2025 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook Carl Villella As we transition into spring, now is a good time to assess the dynamics of our current economic outlook. Earlier Optimism and Shifting Factors It is important to recall that the initial outlook for 2025 was more optimistic. This earlier sentiment was largely predicated on expectations of... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 103
Tariffs, Countervailing Duties, and More: Optimizing Production Requires Optimizing the Inputs to Production Valerie Hansen On/off tariffs, the pending hike in countervailing duties, and Section 232 National Security Investigation (which designates lumber as a “strategic good” on par with automobiles, steel, and aluminum) stalk the wood frame construction industry. Collectively and individually, these... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 112
Economic Outlook: Uncertainty and Volatility Lesko Financial Services Team Encouraging data including a downtick in inflation and the prospect of interest rate cuts early in the year fueled optimism, bolstered by hopes of deregulation and the extension of tax cuts put into place during the first Trump presidency. Stocks rallied on hopes for a new era of positive growth... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 118
Design Connections: What You Learn on the Floor Geordie Secord My introduction to the world of wood trusses didn’t begin in the air-conditioned comfort of an office. Instead, I started out building trusses, spending my days walking in circles around a C-clamp press. I had taken the job as a summer student, hoping to make money for university. In... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 126
Stay Connected and Analyze Data with Ease Alpine Team IntelliSheets and dashboards enhance team collaboration and decision-making. Real-Time Access to Critical Job Data Alpine continues to innovate with the latest enhancements (24 series) to IntelliSheets, offering real-time access to job details, item information, and status history through... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 133
Multiple-Ply Girder Load Distribution Change in ANSI/TPI 1-2022 MiTek Staff Girder trusses are trusses specially designed to carry extra load from tie-in trusses and equipment. If a single ply is insufficient to carry the entire load, the truss designer specifies a multiply girder, that is made of identical trusses and fastened together to act as one unit to support the... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 138
Viewing Project Details Just Got Easier Simpson Strong-Tie Staff Simpson Strong-Tie’s Component Solutions® Director™ software creates an audit trail of user changes and displays this information on the History Tab for each project you are working on. The following historical Information displays when you click the History Tab: Pricing... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 146
The Last Word: No Better Job, No Better Industry Joe Kannapell, PE We are fortunate to work in this great industry and to have many ways to give back to our communities. We were given a reminder of that on April 8, 2025, at a very important dedication. We felt the excitement as we entered the crowded shell of what will become the Langetree Community Center... Read More May 2025 Issue #17310 Page 176
Advertiser Forum: Problem Solving 101—A Refresher Anna Stamm Large and small, we’re confronted with problems on a daily basis. Often, they’re something routine and simple, so we don’t even think of it as problem solving. But other times, they hit us like a roadblock, at which point it helps to have a strategy so we can move... Read More April 2025 Issue #17309 Page 6
Home Building Technology, Part IV: The $6,000 Question Joe Kannapell, PE Unions opposed it, builders dismissed it, but the American homebuyer would embrace prefabricated housing as soon as they could afford it. Despite fierce opposition, the government made it a reality by allowing FHA financing on prefabricated homes with loans of $6,000 or less. In announcing this... Read More April 2025 Issue #17309 Page 10