LEESBURG, VA. – The American Wood Council (AWC) has released an update to the mobile apps and web-based Maximum Span Calculator for Wood Joists and Rafters to include the design values as found in the 2018 National Design National Design Specification® (NDS®) for Wood Construction Supplement. The mobile apps and the web-based calculator were also updated to include design values for non-North American species to ensure their proper use.
“One of AWC’s core initiatives is to help code officials and designers streamline the use of wood products. This update will bring the web-based version of our most popular calculator up-to-date with the latest codes, and will continues to help designers, plan reviewers and code officials save time when checking spans for proposed lumber floor joists, ceiling joists, and rafters,” said AWC Vice President of Engineering Bradford Douglas.
The Span Calculator performs calculations for all species and grades of commercially available softwood and hardwood lumber and applies common uniform loading conditions and optional adjustments for wet service conditions. Additionally, it features a “span options” mode that allows selection of multiple species and grades for comparison purposes.
The free Span Calculator app is available on the AWC website and in the Android, iOS and Windows app stores, all of which are updated to the 2018 NDS design values.
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