Introduction
In Timber Engineering Notebook No. 8, the engineering principles of open frame forms of construction, including post and beam and rigid frame construction, were presented. The most common timber material used – glued laminated timber (glulam), was introduced.
This Timber Engineering Notebook introduces the construction and connection details appropriate to open frame construction and provides a worked example for a dowelled glulam portal haunch connection.
The determination of individual fastener capacities for nails, screws and bolts is not covered here, and reference should be made to the 'References and further reading' section for further guidance on the structural design of these components. However, to illustrate the design of a dowelled portal haunch, the derivation of characteristic dowel capacities loaded in double shear is presented in the 'Structural notes' section.
For information regarding the design of connections for resistance to fire, reference should be made to Timber Engineering Notebook No. 7.