Powerful Partnerships Equal Success with Wall Panels
“From a framer’s point of view, the hardest part of wall panelization is not being involved early enough in the process.” says Ken Shifflett owner of Ace Carpentry in Manassas, Virginia. When a framer is included in the wall panel decision making early on in the process, the project is much more likely to be a success for all involved. Framers can offer their thoughts and opinions while building on their experience and project specific knowledge.
“Guys new to wall panels, especially residential installers, want to see how they’re built. So we invite them in for a tour and show them everything from our three-dimensional design process all the way to how they’re assembled,” says Sean Kelly, general manager of Automated Products, Inc. in Marshfield, Wisconsin. “We make sure in our meetings, early on, that we understand control lines and we understand where everyone is pulling their dimensions from in relationship to that control line,” adds Ken. Sean agrees that educating CMs and end-users on coordinating a common understanding using common definitions is important. Taking the time to go through a detailed activity list from project start to project finish ensures everyone is on the same page and the wall panels are installed as they were designed to be.