In this episode of Verify In Field, host Jacob Edmond sits down with Bruce Chezem, longtime Cabinet Vision consultant, shop owner, educator, and host of the Cabinet Vision Minute podcast. From his start in cabinetmaking as a young firefighter to running his own shop during the Great Recession and now helping hundreds of businesses optimize their software and workflows, Bruce has seen it all.
Together, they explore what’s possible when millwork professionals stop working against their software and start building around it. This conversation dives deep into estimating, integration, team development, and the traps shops fall into by sticking to outdated workflows. Whether you’re a one-person shop or a 30-seat drafting department, this episode is full of practical wisdom and mindset shifts.
About Our Guest
Bruce Chezem is a Cabinet Vision consultant, software educator, and former shop owner based in California. His company, Craftsman Engineering, offers training and consulting services for shops of all sizes, with a focus on real-world application, not just tool navigation. Bruce is also the creator of Cabinet Vision Minute, a podcast and video series dedicated to helping millwork professionals level up their software skills and engineering systems.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- How Cabinet Vision Really Works: Why most shops are using just a fraction of what Cabinet Vision can do and how to model your products around your business, not the other way around.
- From Furniture to Firefighter to Software Consultant: Bruce shares his winding career path, from building computer furniture in the ’80s to running a shop during the 2008 crash and what he learned when it all collapsed.
- The Problem with Legacy Habits: Many users carry outdated workflows from older software versions. Bruce explains why clinging to old UCS scripts and workarounds often holds shops back.
- What’s New with Connections in Cabinet Vision: Learn how the “connections manager” has replaced clunky UCS workarounds and why this feature makes building smarter libraries easier than ever.
- The No-Draw Estimate: Bruce’s Custom Approach: Discover how Bruce built a no-draw estimating workflow that uses Cabinet Vision’s order entry screen cutting pre-sale work hours drastically and improving accuracy.
- Integration Isn’t Always About APIs: Bruce shares how smart data structure, product libraries, and software modeling often solve more problems than external integrations.
- The Role of Documentation in Growth: From checklists to training videos, Bruce advocates for documenting everything, from engineering processes to job folder naming, so teams can grow without chaos.
- The Power of Internal Talent: Your next great drafter might be sanding doors in the back. Bruce emphasizes the importance of morning huddles, internal promotion, and investing in people already aligned with your shop’s vision.
Key Insight: Your Software Should Work for You
Whether you’re pricing a job, building a library, or setting up workflows, Cabinet Vision is a modeling tool, not a magic box. The most successful shops use it to reflect how they actually build, not how the software was originally configured.
Where to Learn More
- Company Website: https://craftsmanengineering.com/
- Contact Bruce:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bruce-chezem-draw/
- Patreon: https://Patreon.com/PeelingbackCabinetVision
- A Cabinet Vision Minute: https://www.youtube.com/@aCVMinute
- Email: admin@craftsmanengineering.com
- Other important Links:
- Essential Cabinet Vision Packages: https://shop.craftsmanengineering.com/
- A Useful Checklist: https://craftsmanengineering.com/blog/creating-and-documenting-job-cabinet-vision-40-steps
- Blog: https://craftsmanengineering.com/blog
Final Thoughts
Bruce’s journey proves that great software isn’t just about features—it’s about how you use them. Whether you’re struggling with outdated UCS scripts, trying to quote faster, or building your first cabinet catalog, this episode will help you rethink your process and move forward with confidence.