Homebuilders to Advocate for SYP Transition Period
Originally published by: NAHB — July 30, 2012
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Following the recent approval of design value changes for visually-graded Southern Pine 2x4s graded #2 and lower, the Southern Pine Inspection Bureau (SPIB) has now completed testing on the remaining sizes of visually-graded Southern Pine as requested by the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) Board of Review. NAHB was recently appointed to SPIB’s Technical Advisory Committee and participated in its most recent meeting on July 18-19 when the committee reviewed preliminary data from the full test program.
In addition to the original #2 2x4 testing, SPIB has now tested #2 2x8 and 2x10 widths, and Select Structural 2x4, 2x8 and 2x10 widths. This total of six “size-grade” combinations meets the minimum required per ALSC and ASTM standards to set design values for a species of lumber. Once a full analysis of the new data has been completed, any proposed changes will need to be approved by SPIB’s Board of Governors, which meets in late August, and submitted to the ALSC, which will forward recommendations to the Forest Products Laboratory. The ALSC Board of Review will consider SPIB’s recommendations during its October meeting. At the same time, grading agencies representing the other major species of lumber (Douglas Fir-Larch, Hem-Fir, and Spruce-Pine-Fir) are also conducting testing as directed by the ALSC Board of Review to identify potential changes to the design values for those species. It is possible these other major species may also have submissions for consideration at the October meeting.
While the impact of any potential changes in the remaining design values for visually-graded Southern Pine is as yet unknown, NAHB will continue to be fully engaged in monitoring this issue and will review and comment on any recommendations released prior to the ALSC Board of Review meeting. In our comments and at the October meeting, NAHB will advocate strongly for an open, transparent process with appropriate transition periods for the implementation of any revised design values.
