New DLT Production Facility
New DLT Production Facility
Building Our Legacy
With the 20th Anniversary of starting International Timberframes, it seems only right that this year will see the start of construction of our new head office, timberframe shop and Dowel Laminated Timber (DLT) production facility. Located here in Golden, BC the new facility will be the culmination of several years of planning, collaborating with wonderful architectural partners and absolute determination to continually be as sustainable as possible.
Vision
What needed to change
Our existing office and shop has worked perfectly for us for 20 years. However there are significant drawbacks from size and locations which add unnecessary challenges and complications to our operation.
As the mass timber industry continues to grow in Canada one drawback has been lack of supply due to limited production capacity. We are strong supporters of local value added wood products and have always advocated for local production of DLT.
We can showcase timberframe and DLT products we make in our current shop but it would be much better to have a facility made from the products we manufacture. The opportunity to build a hybrid timberframe and DLT facility was irresistible.
Core sustainable principles
It’s always been important to me to build with natural solid wood and operate in as sustainable a manner as possible. It remains and will always be part of our mission as a company. It was one of the reasons we chose to pioneer DLT as a mass timber product.
We design, manufacture and install Wood100 ®DLT - 100% solid wood panels for floor, ceiling and walls. With no glue and no nails it offers superior benefits for health, energy efficiency and sustainability.
Overview of the New DLT Production Facility
The facility will comprise workshop, planer area and team offices/support areas. Targeting net-zero carbon and implementing a “whole wood” approach, 80% of the construction materials will be wood based.
All roof and wall panels will be prefabricated using our Wood100® DLT product. Both stacked and crossed Wood100® DLT panels of various dimensions and thickness will make up the structure. The workshop is spanned by composite DLT/steel trusses on timber columns with sub-structure to support a gantry crane. All roof and wall insulation will be Pavatex wood fibre boards, a 100% wood insulation product. We intend to clad the building with a 100% raw Douglas Fir bark pellet residue.
The prefabricated, wood-based low rise industrial building project is a resilient, low carbon, locally harvested cradle-to-cradle building that can replace steel and tilt up concrete construction.
Key Principles in the Project
Whole Wood Approach
This project uses over 80% forest and wood products, harvested within the Columbia Valley, reducing up-front embodied carbon and transportation related carbon emissions. The whole wood approach maximizes the value of wood, endeavoring to utilize 100% of a tree's wood and bark fibre.
> Commodity lumber is milled for structural DLT panels.
> Waste wood fibre is captured and processed into wood fibre insulation.
> Bark residue is converted into composite cladding panels.
Demonstration Living Lab
The new DLT production facility will have elements as follows:
- Pre-fabricated DLT roof and wall assemblies
- A hybrid long-span 20 m DLT/steel truss
- Primary wood column structure
- Wood insulation
- Bark cladding prototype
As a demonstration project, research partnerships have been established with UBC, UNBC, and FII to test the innovative wood components, minimizing material use and maximizing efficiency of the structure, cladding and assemblies.
DLT Prefabrication
Our facility will prefabricate DLT wall, roof and hybrid truss panels. The 2x4 walls are designed to facilitate tilt-up construction in a vertical or horizontal orientation. The pre-fab wall panels will include cladding, insulation, air barrier and DLT panel.
Cradle to Cradle
Designed for a long life span, the DLT production facility can be expanded or deconstructed and reused:
- The building is sited to allow expansion to the south and to the west to accommodate growth;
- Additionally the prefabricated wall panels, composite trusses, DLT roof panels can be deconstructed and re-assembled or reused.
Sustainable Development
A passive approach
The compact form is inspired by local agrarian vernacular buildings. The building orientation is aligned with the solar axis to maximize passive systems. The building envelope is highly insulated and air tight, with minimal penetrations and thermal bridging. Fenestration is engineered to optimize solar thermal gain and natural lighting. Openings have been located to enhance passive summer cooling and protect against severe winter winds.
Water and Fire
Located on a site within a wildland-urban interface fire risk region, the building structure and envelope have been designed with increased protection against wild-fires. The heavy timber in DLT panels have an embedded fire resistance with slow burn rate. Bark cladding provides increased ignition resistance in accordance with recommendations from the NRC National Guide for WUI Fires.
Storm water is managed through a large bioswale, collecting, filtering and naturally percolating rain water into our pasture area.
Net Zero Carbon
Operational carbon is minimized with a low carbon geo-exchange energy system combined with in-slab radiant floor heating, heat recovery ventilation, and photovoltaic power. Photo-voltaic panels will provide 20% of the total energy use, offsetting BC Hydro’s GHG emitting grid energy. A 12-15 °C set point temperature during winter months will reduce thermal energy demand, and natural ventilation coupled with ceiling fans eliminates the need for summer cooling.
Embodied carbon is dramatically reduced through the whole wood approach. High GHGI concrete and steel components are offset with the use of locally available, carbon sequestering wood fibre through the building structure and envelope.
Any mass timber questions?
We’ve been producing timberframes in BC for 20 years and as our DLT production grows we are so excited to take our new DLT production facility from plan to reality. We will continue to pioneer the use of DLT and timberframe in hybrid wood buildings.
If you’ve any questions about our new shop or mass timber, timberframe and DLT drop us a line.
Author: Sigi Liebmann