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Component Manufacturing dverti$ dverti $ er
By Stephen Keller, PE Director, Design Engagement
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January 2025 #17306 Page #54
Penetrating the Shallow Depth Floor Market: How Posi-Strut® Can Be Your Best Solution
n today’s light-frame construction market, wood web floor trusses are commonly used in many multifamily projects. Builders, structural engineers, and general contractors often view wood web trusses as the default floor system for projects requiring 18 inches or greater depth.
However, for projects with depths of 16 inches or less, the use of wood web trusses declines, and more traditional framing materials, such as I-joists or sawn lumber, are typically chosen. The shift is due to multiple factors, including the ease of specification and lower cost per foot, typically found with these materials. Additionally, as wood web trusses become shallower, the joint between the metal connector plate and web patterns occupies more critical space between the chords and webs. This can lead to complications or collisions when utility lines need to pass through, as there is simply less space for these runs. Fortunately, many of these headaches can be avoided with proper utility coordination and Building Information Modeling (BIM). For example, a chase can be designed in specific areas of the truss, allowing optimal use of the space between the chords. However, without early planning, this space can fill up quickly with trunk lines or, more often, with whichever trade shows up first, especially in single-family homes where early utility coordination is less prevalent. As a result, builders tend to choose I-joists or sawn lumber at these shallow depths, requiring soffits or dropped ceilings to conceal these elements. This approach adds additional costs for the necessary materials and requires extra work for the framer and drywaller. While some component manufacturers have successfully promoted wood trusses at shallow depths or encouraged the use of deeper floor systems, there remains an untapped market for most component manufacturers to provide an open web solution for the shallow depth market. Fred Johnson, Project Manager at Reno Truss, and his team have identified an effective engineered solution to address this gap for their clients: the MiTek® Posi-Strut® metal webbing system, which offers lightweight construction and high performance. Recently, I sat down with Fred to hear his perspective on what has made the Posi-Strut a valuable addition to Reno’s offerings. Continued next page
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