Oregon Develops Pioneering Standards for Wood High-Rises
Emily Pollock posted on August 24, 2018 |
Two years ago, architect Alison Brooks exhibited her Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) structure “The Smile” at the London Design festival. Since then, the interest in using CLT for larger buildings has grown. (Image courtesy of Alison Brooks.)
Earlier this week, the Oregon Building Codes Division announced a statement of alternate method (SAM) that makes Oregon the first state to allow for construction of wooden high-rises without special consideration. Previously, Portland, Ore., was the first American city to issue a permit for an all-wood high-rise, Project’s 12-story-tall Framework.
In 2015, the International Code Council’s (ICC) Board of Directors created an ad hoc committee to explore the possible benefits of tall wood buildings. The SAM is based on two years of the committee’s work, developed to work with the 2014 Oregon Structural Specialty Code (OSSC). The committee said it’s meant to show that “the state building code is not a barrier to innovation or any method, technique or material of construction that is supported by scientific findings.”
Under the SAM, there are three new types of wooden building under the pre-existing category of “Type IV heavy timber construction.” Type IV A structures can be built as tall as 18 stories/270 feet and must encapsulate any exposed timber surfaces and meet a three-hour fire-resistance rating…