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The Career Basics of Carpentry

Carpenters are skilled people in crafts making who perform carpentry. Carpentry involves a wide range of woodworking. Constructing may include woodworking, buildings, furniture, and other objects made out of wood. Entering this profession needs on to be informed of the career basics of carpentry.

Of course, knowledge of the chosen profession is important. Passion is not enough to select a field, it is also important to know the nature and necessities a career you’re interested in requires.

Due to intense physical and manual labor this career requires, most of the carpenters are male. Almost 98.5 % of carpenters are male, making it the fourth most dominated occupation in United States.

There are about 1.2 million carpentry jobs in 2002. Most of them are contractors who build or repair buildings. Other carpenters work for manufacturing firms, government agencies, retail stores, and schools. About 30 percent of carpenters are self-employed.

There are different types of carpenters. Knowing each type or occupation description may help future carpenters to decide on what field to specialize. The following are the different types of carpentry jobs:

• Mayster – involved in rough carpentry; includes framing, formwork, roofing and other structural or large-scale work that is not necessarily polished in appearance.

• Joister- involved in putting floor joists. Floor joists are horizontal boards that provide the floor strength in holding the weight.

• Finish carpenter- involved in finish carpentry which is cabinetry, furniture making, fine woodworking, model building, instrument making, parquetry, and other carpentry that require minimal margin of error.

• Trim carpenter- involved in molding and trim like door and window casings, mantle, baseboard and ornamental work.

• Cabinetmaker – involved in cabinet, wardrobe, dressers, storage chests and other furniture making which function is for storage

• Ship’s carpenter- involved in shipbuilding, maintenance and repair, and carpentry specific to nautical needs.

• Scenic carpenter – involved in scenery and set production for films, television and theatre

• Framer- involved in building skeletal structures or frameworks of buildings.

• Roofer- involved and specialized in roof construction especially on rafters, beams and trusses

• Millwrights – involved primarily in metal and with machinery and equipment requiring precision

• Piledrivers – involved in the installation of heavy timbers requiring the use of cranes and the skill of rigging

• Plasterer – mix and apply cement and gypsum based wet plaster to provide a fire-resistant finish to internal surfaces such as walls and ceilings, etc

To gather much knowledge on their chosen profession, carpenters learn their trade through on the job trainings, formal training programmes, vocational education or employer training and apprenticeships. As early as high school, carpentry is already being taught in school trough courses like carpentry, shop, drawing and math.

Apprenticeships combine on the job training and classroom work. Applicants for an apprenticeship are required to be at least 18 years old and pass an exam to see if they have the skills to become a carpenter. The length of the program is usually 3 to 4 years. Starting carpenters learn under the supervision of more experienced practitioners.

Aside from laborious and arduous tasks a carpenter does, carpentry jobs also requires or engage in the following tasks:

• Reading blueprints and/or getting instructions from a supervisor

• Doing the layout including selecting materials, method or work and measuring and marking materials to avoid costly mistakes

• Cutting and shaping materials and joining them together

• Checking completed units to be sure they are level, square, plumb and the right shape, size and location

Knowing the career basic of carpentry of course makes a soon-to-be-carpenter groomed for taking the necessary steps needed to become one.

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Carpentry career is one of the oldest professions. Carpentry dates back to the early days of man using crude tools. Ancient Greeks showed the skills in carpentry through the temples that they have built to show reverence for their gods and goddesses. While in Asia, ancient Japanese also showed their skill in carpentry through the buildings they have constructed. These buildings dates back to 7th century and some of these buildings are still standing up to this day.

We can trace the history of carpentry back to 8000 B.C. During this time, early people are using stone axes to construct their shelters. Several studies and researches showed that early Stone Age Europeans were building rectangular timber houses more than 100 feet long.

Egyptians were already using copper woodworking tools as early as 4000 B.C. These copper made tools evolved into bronze tools used in 2000 B.C. Egyptians were very proficient in drilling, dovetailing, mitering, and mortising wood.

The word carpenter was derived from the Latin word carpentarius. Carpentarius is the person who build the two- wheeled chariots called carpentum in Latin. Roman carpenters were already using adzes, saws, rasps, awls, gouges and planes.

In the Middle Ages, carpenters found work in large towns. They would travel along with their tools to other villages where a major construction project is ongoing. During this age, steel-edged hand tools were already part of the carpenter’s toolbox. Skills in carpentry is already much developed because of the construction of ornate designs for churches and castles.

