Trusses are big. WBS trusses can be up to 84 feet long and can weigh up to 600 pounds… each. Producing them entails many unique challenges. At WBS they are a big part of how we serve our customers. In our 2022 planning we realized that we could do better in this part of our business. With more orders are coming in and lead times stretching, we got the team together to decide the best path forward for our customers and employees alike toward reducing truss production lead time.
We visited every part of the process, from taking customers’ orders through delivering the truss at the customer site. Discussions and well, maybe arguments, ensued but in the end we found a lot of opportunities reduce truss production lead time.
Our Approach
At WBS, we love to use technology to make things better, so we are taking this opportunity to remove as much paper and manual work as possible from the process. We looked at our production flow and saw how we could reduce wasted time. We discovered opportunities to be more efficient in how we move material through the process. Trusses are big and unwieldy, and it is not easy to load, haul, or unload them, so we are adding both people and equipment, as well as smarter scheduling, to provide more service in less time.
We want to make improvements by working smarter rather than harder, and in the end, we are changing nearly every part of the process, from the layout of the shop to our IT systems. We are adding more space, new equipment, and upgraded technology.
Results
Not only will we produce more and provide reduced production lead time for our customers, but we will do it with less chance of error, with increased safety and in a much better environment for our employees. Look for our upgraded shop to be up and running in January 2022.
