It was quite surprising to discover that this well-known quote states: “Necessity is the mother of invention”Plato, over 2000 years old, made the following statement: The thing that I was most surprised by wasn’t Plato who wrote the quotation, but rather the fact it is still true today.
Every day seems like a brand new product is being introduced. “APP”That will improve the world. We will come across many ideas that we don’t understand. Some that we find difficult to use and others that we are not relevant to our lives, while some we love.
There is always a story behind inventions. Lee Jesberger is a Sewell-based woodworker who owns a custom cabinet shop. He was offered a job to construct cabinets for his client. According to the contract, cabinets should be made from cabinet-grade plywood. It would take 94 plywood sheets to make all the cabinets. Lee found himself in the shop alone on the day when the cabinets were due to be made.
Lee’s shop is typical of cabinet shops and has all the usual tools. A table saw can be found in the centre of the shop. The saw was well-placed to allow for the full 4’x8′ plywood sheets. Lee had to cut these sheets himself and there wasn’t a way for him to hold them as they were being cut. You will be able to see the difficulty if you’ve ever attempted to cut one sheet of plywood yourself. Rolling stands are possible, however they must be placed correctly. “just so”Or they will not catch the wood while it’s being moved around the saw. Roller stands can also fall over when they are hit with plywood. It is common for this to happen at the most inconvenient time. You have to balance the weight of the plywood on the table so that the saw blade does not bind or fall. Also, you need to be aware of how the blade spins. This will allow you to cut 94 sheets in this manner. We needed a better support system for plywood at both the in-feed and out-feed sides of the blade. It could definitely be considered a “Necessity”
This woodworker turned inventor was determined to create a better way to support plywood on both the outfeed and infeed sides of his blade. He realized that simply attaching a fixed roll system to the out feed and infeed sides of the blade wasn’t the right solution. There are many times when you don’t need or want the roller attached. Therefore, an easy to install and remove system was necessary.
The idea was not perfected and it took some more tweaking to make the roller stand work. It only works in one direction. Forward or backwards. But what if the plywood needed to be moved in another direction? All this led to the creation of EzeeFeed In and Out Feed Systems.
If I’m correct in my understanding of the story, the original prototype wasn’t particularly attractive. The prototype was constructed from wood available at the local shop. To make the device functional, some parts from local shops were used. However, it still worked. While the wood frame became less useful over time and the metal frame got some refinements, it is still a good idea. Check out the Ezee Feed. You’ll be amazed at the results of necessity!
While I do not believe Plato could ever have imagined modern woodworking technology I think he would appreciate it. Invention comes from necessity.