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
Finding the Time to Make Improvements in Any Area of a Company Todd Drummond An often repeated statement made by many managers this year has been that they do not have enough time or people to accomplish their stated goals, so in other words, they face time constraints. These time constraints are causing delayed improvements in processes, which negatively affect every... Read More October 2016 Issue #09207 Page 20
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
The Critical Link Between Lean Thinking and Production Problem-Solving for LBM and Component Manufacturers Ben Hershey Sometimes people give me a variety of answers when I ask them to describe lean: tightening the belt; doing more with less; reducing inventory; cost-savings program; waste elimination; quality program; reducing head count; and turnaround tool. The word has meaning to many different people... Read More August 2016 Issue #09205 Page 58
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
Continuous Improvement Ben Hershey Continuous Improvement – Success is achieved, not from the program, but from the mindset Theory of Constraints. The Houlihan Labor Method. Quick Response Manufacturing. Six Sigma. Lean. Total Productive Maintenance. Total Quality Management. The lexicon, tools, and methods... Read More July 2016 Issue #09204 Page 62
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