Is Your Plant Process an Open or Closed Loop Process? Glenn Traylor I remember the introduction of early cruise control in cars. It was fantastic. It allowed the driver to set their speed without having to hold the accelerator pedal down with their foot. The only problem was, when you went up a hill, the car slowed down. When you went down a hill, the car... Read More December 2016 Issue #09209 Page 26
Do You Know Your Knots? Glenn Traylor In the photograph, the side grain is shown to provide understanding of what constitutes a knot defect when the truss member is cut perpendicular to this face. Each dark line of grain indicates an annual growth ring. In the sections marked A, the face of a sawn member would not show any knots... Read More November 2016 Issue #09208 Page 27
Are You Indicating Defects Accurately When Recording Damaged Teeth? Glenn Traylor The plate placement method of evaluating defects in the plated area is a good approach to use when inspecting your installed connector plates. But are you recording the results correctly? Using the plate placement method, it is common to record folded teeth or damaged teeth with a rectangle... Read More October 2016 Issue #09207 Page 25
Are Your Truss Builders Guilty of Plate Abuse? Glenn Traylor From the office, the sound of the steady bam, bam of hammers is music to your ears – but did you know it could also be the sound of plate abuse? Since the invention of the connector plate, the preferred method for initially seating the plate has been using a hammer. Often folks think,... Read More September 2016 Issue #09206 Page 24
What Kind of Message are You Sending Your Customers? Glenn Traylor It happens. And it will happen again. Time after time, truss fabricators are faced with the awkwardness of addressing a customer’s complaint call. Fabricating a custom product to meet specifications has its challenges. There are codes to follow. Loads to verify, configuration to consider,... Read More August 2016 Issue #09205 Page 24
When is a Member Gap Not a Member Gap? Glenn Traylor Building trusses with tight member to member joints insures accurate truss profiles and consistency between setups. The member to member gaps are limited to 1/8” and 1/16” on floor truss chord splices. This requirement is primarily concerned with compressive joint situations where... Read More July 2016 Issue #09204 Page 27
How Important is Plate Placement Relative to Floor Truss Chords? Glenn Traylor Often component manufacturer facilities’ owners and managers state how floor truss fabrication is generally more straight forward and simpler to train when compared to roof truss fabrication. The guidelines are easy to follow and drawings generally do not require special rotation or... Read More June 2016 Issue #09203 Page 28
Is There a Reduction for Plating in a Previously Plated Area? Glenn Traylor When a connector has been installed on a joint and it is determined the plate does not meet the requirements of the design standard, then the truss designer has to make a decision. The connection can be repaired by removing the plate, or there may be a way to facilitate the repair leaving the... Read More May 2016 Issue #09202 Page 26
How Important is Embedment? Glenn Traylor Connectors are essential to the integrity of the truss. It is imperative the plate is properly pressed in order to insure effective lateral load transfer from truss member to truss member. Since on occasion modern and older equipment does not press the plate completely into the... Read More April 2016 Issue #09201 Page 28
Quality Assurance, Safety, and the Benefits of a Non-Biased Audit Glenn Traylor When folks hear the term audit, they generally think of an IRS audit. Not a pleasant thought. The term invokes an image of hot lights, endless questions, pouring over boxes of records, all in the attempt to find wrong doing on the part of the tax payer. When you consider a quality assurance... Read More March 2016 Issue #09200 Page 34