How to Succeed with Mass Timber
May 16 @ 8:30 am - 10:00 am PDT
$10 – $35
How to Succeed with Mass Timber
A conversation embracing the future development of Mass Timber typologies in Los Angeles
Recent evolutions in products, technology, and building codes have established Mass Timber as one of our most promising avenues for achieving meaningful embodied carbon reduction. Wood’s intrinsic beauty has a natural appeal and healing quality, but code and industry unfamiliarity present designers with novel challenges to solve along with new opportunities. This panel will bring architects, engineers, contractors, and building owners together to share their wisdom and discuss recent experiences and future code pathways regarding built timber projects in Los Angeles.
Co-Moderator
James (JED) Donaldson, AIA
Partner at Johnson Fain
James (JED) is a Partner at Johnson Fain with more than twenty five years of professional experience in designing large-scale, complex projects. His experience includes diverse building typologies including multifamily residential, office, education, biotech, civic, cultural, high-rise structures, and large-scale mixed-use developments. JED’s knowledge of the building industry is complemented with his interest in sustainable design and advanced drawing techniques. He leads the firm’s Sustainability and Resilience Lab and steers Johnson Fain’s AIA 2030 Commitment. JED is active in the academic environment where he has both taught and been an invited speaker at University of California, Berkeley, USC, UCLA, University of Puerto Rico, and Art Center.
Co-Moderator
James Black, AIA, LEED AP, NCARB
Principal; House & Robertson Architect
James Black is a Principal and Technical Director at House & Robertson Architects in Culver City. Since joining House & Robertson in 2005, his career has been focused on the practice’s unique specialization, the technical execution of complex architectural projects in collaboration with partner Design Architects.
Panelist: Dan Dumke, Senior Director
Shawmut Design and Construction
As senior director at Shawmut Design and Construction, Dan Dumke leads the preconstruction and integrated design efforts for the firm’s West region, bringing his wealth of experience to deliver best-in-class services to clients while establishing integrated, collaborative project stakeholder environments. With over 40 years of experience executing major projects, Dan is fluent in preconstruction, design-build, and ground-up construction operations, with established expertise in sustainable and efficient practices including mass timber and modular construction. He leads corporate initiatives for diversity, equity, and inclusion and partnerships with Underrepresented Business Enterprise (UBE) trade partners. Dan is Vice Chair of the Associated General Contractors of California’s (AGC) Construction Education Foundation Board and is on the Orange County Board of Directors and a member of the DEI Steering Committee.
Panelist: Nina Mahjoub, PE, LEED AP
Principal, Holmes
Nina leads Holmes’ Southern California team that is pioneering some of the region’s first mass timber construction. Nina brings lessons learned from the topped-out creative office 42XX, and she advises on mass timber’s structural applications in mixed-use, higher ed, and entertainment studio contexts.
Panelist: Haley Coughlin, AIA
Architect, Lever Architecture
Haley is a Project Architect at LEVER’s Los Angeles office and is a part of the Low Carbon Initiative Committee – working with LADBS to clarify and streamline building with Mass Timber in Los Angeles. She is interested in thoughtful, mission-driven design, and architecture that focuses on stewardship and place making. With a diverse portfolio of campus, community, and creative office projects, she excels at translating concept sketches to built work while developing trust-based working relationships with clients, contractors, and the design team.
Panelist: Parisa Nassiri PE
Senior Fire Engineer, Holmes
As a Senior Fire Engineer, Parisa optimizes building design for fire scenarios. Her code consulting eases approvals for exposed and high-rise mass timber solutions otherwise not permissible by US Building Code. With a focus in Structural Fire Engineering, she justifies code alternates while saving her clients construction costs, carbon, time, and labor.
Learning Objectives:
1. Learn techniques for architectural detailing that optimize the performance and beauty of mass timber materials.
2. Review structural engineering solutions that have proven effective in recent mass timber structures.
3. Learn about efforts between design professionals and LADBS to streamline and coordinate the agency approvals process for mass timber projects in the City of Los Angeles.
4. Gain insights into constructibility factors and procurement considerations in the use of mass timber systems.
5. Understand where and how the Building Code provides opportunities to incorporate mass timber into a project.
Street Parking. Review Street Signs as it changes with the time of day.
