Sponsored by Sansin

Moderator:

Kathryn (Katie) Fernholz · President/CEO · Dovetail Partners
Kathryn (Katie) Fernholz is President/CEO of Dovetail Partners, a non-profit environmental think tank based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Kathryn is a forester by training with 24+ years of experience in the forest sector. Her career has focused on sustainability concerns, including small-holder and family forestry, community-based decision making, supply-chain assurances, and certification. She is an experienced lead auditor for forest certification assessments having served on audit teams for industrial, tribal, public, and family forest lands. She has led projects addressing urban forest management and urban wood utilization. Since 2010, Kathryn has been an author addressing policy and green markets in the Forest Products Annual Market Review prepared by the FAO/UNECE. Kathryn served as Chair of the Minnesota Society of American Foresters and was appointed to the Minnesota Forest Resources Council in 2002 and 2019. She is Past Chair for the Board of Trustees for the American Forest Foundation and a member of the Steering Committee for the Women’s Forest Congress. Kathryn has a B.S. in Forest Resources from the University of Minnesota.

Presentations:

Forests and Forest Products Carbon

An overview of U.S. Forests and forest products depicting visualized Forest Service and EPA data. The presentation is a summary of the information found in the interactive data visualization tool: www.forestcarbondataviz.org.

Dave Tenny · President and CEO · National Alliance of Forest Owners
Dave Tenny is the founding President and CEO of NAFO. Under his leadership, NAFO has grown from 14 initial members in 2008 to 47 member companies that own and manage more than 46 million acres of private working forests and 30 state and national associations that represent tens of millions of additional acres. Dave’s passion for building trust and pursuing solutions-based advocacy has helped NAFO become a leading national advocate for the economic, environmental and social benefits of America’s sustainably managed private forests. Dave previously served as Vice President for Forestry and Wood Products for the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA) and as Deputy Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment at the United States Department of Agriculture where he had responsibility for the U.S. Forest Service. He got his start in the U.S. House of Representatives where he served as Counsel and Natural Resources Policy Advisor for the House Committee on Agriculture and as Counsel for U.S. Representative Wally Herger of California.

Sustainable Forestry Management Practices Follows Separately

The role of vibrant forests is increasingly recognized as a core climate and water supply solution even as the role of degraded/ converted forests are a major contributor to carbon emissions and climate risk. Our largest and most expandable terrestrial carbon sink, US forests typically contain a fraction of the carbon they can naturally store, and these forests are frequently at less than optimal health and function. Timber and fiber production markets have been relied upon to sustain forests, while overarching forest functions such as climate moderation/mitigation, watershed and habitat services have been approached primarily by regulatory limitations. Indeed, the primary focus of most state forest regulation is to sustain timber products yield, rather than forest functions overall. This assumes that sustaining trees sustains forests while increasingly, we recognize that forests encompass many more functions. Certification schemes seek to fill the gap between regulation and current regulatory outcomes. Particularly given the time pressures of market forces versus the time required to restore ecological function, and the urgency of our current climate crises, is this sufficient? What more is needed to ensure full forest function? What public polices will support landowners for that larger outcome?

Laurie Wayburn · President & CEO · Pacific Forest Trust
Laurie Wayburn is co-founder, President & CEO of Pacific Forest Trust. Ms. Wayburn is an accomplished forest and conservation innovator who advises policymakers at the state, regional, national, and international levels. She pioneers new approaches to develop sustainable resource economies using her deep experience in the fields of conservation, ecosystem services, and sustainability. A preeminent authority on the climate and ecosystem benefits of forests, she leads efforts enacting climate change and other ecosystem service policies that unite conservation and sustainable management with market-based approaches. Recipient of the Kingsbury Browne Conservation, James Irvine Foundation, and EPA Climate Leadership awards, Ms. Wayburn is a frequent speaker, writer, and media commentator on effective incentives for conservation and sustainable resource management. Prior to co-founding Pacific Forest Trust with Constance Best in 1993, Ms. Wayburn worked internationally for 10 years in the United Nations Environment Program and Ecological Sciences Division of UNESCO. She later served as Executive Director of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory and was the Founder and first Coordinator of the Golden Gate International Biosphere Reserve. Ms. Wayburn is a graduate of Harvard University and currently serves on the Land Trust Alliance Leadership Council.

Leadership for the Climate Solutions of Forests and Multiple Benefits of Mass Timber

Three panelists will share experiences with mass timber in ways that utilize wood as a climate solution while supporting healthy forests and meeting multiple project objectives, including equity and social sustainability. From civic design leadership, to running a mass timber company, managing over 100,000 acres of forest, and advocating for carbon registry opportunities — the panelists provide unique, diverse, and insightful perspectives. Each panelist will briefly share information about their current work and the group discussion will explore what they have learned through their journey, what forests as a climate solution means to them, and what they see coming around the corner next.

Chandra Robinson · Principal · LEVER Architecture
Chandra Robinson is a Principal at LEVER Architecture, a Portland, Oregon-based design practice recognized for material innovation. She is passionate about creating beautiful places that are accessible for everyone. Chandra recently completed a LEED Platinum campus for equity-based foundation Meyer Memorial Trust and is currently working with communities on transformative designs for affordable housing and libraries. In addition to her civic design work, Chandra is a member of the Portland Design Commission; a Founding Board Member and Treasurer of the National Organization for Minority Architects (NOMA), Portland chapter; and on the advisory board of Hip Hop Architecture Camp.

Russ Vaagen · CEO · Vaagen Timbers
Russ Vaagen is the founder and CEO of Vaagen Timbers, based in Colville, Washington. Vaagen Timbers produces CLT, GLT, and glulam beams from sustainable sources. Prior to starting his mass timber company, Russ worked with his family at Vaagen Bros Lumber to produce structural lumber with a special focus on small logs. During that time Russ also served as the President for the Northeast Washington Forestry Coalition where he worked with local community leaders, conservation groups, and land managers to restore overgrown forests on public lands. Russ believes that mass timber has the unique opportunity to tie great forest management directly to new modern wooden buildings. Russ serves on the board of Sustainable Northwest and takes part in countless initiatives regarding sustainability, climate, and carbon. Russ is a graduate of Washington State University. He lives in Colville with Aleksandra and their three children where they enjoy all that the inland northwest offers for outdoor recreation.

Troy Harris · Managing Director, Timberland and Innovative Wood Products · Jamestown, LP (Atlanta, GA)
Mr. Harris is a certified forester responsible for leading Jamestown’s Timberland Investment Team, which oversees four separate timberland funds. Jamestown currently manages more than 110,000 acres of institutional quality timberland in the U.S. south and northeast. Mr. Harris also serves on a team at Jamestown exploring the expanded use of innovative wood products. Jamestown has announced plans to construct a 100,000 square foot mass timber building at Ponce City Market in Atlanta, Georgia, locally sourced from timber sustainably grown and harvested in the Southeast. He also serves on the steering committee that is establishing Georgia’s Sustainable Development Carbon Registry. The expansion of the Registry will enable the creation and tracking of carbon credits tied to carbon sequestered in construction projects throughout the state as well as the embodied carbon benefits arising from a whole-building life cycle assessment. The primary objective will be to increase the use of construction materials that sequester, or store carbon, furthering sustainable development in Georgia.

Sponsored by Seagate Mass Timber

Moderator:

Brandon Brooks · Mass Timber Construction Management Program Manager · WoodWorks
Brandon is an experienced project and program manager. He has previous experience in government test and evaluation efforts for acquisition projects with congressional oversight, created an education and training roadmap for several technical skills programs, and was fortunate enough to lead and work alongside some of our country’s greatest people in the Marine Corps. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a focus on finance from the University of Florida, completed his MBA at Virginia Tech, and is a Project Management Professional. He is based in Anchorage, Alaska.

Presentations:

Master Builder Mindset: Leveraging the Design-Build Approach

The concept of the Master Builder is not new. In the past, structural engineers were typically more involved with the construction and erection of their designs. But today, given that the cost associated with the timber structure is closely tied to connection and erection efficiency, following the Master Builder Mindset can set timber projects up for success. By leveraging the design-build model, and designing for manufacture and construction, there are several benefits including procuring materials, minimizing field issues, and controlling overall cost. Leif will highlight these benefits, using the recently completed Southwest DC Library as an example, to show: 1. How early collaboration with engineer-builders can help improve structural efficient and decrease schedule and cost. 2. How the engineer-builder can mitigate owner risk—locking in costs earlier than conventional design-bid-build approaches. 3. How the engineer-builder helps establish a culture of trust and transparency so that decisions are informed and made with confidence.

Leif Johnson · Structural Engineering Director · StrutureCraft
Leif is a licensed structural engineer with over 17 years of experience designing high-profile civic structures, museums, performing arts centers and mass timber structures throughout the United States. Leif attended Lawrence University in Wisconsin and Washington University in St. Louis where he obtained undergraduate degrees in Physics and Civil Engineering. Leif stayed on at Washington University in St. Louis to receive his master’s degree in Structural Engineering. Shortly after graduation and before moving to Seattle, Leif won the 2004 Skidmore, Owings and Merrill Structural Engineering Traveling Fellowship, where he toured Europe to study structures inspired by natural forms for his thesis “Nature as Inspiration: Tools for Structural Art”. His passion for timber engineering was recently recognized when he was awarded one of the influential 40 under 40 professionals for Building, Design and Construction in 2018. Leif is consistently focused on finding economical, elegant and sustainable solutions to all projects. As a LEED accredited professional, he understands well that efficient use of timber and all materials results in minimizing a structure’s carbon footprint. Leif currently leads the Seattle office of StructureCraft to support projects throughout the United States.

How to Improve Cost Estimation Accuracy

Cost estimating in the commercial mass timber industry is risky business. Product sourcing considerations such as currency risk and shipping risk, combined with the commodity nature of the input fiber, create an environment where pricing firmed fixed mass timber packages a difficult task. Participants in this session will learn about strategies to mitigate cost estimating risk and improve estimating accuracy.

Chris Evans · President · Timberlab
Chris is the President, and a founding member, of Timberlab, a commercial contracting and manufacturing firm offering turnkey mass timber packages to the US Market. Chris has spent the last 5 years leveraging his hands-on self-perform background with his strong commercial general contracting experience to develop best-in-class mass timber delivery on the country’s most complex and challenging projects.

