Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) was developed in the mid 90's in Austria and Switzerland. It has steadily been gaining market growth for its adaptability and ease of use. CLT is now widely available throughout Europe, North America and Oceanian.
PRODUCTION:
CLT is produced by gluing layers of dimension lumber together into a large cross laminated sandwich. CLT is generally produced in intervals of layers from 3,5,7, and up to 9 layers thick. The first layer runs in the primary span direction and the second (middle layer) runs orthogonal to that. CLT panels can contain MSR and finger jointed lumber as well as edge gluing for greater strength and air tightness properties. A variety of species can are used to produce CLT although Spruce is common in Europe and SPF, with a majority of Pine in North America. Similar products have been produced out of bamboo too, but they currently do not have the same structural certifications or production capabilities.
USES:
CLT can be used for a large variety of applications. The form and natural of the product make it extremely adaptable to being remanufactured and fitted to a variety of solutions. CLT is often used for both interior and exterior walls in load bearing and non-load bearing applications. Floors panels, roofs and even staircases are commonly produced as well. This one solution fits all allows for easily coordinated construction systems and rapid onsite construction.
PRODUCTION:
CLT is produced by gluing layers of dimension lumber together into a large cross laminated sandwich. CLT is generally produced in intervals of layers from 3,5,7, and up to 9 layers thick. The first layer runs in the primary span direction and the second (middle layer) runs orthogonal to that. CLT panels can contain MSR and finger jointed lumber as well as edge gluing for greater strength and air tightness properties. A variety of species can are used to produce CLT although Spruce is common in Europe and SPF, with a majority of Pine in North America. Similar products have been produced out of bamboo too, but they currently do not have the same structural certifications or production capabilities.
USES:
CLT can be used for a large variety of applications. The form and natural of the product make it extremely adaptable to being remanufactured and fitted to a variety of solutions. CLT is often used for both interior and exterior walls in load bearing and non-load bearing applications. Floors panels, roofs and even staircases are commonly produced as well. This one solution fits all allows for easily coordinated construction systems and rapid onsite construction.
CLT Construction Guides
For cost efficiency and production optimization CLT must be thought of similar to other panellized products. When building with sheets of plywood designs and layout are optimized to use full panels. The same basic principle should be used with CLT production. Each CLT supplier has a different arrangement of panel configurations that optimize (lower) their production costs. This makes it relatively important to choose panel dimensions at an early stage in the project to achieve an efficient design in terms of material use.