Cahoots is a pioneering association based in New Zealand, created to promote gender equality in the construction, public works and technical trades sectors.

Designed as a makerspace dedicated to women and gender minorities, Cahoots provides a safe, inclusive, and professional environment, allowing underrepresented communities to access industrial-grade training, tools, and equipment.

After several months of fundraising, Cahoots opened its doors in September 2025.

The very construction of the workshop became a learning experience in its own right, allowing participants to develop practical skills while building the space they would then use — a strong symbol of empowerment through action.

A Workshop Designed for Inclusion, Skills and Trust

The very construction Cahoot’s mission is to reduce structural inequalities in the construction and technical professions, by adressing both practical obstacles and cultural barriers.

Cahoots supports people who want to:

• • Start a career in construction or technical professions
  • Acquire technical skills directly applicable to the job
  • Develop manual skills for personal or leisure projects
  • Gain confidence in traditionally male-dominated environments

An Understanding Pedagogical Approach

The association takes a two-pronged approach:

• Structured pathways, supported by industry partners such as Engineering New Zealand and trades training organisations
• Supporting autonomy, building trust through manufacturing, construction, and understanding of the built environment

As its founder, Jade Musther, explains, these two dimensions are inseparable: cultural change and professional access must progress together to create lasting equality.

Professional Equipment for Modern Construction Training

Cahoots provides a fully equipped workshop, designed to reflect the real-world construction and manufacturing environments used in the industry.

Carpentry and Woodworking

The wood area includes:

• Hand and power tools
• Band saws, table saws and mitre saws
• Industrial sanders and finishing equipment

Members regularly work with recycled wood from demolished or renovated New Zealand buildings. These materials often include high-quality native or historic essences, supporting both sustainability and craftsmanship.

Metalwork and CNC Technologies

The digital fabrication workshop includes:

• • Welding, bending and grinding up to 12 mm steel plates
  • CNC plasma cutting
  • CNC machining for panels
  • Laser cutting for wood, plywood, acrylic and similar materials

This equipment allows learners to train in modern manufacturing techniques, widely used in the construction and industrial sectors.

Why Cahoots chose Nest & Cut for CNC nesting

To operate its CNC machines effectively, Cahoots needed a fast, reliable and easy-to-use nesting solution that was particularly suitable for a non-industrial educational environment.

The limits of alternative solutions

After testing several free and open source software, Cahoots encountered recurring difficulties:

• Excessive computation times
• Imprecise nesting
• Parts positioned outside the boundaries of the panels
• Unreliable or unusable cutting results

The key benefits of Nest & Cut

Nest & Cut immediately stood out thanks to:

• An intuitive interface, accessible to beginners with no previous experience
• High precision, even on uneven panels or scraps
• Flexibility for a variety of projects and multiple users
• Cloud access, without heavy installation or complex licensing

As an association, Cahoots should focus its time on imparting skills, not managing complex software. Nest & Cut allows you to go from design to cutting quickly, without technical barriers.

Technology for Learning, Not Complexity

The training courses offered by Cahoots already cover:

• Machine safety
• The basics of CAD design
• The use of CNC machines
• Materials preparation and management

Adding complex nesting software would reduce the time spent on the essentials. With Nest & Cut, nesting becomes a fluid and intuitive step, perfectly suited to an educational workshop with frequent participant turnover.

A Community Initiative Driven by a Long-Term Vision

Cahoots was founded by Jade Musther, who was originally a carpentry trainer at a community centre.

The logistical constraints related to the temporary workshops quickly highlighted the need for a dedicated and sustainable place.

Since its opening, Cahoots has enjoyed strong community and institutional support, confirming the existence of a real need for inclusive training spaces in technical professions.

In the long term, the ambition is to develop a network of similar workshops across New Zealand, inspired by the Men’s Sheds, in order to foster a lasting cultural change in construction and technical professions.

Creating Opportunities, Workshop After Workshop

By combining:

• Inclusive values
• Professional equipment
• Sustainable practices
• Accessible technologies like Nest & Cut

Cahoots empowers women and gender minorities to shape their environment, careers, and confidence.

Beyond one-on-one training, Cahoots is actively helping to build a more equitable future for the construction industry in New Zealand.

Watch the full video below.