SBC Industry News

MiTek announced today an expansion of its Phoenix-based manufacturing operations later this year.

Builders FirstSource, Inc. and BMC Stock Holdings, Inc., today announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Builders FirstSource and BMC will combine in an all-stock merger transaction to create the nation’s premier supplier of building materials and services. 

Canada largely won a case before the World Trade Organization on Monday in a long-running dispute with the United States over U.S. duties imposed on Canadian softwood lumber exports.

As we reported last week, component manufacturers (CMs) across the country are witnessing “unprecedented increases, [80% since mid-April,] in softwood lumber costs in all markets amongst all grade and species combinations.”

At a trade show last fall, my business partner and I met a third-generation owner of a truss plant. He was in search of ideas, perhaps a fresh perspective, new technology maybe?

According to a recent EHS article about drug testing policies as they relate to the legalization of marijuana, “In a 2019 National Safety Council (NSC) survey, 81 percent of employers were ‘concerned’ about the drug having a negative impact on their workforce.”

Earlier this year, we published the article “eBook: How to Create a Safer, Drug-Free Workplace” that explained some simple steps to follow in creating a safer work environment.

The housing market has done surprisingly well during the coronavirus pandemic, but builders are concerned that a doubling in lumber prices caused by pandemic-induced mill shutdowns is adding thousands of dollars to the cost of new homes and could dampen the industry's contribution to an economic recovery.

Last week, SBC Magazine sent out an online survey asking component manufacturers to share their thoughts regarding the current lumber market. 

In a sign that housing continues to lead the economy forward, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes increased six points to 78 in August, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

With a fiscal calendar that ends in late June, Fort Wayne, Ind.-based Do it Best Corp. has had a wild 12 months culminating in pandemic-challenged society. And the results are impressive – record profits.

If there was any doubt that Home Depot sales would benefit from the stay-at-home, work-from-home environment ushered in by the global pandemic, they were erased by the retailer’s second quarter metrics.

SBCA has been a member of the American Lumber Standard Committee, Incorporated (ALSC) since 2007, where 25 accredited independent third-party agencies provide lumber mill grade marking oversight.

In a recent SBCA Component Connection podcast, Margaret Whelan offers listeners a unique perspective on consumer demand, the risk of disruption, and opportunities of innovation in the component manufacturing (CM) industry. 

Simpson Strong-Tie, the leader in engineered structural connectors and building solutions, has introduced the Strong-Drive® SDPW Deflector screw line of fasteners designed to connect non-load-bearing, full-height partition wall top plates to trusses or joists while allowing for vertical movement without associated connector squeaks. 

Over the last several months, the light-frame wood construction industry has witnessed unprecedented increases in softwood lumber costs in all markets amongst all grade and species combinations.

A robust Quality Assurance (QA) program in your component manufacturing facility gives you a fresh set of eyes on your plant operations four times a year and a team you can reach out to any time you have questions or concerns about your quality control.

After an accelerated pace of layoffs in March and April, construction sector hiring roared back in May and continued at somewhat reduced pace in June, per data from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS).

Chris Tatge started in the framing business as a teenager, helping his youth pastor who was general contracting his own home. By 21, he was signing his first contract to frame 26 houses over the course of a year, bringing on two employees to assist with the process.  

SBCA’s Strike Force 5 rolled out a short survey earlier this summer to measure how production line employees come into the industry, what influences their decision to stay, and what they think CMs can do to attract and retain more line workers.