Using Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) to Maximize the Benefits of Mass Timber

The overall lack of innovation in the construction industry extends to project delivery methods. Even with mass timber, where the benefits of early involvement by the timber trade are widely acknowledged, many projects are still being delivered using a design-bid-build process. Design-build is becoming increasingly popular but still does not change the traditional mindset of each party striving to avoid risk.

Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) is a radical departure from traditional delivery methods and in many ways is ideally suited for mass timber projects. Highly collaborative and transparent, an IPD contract binds the owner, designers, and builders to share financial risks and rewards in a way that is tied to the project goals. When executed successfully, IPD can reduce delays, disputes, and claims.

The presenters will give a broad overview of the IPD process and how it can be used on mass timber projects in general. They will also discuss their experience on a large IPD mass timber student residence project currently in construction at Humber College in Toronto.

Tanya Luthi · Vice President · Entuitive
Tanya Luthi is a structural engineer and Vice President at Entuitive, a consulting engineering practice operating in five offices across Canada and the United States. After obtaining her master’s degree from The University of Texas, Tanya started her engineering career in New York City specializing in large-scale institutional projects in steel and concrete. After moving to Vancouver, Canada, in 2011, she discovered a love for mass timber design and has since made it a focus in her career. In addition to her design experience, Tanya co-authored the US and Canadian Nail-Laminated Timber Design and Construction Guides, and she gives regular talks on timber design at architectural and engineering conferences across North America. She is a member of the Board of Directors of WoodWorks and is also an active member of the New York City structural code committee, where she advises on matters related to mass timber construction.

Andrew Stiffman · Director of Design and Construction · Kalesnikoff Mass Timber
With a background in building science, development & design management, and hands-on, high-performance construction, Andrew leverages technical expertise and a creative approach to problem solving to lead high achieving, multidisciplinary project teams to deliver complex project goals, on-budget, on-schedule, and with excellent attention to craft and detail. Andrew is responsible for the successful conception and delivery of diverse project work at Kalesnikoff Mass Timber.

Sponsored by Hilti

Moderator:

Antony Wood · Chief Executive Officer · Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat
Antony Wood has been Executive Director of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat since 2006, responsible for the day-to-day running of the Council and steering in conjunction with the Board of Trustees, of which he is an ex-officio member. Prior to this, he was CTBUH Vice-Chairman for Europe and Head of Research. His tenure has seen a revitalization of the CTBUH and an increase in output and initiatives across all areas. Based at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Antony is also a Research Professor in the College of Architecture at IIT, and a visiting professor of tall buildings at Tongji University Shanghai. A UK architect by training, his field of speciality is the design, and in particular the sustainable design, of tall buildings. Prior to joining the Council and IIT, Antony was an Associate Professor/Lecturer in Architecture at the University of Nottingham in the UK from 2001–2006, where he ran the third and fifth year programs respectively, and was an active member of various research teams. The design research output of his various academic collaborations can be seen here; at the Illinois Institute of Technology and University of Nottingham.

Presentations:

2021 IBC Tall Mass Timber Code Provisions and Approaches to Adoption

Historic changes to the 2021 International Building Code (IBC) allow for the construction of tall mass timber buildings with larger heights and areas than is permitted for traditional heavy timber and light-frame wood construction. An overview of allowable heights and areas for three new types of mass timber construction: Types IV-A, IV-B, and IV-C will be presented. Type IV-B construction allows a certain percentage of exposed mass timber on the building’s interior. Recent research led to proposed changes in the 2024 IBC which will provide for an even larger percentage of exposed mass timber ceilings in buildings up to 12 stories and 180 feet tall.

This presentation will also describe the code adoption process and the approaches to incorporating the 2021 IBC tall mass timber provisions into state and local building codes. All have the same effect and have been chosen by the State or local jurisdiction based on the most efficient approach to maintain consistency with the rest of the building code. The current status of tall mass timber code adoptions across the entire United States will be presented.

Buddy Showalter · Senior Staff Engineer · International Code Council
John “Buddy” Showalter, P.E., is a senior staff engineer with the International Code Council’s (ICC) product development group. He develops technical resources in support of the structural provisions of the International Building Code and International Residential Code. Showalter reviews publications authored by the Code Council and engineering groups, while also developing publications and technical seminars on the structural provisions of the International Codes for building departments, designers and special inspectors. He is the project lead in the development of “Mass Timber Buildings and the IBC” and associated education programs, jointly developed by ICC and the American Wood Council (AWC). A graduate of Virginia Tech, Showalter has also been a member of the editorial board for STRUCTURE magazine for more than 15 years. Before joining ICC, Showalter spent 26 years with AWC where he led its technology transfer program with oversight responsibility for publications, website, helpdesk, education and other technical media. He has more than 34 years of experience in the development and support of building codes and standards, publishing more than 60 technical articles for industry-related trade journals.

Kenneth Bland · VP Codes and Regulations · American Wood Council
Kenneth Bland has been employed by the American Wood Council and its predecessor organizations since 1988, initially working as the Northeast Regional Manager for the National Forest Products Association. He is currently the AWC Vice President of Codes and Regulations, which has its office just outside of Washington, DC. Ken spent five years in building code administration and enforcement, serving first as a building inspector and then as a building official in Keene, NH. During his career, Ken has been involved in the development and maintenance of building codes and standards through participation in various domestic and international technical committees. Most recently, he served on the ICC Standards Committee for Offsite Construction. He has served for many years on the NFPA technical committees on building fire exposure and combustible dust. Recent initiatives include leading a team to educate the fire service on wood construction and fire safety precautions during construction. Ken holds a Bachelor of Architectural Engineering (B.A.E.) in structures from the Pennsylvania State University, a Master of Science in Fire Protection Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and is a registered professional engineer.

Compliance Strategies for Advanced Mass Timber Designs That Go Beyond Adopted Codes

The presentation will use examples of current and past projects to demonstrate how to navigate through various IBC editions including local amendments, and negotiate with the local jurisdiction for designs that push the regulatory limits. I will use PowerPoint side deck and tell stories of successful negotiations on innovative mass timber projects, how we resolved the AHJ’s concerns, and streamlined the permit review process. The discussions will include negotiation strategies and illustrate how we use of engineering judgments, performance analysis, and other measures, to assure the AHJ and augment compliance strategies.

Samir Mokashi · Principal · Code Unlimited
Samir Mokashi, Principal and owner at Code Unlimited, has over 30 years’ experience in building and fire code regulations, and specialized expertise in the development of alternates and the application and use of new products such as mass timber. In 2015, Samir advised Hacker Architects on their groundbreaking mass timber building—First Tech Credit Union Headquarters—which was recognized as an Engineering News-Record’s finalist for Regional Project of the Year. Samir gave presentations and reviewed student projects of Prof. Judith Shein’s mass timber parking garage studio at the University of Oregon in early 2015, and the Lane County Courthouse studio project in 2017. Since then, Samir has led multiple educational presentations and participated in panels for mass timber construction and code requirements at the AIA, SFPE, Woodworks, and the Tall Wood Design Institute, as well as supported the early adoption of mass timber into Oregon state code. has consulted on notable projects such Oregon State University’s Forestry Center and Wood Products Laboratory, the Sideyard CLT Offices, PAE’s Living Building, and multiple CLT projects for Katerra. Samir is widely known for his creative problem-solving and is a sought-after speaker, accredited educator, and a highly valued mentor to young professionals.

Differential Material Settlements in Tall Mass Timber Structures

As the height of mass timber buildings continues to grow, so too does the level of design and detailing knowledge required to achieve optimal building construction and performance. One necessary detailing consideration for tall mass timber buildings is vertical movements. These movements include column shrinkage, joint settlement and creep. The main concerns regarding vertical movements are the impact that the deformations have on vertical mechanical systems, exterior enclosures, and interior partitions, as well as differential vertical movements of the timber framing systems relative to other building features such as concrete core walls and exterior facades. This session will analyze the reasons for vertical movements (both short term and long term), provides methods of calculating anticipated movements, highlights detailing options to minimize and accommodate them and discusses vertical movement strategies implemented on tall mass timber projects completed in North America.

Ricky McLain · Senior Technical Director – Tall Wood · WoodWorks–Wood Products Council
Ricky is WoodWorks’ in-house expert on tall mass timber buildings, providing analysis and guidance on architectural, fire and life safety, and structural design topics. He supports the AEC community both directly and collaboratively with WoodWorks Regional Directors, and guides the development of education and resources related to tall mass timber buildings in the U.S. Prior to this emphasis, Ricky’s role encompassed all building types and wood systems. He also has extensive experience in lead engineer roles related to structural design, project management and construction administration. Ricky is Executive Director of the Structural Engineers Association of Vermont, and a member of numerous committees and councils related to building design.

Josephine Racine · Engineer · Fast + Epp
Josephine joined Fast + Epp’s Vancouver office in 2019 as a timber specialist and has been working on several large-scale mass timber projects across North America, including INTRO Cleveland and the Walmart Home Office. She is particularly well versed in modern mass timber connection design and innovative mass timber structural systems. She values elegant, durable, and efficient design. Josephine graduated in 2018 with a Master of Engineering in Wood Science and Technologies with a major in Wood Construction from the Wood Superior School in France.

Sponsored by Nordic Structures

Content produced by MOD X

Moderator:

Ryan Smith · Director, School of Design and Construction; Partner, MOD X · Washington State University
Ryan E. Smith is a Professor and Director of the School of Design & Construction at Washington State University. Professor Smith has been teaching, researching and consulting with respect to offsite construction, industrialized building, prefabricated and volumetric modular product R&D, factory setup and layout, design assist, and market analysis and surveys, for 20 years. Smith is author of numerous offsite construction reports, papers and books including the seminal text, Prefab Architecture (Wiley, 2010). He is the founding past chair of the National Institute of Building Sciences, Offsite Construction Council, a fellow of the Modular Building Institute and a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Offsite Construction + Innovative Structures at Edinburgh Napier University in the UK.

Presentations:

Forest to Home

Truly sustainable and equitable buildings must meet a higher standard that accounts for both consumer and environmental costs. In  Forterra’s “forest to home” model, the supply chain begins with local, sustainably harvested trees and ends with beautiful, affordable homes for people who make less than the area median income. The forest to home strategy relies on factory-produced, modular cross laminated timber as its core building component and its potential to yield triple-bottom-line results with environmental, economic and social benefits.

