With cold-formed steel (CFS) framing components, and an automated fabrication system never before used in CFS post-frame construction, Josh Kammerer supervised a crew of four untrained laborers and built a 60-by-140-ft. pole barn in two months.
“We framed our building with little measuring, marking or waste,” says Kammerer, president of Straight Cold Rollin, LLC, Sundance, Wyoming.
“Assembly went together in way less time than it would have taken with concrete, wood or other materials.”
A 60-by-140 foot pole barn was designed and engineered using automation software and special roll forming machinery.
Straight Cold Rollin accomplished the feat from November to December 2017 using custom CFS wall framing software and proprietary truss design software, which integrated with Straight Cold Rollin’s production automation system.
The integration allowed Kammerer to fabricate each CFS component automatically using a single, roll-forming machine.
Each piece was pre-cut, pre-punched and uniquely labeled, enabling his laborers to snap and screw together the pole barn like an Erector set.
Strong and Sturdy
Pole barns are common structures used to store farm implements and materials and to house small production operations. Keith Deitzen, president and CEO of Keymark Enterprises, LLC, says post-frame construction is a $15 billion industry.
While most pole barns are framed with wood, CFS framing has the advantage of being longer-lasting. CFS studs and trusses won’t rot, warp or succumb to mold or insect infestation. And they’re fire-resistant.
“This structure is strong,” Kammerer says. “It’s amazing how sturdy it is once it’s all locked together.”
Notching enabled truss webs to slide into position. No welding or re-galvanizing was needed.
While CFS framing has been used before to erect pole barns, what occurred in Wyoming was a first — a pole barn with parts fabricated using automation technology and erected using laborers with no formal carpentry training.
Straight Cold Rollin designed the structure and handled its components fabrication and assembly.
Trusses Assembled on Site
Straight Cold Rollin used wall design and truss software to create a robust structure. Independent engineering firms stamped the designs. The software generated production files, which fed Straight Cold Rollin’s steel rolling machine in Marion, Kansas. Thus, the design-to-production process was automated.
Straight Cold Rollin merely loaded its rolling machine with steel coil. The system fabricated and labeled each unique CFS part. When the shipment arrived in Sundance, Kammerer and his 14-year-old son, Isaiah, unloaded the truck, unbundled the pieces and assembled the first truss in less than an hour.
Each truss was assembled with 350 self-tapping screws. All parts were inkjet labeled to make on-site assembly easy.
“We laid out the parts, lined up the pilot holes and screwed it together,” Kammerer says. “It took the two of us 45 minutes to unload and assemble the first 60-ft. clear-span truss.”
Thus, automated production enabled Straight Cold Rollin to save thousands of dollars in field labor.
Easy to Build
Kammerer hired three untrained laborers and a local fireman with minimal building experience to do the work. The crew of four assembled the structure’s trusses, wall panel frames and cross-bracing girts on site. They used no measuring instruments or cutting saws, only screw guns.
“We had 350 screws in each truss and 33 trusts in all to assemble,” Kammerer says.
Truss chords and purlins came pre-set with alignment holes and notches. The notches made it easy to snap the 12-ft. C-shaped purlins in place, improving assembly accuracy and speed. Thus, each
truss was self-jigging, and the variance between trusses was off by no more than 1/64 in., Kammerer says.
Wall panels were fastened to the foundation using 5/8 in. x 8 in. anchors at 32 in. o.c. Hold-down devices were install at the corners.
Wall panels were designed in 4 ft. widths, although Kammerer has since gone to 8-ft.-wide panels.
“This way,” he says, “we can put the [garage] doors wherever we want them.”
The wall panels are framed on each end with two vertical studs. One stud terminates at the top track — the load-bearing point for the truss above it. The other stud extends an additional 18
inches through the top track and serves as an attachment point for the truss — a moment-resisting connection that adds lateral strength to the building frame.
“It was one of the easiest buildings I have put together in my career,” says Straight Cold Rollin’s Josh Kammerer.
“It’s a beautiful design,” Kammerer says. “It was one of the easiest buildings I have put together in my career.”
Kammerer has been in post-frame construction for more than 20 years.
“We’re taking our future clients through the building,” Wilcoxen says. “Everyone gets to experience the state of the art in headquarters office building design.”