Mechanical in-plane joints between cross laminated timber panels

The construction process of a cross laminated timber building is highly influenced, in terms of time and cost, by the system chosen to joint wall and floor panels. Particularly, when using short width panels, the number of mechanical joints increases: thus on one side improves the global ductility of the whole building but, on the other side, determines undeniable disadvantages in terms of cost and speed of construction. In this paper results of a testing campaign on mechanical joints between cross laminated timber panels working in the same plane (i.e. vertical joints between wall panels and horizontal joints between floor panels) are presented and discussed, respectively in terms of joint strength, joint stiffness, ease and speed of execution, total cost including the cost of fasteners and that of manpower.