by Web Editor | Jul 21, 2017 | News
Silicon Valley design-build firm Katerra is using a technology-driven and full-services approach to creating prefabricated structures at a large scale. Based in Menlo Park, California, Katerra was started in 2015 by Michael Marks, Jim Davidson and Fritz H Wolff. Combined, the three men have decades of experience in the technology, manufacturing, real estate and private equity industries. In 2007, Marks served as the interim CEO at Tesla.
The design-build startup – which describes itself as a technology company – has about 60 architects on staff, along with 10 interior designers. The team is led by architect Craig Curtis, who formerly was a partner at The Miller Hull Partnership, a prominent Seattle firm.
Katerra’s overarching mission is to streamline the design and construction process while still providing good architecture. “Our goal is to remove unnecessary time and costs from the building process while also providing world-class design,” said the firm, which is one of the investors in Architizer’s online marketplace for architectural products.
Katerra believes it stands apart from other design-build firms because of its focus on utilizing technology and modular components to create large-scale multifamily, commercial and institutional projects. It also handles all steps of the building process, including site development, schematic design, fabrication of parts and onsite construction. “Through curating our own high-quality supply chain we can provide a fully coordinated design, much like what you would expect when buying a car,” the firm said. “By working within one fully integrated service model, clients no longer need to depend on multiple partners and vendors.”
The firm generally uses wood frame construction, with several upcoming projects featuring cross-laminated timber (CLT). “Katerra is aggressively pursuing CLT, with plans to help North America start using the material on scale with Europe,” the company stated.
From Dezeen: https://www.dezeen.com/2017/07/19/katerra-combines-technology-modular-construction-large-scale-prefabricated-buildings/
by Web Editor | Jul 20, 2016 | News
For years, it was known as the ugly duckling, cheaper alternative to plywood. One design maven described it as “like the turkey loaf of building materials.” But oriented strand board – OSB for short – has come into its own over the past 3 1/2 decades as a major player in North American wood-frame housing construction and is increasingly used for industrial and other applications.
Structural OSB panels – made of wood strands that are resin-bonded under high pressure and heat – are mostly used as floor, roofing or wall substrate in home building. They’re also getting play these days on fashionable interior-decoration websites as a “shabby-chic” finishing material.
Capitalizing on OSB’s rise like no other forest-products company is Toronto-based Norbord Inc. Norbord, once a diversified forestry company, has shed assets over the years and focused on OSB. Now boasting annual sales in the $1.5-billion (U.S.) range and a market capitalization of about $2.4-billion (Canadian), it bills itself as the world’s largest producer of OSB.
The $763-million acquisition in 2014 of Vancouver-based Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. gave Norbord – whose operations were concentrated in the U.S. southeast – a strong presence in Western Canada as well as a foothold in the promising Japanese market.
Right now, the steadily growing number of housing starts in the United States is giving Norbord a big boost, and low-key, media-shy chief executive officer Peter Wijnbergen says there are major growth opportunities in Europe and Asia.
From The Globe And Mail: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/forest-products-firm-norbord-riding-the-rising-wave-of-osb-sales/article30985989/
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 | Jul 8, 2015 | News
Luxor Begins Manufacturing Architectural Wood Products For Woodtone Industries
Luxor Industrial Corporation is pleased to announce that it has commenced manufacturing architectural wood products for Woodtone Industries based in Chilliwack, British Columbia. Luxor has received orders for 788 units of knee-braces and 400 units of corbels.
Typically these products used in residential construction are manufactured from lumber; Luxor is using engineered wood products, namely glulam beams. Luxor has developed an expertise in fabricating engineered wood products for uses in wood frame construction and now is utilizing this expertise to fabricate architectural wood products. Following initial shipments, Woodtone has been very pleased with the quality of products manufactured.
Manufacturing products for use in residential construction is important to the company. Cash flow from these products, which include architectural wood products, precision end trimmed wall studs and patented IBS 2000 and patent pending IBS3000 floor engineered bridging, account for two-thirds of the company’s overheads.
Luxor continues to do research and development on new products and will keep shareholders advised on existing activities and progress on new products.
From GlobeNewswire: globenewswire.com.
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by Web Editor | Mar 4, 2015 | News
Last November, the Hines development company unveiled plans for a new office building in the North Loop section of Minneapolis. Seems like ordinary news, except that the building would be the first of its kind in the U.S to be made primarily of wood. The builders refer to the project as “T3” for “Timber, Technology and Transit.”
“This building is very unique,” the lead architect, Michael Green, told the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission earlier this month. “It is the first large-scale office building built of timber in America. It is part of a revitalization of century-old ideas of how to build buildings.”
At the federal level, the U.S. is encouraging the use of sustainable wood products in building. The MinnPost reports that Green says that wood grown sustainably has a smaller carbon footprint than concrete and steel. If this seven-story building were to go forward, it would include a foundation and a first floor made of concrete and steel and six stories of mass timber construction.
As Next City columnist Alexis Stephens reported in “Can Taller Buildings Make Toronto More Affordable?,” the province of Ontario recently relaxed height restrictions on wood-frame construction to encourage residential density.
In Minneapolis, the MinnPost notes, the city has been flexible. Dan Callahan, supervisor of the city of Minneapolis’ plan review section, said he has had several meetings with the T3 team to talk through building code issues. The building would fit under code sections for heavy timber buildings. Callahan said he expects further meetings to get more information and to present the design team with other issues the city has before a formal permit application is received.
From NextCity.org: https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/minneapolis-office-building-wood-plans
