In today’s era of sustainability and green construction, wood has reemerged as a pivotal material for fostering environmental progress, especially through the use of engineered products. Incoplan is pretty helpful in optimising the wood drying in a more effective way.
Engineered products that are specifically focused:
- Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT)
- Glue Laminated Timber (Glulam)
- Oriented Strand Board (OSB)
- Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL)
Wood drying is vital for such materials, and we will see how to optimise this process. But first, let’s see what is engineered wood! These engineered wood products are generally made by bonding together, in different ways, several layers of dimensioned wood (typically softwood) with strong, moisture-resistant adhesives. Generally, these layers, or laminations, allow the material to form large structural components for use in construction.
What are the main characteristics of Engineered Wood?
- Strength and Stability: this product is stronger than traditional timber due to the lamination process, distributing loads more evenly and reducing weak points.
- Versatility: It can be manufactured in various shapes and sizes, including curved forms, making it ideal for architectural designs.
Durability: Resistant to warping, cracking, and twisting, particularly when treated for outdoor use. - Sustainability: Made from renewable wood resources and is more environmentally friendly than steel or concrete.
- Aesthetic Appeal: Provides a natural, warm appearance, often used in exposed structures like beams in buildings.
These products are commonly used in large-span structures, bridges, and modern architectural projects where both strength and aesthetics are essential.
Rethinking wood for modern construction
Engineered wood stands out as a revolutionary material because it overcomes the natural limitations of solid wood, such as irregular grain patterns and internal stresses. By bonding multiple layers of wood with grains oriented in opposing directions, glulam achieves superior uniformity and strength compared to traditional wood.
While technological innovations have been instrumental in establishing engineered wood as a dependable structural material, a critical yet often understated factor is the drying process. Accurate wood drying techniques are essential to ensuring the product’s structural integrity, durability, and sustainability.
Drying process for engineered wood
As in every woodworking process that requires a high degree of precision, drying plays a crucial role. All the characteristics mentioned above would not be possible without careful management of humidity levels over time. Specific drying chambers and customised drying cycles need to be designed to guarantee the highest performance.
They typically provide an in-depth consultancy from the beginning, and this is the prime added value that incoplan offers when dealing with such specialised products.
Source: Incoplan
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