A
Th e
Component Manufacturing dverti$ dverti $ er
Don’t Forget! You Saw it in the
Adverti$$er
July 2021 #13264 Page #54
What is Optimization?
By Tracy Roe
O
ptimization is a crucial part of success and profitability in our industry. It is something that every component manufacturer works at daily in some form or another. At the same time, however, the word has so very many different interpretations that few have exactly the same approach. In this article, I want to explore a few of the most common interpretations of optimization. Perhaps reading this will provoke some thought around how you embrace the “Art” of optimization.
What do we optimize? I want to start by discussing arguably the most common aspect of optimization — material. This is the first thing most new designers learn while they are being trained. They are instructed to look at each truss design for material lengths. If you are joint splicing, you are making sure those chord lengths are not odd. You are also taking a close look at web lengths. Can you shift a joint slightly to get that web under an even foot length? These are just a couple of examples, but the list goes on. These are the things that come to mind when most people think about optimization. There are even independent contractors in our industry today who do nothing but these material optimizations and rightfully so. As an example, if you spend just $2m per year on lumber and you can save an average of just 2% over the course of the year, that is $40,000. Is it worth your time to optimize? With average material prices near $1 per board foot, I think the answer is clear.
Continued next page
PHONE: 800-289-5627
Read/Subscribe online at www.componentadvertiser.com
FAX: 800-524-4982