ASSESSING THE ADOPTION OF CROSS LAMINATED TIMBER BY ARCHITECTS AND STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS WITHIN THE UNITED STATES

Abstract

Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) is an engineered wood product for the construction industry offering multiple structural, environmental and supply chain benefits. CLT can be used for an entire building, as both the lateral and vertical load resisting system, or for select elements such as the roof, floors or walls. CLT products were developed in the early 1990’s and have been widely adopted throughout Europe, and more recently, in Canada. However, use of CLT products is still relatively rare in the US. We present the results of a nationwide phone survey in the US conducted with architects and structural engineers to gauge their awareness, rate of adoption and assimilation of CLT products. Although adoption of CLT amongst architects and structural engineers is still at a nascent level within the construction sector, awareness is high, with 100% of our sample respondents cognizant of CLT. Architects and structural engineers perceive relative advantages of using CLT as well as compatibility with traditional construction. However, the adoption process is impeded by issues associated with complexity, trialability and observability. Key barriers to adoption of CLT as perceived by these two stakeholders are lack of experience from construction stakeholders, lack of training and tools for construction management stakeholders, lack of client requests and CLT inventory.