Ramblings from the Director:

The SIPschool has officially celebrated our first anniversary. The year has, as they say, flown past. I’m convinced we’ve struck a cord within the SIPs industry. Our many students have echoed the value of the education received, and it seems the industry’s only complaint is that we can’t be in more places more often. The good news is we’re growing and expanding both curriculum and venues. If you haven’t seen what you’re looking for, drop us a line. If you’re waiting for us to show up in your area, stay tuned. The schedule may reveal we’re coming closer than you imagined. If your company is interested in discussing the option of bringing the SIPschool staff to your local venue, contact Annie at the SIPschool office or email her directly at annie@sipschool.org.

I want to thank all those support and believe in what we’re attempting to do. I thank you for spreading the word and helping us help the SIP industry.

Front Row: Kevin Blake (TownMountain Carpentry, Asheville, NC), Joe Decker (Summerbeam Builders, Kalida, OH), Jonathan Newell (Plasti-Fab, Ajax, ON), Charlie Desmond (Elite Panel Tech, Inc. , South Portland, ME)

Second Row: Les Walsh (Custom Island Homes, Eastport, NY), Brandon Helms (Maple Brook Engineering, Inc., Roseville, CA), Mike Sloggatt, Jr. (Mike Sloggatt Home Improvement, Farmingdale, NY), Greg Doren(Plasti-Fab, Ajax, ON), Chad Bourguignon (Palmetto Green Homebuilders, Spartanburg, SC), Al Cobb(Director, SIPschool)

Back Row: Dan Nelson (Instructor, SIPschool), Mike D’Agostino (Intellistructures, Middleburg, VA), Bob Ghiggioli (Pacific Coast Construction and Design, Inc., Santa Rosa, CA), Angus Moller (Moller Construction, Winterville, GA), John Stelmack (3rd Rock Homes, Salem, AL)

The Staff at the SIPschool is pleased to add these highly qualified individuals to our list of Certified Installers.

Kevin Blake	Town Mountain Carpentry 107 Broad St. #2 Asheville, NC 28801	828-280-6518 kdblake33@yahoo.com
Chad Bourguignon	Palmetto Green Homebuilders 136 Loblolly Dr. Spartanburg, SC 29303	chadbourguignon@hotmail.com
Mike D’Agostino	IntelliStructures, Inc. Middleburg, VA 20117	866-454-SIPS info@intellistructures.com
Joe Decker	Summerbeam Homes 16966 Road Z POB 192 Kalida, OH 45853-0192	419-532-2055 decker@nwbright.net
Charlie Desmond	Elite Panel Tech, Inc. 405 Western Ave. #118 Box 9421 South Portland, ME 04116	207-229-4927 eximius@webbox.com
Gregory Doren	Plasti-Fab 40 Mills Road Ajax, ON L6C 2W2	905-686-7739 gdoren@plastifab.com
Bob Ghiggioli	Pacific Coast Construction and Design, Inc. 3600 Standish Ave Suite A Santa Rosa, CA 95407	707-528-1518 pccad@sonic.net
Brandon Helms	Maple Brook Engineering, Inc. 1342 Kingswood Dr. Roseville, CA 95678	bhelms@maple-brook.com
Angus Moller	Moller Construction 110 Double Bridges Crossing Winterville, GA 30683	706-338-2615 unamiya@bellsouth.net
Jonathan Newell	Plast-Fab 40 Mills Road Ajax, ON L1S 2H1	905-686-7739 jnewell@plastifab.com
Michael Sloggatt, Jr.	Mike Sloggatt Home Improvement 50 Walnut Avenue East Farmingdale, NY 11735	516-473-7225 MsloggattJr@optonline.net
John Stelmack	3rd Rock Homes 2057 Lee Road 279 Salem, AL 36874	706-315-4300 john@3rdrockhomes.com
Les Walsh	Custom Island Homes 51 North Bay Avenue Eastport, NY 11941	631-258-3767 cihinc@optonline.net

The individuals listed above have successfully completed all the requirements needed to achieve the status of “Certified SIP Installer”. A combination of the written examination and demonstrated proficiencies have been completed to the minimum acceptable level to receive this designation. The SIPschool certifies that these participants have met the school's minimum requirements for this training session.

Friday night during the SIPs 301 class – BBQ dinner and the chance to socialize with other panelheads.

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is two years away from a new school complex. The LEED Silver project will accommodate K – 12 grades in a complex of approximately 500,000 sq.ft. of conditioned space. The architects at Padgett and Freeman of Asheville, NC have designed a school that uses SIPs on the majority of the complex’s 15 buildings’ walls and roofs. The SIPs are an integral part of achieving the Silver certification.

