"Design of reinforcement around holes in laminated veneer lumber (LVL) beams"

Many practical situations require holes in timber beams. When the hole is large relative to the depth, the failure of the beam is governed by crack initiation and propagation around the hole. Cracking of a timber beam decreases the capacity of the beam considerably. This paper presents a method for designing the reinforcement around holes in Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) beams so as to recover their full flexural capacity. The design procedure is complemented by two worked examples where all verifications are discussed in detail.