Get to Know Our In-House Design Team of Truss-ted Advisors at Structural Truss Systems
Structural Truss is proud of the unique service we provide with our in-house team of experienced designers. Many truss plants are now relying on overseas design services that limit their ability to provide the best service, product quality, and the support and insight that every customer deserves. With an in-house team of trusted advisors, we provide decades of in-field framing experience and the ability to provide that knowledge directly to the customer. When changes are needed, situations change, or design conundrums occur, our in-house team is able to provide quick fixes, on-site advice, and smart solutions stemming from their hands-on experience in the local industry and from the relationships they have built with our dealers, contractors and framers.
We’re all about building those strong relationships with our customers, and what better way to do that then to really get to know your team of trusted advisors at Structural Truss. Below is one of our Designer Profiles. Check out the Build it Better Blog to get to know the entire team!
Meet our Senior Designer, Ben Grisnich
For over five years, Structural Truss Systems has employed Ben Grisnich as a senior designer. With a journeyman’s certificate in carpentry, Grisnich has utilized his prior experience framing and building houses to better design and visualize roof trusses in the beginning stages.
Structural Truss Systems is one of the few truss manufacturers in Western Canada that has an in-house design team. Grisnich finds this to be “a big benefit, especially for the builders, because if there are any questions on the drawings or shop drawings, they can just walk up the stairs and ask the designer who designed them. If that was an off-site design, the communication would be more of an issue.”
“I like the challenges. Each design is different, no two projects are alike. Every day is something new.”
Grisnich works every day with both the customers and the dealers, knowing that good communication and consistent collaboration is of utmost importance to make the job go smoothly.
“The most vital element to being a designer is the attention to detail, and also a general knowledge of the building industry,” explains Grisnich. “Knowing the building codes in Canada, to make sure the trusses and the whole package comes out properly, is something I try and always keep up to date on.”
Like all the designers at Structural Truss, Grisnich utilizes MiTek software, which not only has a design program but also an app that builders and framers can download.
“We can send them the 3D file and they can walk around their project virtually, able to see how all the connections work inside our truss design.”
Some of his favourite designs he’s personally worked on was a large turkey barn complex just south of Fort Macleod, as well as Western Canada’s first 120 foot clear span trusses. This 120 foot truss project was a mammoth undertaking, one that Grisnich found especially appealing. According to him, the day the trusses were shipped out, he received a call from a dealer asking about the ability to design 125 foot trusses!
On the topic of wood VS steel, Grisnich easily prefers wood trusses to steel trusses. Despite the recent uptick in popularity for steel truss manufacturing, Grisnich sees the numerous benefits of wood to the consumer and dealer. “Wood trusses, I find, are more versatile than steel, and steel usually becomes cost prohibitive below a certain span.”
“If anyone is on the market for buying roof trusses, they should go with us because we provide value and can think outside the box, always trying new things.”
Structural Truss is lucky to have Ben Grisnich, and he appreciates being part of the team. “It’s an all around good culture to be in,” he describes. “It’s a family run business, but with a small town culture behind it. Even though it may not be on the blueprint, we still come up with a solution for any problems that arise.” Watch the full interview with Ben below!
