Home Building Technology, Part III: Overcoming the Prefab Stigma Joe Kannapell, PE Even though 500,000 prefab homes were built for World War II, builders were not committed to the prefabrication approach. But why not? These homes should have served as an entré to the future use of components by the hundreds of builders who constructed government housing in hundreds of... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 10
Machinery Software That Works For You! Wendy Boyd Looking at the year ahead, a number of predictions have said the manufacturing landscape in the US is set to grow. This is being driven by several factors including advances in technology, increasing use of automation, and changes within the economy, as well as changes to the workforce with a... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 19
Leadership in Challenging Times Todd Drummond As the competition gets more aggressive and the markets have slowed, your company’s sales are inevitably slowing, and margins are dropping. Let us face the fact that these are now becoming challenging times, and leaders must face these challenges in a healthy way. Whether you are a line... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 28
How Important is Training in Your Operation? Glenn Traylor What do you think of when you hear the word “training”? A classroom with students listening to a teacher? A truss plant with a new hire following behind a seasoned truss builder? Or, maybe your first thought was sitting in front of a computer for an online course? The truth is that... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 39
Gear Up for Winter Work Just Like Winter Sports! Edmond Lim, P.Eng. This winter season has been marked by severe weather conditions, including bitterly persistent cold and heavy snowfall. Thankfully, we’ve continued to install outdoor Lumber PickLines, which is a testament to the robustness and operational effectiveness of Enventek’s forklift... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308
5 Reasons Why Your Wall Panel Production is Underwhelming Darrin Schramm Any given fall Sunday, we get to watch our favorite football team and, if we understand the sport, we can see what they do well and where they are lacking. Each game is full of statistics, and the statistics tell us where our team ranks in relation to previous games, other teams, past years, and... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 72
Navigating the Workforce Shortage: How Technology and Equipment Financing Can Help Carl Villella The year 2025 sees businesses across industries grappling with a persistent workforce shortage. Finding and retaining qualified employees is a major challenge, impacting productivity and growth. However, technology offers a powerful solution, and equipment financing can make it more accessible... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 83
The Benefits of a 32-Hour Workweek for Truss Designers Truss manufacturers looking to attract younger truss designers might want to think outside of the box. We have found one key issue affecting many Gen-Z truss designers and have a solution that may help entice them to your company—offering a Gen-Z-preferred workweek. Consider this: Gen-Z... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 100
Design Connections: Addressing the Truss Designer Shortage Geordie Secord For many years, there has been a great deal of discussion at industry events, in component industry board rooms, and even in this publication about a looming shortage of design technicians. So, what is behind the wood truss designer shortage and why is it such a pressing issue? And, how can we... Read More March 2025 Issue #17308 Page 108
Home Building Technology, Part II: Mass Production Technology Joe Kannapell, PE While Sears had stolen the spotlight on precut technology, their lesser-known rival, Aladdin Homes, helped usher in prefabrication, but not initially. For many years, Aladdin fought the concept of pre-assembling parts of homes in their factory, asserting that their precut packages took... Read More February 2025 Issue #17307 Page 10