Oneida Air Products Featured
Dust Gorilla® Pro
Dust Sentry
Company
Stolar Studios (Ontario, Canada)
stolarstudios.ca
Equipment
Felder Hammer A3-41 Jointer Planer
Shaper Origin® CNC Router
King Edge Sander
SuperMax 36” Drum Sander
SawStop® Table Saw
Background
Stolar Studios is a custom furniture shop in Burlington, Ontario run by husband and-wife team Mike and Sarah Gojsic. Prior to the pandemic, they concentrated on boutique furniture design, producing one-of-a-kind pieces for about 20 high-end customers a year. In the last year they’ve regrouped and changed their business model, pivoting to children’s furniture.
“With two kids of my own,” says Mike Gojsic, “I noticed that as they get older, we have to buy them new furniture. Every parent has to do this eventually. So, if parents bought children’s furniture from us and liked it, we could earn their trust and build customer relationships that lasted for a lifetime.”
Thus they launched the Montessori Kids Collection—affordable children’s furniture made from Baltic Birch with a low VOC finish. In 2021, they’ve averaged 6-7 pieces a week for 50-60 customers total.
The Challenge
Gojsic began to notice that his 2HP canister filter dust collector wasn’t doing enough. If he ran his table saw and jointer at the same time, there was a massive drop in suction from the collector. This correlated with an increase in dust throughout the shop. “There was a lot of surface dust at the end of the day,” said Gojsic. Cleaning was also cutting into his production time. “I’d spend half a day every month deep cleaning and sweeping the shop,” he said. Another frustration was the plastic waste bags attached to his collector, which would regularly leak dust back into the shop air. Efficiency being paramount to his output, Gojsic set out to find a better dust collection system.
The Solution
After consulting with several local retailers, Gojsic finally found what he was looking for—the Oneida Air Systems 5HP Dust Gorilla Pro—at Welbeck Sawmill in Durham, Ontario. His decision was made even easier by the fact that the collector was made in the U.S. “It was important to me to buy North American made,” said Gojsic.
The Results
After setting up the Dust Gorilla Pro in his shop, Gojsic knew right away that it was a worthwhile investment. “I could tell it had more power than my old collector,” he said, remarking on the rapid acceleration of the motor’s impeller at startup.
“It’s night and day from what I used to have,” he said. “I was blown away by it’s chip collection from my Felder Hammer A3-41 Jointer Planer,” he said. Moreover, he was no longer experiencing the suction woes of his former setup. With the Dust Gorilla Pro’s Smart Boost® technology, which monitors for suction loss and automatically adjusts the fan’s motor speed to compensate, he could run two to three machines at once without compromising airflow.
Even better, Gojsic says, are the efficiencies he’s gained from his now near spotless shop. He went from deep cleaning for half a day (roughly four hours) once a month to a few minutes of spot cleaning—regaining nearly six working days a year (1).
The Dust Gorilla Pro’s filter maintenance is quick and simple according to Gojsic. “It’s all speed. It’s so easy to take the four screws out of the filter pan,” he said. He was also pleased with how the Dust Sentry, included with the Dust Gorilla Pro, further increased his efficiency in the shop. “I’m not constantly having to go down and clean my lines out because my drum overfilled. When the Dust Sentry’s red light turns on, I know it’s time to empty the drum.”
“On a scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being the highest level of satisfaction, I’d say I’m 1000 times satisfied with the Dust Gorilla Pro,” he said. “Put it in the corner of your shop; your lungs will thank you,” he said.
Does your shop need a dust collection upgrade?
Call Oneida Air Systems today to speak to a technical sales representative for a free shop needs assessment.
(800) 732-4065 Mon-Fri 8:30am-5pm EST
*1. Assuming a previous cleaning regimen of 4 hours per month or 48 hours per year and a new regimen of 10 minutes per month or 120 minutes (2 hours) per year, total time regained is 46 hours per year or 5 full working days, 8 hours each, plus 6 additional hours.
© 2021 Oneida Air Systems. All rights reserved.