Putting the TECH 700 DA from STABILA to the test – an interview with master carpenter Florian Witthaut
Experience, challenges and respect: a true expert describes the pride he feels in doing good work, and how he gets the optimum results using tools that allow him to do his best work in a precise, efficient and simple way – time and time again.
Mr Witthaut, what challenges do you face in your work as a master carpenter?
As a master tradesperson, I am obviously required to provide customers with the best product at the highest possible quality. Every customer presents a completely unique brief with completely unique requirements for their conservatory, terrace roof or piece of furniture. For us, that means that we analyse the customer’s wishes right at the beginning of our contact with them to ensure that we can then focus on discussing their unique requirements at the on-site measuring and consultation appointments. We then produce a design for the customer that corresponds to their requirements exactly. Once we have come up with an overall concept for the conservatory, we move on to the production planning stage.
A conservatory consists of numerous individual components that all need to be individually designed and produced. We deliberately choose not to work using a prefabricated system or even a template, but plan and produce every component individually to ensure we match exactly the right dimensions and proportions for every individual project. Exceptionally high requirements for production quality go hand in hand with exceptionally high demands on the skills of our tradespeople.
The whole roof of the conservatory is constructed in one piece in our workshop and then dismantled into parts that are easier to transport. When all the components have been produced to the required quality, we start installing them on site. It is particularly easy for errors to creep in during refurbishment projects. Our job is to avoid these and ensure installation is carried out precisely and professionally.


You were one of the first tradespeople to test the TECH 700 DA electronic angle finder. What were your first impressions?
The TECH 700 DA angle finder from STABILA was very useful to us during a relatively complicated project in Switzerland. The customer wanted a conservatory with a trapezoidal layout, and rather than standing straight, it had to join the existing structure at an angle of about 7 degrees. The digital bevel gauge helped us immensely when it came to realising the wall connection with precision in the construction situation. Right from the measuring stage, it allowed us to take precise readings of all the relevant angles from the roof overhang to the foundations. As seen from the ground plan, a trapezoidal flat roof with box gutter was constructed through the wall connection that ran at an angle to the existing building, forming a transition to the roof construction of the conservatory. When we installed the conservatory on site, we found both bevel gauges (45 cm and 80 cm) very useful.
After we had completed the basic construction of the conservatory, we were able to measure all the relevant angles of the connection with the bevel gauges in the construction context and lock the measured angles so that we could then transfer them to our parts reliably and precisely. We could of course have established all the angles with drawings and calculations, but using the bevel gauges allowed us to categorically rule out any possibility of transfer errors or inaccuracies straight away.

How long have you been using measuring tools from STABILA?
I’ve been working with STABILA spirit levels since I started out in the trade. In our firm, these were constantly in use in every conceivable length and type. We have used the bevel gauges regularly since they became available – both the short and long-armed versions. It’s about two years since we replaced our somewhat outdated point laser with the LAX 400 multi-line laser. We use the laser regularly for determining height dimensions, both in the workshop when constructing roofs and on site with the customer.
How would you describe the TECH 700 DA in a few words?
First of all, the TECH 700 DA is an amazing everyday help. It is user-friendly, high-quality, robust and practical. In poor lighting conditions, the illuminated digital display makes it easy to read off angle measurements. The two contact edges of the angle finder have the significant advantage of making it very easy to transfer angle measurements to parts, including as corresponding angles. The locking function of the bevel gauge is extremely practical and completely reliable.
Why are high-quality tools so important for this work?
We work in a trade that sees the greatest possible precision as a basic requirement. This means that we need reliable, robust and high-quality tools to ensure the best possible quality. Products of this quality can only be realised through the symbiosis of high-quality materials, precise tools and skilled craftsmanship.
That’s why good tools are absolutely indispensable to me.
