What started as a hobby to help pay for college—cabinetry and furniture making—ended up becoming Zach LeBlanc’s career. Prior to joining UT in 2021, LeBlanc worked in residential cabinetry, and today he’s of two cabinetmakers currently working in the Campus Construction Carpentry Shop, building and installing everything from resilient countertops for research labs to ornate bookshelves for office suites.
What’s a typical work day for you?
Project requests come into our crew leader Rob Colvard. He’ll sit down and talk with the client and then with me. He’ll provide drawings and plans, and we’ll talk through the project. Sometimes we have a long-term project like a conference room table, which is something I could work on continuously for weeks. Other days Rob and I will have 4 or 5 things we’re working on in the shop, or we could be on site visiting with a client about what they’d like. Sometimes we’re onsite to install cabinets.
What do you love about your job?
I love the stability and the support. We get a lot of support as far as time to build things correctly. There are advantages to having cabinet makers in house. We build with longevity in mind. For example, one goal we have is to replace Formica countertops with solid surface countertops that will last campus clients far longer. That material is like putting a helmet on your countertop.
The variety of work is also interesting. We get to work on projects that range from more industrial to creating bookshelves and cabinets out of walnut, cherry, and mahogany for offices. We also are able to collaborate. One project that we’re currently working on is replacing the doors to the Harry Ransom Center. The door specialists have handed part of that job to us to handle the woodworking for panels on the doors.
What’s something about your job that no one knows?
At Pickle Research Center, there’s a warehouse stacked with lumber, some of which comes from campus if an older tree needs to be removed. Mostly this lumber is pecan, walnut, or cyprus. We use this local wood for benches around campus, or things like frames and plaques.
What’s been one of your favorite projects to work on?
A conference table I built for the Dean of the Law School because it was all solid wood joinery. I was trained to be a furniture maker so anything that I get to hand make, I enjoy. This was a big, beefy, solid wood table. It’s nice when I have the opportunity to put my furniture making skills to use.
Where do you get inspiration?
I used to look at architecture and woodworking books. More often now I am inspired by people I follow on Instagram. One account that I follow is called Slow Roads.
