A
Th e
Component Manufacturing dverti$er
Don’t Forget! You Saw it in the
The Thomas McAnally Publisher
Adverti$er
July 2019 #11240 Page #80
Hiring Zone
Opportunity Knocks
J
ust a couple of years ago, I went back to the commercial modular/classroom/mobile office company where I had my first GM job in the ’80s. I was 27 then, am much older now, but one thing hasn’t changed much, technology. The stations had the same kind of equipment, home build when possible, and heavy emphasis on holding cost down. In an industry that is highly competitive, not only from other modular manufacturers but from the construction industry in general, a dime saved drops to the bottom line. When asked why they had not modernized saws, wall stations, or even lumber management—areas similar to where the component industry has invested in technology—the answer was, “Do you know how much that equipment costs?” It brought back memories of my many attempts to modernize in the past, with similar answers from above. Sure, they have gone from drafting to CAD, but only in terms of making the lines look similar. Since the crash, more modular manufacturers are looking closely at what the building components industry is doing. They see component manufacturers narrowing the speed-of-construction gap—the gap on which modular predicates its value. When it traditionally took 6–8 months to dry in a commercial structure, modular with a concurrent construction process could halve that timeframe. As building components such as roof and floor trusses, wall panels, floor panels, and other structural framing aids are allowing site construction to speed the dry-in timeframe, modular has done little to increase the gap by improving technology. I must admit, modular has a disadvantage when it comes to purchasing equipment. They don’t produce the same volume that a component manufacturer builds. The Board Foot production rate is much lower. Amortizing a lower volume over the same cost to acquire doesn’t make sense. In true modular form, doing more with less, the opportunity could be in used equipment. What was cutting edge technology in a component plant in 2000 is still 20 years ahead of current modular technology in many plants. By looking for used equipment and having technical support from a knowledgeable used equipment broker, modular could make the transition less costly and much smoother. The cost per BFT would be closer to the component manufacturer who has 2019 technology, and 2019 costs. But even those who go with used equipment and get help from a broker to get it installed correctly, still must feed it with information (CNC). While some older equipment is still manual set up, adding small things like a plate marking to a component saw can help eliminate waste, errors on the wall table, Continued next page
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