The news of trusses being built with newfangled plates was so well received that it raced across the country in the late 1950s. The first to take notice were homebuilders who built with stick framing, who then wanted to try trusses. The first to respond were lumberyards, who were well positioned...

Before there were truss machines, how did fabricators press plates? They were able to use hammers and nails on the Grip-Plate, but when they started using the plates that didn’t need extra nailing, they had a nearly impossible time getting them pressed. When they went to their local...

In multiple jurisdictions across the country, building code authorities questioned the viability of the curiously shaped metal plates being used on trusses during the last half of the 1950s. In South Florida, for example, four radically different looking plates appeared, with different...

Our industry has much to gain from our participation in the Innovative Housing Showcase in Washington, D.C. This year, one of our main goals was to lobby government officials to stimulate housing construction. In effect, the 27 exhibitors were saying right in front of the seat of government,...

Cal Jureit’s truss testing experience was but the first of three consequential steps that led him to invent the modern truss connector plate. Jureit’s second step was joining Truss Fabrications, Inc. (TFI), which furthered his knowledge of truss manufacturing, and focused his efforts...

Even in slower years, you can benefit, both professionally and personally, from attending the Building Component Manufacturers Conference (BCMC), as I have. Some gains may accrue over a longer period of time, but there are always people to meet and things to see at the Show. Even if your company...

Where is the best location to start a business — the easiest place or the toughest? Choosing the easiest means you may or may not “have what it takes” to succeed in the toughest markets. But, by choosing the toughest, you may “set yourself up” to market yourself...

Touring two plants in July, I couldn’t help wondering which would be a better place to work in the current slowdown. Both are privately owned businesses that are being managed by second-generation owners. Plant “A” is in a stable, rust belt market, and plant “B” is...

Carol Sanford came of age during the 1920s, inspired by his inventive father, during one of the most inventive periods in American history. He grew up in Canton, OH, then a center of steel and stamping industries. After graduating from the University of Cincinnati and an architectural school in...

In late May, I was fortunate to travel to Germany on a quest to discover processes that could advance the state of the art of component manufacturing. Driving 90 miles from Munich’s 6 million people, I passed several quaint villages with businesses bordering the Autobahn, each separated by...