Carpenter guilds started in the twelfth century. There were three kinds of members in the guild: masters, journeymen and apprentices. The master was a carpenter with much experience and knowledge that takes an apprentice and trains them. The apprentice trained and lived with the master. He is provided with food, clothing and shelter but works without any payment.

After five to nine years, an apprentice can become a journeyman. A journeyman can already work for wages. Eventually, he could become a master. Carpentry guilds were the forerunners of the modern labour unions and associations.

In 1724, Carpenter unions were established to help workers in such things as regulated number of hours. Work hours used to be eleven hours but through the union efforts it was lessened to the present standard of eight hours. Benefits and assistance were also offered to unemployed members.

During the Renaissance period and afterward, carpenters were already constructing splendid buildings in this period. Meanwhile medieval carpenters were already using tools that can be found in modern toolboxes. As a matter of fact, in 1873 the electric power drill was used for the first time. The hand drill was developed in used in 1917. Electric portable saws were being used in 1925.

There was a city literally hammered together in the 1700’s by carpenters. Much of the work was done by slaves that the builders own or hired, but the carpenters worked on the structures, smokehouses, dairies and other outbuildings. They also worked on the brick structures lay-outing. The colonial city that they built is the City of Williamsburg.

Colonial carpenters built the city of Williamsburg and it still stand today. This colonial city prides their historic attractions as testament to the skill of the colonial carpenters. There would be reenactments of colonial life in this city and the construction being done during the 1700s.

Nowadays a carpentry career is much easier with the aid of different electronic tools that make work easier and more efficient. But the heights reached by the current carpentry can never be accomplished without its rich history.

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Carpentry Career Overview

A carpentry career provides many job opportunities. Most of them mainly can be found in the construction industry. But there are also other areas where a carpentry career can take you. But they all have one thing in common- work usually involves manual labor and the extensive use of one’s hands as well as skills in using wood as primary material.

Jobs in carpentry basically consists of cutting, measuring, and building structures with the use of wood alongside other similar materials. Carpenters usually find work constructing houses, commercial businesses establishments and even boats and ships. Carpenters may also find work building roads, wharves, bridges, and many other forms of man-made constructions. Depending on the size and the level of a construction project, a carpenter may take on a heavy or light work load. At times, carpenters can be hired to do some specialized work.

Experience gives carpenters the advantage in work. And with experience, most carpenters learn to specialize in the different aspects of carpentry work. There are carpenters who become experts in doing rough carpentry. There are also other carpenters who become adept in building or constructing framework. There might also be other carpenters who are more skilled in finish carpentry while others specialize in trim and molding work. Other carpenters may also prefer work making cabinets, building ships, or doing home repair work.

Depending on the work projects, carpenters usually have varying work environments. Sometimes carpenters can work indoors and sometimes thy might find themselves working out of doors. But generally, the daily work would be different based on the location. You can say that a carpenter’s work would not be as boring as that of an employee who has to go to the same workplace day in and day out.

Aside from being good with their hands in working with wood, carpenters also have to gain knowledge on other aspects relating to the job. One of them is being knowledgeable with building regulations. This is very important because carpenters have the task of specifying which materials can be used for a construction project. Without this essential knowledge of building regulations, the risk of building unstable and highly dangerous establishments is possible. Without the knowledge of building regulations, carpenters may fail to build up structures that would eventually fail certain building evaluations and assessment.

Although carpenters generally work with wood, not all of them work in the same way ans using only wood as the material. There are carpenters that are also involved in installing and using a variety of other building materials such as concrete, glass, ceramic tiles, doors, and even windows. Other carpenters may also not be involved sole in construction.

There are carpenters that specialize in maintaining and repairing furniture, cabinets and wooden floors. Some might specialize in installing locks, doors or windows. There are also scenic carpenters that work for the entertainment industry. Such carpenters work installing, building and dismantling scenic structures used in film shooting or theater settings.

There are also special carpenters hired mostly by manufacturing firms in order to install, secure or move heavy equipment and machinery.

Building Your Carpentry Career

Anyone interested in pursuing a carpentry career must establish knowledge in the chosen profession. It is important to be trained and certified in the profession we have chosen. Undergoing training and educational programs that will enhance our skill in the selected field would ensure a brighter future ahead.

With carpentry, there are two main types of carpentry to choose from. First is structural carpentry. Structural carpentry deals mainly with buildings. The second one, detail carpentry, is mainly involved with building and restoring furniture and other similar items. Structural carpentry requires more education and experience.

