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Structural Timber

The structure,
from one supplier.

Auswood supplies the engineered timber that holds a building up. LVL, I-joists, glulam and framing timber, stocked in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Getting a frame out of the ground usually means beams from one supplier, joists from another and framing from a third, on three different schedules. Auswood carries the whole structural package on one trade account. Delivered to site, or collect from your nearest branch.*

*Delivery subject to Auswood’s delivery terms and conditions.

Already know what you need? Jump to the range. Just after spans? Go straight to the LVL span tables.
ROOF LOAD 12 m span enviroBeam E13 LVL · certified AS/NZS 4357
0 warehouses

Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, same day dispatch on stock lines

0 metre lengths

Available in E13 — fewer joins and less waste per job

0.0 MPa bending

Characteristic bending strength of enviroBeam E10

0 Australian Standards

Product and engineering certification behind the span tables

The range

The structural timber range

Four product families, each doing a different job. The right one depends on the span, the load, whether the member will be seen and whether it will ever get wet. If you are not sure, the selection guide below sorts it out in about a minute.

Enviroseries

enviroBeam LVL

Beams, studs, formwork and scaffold plank

Laminated veneer lumber for house structure. Predictable strength, tight tolerances and lengths to 12 metres in E13, so fewer joins and less waste. Certified to AS/NZS 4357.

View LVL range
Enviroseries

enviroJoist I-Joists

Floor and roof joists

LVL flanges with an OSB web, so you get depth and stiffness at a fraction of the weight of a solid member. Light enough to handle, long enough to run a floor without intermediate support.

View I-joist range
Enviroseries

enviroGL Glulam

Exposed and feature beams

Sawn laminations glued face to face. The one to specify where the beam will be seen, where the look matters, or where the member needs to curve.

View glulam range
Standard grade

Framing Timber

Wall frames, roof trusses and general framing

Machine graded pine for standard residential framing. The everyday structural line, stocked alongside the engineered products so it comes off the one order.

View framing range

Not sure which one you need? Send the job through and we will tell you straight. Send us the job →

Selection guide

Which structural timber do I need?

Four questions get you to the right product most of the time.

Start with the span.

Short and standard, framing timber handles it. Long, or carrying a lot, and you want LVL. Very long floors without intermediate support, I-joists. The span tables tell you where each one runs out.

Then ask whether anyone will see it.

If the member is covered by plasterboard, nobody cares what it looks like and LVL is the efficient answer. If it is exposed in a living space, glulam is the one that reads as timber rather than as engineering.

Then ask whether it will get wet.

This is where jobs go wrong. Auswood's LVL is for dry interior use only. Decks, pergolas, exposed structures and anything weather facing are a different conversation and a different product.

Then ask what depth you have.

Where floor depth or ceiling height is tight, engineered timber wins on section size. enviroBeam E10 has a characteristic bending strength of 41.6 MPa against 17 MPa for MGP10 radiata pine in the same size stick.

Quick comparison

If you needSpecifyBecause
Standard wall frames and trussesFraming timberCheapest option that meets the load
Beams, lintels and headersenviroBeam LVLStraight, predictable, long lengths
Long floor spans, light handlingenviroJoist I-JoistsDepth and stiffness without the weight
An exposed or curved beamenviroGL GlulamChosen for how it looks, not just what it carries
Formwork shoringenviroBeam Formwork LVLSeparate product, own sizes and certification
A scaffold platformenviroBeam Scaffold PlankCertified to AS/NZS 1577

Still not sure? That is what the technical line is for. Call 1800 888 986.

Technical reference

Timber grades and treatment levels

What makes timber structural?

Structural timber is graded for load. Every piece has been tested or machine assessed and given a grade that tells an engineer how much it will carry and how far it will bend. Non structural timber has not been through that, so it can be used for a shelf but not for a lintel.

