Whether you’re facing a Polar Vortex, a Snowmageddon, or just another pending storm, a wintry winter forecast can strike fear in anyone. But the good news is that a Lumber PickLine will make it even easier for you to cope with these tricky situations. [For all photos, See PDF or View in Full Issue.]
Extreme cold weather and tons of snow is quite predictable at this time of year, especially in areas where we’re becoming accustomed to hearing the words Polar Vortex in the forecast. But even without weather extremes, I’ve had my share of winter installs interrupted by just a day of unworkable weather. In fact, for more on winter preparedness, you can read my article from last March, “Gear Up for Winter Work Just Like Winter Sports!”
So, what should we do when the snow hits us? Once the snow stops falling, the cold is manageable by bundling up so the snow can be cleared. This is what northern truss plants have to deal with seasonally. Personally, I prefer an outdoor winter install to an exposed extreme heat install. When working outside, there is not much relief from the blazing sun and extreme heat. Under roof, heating and snow removal is a cost of doing business. But note, with forklift lumber picking, the entire yard needs to be plowed before lumber can be picked.
Once the lumber reaches the saws, snow and frozen lumber is not a problem for component saws like the Enventek RetroC. But note, forklift-fed lumber will accumulate more snow than PickLine-fed lumber even when it has stopped snowing. The photo shows the snow piles on some forklift-fed lumber headed to a RetroC.
First, managing lumber on a PickLine is easier than managing forklift feeding, because a PickLine only requires shoveling or blowing snow off the sidewalk on either side of the lumber trough.
Second, PickLine-fed lumber has a better chance of getting to the saw with less snow accumulation. The quickest way to prevent significant snow accumulation inside a PickLine is to place boards on the trough – they’re easy to put down at night, they keep snow out of the trough, and you remove the boards when work resumes the next day.
Third, with a PickLine, the lumber wrap is also easier for the lumber picker to uncover and re-cover as needed versus a forklift lumber picker driving around and jumping in and out of the forklift cab. At the end of the day, the forklift driver will need to drive around and re-cover the used bunks of lumber if snow is anticipated, whereas the PickLine picker has an easier time re-covering the used bunks and placing the snow-blocking boards over the lumber trough before heading home.
Fourth, in the morning after a snowfall, lumber picking can start relatively quickly along with the saws cutting lumber and feeding the truss tables. Any snow that has accumulated on the SmartConveyor rails will just fail off when it is turned on.
In addition, we recommend using the same electrical heating cables that plumbers use to prevent water pipes from freezing. These heating cables have built-in thermostats to turn on before water freezes, which is more than enough to prevent the motors from seizing up.
With or without snow, the Enventek Lumber PickLine has many advantages compared to forklift picking. When you’re ready to see more about this and how LimTek Process Organization Technology will help you squeeze out more truss production and deliver quality trusses with shorter lead times, please let us know!