By BOB RIGGS
Indiana Correspondent

MURRAY, Ky. — Kevin Penner is the exclusive distributor for McTavish Steelworks workbenches in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Missouri; however, he is also authorized to sell its products throughout most the United States.

The 2011 National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Ky., next week will be Penner’s fifth year of exhibiting steel workbenches there. High quality steel workbenches in different configurations are his only product.
Penner, who grew up on a farm, also currently farms in Murray. After a five-year stint of serving as missionaries in India, his family returned to America and bought the elder Mr. Penner’s farming operation. Now the family grows corn and soybeans and raises chickens under contract to Pilgrim’s Pride Corp.

Talking about McTavish steel workbenches, Penner said they are made on a sturdy one-piece welded frame. Located in the sturdy box frame are banks of steel drawers with large roller bearings that can support much weight. In fact, Penner said each drawer can handle up to 200 pounds of load without breaking.
That feature is sure to be helpful to workers, especially when they are struggling with large or heavy objects.

McTavish workbenches come in a convenient range of six, eight, 10 and 12 feet overall length. They are manufactured in standard and custom configurations with variations depending upon colors and the number of drawers. Each bank of drawers has exactly four drawers of varying sizes from top to bottom, and each drawer is 21.84 inches wide, with framing adding another 1.16 inches.
The top drawer in each bank is a convenient five inches high, just right for storing hand tools. Then, there are two larger-capacity drawers in the middle and each of those is 6.62 inches high.

The bottom drawer has a roomy 9 inches of storage height and is a great place to put power tools. Each drawer is 29.5 inches deep. The countertop workspace is made of 10-gauge steel and is approximately 29.5 inches front to back. Countertops are designed to accommodate the mounting of steel vises.
Standard drawer face colors are red or blue and the frame is black; however, buyers often order special colors for their drawers and steel doors. CAT yellow is a favorite, but the top-selling special order paint job is John Deere – green drawers with yellow handles.

Customers can also special order open shelf space instead of the drawers. They can order workbenches with open spaces between the banks of drawers, making room for a work stool or for storage. Penner said customers often will request a special section of tabletop be added between two workbenches.
Penner became a distributor of the steel workbenches after his younger sister married an employee of the McTavish Steelworks company family. In the past, he has also exhibited his workbenches at shows in Peoria and Decatur, Ill. To learn more, call 204-746-6591, 888-952-3624 or visit www.mctavishsteelworks.com