Date of Award

Spring 2025

Document Type

Restricted Thesis

Terms of Use

© 2025 Matthew Gutow. All rights reserved. Access to this work is restricted to users within the Swarthmore College network and may only be used for non-commercial, educational, and research purposes. Sharing with users outside of the Swarthmore College network is expressly prohibited. For all other uses, including reproduction and distribution, please contact the copyright holder.

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Engineering Department

First Advisor

Fiona A. O'Donnell

Abstract

Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) presses are becoming commercially available within the United States. However, the systems are often expensive and costly to own and operate, requiring large physical footprints, large power draws, and extensive equipment to support the on-and offloading of CLT. CLT presses are critical to facilitate the experimental investigation of novel lumber species and novel panel lay-ups. This experimentation will allow for greater material use and design efficiency. For CLT to advance, local production and increased material efficiency are required, which will be through rapid prototyping of panels. Small-scale CLT presses in academic settings are necessary to help complete this prototyping work. Given the high cost of creating a CLT press, I propose developing a design for a CLT press. This is accomplished by reviewing current press technology and analyzing the benefits of design decisions before developing and creating plans for a press.

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