The future of automation was on display at the 1988 BCMC, but few of us recognized it. Two leading truss plant owners did, however: Lenny Sylk of Shelter Systems and Dick Rotto of Trussway. Lenny’s purchase of the automated saw encouraged others to follow suit. Dick demurred on the automated jigging, like most of his peers. This surprised me because the auto-jigging looked much more conventional than the saw, and it was offered by an established vendor, Alpine Engineered Products. Contrarily, the Auto-Omni saw looked very unconventional, and was offered by a largely unknown entity, Engineering Services Company. However, if the automated saw lived up to its billing, it could eclipse the rise of the DePauw/Easy-Set manual saws. We needed to know more about the Auto-Omni, its unconventional inventor, Jerry Koskovich, and its early purchasers. And until this day, I’d hadn’t fully appreciated the untold story of the technology inside this machine.
I first encountered Jerry when he was working in a totally different capacity: consulting with Engineered Building Components (EBCO) in Minneapolis as an outside PE. Like me, he is a Civil, not a Mechanical, Engineer, schooled on static structures, not moving machines. But from the engineering work he did for truss plants, he gained a firsthand understanding of their cutting challenges, and their need for a more versatile saw. He went to work building several manual component saws. Then in 1984, he partnered with a local machine shop to incorporate robotic arms and an innovative lumber clamping system on the saw. [For photos, see PDF or View in Full Issue]
Jerry then tapped his CM contacts and found an ideal partner close-at-hand: Nick Linsmayer, owner of Villaume Industries. Nick was positioning his 100+ year old family business as a technological leader. He sanctioned Jerry’s onsite development work over several years and, by 1987, began to reap the benefits. (Mr. Linsmayer recently sold Villaume to US LBM).
By 1988, Jerry had attracted only marginal interest in his invention, partly due to a three-year slump in housing, and he needed to achieve a breakthrough. Fortunately, the economy had picked up by BCMC and Lenny Sylk came forward and purchased an Auto-Omni. Lenny had already begun automating his DePauw saw, but scrapped his efforts when he recognized the elegance of Jerry’s design. Two distinguishing features intrigued Lenny and other prospects: the robotic cutting heads and the lumber clamping. Both eliminated motors and mechanisms, simplifying calibration and maintenance. The three-axis robotic movement of the heads replaced the large angulation quadrants of existing saws and enabled a lower, straight-through lumber feed. But much more impressive were the brains of the operation – Jerry’s and the Auto-Omni’s.
Imagine that a sole entrepreneur put together his own PLC – Programmable Logic Controller – before General Electric’s was even marketed. Jerry Koskovich made this happen without the backing of any large entity. He assembled a remarkable group of suppliers that designed the control electronics and created custom circuit cards to drive the saw. The example shown here illustrates the complexity of this accomplishment. [For photo, see PDF or View in Full Issue]
I doubt that Lenny Sylk or the other Auto-Omni takers appreciated the technological genius inside this first automated saw – if they knew the level of complexity, they may have doubted Jerry’s ability to provide support. Perhaps that’s why I didn’t find any mention of PLCs in old Auto-Omni ads.
Looking back, 1988 was near the midpoint in our sixty years of machines, and high time for the industry to step up to automation. From all indications on the Show floor, cutting would be the first step. Suddenly Jerry Koskovich had several orders, but no suitable place to build them. Would he be able to ramp up his production before the other machinery manufacturers responded? Will they automate their existing saws, or attempt a new approach?
Next Month:
Automation Momentum
Since 1970, Joe Kannapell has worked as programmer, Chief Engineer, Marketing Manager, and Sales VP for MiTek, plus 7 years at truss plants, retiring at the end of 2020.