Can Automation Eliminate Paper in the Truss Plant? Glenn Traylor With the invention of integrated production methods, one of the greatest evolutions has been the electronic transfer of information from the truss designs to the computerized equipment, eliminating human error and translation issues. Automatic puck systems, lasers, ink jet marking, or shop... Read More January 2021 Issue #13258
All Things Wood: “Hybrid Lumber” Grade Stamps Require Special Attention Frank Woeste Lumber properties are influenced by species and growing region. Species with similar design properties are combined into species groups, as shown in Tables 4A, 4B, and 4F of the NDS Supplement[1]. For example, a common species group in the southeastern U.S. is Southern Pine (SP), which includes... Read More January 2021 Issue #13258 Page 78
How Can Equipment Choice Affect Long Term Success? Sean Hubbard Today’s equipment is ever evolving. Innovation has indeed added more complexity than ever for the building components industry. Capital expenditures should be planned and calculating rather than intimidating and emotional. There are several key steps entrepreneurs and businesses should... Read More December 2020 Issue #12257 Page 17
Fight the Management Drift Ben Hershey Many of us started 2020 with resolutions/goals both for ourselves and our businesses, but then our year was turned upside down with the Covid worldwide pandemic and other issues such as lumber prices topping highs we thought we would never see. While many LBM/component businesses are working at... Read More November 2020 Issue #12256 Page 26
All Things Wood: The Enduring Problem of Truss Partition Separation Frank Woeste For more than 40 years, truss partition separation, often loosely referred to as “truss uplift,” has been a practical (and annoying) issue for homeowners and homebuilders. While it was first investigated at the field level and researched in the laboratory in the 1970s, an October... Read More November 2020 Issue #12256 Page 78
The Last Word: The Last Word on Staying Home Joe Kannapell Take it from me, being there is half of the battle, and Zoom meetings don’t count. This was true 50 years ago when I was working in our office, and it was true last week when I was in front of customers. There may be a price to pay, but the dividends will surely come back to you, as they... Read More November 2020 Issue #12256 Page 147
Servant Leadership and One of Our Industry’s Best Ben Hershey I remember it clearly; I was in the Lounge at Portland International Airport when I got a call from Joe Kannapell. Joe was going to be sharing with the MiTek team in the next day that he would be officially retiring at the end of 2020; Joe has been a part of the industry for more than 46 years.... Read More October 2020 Issue #12255 Page 40
9 Success Factors for Exceptional Leadership During Challenging Times Randy Goruk As we traverse the second half of 2020, we can expect the ftime between now and January 2021 to fly by. As it does, we have to prepare to lead our teams through the year’s extreme challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic and other events—hurricanes, tornadoes, monsoons, cyber-crime,... Read More September 2020 Issue #12254 Page 84
With Latest Publication, AWC Once Again Leads Charge on Mass Timber Construction Robert Glowinski As former students, we all know the importance of having a study guide. A great study guide pulls together all the pertinent information from various sources to help you focus on the topic at hand. In the world of mass timber construction, complex codes and standards need to be well understood... Read More September 2020 Issue #12254 Page 106
System Installations Sean Hubbard Thirty years ago, equipment installations looked considerably different. Often, the equipment was installed using the customer’s maintenance staff and even the truss building crew. Working with new crews on a weekly basis, who were skilled in component manufacturing but had limited... Read More August 2020 Issue #12253 Page 16