The recent approval of the Southern Pine Inspection Bureau’s (SPIB) new design values for visually graded Southern Pine lumber by the American Lumber Standard Committee (ALSC) Board of Review has generated more questions among producers and customer groups.
The Southern Forest Products Association (SFPA) facilitated a task group of industry leaders representing key customer groups to develop answers to the most commonly asked questions regarding new design values and their implementation. This new collection of questions and answers is now available at www.southernpine.com.
SPIB issued Supplement No.9 to the 2002 Standard Grading Rules for Southern Pine Lumber providing new design values effective June 1, 2012.
The only design values that will change on June 1 apply to visually graded Southern Pine and Mixed Southern Pine sized 2 to 4-in-wide and 2 to 4-in-thick (2x2s through 4x4s) in No.2 and lower grades (No.2, No.3, Stud, Construction, Standard and Utility).
What about dense and nondense lumber? What about prime lumber grades? What happens between now and June 1?
These are among the new questions answered in SFPA’s updated web pages. A helpful table is included listing the new design values for Southern Pine and Mixed Southern Pine, effective June 1, 2012.
Answers address transition issues, how to obtain similar load-carrying capabilities, and why only some grades and sizes are affected at this time. More than two-dozen questions are answered in this updated collection, including a supplemental set of questions with answers providing important background information on this issue.
“The effective date of June 1 allows for an orderly transition to the new design values,” says Cathy Kaake, SFPA’s senior director of engineered and framing markets. “These answers address the most common questions raised since the ALSC’s decision earlier this month,” she adds.
The Southern Forest Products Association (SFPA) continues to facilitate the dialog about new design values and their implementation. Between now and June 1, SFPA will provide more information as it becomes available; check www.southernpine.com frequently for updates. BD+C
Related Stories
Construction Costs | Oct 16, 2024
Construction Crane Index: Most major markets’ crane counts increase or hold steady in third quarter
Rider Levett Bucknall’s (RLB’s) latest Crane Index and Quarterly Cost Report shows continued decreasing cost inflation and crane counts increasing or holding steady in 10 of the 14 major markets it surveyed. The national average increase in construction costs was 1.07%, the lowest it’s been in the last three years.
AEC Tech | Oct 16, 2024
How AI can augment the design visualization process
Blog author Tim Beecken, AIA, uses the design of an airport as a case-study for AI’s potential in design visualizations.
University Buildings | Oct 15, 2024
Recreation and wellness are bedfellows in new campus student centers
Student demands for amenities and services that address their emotional and mental wellbeing are impacting new development on college campuses that has led to recreation centers with wellness portfolios.
Higher Education | Oct 14, 2024
Higher education design for the first-gen college student
In this Design Collaborative blog, Yogen Solanki, Assoc. AIA, shares how architecture and design can help higher education institutions address some of the challenges faced by first-generation students.
Performing Arts Centers | Oct 10, 2024
Studio Gang's performing arts center for Hudson Valley Shakespeare breaks ground
A new permanent home for Hudson Valley Shakespeare, a professional non-profit theater company, recently broke ground in Garrison, N.Y. The Samuel H. Scripps Theater Center includes a 14,850 sf performance venue that will serve as a permanent home for the theater company known for its sweeping open-air productions of classics and new works.
Sustainable Design and Construction | Oct 10, 2024
Northglenn, a Denver suburb, opens a net zero, all-electric city hall with a mass timber structure
Northglenn, Colo., a Denver suburb, has opened the new Northglenn City Hall—a net zero, fully electric building with a mass timber structure. The 32,600-sf, $33.7 million building houses 60 city staffers. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, Northglenn City Hall is set to become the first municipal building in Colorado, and one of the first in the country, to achieve the Core certification: a green building rating system overseen by the International Living Future Institute.
3D Printing | Oct 9, 2024
3D-printed construction milestones take shape in Tennessee and Texas
Two notable 3D-printed projects mark milestones in the new construction technique of “printing” structures with specialized concrete. In Athens, Tennessee, Walmart hired Alquist 3D to build a 20-foot-high store expansion, one of the largest freestanding 3D-printed commercial concrete structures in the U.S. In Marfa, Texas, the world’s first 3D-printed hotel is under construction at an existing hotel and campground site.
University Buildings | Oct 9, 2024
Des Moines University Medicine and Health Sciences opens a new 88-acre campus
Des Moines University Medicine and Health Sciences has opened a new campus spanning 88 acres, over three times larger than its previous location. Designed by RDG Planning & Design and built by Turner Construction, the $260 million campus features technology-rich, flexible educational spaces that promote innovative teaching methods, expand research activity, and enhance clinical services. The campus includes four buildings connected with elevated pathways and totaling 382,000 sf.
Student Housing | Oct 9, 2024
University of Maryland begins work on $148 million graduate student housing development
The University of Maryland, in partnership with Campus Apartments and Mosaic Development Partners, has broken ground on a $148.75 million graduate student housing project on the university’s flagship College Park campus. The project will add 741 beds in 465 fully furnished apartments.
Healthcare Facilities | Oct 9, 2024
How healthcare operations inform design
Amanda Fisher, Communications Specialist, shares how BWBR's personalized approach and specialized experience can make a meaningful impact to healthcare facilities.
