What is Structural Engineered Bamboo?
Frequently Asked Questions about Engineered Bamboo
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Answer
Found in the market today is what is commonly called engineered bamboo and should not be confused with Structural Engineered Bamboo. The extensive production of low-tech bamboo products, without clear performance indicators, is not an engineering bamboo material in the sense of construction engineering. That is what differentiates the production of Structural Engineered Bamboo.
Structural engineered bamboo materials come in two primary products resulting from processing the raw bamboo culm into a bamboo based composite. Both are made from locally sourced bamboo, manufactured exclusively by altPlus. Both also rely on thermally treating selected bamboo to an exact state. During the thermos treatment, chemical and structural changes occur within the bamboo which alter and improve basic characteristics.
altPlus LVB™ is a laminated veneer bamboo Through proprietary processing of altPlus LVB™, the result is most durable, stable and sustainable product in its class and is an ideal material for use in beams, boards, panels and flooring elements.
altPlus PSB™ is a parallel strand bamboo made from individual bamboo strands compressed together, relatively more dense than LVB and relatable to PSL (parallel strand lumber) from structural composite lumber category. altPlus PSB has capacity to be specified in the highest of mechnical values, however, both altPlus LVB and PSB are comparable in mechanical value or beyond that of engineereed wood.
For oversize components, these components are then laminated again to each other to create multi-ply bamboo panels and dimensional components. This bio-based resource also resembles wood in its mechanical properties, yet it has a faster growth rate and harvest cycle and is stronger than most timbers. Additionally, bamboo is found in many places where softwoods and hardwoods are limited.