Hi all The adoption of standards need not cost anything... surely every company has a quality control system and I would expect that you have a "beekeeping manufacturers discussion group" I appreciate that... > Go to any lumberyard and you will find > dimensional differences even is the same lots. I have boxes built from > lumber from different yards that have different internal dimensions > because of the planing and sanding differences between yards. But surely that only applies to "home made" equipment. I would expect that your manufacturers convert and season their own stock to suit the exact purpose that is designated for. The precision and repeat accuracy cost a little more in terms of setting up time of machinery, but this is insignificant when taken accross thousands of boxes. It costs no more to make a "perfect" component than it does to make a "scrap" one. Regards From:- Dave Cushman, G8MZY Beekeeping and Bee Breeding, http://website.lineone.net/~dave.cushman IBList Archives, http://website.lineone.net/~d.cushman