4th North American Mass Timber Research Needs Workshop
Location: U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, One Gifford Pinchot Drive, Madison, Wisconsin
About
The 4th North American Mass Timber Research Needs Workshop will bring together those engaged in the research and development of mass timber in all related facets, including design, manufacturing, or construction. This workshop aims to provide the research community with guidance to use in designing, developing, and coordinating future research that best serves the rapidly growing North American markets for mass timber products.
Who Should Attend?
Stakeholders from industry, academia, and government organizations at all levels are welcome to attend. Professions represented by past workshop participants include architecture, building science, construction management, economics and finance, fire protection engineering, forestry, government and policy, insurance, manufacturing, materials science, real estate development, social science, structural engineering, and sustainability and environmental science. We also encourage people from other disciplines to join and offer unique perspectives.
Logistics
Registration
Registration is limited to 150 attendees.
The registration fee to attending this workshop is $100.
Click here to register [external link]
Schedule
The current schedule is tentative and subject to change. Please check back for updates.
| Time | Event |
| 7:30 AM to 8:00 AM | Check-in and Registration |
| 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM | Workshop Introduction and Keynote Addresses |
| 9:00 AM to 9:15 AM | Break |
| 9:15 AM to 10:30 AM | Panel: Fire Performance |
| 10:30 AM to 11:45 AM | Universities Progress Report |
| 11:45 AM to 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 1:00 PM to 2:15 PM | Discussion: Durability and Building Physics |
| 2:15 PM to 2:30 PM | Break |
| 2:30 PM to 3:45 PM | Industry Progress Report |
| 3:45 PM to 5:00 PM | Panel: Structural Systems Design and Performance |
| Time | Event |
| 8:00 AM - 9:15 AM | Poster Presentations |
| 9:15 AM to 9:45 AM | Keynote Speaker from Industry |
| 9:45 AM to 10:00 AM | Break |
| 10:00 AM to 11:15 AM | Panel: Structural System Design and Performance |
| 11:15 AM to 12:00 PM | Universities Progress Report |
| 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM | Lunch |
| 1:00 PM to 1:30 PM | Universities Progress Report |
| 1:30 PM to 2:45 PM | Panel: Material and Manufacturing Processes |
| 2:45 PM to 3:00 PM | Break |
| 3:00 PM to 4:15 PM | Panel: Non-Building Structures |
| 4:15 PM to 5:30 PM | Panel: Sustainability and Economic Analysis |
| Time | Event |
| 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM | Tours of the Forest Products Laboratory |
Tours
After the workshop, on Friday, May 14, the Forest Products Laboratory will be hosting tours of the facilities. Forest Products Laboratory tours are open to all regardless of workshop registration status. Sign-up information will be available closer to the date.
Surveys
Prior to the workshop, participants will have an opportunity to voice opinions about the topics we discuss, the workshop format, and prioritization of research needs via interactive surveys. We will discuss survey results at the workshop and invite participants to share opinions and qualitative observations.
Surveys should take only 10 to 15 minutes to complete. See below to learn more about each round of surveys.
The goal of the Round 1 survey is to collect general information and solicit research topics. Participation in the survey is open to everyone, regardless of workshop registration status. For access to the Round 1 survey consent form, please click on this link [external] or scan the QR code. Survey opens September 2026 and closes November 6, 2026.
Research topics collected from Round 1 will be posted for you to rate by survey in Round 2. Each general category of topics should take about 5 minutes to rate, and there are no more than 7 categories, so the entire survey should take approximately 35 minutes. Participation in the survey is open to everyone, regardless of workshop registration status. Survey opens December 2026 and closes March 12, 2026.
In the Round 3 survey, you may let us know what you liked about the workshop and how we may improve the next event. We kindly ask that you participate in the survey only if you attend the workshop. Survey opens May 13, 2027 and closes June 30, 2027.
General Technical Report and Related Publications
Anonymous survey results and qualitative observations will be summarized in a General Technical Report and in other publications, such as peer-reviewed journal articles. Electronic copies of the publications will be made available for public download on the Forest Service Treesearch website. For examples of past reports and publications, see the Proceedings and Publications section of this website.