Modern Post-Frame Structural Design Practice: An Introduction

Presented by: Dr. Dan Hindman

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the primary structural components of post-frame (PF) building systems
• Learn how to conduct structural design of PF systems without diaphragm action
• Learn how to conduct structural design of PF systems with diaphragm action
• Learn how to design isolated post/pier PF foundations
• Identify post-frame design resources available to architects and engineers

Register Here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4485086494510636634

The NFBA is excited to announce an all-new membership benefits for our great members!

It’s hard to find affordable solutions to your operational needs. That’s why with the partnership of NFBA and Excelerate America, you get discounts on the software, programs, and services members love to use.

• 401K retirement plan
• Technology purchasing program
• Business software
• Crowdfunding services

Click Here to download the latest Issue of the NFBA Magazine

Topic: The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can't Stop Talking About by Mel Robbins

The NFBA Women in Post-Frame Book Club launched in 2025 as a way to engage and inspire members through thought-provoking content. The group will meet virtually on the second Thursday of every other month. Led by MRS. Post-Frame, Emily Marshall, participants will explore a selected book, documentary, podcast, or article that highlights leadership, industry trends, or personal development. The Book Club encourages meaningful discussion, networking, and knowledge-sharing, allowing participants to gain fresh insights and connect with others who share their passion for growth and excellence.

November book: The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can't Stop Talking About by Mel Robbins

Register Today!

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25^th

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM-Educational Breakout Sessions (Level 3)       

Coaching for Success 
Eric Miner – Blunier Buildings
This session is designed to help current and aspiring leaders embrace an employee-first culture by adopting a coaching mindset. Participants will explore how to use a success coaching model to drive individual growth, engagement, and performance within their teams. Emphasis is placed on creating an environment where every team member is motivated to bring their best every day. The session also addresses how to effectively lead people in today’s post-frame market, where expectations, accountability, and adaptability continue to evolve. Leaders will gain insight into why embracing a coaching mentality is essential and how coaching individual success directly contributes to stronger collaboration, resilience, and overall team success.

9:15 AM – 10:15 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions 

Strategic Planning: Building Your Bench Strength
Ed Krow - Ed Krow LLC
Unexpected departures of key employees can disrupt even the most successful organizations. Succession planning is critical at all levels—not just for executives—and should be part of every strategic business plan. In this interactive session, participants will learn how to create effective succession plans, align them with leadership development, and implement strategies to build organizational bench strength. Topics include the business case for succession planning, warning signs of a failing system, top strategies for developing future leaders, and current business trends affecting talent planning. A hands-on exercise will allow participants to assess employee readiness for increased responsibility, applying practical skills they can bring back to their organizations immediately.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26^th

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions (Level 3) 

The Loyalty Crisis: Why Good Workers Leave & How to Make them Stay
Lisa Ryan - Grategy
Turnover in the trades often starts quietly—missed cues, disengaged behavior, and a sense that leadership isn’t paying attention—before a valued worker suddenly walks. This session tackles the hidden loyalty crisis affecting framing companies nationwide. Attendees will learn five overlooked causes of disengagement and field-tested strategies to fix them before good workers leave. We’ll cover what real recognition looks like, how small moments build trust, and language shifts that drive long-term culture change. Participants will complete a quick “Loyalty Audit” to spot retention risks and leave with actionable tools they can use immediately—no budget approvals needed. Designed for builders, crew leads, and managers, this fast-paced, practical session gets uncomfortable on purpose. Your crews don’t want a perfect company—they want to feel seen. Here’s how to make that happen and keep your best people from walking.

9:10 AM - 10:10 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

Improving People and Improving Business: The Levels of Leadership - Part 1
Pete McDowell & Peg Buehrle – ActionCoach
Leadership is more than a title — it’s about influence, growth, and impact. In this session, participants will explore the five levels of leadership and learn practical steps and actions leaders can take to gain employee buy-in, grow personally, and mature into leaders who can develop others. By understanding the journey of leadership, participants will discover how to inspire their teams, strengthen organizational culture, and drive lasting business results.

