Overview
**Why metal has to live inside the millwork scope.** A restaurant servery is a wood millwork fixture with a stainless apron and stainless work-top. A retail cash-wrap is a wood casework unit with a metal transaction top and toe-kick. A hotel bar front is wood panelling with a blackened-steel foot-rail and brass reveal band. On every one of these, the metal is not decoration — it is the wear surface, the hygiene surface, the code surface, or the structural connection. Splitting it off to a separate vendor means split shop drawings, split submittals, split installation dates and split warranty coverage. We keep it together.
**Restaurant-grade stainless — through a certified commercial-kitchen partner.** Fully welded 304 stainless prep tables, servery aprons, undercounter enclosures, hood-integrated backsplashes and dishwash landings are fabricated to NSF/ANSI 2 by our long-term commercial-kitchen partner. They deliver the stainless to our shop; we integrate it with the wood casework, feet, backing and finish before the piece ships as one unit.
**Architectural metal — brass, blackened steel, satin stainless, powder-coated aluminum.** For hospitality, retail, office and multi-residential millwork we single-source brass, blackened steel, satin stainless and powder-coated aluminum through architectural metal shops we have worked with for years. Reveal bands, inlay strips, cantilever brackets, plinths, portals, foot-rails, transaction tops, shelf brackets, hangbars and feature frames are all fabricated to our shop drawings and delivered to our schedule.
**Where clients see it.** Restaurant serveries and prep stations, hotel bars and reception desks, retail cash-wraps and display fixtures, bank teller counters, feature-wall portals, wood-and-metal shelving systems, and clinical/lab millwork that needs a hygienic stainless work-surface on a wood carcass.
**One vendor, one warranty conversation.** You spec the fixture, we detail the metal, our partner fabricates it, we integrate it in-shop, our crew installs the assembled piece, and Sandha holds the warranty — for the wood and the metal.
Best for
- Restaurant serveries, prep stations and back-of-house stainless work (NSF/ANSI 2, kitchen partner)
- Hotel and hospitality bars with wood fronts, brass reveals and blackened-steel foot-rails
- Retail cash-wraps with metal transaction tops and toe-kicks
- Bank, hotel and corporate reception desks with brass/stainless fascia and cantilever brackets
- Wood-and-metal open shelving, display fixtures and hangbar systems
- Feature-wall portals, reveal bands and metal-inlay wall panelling
Standards we build to
Every service line is engineered against the same commercial code and standards framework — the two lists below are what we routinely reference on Canadian and US projects.
Canadian standards
- AWMAC North American Architectural Woodwork Standards (NAAWS 4.0) — Economy, Custom, or Premium grade
- AWMAC Guarantee & Inspection Service (GIS) — third-party inspected on request
- CAN/ULC-S102 & S102.2 — surface burning characteristics (Class A available)
- National Building Code of Canada (NBC) & Ontario Building Code (OBC) millwork provisions
- CSA B651 & AODA — accessibility for public and workplace millwork
- CAN/CSA O121, O151, O153 — Canadian plywood standards
US standards
- AWI Architectural Woodwork Standards (equivalent grading to NAAWS 4.0)
- ANSI/BHMA A156 series — commercial cabinet hardware grades 1/2/3
- ASTM E84 — surface burning (Class A/B/C flame-spread and smoke-developed)
- CARB Phase 2 & US EPA TSCA Title VI — formaldehyde-compliant panels (NAF/NAUF available)
- ANSI A208.1 (particleboard) & ANSI A208.2 (MDF) — panel performance grades
- HPVA HP-1 — hardwood & decorative plywood
- ADA 2010 Standards for Accessible Design
- International Building Code (IBC) millwork & interior finish provisions
- NSF/ANSI 2 (food-equipment stainless fabrication, kitchen scope)
Materials & finishes
Materials
- 304 / 316 stainless steel — commercial-kitchen grade, fully welded (kitchen partner)
- Blackened / raw / hot-rolled steel with matte lacquer sealer (architectural metal partner)
- Satin brass and antique brass sheet, bar and tube (architectural metal partner)
- Powder-coated aluminum in any RAL colour (architectural metal partner)
- White oak, walnut, maple and MR-MDF carcasses — fabricated in-house at Sandha
Finish systems
- Stainless: #4 brushed satin, mirror polish, bead-blast
- Brass: satin brushed, antique patina, lacquer-sealed
- Blackened steel: hot-rolled with matte clear or gun-metal patina
- Powder-coat: matte, satin or textured to any RAL / custom colour
Hardware
What we specify
- Concealed steel cantilever brackets and sub-structure for metal transaction tops
- Continuous stainless / brass toe-kick and plinth systems
- Foot-rail brackets, stand-offs and reveal channels
- Fully welded, coved-corner stainless enclosures for wet and food-contact zones
Process — award to install
01 · Estimating
Take-off from your drawings, specs and finish schedule. Line-item quote returned within one business day for most packages.
