Alpine Engineered Products’ new owners greenlighted both a new linear saw and a major upgrade to their component saw, but they gave Dave McAdoo a nearly impossible deadline. He would have to deliver both by BCMC 2002, just 3½ months away. And the most difficult of these, the linear...

As we head towards Christmas and think about a well-earned break, I can’t help but reflect on the work done in 2021 and the wonderful support received from our customer/partners. Spida again demonstrated our machinery at BCMC – and were embraced by our customers and new friends to...

At Eagle Metal, our TrueBuild® software gives you an advantage in efficiency. Our Job Management software gives our customers the flexibility they need to build more. We offer fabricators the options they need to make scheduling as simple or as complex as they want it to be. From individual...

In its quest to transform the building construction industry through better building, MiTek is embracing futuristic technology to help improve the collaboration of value-chain partners. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have been used for entertainment purposes for many years, and...

Most component manufacturers know Triad because of framing, squaring, and sheathing tables. If you attended the BCMC show in Omaha in October, you also saw our newest innovation—the ProFusion Sheathing Bridge with Autonomous Operation. But do you know all of the products that Triad/Merrick...

The true story of how Alpine revolutionized saws In early 2000, sales of truss equipment began to taper off. By the end of the year, the Equipment Division had reduced its employment by more than half and had shrunk its occupied floor space by 40%. The most dramatic reduction took place in...

A David and Goliath struggle was brewing over the linear saw, and it was ready to boil over at BCMC in October 2002. It would pit Jim Urmson, a lone mechanic who was pioneering his first machine, against Alpine’s engineers, who had launched multiple winning machines. Though Urmson had...

It was great to see everyone back at the BCMC show this year in Omaha. Seeing all the familiar faces reminds us all how tight knit our industry is, especially after missing last year due to Covid. It felt like a typical annual family gathering with some relatives you talk to on a regular basis...

With the introduction of lasers, setting up a truss while accurately controlling its perimeter and profile has never been quicker or easier. But do lasers do the job by themselves? The answer is no. They cannot. Here is why. Lasers provide excellent and accurate information to truss builders...

BCMC 2021 in Omaha, NE gave customers the opportunity to see first-hand the new Triad ProFusion sheathing bridge—Triad’s latest programmable bridge with many new features to provide increased speed and increased flexibility while reducing labor. [For photos, see See PDF or View in...