10:20 AM - 11:20 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

Improving People and Improving Business: The Levels of Leadership - Part 2
Pete McDowell & Peg Buehrle – ActionCoach
Leadership is more than a title — it’s about influence, growth, and impact. In this session, participants will explore the five levels of leadership and learn practical steps and actions leaders can take to gain employee buy-in, grow personally, and mature into leaders who can develop others. By understanding the journey of leadership, participants will discover how to inspire their teams, strengthen organizational culture, and drive lasting business results.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 25^th

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions        

Reflective Insulation for Post Frame Buildings: The Science, The Application, and Installation, Making Reflectives Work For You
Monty Millspaugh - Reflective Insulation Manufacturers Association
This course provides design and sales professionals with an introduction to reflective technologies, including radiant barriers, reflective insulation, and interior radiation control coatings (IRCCs). Participants will gain a foundational understanding of how these materials function to reduce radiant heat transfer and enhance energy efficiency within the building envelope.

9:15 AM – 10:15 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

Safety Best Practices & NFBA Resources that can Help
Doug Jenks  - Moderator
Todd Meinhold – H&D Quality Builders
Dave Underwood – FBi Buildings
Join members of the NFBA Safety Committee for an in-depth panel discussion on critical safety topics in the Post Frame industry. The panel will cover practical areas such as fall protection, incident reporting, NFBA Safety Certification, and safety best practices. Attendees will also learn about valuable NFBA resources that can help their teams implement effective safety programs. The session concludes with a Q&A, giving participants the opportunity to have their most pressing safety questions answered directly by industry experts.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26^th

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

The 3-Hour Firewall
Tim Royer - Timber Tech Engineering
Learn how post-frame wall systems can now achieve a 3-hour fire rating, meeting International Building Code (IBC) requirements for separating building areas or occupancy types. Traditionally, architects, builders, and engineers relied on concrete block walls on concrete foundations to meet these ratings—but recent advancements by the National Frame Building Association have made it possible to achieve the same level of fire protection using economical post-frame construction. This session will explore the post-frame fire wall assembly, highlighting its cost-effectiveness, faster construction compared to stud, light-gauge steel, or block walls, and the elimination of expensive foundations. Attendees will gain insight into how post-frame fire walls can provide life-safety compliance while maximizing both budget and efficiency.

9:10 AM - 10:10 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

Sealed & Certified: The Real Deal on Spray Foam for Post-Frame Construction
Mike Dyna - X Spray Jones
Paul Marshall - Mr. Post Frame
Curious about using spray foam insulation in post frame construction? This session dives into everything you need to know. We’ll explore when spray foam is appropriate, how it should be installed, and situations where it might not be the best choice. Learn the key steps to prepare for a successful spray foam installation, what to look for in materials and surfaces, and the safety considerations you must keep in mind. We’ll also cover questions about off-gassing, flammability, long-term structural impact, and overall performance so you can make informed decisions for your building projects..

10:20 AM - 11:20 AM - Educational Breakout Sessions

The AI-Powered Builder: How Smart Tech is Reshaping Construction and Business
Kevin Fox - Foxwerx Group
Wondering how AI can actually help your business? This session answers that and more—covering real tools, real use cases, and a roadmap for getting started without breaking the bank. You'll also learn how to defend your business from rising cybersecurity threats like phishing and ransomware. This session is built to empower, not overwhelm.

Business Management Seminar

Two Sessions

OCILB CEU 1 HR Business per session

Tuesday, July 1st
Engineer's Club of Dayton
&
Zoom

Schedule:

9:30 AM    Registration (session 1 - in person)
10:00 AM  Ohio Mechanic's Lien Law - Session 1
11:45 AM  Lunch (in person)
12:30 PM  Registration (session 2 - in person)
1:00 PM    Ohio Sales & Use and Income Tax - Session 2

Ohio Mechanic's Lien Law

Lowell Woods with Taft Law will be covering the following topics:

Notice of Commencement

Notice of Furnishings (Supplier & Subcontractors)

Lien Deadlines

How to Prepare and File the Lien

Lowell Woods has over 25 years experience in his practice. In addition to Mechanic's Lien Law, Lowell has significant experience serving clients in all aspects of construction litigation, including serving general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, design professionals, sureties and other participants in the construction industry on a wide range of issues arising from private and public construction projects.