There are some skills necessarily present or needed in order to be good carpenter. Making sure that you’re physically fit is important since carpentry is very much involved in physical and manual labor. Math skills are also needed. For anybody who would like to purse a career in woodworking, wood shop is also important.

High school and college students who are thinking about entering into the carpentry career normally takes additional math courses to have a head start about woodworking.

For people who are no longer in college or high school there are several trade schools and vocational institutions that offer carpentry training programs. Every locality is likely to have a trade school in the area. Trade schools offer carpentry courses along with other courses like automotive or mechanics.

Vocational institutes and trade school offer carpentry practical training, in-depth curriculums and academic knowledge. Students are taught how to read blueprints, understand and comply with building codes, equipment use, foundation layouts, framing and roofing.

Typical coursework for Carpentry programs includes topics such as how to:

• Estimate time and materials for various types of projects

• Read construction plans

• Measure, cut, drill, join, fasten, and finish materials

• Safely use tools, materials and fasteners

• Construct foundations, frames, roofs, and siding

• Install drywall, floors, doors, windows, and trim

• Repair existing structures

Distance learning or online Certificate Programs in Carpentry are also being offered nowadays by accredited collages and vocational schools. This is to offer flexible course timetable to students that may still be involved in current work or personal responsibilities.

Practical training or on the job training is also a prerequisite for soon-to-be carpenters. More experience and knowledge is garnered from hands-on experiences.

There is another form of training called apprenticeship. With apprenticeship, a more-experienced and well-established carpenter is asked to guide or train an interested or starting carpenter. This means a beginner get to work closely with an expert carpenter and learning a lot hands-on.

Carpentry is mostly offered as a specialization, like cabinet making or ship carpentry. Carpentry schools offer courses that enables the student to select if there would be any field he would like to specialize.

Getting the best training in carpentry can help the students get positions in construction and in the building industry. Good training can provide students the understanding needed in this business, making it possible to improve their employment and also salary.

Carpentry is very important to the construction industry and also to the economy. In 2002, in the United States 1.2 million people are in the carpentry industry. It is expected to increase in the years to come. With proper and good training and good skills, carpenters can anticipate a gaining and permanent employment. With a good education and training, your carpentry career is sure to reach sky high.

A Carpentry Career Begins At School

Shop class probably made you fall in love working with tools. It gave you the chance to make a table,  chair or even a bird house. But there are other things you need to learn if you want to pursue carpentry career so after graduating from high school, make it a point to go to carpentry school.

There are many carpentry schools all across the country so you don’t have to move out of town or state. You should first check if this is being offered in the nearby community, technical or vocational college.

If there is one, find out what does their curriculum cover. It should have subjects such as math, estimation of costs of jobs, times and materials, use of equipment and tools as well as various techniques in carpentry.

Another thing you have to consider when you select a carpentry school is which career in carpentry you are striving for. Is it to pursue  a residential or commercial career in carpentry? The difference between the two is that you can start a residential carpentry career in less than half the time it will take to be a commercial carpenter because the latter requires more skills and even certification.

For those who are not sure yet why they want to do, pick a school that offers both residential and commercial carpentry training. This will give you time to study how to install doors, frames, roofing systems, scaffolding and a host of other things making you a well rounded professional.

You should also consider how much the tuition is. Can you afford to study in this school? If you can’t, don’t give up just yet because they may have a scholarship program that you can avail of. Apart from schools in the neighborhood, you can also enroll in such a course online.

You get to learn the same things as though you are in the classroom and at the end, you also get certification upon successful completion. If the program or money is not an issue, the only thing you have to worry about now is the success rate of people who graduated from the program in finding a job. Some of these schools may not have a job placement program which means you have to look for one yourself.

Others are more helpful because they have tie ups with carpenter contractors or with the various carpentry associations. Once you have all the information, try to narrow down your options to at least 3 to 5 schools. You then review what each one can offer to students and which of these is favorable to you. From there, all you have to do now is enroll in be willing to accept the training they are giving you. 

You don’t get a bachelor’s degree in carpentry when you finish a program given by the community, technical or vocational college. What you have in your hand is a simply a certificate of completion which makes you someone qualified to work in that profession.

What you do after you obtain your certificate is up to you. If you want to work right away, find employment as an apprentice. To further enhance your skills, it will be a good idea to pursue higher education so you can work in a specialized field in carpentry. If you want to be your own, then start your own carpentry contractor business. You have a lot of options and going to school is the first step when you decide to pursue a carpentry career.