Toby Levey · VP Transactions & Fund Manager · Forterra NW & Strong Communities Fund
Toby Levey serves as Forterra’s VP of Transactions and Fund Manager for the Forterra Strong Communities Fund. The Transactions Team implemented the conservation acquisition of 21,000 acres of wild, working forest and farm lands over 71 transactions from 2018 through 2021, and the design and engineering of a prototype cross laminated timber multifamily affordable housing unit. In 2022, the team will continue the deployment of Forterra’s Strong Communities Fund, a cutting edge approaches to Social Impact Capital. Focus projects include the Ancestral Lands Fund, the Darrington Wood Innovation Center and greenfield developments in Tukwila, Tacoma, Roslyn and Hamilton.

Glulam and CLT As Building Blocks. What Can We Create?

We have delivered mass timber structures with connection hardware pre-installed, and MEPF penetrations pre-cut into glulam beams and CLT panels. What is the next frontier? Are there other ways to combine these elements to yield superior structural, fire, acoustic, and vibration performance? What are the opportunities to bring prefabrication into our projects, and do more work in a factory, controlled environment? Can weather-protecting treatments be pre-applied to the mass timber structure? Could a glulam beam also be a light fixture? Could it be a duct? Can we deliver a 2-hour-rated structure with fireproofing already in place? And, who will provide these services to the market? Join me for a lively discussion of the value-added services that take mass timber to the next level, and how Timberlab has been able to bring the next generation of mass timber systems to life.

Erica Spiritos · VP, Director of Preconstruction · Timberlab
Erica is interested in the design of urban environments in ways that honor the natural resources on which our lives depend and has dedicated her professional career to the mass timber movement in the Pacific Northwest. She has had the privilege of working on leading-edge projects, including some of the largest and tallest mass timber projects in the country. Her passion for social justice and inclusion shines through in projects like Heartwood, a workforce housing project in Seattle, and the Portland Airport Terminal Core Redevelopment that achieved ambitious goals for wood sourcing. As Vice President and Director of Preconstruction for Timberlab, Erica provides project-specific expertise to support appropriate and optimal mass timber design, estimating, and procurement strategy. She is an expert in mass timber project delivery with deep supply chain knowledge and a passion for sustainable wood sourcing and has helped grow the group from four people to 40 full-time staff dedicated to accelerating the mainstream adoption of mass timber by providing engineer, procure, construct (EPC) services across the US commercial construction market. Erica was recently named by ThinkWood as one of six women innovating in AEC and Beyond. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her partner and twin sons.

d2OFF: Developing a Mass Timber Value Chain Direct to Off-Site Manufacturing

Mass timber manufacturing is inherently prefabrication. CLT and GLT are composite materials made in a factory from primary inputs from mills (sawn lamstock) and from refineries (resin). The planar and linear outputs that come out of this manufacturing process require close coordination with architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) professionals to achieve off-site subtractive and additive fabrication, however this ‘coordination’ downstream can also stifle innovation upstream.

With modular design, some of the traditional project ‘coordination’ with AEC can shift to product development ‘collaboration’ across the entire supply chain. The specific product and process requirements for modular manufacturing demand a shift from commodity lumber inputs to custom lamstock inputs. Once this leap is made to custom lamstock and custom CLT/GLT grades, the supply chain upstream for mass timber factories has tremendous opportunity for improvement related to environmental impacts and cost reduction.

Todd Beyreuther · Director of Product · Mercer Mass Timber
Todd Beyreuther is the Director of Product at Mercer Mass Timber in Spokane, Wash. Beyreuther is a design engineer specializing in the development of cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glued-laminated timber (GLT) materials, components, and assemblies. After 20+ years of experience in structural engineering practice, academic research at Washington State University, and product and process development at Katerra, Beyreuther founded Mass Timber Systems LLC (Spokane, Wash.) in 2020 with a mission to complete a more responsible and more competitive value chain for mass timber prefabrication leveraging design thinking at every process. With the acquisition of the Katerra CLT assets by Mercer International in 2021, Beyreuther merged these secondary manufacturing efforts back with the primary manufacturing efforts of the CLT/GLT factory in Spokane Valley, Wash.

Sponsored by Sansin

Moderator:

Rose Braden · President · Softwood Export Council
Rose Braden is the President of the Softwood Export Council (SEC), a non-profit trade association made up of U.S. forest products associations, state trade agencies, and public research centers who work together to increase the use of U.S. softwood products globally. She has over 20 years of experience developing international marketing strategies for the U.S. forest products and building materials industries and executing promotional programs. For ten years Braden directed international marketing and educational programs as the President of the Evergreen Building Products Association. Prior to her work with the EBPA, she was an analyst for the Center for International Trade in Forest Products at the University of Washington where her work included projects on Taiwan, China, Japan, Europe, and U.S. industry trends and manufacturing clusters.

Presentations:

Mass Timber: North American Manufacturing Capacity, Pricing, & New Products

The presentation will cover the early stages of the mass timber supply chain with a focus on lumber, a key raw material used by mass timber manufacturers. Specific topics will include recent developments in raw material cost and availability and opportunities to more efficiently utilize raw materials.

Roy Anderson · Vice President · The Beck Group
Roy has more than 30 years of forestry and forest products industry experience. For the last 16 years he has been consultant and Vice President at The Beck Group, a forest products planning and consulting firm based in Portland, Oregon. Roy has worked with a variety of mass timber clients including three CLT manufacturing feasibility studies, mass timber market studies, and four years experience as an author of the International Mass Timber Report. He also spoke about the mass timber supply chain at the 2016 International Mass Timber Conference.

The State of Mass Timber: Opportunities and Building Types to Spur Growth

How do we keep building what we need while reducing the global climate impact of those buildings? Choices at every step of design and construction can have lasting effects on our planet. Mass timber has emerged as a material that can make many types of everyday buildings more sustainable. The Softwood Lumber Board (SLB) and WoodWorks have provided funding, research, and direct support for mass timber projects throughout the U.S. Presenters, Ryan Flom, CMO of the SLB, and Bill Parsons, VP of Operations at WoodWorks, will evaluate the business outlook and oncoming opportunities for mass timber construction such as projections that show growth in the next decade, realizing this growth will require education, innovation, and action on the part of industry. Join Flom and Parsons to discuss mass timber’s potential to remake the built environment and to examine market segments that lay a path for the future.

Ryan Flom · Chief Marketing Officer · Softwood Lumber Board
Ryan Flom is the Chief Marketing Officer of the Softwood Lumber Board, an industry-funded initiative established to promote the benefits and uses of softwood lumber products in outdoor, residential, and non-residential construction. Flom may not have been a “wood guy” when he joined the SLB in 2018, but he certainly is now. He has expanded his knowledge by building strong relationships with industry leaders, understanding primary business drivers, and blending the two into powerful marketing strategies for the SLB. His 20+ years of experience in media, marketing, sales, and business development, combined with a proven ability to manage complex programs, have elevated the SLB’s funded programs. Flom’s commitment to the SLB has ensured that the organization’s investments are used effectively and efficiently to drive new demand for softwood lumber.

Bill Parsons · Vice President of Operations · WoodWorks
Bill Parsons is WoodWorks’ Vice President of Operations and leads the Project Resources and Solutions Division, a team of wood engineering experts who provide training and project support. He is actively involved in the emergence of mass timber and continued advancement of light-frame construction in the U.S., as well as increased partnerships among manufacturers and other groups within the sector. In his role as VP, he is also instrumental in the development of systems and strategies that allow WoodWorks to support an increasing number of AEC professionals. Prior to WoodWorks, Bill spent 15 years leading the strategic rollout of new product lines, managing technical teams, and growing the long-term profitability of business units. A licensed engineer in the State of California, he has a master’s from Washington State University and an undergraduate degree from South Dakota State University.

How the ICCU Arena Overcome Hurdles in the Timber Supply Chain

The design and construction of the University of Idaho ICCU Arena (Moscow, Idaho, USA) was an opportunity to work with the forest products industry within the state of Idaho to examine and explore the use of wood and engineered wood products in a unique and innovative manner. There was specific intent to provide research, educational and outreach opportunities in partnership and collaboration with forest product industry partners in the design, construction and operation of an iconic wood structure that stands as a symbol of the state’s natural resources. The presentation will discuss the supply chain story for the arena. The project is uniquely positioned to review the process of working with foresters, manufacturers, fabricators, and installers as they were all partners in the design and construction process from the project’s inception. Our presentation will examine the use of timber harvested from the University of Idaho’s forest and surrounding public and private lands; the transportation of 2 million board feet of timber to multiple manufacturers; collaboration with manufacturers to address production and storage concerns related to fabrication and schedule; and final installation of finished mass timber components that serve as the primary structural system and architectural expression of a regional economic generator.

Chris Roberts · Associate Principal | Architect · Opsis Architecture
Chris is a seasoned Architect with more than 24 years of experience. His architectural journey encompasses a diverse background from student activity centers and stadiums to finely-tuned performance halls and arenas. Regardless of project size or complexity, Chris has a proven track record of integrating program and client needs with a sustainable and innovative design approach. His early and passionate integration of timber products places him at the forefront of innovation in the practice application and design possibilities of this material. Chris’s expertise in designing with mass timber extends from his work on projects like the recently completed Idaho Central Credit Union Arena at University of Idaho.

Sponsored by Seagate Mass Timber

Moderator:

Momo Sun · Regional Director · WoodWorks
Momo is passionate about building sustainable structures and enjoys helping developers and design teams find elegant wood solutions that are also cost effective. A licensed Professional Engineer in New York and Ontario, she received her M.Eng. in Civil Engineering from MIT and a BASc from the University of Toronto. She has experience working in both the U.S. and Canada, and, prior to WoodWorks, was a Project Manager and Structural Engineer for commercial, healthcare, and institutional projects. Her expertise is in mass timber where she assists developers, architects, and structural engineers with their timber projects from schematic design to construction. Momo is based in New York and her region covers New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

Presentations:

Workforce Development and Pathways for Success

Mass timber is an innovative building material with many benefits, including construction speed, aesthetics, sustainability, and strength-to-weight ratio. The beauty of the finished product has inspired many owners and designers to pursue mass timber for their projects. However, while design and code aspects receive a great deal of focus, it is the construction aspects that often decide whether a project goes forward. While mass timber draws installation techniques from other construction types, it also has unique attributes—and a complete understanding of the differences is key to estimating, planning and ultimately successful, efficient, and safe construction site. This presentation will address the nuances of mass timber that are important for contractor success and how contractors can gain proficiency with mass timber projects based on their experience with other structural systems. The session will also highlight successful installation training programs in the United States.