In addition to litigating such matters, Lowell routinely engages in contract drafting and due diligence, provides guidance and training to construction clients, and leads presentations on sponsored programs.

Lowell was recognized in 2019 as Best Lawyer in American Litigation - Construction and Construction Law.

Ohio Sales & Use and Income Tax

Nick Barley of Kentner Sellers will be covering the following topics:

• Real Property Construction Contracts

• Business Fixture and Tangible Property Contracts

• State-by-state Considerations

• Federal Income Tax Legislative Outlook

• Ohio Income Tax Updates

Nick Barley brings over 14 years of experience delivering accounting, tax, and consulting services to clients in the construction and manufacturing sectors. His practice focuses on supporting local contractors and small businesses with specialized expertise in contractor taxation. Nick's work includes sales tax research and nexus analysis, income tax preparation and planning, audit defense, and strategic consulting tailored to the unique challenges faced by construction professionals. In addition to his tax work, Nick has experience in business valuations and nonprofit accounting, further broadening his ability to advise clients across a range of financial and operational matters.

Each session is $75 (in person or webinar)
Engineer's Club Lunch $15

Click Here To Get Registered Online

PLEASE NOTE: If you choose the webinar option, there is an additional registration step! You must be registered through Zoom in order to attend. Details are offered after payment and in a confirmation email.

Questions regarding this seminar? Please contact Emily Mandich (800) 557-6957

Women in Post Frame Book Club
Hosted by Mrs. Post Frame – Emily Marshall

The NFBA Women in Post Frame Book Club premieres on Wednesday, July 10, with a new and uplifting topic: “The Art of Encouragement.”

Join our host, Emily Marshall (Mrs. Post Frame), and fellow women from the post-frame industry for a meaningful conversation focused on building each other up and finding strength through community.

Whether you're a seasoned professional or just getting started, this is a welcoming space to connect, learn, and grow together.

🗓 Date: Wednesday, July 10, 2025
🕒 Time: 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM EST
📖 Topic: The Art of Encouragement

Register Today!

We hope to see you there!

Questions? Email Kathleen Unger at kunger@nfba.org

Many buildings without basements are supported on cast-in-place crawlspace walls or frost walls that rest on continuous cast-in-place concrete footings. The construction time and concrete cost associated with these continuous concrete foundation walls and footings is significantly greater than that associated with a post-frame building that utilizes embedded posts or a post-on concrete pier system (figure 4) as its foundation system.

The material and labor savings associated with post/pier foundation systems makes them the most environmentally friendly foundation system in common use today. Additionally, embedded post and precast pier foundations can be easily removed and reused — a feature that adds to their status as a very environmentally-friendly foundation system.

Most buildings without basements feature concrete slab-on grade floors. More frequently today, these slabs contain radiant heating systems. When post/pier foundation systems are used, the interior concrete slab can be placed after the building shell has been erected. This has two major advantages.

First, concrete is much more protected during its placement from wind, precipitation in all forms, and temperature extremes. This can translate into fewer unexpected scheduling delays, less need for costly heat and moisture protection systems, and enhanced concrete surface finish, durability, and
strength properties.

Second, less pre-planning is required for below slab installation of HVAC, plumbing and electrical system components. In fact, no preplanning is required when the interior concrete slab is placed after HVAC, plumbing and electrical system installations have been completed. With respect to utilities, it is also important to realize that insulation must be placed under a slab that contains a radiant heating system, and placement of this insulation requires a very level, properly compacted base— something more easily achieved and maintained in a protected environment.

Some builders may opt to place posts on the thickened edge (i.e., grade beam) of a concrete slab. Such systems generally require more total concrete than systems with concrete pier foundations since the extra concrete required for the grade beams usually exceeds that required to fabricate the concrete piers. Additionally, the probability of a foundation failure is greater for floating slab foundations than for buildings completely supported on piers and other foundation systems that extend below the frost line.

