DEVELOPING AN APPLICATION FOR MASS PLYWOOD PANELS IN SEISMIC AND ENERGY WALL RETROFITS

Abstract

University of Oregon and Oregon State University are collaborating through the TallWood Design Institute (T D I) to upgrade aging multi-family housing, which is energy inefficient and does not meet current code lateral force resistance, by developing a mass ply panel (MPP) façade retrofit panel assembly that employs digital workflows and small diameter logs (down to 127mm) to create an economically viable energy/seismic retrofit model for the West Coast of the United States (U.S.) and beyond. The design and testing of the retrofit panelised system for upgraded energy and seismic resilience of existing light-wood-frame multi-family housing stock were completed at T D I ' s Emmerson Laboratory for a full-scale one-story mock-up. The research program includes structural and energy performance design, and benchmarking of digital to physical workflows and construction methods. The next iteration is a three-story prototype fabricated by a commercial contractor to validate the design, scanning techniques, fabrication, construction, and cost models resulting from the initial prototype construction, with the intent of commercializing designs for immediate adoption.