Panelwrights, LLC, the distributor who was awarded the contract, cited three reasons for the successful bid. First, a bid that combined the SIP package with installation. Second, the bid specified a “ready to assemble” package – in other words, no site fabrication was required and this meant fewer scrap problems on site (a real issue on a LEED project where all site scrap must be recyclable). Finally, and possibly the ace in the hole, was an installation team that used nothing but Certified Installers for all crew leads. The assurance of educated and qualified installers was enough to seal the deal for the General Contractor, BE & K Building Group, and the first of 120 truckloads of SIPs will begin to arrive on-site near the middle of July.

At this writing, five graduates of the SIPschool’s SIPs 301 Certified Installers Class are scheduled to be on-site for the duration of the panel installation. The broadcast e-mail sent to all Certified Installers revealed that many more of the graduates may see action in Cherokee, NC, over the course of the ten month project. Panelwrights plans to mount web-cams on this project. The streaming video will allow interested persons to see firsthand how SIPs are installed on a large commercial site and by a team of Certified Installers. Log on to the SIPschool’s website for updated information on the Cherokee Crane Cam and the streaming video link.

The demand for SIPs education continues to grow, and the SIPschool is busier than ever with the attention we’re getting from “SIPs: Are They Right For Your Next Project “ (Fine Homebuilding July 2007). Assistant Editor John Ross attended the SIPs 301 class here in Shenandoah Junction in November 2006. This exposure has added to the traffic seen on our website, in turn promoting all our Installers and those companies who have registered their information on the SIPschool map.

Recently the Timber Framers Guild of North America invited the SIPschool to their Western Conference in Asilomar, California. Working in conjunction with SIPA, the SIPschool provided two seminars for the Guild. Both lectures were aimed at educating the guild members in incorporating SIPs into timber frame structures. The lectures were very well attended, and positive feedback emphasized the joy of not sitting through an infomercial. The school’s lectures are always designed in an unbiased format with the emphasis on quality education about all things SIP related.

Based on the success of the West Coast presentations, the SIPschool has been invited to the 2007 Eastern Conference to be held at the Chateau Motelbello in Quebec, October 18 – 21. Check the Guild’s website for additional information

Take advantage of the opportunity to present your company’s information by filling out the SIPschool Company Questionnaire. It’s free, and allows potential clients to compare your information with that of others in the industry. Your company information is available on our SIPschool website to SIPA members and SIPschool alumni.

Classroom time is spent in the renovated Station at Shepherdstown, and hands-on experience takes place at the SIPschool shop. The oldest town in West Virginia and home to Shepherd University, Shepherdstown offers many hotels, restaurants, shops and galleries in a historical setting along the Potomac River. We are easily reached from Dulles International (VA) Baltimore/Washington International (MD) and Reagan National Airport.

May 19, 2007

Al,

I have spent roughly three decades in a highly technical field and have attended many topic specific training courses throughout that time. Not since attending the SIP School Installer Certification Workshop (SIP’s 301) have I been so completely and absolutely DELIGHTED in the quality of training. You and your staff demonstrated a level of expertise that would be impossible to obtain from a book. The wealth of knowledge you’ve acquired throughout so many years in the SIP industry quickly became obvious, not only in your classroom materials and presentations, but in the field building exercises as well.

The value of the “hands on” building exercises is immeasurable. I’ve seen some of the common techniques in my research on the web. However those websites did not show the little “tricks” that we learned in your course. It is those little tricks that will help me provide my clients with solid and quality SIP installations. Perhaps more importantly, your continued emphasis on safety could possibly save property, life or limb. Maybe my own.

I highly recommend your course to anyone interested in learning how to properly and safely install and seal a SIP structure. As I said in person, I think your course is a tremendous value. It very well may be the best money I’ve ever spent.

I offer you my sincerest gratitude for making the SIP School possible. Before registering for your course I did quite a bit of research and sought knowledge from within the industry. Many people in the industry explained to me that “you were the guy”. I’ve heard those very words “you were the guy” several times from different people in different places. You should be proud to know that people throughout the industry hold you in such very high regard, not only professionally but on a personal level as well. I am honored to say that you deserve every good word spoken.

I also want to give special mention and thanks to your wife and children for their exceptional hospitality and for their talents in the kitchen. You have a remarkable family! Martha Stewart and June Cleaver LOOK OUT!


Sincerely,

John Stelmack

3rd Rock Homes
1600 A Autumn Leaf Lane
Phenix City, Al. 36867