Pres-Lam is a method of mass engineered timber construction that uses high strength unbonded steel cables or bars to create connections between timber beams and columns or columns and walls and their foundations.
As a prestressed structure the steel cables clamp members together creating connections which are stronger and more compact than traditional timber fastening systems.
The concept of Pres-Lam was developed at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand by a team led by Professors Stefano Pampanin, Alessandro Palermo and Andy Buchanan[3] in collaboration with PreStressed Timber Limited (PTL).
[4] The system stems from techniques developed during the US PRESSS at the University of California in San Diego during the 1990s under the leadership of New Zealand structural engineer Prof. Nigel Priestley.
In 2017 the NHERI Tallwood project was started with funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation focused on further validation of Pres-Lam in North America.