THE IMPORTANCE OF THE EVOLUTION OF TIMBER CONSTRUCTION FOR ROTHOBLAAS
Rothoblaas is an Italian multinational company based in the heart of the Alps and for over 30 years we have been the reference point for designers and carpenters all over the world.
This has been achieved through the continuous improvement of our products, searching to provide the best for our customers including solutions for the fastening of timber, specialist soundproofing, durability, vapour control and airtightness.
As a company committed to the development of timber construction, we want to find new innovative solutions to help the industry grow by simplifying construction and the improvement of building performance. Rothoblaas aim to lead the entire construction industry to focus ever more on Mass Timber technology. We believe that the more that mass timber technology is adopted in place of traditional concrete and steel systems, the more our world will improve.
TIMBER AS A CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL
As one of the first materials used by humankind, timber has influenced the development and evolution of our built environment. Over the centuries, carpenters and master craftsmen have developed ever more innovative, complex, and refined working techniques to construct with wood.
In the last two centuries, industrial, scientific, and technological developments have led to the rise and widespread use of structural materials like steel and reinforced concrete. These materials almost supplanted timber being used in construction, as they solved problems that timber technology was not ready to answer.
In the last few decades, the development of new timber technologies has given renewed momentum to the timber industry. Innovations include:
- Developments within the field of chemicals; this has created cost-effective, reliable, and environmentally friendly adhesives. This technology has led to the creation of new innovative timber-based materials such as glulam, OSB, LVL, and CLT with previously unimaginable performance characteristics.
- Innovations in the fields of automated mechanical, electronic and industrial production; this has allowed for the introduction of new processes for the automatic cutting of timber-based elements with unprecedented precision, accuracy, and complexity.
- Scientific and technological research; has made it possible to fully understand the mechanical behaviour of timber as a material, enabling engineers and designers to take full advantage of its incredible potential.
- Responsible and planned forestry methods; have proven how the raw material for timber construction can be provided sustainably. This can all be achieved by following strict environmental, social, and economic standards.
A NEW SENSITIVITY TOWARDS THE ENVIRONMENT
In recent years, a new sensitivity towards environmental issues has led to the resurgence of timber as a construction material. Wood is used by designers and specifiers to reduce the environmental impact of construction projects and the built environment. Timber has a very low carbon footprint, and when it is specified and used correctly it stores more carbon dioxide than is emitted from its collection, processing, transport, and the final assembly of a timber structure.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRODUCTS FOR TIMBER CONNECTION
At Rothoblaas we firmly believe in timber building technology and during the last thirty years, we have developed innovative, simple, and effective solutions in service of this sector. We believe that high-tech, and high-performance, timber design and material use is now a viable alternative to most common steel and reinforced concrete construction methods. Moving forwards, wooden structures are no longer limited by the available technological solutions and are ready to replace these established building methods.
Construction is always evolving; this creates the need and the desire at Rothoblaas to never stop looking for new and innovative solutions.
Michele Dal Ri is the Target Manager of the timber construction product line at Rothoblaas, when describing the range says. “We have many new ground-breaking products which significantly improve timber construction. We describe them as ground-breaking because there aren’t any other comparable products on the market right now.” He continues, “For example, we have developed the ‘SLOT’ a connector for structural CLT panels, which allows connections with an extremely high level of rigidity and transfers extraordinarily high levels of shear stress between panels. We have also created the ‘LOCK’ a new concealed connector made of aluminium for connections between main and secondary beams, which allows very for simple assembly.”
Other recent innovations from Rothoblaas include the ‘SPIDER’ and ‘SHARP METAL’. The ‘SPIDER’ was developed with the Timber Engineering Department at the University of Innsbruck under the direction of Roland Maderebner. The ‘SPIDER’ is a metal connector for realising column-to-floor multistorey timber buildings using CLT creating the possibility to achieve heights and spans previously unimaginable.
‘SHARP METAL’ consists of hooked plates made from stainless steel with numerous small hooks across the entire surface. Michele Dal Ri explains it in more detail, “Connections using ‘SHARP METAL’ are created when the hooks enter the wood, the interlocking of the plates with the wood results in extraordinary strength and rigidity. The quality and adhesion of this connection is comparable to a bonding agent”.
Rothoblaas brings our identity and expertise to the global market, growing with our customers, suppliers, and partners. We share our specialist know-how through the development of effective, practical, and efficient solutions. Rothoblaas continuously strives to ensure that our evolution and the development of the sectors which we operate in is mutually beneficial. Our reputation as pioneers is based on, our ability to anticipate industry needs, being easily accessible to our customers (wherever they are in the world) and optimising their time and resources. We have no intention of ever losing this tradition.
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