New, Award-Winning Strong-Wall® Wood Shearwall Provides Easier Installation and Inspection

Simpson Strong-Tie now offers a redesigned prefabricated wood shearwall that provides greater installation flexibility for contractors and additional design options for specifiers. The Strong-Wall® Wood Shearwall features a holdown with visible front, back and side access that makes it easier to install the anchorage attachment in various framing conditions. The front access opening also allows for easy inspection of the connection to the anchor bolt.

The wood shearwall can be trimmed and drilled in the field, providing additional flexibility, and a simpler top-of-wall connection provides options for a one- or two-sided plate solution. The wood shearwall is code listed (ICC-ES ESR-2652 and City of L.A. RR 25730 evaluated to the 2015 IRC/IBC) and allows for the same or higher loads than the previous SB shearwall in both seismic and wind applications. The Strong-Wall Wood Shearwall replaces the Strong-Wall® SB shearwall and can be used in the same applications, including residential, multi-story, and light-frame commercial wood structures.

Simpson Strong-Tie will feature its innovative, award-winning Strong-Wall Wood Shearwall during the Pacific Coast Builders Convention (PCBC) at the Moscone Center in San Francisco on June 22-23. The product was one of only 20 selected to win a 2016 Parade of Products PCBC award, given by the California Building Industry Association for the top products representing the best in innovation and new product solutions.

View the catalog to learn more and watch our on-demand best practices shearwall webinar.

Supporting Habitat for Humanity in Portugal

Five Simpson Strong-Tie employees had the opportunity to participate in a week-long Habitat for Humanity build in the small town of Amarante, Portugal in late April. Along with five other U.S. volunteers, the group was the first to start work on remodeling the 30-plus year-old home of a widowed mother and daughter living in the countryside of northern Portugal.

The volunteers spent the week completing a number of renovations, including cutting two new doorways into the granite walls, leveling out the floors, blocking and replacing two doorways, removing paint and concrete from the granite, removing a wood stove pipe, patching holes and other openings, and digging a ditch for the waste lines.

Simpson Strong-Tie is proud to support this project as a key partner with Habitat for Humanity, along with other initiatives including Habitat Strong. For more information about the company's work with Habitat, visit strongtie.com/about/habitat.

New Deck Guard Post Solution Provides Easier Installation Using Only Screws

Simpson Strong-Tie has developed a new method for attaching wood guard posts. This solution uses Strong-Drive® SDWS Timber screws to provide an easy-to-install, high-strength option to traditional hardware and through bolts.

Simpson Strong-Tie engineers designed and tested this code-compliant application in accordance with ICC-ES AC273, which allows the guard post to be secured inside the deck framing with the Strong-Drive SDWS Timber screws. This guard post attachment method has been engineered for use in various deck locations, including at the deck corner, on the band joist, or either between or adjacent to the rim joist. By using less hardware, the application allows for a more cost-efficient installation.

"The guard rail post is one of the most important connections on a deck," said Dr. Ed Sutt, Vice President, Fastening Systems, Simpson Strong-Tie. "It's an area where the all-too-common occurrence of deck failure occurs. We wanted to develop a code-compliant solution that made it easy to install guard posts, and provide labor and cost savings."

For more information download the technical bulletin.

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