The University of Washington’s Foster School of Business is adding a mass timber building to its campus. Founders Hall is made of glulam columns and beams that support five-ply cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels.Continue Reading
How to Accommodate Misplaced Shearwall Anchorage
For several years, the Simpson Strong-Tie Strong-Wall® research and development team has kicked around the idea of developing an “adapter” that would allow for field substitutions or accommodate misplaced Strong-Wall anchorage.
How to Connect Mass Timber Panels with Steel Instead of Plywood
Simpson Strong-Tie has developed a faster, easier and more economical way to connect CLT and other types of panels on mass timber projects. Introducing the LDSS light diaphragm spline solution, featuring a steel spline strap that replaces traditional plywood splines.
Inventing the Edge-Tie System
Last fall we hosted a two-part webinar series on the latest innovations in designing cladding connections for structural buildings. The first webinar, covered some of the biggest challenges that fabricators, engineers, and contractors in the structural steel industry face when designing façade attachments to a building structure. We discussed new design methods and solutions, such as bolted connections that do not require any field-welding to help enclose buildings quickly and reduce overall project schedules and costs.
Take a Tour of Our McKinney R&D Lab
Did you know that Simpson Strong-Tie has a research and development lab in our McKinney, Texas, branch? In the following article, Francisco, the McKinney branch lab manager, talks about the history of this lab and what we do there.
Spotlighting Our Yield-Link® Moment Connection: Three Project Cases
Our Yield-Link connection is precision-made to meet the tough demands and increased loads of structural steel construction. From building owners to engineers, to contractors and fabricators, the Yield-Link’s state-of-the-art design saves everyone time and money — while providing a connection that keeps structural steel buildings strong and safe.
Introducing a Tested Connector (WBAC) to Support Wood Backing in Cold-Formed Steel Walls
Engineers spend much of their career designing and detailing main structural members which are exposed to significant structural loads. An experienced engineer will often master this type of design and excel at detailing an efficient building system. However, these same savvy engineers are sometimes left scratching their heads when tasked with providing a clean and simple design for attaching components such as cabinets, shelves or handrails to interior finish. Simpson Strong-Tie’s versatile new WBAC Wood Backing Steel Connector provides the engineer with a fully tested design solution that efficiently and easily attaches wood backing members for heavy wall hangings.
FRP Witness Panel Preparation and Testing – Lessons Learned and Best Practices
As a Composite Strengthening Systems™ Field Engineer at Simpson Strong-Tie, I’ve supported many composite strengthening projects from design through construction and had hands-on experience troubleshooting issues with FRP witness panels. Through these experiences, I’ve learned a few lessons and developed some best practices worth sharing with anyone in the engineering and construction communities who may encounter similar issues.
My Experience as an Engineering Intern from Gallatin, Tennessee
This summer we welcomed engineering student Sam Lewis to intern at our Gallatin, Tennessee branch. He discusses his hands-on opportunity to test our fasteners, learn more about our company culture and people.
Hurricane Andrew — a 30-Year-Old Learning Experience
Last week marked the 30th anniversary of the Florida landfall of Hurricane Andrew, one of the most damaging, and influential, hurricanes ever to hit the United States. Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida with Category 5 winds early on the morning of August 24, 1992. Andrew caused damages of $25 billion in Florida, and another billion dollars’ worth when it struck Louisiana as a Category 3 hurricane two days later. This image, from NASA Earth Observatory, shows Andrew on August 23, 24, and 25.