Brandon Brooks · Mass Timber Construction Management Program Manager · WoodWorks
Brandon is an experienced project and program manager. He has previous experience in government test and evaluation efforts for acquisition projects with congressional oversight, created an education and training roadmap for several technical skills programs, and was fortunate enough to lead and work alongside some of our country’s greatest people in the Marine Corps. He obtained a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a focus on finance from the University of Florida, completed his MBA at Virginia Tech, and is a Project Management Professional. He is based in Anchorage, Alaska.

Craig Triplett · Assistant Director · Mid-America Carpenters Regional Council Apprentice & Training Program
Craig Triplett is the Assistant Director at the Mid-America Carpenters Regional Council Apprentice and Training Program. He has been in the carpentry trade for 34 years with the last 15 years being at the Carpenter Training Center in Elk Grove Village, Illinois, teaching the trade to union carpenters. Craig currently oversees the daily operations of their 18 training centers while developing curriculum and implementing training programs for the Apprentices and Journeymen of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters (UBC). As the Assistant Director, he collaborates with contractors, developers, manufacturers and organizations to ensure that the training centers stay up-to-date with the latest technology, tools, and processes to create a productive workforce for the union contractor. Besides creating the Building Envelope and Solar curriculum used by the UBC, he helped develop the first mass timber training program in the United States. The Mass Timber Construction class has had 97 members complete the training, which equates to over 3,104 hours of training. This includes 17 instructors from all over the US, who have taken this information back to their centers and will provide this training to their membership.

On-Site Moisture Protection Strategies for Mass Timber

When it comes to protecting mass timber from moisture during construction, there are a number of options and associated impacts. The plan chosen for any given project should take into account a number of factors including time of year, local climatic conditions, duration of construction, delivery and storage conditions, budget, owner’s level of risk acceptance, and more. This session will draw on experience from moisture protection strategies employed on several mass timber projects. Covered topics will include: on-site storage and handling techniques, contact with metals, protection of panel joints, use of temporary roofing, applied coatings and sealants, actions following rain and much more.

Dave Beck · Co-Founder and Executive Vice President · XL Construction
Dave Beck, Co-Founder and Executive Vice President at XL Construction, is a construction industry visionary with a passion for sustainable and innovative building design. His desire for excellence in every job is a driving force behind the company’s focus on achieving the highest levels of project execution, client satisfaction and sustainability. With nearly four decades industry experience, Beck is enthusiastic about working collaboratively with clients to develop sustainable building solutions. He has managed XL’s relationship with Google for nearly 10 years and has been part of its workplace evolution including its recent effort to develop a mass timber prototype for a new office building. Beck received a Bachelor of Science in construction management from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. He is a LEED AP BD+C and an active member of both the USGBC and Living Future Institute.

Mitigating and Repairing Moisture Staining During Construction

Despite the best efforts to protect mass timber members from weather elements during construction — most notably moisture and weathering exposure — most projects will still require some form of repair or touch up. Based on real project experiences, this session will provide insights and lessons learned from addressing water staining and discoloration during and after construction. Topics addressed will include: what are the options of addressing water staining and which is most appropriate given different circumstances (touch sanding vs. acid washing vs. other methods); are coatings and sealants effective as a means of minimizing the amount of water staining that occurs; when is the appropriate time to perform water staining remediation (right after it appears or after the timber has lowered in moisture content or at the conclusion of construction); and what role does preventative maintenance play in mitigating the amount of repair and touch up needed prior to final project walkthroughs.

Jeff Chan · Preconstruction Manager · Seagate Mass Timber
Jeff leads Seagate’s business development and project pursuits. With a diverse background in construction built over 20 years, Jeff supports his team with strategic guidance and project delivery expertise while working with the clients to meet their design, constructability and costing needs. Since joining the team in 2020, he has continued to solidify Seagate as a leader in mass timber by securing key projects while expanding our service area to North American wide. He sees mass timber as a game-changer in construction as it blends efficiency and speed of construction with architectural beauty while contributing to a more sustainable future.

Sponsored by Hilti

Moderator:

Ashley Cagle · Technical Director · WoodWorks
Ashley is a licensed professional and structural engineer in the state of California, having worked as a structural consultant in both the San Francisco Bay Area and Spokane, Washington before joining WoodWorks in 2020. While her experience includes a wide range of building types and materials, her specialty during her consulting career was midrise wood-frame construction over podium structures. Throughout her career, Ashley has also been involved in various professional and code-development committees. Ashley received a bachelor’s of science from Cornell University and a master’s of science from The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Presentations:

Carbon Accounting Tools for Design Community

This talk will give an overview of life cycle assessment tools that empower designers to evaluate and express the carbon impacts of their design decisions. The talk will also explore how designers are using LCA to evaluate building design, compare mass timber to conventional construction, and think holistically about the environmental impacts of their projects.

Stephanie Carlisle · Senior Researcher · Carbon Leadership Forum
Stephanie Carlisle is a Senior Researcher at the Carbon Leadership Forum where she leads collaborative development of open-access LCA data, tools, and methods to support the building sector in radically decarbonizing construction. Her work brings together diverse stakeholders from design, industry, land management, manufacturing, labor, and policy to find new approaches to climate justice. Prior to joining the CLF, she was a principal at KieranTimberlake where she helped develop Tally, a whole building LCA tool, and worked to implement strategies that address climate and health impacts of building materials. She is a lecturer at the Weitzman School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania and currently serves on the steering committee for US Architects Declare, a climate action group pushing for radical change in architectural practice and education. She holds a masters in Architecture from Yale Architecture and a masters of Environmental Management from Yale School of Forestry.

Jonah Greene · Research Scientist · Colorado State University
Jonah Greene is a Research Associate in the Sustainability Research Laboratory. His research focuses on performing sustainability assessments on various emerging technologies including microalgae growth systems, biofuel conversion technologies, micro-grid systems, waste-utilization systems, net-zero carbon buildings, macroalgae cultivation coupled with rare earth element extraction, solar and wind energy systems, among others. Jonah holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado State University.

Design Positive — Maximizing Mass Timber’s Climate Benefits

This presentation will examine how the use of mass timber benefits the climate and promotes the circular carbon economy, a framework designed to use carbon as a resource and a tool which results in designing and building safe, then circular buildings. Mass timber from Nordic Structures was chosen and utilized for two of William McDonough + Partners recent projects, HITT Contracting’s Co|Lab (the first mass timber building in Virginia) and Apex Plaza (the tallest mass timber building on the Eastern Seaboard at the time of construction). MBDC, co-founded by William McDonough, has worked with Nordic Structures in achieving Cradle to Cradle Certified® at the Silver and Bronze level for their X-Lam and Lam and Lam+ material. These are the first mass timber products in North America to go through the certification process. In addition to carbon management, the benefits of the use of mass timber include transparency in material sourcing, material health and material reutilization. For each of these projects, the use of mass timber also allows for the disassembly and reuse of materials to promote and contribute to the circular economy.

Alastair Reilly · Design Partner · William McDonough + Partners
Alastair Reilly, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP brings more than twenty-five years of architectural and urban planning experience to his roles as Design Partner and Sustainability Leader at William McDonough + Partners. His focus on research-informed design allows him to find innovative sustainable solutions to complex building types. He leads design on WM+P’s most innovative sustainable projects, including NASA’s LEED Platinum Certified Sustainability Base, YouTube’s Phase II – Headquarters, Google Master Planning and Workplace Strategies, APEX Clean Energy’s mass timber net positive headquarters, and Dropbox’s LEED Platinum headquarters. Alastair has lead a range of design initiatives globally including design and realization of nine innovative buildings at Park 20|20, the first full service Cradle to Cradle® inspired development in The Netherlands. Alastair brings added financial and ecological value to global projects, and aims to create Carbon Positive, Net Energy Positive, eco-effective architecture through a collaborative and multi-disciplinary approach.

Sponsored by Nordic Structures

Moderator:

Ivan Rupnik · Founding Partner · MOD X
Ivan Rupnik is an architect, scholar, consultant, and Associate Professor of Architecture at Northeastern University. Over the last decade, Prof. Rupnik has collaborated closely with Prof. Ryan E. Smith on a series of research and consulting projects related to the global volumetric modular industry, including the “5 in 5 Modular Growth Initiative” Report for MBI. Last year, Rupnik and Smith launched MOD X, a platform for international exchanges related to the volumetric modular industry, with events in Boston, New York and Tokyo. Rupnik’s doctoral work at Harvard University has focused on the development of design and project management tools as well as regulatory frameworks specifically suited for offsite construction. He is a fellow of the Modular Building Institute.

Presentations:

Modern Modular

For almost 100 years architects have pursed the Holy Grail of Modernism, which is to design a relatively affordable modern domestic space that could be mass-produced. Although the single-family home has historically been a focal point in the exploration of architectural ideas, most people do not live in a custom space designed by an architect. In fact, most domestic structures are conceived by developers as products, produced for profit. The efficiency of mass-production, both conceptually and physically, has in many ways contributed to the self-same tombstones representing graveyards of complacency otherwise known as the American suburb. As an alternative to designing a product to be produced, RESOLUTION: 4 ARCHITECTURE has been exploring a process, a method of design that attempts to leverage existing methods of residential prefabrication in order to create custom modern homes specific to each client, site, and budget. Joseph Tanney will present his firm’s ongoing prefab experiment, THE MODERN MODULAR, including recently completed projects, the process of implementation, and the ideas behind the work.

Joseph Tanney · Architect · RESOLUTION: 4 ARCHITECTURE
Joseph Tanney, FAIA, is principal and co-founder or Resolution: 4 Architecture (RES4) in New York City. Having designed site-specific single-family homes from Maine to Hawaii using modular, panelized, and hybrid methods of delivery, Joseph is considered one of the most prolific prefab architects practicing today. His publication with Princeton Architectural Press, THE MODERN MODULAR The Prefab Houses of Resolution: 4 Architecture, serves as a guide to architects and students researching the design of custom homes leveraging modular methods of mass production. His office has been profiled in newspapers nationwide and in over 300 publications internationally. He has lectured throughout the U.S., including appearances in 23 states and at 14 AIA conferences, 25 universities, a dozen trade shows, and several museums and institutions. Recognized as a thought leader, Joseph’s consultation is sought internationally by academics, architects, manufacturers, and developers operating within the prefab industry.

