Library

As we focus on our daily work tasks, it’s very easy (too easy) for us to forget how we’re simultaneously in an industry where we have not just colleagues but friends. We concentrate on specific projects and deadlines, blocking out distractions that could seemingly slow down our...

Wood was not held in high regard in the truss drafting department where I began working. Our fabricator customers often wanted their trusses designed with “old lumber,” meaning the obsolete size of 1-5/8” x 3-5/8”, even though the 1.5” x 3.5” size had been in...

Our industry design standard, ANSI/TPI 1, regulates numerous elements in constructing roof and floor trusses. The following is a brief non-exhaustive summary: Lumber grades and moisture content Pedigree of lumber grades and lumber management Controls on truss profiles Verification of...

Let’s face it: growth is exciting, scary, and a great problem to tackle. But in component manufacturing, increased demand can quickly expose pressure points on the floor. What once felt smooth starts to feel tight. Work in progress (WIP) builds up and becomes expensive. Teams must work...

For inspiration to Feed the Beast! in 2026, the mandate is clear to automate, however, the path to automation looks different depending on your starting point. Let’s compare two standout 2025 LimTek installations—a greenfield plant and a modernizing retrofit—to see how...

Board foot has been used for decades in component manufacturing, and it still serves its purpose for sales reporting, legacy KPIs, and corporate roll ups. There is no need to abandon it. But for scheduling, pricing, and determining how much work a plant can actually handle, board foot alone will...

In the middle of the largest residential construction show in the world, wedged between estimating software and the kitchen and bath aisle, our small booth was focused on one question: where do structural components truly fit in the future of homebuilding? The International Builders Show...

Although all of our companies are focused on their bottom lines, many of us also welcome opportunities to give back to our communities. TechWood had one such opportunity this year, when we partnered with Global Fireproof Solutions, Inc. to support the construction and renovation of a...

The biggest, deepest report on acquisitions, new-store openings, and closures in construction supply makes clear 2025 simultaneously was both the busiest and slowest year for M&A in this decade. Viewed by the number of facilities acquired, 2025 saw 56% more locations acquired than in 2024...

In off-site manufacturing, change is inevitable. What is not inevitable is losing money because of it. The change order is not red tape. It is protection. It protects the company, the client, the project schedule, and even the salesperson who worked hard to land the job. Consider how a...