Taking CNC Woodworking a Step Further?

On the surface, this table leg solution from IKEA (by way of Core77.com) seems like a pretty interesting bit of design work that reduces manufacturing and supply chain load, as the number of components are reduced (less hardware). I would also assume that they’d figured out how to make the new CNC embellishments with the same machine that would have made the parts to begin with. All wins from a production lens.

The thing that excites me about the story is that, at least in furniture design, the applications of CNC woodworking are moving from shape-cutting into interlocking joinery of a much more complex definition. Thinking like IKEA is moves us past the general “tab-slot” thinking (and even conventional woodworking joinery) and into more of a “machine component” sort of design methodology. It’s fun to think about other applications that will develop in the future when this becomes more common.