Floor Truss Technology, Part II: Early Machinery Joe Kannapell It wasn’t enough for Jack Schmitt, President of Truswal, to introduce wood-web floor trusses. He also had to demonstrate how to build them, and that required a special machine. Schmitt turned to his trusted associate, Carl Virta, to come up with a process, and Carl knew who could help him.... Read More July 2023 Issue #15288 Page 10
The Last Word: The Rise of the Floor Truss Joe Kannapell Among the first advocates for floor trusses were two men who would later create an acclaimed component plant. Dwight Hikel and Chris Ditzel made early inroads at Fort McHenry Lumber, such that Ditzel declared in 1972, “I think we will be eventually doing 2-1/2 times the volume in floor... Read More July 2023 Issue #15288 Page 132
Floor Truss Technology, Part I: Parallel Chord Trusses Joe Kannapell Floor trusses have been golden for the component industry for over half a century, and their origin is worth recounting and celebrating. Because of their flexibility and utility, wood trusses dominate apartment construction and have taken it up to 5 stories. Getting there, however, has required... Read More June 2023 Issue #15287 Page 10
The Last Word: The Component Industry Comes of Age Joe Kannapell It’s worth recounting the 25 productive years that culminated in the establishment of WTCA/SBCA. Thanks to the leadership of some outstanding men, and their early embrace of technology, the component industry came together to claim its rightful place in the building industry, but it... Read More June 2023 Issue #15287 Page 128
The Development of the Truss Plate, Part X: Split Decision on Truss Plates Joe Kannapell Four distinctly different types of truss plates came onto the market in the 1950s, but only two made it into the 1960s: the short toothed and the long toothed, neither requiring nails. These two types continued to evolve over the next decade, although along distinctly different paths, and under... Read More May 2023 Issue #15286 Page 10
The Last Word: Truss Machinery Follows the Plates Joe Kannapell Throughout the 1950s, plate manufacturers kept busy improving their plate designs, while they paid scant attention to the machinery that CMs needed to embed them. But, in the 1960s, they began focusing heavily on machinery and laid the foundation for developments that would shape truss... Read More May 2023 Issue #15286 Page 124
The Development of the Truss Plate, Part IX: The Case of the Century Joe Kannapell Among our industry’s unsung heroes, Walter Moehlenpah takes a close second place behind Cal Jureit. Both built pivotal, pioneering businesses, Jureit through his truss plate and Moehlenpah through his truss machine. Yet Jureit was bound to have the upper hand, as he was the truss... Read More April 2023 Issue #15285 Page 10
The Last Word: LBMs and the Component Business Joe Kannapell The contemporary consolidations within the Lumber and Building Materials (LBM) business were prompted by consolidations within the home improvement retail industry. Home Depot started the movement in 1979, and its dramatic growth forced Lowes to follow it, converting its stores into mostly... Read More April 2023 Issue #15285 Page 136
The Development of the Truss Plate, Part VIII: Patent Skirmishes Joe Kannapell As builders began demanding Gang-Nailed trusses, imitators answered their call with little concern for violating Cal Jureit’s patent. Even though his claims were technical triumphs, vetted by D.C. patent experts, they were quickly contested by two now-familiar figures, Bill Black and... Read More March 2023 Issue #15284 Page 10
The Last Word: Is the Future Flat? Joe Kannapell Seeing so many flat roofs early this year made me wonder if the future of truss building will be flat. During the January SBCA Phoenix Open Quarterly Meetings, some of us saw Truss Fab Components’ yard loaded with flat trusses, and others saw the flat roof lines of Frank Lloyd... Read More March 2023 Issue #15284 Page 128