SLB COLUMN —Continued
SLB COLUMN —Continued from page 2 Think Wood featured a project profile of Amazon’s HQ2, which includes an event center built with cross-laminated timber and glulam to create a warm, appealing space for employees that was also quicker to construct. Photo credit: Magda Biernat A.W. Stiles Contractors, Inc. A.W. Stiles provides a full line of Modern Day Equipment serving both Softwood and Hardwood markets. New Installations and Complete Rebuilds on Existing Equipment: High Temp Track Kilns, Hardwood Package Kilns, Predryers, Walnut Steamers (Right) Charles Ingram Lumber in Effingham, SC. A.W. Stiles Contractors fabricated and installed a patent pending dual path kiln consisting of a 60’ center chamber and 40’ extension chambers. The engineering firm over the project was Tinsley Consulting Group of Hot Springs, AR. Complete Rebuilds Including: • Roof Replacements/Complete Reskins • Heating Coils and Complete Steam Systems • Energy Efficient Upgrades - controls, insulation additions, wind flow, heating capacity, door seals, etc. (Left) T. R. Miller Mill Co. in Brewton, AL. A.W. Stiles Contractors fabricated and installed two steam-heated patented dual path kilns each kiln consisting of 94’ center chambers and 62’ extension chambers. The engineering firm over the project was Tinsley Consulting Group of Hot Springs, AR. • Doors and Carriers • Structural Repairs • Protective Coatings • Complete line of replacement parts Lee Stiles Cell: (931) 409-0144 Email: lee@awscontractorsinc.com Glenn Thompson Cell: (615) 372-4261 Email: glenn@awscontractorsinc.com Casey Miller Cell: (931) 607-7451 Email: casey@awscontractorsinc.com Office: (931) 668-8768 • Fax: (931) 668-7327 286 Bass Lane, McMinnville, TN 37110 awscontractorsinc.com sionals on wood topics ranging from sustainable forestry to building codes, as well as expanding wood design instruction in postsecondary architecture and engineering programs. For example, the SLB funded three faculty workshops in 2023, training 52 faculty on how to integrate education about wood systems into their own academic programs. These investments help to inspire the next generation of design professionals to build with wood. The American Wood Council is the industry’s program for the development of codes, standards and regulations, design tools, and guidelines for wood construction. By identifying obstacles to wood specification and opportunities where new design standards would expand the market, the AWC can provide research and expertise to ensure codes and standards remain favorable to wood. The AWC has helped to integrate tall mass timber code provisions into building codes in 28 states including, most recently, Ohio, where the AWC was a regular participant in the Ohio Building Codes Committee meetings supporting the development of the approved code package. WoodWorks supports and influences wood projects by working directly with design and construction teams, with the goal of facilitating a shift toward wood within firms. The program provides free one-on-one project assistance on commercial and multifamily wood building design, with WoodWorks design professionals serving as trusted assets to minimize the learning curve on unfamiliar designs or overcome hurdles with local building authorities. WoodWorks also hosts events/educational events that help build relationships with design professionals. For example, WoodWorks hosted or spoke at 129 events in 2023 featuring innovative light-frame topics that attracted a total of 13,143 attendees, propelling the program to a total of nearly 80,000 education hours. Think Wood is a marketing and communications program that builds interest and intent to specify wood in those audiences, and it has evolved in recent years to become a sought-after educational resource for the design and construction industry. Design and construction are fields where innovation involves “early bird” risk, so professionals need reassuring examples of successful wood projects that inform and demystify building with wood. For example, retail giant Amazon’s new headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, was covered by major media outlets like Bloomberg, Fortune, and the Washington Post—but those articles overlooked the project’s use of wood. Think Wood filled the gap to show how the architect used cross-laminated timber and glulam to create a warm, appealing space for employees that was also quicker to construct. What does it take to change a market? Coordination between these programs and with other industry partners can move markets to embrace wood. In New York City, for example, the SLB is supporting an accelerator program called the NYC Mass Timber Studio that will help increase the use of wood products in the city with the goal of reducing the embodied carbon in new construction. The project is a collaboration with the New York Continued on page 34 Page 32 Softwood Forest Products Buyer • March/April 2024
