SBC Industry News

In a strong signal that housing is leading the economic recovery, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes increased five points to hit an all-time high of 83 in September, according to the latest NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

Hancock Lumber has been named a “Best Places to Work in Maine” for the 7th consecutive year.

84 Lumber, the nation’s largest privately held building materials supplier, today announced its 2020 Vendor of the Year: Southeast Forest Products. The award is presented every year and is based on various factors including sales growth and above-and-beyond service.

A Texas-based producer of structural building components is adding another plant in Ringgold, Georgia, to build and fabricate wooden trusses and engineered beams to serve the Tennessee Valley.

Offsite construction continues to emerge as an innovative approach to challenges that impact the home building industry, whether it’s effective response for disaster relief or reduced materials waste to cut down on costs.

Zillow announced that it is adding Builder Ratings and Reviews to its builder profiles, community pages, and paid new construction listings, based on surveys of new homeowners conducted at move-in by Avid Ratings.

Simpson Strong-Tie, the leader in engineered structural connectors and building solutions, announced the relocation of its warehouse and annex facilities in Jessup, Maryland.

Stark Truss, which has for the past three years manufactured wood products for construction companies out of its Franklin location, may now need some of its own products.

The current volatile softwood lumber market is prompting stakeholders up and down the supply chain to take a fresh look at any and all construction method and material alternatives.

The International Code Council recently published “Recommended Practices for Remote Virtual Inspections,” a guideline document that governmental jurisdictions should consider for an effective and consistent remote virtual inspections program.

Kodiak Building Partners’ latest acquisition—its largest yet—will nearly double the company’s headcount.

An evacuation order has been issued for some residents in Clackamas County because of a fire burning on South Unger Road near Bauer Road in Colton.

The recently announced merger of Builders FirstSource and BMC is prompting speculation in the residential construction industry on how it will impact operations up and down the supply chain. 

After an accelerated pace of layoffs in March and April, construction hiring roared back in May, increasing the count of open jobs in July per data from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS).  

Can you decouple parts of the economy from another and still have a strong recovery? That’s the question the U.S. economy is facing today, and the so-called “K-shaped” recovery is sending mixed-messages depending on where you look.

Jess Lohse has been named Executive Director for the Structural Building Components Association (SBCA), starting September 8, 2020. 

SBCA and Qualtim are pleased to announce that Kirk Grundahl, P.E., has retired as the Executive Director of SBCA effective July 31, 2020, although he will continue his work in the structural building components industry through his affiliation with Qualtim.

The International Code Council (ICC) has announced its Off-Site and Modular Construction Standards Committee is developing two new standards.

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) published new frequently asked questions (FAQs) for workers and employers about qualifying for paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) related to the reopening of schools.

The recent spike in softwood lumber prices has caused the price of an average new single-family home to increase by $16,148 since April 17, according to NAHB standard estimates of lumber used to build the average home.