My Letter to Santa for 2024

As this issue of The Advertiser is being published December 1^st, I thought I would share my wish list for truss and component manufacturers this year. Feel free to use this in your letter to Santa, too!

Dear Santa,

I promise I tried to be a good component designer this past year. My Christmas wish list will help me do an even better job next year for my company, for our clients, and for the eventual occupants of the homes I work on.

1. Plans will no longer have, or need to have, the note “site verify all dimensions before fabrication” because what we see on the plans will always be what is on site, at least within an acceptable tolerance. Everyone working on site from the foundation up will be responsible and accountable for delivering accurate work to the trades following them. Any plan inconsistencies will be addressed through open communication between all parties involved with the builder/general contractor coordinating the discussion.
2. Builders will provide their sales rep with an honest forecast of when they expect to need our products on site. They know that doing so allows us to be more efficient in our work, prioritizing what is needed rather than products that might be built months in advance of when they are needed.
3. Our salespeople will provide our production and design team with the real scheduling information received from their builders. When the sales rep knows that we cannot meet the builders’ schedule, they will work to resolve any problems early in the cycle. In return, I promise that I will let my production and sales teammates know if my work can be completed in time to meet the schedule.
4. Framers will never make structural modifications to our products, either due to their errors or ours, without first checking with us because they know that doing so will almost certainly complicate the repair details needed.
5. Cross sections and details on plans will be relevant to the specific building I am working on, and not generic details that have little resemblance to the current project.
6. Similarly, cross sections will be through the more complicated sections of buildings, because that is where I need more information, and not through the simple area with no cathedral ceilings, bump outs, or other “enhancements.”
7. Our design software provider will focus more on eliminating existing problems and less on enhancements that I will likely never use.

Thank you,
Geordie

P.S. I know that the things on my list are a lot to ask for, and that I’ve been asking for most of them for over 30 years now and you haven’t been able to bring them to me yet. So, if you can’t bring these things again this year, I will settle for a nice bottle of single malt scotch – or maybe two.