Solving the Housing Crisis With Modular Mass Timber

Traditional construction is hamstrung by deployment, regulatory and financial processes that are time consuming, costly, and financially risky for developers. Ever mounting environmental and economic disasters have created a housing demand that conventional construction and current manufactured housing models cannot address. This presentation shares how mass timber technology combined with advanced innovation and DfMA (Design for Manufacturing and Assembly) results in lower costs, lower waste production, higher quality housing and is the solution capable of addressing today’s market demands.

Emily Dawson · Partner & Principal · Kaiser + Path
The nimble design/develop/build structure of Kaiser + Path has proven effective at realizing groundbreaking mass timber projects that combine market success together with environmental benefit. As a partner and principal architect at Kaiser + Path, Emily works exclusively with mass timber projects from feasibility through construction, driven by a commitment to transform the way we build. In the course of nearly 20 years in the construction industry, she began working with mass timber in 2013, designing the first cross-laminated timber structure built in Oregon, and has been bringing innovative timber structures into reality ever since. A 2015 travel research fellowship to study mass timber applications in Europe brought her interest in off-site fabrication into focus. Kaiser + Path translates decades of mass timber design, build, and development experience into increasingly modular mass timber ventures.

Design — The Product Platform Influencer

Design’s role in product and platform development is becoming ever clearer as design thinking and its correlation and base in user needs increases. Outside of need development and ideation design can be an arbiter and a guide. Get some insight into our process, design’s role in our platform development and how a strong platform can allow for design variation and innovation.

Sara-Ann Logan · VP of Design · Volumetric Building Companies
Sara-Ann Logan has extensive knowledge of and influence within the AEC space and specializes in volumetric modular design, manufacturing, and construction. She has more than 18 years of architectural experience with over 11 of those years exclusively focused on modular single-family, multifamily, hotel and luxury mixed-use developments serving as Design, Managing Principal, and Architect of Record. Her diverse background brings a research-based, contextual, and balanced approach to design. With over 80 projects in both the public and private sectors totaling billions of dollars in real estate value. Her work has been featured in local, regional, and national press focusing on her efficient, collaborative design process resulting in unique, well-apportioned spaces.

Sponsored by Sansin

Moderator:

Brian Brashaw · Assistant Director · USDA Forest Service, Cooperative Forestry
Wood Innovations

Presentations:

North American Lumber Markets: After Two Volatile Years, Where Do We Go From Here?

Lumber prices have seen record highs and volatility over the past two years. Have structural changes in the industry caused this or are high prices temporary? This presentation will cover the main drivers of lumber demand and where they are likely to go over the next decade. In addition, it will address whether supply will be able to meet demand and if so, where it is likely to come from. Finally, there have been a number of grand predictions on growth of mass timber construction. Given recent supply side constraints and record pricing, it will address whether the lumber industry can supply the rapid growth predicted for mass timber and at what price.

Paul Jannke · Principal, Lumber · FEA
Paul Jannke is a Principal of Forest Economic Advisors LLC, the premier source for North American wood products analysis and information. Paul’s main area of expertise is North American lumber markets. Having spent the past 25 years’ analyzing lumber markets and providing reliable, insightful forecasts, Paul is the industry’s top economic analyst. Paul is the author of FEA’s Lumber Advisor and Lumber Quarterly Forecasting Service publications. These publications are the industry’s leading sources for forecasts and analysis of the North American lumber markets. In addition, Paul has co-authored numerous studies on the international lumber, mass timber, engineered lumber, timber, bioenergy, and panel industries. Paul has presented at many international conferences on the markets for lumber, engineered wood products and structural panels and he is recognized as a leading expert in these areas.

Vertical Integration and All Parts of the Supply Chain

Vertical integration can have some real advantages to a project by opening up possibilities and breaking down conventional barriers. Some recent lessons learned on supply chain will be shared as well as some encouraging outcomes. We’ll also explore how price certainty can be achieved in volatile market conditions.

Andre Lema · Manager of Business Development · Western Archrib
Andre Lema has spent his career in the wood business. He spent his early days as a carpenter and now works as the Business Development Manager for Western Archrib, a mass timber manufacturer. He sees projects at the early development stages and interfaces with designers to provide the best value for their mass timber designs. His 26-year experience in mass timber has seen rapid change in project type and size.

The Who, What, and Where of Delivering a Successful Mass Timber Project

Success for any construction project, regardless of project delivery method or construction type, is dependent on the team that is selected to deliver the project. During this transformative time in the construction industry, many owners/developers are unfamiliar with mass timber buildings and the importance and timing of selecting the right construction and manufacturing partners. In addition to the right design team, the construction and manufacturing team members as well as understanding the supply chain, are foundational to keeping a project from going off the rails. This presentation will look at the mass timber project delivery process and provide key tips for selecting your next construction and manufacturing partners and keeping it on the rails to success.

Michelle Kam-Biron · Mass Timber Specialist · Structurlam Mass Timber Corporation
Michelle Kam-Biron is a California licensed structural engineer and has presented extensively nationally and internationally on conventional wood and mass timber construction. Ms. Kam-Biron brings a unique skill set to her presentations with a background consisting of over 20 years as a practicing structural engineer and plan check reviewer, an influence and educator with WoodWorks and American Wood Council and her current position as a Mass Timber Specialist at Structurlam Mass Timber Corporation. She has authored several articles and white papers related to the use of structural wood. She graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a BS in Architectural Engineering and serves on the Cal Poly College of Architecture and Environmental Design, Dean’s Advisory Council. Ms. Kam-Biron is a Past-President of SEAOSC and was recently inducted into the SEAOC College of Fellows as the first woman representing SEAOSC. In 2022 she will be awarded the NCSEA Susan M. Frey Educator Award and currently volunteers her time on the NCSEA Basic Education, the ICC Professional Development Council Education Committee and is Past-Chair of ASCE-SEI Wood Education Committee and SEAOSC Women in Structural Engineering Committee.

Sponsored by Seagate Mass Timber

Moderator:

Melissa Kroskey · Technical Director · WoodWorks
As both a licensed Architect and Structural Engineer in the state of California, Melissa has a broad perspective on the industry, as well as technical design expertise from seismic to hurricane regions. Throughout her career, she has designed and engineered a variety of buildings, including civic, educational, luxury residential, military, museums, and transportation facilities. In addition to building design, her knowledge includes research related to wood’s light carbon footprint, biophilic properties, and contributions to healthy indoor environments and wildfire resiliency. Melissa is actively involved in the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and Vice-Chair of ULI’s national Sustainable Development Council. Through WoodWorks’ ULI Greenprint Innovation Partnership, she assists developers pursuing timber projects throughout the U.S.

Presentations:

British Colombia Leadership: Transitioning Mass Timber from Niche to Mainstream

B.C. is focused on building a strong, expanding economy, where the benefits are shared more equally, and where environmental sustainability is the basis of future growth. This presentation will inspire the audience with real-world examples of B.C.’s leadership to date; discuss the B.C. government’s current systemic approach to transitioning mass timber building construction from niche to mainstream; and speak to our ambition of using our early mover advantage to establish B.C. as a global mass timber hub. It will highlight our Mass Timber Action Plan which will help foster low-carbon innovation, responsibly grow an emerging industry, put environmental, social governance values to work, and signal to global leaders that we are open for business and serious about realizing the economic and environmental benefits of mass timber.

Ravi Kahlon · Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation · Government of British Columbia
Ravi Kahlon was first elected as a member of the legislative assembly (MLA) for Delta North in May 2017 and was named British Columbia’s Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation in November 2020. He previously served as the Parliamentary Secretary for Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, where he championed the use of mass timber and innovation in B.C.’s forest sector. As Parliamentary Secretary for Sport and Multiculturalism, he helped restore the BC Human Rights Commission and travelled the province to build an anti-racism strategy. In public life, Ravi has drawn on the values he learned growing up in Victoria, where he was raised by parents who immigrated to Canada from India. As Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, Ravi’s first priority has been to support families and communities through the pandemic, and he is working closely with business, workers, First Nations and communities to develop and deliver on a strategy for long-term sustainability, jobs and growth. Ravi is also a certified coach and mentor to many young people in North Delta. He spends time coaching field hockey and soccer where, just like his father, he is introducing the sport to his young son.

District Office Business Case Study: Financials Revealed

Developer Eric Cress will share publicly, for the first time, details of a new mass timber business case study featuring District Office, revealing the costs and returns on this deal. District Office is a viable speculative office building, thoughtfully designed by and for a leading mass timber architect to reflect the values of their company and appeal to other prospective tenants. Built on a foundation of high-quality materials and sustainable design with uniquely adaptable floor plans, the goal for this project is to attract loyal tenants while creating value for occupants, investors and the community.

Eric Cress · Founder & Principal · Urban Development + Partners
An engineer and designer by training, Eric is drawn to innovative new ideas that make our communities better places to live. At UD+P, Eric concentrates on acquisition, development, and finance. He oversees budgets and the acquisition-to-construction phase of new projects. Before UD+P, Eric was a project manager at Pacific Bay Investments in Berkeley, California. Prior to that, Eric managed engineering projects for Cypress Semiconductor, Maple Optical Systems, Leapfrog Toys, and the National Science Foundation. Eric holds eight patents and has published several papers related to this work. He earned an MBA with a focus in real estate finance from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, as well as BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from Mississippi State University.

Adohi Hall: Innovative Live-Learn Student Housing Creates Laminated Value

Adohi Hall at the University of Arkansas is the nation’s first large-scale mass timber live-learn student housing development, a bold demonstration of sustainability and innovation in university planning. The cost-value proposition for this 708-bed complex has proven successful to a wide range of stakeholders. In this presentation, Peter MacKeith, Dean of Architecture, will share a business case study that examines cost and schedule comparisons as well as the value created for students, the University, local businesses, and more broadly the state. The facilities’ pioneering use of cross-laminated timber (CLT) set an example of potential economic development for Arkansas’ burgeoning timber industry.

