The ready-to-assemble (RTA) construction system is a new method for assembling wood structures built from the following engineered wood products: parallel strand lumber (PSL), laminated strand lumber (LSL), and laminated veneer lumber (LVL). The RTA system is designed for rapid assembly by small crews of unskilled labor using common hand tools. The design of the RTA system incorporates engineered woods attributes of strength, stiffness, straightness, and dimensional stability thereby maximizing the efficient utilization of the existing wood resource base. Integral to the system is a mechanical fastener that laminates wood members and provides a mechanism to connect the laminated members into a structural framing system. The existing data on the new RTA connection system suggests that the connector has over twice the strength of nailed or bolted connections that have similar cross-sectional areas to the RTA connector. The objectives of this project are: to develop a performance database for the RTA system through empirical testing, to analyze the test data and derive strength and stiffness values of the connector, and to design an RTA system for use in economic comparisons of competing construction methods.Applications:The RTA system represents two important advantages for the wood construction industry: 1) It uses a connector capable of transmitting higher loads than traditionally used nails or bolts between either solid-sawn or engineered wood products 2) The RTA system reduces costs through factory fabrication of building components, and on-site assembly by small crews of unskilled labor, equipped with common hand tools. Potential markets include: residential structures and additions, export housing, temporary housing for disaster relief victims, agricultural buildings, and backyard buildings (garden sheds, garages, workshops, storage buildings) for the do-it-yourself (DIY) market.
