Daniel Bell holds a template ordered by Blade Dynamics

From Wikipedia, CNC wood router:

The CNC router works like a printer. Work is composed on a computer and then the design or drawing is sent to the CNC router for the hard copy. This outputs a 3-dimensional copy of the work. The CNC router uses a cutting tool instead of an ink jet. The cutting tool is generally a router but other cutters can be used as well.

Geynor Arroliga, CNC Operater for CCM

CNC router with templates cut out

When a local contractor contacted Central City Millworks about replicating existing casework as part of a hotel renovation, we knew that our CNC router would allow us to replicate the radius parts without any trouble.

Once correctly programmed by our CNC (Computer Numerical Control) programmer, Daniel Bell, the CNC router can cut each casework piece as a clone with exact precision. This technological advantage provides highly accurate production with significant time and cost savings.

As a result of our automated processes, local contractors choose Central City Millworks to fabricate items that would otherwise be technically difficult to produce or items in quantity that would otherwise be time intensive to produce.

While CCM is popular with local contractors, we regularly work with individual homeowners on their smaller projects. So, whether you are a local contractor or a homeowner…

Contact us today about replicating your existing millwork, or bring us your own design that we can help you create!

A historic preservation project in Mobile, AL, resulted in Central City Millworks in New Orleans being contracted to replace the architectural columns.

Columns have been used as both structural and decorative architectural elements as far back as 4,600 years ago in ancient Egypt. And, of course, towering wooden columns have been icons of up-scale Southern living since before the Civil War.

But, as time takes its toll and historic preservation in New Orleans and across the South becomes a priority, the millwork fabrication and renovation expertise of Central City Millworks is called upon time after time.

And so, when porch columns needed to be replaced in a historic Mobile building, we were contracted to fabricate ones that matched the originals…continuing our legacy of helping to restore great historic structures to their former glory.

The historic St. Louis Hotel on Bienville Street contracted Central City Millworks for the renovation of the hotel lobby. The project involved reproducing the existing paneled walls as part of a reconfiguration of the lobby and reception desk area.

To maximize the utility of the available space, Central City Millworks constructed a storage area at the end of the existing lobby. The requirement called for the storage area to be accessible but not visible.

The project called for a storage area that was easily accessible, but virtually invisible

We fabricated “invisible” doors that would lead to the storage area. The doors matched, and were virtually indistinguishable, from the surrounding wall panels. But, when opened, they provided access to a small room where the Bellman and Concierge could temporarily store the luggage of hotel guests.

The photo to the right shows a section of a reproduction of the original lobby paneling that adorned the St. Louis’ walls.

Below is a photo of the “hidden” door panel shortly after fabrication and still in our millwork shop awaiting installation in the hotel.

A postcard of the New Orleans Mint, 1907

The renovation of the U.S. Mint building in New Orleans added a new theater to the facility and a treasure trove of reclaimed wood to CCM’s millwork shop.

To achieve the necessary acoustic requirements, the existing wood floor under the second floor theater needed to be removed. A new concrete deck then needed to be installed, and to achieve this, the wood framing needed to be removed as well.

Central City Millworks was offered the salvaged wood for reuse, and being a “green building” company, gratefully accepted the riches.

The lumber, dating back to the early 1800′s when the Mint was constructed, looked every bit its age when it arrived at our facility. However, it will be milled into beautiful lumber that will reveal its old-growth legacy and resurrect its historic roots.

The New Orleans branch of the United States Mint began operation in 1838 when the city was the 5th largest in the country and an important commercial hub. Operation was suspended during the Civil War and Reconstruction years, and then resumed in 1879 until the mint was decommissioned in 1909.

The facility, located at 400 Esplanade Avenue, has served as a Louisiana State Museum since 1981. Damage from Hurricane Katrina in 2005 required that it be closed for repairs. It reopened in 2007.

A major renovation in New Orleans at 4730 St. Charles Avenue has expanded a home that was originally about 4,000 square feet of floor space to approximately twice as much.

During the process of adding additional floor space to the home, Central City Millworks had to address many features within the original space that had suffered from age and neglect.

And, working with the architect and general contractor, CCM fabricated many new millwork items to ensure that the addition matched the style of the original house. This included fabricating windows, interior and exterior doors, interior and exterior handrails, and columns.

The balcony was targeted as one of the primary exterior areas in need of a make-over. As indicated by the photo above right, the existing balcony had little more than “standing room only.” That was about to change. The matronly old lady of St. Charles Avenue was about to get a much more youthful figure with eye-catching curves, as seen in the photos below taken as the renovation of the home neared completion.

Renovation in New Orleans frequently means replacing patches of damaged wood flooring or a few windows or adding a new custom door or two. In those cases, Central City Millworks is often contracted to meet the challenge of matching the new with the old. The photo below represents just one example of our company’s ability to meet such challenges.

The historic renovation of the building at 612 Royal Street in the French Quarter, by Hal Collums Construction, required just such skill. The building, once the French Consulate with an elegantly finished interior, was being restored to its glory as a private residence. The addition of built-in closets in the bedrooms called for the fabrication of custom louvered closet doors that perfectly matched the existing cypress bedroom doors.

Mission accomplished. The new louvered closet doors in the center of the photo below are a perfect match for the existing cypress bedroom doors on either side.

Precise joinery ensures a long-lasting door

The double doors provided a more convenient and comfortable flow into and out of the bathroom, and were made to replicate the details of the original doors in the house.

Once the door was fabricated, we pre-hung it at the job site to ensure it fit perfectly, and then it was taken back to our mill shop for the priming phase.


By completing this phase in our paint shop, the door received a factory-quality smooth sanded, blemish free substrate prior to getting a final coat once it was installed.

A local designer needed a New Orleans cabinet maker to bring his design to life, and selected CCM to build a vanity as part of a “jewel box” powder room renovation that Hal Collums Construction is doing in the French Quarter.

This piece required a great deal of woodworking ingenuity to flawlessly execute the designer’s vision. The design called for a freeform wall-hung vanity with walnut-trimmed panels on all sides, walnut-trimmed drawers that inset into the panels, and curved flowing lines that accentuate the flowing lines in the room’s fabulous custom made mosaic tile floor.

Cutting a beaded panel with traditional straight stiles and intersecting curved rails proved to be a challenge. All traditional woodworking methods of curving the small beaded detail were labor intensive and required numerous templates and repetitive machine set-up.

The scale of the piece would require the “old” traditional skills of a top craftsman with intense attention to detail to correctly execute this design. After much consideration, we decided the best method to cut the bead and rail detail would be to use our Computer Numeric Control router. As we explored the idea, we soon realized the CNC would not be able to cut the inside arc of the curved bead completely.

Rob Thornton, our talented CNC programmer and cabinet expert, brought his “new” skills to tackle the challenge. Rob came up with an ingenious idea that worked beautifully. Instead of cutting the bead and rail as one piece, he cut them as 2 separate pieces with a CNC cut tongue and groove interlock. This permitted the CNC to completely (and almost perfectly) carve the flat rail and the rounded bead.

As you can see in these photos, the parts fit together cleanly with no visible flaw. Our finish department added a catalyzed lacquer clear coat, sanding and recoating until achieving a flawless finish.

An upholsterer has now taken our CNC-cut ¼” ply panels to cover with book-matched leather.

The back-splash is also a curved walnut frame cut with the CNC. The stone mason has taken a template to cut his stone that will form the walnut-framed back-splash. The wall-mounted faucet and spout will mount on the stone back-splash. The included our shop drawing to get a better idea of the completed look. Of course we will include photos once the completed vanity is installed.