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Think beyond the physical investment of trucks, equipment, and buildings when it comes to investments for improving the bottom line for 2021. If a company wants to improve the net profits, improving the project communication process can add serious dollars to the bottom line. Most companies...

There are many steps in the process of bringing lumber to the truss plant to be used in our trusses. Lumber must be harvested then sawn. Drying and planing brings the lumber closer to potential use, but it is not until the lumber makes it through the grading process that it is suitable for use....

The importance of making changes for Offsite Manufacturing For some it seems like this past year, 2020, has been either a waste or was put on pause. There have been numerous challenges in our businesses, politics, the economy, our homes, and many more all disrupted by the Covid pandemic that...

In our first installment last month, Sharing Information Without Constraint, we explored the constraints around information sharing in today’s rapid-paced construction cycle. Material prices are high, interest rates are low, and business is booming. But, this rapid pace doesn’t...

Using the Past to Build the Future The partnership between House of Design and Alpine, an ITW Company, is focused on helping clients address the challenges in the component manufacturing industry – labor and demand. The foundation of our truss system solution is robotics, helping...

Last month’s article, Stiles Machinery Is Ready to Be a Part of Your Team, focused on how Stiles Machinery values teamwork and partnerships. This month, I’m proud to highlight Stiles’ strong partnership with MINDA and the newly founded MINDA North America in Granite, North...

This classic phrase brings back many memories and even fits some of today’s challenges. As a child, I can remember family road trips and being bored sitting in the back seat, mile after mile. I would ask, “Are we there yet?”  My dad would always say, “Soon, be...

COVID Shipment Delays WILL RISE The global pandemic surge is further exacerbating shipment schedules, lengthening many commodity and specialty items that are weeks behind already. Some truckloads of basic commodity Canadian lumber are just now catching up on two-month delays despite prices...

Usually I am the first person in line shouting the benefits of modular construction to help the affordable housing market, but not this time. That’s because it doesn’t matter how you approach the affordable housing market if there isn’t enough factory capacity to keep ahead...

When I saw the article on ceiling separation, The Enduring Problem of Truss Partition Separation, written by my friend Frank Woeste in the November issue of The Advertiser, I was excited to read it. As Frank writes, this problem has been around since there has been a metal plate connected wood...