| DESCRIPTION OF THE PRODUCT |
Cross-laminated Wood consists of sheets of wood, generally of pine or fir, that are linked by finger joints, and glued in various cross-laid, stratified layers. Uneven numbers are glued and then treated under high molding pressure, until converted into plates of large format solid wood. Depending on the structural requirements 3, 5, 7 or more layers are glued together up to a maximum thickness of 50cm.
All the sheets used are subject to a strict selection of visual quality. The thickness of the sheets varies between 19 and 40mm, depending on the format of the plates and the construction. Depending on the anticipated humidity, the sheets are glued and dried by means of technical procedures, with a humidity of 12% (+/-2).
Through the cross-laying of longitudinal and transversal strata, the coefficients of contraction and dilation are reduced to the minimum. The rigidity, resistance are considerably increased, and static equilibrium is achieved with remarkable ease.
Cross-laminated wood opens up completely new possibilities with regard to the transmission of loads. Loads cannot only be transmitted in one direction as in, for example, the case of supports and beams but can be transmitted in any direction. The semi-isotropy makes cross-laminated wood panels very effective in the design of laminate structures.
In the gluing process, adhesives are used which have been approved for their structural use in accordance with German DIN 68141 and 1052 guidelines, as well as European EN 301 guidelines. The Otto Graf Institute of Stuttgart certifies said suitability.
Depending on the aesthetic requirements, the panels are manufactured in industrial (for panelling) and appearance qualities, which permits their use as an element for enclosure purposes both internally and externally.
Some advantages in the architectural design process are: |
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Excellent weight/benefit ratio
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Possibility of modifications
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Interchange of constructive elements
The elements of cross-laminated wood can be combined and completed with any of the usual construction materials, as well as with other materials such as glass, metal, synthetics, etc.
Due to their lightness, the plates of solid wood are also optimum for reform works and building extensions.
The demand for prefabrication methods that increase the control over the end product and reduce the impact of the workforce is growing in all areas of construction. These elements provide the advantage of quick, economical and problem-free transportation to the building site itself.
The dimensional range available permits extraordinary flexibility in the design of components:
- Maximum length of 16,50m
- Maximum width of 2,95 m and
- Maximum thickness of 0,50m
Building with cross-laminated wood opens the doors to an up until now unthinkable freedom of design without falling prey to elevated costs and excessive delivery deadlines. Structures with large swathes of light, free of columns, projections and eaves of almost unlimited dimensions, clean lines, slim structures, etc.
The plates of cross-laminated wood permit spectacularly brief assembly times. As much for buildings of one sole storey as for buildings of various floors, the outline execution of the work ready for the incorporation of facilities and finishes can in reality be done in very few days.
The more exact the planning and more specific the designs, the more effective the development of each project. For this very reason AMATEX has developed a technical office with highly qualified personnel in the design and calculation of these types of constructions who provide continuous help to project managers of this unique and innovative form of construction.
The project manager can control the budget from the very first sketches, by having cost tables and descriptions of entries which AMATEX commits to respecting within a relatively small range of fluctuations.
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Application possibilities |
Cross-laminated wood plates are ideal for:
- Residential buildings of one or various floors
- Building of residential developments
- Industrial and commercial buildings
- Pavilions
- Construction of municipal buildings
- Farming constructions
- Religious buildings
- Bridges...
- as a roof
- as a deck
- as a wall
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Suggested pre-dimensioned abacus for double-supported slabs with proportions of weight
/overweight usual in residential construction in wood.
The gap will be entered in cm. and the total load in addition to the weight of the slab in kN/m2. |
Thermal protection and protection against humidity
Thermal conduction
The value of thermal conduction in cross-laminated wood plates is the same as that of solid wood. For the technical determination of the thermal protection, the following values can be established:
- Thermal conduction (as whole dry wood) b 0,14W/m K
- Specific thermal capacity c 1,61 kJ/kg K
- Specific increase in thermal conduction 1,20%% Humidity
Convenience in the home
Its well-being in a room depends to a great degree on the following factors:
- Interior temperature
- Ambient humidity
- The temperature of the delimiting surface of the room (walls, ceilings, floors, windows, etc). In the colder months of the year, the surface temperature contributes an essential general well-being.
- Thermal inertia
Resistance to steam diffusion
The gluing process used does not create a watertight film against water vapour, and so for the technical determination of the protection against humidity of the plates of cross-laminated wood, the coefficient of the resistance to Humidity U with values of between 30-40 can be used, similar to the usual ones in solid wood. In this way closures can be achieved that are totally permeable to the diffusion of steam, without risk of internal condensations, with an adequate structure of layers.
Storage capacity of humidity
Amongst many other positive properties enhancing the quality of the interior environment, it also has that of balancing the ambient humidity, absorbing or liberating it, approximating its value to ideal levels for human well-being.
Protection against fires
The legislative verification of behaviour in the event of fire is carried out directly via the application of cited current Spanish legislation. It is relatively simple to achieve very elevated resistance of the structure to fire (from 30 minutes up to more than 4 hours).
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Acoustic protection |
The parameters for walls and roofs have been determined by a programme of wide-reaching trials.
In principle, all the requisites of a multi-storey residential building can be satisfied.
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Environmental impact |
The cross-laminated wood used by AMATEX has been the object of a detailed analysis of environmental impact, the results of which are placed at the disposal of project managers interested in evaluating the ecological implications of their designs.
- Elimination
- Recyclable
- It incinerates without giving off dangerous residues (like non-glued wood).
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Protection, storage and manipulation measures |
Technical protection measures
- Long-term storage must be under cover.
- In its manipulation, stresses in excess of those forecast should be avoided in service.
Manipulation/Handling
- When attaching the elevation tools attention should be paid to the location of the centre of gravity.
- The attachment point for elevation coupling loops must present a distance from the edge of at least 8cm, which in plates of superior thickness must be measured exactly.
Protection against explosion and fire
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The production of solid plates is subject to permanent supervision, both external and internal.
Constant research and development work provides us with the certainty of carrying out the distribution with the best know-how possible and always with the very best quality.
The plates of solid wood used by AMATEX have been approved in multiple aspects relating to protection against fire, rigidity, resistance, permeability, acoustic and thermal insulation, diffusion of steam and thermal inertia.
All the results of the tests carried out to-date satisfy the guidelines required in order to obtain Austrian and German licences.
The use of the plates can be verified as in compliance with the current Technical Building Code, by means of the European technical homologation (document ETA 06/0138). The manufacturer of the material grants the AITIM stamp for same. |
