by Web Editor | Mar 7, 2016 | News
DR Johnson Lumber Co., based in the small Oregon town of Riddle, is poised at the forefront of what could be a revolutionary use of wood as a building material in the Northwest.
Don R. Johnson founded the mill in 1951. Following his death in 2010, his daughters Valerie Johnson and Jodi Westbrooks decided they needed to move the millworks company in a new direction. Their father had been quick to jump on laminated beam products early on and the millworks had manufactured them for decades. Following the lead of their father’s eye for innovation, Valerie and Jodi decided to expand the mill’s manufacturing through a division called Riddle Laminators to include a new product they had heard about.
They have since invested millions of dollars in machinery that is allowing DR Johnson to become the first manufacturer in the country certified to produce cross-laminated timber panels – a new take on existing technology and products in the wood construction industry. What makes their product so progressive is the use of new-growth softwoods like Douglas fir to produce lighter, stronger, more flexible panels in sizes able to make the construction process much more efficient. They also offer a replacement to typical steel or concrete framing.
“We’re limited to 10-foot-by-32-foot panels because of transportation issues, but we can go larger if we need to,” said Todd Black, DR Johnson sales manager. “We have computer-controlled router systems that can pre-cut door and window openings, so the panels come prefabricated, labeled (for point of installation) and ready for immediate installation. Because they’re stronger and lighter than steel or concrete, we’re not limited to three or four stories as wood-frame construction would be.”
CLT is starting to capture attention in Portland. A 12-story structure under construction in the Pearl District will be the tallest all-wood building in the U.S. The technology has already been used successfully in Europe, where buildings up to 22 stories have been constructed with the same type of panels.
From DJC Oregon: https://djcoregon.com/news/2016/03/03/newsmakers-2016-dr-johnson-lumber-company/
by Web Editor | Nov 20, 2015 | News
Portland is growing up—adding high-rises, increasing density, and pricing many people out. But two local firms are exploring a state-of-the-art building material that could help solve the city’s affordability problem, create living-wage jobs in rural communities, and help save the planet. It’s wood.
Right now, Portland-based LEVER Architecture and real estate development firm Project^ are designing a 12-story mixed-use wood building in the Pearl District that will be made primarily of a material called cross-laminated timber (CLT).
That’s an unheard of height for wood structures, which top out at six stories in most of the US. And it’s not the project’s only unique attribute. Five of those stories will be affordable housing, something Portland desperately needs.
LEVER and Project^ have partnered with Beneficial State Bank (which owns the property at 430 NW 10th), Albina Community Bank, and the housing agency Home Forward on the development, which they’re calling Framework.
The team’s ideas received national attention: In September, the US Department of Agriculture awarded the project a $1.5 million grant—money that will help alleviate the cost of proving to state and local building authorities that tall wooden buildings can meet safety requirements for earthquakes, fires, and other perils.
From The Portland Mercury: https://www.portlandmercury.com/portland/the-worlds-most-sustainable-high-rise-construction-material-is-wood/Content?utm_source=WIT112015&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=WeekInTrees&oid=16991973
by Web Editor | Sep 30, 2015 | News
The British Columbia provincial government says it is investing $2.2 million in the Wood First program to promote the use of B.C. wood both locally and internationally, and help advance innovative wood-building systems and value-added wood products.
The funding is being awarded to six industry trade associations and institutions with proven records in research, development and marketing of wood products and skills training to carry out Wood First activities. They include:
• BC Wood Specialties Group – $558,910
• Canadian Wood Council – $770,109
• University of British Columbia – Centre for Advanced Wood Processing – $359,166
• University of British Columbia – Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability – $65,000
• FPInnovations – $428,928
• Design Build Research Institute – $51,762
Funding from the Province will be supplemented with additional funds provided by industry.
Wood First is focused on advancing the use of wood in B.C. Since the program was launched in 2009, wood use in the mid-rise and non-residential construction sectors is increasing and recognition of wood as a preferred building material continues to grow. A recent survey of B.C. engineers, architects and builders confirmed that 40% are increasing the use of structural wood and 77% believe B.C. is well positioned to export its products and knowledge.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/canadian-news/british-columbia-invests-22-million-promote-wood-buildings-products?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
by Web Editor | Sep 2, 2015 | News
We ask: If the 19th century modern building material technology was associated with steel and the 20th century with concrete, could the 21st be the century of “MCT,” mass construction timber? Wood, one of the world’s oldest (and greenest) building materials, was the de facto construction material in American cities for over two centuries, falling out of favor when non-combustible materials capable of building high and wide emerged.
Today, highly engineered timber, sized to compete with these structural systems, is making a comeback in Europe, especially in Germany and in Austria, where the world’s first 8-story “ply-scraper” was recently completed. Stateside, the Boston Society of Architects recently featured Urban Timber, an exhibit showcasing innovative developments in wood technology and construction, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture is sponsoring a $2M ideas competition for the design of tall wood buildings. Given all of this hoopla, one could assume that we are on the verge of a global timber revolution, yet the U.S. is lagging far behind our European neighbors. In fact, to date, neither the U.S. nor Canadian building codes explicitly recognize mass timber structural systems.
Deeply committed to sustainability, we made the choice to dive feet first into connecting with the past to build the future by employing MCT for the primary structural system of our University of Massachusetts Amherst Design Building. Designed with Equilibrium Consultants, one of the world’s foremost timber engineers, the building will house the university’s Departments of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Regional Planning, and Building Construction Technology, and is now under construction. Permitted through a variance application using the “alternative” method provisions of the building code, our 87,000-square-foot building furthers the university’s educational mission by incorporating examples of the inherent departments’ design practices. Targeting LEED Gold, it will be among the first MCT structures in the region when completed in 2017.
Laminated technologies, first developed in Europe in the 1980s, are allowing us to fabricate fairly massive timber components for the Design Building using small diameter trees sustainably harvested from managed forests. Our selected timber, black spruce, was sourced from Canada’s Boreal forest region, an area that constitutes the world’s largest land based biome. It is constituted to stand up to fire and maintain its structural integrity.
From Metropolis Magazine: https://www.metropolismag.com/Point-of-View/August-2015/Timbers-Transformation-An-Old-Building-Material-is-Reborn/
by Web Editor | Apr 15, 2015 | News
U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., helped secure a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for SmartLam, a cross-laminated timber manufacturer and distributor in Columbia Falls.
In January, Tester wrote a letter of support for SmartLam’s Wood Innovations Planning Grant application. The grant was announced last week.
“The folks at SmartLam are producing a unique product, and these additional resources will help them continue to grow and hire folks in the Flathead Valley,” Tester said in a news release. “Successful operations like SmartLam continue to show the country the high quality businesses here in Montana.”
SmartLam is the first manufacturer and distributor of cross-laminated timber products in the United States. When its expansion is complete, it will be the largest cross-laminated timber manufacturer in the world.
Wood Innovations Grants are awarded to companies that use wood products as a renewable energy source and as a building material. The money is designed to increase the use of wildfire fuel from public lands to promote forest health and create jobs.
From the Daily Inter Lake: https://www.dailyinterlake.com/members/tester-helps-secure-for-smartlam/article_ffe490e2-e2f2-11e4-b4b7-a774ff6ea976.html
