Business View Magazine | July 2020

111 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE JULY 2020 CLEMSON UNI VERS I TY ’ S WOOD UT I L I ZAT ION + DES IGN INST I TUTE wasn’t the case in non-residential buildings. Layton acknowledges, “We knew there was an opportunity for growth there. Some new wood products were being developed in Europe and shipped to America. For us, it all started in 2010 with a home that we knew of in South Carolina which had been built using what we call mass timber. We gathered grants from the United States Department of Agriculture to test if this could be used to make cross-laminated timber (CLT). Then, we collaborated with both North Carolina State and United Forest Service to test the product. “After receiving positive test results, we promoted the idea at the first International Mass Timber Conference in Portland, OR. We met some people at the conference that thought it was a good idea—in fact, they had established the first mass timber plant in Dothan, AL. We talked about what was available and they went back and put it to work. Wood from their plant ended up coming to Clemson in 2019, and we built our first mass timber building on the campus. We did a lot of different things with that building to help the state understand that wood is safe to use in government-owned buildings. And with the help of some partners, we were able to effect a policy change to get a ban on fire- retardant-treated wood removed. We’ve seen national building codes enacted to take on and allow for mass-timber buildings.” WU+D has held educational events for architects, building owners, code officials, developers, and engineers, and hosted workshops around the state to help educate people on what can be accomplished with wood. The Institute Fellows at Clemson began more than six years ago, training students in Architecture and Engineering, and even helped facilitate the growth of their Wood Engineering class on an annual basis. Today, the Institute represents a collaborative effort between Layton herself and other faculty members at the university, specifically those teaching in the