HIGH RISE TRAINING SERIES

According to a report called Unlocking the Potential For Mid-Rise Buildings, prepared by urban and regional planning professor Paul Bedford, wood frame buildings of up to six storeys are less expensive to build than poured concrete structures, and would boost the mid-rise housing market that is overshadowed by highrise and low-rise buildings.  

Potential changes to the Building Code included in the second round of consultation include the possibility of allowing wood frame buildings of up to six storeys. Buildings with residential, mercantile, office and mixed use occupancies would be subject to consultation, as would buildings with wood frame construction on top of one or two storey concrete construction ( “podium portion” of a building).  Consistent with the Building Code’s objectives of fire safety and structural sufficiency, potential changes to allow six storey wood frame buildings would have to meet all the requirements of four storey wood frame buildings plus a number of additional measures.

This seminar will examine in detail the implications of six storey wood buildings.

This seminar would cover the following topics:

• Fire prevention
• Acoustics 
• Occupant safety
• Combustible/non-combustible
• Engineeried products (CLT)
• Hybrid of concrete and wood
• Cost effective materials and combinations (economic scales)

About the Facilitator:

Steven Street, Technical Director, Ontario WoodWORKS!

 Steven joined the WoodWORKS! Team in 2007 after a career in off site panelisation and prefabrication.  In his role as Technical Director, he provides information and technical support to design professionals, helping facilitate the increased use of wood products in commercial, industrial and institutional construction.  Steven is actively involved in numerous key Canadian market development programs including Cross-Laminated Timber and the role that wood products can play in Mid-rise construction. He guest lectures at Colleges and Universities on wood and wood use and is a regularly invited speaker at technical events presented by the OBOA, OWTFA, and the Canadian Wood Council.

Guest Speakers:

Robert Kok, P.Eng.

Robert is the Director of Research and Development for Brockport Home Systems Limited. He is responsible for all engineering and technical aspects of this new company, optimizing the structure frame and the building envelope performance. Robert has been a Registered Professional Engineer since 1990 and is presently registered in the Provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Robert’s professional activities include industry involvement in wood design and wood research and development in Canada in the following areas:

• CSA-086 Engineering Design in Wood – Main Technical Committee Member
• Ontario WoodWORKS! – Technical Committee Member
• Canada Wood Council – Engineering Guide for Wood Framed Construction
• National Research of Canada – Fire Performance of Houses, Fire and Acoustical Performance of Floor/Wall Assemblies and Vibration Controlled Criteria for Engineered Wood Products.

David Moses, PhD, PEng, PE, LEED®AP

David is principal of Moses Structural Engineers Inc. in Toronto, Canada. About 50% of his design practice is based on unconventional methods of construction. This ranges from green building with LEED and Passive House, to new types of ultra-high performance concrete to unusual structures and to new materials such as CLT (cross-laminated timber). In 2011, David received the Forest Products Society’s “2011 Wood Engineering Award” and in 2009 the WoodWorks! Ontario “Wood Advocate – Engineer” award, for his work in the design and promotion of Ontario’s wood products. In recent years, he has been working with Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) in design and standards development. David worked on the design of Austria House in Whistler, the first CLT project in Canada, possibly North America. His company has designed the first four CLT projects in construction in Ontario, including the Wayne Gretzky Sports Centre and Playvalue Toys. David sits on technical committees with APA and CSA and travels North America as an invited lecturer on green building, sustainability and timber engineering.

Marco VanderMaas, B.E.S., B.Arch., LEED®AP BD+C

Marco earned a Bachelor of Environmental Science in 1994 and subsequently received a Bachelor of Architecture, both from the University of Waterloo. After his studies, Marco worked in a variety disciplines within design firms in Toronto. His approach towards architecture, built out of this experience, utilizes practical, creative and hands-on problem-solving tactics to accomplish a project’s goals.

Marco joined Quadrangle in 2009 as a Senior Designer, became Design Director in 2011 and was appointed to the role of Associate in 2012. He is an invaluable resource for multi-unit residential and mixed-use commercial buildings. As an Associate and the firm’s Design Director, Marco collaborates with the client and project team throughout a project’s development to encourage a consistency and quality to the architecture.

In addition to his work with Quadrangle, Marco has consulted on the changes to the 6 storey mid-rise wood-frame Ontario building code for Wood WORKS!, a project of the Canadian Wood Council, and contributed to the Wood Solutions in Mid-Rise Construction Report. Continuing this relationship, Marco was a member of the jury for the 2010 Wood WORK! Awards program.