About Us
We believe that when everyone takes pride in the quality of their workmanship, the end result can only be excellent. That is why we have surrounded ourselves with the very best. For over twenty years our team of committed and experienced people at California Designers Choice (CDC) has manufactured custom cabinetry all over Southern California. From small repairs to whole kitchen remodels we ensure that our clients are more than satisfied with our products and services. We will gladly assist you through all phases of your project (measuring, designing, manufacturing, installing, finishing, and maintaining). And if something is not to your liking please don’t hesitate to say so. At the end of the day, every member of CDC has the same goal in mind: Your total satisfaction.
Our Green Movement
There is a lot of confusion and misinformation floating out there surrounding the term “green.” While we don’t claim to be know-it-alls in the field, we have found that we do have more experience than most.
The bottom line is that we want a minimal impact on our environment at both a local and global level. It’s not only the materials used in a project that is important, it’s also how far they travel to get to Southern California as well as using a local cabinet maker that has an impact on the carbon footprint left behind. Most pre-fabricated cabinets come from the East coast and have to be trucked here after they are constructed. This generates a substantial amount of extra emissions polluting our environment. Since we manufacture locally, the impact from us is minimal.
The vast majority of the sheet goods we use are produced on the west coast. While the solid lumber comes from a variety of regions in the states, our distributers are all local. Our hardware suppliers are all in the area as well. This reduces emissions from trucks and other forms of transportation which helps our overall environment.
Most people have heard of “FSC” or the Forest Stewardship Council that is the most recognized governing body for green materials. They create a paper trail from the grower all the way to the distributor to make sure it was grown in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner as well as handled and transported in the most efficient way with the least impact to our earth. The positive side effect of this is that almost all domestic lumber would now qualify for certification because it is coming from growers and mills that are already FSC certified and it is easier to produce all of their products the same way weather it is certified or not. For LEED projects, the certification is required, but for the average project it’s good to know that you are getting environmentally friendly materials even without the certification process.
The other option that a lot of people assume comes with FSC certification is NAUF or No Added Urea Formaldehyde. This is not the case and the two have nothing to do with each other. While formaldehyde levels are being greatly reduced, the only way to almost eliminate formaldehyde is to use materials with the NAUF option. At this time it is still fairly expensive to produce panels this way, but it does assure you of the least off gassing from the end product.