Decades ago, I learned the value of a dollar as many of us did from our parents and grandparents. At that time, our industry was predominately family businesses. I don’t recall discussing age, however as we grow older, age is simply a number. That was never more evident in our family...

As housing boomed in the mid-1980s, truss plants needed better equipment. Among those was Heart Truss and Engineering in Michigan. Heart was also benefitting from booming auto plants nearby. Their production head, Bob LePoire, pondered how to keep up. Bob’s boss and Heart’s...

It seems some people are upset that I made such a public statement with my latest advertisement – “Pairing a Linear Saw with Two Workstations with Each Having Two Assemblers will Cost Your Company Millions in Lost Net Profits.” Specifically, I’m talking about linking...

The roller gantry had two major obstacles to clear in the 1970s, both erected by its inventor, Carroll Sanford. Both were delineated in hard-to-evade U.S. Patents. The first was on the machine itself and the second was on the connector plate that it required. The simplicity of the gantry machine...

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” Apparently, she never worked in a truss plant, where I think everyone will make them all at least once. But humor aside, let’s take a look at the...

The roller gantry dominates today’s truss production, but it hasn’t always done so, despite the fact that it hasn’t changed much over sixty years. The reason for its relatively slow ascendency is found in its origins and in its adaptations over this period. And along the way...

More CMs are “doing it right the first time” via vertical presses, taking advantage of their flexibility and the quality of their production. But few realize that some of the most successful plants in our industry started with table presses. These presses have always had the...

Forty years ago, a frenetic fray raged over the World Record for truss production. While CMs across the country competed, the two main players, Littfin in Minnesota and Dickie Vail in Louisiana, produced numbers that may never be equaled. The massive trophy, displayed today in the lobby of...

When do CMs go after new technology? Primarily when they’ve had several good years under their belt. But once new equipment has proven to be much better than what it replaces, it continues to sell even in slower economies. This is illustrated by the apparent inflection point midway through...

I am often asked about what is the best one-size-size-fits-all equipment solution to fit all the component manufacturing needs. Of course, too many equipment vendors are more than willing to offer their version of a one-size-fits-all solution. Below are three examples of when one size does not...