If you’re a wood truss designer, you know one thing for sure: your workstation is where the magic (or the misery) happens. Long stretches of modeling, preparing quotes, reviewing digital plans, and generating production documents all happen at that desk. And while companies often focus on...

One of the more hotly debated topics in the multi-story wood community is whether wall stud and truss or joist alignment is required over the full height of a building, or whether it is beneficial to allow the framing to be unaligned. Let’s look at the advantages of each at a high level....

Many buildings place mechanical equipment—such as air conditioning units, heaters, or ventilation systems—on the roof. These are known as Roof Top Units (RTUs). Installing this equipment on the roof helps save valuable floor space inside the building. RTUs come in a wide range of...

The name “Bill McAlpine” has such resonance in the component industry that when ITW acquired the company and removed his name, they soon found value in returning to the Alpine moniker. There are many reasons McAlpine earned that singular honor, but one of the least recognized is...

Chapter I: The Idea One day a certain builder had an idea for a spec house that would be a sure winner. So, he got together with the best architect in the area and began to describe what he wanted. “Mr. Architect,” he said, “I want the house to have a studio...

As you’re building your 2026 calendar, be sure to block in time for our next wood construction course sponsored by the Virginia Tech Continuing and Professional Education program. Co-sponsored by the International Code Council, this spring we’re offering “Wood Design, Loads,...

When designing a truss to be used as a free-spanning structural gable or party wall application, additional dead loads may need to be considered. The MiTek engineering software does not account for self-weight of the truss or for any additional weight of sheathing or drywall being applied to one...

I’ve been asked: do you always need a shop drawing or the engineering to inspect a truss? The quick answer if you are conducting an ANSI/TPI 1 Chapter 3 audit is that you must have a design drawing that specifies plate sizes, placement, and lumber grade requirements in addition to overall...

Inspirado por las frecuentes solicitudes de una referencia rápida, he creado una hoja única de la guía del Capítulo 3 de ANSI/TPI 1, similar a una versión de CliffsNotes del estándar. Tenga en cuenta que se omiten detalles importantes; para una comprensión completa, consulte el estándar...

According to Elon Musk, “Grok 4 is already at the intelligence of a PhD in every profession.” Anyone paying attention to the rapid developments in AI understands that this statement is not exaggeration—it is a warning. Within a very short period of time, AI systems will be able...