02 · Engineering & Shop Drawings
In-house team produces AWI/AWMAC-compliant shop drawings in AutoCAD, coordinated with Microvellum for direct-to-machine output.
03 · Submittals & Samples
Finish samples, hardware cut-sheets and drawing set submitted for architect/GC approval prior to release to production.
04 · CNC Fabrication
Panels nested and machined on multi-axis CNC. Solid-wood machining, edge-banding and dowel/confirmat assembly in dedicated cells.
05 · Finishing
Controlled-environment spray booths for stain, lacquer, conversion varnish, catalyzed polyurethane and low-VOC waterborne systems.
06 · QC & Pre-Ship
100 % dimensional and finish inspection against the approved shop drawings. Pre-assembled where practical for site-fit certainty.
07 · Delivery & Install Coordination
Blanket-wrapped, phased delivery coordinated with your site schedule. Installation supervision available Canada-wide.
What you receive
- ✓One coordinated shop-drawing package covering the wood millwork and the integrated metal
- ✓Certified commercial-kitchen stainless fabrication to NSF/ANSI 2 through our kitchen partner
- ✓Architectural brass / blackened-steel / powder-coat fabrication through our metal partner
- ✓In-shop integration of metal into the wood carcass before shipping — one assembled fixture, not two
- ✓Single install crew and single warranty response covering both wood and metal
Lead time
| Budget quote | 1 business day |
| Firm quote (with drawings) | 3–5 business days |
| Shop drawings | 2–3 weeks post-award |
| Production | 6–10 weeks after approvals |
| Delivery window | Phased to site schedule |
Quality & QA
Our commitments
- AWMAC GIS third-party inspection available on request
- ISO 9001-aligned quality management
- Dimensional tolerances per NAAWS 4.0 grade (Custom or Premium)
- Finish sheen, colour and film-build verified against approved sample
Sustainability & certifications
Certifications & credits
- CARB Phase 2 / TSCA Title VI compliant panels standard; NAF/NAUF available on request
- FSC® Chain-of-Custody material available (CoC certificate on request)
- Low-VOC waterborne and GREENGUARD Gold finish systems available
- Supports LEED v4/v4.1 credits: MR (Sourcing of Raw Materials, EPDs, HPDs) and EQ (Low-Emitting Materials)
- Aligns with WELL Building Standard v2 X07 Materials Restrictions
Gallery
FAQs
Do you fabricate the metal in-house or through a partner?+
The wood is in-house. The metal is fabricated by long-term certified partners — a commercial-kitchen stainless shop for restaurant scope, and architectural metal shops for brass, blackened steel and powder-coated aluminum. Metal arrives at our shop and is integrated into the wood fixture before it ships.
Why not just hire a separate metal shop directly?+
You can — but you then own the coordination between two shop-drawing sets, two submittal packages, two install dates and two warranty contacts on a single fixture. Our model puts the metal inside the millwork scope, so the interior designer, GC and owner deal with one vendor for the finished piece.
Is your restaurant stainless commercial-kitchen certified?+
Yes — fully welded 304 stainless fabrication is delivered by our commercial-kitchen partner to NSF/ANSI 2, which is the standard health authorities inspect against for food-equipment surfaces.
Can you match a specific brass tone, patina or powder-coat colour?+
Yes. Brass can be supplied satin, antique or lacquer-sealed to sample; powder-coat can be matched to any RAL or custom sample; blackened steel can be tuned from warm brown to near-black gun-metal.
Who holds the warranty on the metal portion?+
Sandha holds the client-facing warranty on the completed fixture. The underlying metal fabricator warranties flow through us and are documented in the closeout package.
Do you install the metal on site too?+
Yes — because the metal is already integrated into the fixture in our shop, our own install crew sets the piece. There is no separate metal-install date to coordinate.
Can you build a piece that is mostly metal with a small wood element?+
Yes — for example, a fully welded stainless prep table with an oak knife-block and back-panel, or a powder-coated steel display fixture with oak shelving. The scope split is defined by which trade fabricates the primary structure; we can lead either way.
Next step
Have drawings for a architectural metal integration package?
Send us the set and finish schedule — we'll return a line-item quote within one business day.
