A PLT Prototype House

The Project

Working with BOON, Chris Bell Construction and BTW Engineers, we were approached to supply several PLT panelling solutions and glulam posts for a new build in New Plymouth. They needed cost-effective mass timber construction materials that were not only durable but would allow for simple construction. At the time we were testing an offsite manufactured PLT panel flooring system, and we thought this would be the perfect project to test this new product.

After numerous in-factory prototype tests, we needed to be sure that the flooring system we had developed would not only meet our standards but would live up to the task at hand – an easy-to-install flooring system that required minimal time and labour to install.

The Challenge

From a product manufacturing and engineering perspective, there were no specific concerns or complications with this project. The challenge was to test the theory in practice – did we get it right?

As this was the first time we had manufactured this type of product offsite, we wanted to be sure that the PLT floor would fit into the design of the house. Would the installation process be as simple and fast as predicted? How did the floor “feel” when lived on by the owners? Were we confident in the product performance to take the system to market?

These questions and many more came up during the production phase, however we could only get the answers once we took the product to market and saw how the flooring system performed in a residential housing application.

The Solution

The consent for the PLT panel floor system was signed off by the Council without question – this was a good sign for us and meant that we were one step closer to having a product that would do its job.

Once we received the go ahead from the Council, the floor was fully installed in less than one day by a building crew who had never used mass timber panels previously. After six months of successful “live” testing, we decided to take the PLT floor system to market and Woodspan Ltd was formed. Now in 2023, the PLT floor is as solid as when it was installed – we think that’s pretty cool.