David Moses discusses mid-rise wood buildings in Ontario Homebuilder Magazine, Winter 2016 Edition:
For more on mid-rise wood buildings, visit 6wood.ca.
David Moses, principal of Moses Structural Engineers in Toronto, has over 15 years of experience in wood and heavy timber construction and coordination. His company is currently involved in 10 mid-rise wood-frame projects in various stages of design, approval and construction.
While six-storey wood offers advantages to builders and municipalities over concrete, Moses admits that it also has its challenges. “The code is very specific when it comes to the re-aligning of walls, especially shear walls,” he explains. “This can affect the layout of spaces in residential units. For example, Toronto has mid-rise guidelines for its avenues, specifying stepping back on upper floors and stacking them so as not to obscure views. And the spacing of the grid is different on the main floor versus the upper floors.”
“These are minor challenges,” Moses says, adding that each project involves a learning curve.
“But it’s all manageable; you just need to sit down and address issues early in the design process,”
says Moses, who sees a bright future for six-storey wood, despite its slow acceptance and familiarity among municipal building officials and builders.
Read the full Ontario Homebuilder article here.