Designed with a strong emphasis on biophilia, the three-building complex includes student housing and a variety of art and academic spaces such as music and performance theaters, a maker space, and study spaces. These student learning areas double as classroom spaces for faculty. The indoor learning and social areas extend to the exterior creating a large area of beautifully landscaped exterior spaces contributing to a neighborhood community on the southern end of campus.

Peter MacKeith · Dean · Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design / University of Arkansas
Peter MacKeith, dean and professor of architecture at the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas, is a nationally-recognized design educator and administrator. Previously, MacKeith served as associate dean, professor of architecture and associate curator for architecture and design at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis from 1999-2014. He held previous academic and administrative appointments at the University of Virginia and Yale University. A 2020 Senior Fellow of the Design Futures Council, MacKeith has been recognized twice by Design Intelligence as a “design educator of the year” (2017 and 2019) and twice by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture with national awards for “creative achievement in design education,” for his design studio teaching and curatorial work. MacKeith is currently overseeing the completion of a $75 million capital campaign for the Fay Jones School, and guiding the design and construction of the Anthony Timberlands Center for Design and Materials Innovation, a regional center for research and development of new wood products and new approaches in sustainable construction materials.

Sponsored by Hilti

Moderator:

Mehrdad Jahangiri · Principal · Aspect Structural Engineers
Mehrdad has more than 25 years of international experience on notable, architecturally-oriented commercial, educational, recreational and residential projects. Honing his diverse and refined skills in the field of structural engineering all over the world, Mehrdad is proficient in all building materials, and understands the importance of refining and conceiving structure to suit unique locations, codes, and architectural expression. Among others, he has been Principal-in-Charge on two ground-breaking mass timber projects on Vancouver Island: the Terminus office building, and the 12-story Tallwood 1 residential building. With these projects he has helped the team push the boundaries of what is possible in mass timber buildings.

Presentations:

The Application of Long Span Wood-Concrete Composite Construction at the OSU College of Forestry

The new OSU School of Forestry is two new faculty buildings for the Oregon State University in Corvallis, OR. The building structure sets a new bar for contemporary timber construction which features the first use of state-of-the-art components, including the first use of self-centering post-tensioned CLT shearwalls in North America, as well as long timber-concrete composite spans of up to 40 feet. In-depth vibration modelling was carried out and then verified with in-situ vibration testing. The buildings are living proof that mass timber has earned its rightful place among high-tech construction materials for institutional buildings, offering a viable alternative to traditional high-performance construction systems at a fraction of the embodied carbon.

Eric Karsh · Founding Principal · Equilibrium Consulting
A Fellow of the Institute of Structural Engineers (UK), Eric is a founding partner of Equilibrium Consulting, a Vancouver structural engineering firm recognized internationally for its leadership in the field of timber and seismic engineering. Eric is also part owner of BC Passive House in Pemberton, BC, a pre-fabrication company specializing in quality, high energy performance panelized building systems. Since founding Equilibrium in 1998, Eric has been influential in transforming the timber industry in North America and abroad through the execution of numerous innovative and trend setting designs. These include the Wood Innovation Design Centre and, recently, the OSU School of Forestry in Corvallis, Ore. Eric is currently working on Google’s first mass timber office building in Sunnyvale, Cal., as well as a 9-storey mass timber schoolboard office building in Paris, France. Central to Eric’s work is a commitment to sustainable construction, and an acknowledgement that as designers and builders, we have an urgent responsibility to help make our built environment a gentler one for our planet.

Connection Technology: Unlocking the Potential for Mass Timber

Widespread adoption of tall mass timber buildings will not be enabled by carbon footprint alone—these buildings also need to deliver their true potential for faster, safer, and more efficient construction. Analysis of recent mass timber construction projects identifies a small number of critical path activities which govern overall construction efficiency for buildings for this type. Key among these are the connection technologies used for the frame of a typical post and beam structure.

Adding to the challenge for connections are emerging architectural trends demanding more compact elements, and fire legislation requiring increasing levels of concealment for metallic components. Increasing scrutiny of embodied carbon calculation is also demanding that building designs demonstrate a circular approach to end-of-life, with connections that enable disassembly and re-use of timber components. Traditional code-driven design practices have not delivered products that serve these complex stacked requirements. A first-principles approach is required to challenge conventional thinking and exploit evidence-based development.

Harriet Ingham · VP – Major Projects · Holmes Solutions
Harriet Ingham leads Holmes Solution’s Construction Sector in the USA working to drive innovation in the industry through product design, development and testing. Her background as a structural engineer combined with experience in product design enables her to lead projects that seek to improve material and labor efficiency through the design of new technology.

Jon Roebuck · Team Leader – Mass Timber Technology · Holmes Solutions
Jon leads the Mass Timber Technology group of Holmes Solutions. The current industry shift towards Digitized Building Systems creates a need to define, develop and prove physical products for use within virtual systems. Jon’s background as an engineer in the automotive, aerospace and marine industries brings a fresh perspective to delivering these technologies for the construction sector.

CLT Diaphragms: The Real Deal is Here

CLT panels have seen increased use as floor and roof panels during the past few years. Yet full code recognition of CLT in a wind and seismic force-resisting system has been elusive… until now. With the publication of AWC’s 2021 edition of the Special Design Provisions for Wind and Seismic (SDPWS), there is now a code recognized standard of design for horizontal CLT diaphragm resisting wind and seismic loads. This presentation will present an overview of these requirements to assist designers in using them. Attendees will learn about design tools and worked examples developed for the CLT Diaphragm Technical Design Guide, published by WoodWorks. To connect the new requirements with real applications, examples of several constructed buildings using the SDPWS CLT diaphragm provisions will be presented, including lessons learned from the field.

Scott Breneman · Senior Technical Director – Mass Timber · WoodWorks–Wood Products Council
Dr. Breneman is a licensed Structural Engineer and Professional Engineer in the State of California, a PE in the State of Washington, and Senior Technical Director – Mass Timber in the Project Resources & Solutions Division of WoodWorks. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Florida and a doctorate from Stanford University. Scott has experience with structural design, seismic rehabilitation, and peer review of projects varying from single-family homes to high-rise hospitals. He is Past-President of the Structural Engineers Association of Central California, an associate member of the seismic subcommittee of ASCE 7 Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures, and a member of the PRG 320 CLT product standard committee. At WoodWorks, he provides project support and education to individuals designing wood buildings and oversees the development of technical educational content.

Eric McDonnell · Principal · Holmes
Eric is a native of the Pacific Northwest and leads Holmes’ Portland office. Eric was largely shaped by his experience working in San Francisco and post-earthquake Christchurch, New Zealand; he is well-positioned to bring knowledge of the latest techniques of resilient seismic design to his projects. With a passion for structural detailing, Eric excels in the coordination of structural elements with other design disciplines, and in the design, research, and implementation of innovative structural systems. Eric has a broad knowledge of all building materials, including mass timber for which he has remained at the forefront of the emerging industry standards. Working in Portland, Eric has developed an extensive portfolio of mass timber experience, including involvement in industry leading research, mass timber design guides, and the engineering of numerous built projects.

Sponsored by Nordic Structures

Moderator:

Ryan Smith · Director, School of Design and Construction; Partner, MOD X · Washington State University
Ryan E. Smith is a Professor and Director of the School of Design & Construction at Washington State University. Professor Smith has been teaching, researching and consulting with respect to offsite construction, industrialized building, prefabricated and volumetric modular product R&D, factory setup and layout, design assist, and market analysis and surveys, for 20 years. Smith is author of numerous offsite construction reports, papers and books including the seminal text, Prefab Architecture (Wiley, 2010). He is the founding past chair of the National Institute of Building Sciences, Offsite Construction Council, a fellow of the Modular Building Institute and a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Offsite Construction + Innovative Structures at Edinburgh Napier University in the UK.

Presentations:

Automation Challenges With Mass Timber

Automation and robotics are an essential factor in the industrialization of construction. Brent will share recent experiences gained delivering automation for construction projects over the last three years.

Brent McPhail · CEO · Brave Control Solutions
Brent McPhail is the CEO of Brave Control Solutions Inc., a premier control systems integration company that thrives on solving the toughest manufacturing challenges for Fortune 500 manufacturers across North America. Over a 20-year career in manufacturing and automation, Brent’s commitment to delivering success for his customers has driven him to seek out and develop the most innovative solutions by combining technologies and best practices from across many competing industries. His passion for driving innovative solutions is rivaled only by his passion for driving Formula Ford racecars.

The Profit Is in the Process

This presentation will discuss best practices for offsite manufacturing and design integration. It will demonstrate the experience from various companies optimize their design and manufacturing process in different points of the construction industry and its cycles.

Gerard McCaughey · Founder · Entekra
Gerard “Gerry” McCaughey is an internationally respected business leader in FIOSS for the residential and commercial construction markets. Named “Industry Entrepreneur of the Year” by Ernst and Young, McCaughey was an influential force in Europe’s continuing transition to off-site construction of wood frame homes with MMC. In the early 1990s, wood frame homes represented less than one percent of homes built on that continent. Today, FIOSS is used to build more than 30 percent of new homes in the U.K. and Ireland and nearly 70 percent in Scotland. McCaughey was the Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Century Homes in Ireland, and later named Chief Executive of Kingspan Century following the $100 million acquisition of Century by the European building materials giant Kingspan Group Plc. By focusing on fully automating the construction process with integrated technologies, McCaughey propelled Century from a small start-up operation of four employees into Europe’s largest FIOSS provider, with market share in excess of 40 percent in Ireland and a dominant position in the U.K.

Automation Gone Wild: How to Avoid the Automation Walk of Shame

Successful automation roadmaps start with understanding your product and avoiding common pitfalls.

Jason Bos · Vertical Market Manager · Stiles Machinery
Jason is a lifelong evangelist of the offsite construction industry. He began his career sweeping the floor in a boutique design, manufacturing, and installation shop in Northern California. Since 1996 Jason has served in full-time and contract roles covering everything from product development, design, manufacturing, installation, operations, process development, factory & site integration, both in offsite and traditional construction. He currently serves as Vertical Market Manager for Building Automation at Stiles Machinery, a Homag Company.

