Once again, Virginia Tech will be offering its popular two-day course on topics related to wood construction. This year’s course, to be held on April 26–27, will focus on practical code-conforming design of wood structures based on provisions of the 2018 National Design Specification® (NDS®) for Wood Construction, NDS Supplement, IRC, and IBC.
Overview of Course Content
“Design of Wood Structures—an Introductory Course” will begin with a review of lumber grading methods and stamps, moisture content, sizes, and allowable stresses of species of dimension lumber and timber involved in the structural design process. As an introduction to the design process, building code loads and the rationale for “load combinations” in the code will be discussed and several design examples using load combinations will be presented.
Course participants will learn the “design process” by working through the structural design of simple framing elements showing what adjustment factors apply to the tabulated allowable design properties of lumber that apply to a design case. The NDS adjustments for connection design will be reviewed including the impact of moisture content at the time of fabrication and in-service. Common nail connection designs will be demonstrated, and course participants will be given interesting bolt connection details to design with other participants.
Participants will be introduced to the 2018 Wood Frame Construction Manual (WFCM) that contains “look-up tables” for design of residential walls, floors, and roofs using ASCE 7–16 Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures load requirements. After a cursory review of both “Engineered Design” and “Prescriptive Design” provisions in the WFCM, a wall stud design will be demonstrated using the look-up tables in the WFCM. (Note, this column discussed the 2015 edition of WFCM in the January 2018 issue: WFCM—a Valuable Structural Design Guide.)
The second day will include a presentation and discussion of the AWC/ICC Code Conforming Wood Design which addresses design of wood structures for fire resistance and height and area allowances for different types of wood construction. This unit has been well received by building design practitioners in previous courses as the instructor will walk the participants through IBC fire resistance requirements based on height, area allowances, and types of construction. Finally, a summary of advances in Tall Mass Timber Structures that are now permitted up to 18-stories by the IBC will be provided.
Learning and Networking
While not listed in the Course Syllabus and Schedule, the most valuable benefit of participating in this course might stem from what you learn from the person sitting next to you or from a comment made by a participant during the open discussions (that are encouraged during each unit of the course). The value of a simple comment related to your work, followed up by group discussion, can be priceless.
For me, my best ideas for authoring practical articles and identifying research needs come from participants. Most course participants are typically from the East and Southeast parts of the U.S., related professions, and organizations. For example, 88 participants attended our May 2022 course. The following is a partial list of professions or industry segments represented:
- Building Officials/Inspectors/Permit Technicians
- Design Build Engineers
- EWP Suppliers
- Fastener Suppliers
- Homebuilder and Designers
- Lumber Suppliers
- Post-Frame Building Supplier/Engineers
- Residential Designers
- Restoration Engineers
- Structural Engineers
- Truss Designers
- Truss Manufacturers
- Truss Plate Suppliers/Engineers
Continuing Education Credit
Participants will receive a certificate from Virginia Tech for 1.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) equivalent to 15 hours of instruction. The registration fee includes the course notebook, lunch on both days, refreshment breaks, and the following publications: 2018 National Design Specification® (NDS®) for Wood Construction with Commentary and the NDS Supplement—Design Values for Wood Construction.
Due to classroom space, “early registration” (before March 1st) is recommended since other programs have been oversubscribed. Participant registration during the “early registration” period has always been available. For more information and to register, visit the Design of Wood Structures—an Introductory Course page online.
Frank Woeste, P.E., is Professor Emeritus, Virginia Tech and a wood construction consultant. Frank, along with his colleagues, has developed and presented continuing education programs for more than 30 years. He is a member of the ANSI/TPI 1 Project Committee for revision of the truss design standard and the AWC Wood Standards Design Committee, and serves as the ALSC Consumer Representative (Alternate). Comments are welcome and can be sent to fwoeste@vt.edu.