Good Connections Magazine

6 GOOD CONNECTIONS | Summer 2019 What can be done? If dimensional variance in cut pieces is causing difficulty in the producŸon process, there are some acŸons that can be taken to reduce inconsistency. CalibraŸon: When calibraŸng the Alpine ALS 4.0 Linear Saw it's imperaŸve that the saw operator selects lumber that is at the exactly 1 ½" thick to perform the cuts required. This will increase the likelihood that the adjustments made to the saw are correct so that the producŸon cu« ng maŸng surfaces are in the right locaŸon even if some of the overall dimensions differ. As a rule, when the same parts are run on two different boards and they are not idenŸcal, check the lumber dimensions to determine if variaŸon is the root cause before modifying the saw calibraŸon. Lumber sizing: If the lumber from your mill is normally we© er or drier than 19% and the exact dimensions do not match the dressed size, then the dimension can be modified in the truss design soLware. This adjustment will start at the design stage and flow to producŸon. Then the called-out material will match the producŸon material and the Alpine ALS 4.0 Linear Saw will compensate for the change. Crown up: When the crown up funcŸon is selected in the opŸons menu the sawyer needs to be aware that the only way to ensure that the cut boards will be uniform is to verify that the dressed lumber is dimensionally consistent. In conclusion, there are differences in lumber thickness, width and edge condiŸons that affect measured dimensions of manufactured webs and chords in a truss plant. The workers in the plant must understand the natural variance in dressed lumber dimensions will lead to inconsistencies in the output of a linear saw. Building Component Industry Veteran Ray Almonte recently celebrated 40 years of outstanding service. Based in Alpine's Fort Lauderdale, Florida office, he started in the industry in 1971 as a draLsman with Gang-Nail in Miami. He quickly moved up to a designer then on to engineering and later, he was in charge of Gang-Nail layout and truss design soLware. With the 1991 merger of Gang-Nail and Hydro-Air, Ray was ready to move to St. Louis... however his family was not, so he took a 10 year hiatus working within the (GIS) Geographic InformaŸon System Industry. In 1999, Ray joined Alpine's soLware development department and eventually became the Engineering Team Manager. Alpine staff will miss Ray's work ethic, his knowledge and certainly his humor. He thought there would be no be© er day than April 1st to move onto the next chapter in his life. Ray plans to get rid of 40 years of stuff, sell his house and then move to Houston to spend as much Ÿme as possible being a grandfather. Ray shared these comments: "I have been blessed to meet wonderful people during my Ÿme and many are our customers, some of whom have become good friends. In the years since I started in this industry, the soLware and equipment have become orders of magnitude more efficient and producŸve. In the 70's I could only imagine the kind of plant management and design soLware that has become available today. Component manufacturers have become much more sophisŸcated, but have sŸll retained the same good business sense and integrity that I was used to. I'm reŸred now, and will miss all of you." Alpine's Ray Almonte ReŸres ConŸnued from page 5

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