MGP grades

MGP stands for machine graded pine. The number is the stiffness. MGP10 is the standard residential framing grade. MGP12 is stiffer, used where the span or the load asks for more in the same section.

E grades

Engineered products use an E grade for the same reason. enviroBeam LVL comes in E10 for house structure and wall studs, E13 for beams, joists, headers and rafters, and E12 in the formwork product. Higher number means a stiffer, stronger member in the same size.

H treatment levels

The H number is about hazard, not strength. H2 is interior framing protected from weather. H3 is exterior above ground. H4 is exterior in ground. enviroBeam LVL carries H2S treatment for interior use south of the Tropic of Capricorn. It is not an H3 or H4 product.

Engineering documentation

Span tables

Rafter and lintel spans for enviroBeam LVL, single and double span, internal and external openings, with the load assumptions each table is built on. Certified by TGA Engineers as NCC Evidence of Suitability.

The tables cover Class 1 and Class 10 buildings, single and two storey, to a maximum building width of 16 metres excluding eaves, wall height to 3 metres and roof pitch to 35 degrees.

Open the LVL span tables

Rafters, lintels and a downloadable PDF.

View LVL span tables

Scope: Class 1 and Class 10 buildings, single and two storey. Max width 16 m. Wall height to 3 m. Roof pitch to 35 degrees. Certified by TGA Engineers.

Know the limits

Know the limits before you specify

Worth saying plainly, because finding out on site is expensive. This applies to Auswood's LVL and I-joist products.

Dry interior use only.

Fully enclosed from exterior moisture. Subfloors are fine provided the space is ventilated to the NCC. Decks, pergolas and anything weather facing are not.

Never above 18% moisture content.

If the equilibrium moisture content of the member will exceed 18%, it is the wrong product.

South of the Tropic of Capricorn.

H2S treatment is specified for use south of that line. North of it, talk to us before you specify.

Straight members only.

LVL does not curve. If the member curves, that is a glulam conversation.

The water resistant surface coating on Auswood's LVL is there to protect the member during transport and storage on site. It is not a service condition rating.
Compliance

Certification and compliance

The standards each product is manufactured to, and the independent certification behind the span tables.

StandardApplies to
AS/NZS 4357.0:2005 (R2016)Product specification for structural LVL
AS 1720.1:2010Timber structures, design methods
AS 1720.3:2016Design criteria, timber framed residential
AS 1684.2Residential timber framed construction, non cyclonic
AS/NZS 1577Scaffold Plank only
AS 3660.1Termite management, H2S treatment

National Construction Code

NCC Performance Requirement H1P1 is satisfied for enviroBeam LVL designed and constructed in accordance with AS 1720.1.

Engineering certification

Span tables prepared in Spanman by Spanware Pty Ltd and certified as NCC Evidence of Suitability by TGA Engineers.

Chain of custody

Auswood holds Chain of Custody certification for FSC 100% wood panel and engineered wood products.

The complete system

Structural timber is one part of the enviroSERIES

One supplier, from the slab edge to the skirting, on one trade account.

Explore the enviroSERIES
  • enviroBeamLVL beams, studs, formwork and scaffold plank
  • enviroJoistI-joists
  • enviroGLGlulam
  • enviroFormPlywood and formply
  • enviroFCFibre cement
  • enviroFloorEngineered timber and laminate flooring
  • enviroTrimArchitraves and skirting

One supplier. Structure to finish.

Who we supply

Built for the trade

Builders

Volume pricing, stock across three states and delivered to site or nready to collect from your nearest branch.

Frame and truss

Consistent, straight, dimensionally stable material that behaves the same way through the saw every time.

Drafters and engineers

Certified span tables, published characteristic properties and a technical line that answers the question rather than taking a message.

Merchants

Trade supply on the structural lines your builders are already asking for.

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

Need structural timber for a job?

Send through your quantities and we will come back with pricing and stock across all three warehouses. If it is easier to talk it through, call 1800 888 986 and ask for your nearest branch.