bradeholley

"That's the best hand he's ever gonna have". That's what the surgeon said after he managed to save my patient's thumb averting what would have been a bilateral hand amputation (his other hand was removed 1/3 of the way to his elbow). The damage was substantial and if he haden't been able to save the thumb he would have amputated this hand as well.
We worked together the next four months to increase his hand's range of motion, focusing on tasks such as gripping a spoon, fastening buttons, turning doorhandles, and shaving with an electric razor. His other arm would be fitted with a prosthetic and he would eventually learn how to tie shoe laces although he preferred the ease of velcro.

I began to appreciate that in spite of the numerous advances in bioengineering and prosthesis nothing can take the place of your hand's function. Although this example wasn't the result of a woodworking accident (industrial) it's a sobering example of how fast an accident can occur (in spite of years of experience and numerous safety courses) and how lasting the results can be.

The financial arguments are valid, an extra grand for flesh-sensing technology beats a 50K+ bill from the surgeon (although here in socialist Canada my client walked out of the hospital with only a bill for parking. Tommy Douglas, look him up) however the functional argument deserves some attention. We're born with two hands (few exceptions) and two hands are somehow more than twice as good as one. We have the technology to be safer than ever before, why not embrace it?

Sawstop is to woodworking what the HANS device is to Nascar racing. I'm buying one as soon as I can.

Thanks for writing this article Mr. Bois, it has definitely got people talking. The difference between custom and production is important to point out; as a hobbyist I have struggled with applying a pricing strategy to it.
My experience to this point includes making items for family members in which I only charge for materials and perhaps a new saw blade. I've also donated a few items for auction fundraisers where I grappled with assigning a value to them.
In the future I'd like to supplement my income by making both custom and production items but at the price my work might fetch I'd be better off looking for work at a local hardware store. After reading some of the other posts on this topic it's clear that many of us don't do it for the money alone. Indeed a great deal of satisfaction can be drawn from working with a consumer and delivering a finished project.
If you asked me right now the end my answer to the "How to price your work" question is this: 15$/hr or 4x cost of materials.
Thanks again