Tuesday, May 10, 2011

One Window :: A New Beginning

Some of you may have heard about our upcoming move, 58 miles north, to Newmarket, New Hampshire.

This will be the first of many installments describing the transformation of the old textile mill on the Lamprey River that will become our new home.

I could go on and on about all of the reasons why we need to move, but there has been enough chatter about that in the press and on the interwebs... very little of it having any grounding in reality.

All of that polemic aside, the coolest thing about this... full stop... is to be part of bringing life back to what was once a vibrant place of manufacturing jobs.

The window above is the "model" that was installed in advance of all the others in order to gain approval from the historic commission overseeing the old mill's transformation. It's just one of many to come, but exciting to see in the context of what will be, and an apt metaphor for our new outlook.

This is a shot of some of our manufacturing space before it was stripped down to the bare wood and brick.

The shot below is after the sand-blasting and just after the new lightweight, reinforced concrete floors were poured.
The floors have since been stained and polished, and the crews are in framing up the walls for the locker room, break room, photo studio, office area, showroom, etc..

Each day now something new takes shape, and it is really gratifying to work with such a fine group of folks led by Chinburg Builders, the developer/builder for the entire project.

Just yesterday, Dave and Rob from Spray Booth Services were in laying out our new down-draft paint system, built in the USA by Garmat.

Its also funny how bike people have a habit of finding other bike people, and we've been fortunate to connect with some amazing crafts-people who also share a passion for bikes.

Fred Loukes of Salmon Falls Woodworks, an avid roadie, is making a 24 linear foot bar/service area out of Leeds certified materials and recycled steel, along with our custom lockers and tables.

Jonathan Rummel, of Hand Forged Works, an avid MTB'er, is hand-forging fixtures and racks out of new and re-purposed metals.

Now that things are really starting to come together, we're getting excited, and look forward to sharing progress with you over the coming weeks.

G.


4 comments:

Dave said...

Gary,

Just leave a small corner for me to visit and bring a cot. I don't eat much and sweep like nobody's business!

Cannot wait to see more!


Dave

KOM Challenge said...

This is an exciting move for IF. We totally support it and know the great people of IF will thrive in their new home. Well done.

Scott

Dan O said...

Looking forward to see the place take shape. Good luck in your new home.

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