Unlike typical timber frame post-to-beam construction, which utilizes mortise and tenon connections, the connections for this residence are made of steel plates, bolts, and lag screws.  The majority of the connections were designed with knife plates and other concealed connections.  As you can see in the picture of the truss, only the bolt heads are visible.

This home was featured as a cover story for the Timber Home Living Magazine.

Large timber trusses are easily identified as the structural main attraction.  The entry truss located on the front porch was designed to carry a load of up to 15,000 pounds.  Our office designed these large timber trusses so that the mortise and tenon connections were hidden.  As you can see in the pictures, there are no bolts, screws, or steel plates to be found.  All bolt holes were wood plugged to conceal the bolt heads.

The remainder of the roof system is made up of manufactured trusses as well as 2x framing.  The exposed beams and posts utilized throughout the house are very large Douglas Fir timbers with minimum dimensions of 12″.

Our office engineered the foundation and performed the lateral engineering of this structure.  The project is located in an area of California considered high risk for earthquakes.  The shell of this building is constructed out of a steel frame.  The steel frame was designed and manufactured by a 3rd party.  Our office did perform a review of the steel frame calculations and design.

In designing the foundation for this commercial building, we utilized a concrete pier and grade beam design.  The main floor is a concrete slab on grade.  We were given recommendations on soil design values from a geotechnical engineer.  Our engineers maintained close communications with the building shell engineer, geotechnical engineer, and architect to ensure congruency in the design process and avoid any hiccups that might of put the development behind schedule.

The lateral force resisting system for this building utilizes conventional stick framed walls with plywood sheathing in conjunction with the steel building frame.  Using different materials to resist lateral forces, in this case earthquake forces, will result in a different amount of potential lateral force that must be accounted for.  In many instances, our office must decipher these varying forces, and design a structure so that earthquake and wind forces make their way from the buildings framing to the foundation.

The entire roof system of the structure was taken down and re-engineered.  The existing roof was a traditional gable shape, which was replaced by a system of large, cambered glulam roof rafters.  The glulam rafters were special ordered, and custom fabricated steel connections were designed by our engineers.  Splices in the glulam rafters could not be avoided in order to transport them to the project site.  We engineered steel plate splice connectors for the rafters.

The layout of the remodel did not leave very many walls to be utilized for lateral resistance, or shear walls.  The ocean front view is the most attractive part of this home and windows make up most of that side of the residence.  A custom steel moment frame was engineered by our team to resist these lateral forces.  The steel frame is comprised of large gusset plates that are welded to rectangular structural steel tubes, which are are anchored to concrete piers large enough to resist the lateral forces.

A Simpson Strong Tie “Strong Wall” was utilized in the front of the new garage.  A combination of large seismic loads and limited space made use of the “Strong Wall” the most economic solution.

The building is located on very uncooperative soils that were anticipated to undergo liquefaction in the event of an earthquake.  Vancouver, Washington has more anticipated seismic activity compared to most areas of the country as it is near Mount St. Helens.  Due to the poor soil conditions, we engineered a foundation consisting of 14″ diameter auger cast piles extending 50 feet into the earth, with a grade beam matrix, and structural concrete slab.

This project has required a lot of coordination between the site developer, architect, geotechnical engineer, auger cast pile contractor, and the general contractor.

Our scope of work for this project was to first provide a preliminary foundation plan with a value engineering analysis so the developer could request proposals for the deep foundation elements.  We then performed the vertical and lateral engineering analysis of the structure.  Our office provided the structural drafting along with the structural engineering calculations for this project.

We also performed an extensive review of the manufactured truss layout and calculations to ensure the truss manufacturers design was in accordance with ours.

This building was built on native soils and utilizes a conventional strip foundation. The assisted living care facilities require great coordination between the site developer, architect, geotechnical engineer, and contractor.

Our office provided the structural drafting along with the structural engineering calculations for this project.  Our engineering scope of work included the vertical and lateral engineering.  The entry car-port is constructed out of large glulam beams and steel columns to resist lateral forces.  We also performed an extensive review of the manufactured truss layout and calculations to ensure the truss manufacturers design was in accordance with ours.   A representative from Alpine Engineering performed a framing inspection on the building prior to its completion.

Our office provided the structural drafting along with the structural engineering calculations for this project.  A representative from Alpine Engineering performed a framing inspection on the building prior to its completion. 

Contractor: Koelsch Construction

Location: Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

Creekside Inn is an Alzheimer’s and Dementia care facility that is approximately 33,000 square feet.  The building is a single story, slab on grade construction, with conventional stick framing and a manufactured truss roof system.  Our office provided the structural drafting along with the structural engineering calculations for this project.

The design utilized structural logs, engineered lumber, and conventional stick framing throughout the floor and roof systems.  Logs and conventionally stick framing was utilized as wall framing.