Plate markers, single tool bridges, and automated saws were just a few of the enhancements that filtered into wall panel shops at the Millennium. Their adoption was quickened by the consolidation of component manufacturers (CMs) and by the increasing pressure on all CMs by busy builders....

We’re now back at work in our facility in Jacksonville, Florida after a positive experience at the Building Component Manufacturers Conference (BCMC) in Milwaukee. A big thank you to SBCA and all those involved in organizing such an awesome event. An event of this scale is no easy feat to...

For seven consecutive decades, Triad wall panel and component nailing machines have led the industry in meeting the demands and needs of builders in the United States, Canada, and around the world. Today, Triad continues to meet the ever-growing needs of today’s builders by providing...

Toll Brothers imported an automated panel line commensurate with their luxurious homes, or so they expected. Perhaps because the European economy was ailing in the early 1990s, Randek from Sweden, like the Makron company from Finland before them, offered Toll an excellent deal. But Randek was an...

As automation and robotics are increasingly embraced, it makes sense to review examples of successful implementations from the pioneers of past systems. Interestingly, the first successful fully automated component assembly in the U.S. involved wall panels rather than trusses. However, in many...

Is downtime affecting your production efficiency and holding you back from reaching your full potential? At Panels Plus, we’re passionate about transforming the panelizing industry with durable and innovative solutions that boost efficiency and streamline operations. As a leading provider...

The dream of having a single person model an entire structure was admirable, but developing the software to do that turned into a decade-long struggle. Five years ago, I chronicled the development saga in my series on Fifty Years of Truss Design, Parts XI – XV. As the story told, the...

The way it was – In 1986, as Dick Rotto embarked on a nationwide expansion, he admonished his salesforce, “Trussway will never have another plant as big as our Houston location.” Rotto’s warning came at a time when there wasn’t enough business in the entire state of...

The creation of wall panel software is like the creation of all software – experienced insiders do it best. That was true with Gang-Nail’s AutoPan in the 1970s, which Joe Cotton developed while building wall panels for his homebuilding business. It was also the case with Ted...

By 1980, many component manufacturers were anxious to computerize their wall panel work, but they weren’t getting much help. Gang-Nail’s AutoPan was the only available solution, but it had such a steep learning curve that Gang-Nail no longer promoted it. Plus, they were singularly...