Bulk storage refers to storage of a relatively large quantity of a particular material or commodity such as  cement, sand, salt, fertilizer, fruit, a vegetable, seed, feed, cotton, straw, aggregate, etc. If a bulk storage building wall is used to contain stored material, that wall must be designed to resist the resulting horizontal pressure which is directly dependent on the height of the stored material. Even for stored material heights of  only a few feet, this pressure will be several times greater than the pressure applied to exterior walls by even the highest of winds.

As noted in the previous section, higher wall forces are easily accommodated in post-frame building design by altering post size and/or spacing. Post spacing is generally dictated by the spanning capability of the structural material used to contain the bulk material.

When it comes to storing fertilizer, salt and other corrosive materials, post-frame buildings are almost always the structural framing/support system of choice (figure 8).

When a building has interior columns, it is advantageous to use a postframe building system for two reasons. First, it increases the likelihood that all building support elements will be on similar footings. This speeds  construction and minimizes the likelihood of differential settlement. Second, interior posts may be more  effectively incorporated into the framing system since they can be aligned with, and then connected via rafters or header beams to exterior posts to form rugged primary building frames.

Interior posts are used in place of interior load-bearing walls, primarily because they provide for a more open floor plan. Money may also be saved by switching from bearing walls to posts, since posts utilize isolated  footings which require less concrete than the continuous footings used to support bearing walls.

Interior posts are either used to support roofs in wide buildings or mezzanines (figure 11). In practice, wood-framed roofs that clearspan more than 90 feet and are subjected to heavy snow loads generally will not be economically competitive with steel roof framing unless interior support is provided.

Interior posts are seldom laterally supported between their base and crown, and thus are similar in design to posts in open exterior walls.

If you visualize replacing all the overhead doors in the mini-warehouse shown in figure 1 with non-load bearing wall materials, you can understand why post-frame is the ideal structural support system for straw bale walls (figure 14), cordwood or stackwood walls, light-clay coated organic fiber walls (figure 16) and even earthen walls. Given that straw, cordwood, clay-coated organic fibers and plain old earth are all considered very environmentally-friendly materials, expect the number of post-frame buildings constructed with in-fill walls of these materials to grow.

When it comes to frame openness, it helps to look at the post-frame building system as a more structurally efficient version of a timber-frame building system. In short, any wall cladding or infill material that has been utilized on or in a timber-frame building may be used on or in a post-frame building. This includes application of structural insulated panels (SIP) to wall and roof surfaces.

Towers are a natural fit for wood posts. When posts are properly connected and anchored, very strong and relatively inexpensive three-dimensional tower frames may be built, as evidenced by the many pole-supported forest fire lookout towers built in North America during the early years of the 900s.

Multi-story towers are becoming popular additions to commercial buildings. In addition to adding flare to a  building, they frequently serve as stairwells, sources of natural light, clock towers and observatories. Figures 19b and 19d show wood-framed towers and buildings with attached towers.

Roof overhangs and eyebrow overhangs are commonly added to buildings to improve building aesthetics and durability. They improve durability by protecting door and window openings and siding from precipitation. They also keep snow slides away from the building and limit intrusion of direct solar radiation during warm periods.

As the distance that an overhang extends from the building wall increases, it is more likely the overhang will be supported by a post or wall support bracket (figure 24).

Whether post or wall support brackets are used largely depends on over-hang height. Normally, post supports
are used for lower overhangs because of headroom clearance issues when wall support brackets are used.

With higher overhangs, wall support brackets generally look better than posts and are normally less expensive
than post supports because of the added foundation and header beams required with post supports.

Wall support brackets are the ideal overhang support system for post-frame buildings in which truss and post spacing are equal. In such buildings, posts and trusses form a series of post-frames as previously described. When wall support brackets are attached to the posts and framing of the overhang, they add rigidity to each post-frame.

In situations where the overhang is a roof overhang, the wall support bracket attaches the end of the truss to the post, thus functioning much like an exterior kneebrace.