Stephen Fray

Back in the 1980s (when I first started in this business), very few tradesmen had a mobile phone.

And if they did, it was very expensive, rarely worked properly and had the mobility of a brick.

These days, on any building site, you’ll see even the youngest apprentice with an MP3 playing, picture taking, flip phone glued to his ear.

Like the mobile phone, the technological developments in our segment of the building industry (frame and truss prefabrication), have also been dramatic.

This is somewhat surprising given the building industry’s often misplaced reputation for conservatism and reluctance to change.

What’s exciting about the prefabrication industry, in particular, (and MiTek’s strong involvement in it), is the unprecedented innovation that has been occurring, especially in the last few years.

Connector plate suppliers have invested heavily in software development over the years however it’s the technological advances in machinery that have revolutionised truss plant operations.

Today’s truss plant is far more efficient than one operating a decade ago - let alone two.

Despite the relatively small size of our prefabrication market in Australia (compared to the US or Europe), in many ways, we are leading the world in the development of leading edge technology for truss manufacture.

Australian fabricators have always been early to adopt new technology and right now the capacity of computer software to drive automation in truss plants is greater than ever before.

In many industries technology can be out of reach for the smaller to medium operators - however this is not the case for most truss and frame plants.

The demands on the management of prefabrication plants are much the same as they have always been, but these days they are more intense.

This is mostly because of increased competition, cyclical housing markets, more stringent OH&S enforcement in plants and on building sites, shortages of skilled labour and so on.

The shift towards more automation in plants has obvious benefits in terms of manufacturing efficiency, but the improvements in safety and de-skilling the workforce are extremely important as well.

Developments like the computerised single bladed and multi-blade saws offer a variety of solutions for plants of various outputs.

But the big breakthrough has come from the evolution of linear saws such as the Razer Saw, which can cut all components on the one machine.

As a result truss plants now have the ability to move away from the historical batch cutting methodology and the material handling consequences that come with it, to a continuous “production flow” approach and “truss by truss” manufacturing.

The positive implication for truss plants is substantial.

So where is all this heading? Well, at least for large volume plants, full automation and robotic handling of components and finished trusses will be a serious reality within the next few years.

MiTek already has the ingredients for the fully automated plant in its range of truss plant machinery.

This includes the Razer Saw, automated infeed and outfeed systems for saws, automatic presentation of cut components to robotic arms for placement of members in a Hydra Press and final removal of completed trusses.

It’s a production flow scenario Henry Ford would have found hard to imagine. These challenging but exciting times and the current innovation opportunities enable us all to work smarter, faster and safer.

It’s imperative that all aspects of the building industry continue to evolve in order to meet the growing needs of the future - because who knows where the next 20 years will take us.