The MSR Lumber Producer Council’s new Design Values Comparison Tool makes it possible for component manufacturers and other lumber buyers to easily build a comparison table based on species, size, and grade that includes design values for both visually graded and machine-graded dimensional lumber.
“The market was lacking a concise tool that targeted the lumber species most often used in component manufacturing,” explains MSRLPC President George Hamilton, “so our Board agreed it was a worthwhile investment to make on behalf of our membership.”
The tool narrows the species available to SPF, SPF-S, SYP, DFL, DFL-N, DF-S, HF, and HF-N, while specifically highlighting values for machine-graded materials versus visually graded materials.
“Lumber buyers don’t often have access to truss design software to easily determine the allowable substitutions that may inform their purchasing decisions in a meaningful way,” says Hamilton. “This tool helps with that and provides valuable information about species substitution, which is becoming more common in today’s market. It’s a one-stop shop.”
If you’re looking to become a more nimble lumber buyer or are exploring the value of design optimization with machine-graded lumber, spend a few minutes with this new tool at https://www.msrlumber.org/design-values/. Questions and feedback can be directed to info@msrlumber.org.