Collaborate to Solve the Building Before It’s Built

Scott will share the advantages of BIM collaboration, the benefits of shifting the balance of on-site work to off-site manufacturing, and how to transform the way you design, make, and build.

Scott Miller · VP, Global Structural System Technology · MiTek
MiTek is a global supplier of engineered components, software, automation, and services to value chain customers/partners in residential and commercial construction markets. Scott graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville in January of 1996 and immediately joined MiTek as a Design Engineer after graduation. Scott has led numerous Engineering Teams at MiTek over his 25 years of service there and now leads a global Research and Development Team focused mostly on improving wood construction with a focus on driving a Design-Make-Build mindset into construction. Scott has regularly presented technical and non-technical topics to a variety of audiences. He currently serves on the Board of Managers for ICC-ES and the Board of Advisors to the School of Engineering for SIUE.

Sponsored by Sansin

Moderator:

Charles Martin · President & CEO – MINDA North America · MINDA
Charles Martin is President and CEO of MINDA North America LLC. MINDA, with headquarters in Minden Germany, is a supplier of world class press technology and automation for the mass timber industry. Charles has more than 34 years experience in the design, manufacture, and integration of automated solutions for solid wood processing.

Presentations:

Efficiency in Mass Timber Production

Presentation on the utilization of raw material and manufacturing. We will also discuss how design of mass timber can affect the efficiency of manufacturers and cost.

Steve Lieberman · Business Development Manager · Stora Enso
Steve Lieberman is the North American Business Development Manager for Stora Enso Building Solutions. A licensed structural engineer, Mr. Lieberman has over 30 years of experience in the wood industry, engineering and manufacturing. With his passion for the advantages of wood construction, Mr. Lieberman’s focus is expanding the use of mass timber in North America.

Fabricated CLT Component Production to Support Mass Timber Construction

Prefabrication of mass timber components is essential to supporting commercial projects. This presentation will focus on the role of pre-fabrication of CLT, glulam, and other timber components to support and speed construction. Advancements in design and cutting technologies have allowed a range of companies to support the potential for broad implementation. Reinhard Sauter will present the potential for outsourcing precision cutting and joinery projects to find cost and labor efficiencies for projects in both commercial and residential construction. He will highlight the approaches his firm and others play in the mass timber supply chain.

Reinhard Sauter · President · Sauter Timber
Reinhard started importing log homes from Tennessee to Germany in 1992. Beginning 2002, he opened a CNC fabrication plant for the U.S. log home and timber frame industry. He started with a Hundegger K2 and expanded to a Hundegger robot drive along with one of the first large-scale shop buildings in CLT. Reinhard is now fabricating heavy timber components and CLT panels used in commercial and residential projects all over the United States.

Customer’s Perspective of Tech and Value-Added Manufacturing

As an experienced developer of mass timber projects, Rocky will provide his perspective on the opportunities and challenges with respect to the implementation of value-add products in residential and commercial developments. Rocky, along with Adera Development, combines technology such as 3D/BIM modelling and mass timber to quickly deliver better performing, more durable buildings to the markets they serve. Adera has committed to 1,000 mass timber homes in the Metro Vancouver market by 2025, and is on track towards being operationally carbon neutral by 2030.

Rocky Sethi · COO · Adera
Rocky has been involved in the development and construction of residential and mixed-use buildings across Western Canada for over 20 years. During this time, he has been involved in all aspects of development from acquisition and design to construction and delivery of thousands of homes and hundreds of thousands of commercial square feet. Rocky offers insight into the full spectrum of residential and commercial developments and has always worked on the leading edge of the industry, with companies looking to push the envelope with their projects in order to maximize the value of their offering. As the COO of Adera, he is championing projects incorporating cross laminated timber and high levels of sustainability, in order to deliver cutting edge projects while combating climate change. Over the past seven years, Adera has delivered over 350 mass timber hybrid homes, and has a further 700 homes in the development pipeline or under construction. Recent projects include the Crest project in North Vancouver, one of the largest residential mass timber projects in Canada.

Workforce Training and Accreditation

North America’s mass timber manufacturing capacity is increasing to meet demand, but lack of skilled installation crews may slow down growth and dampen confidence. Qualified and knowledgeable installers and general contractors face both steep learning curves and price pressure from unskilled or ill-equipped competitors. Building installation skills for manufactured timber elements is now a critically important part of the supply chain for wood. A skilled and accredited workforce will reduce risk of failure, lower costs, increase productivity, enhance build quality and build confidence in mass timber.

Peter Moonen · National Sustainability Manager · Canadian Wood Council
Peter studied marine biology, zoology, and forestry at the University of British Columbia and has used that science-based foundation as a technical communications specialist to advance a better understanding of wood products and the forest sector. He has more than 30 years experience dealing with regulatory, environmental, sustainability, and operational issues. He is National Sustainability Manager for the Canadian Wood Council (CWC), a technical and knowledge transfer organization, which provides free technical support to designers, contractors, building and fire officials, owners and regulators to build a strong wood culture in Canada through education, training and awareness. In this role, he is developing a training and accreditation programme for heavy, mass, and prefabricated wood component installation for trades and general contractors.

Sponsored by Seagate Mass Timber

Moderator:

Ariane Dienstag · Founder & CEO · Ariane Dienstag sas / Common sense
Ariane graduated as an architect from UP1-Paris, with a Legal diploma from the University of Panthéon-Assas, a DEA in Philosophy of Art and a Doctorate in History of Art from the University of Panthéon-Sorbonne, among others. Ariane started her professional career by founding, together with Diana Chieng, an association (A3) to export architecture and art abroad before joining the AFEX (Architectes Français à l’Export). She then joined Jean Nouvel’s ateliers from 1999 to 2013 as Director of Business Development. Ariane occupied a similar function with Jean-Paul Viguier et Associés the following five years. Since 2018, she has set up her own company to assist entities in the building trades and real estate as a consultant. She recently worked with Gustafson Porter+Bowman on the major renovation of the 54 ha of the Eiffel Tower Site and on a sustainable project in KSA for initiating a fundraiser for public spaces. As a CTBUH Leader/ General Secretary of the CTBUH French Chapter, she has set up and lectured at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture Versailles for Planning Regulations (Licenses and Masters) and trained candidates to the public selection for State Urban Planners (Architectes Urbanistes de l’Etat). Timber construction is part of her focus.

Presentations:

Added Appeal: 80 M Street Vertical Addition

As the first mass timber overbuild along the East Coast, 80 M Street demonstrates the ability of mass timber to take commercial buildings in dense, urban environments to new heights. Looking to increase the building height up to the allowable limit, the building owner, Columbia Property Trust, engaged DAVIS Construction, Hickok Cole Architects, and Arup to study overbuild solutions that would not impact the tenant spaces below, which were to remain fully operational during construction. By using mass timber, the design team was able to maximize the building height while minimizing additional weight on the existing structure.

The design solution for the addition featured exposed glulam and cross-laminated timber structure in the tenant areas. At a height over 85 feet, the mass timber addition achieved a 2-hour fire rating, which required custom designed and fire tested connections. Additional design challenges included large timber bays to match the existing column grid below and column connection details to accommodate variability in the existing concrete elevations. The project’s success has introduced a new product to the local commercial real estate market which is both a sustainable and efficient solution to increasing density.

Tom Corrado · Senior Associate · Hickok Cole
Tom has been part of Hickok Cole Architects since graduating from Clemson University in 2006 with a Master of Architecture. He has worked on a variety of projects within the office, ranging from large-scale commercial interiors for the Department of Justice, to build-to-suit projects such as the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Outside of project work, Thomas directs the office’s Design Committee, runs the fabrication lab, and curates the office’s design library. He is an associate member of the AIA and a member DCBIA DLD.

Why The Annex Works: Portland’s First Mass Timber Affordable Housing

Currently under construction in Portland, The Annex will be the first affordable housing project built with mass timber construction in Oregon. This presentation will highlight how we’re leveraging some of the unique advantages of mass timber, including: BIM model sharing with consulting engineers and the timber fabricator (Kalesnikoff); timetable and budget efficiencies enabled by shop production and milling of CLT floor panels; and biophilic design benefits of an exposed wood finish; that is all too rare in affordable housing apartments. The building stands as proof that mass timber can and should be utilized more frequently in the affordable housing sector. This is a co-presentation by Anna Mackay, co-developer of the project with Sister City and Catholic Charities of Oregon, and Ben Carr, Project Architect with All Hands Architecture. The two have worked on this project from its inception and look forward to sharing it with a wider audience as it opens to new tenants this spring. From the developer to the drywaller, everyone on Team Annex is empowered with the knowledge of our shared mission: To bring uplifting housing to Portland’s most vulnerable as quickly as possible.

Anna Mackay · Developer · Sister City
Anna Mackay has spent her career innovating and field-testing concepts of social impact in real estate. Her buildings achieve affordability and community buy-in through crowdinvesting, internally-subsidized financial models, and bold public art. Anna founded Sister City in 2020 with the goal of reevaluating standard development practices to emphasize a balance of equity – social, environmental, and financial. Anna holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from the University of Virginia and a Fine Woodworking Certificate from Yestermorrow Design/Build School. She has taught graduate level courses in design/build at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Parsons School of Design.

Ben Carr · Architect · All Hands Architecture
Ben Carr is a commercial Architect with built work on both coasts. Recently, he has been responsible for uniquely challenging projects including Tree Farm in SE Portland, an office building with 54 trees cantilevered from the facade. Ben founded All Hands Architecture in 2020, with the goal of creating coordinated, thoughtful buildings through true collaboration with stakeholders to deliver buildings we would all want to live in, work in, or walk by. He holds a Bachelors of Architecture from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Masters of Science in Architecture from Columbia University and is a Licensed Architect in Oregon and New York.

The Hybrid Timber Tower: Mass Timber for the Masses

Sustainably harvested mass timber can sequester significant amounts of carbon as part of the solution to the climate crisis (1.9 metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent emissions for each cubic meter of wood product, according to a 21-study review). Yet despite this benefit, mass timber remains niche. DIALOG has designed a 105-storey Hybrid Timber Tower (HTT) prototype that maximizes the amount of carbon-sequestering mass timber and demonstrates the potential for mass timber across a range of building types and scales. Life cycle analyses show floor systems can contribute nearly three-quarters of the environmental impact of a tall building’s structure, so our team of architects and engineers designed a patent-pending, composite Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS) capable of 12 meter (40 feet) clear floor spans for Class-A office commercial space (current spans are restricted to about 8 meters or 26 feet). Incorporating the HTFS into the tower prototype, we were able to reduce structural embodied carbon by 46% while using 36,649 cubic meters of mass timber – 14 times more than the current tallest wood structure. The HTT won the Architecture award in Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas for 2021.

