RESOURCE AND SUPPLY CHAIN CONSIDERATIONS FOR MASS TIMBER

Brian Brashaw, Program ManagerForest Products Marketing UnitUSDA Forest Service

Photo Credit: D. R. Johnson

My Forest Products Story…

As a youth growing up in the Nicolet National Forest (Wisconsin), I understood the connection between the forest and Connor Forest Products where my Dad worked. Despite moving from Laona in 5th grade, I accomplished my youth goal of being a forester with a career in forest products. After 25 years as a wood specialist in Minnesota, I joined the Forest Service’s FPL in 2015 to fulfill a career goal and work to strengthen the connection between our forests, research, and markets. I am proud to work alongside my Forest Service colleagues and partners to support resilient forests and communities.

USDA Forest ServiceForest Products Laboratory

Established 1910 150 Permanent Employees (50

Scientists) FY16 Federal Funding $26.6

million 150 Cooperative R&D agreements Program Leverage $4 - $5 million

PULP WOODBIOMASS SAW LOGS

LUMBER

POWER

VALU

E

MILL RESIDUE

PARTICLEBOARD

MDFOSB

PARALLAM

VENEER LOGS

CONSTRUCTION PLYWOODHARDWOOD PLYWOOD

LVL

I-JOIST

GLULAM

COMPOSITE LUMBERCHEMICALS

& POLYMERS

ETHANOL/BUTANOL/PYROLYSIS OIL

NANO-CELLULOSE

FUEL PELLET

VALUE

PACKAGINGPULP & PAPER

BIOCHAR

CROSS LAMINATED TIMBER

A key element in maintaining healthy, resilient forests is our ability to provide value-added products from the full complement of forest biomass.

FOREST PRODUCTS MARKETING UNIT

FPMU

Forest Service S&PF-Coop

Forestry National Forest System

State Forestry

Utilization and

Marketing Partners

Wood Products Extension

and University PartnersPublic-

Private Partnerships

Forest Products Industry

Tribal Partners

Forest Service

Research

Mass Timber Strategy Education

• WoodWorks• Mass Timber Conference• Softwood Lumber Board• Media

Technical Assistance

• WoodWorks• Forest Products

Marketing Unit (FPL)• Regional Biomass

Coordinators

Research• Forest Products

Laboratory (FPL) and University and other Research Partners

Initiatives

• U.S. Tall Wood Building Competition

• National Building Museum• Film with Choose

Outdoors• Wood Innovation Grants• Cooperative Agreements

Agency Lead: Washington Office -Cooperative Forestry

Mass Timber Products

American National Standard– Defines CLT– Component

requirements– Performance criteria– Qualification– Quality assurance– Terminology

CLT Production Considerations• Lumber Considerations

– Species– Grade– Dimension– Moisture content

• Adhesives• Manufacturing

CLT Lumber (Per PRG 320-2012)

• Machine Stress Rated or Visually Graded Dimensional Lumber – Douglas-fir, southern yellow pine, SPF,

SPFsouth

– Parallel layers: #2 or better (visual grading) or MSR 1200f or better (machine grading)

– Perpendicular layers: #3 or better– Specific gravity > 0.35

CLT (Per PRG 320-2012)

• Thickness not less than 5/8” or greater than 2”– 2 by 4, 6, 8, 10 common in North America

• Dried to 12% moisture content before layup• Glulam adhesive standard (AITC 405)

– Phenol-resorcinol formaldehyde (PRF), Emulsion polymer isocyanate (EPI), One-component polyurethane (PUR)

Photo Credit: D. R. Johnson

Photo Credit: D. R. Johnson

Nail Laminated Timber• NLT is created from dimensional lumber

stacked on edge - 2x4, 2x6, 2x8, 2x10, or 2x12 at 1-1/2" on center - and fastened together with nails.

• NLT is sanctioned by building codes and qualifies as Heavy Timber.

What about other species?

• PRG 320 lays out the path• Hardwood structural lumber

– Previous and current research• Non-building markets

Cooperative effort by Michigan Tech, USDA Forest Service, University of Minnesota Duluth, Northern Hardwoods

Fundamental properties

Manufacturing--sorting, grading and properties of hardwood industrial materials (logs, veneer, lumber)

Engineered products -trusses, I-joists, laminated veneer lumber, glulam

Development of CLT panels using low-value, low-quality hardwoods (e.g., Red Maple, Yellow-poplar, Beech, etc.)

WVU: Developing Low-Grade Hardwood CLTs

Full Length Panels

Production of 10-foot Panels

WVU HRT and USDA WERC Grant Project

Dr. David DeVallance

Non-building markets

• Industrial matting– Pipeline– Access mats– Crane

• Maritime decks• Portable bridge

decks

Photo Credit: Smartlam

North American CLT/NLT Manufacturing

Canada• Nordic Structures (Quebec)• StructureCraft (BC)• Structurlam (BC)United States• DR Johnson (OR)• Smartlam (MT) • Sterling (IL) – industrial

Image Courtesy Lech Muszyński

Image Courtesy Lech Muszyński

MASS TIMBER PROJECT EXAMPLES

Loading Dock / Oz ArchitectureBoulder, CO

Changing the Way America Builds!

• Mass Timber building is being embraced in the commercial sector– Expanding CLT manufacturing capacity – Surge of initial projects

• PRG 320 highlights lumber specifications and CLT grades

• Softwood supply chain important• Need to develop the full supply chain from forest

to frame – gaps exist

Thank you!