Trusses
A horizontal engineered structural component, assembled from structural wood members and metal connector plates or other wood joining methods, designed to carry its own weight and superimposed design loads. Truss web elements are assembled such that they form triangles. Floor trusses have top and bottom chord members that are parallel. Web members are placed both vertically and diagonally between chord members.
Metal Plate Truss
Trusses in buildings are easily identified by a triangulated framework of structural elements. Open triangles are what distinguish a truss from other structural products. Their inherent structural efficiency makes them a cost-effective solution for many bridges, towers, and buildings. Metal-plate-connected wood trusses are the predominant type of truss used in residential construction. Parallel chord trusses can also be used to form roof assemblies, but they are more commonly used to form floor assemblies.
Parallel chord trusses allow for the easily installation of building utilities, such as wiring, ductwork, and plumbing.
Exterior wall framing supporting parallel chord trusses.
Duct work is easily routed through a floor assembly of parallel trusses.
Metal plate connectors are used to join truss chord and web members. The plates are embedded using hydraulic presses.
A structural frame is used to load a pitch chord truss for research purposes.
Parallel chord trussed bear on an interior wall. Once the gypsum wallboard is installed it will be difficult to identify the wall as load-bearing.
Parallel chord trusses bear on an exterior wall.
The components of a parallel chord truss.
Components of a pitched chord truss.
Metal plate connectors are engineered for each loading condition. They are embedded into the wood fiber using hydraulic presses to ensure the teeth penetrate the fiber.
Hydraulic presses are used to embed the metal connectors into the wood fiber of this pitched chord roof truss.
Finger-Joined Truss
Parallel chord finger-jointed trusses are connected with finger joints and adhesives where webs and chords meet.