After years of building taller with steel beams and concrete, a new concept is starting to catch on: Mass timber construction. Up until recently, typical wood-built structures would feature light-frame wood construction. In other words, your usual stick-built home.
These days, mass timber construction is becoming more relevant. Ready to see what’s behind this new trend? Below you can learn all about it—and even about tools and fasteners you can use with mass timber construction, like BECK’s LIGNOLOC® system.
It’s all about sustainability and eco-friendliness. Today’s consumers and developers are more environmentally conscious than ever before. They want to include products with lower carbon footprints, and products that pump less pollution into the environment during production. Mass timber construction is catching on as the “green” alternative since it relies entirely on engineered products. Concrete, on the other hand, relies on cement mines, and steel production that can cause a lot of pollution.
It’s a whole lot more than plain dimensional lumber. Mass timber construction relies on engineered products like specially designed beams or cross-laminated panels. Builders are starting to use it because whereas traditional stick-built structures have always been limited in size, mass timber construction can be built much taller.
Some of the more common mass timber products include:
There are a variety of advantages to consider:
And what are the disadvantages? Here are a few:
If you’re looking for tool and fastener systems that are ideal for mass timber construction, the BECK LIGNOLOC® System is what you want. It’s a line that features nail guns specially designed to drive the LIGNOLOC® collated wooden fasteners. These fasteners are made from Central European beech wood from sustainable FSC forestry that can be driven into wood and wood-based materials without pre-drilling. It’s as easy to use as metal nails and nail guns, and they’re made to form an inseparable bond with timber.