recycled, sustainable timber from the mountain west

mon, 18 jun 2012 12:30:12 +0000

beetle kill pine is abundant in the mountain west. for example, colorado state university reports that two million acres of national forest in colorado were subjected to pine bark beetle in 2008, doubling the number just two years earlier and equating to 44 percent of colorado’s national forests. this wood can be used for fuel, either directly as chips and ground material or converted to pellets for stoves and boilers that release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. however, using the wood for energy is the lowest value application and won’t cover the cost of removal and transportation. it is more desirable to use the trees for higher value products such as construction for commercial structures, carbon dioxide storage and the application of residual energy.

interlocking cross laminated timber (iclt) is a prefabricated, cross-laminated solid wood wall and roof panel. similar to cross-laminated timber (clt) developed in europe, iclt is fabricated from two to seven layers of alternating 3” x 6” to 3” x 8” pine stock milled from waste wood. unlike other solid wood panel systems, however, iclt utilizes no fasteners and no adhesives, which reduces overall capital cost for either stainless fastener purchase and install or press purchase and set-up associated with glue lamination. conversely, standard mills and timber fabricators looking to diversify their product offering may produce iclt with existing infrastructure and equipment.

iclt is currently in the development, testing and code acceptance research phase in preparation for market acceptance in the next three to five years.

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why prefab?

fri, 26 mar 2010 16:30:00 +0000

i’m often asked – why prefab? answered simply – its not only a very flexible and economical way to build a house, but also intrinsically environmentally friendly. before additional items are integrated into the construction, there are so many “green” aspects of building prefab using such methods as – modular, panelized, sips, and steel frame. cut-offs of wood are sorted and reused and some materials such as metals and dry walls are often returned to manufacturers to be recycled. the materials are also protected from the elements, so they have less chance of becoming mildewed and twisting and turning later on. often workers travel shorter distances to get to work, using much less fuel than workers traveling to a variety of job sites – many far from home.

consider the possibility of having the parts of your car dropped off in your driveway and having a local contractor put them together. i think you’d agree this is a recipe for disaster. the same thinking should be used for homes. not only are factories controlled conditions, but employ professionals who build multiple houses each day under close supervision.

and the really exciting news is that these prefab houses are beautiful and can be built in almost any style and fit in with the local surroundings.

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recycled, sustainable timber from the mountain west

why prefab?