Abstract:
With the advent of other types of flooring systems utilising stronger materials and higher performance, timber flooring has been mainly restricted to domestic applications. However, the advent of engineered wood products (EWP's) such as LVL and glulam as well as a new generation of adhesives has provided the means to fabricate large section, long spanning structural members with equal structural properties to that of steel or concrete used in the same applications. On the other hand, timber is the only structural material that is truly renewable and sustainable, and timber buildings result in lower CO2 emissions, therefore, timber structures have attracted a great deal of renewed interest. In this paper, modern trends and approaches used in timber flooring systems worldwide is presented with comments regarding each system's pros and cons, design criteria and requirements. Systems with potential suitability for Australia and New Zealand for non-residential/commercial applications are also discussed.
