Kitchen maker

Eric Prole, kitchen maker and factory supervisor at Personal Touch Kitchens. Picture / Sarah Ivey

Name: Eric Prole
Age: 27
Job title: Kitchen maker
Working hours: 7.30am to 5pm
Employer: Personal Touch Kitchens, other kitchen makers, cabinet makers, joiners, builders
Pay: $9/hour for apprentice rising with experience to $20/hour
Qualifications needed: Love of working with hands and timber, an eye for detail
Career prospects: factory manager, business ownership

Describe your job

I get given a plan of the kitchen and we work out the cutting list. We cut out each section we need, buzz it [machine the components], then tape it with the PVC tape and clean off the excess glue and so on. Materials we work with include MDF, Melamine and Melteca.

Once everything has been cut and checked we assemble the carcases and then cut out the colour board for it, and go through the same process with that. Then it's fitted to the kitchen. The kitchen is then semi disassembled, loaded into the trailer, taken to the customer's property and installed.

Most of the time the job goes well and as you get more experienced you know what to look out for. Sometimes measurements can be wrong - it's important to have accurate measurements. Most companies won't make the kitchen [for a new home] until the Gib is on the wall [in the house] so they can get really accurate measurements.

Occasionally I get involved in the design. The designer may call us in for technical details - how things go to together, whether it will work and the ease of doing it.

Why did you choose the job?

I was offered it. I was a wood turner in Auckland for six years and wanted to get out of Auckland when my father in Te Awamutu said he had a vacancy and asked if I would like to give it a try.

Why is the job important?

Kitchens, and bathrooms, which we also do, are the selling point of most homes. And if you go into a new house often the only place you can do anything with is the kitchen.

What's the best part of the job?

The whole package. It's quite nice to see a packet of board come in off the truck at one end and to see it right through to the happy faces of the customers at the other end. The worst times are when it's raining because you have to cover everything up when you are delivering.

It's pretty frustrating when the kitchen doesn't fit but that doesn't happen every often.

What are your strengths?

Attention to detail. You've got to be quite mathematically precise. You've got to be able to use formulas to work out arcs and angles. I'm quite good at that. It's a strength that I'm good with my hands and like working with wood. I'm self-taught.

I used to watch and learn from my grandfather who was a joiner. We could work on advancing the company by being a bit more computer literate so we could use more advanced, computer-controlled machinery.

Is there a typical day?

You might get a couple of days that will be the same when you are making a big kitchen as you are making units all day but most days vary. And every kitchen is different.

Where do you want to be in five year's time?

Probably running the company. I'll have to see what happens.

What's your job hunting advice?

Go around kitchen makers and ask. If no one will give you a start then doing a polytech joiner course will give you some experience.

What are the essential qualities of a good kitchen maker?

Accuracy. And you've got to be a friendly person because you are going into a lot of people's houses.

Any interesting tales?

We've fitted out a horse truck with a kitchen. The horse compartment was done and we made a living area - the beds and kitchen. The owner goes into the bush, parks the truck up and comes back each night.

It's quite cool when you go to baches in nice places, especially if you get to stay the night. And it's quite cool to do show homes where you know lots of people are going to see what you can do and your expertise.