Craig Applegath, AIA, LEED® AP BD+2BC · Partner · DIALOG
Craig Applegath is a Senior Architect at DIALOG and Founding Principal of the firm’s Toronto studio. He is a passionate designer who believes in the power of built form to meaningfully improve the well-being of communities and the environment they are part of. A noted advocate of density, sustainable building design, and urban regeneration, and a renowned expert in urban resilience, Applegath was a founding Board Member of Sustainable Buildings Canada and is currently Acting Chair of the Mass Timber Institute.

Sponsored by Hilti

Moderator:

Janelle Leafblad · Regional Director · WoodWorks
Janelle has been an active building technology consultant since 2002, primarily in the area of wood technology, investigation and design of building envelope components, and construction for both historic and contemporary structures. She earned her BS in Architectural Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering and her MS in Wood Science and Technology from the University of California at Berkeley. Janelle is a licensed professional engineer in California.

Presentations:

Are You Feeling Lucky? Experience and Evaluation of Moisture Protection Strategies for Mass Timber Floors and Roofs

Interest in mass timber, and awareness of its advantages, have exploded in recent years. But with any new construction technique comes new challenges. For mass timber, a particular concern is moisture protection during construction: there have been many examples of floor and roof panels being left exposed to snow or rain, resulting in significant increases in wood moisture content and the potential for slow and limited drying ability depending on the assembly. Significant wetting of mass timber during construction can lead to staining of finished surfaces, requiring sanding and refinishing, as well as expansion leading to damaged mechanical connections, fungal growth, and the possibility of structural damage. Fortunately, many solutions exist, but choosing between them can be daunting; the cost-benefit is often questioned on projects and becomes a risk management choice. To help provide some quantitative data on the pros and cons of different protection measures, laboratory and long-term field testing was conducted to evaluate unprotected and protected mass timber components exposed to wetting and drying cycles. This presentation will discuss the results, including short- and long-term observations of moisture damage and follow-up structural testing, to help inform risk management decisions about mass timber moisture protection.

Graham Finch · Principal, Senior Building Science Specialist · RDH Building Science
Graham Finch is a building science engineer who specializes in enclosure design, risk management, research, and investigation work for new and existing buildings. Graham also works with building product manufacturers and other clients on product research and development, and the creation of various industry guidelines and training initiatives. Graham is directly involved with the majority of RDH’s mass timber and high-rise wood building projects and instrumental in leading industry research, risk management, and façade development for these new wood buildings.

Current State of Mass Timber Durability Research

This presentation will present an overview of mass timber durability research that has been conducted either at FPL or with university collaborators since 2015, discuss findings, and highlight future research needs.

Grant Kirker · Research Forest Products Technologist · USDA–FS Forest Products Laboratory
Grant Kirker is a research forest products technologist in the wood durability and protection unit (RWU 4723) at the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wis. Kirker has been at FPL since 2010 and his primary research focus is fungal degradation of wood as well as wood protectants. Kirker holds a doctorate in Forest Resources from Mississippi State University Department of Forest Products (now Sustainable Biomaterials), and is an active contributor to the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA), International Research Group on Wood Protection (IRG-WP), and the American Society of Testing Materials (ASTM). Since 2015, Kirker has been involved in numerous projects evaluating durability of mass timber materials both at FPL and in collaboration with University partners.

Academic Wood Tower: High Performance, Prefabricated Envelope Solutions for Tall Timber

At 77m and 14 storeys tall the Academic Wood Tower (AWT) at the University of Toronto is at the forefront of design for tall timber construction, with corresponding advancements for envelope solutions. This presentation will share insights and lessons from the AWT specific to building enclosure complexities, such as moisture protection and combustibility risks. One clear challenge and opportunity with mass timber lies in its inherent speed of construction, and the need to enclose wood structures quickly and efficiently. Increased building performance relative to new local energy codes adds another dimension to project requirements. The design of the AWT also requires a multitude of envelope types, including fully glazed, fully opaque and everything in-between. Within the context of a highly choreographed construction processes, the final envelope design solution focuses on high performance, prefabricated façade panels. Aspects from traditional curtain wall and emergent opaque panel assemblées are incorporated into new hybrid versions capable of meeting new building codes. The AWT is currently engaged in a delegated design (design assist) phase, alongside a construction manager and various trade partners. Details and methods of construction are now being determined in the context of present construction realities, with a planned construction start in 2022.

Leland Dadson · Senior Architect, Mass Timber Specialist · MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects (MJMA)
Mass Timber Specialist and a Certified Passive House Designer at MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects (MJMA), Leland’s roles include acting as project architect for the Academic Wood Tower at the University of Toronto. He is passionate about sustainable practice and the beneficial uses of carbon-sequestering mass timber, and brings insight and knowledge on passive house principles, actively incorporating best-practices for the betterment of our built environment. His experiences have enabled him to conceive innovative design solutions and solve complex problems, delivering superior environments with a focus on occupant health, comfort and well-being.

The Timber “Super Window”

Energy efficiency is built on a solid foundation of passive strategies, combined with strategic load reductions, judicious use of active systems and energy recovery. This session will highlight how a timber curtain wall played an essential role in a combined passive and active systems approach to achieve a pEUI 28 kBtu/sf-yr in a 105,000sf higher education building. Collaborative research between the architects and engineers assessed radiant asymmetry based on the timber curtain wall performance, occupant use factors and multiple load reduction system types confirming the efficacy of the timber curtain wall to achieve floor to floor glazing and maintain human thermal comfort without the need for perimeter radiant heating, a carbon intensive system. Once the value of the timber ‘super window’ was defined, the team navigated cost uncertainty, unique procurement considerations, and approvals with the AHJ in a Type IIIB construction. The timber ‘super window’ has become a key design component meeting aspirational goals, aesthetic goals and performance goals, and this session will get under the hood to explain how it was done.

Jennifer Hardy · Senior Associate · Payette
Jennifer is a Senior Associate at Payette and 2020 AIA Young Architect Awardee who has fourteen years of experience leading large, complex international and domestic projects with an expertise in pushing innovation and performance boundaries. She is currently leading the Penn State College of Engineering West 2 project, which utilizes a hybrid cross laminated timber and steel structure and glulam timber curtain wall to reduce operational and embodied carbon and enhance broader design goals.

Sponsored by Nordic Structures

Moderator:

Tyler Schmetterer · Managing Partner · MOD X
Tyler Schmetterer is a sustainable prefabrication advocate and thought leader based in Switzerland and New York with 30+ years of commercial experience. Tyler is currently Managing Partner of MOD X—a global consulting and knowledge exchange network integrating academic, industry and government sectors in the prefabricated and volumetric modular offsite construction industry—and serves on multiple international advisory boards in the high-performance building, renewable energy and impact capital industries. In 2006, Tyler co-founded an advisory group and award-winning producer of sustainable prefabricated buildings focused on the design and manufacture of high-performance residential housing. To date, the venture has earned several historic United States environmental certifications and awards.

Presentations:

Multi-Layer/Product Single Source Solutions

Each project has different circumstances and each stakeholder wishes to have various involvements from their supplier partner. The presentation will focus on projects and the various possibilities arising from working with single source suppliers.

Helmut Spiehs · Managing Director · binderholz
Helmut is an industrial engineer with focus in timber construction. He has 25+ years experience within the mass timber industry and since 2006 has been the managing director for binderholz mass timber solutions.

Scalable Platform Towards a Scalable Carbon Neutral Housing Product Solution

The presentation will share our approach and lessons learned to simultaneous address three major problems facing our industry today:

1. Housing affordability, as it affects all of us.
2. Climate change: the construction industry is responsible for over 39% of green-house gas emissions.
3. The need for better urban housing and more resilient communities.

We face these challenges in a highly fragmented service-based industry with a systemic lack of innovation that still builds bespoke buildings in non-scalable ways with seemingly never-ending cost escalation, while getting nowhere near the targets of the Paris climate agreement in a North American housing market that is $308B/annually.

Oliver will present the advantages of and considerations for a fully integrated technology platform that combines advanced parametric software technology, high-rise modular mass timber buildings systems, with robotically assisted manufacturing technology, a first in North America. The objective is to build faster with better quality and consistently carbon neutral.

Oliver Lang · CEO · Intelligent City
Oliver Lang is the CEO and Co-Founder of Intelligent City, an urban housing technology company that takes a product and platform based approach, advancing transformative innovation through the convergence of software engineering, high rise and Passive House compliant mass timber-building systems scalable manufacturing automation technologies. Founded in 2008, Intelligent City is creating buildings on a path to consistent carbion neutrality, with better livability, are more affordable and faster to build. The company is a winner of Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada and won the Solar Impulse Foundation Efficiency Label. Oliver is also the Principal and Co-founder of LWPAC, a Governor General’s Medal winning architecture practice based in Vancouver since 1999.

A Paradigm Shift In Approach Is The Key To Modular Housing Development

Modular housing development requires a paradigm shift in the business approach to ground up development. From initial project conception through completion, the business systems, relationships and forms of contracts are different. This shift presents an opportunity for delivering higher quality housing at a predictable and more cost-effective basis.

Justin Stewart · CEO · Synergy Modular
Justin’s extensive knowledge and expertise of the construction trades come from both growing up in the family business and the depth of experience gained over the last 25 years in the industry. He has extensive experience managing and supervising everything from podium mixed-use and all other types of multi-unit projects, to general commercial buildings and healthcare projects. Today Justin leads Synergy Inc. as CEO with a commitment to operational excellence and developing innovative solutions to industry problems. Under Justin’s direction, the company launched Synergy Modular, Inc. to solve the cost and trade shortage issue prevalent industry wide. By partnering with offsite suppliers to provide full modular construction services, they are able to offer a single source contract for turn-key buildings, with a fixed cost, in 30-50% less time. Synergy now has the ability to deliver projects of all types for our select developer partners, using the best technology available for the unique needs of each, to ensure our client’s success.