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FAQ - Construction methods

Wood manufacture & timber frame construction

Wood is the preferred material for construction with very high energy performance.
It is primarily a natural insulator that easily handles the insulation problems of buildings, and the implementation process in wood construction is very advanced in terms of airtightness. For a given thickness, the thermal performance that one can obtain in wood construction is superior to any other constructive methods.
Wood construction means shorter construction sites and it is significantly more appropriate than all other constructive solutions. It is also the most ecological material of construction that exists.

Besides, wood construction does not support any approximate dimensions or calculations (one cannot just block a little hole or adjust a height just with a trowel), it is imperative to conceive the building in its slightest details before proceeding to the execution phase. This largely limits the unforeseen in construction sites.

Major drawback :

Wood has a very low inertia which requires complex management strategies for the summer comfort in hot areas.

The different solutions for wood construction :

We will here briefly present the different uses of wood materials in construction.

A traditional solid wood construction :

It consists of the superposition of planks or logs. Apart from well suited kit or self-builder solutions this is generally a costly solution. It allows very significant hygro-thermal performances but the inevitable moving and changing of the material of its natural state is a problem for the airtightness and the size of the openings. It is rather interesting to take advantage of the opportunities for natural renewal of the air that such a structure allows.

The construction with solid wood panels :

These are panels made of different layers of solid wood crossed and stuck against each other and then reinforced by an insulation material.
This solution allows highly robust and efficient building.
The crossed arrangement of the longitudinal and transverse boards reduces the inflation and the retreat in the plans of the panel to an insignificant minimum.
Certain manufacturers use for the production of artificial wood dried panels with a humidity content of 12% which excludes the destructive attack by insects or mushrooms.
Illustration : assembling a house of KLH panels

Post and Beam Construction :

It uses massive wooden carrier elements or high quality glulam (glued laminated timber). Thus we get a stable frame without infill. This allows a big flexibility in architectural volumes and later on in horizontal or vertical developments.
The choice of solutions to fill gaps and insulation of the frame will determine the level of thermal performances of the building.

Platform frame construction :

This is the most used, fastest to implement and most economical solution. Generally the beams of the framing are of the height of a floor, so that the former serves as a platform to the next.
The beams are approached every 40cm or 60cm and to structure the building one usually uses wood panels.
The choice of solutions to fill gaps and insulation of the frame will determine the level of thermal performance of a building.