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Western Wood Structures Home Office

New England Studios

New England Studios broke ground during the summer of 2012 for construction of a series of sound studios where film crews will be able to shoot movies and television shows. The project is being built at Devens, Mass. on the site of a former military base. The project is envisioned to “bring Hollywood to Massachusetts” while providing 800 to 1,000 jobs to the local area.

The four sound studios measure 120’ x 150’ each. Bowstring Trusses span the 120’ and are designed to carry the roof loads as well as the ceiling loads, catwalks, lighting, etc.. Western Wood Structures designed and supplied the Glulam trusses and framing system. The trusses were fabricated and trial assembled in the shop and shipped to the site partially assembled. It took 19 long haul trucks to transport the trusses across the country.


Once the trusses were off loaded at the site they were assembled in their upright positions and lifted into place with a large crane fully assembled. They measure 120’ in length and have a 16’-6’ width.

The trusses were manufactured from Douglas fir Glulam and weigh ~ 34,000 lbs each including steel connectors when fully assembled.

The catwalks are being installed just after the massive trusses have been set.

LeMay Wins Award

Woodworks, an initiative of the Wood Products Council, was established to provide technical support, resources, and education related to the design and use of wood in non-residential projects.


Each year Woodworks recognizes outstanding projects for their use of wood in several categories. The 2013 award winners were announced at the San Francisco Bay area Wood Solutions Fair on January 29, 2013.

The winner in the commercial category was LeMay – America’s Car Museum in Tacoma, Washington.

• Architect – LARGE Architect - Los Angeles, Calif.
• Engineer – Magnussen Klemencic Associates - Seattle, WA.
• Contractor – JTM Construction – Seattle, WA.
• Roof Structure Engineer – Western Wood Structures – Tualatin, Oregon

Western Wood Structures also supplied and installed the Heavy Timber roof structure.

Jordan Park

The Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation District [THPRD] was founded in 1955 by a group of citizens who envisioned the future needs of their Beaverton, Oregon community. The mission of the THPRD is to “provide high quality park and recreational facilities, programs, services and natural areas that meet the needs of the diverse communities it serves”. THPRD serves 220,000 residents in an area covering 50 square miles. Within the 2,200 acres owned and/or maintained by THPRD today, they operate at least 90 parks containing 60 miles of paved and unpaved nature trails along with various recreation centers and swim complexes.


Recognizing a strong need to provide better citizen access to Jordan Park, a Landscape Architect from THPRD contacted Western Wood Structures to inquire about the use of timber bridges and boardwalks. Following several site meetings and consultations, plans were developed and a contract was awarded to WWS to supply pre-fabricated bridge materials.

Three structures were required to complete this project:

This 40-foor side girder bridge rests on diamond piers foundations manufactured by Pin Foundations, Inc. These piers are light weight, low impact, and easy to transport and install. The bridge deck as well as the post & rail system was manufactured from recycled plastic lumber.

This 20-foot short span bridge was constructed at the base of a stairway system and traverses a narrow drainage ditch. It connects to a pathway system that leads to an elevated boardwalk over an environmentally sensitive area. The boardwalk is 32’-6” in length and is also supported by diamond piers.