In late January, news reports sounded the alarm for a massive winter storm across a large section of the US. Naturally, it brought panic buying of food, snow shovels, and ice melt, and many places confronted treacherous conditions. In the aftermath though, we can gain perspective on how our...

Most companies don’t have a performance problem. They have a flow problem. They have good people, decent equipment, and plenty of effort on the floor, but the numbers that matter most still refuse to move. Output stays flat, lead times stretch, overtime becomes the norm, customers feel...

I recently had the opportunity to visit Classic Truss and spend time with Marty Scott, Operations Manager, and Clarence Houk, Design Manager. It was one of those visits that reminds you how much this industry has changed, and how much of that change comes from steady, intentional progress rather...

If you’re a wood truss designer, you know one thing for sure: your workstation is where the magic (or the misery) happens. Long stretches of modeling, preparing quotes, reviewing digital plans, and generating production documents all happen at that desk. And while companies often focus on...

As we start a new year, many frame and truss manufacturers are focusing on a familiar challenge – how to support their teams, maintain output, and continue delivering a quality product in a labor market that’s tighter and more competitive than ever. While technology and automation...

The OODA Loop, developed by U.S. Air Force Colonel John Boyd, stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. While often discussed as a tactical framework, its real value lies at the organizational level. The OODA Loop describes how companies perceive reality, interpret information, make decisions,...

Every truss manufacturer knows this moment. A job should be moving forward, but it isn’t. Sales thinks design has it. Design is waiting on information. Production is asking for answers. Someone opens a file only to realize it is outdated. Nobody feels negligent, yet nothing is...

Meetings are a necessary part of running any business. They can align teams, solve problems, and move projects forward. But in many organizations, meetings have quietly grown out of control. What once served a clear purpose has, over time, turned into a standing calendar block that exists simply...

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant concept—it’s here, and it’s reshaping industries at an unprecedented pace. For component manufacturers, AI promises efficiency, speed, and cost savings. For years now, we’ve been promised that one day we would be able to...

Component manufacturing is a dynamic business. Market conditions, building codes, supply-chain pressures, and labor needs are continuously shifting, requiring constant problem-solving and innovation. In this environment, staying informed and connected is essential. SBCA’s Open Quarterly...