Library

In my 30+ years in this industry, I’ve seen some of the most sophisticated automation money can buy. We have saws that think faster than humans and auto-jigging systems that move with surgical precision. But here is the cold, hard truth: the most critical piece of infrastructure in your...

We began the second quarter of the year with a sense of growing tension and uncertainty over the impact of war with Iran. The de facto shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz — through which 20% of the global oil supply is shipped — continued to send oil prices soaring with inflationary...

Lunar New Year has passed, but its meaning continues to guide our work at Simpson Strong-Tie Viet Nam. Tet is a time of renewal, gratitude, and connection. Each year, our Viet Nam branch honors this tradition together in the office, reinforcing shared purpose and commitment. Established in 2012,...

One of the most effective tools available to component manufacturers to inform installers and framers of the potential hazards associated with the installation of structural building components is the Component Warning Notice (CWN). Developed by the SBCA, the CWN has emerged as an industry best...

A quiet and unassuming man, John Houlihan was ushered into our business by the charismatic Dave Chambers, and together they built the foundation for today’s labor management practices. It helped that Chambers’ plant, Imperial Components, was close to the site of the Hawthorne Study,...

When I’m frustrated by something, I’ll tend to keep thinking about it, like a problem to be solved. If I can figure out why I’m so irritated, then maybe I can learn from it (rather than only complain about it). Fictional Stories and Real-Life Budgets In the past,...

Will trusses will be part of new American homes in the future? That question has been the reason I keep a close eye on the home built for NAHB’s International Builders Show. Since 1984, this off-site exhibit, “The New American Home” (TNAH), has presented the latest innovations...

Sometimes, a designed and engineered connection will appear to look like a member to member gap. Because of that, we need to ask the question: should the truss designer always try to eliminate a member to member gap in a truss? Generally speaking, yes, it’s always worthwhile, but there are...

Structural building component manufacturers across North America often track metrics like walls, floors, and trusses shipped each day, labor hours per unit, machine uptime, and on-time delivery. These numbers are important, but they don’t tell the whole story. There’s a quieter...

I’ve been to Boston a few times, but like most business and installation trips, it usually goes the same way: fly into the airport, drive a few hours, get the work done, and head straight back home. There’s never any time to actually pause and “stop to smell the...