One constant thorn in the side of truss fabricators is the cost of preparing quotes, often multiple times for the same job through the life of a project. I find that this is especially true for custom homes, as they often go through numerous revisions for aesthetic, budget, zoning, and other...

If you are considering financing equipment at this juncture, you may be concerned about where interest rates are headed. You may be wondering if perhaps it might be better to wait until rates drop before you take that step to finance. Darrell R. Spence, an economist with 31 years of...

In the busy world of prefabricated components, there are three conflicting metrics that owners and managers look at to determine operational performance – board feet of lumber, sales dollars, and margin dollars. I’ll start with what I believe is likely the most common but also the...

As you look to finance new or used equipment for your business, look beyond just the interest rate to find opportunity. Traditional banks may have their “Loan Sales,” but brokers can provide promotions offered by their numerous funding sources that far outshine what a bank can...

Today, as an industry, we build faster, cut faster, design faster – thanks to technology and the automation it enables. The offsite construction industry is built on smarter design, more efficient fabrication. Whether in the office or on your plant floor, automation is very much a part of...

The first quarter of 2024 ended on a positive note, which hopefully will prove to be a solid foundation for the remainder of the year. Despite lingering inflation, the U.S. economy continued to show resilience and added increasing optimism for the much-sought-after “soft...

Over the last couple of articles, I’ve spent some time discussing improvements that would improve both the energy efficiency and the ability of the truss system to withstand extreme weather conditions. If you’ve read those articles, you will know that I think it is ridiculous that we...

Taking a look at what some of the analysts are saying, it appears that the consensus is that the period of near-zero interest rates is not likely to return anytime soon. Going back to 1870, or roughly 60% of the time, the U.S. Treasury yields have been in the 3.5% to 5.5% range. Fed Chair...

I have had the same conversations with so many executives concerning the tight labor market and rising labor costs. There is good and bad news concerning this subject. First, the good news is that you can be assured that high labor costs and a tight labor market are not only affecting your...

Over the last few months, we have seen rates drop for those seeking to finance new or used equipment. Economists are pointing to even lower rates as the year goes on, but of course that will depend on whether the economy continues its downward inflation trend or not, on its way to the 2%...