabers is held to higher standard. They are the oldest factory in their community, and have employees that have worked there for nearly 45 years. Not such a hard thing to do when you stop in the 8th grade, and follow your father’s footsteps.
Step 2: The Details
Pick a basic design or theme that fits the vision of your home. We then create detailed 3D drawings that reflect your style and functionality.
Once the drawings are approved, it’s off to colors and door styles. If we don’t already have the look you are looking for in-stock, we will make a sample that exceeds your expectations in color and style.
Step 3: Measure
Measure, measure, measure. Then measure once more, mistakes in the cabinet industry are often very costly. The one cost we can’t replace is time. To avoid this problem, we measure each job multiple times to make sure everything will fit exactly right.
Step 4: Build
Build. Once we have started on your project there will still be questions to answer. The reason being is its custom for you. Every detail has to be covered so when it’s installed; it’s perfect for you and your home.
Step 5: The Install
We have 2 choices for installation:
Option 1) We have our local cabinet installers put them in. This being said, our local installers are all highly trained cabinet carpenters that do an exceptional job with an eye for detail.
Option 2): The Amish installers will bring the cabinets down and install them. It may sound crazy, but we often pay the Amish to come down and install our cabinets. They do an excellent job. And you have a great story to tell.
