Discovering the Beauty of Wood in the French Alps with Wood-Mizer Equipment

"In the Savoye region, wood is alive all the time. Even if it's cut, it still lives and serves the people," claims Yvan Cometto, a carpenter from a small village in the French Alps. In his company YC Charpente, Yvan makes wood products from the local timber using Wood-Mizer equipment. He enjoys working with wood while discovering its beauty. "I wouldn't change this place for anything else in the world," he admits with a smile.

Montricher-Albanne is a small village in the French Alps, just beside the Italian border. The road to Yvan's home, where he lives and works, is steep and curvy, traversing dense larch forests and picturesque mountain ranges. His workshop is 1200 meters above sea level, overlooking a fabulous view of the entire valley. Even though in the Savoye region there are four seasons of the year, the sun seems never to stop shining, giving the villagers plenty of energy to live and work.

Yvan Cometto has been interested in carpentry since he was a young boy. His grandfather taught him how to work with tools and turn wood into valuable objects. Yvan joined the French Community of Woodworkers at age 14 and has been a professional carpenter ever since. He continued to develop his carpentry skills in the community and learned more about various wood applications. Today he can't imagine a life other than one connected with forestry and woodworking.

He points out that wood still lives, serving people differently even when it's cut. Yesterday wood made a beautiful living tree, but it's still alive in the furniture we use at home today. "I like discovering the beauty of wood in every project I make, and I never stop researching and learning about wood. Wood behaves differently when it grows when it is cut and seasoned, and when it lives in a piece of furniture," notices Yvan Cometto.

In 2020, he decided to start his woodworking business and become an independent entrepreneur. YC Charpente is a small company specializing in making different wood products, such as custom furniture, house interiors and extensions, decks and terraces, construction timber, and more. "Starting my company was a serious decision, but I'm glad I did it. Today I can do the job myself, and I don't have to depend on others. I can design and execute many projects myself," says Yvan.

Yvan realizes that the wood he uses to produce these objects is an excellent material, and it is sourced from the local forests and has unique qualities. "I buy logs from the local forest community and am proud of it. We all know here that this wood is beautiful and natural. I use mostly larch, but occasionally also oak, maple and ash. I've recently received many orders for larger constructions, such as house extensions, terraces, and decks," says Yvan. He enjoys supporting his region by providing the local customers with wooden products. "All my clients come from this area and know my workshop very well. We all know that the wood from this land is our treasure."

YC Charpente has used Wood-Mizer equipment since Yvan opened the company in 2020. The most important machine is the LT15CLASSIC sawmill for making boards, slabs, cants, and beams. Yvan sells some of these materials to local customers as construction timber, while other materials he uses to make final products on a planer/moulder. "On the LT15, I cut the wood for carpentry and floors, and on my other machines, I do planing and moulding for terraces. I'm glad I can do everything from A to Z in my workshop," admits Yvan.

He chose the Wood-Mizer LT15 sawmill because it's the best option for entry-level sawmillers. An LT15 sawmill is an inexpensive machine that offers high functionality and durability. Yvan's sawmill has a gasoline engine, so he doesn't need to worry about access to electricity. In addition, the LT15CLASSIC sawmill is lightweight and compact, allowing for easy transportation. Yvan found a perfect place for his LT15 – he installed it beside the cliff from which he can admire a fantastic view across the valley.

Yvan learned about Wood-Mizer products from social media and the Wood-Mizer website. Earlier, he did a lot of research comparing sawmills of different manufacturers, but eventually, he contacted the French representative of Wood-Mizer. Yvan remembers when he first got to the office, he received a great deal of helpful information and advice about Wood-Mizer's offering. He was impressed by the wide range and high quality of the equipment. Today Yvan still wants to be up-to-date with all the products and solutions offered by Wood-Mizer, so he signed up for the newsletter and followed the official social media channels.

In the future, Yvan plans to expand his enterprise by hiring more workers and upgrading his sawmill to the LT40 or even the LT70 model. This way, he can increase the volume of produced timber and venture into even larger building constructions. He is also thinking about adding more Wood-Mizer equipment to his workshop to increase production and yield, for example, an EG300 board edger. In the meantime, he enjoys starting the day with wood – getting up early, going to the forest, visiting the customer, and sawing some slabs on his LT15 sawmill. "You never know what the next day will bring, and this is what I like most about working with wood," he admits.

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