Ontario Construction News staff writer
With interest in timber structures growing across North America and around the world, a new Modelling Guide for Timber Structures has been released by FPInnovations.
“The forest offers many great opportunities to store carbon and reduce the environmental footprint of the construction sector,” said Stéphane Renou, President and CEO, FPInnovations. “In that respect, FPInnovations is pleased to launch this new tool, which combines the expertise of specialists from numerous fields of activities, and enhances our library of guides to facilitate massive wood construction in Canada and elsewhere.”
Available for download at web.fpinnovations.ca/modelling, the guide for timber structure modelling brings together the experience gained from recently built timber projects, and the latest research development in the modelling of timber structures. It will support the application and development of timber construction given that timber structures increasingly require demonstration of performance or equivalency through computer modelling, regardless of whether prescriptive or performance-based design procedures are used.
“Computer modelling is an essential part in the structural analysis and design of mid- and high-rise residential and commercial timber buildings, as well as long-span timber structures, where traditional engineering hand calculations or spreadsheets that are typically adopted by the designers for low-rise timber buildings are no longer adequate,” said Zhiyong Chen, scientist from FPInnovations’ building system team and co-editor of publication.
The guide, developed in collaboration with more than 100 experts from 13 countries, comprises a wide range of practical and advanced modelling topics, including key modelling principles, methods, and techniques specific to timber structures, modelling approaches, and considerations for wood-based components, connections, and assemblies. It also provides analytical approaches and considerations for timber structures during progressive collapse, wind, and earthquake events.
“With a lighter carbon footprint and lower energy consumption of any building material in its life cycle, timber has proven to be beneficial for our environment,” said Amy Heilig, CEO, USA Office, Dlubal Software Inc.
“Additionally, wood construction methods are quicker and simpler leading to long-term cost savings. The tireless work and dedication put toward the Modelling Guide for Timber Structures to promote a more sustainable world is unprecedented giving engineers the all-encompassing tool they need for timber structure modeling and design.”