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Research Journal of the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka- Rohana 11, 2019

Keywords: Economic analysis;Finger joint; Local timber species; Strength properties;
Timber utilization, Waste timber

Introduction

Timber is used as a building material in building construction. Waste timber
material and short sections of timber dumped by sawn mills are creating many

problems in the construction industry. It is therefore necessary to effectively use the

timber residues produced in building construction. Timber wastage can be
minimized by using proper machines and adopting new technologies

(Ruwanpathirana 2007).

Joining of timber pieces longitudinally using fingered end joints as shown in Figure
1 has been recognized as a qualitative and profitable method for producing high

quality timber sections of required length and for reducing timber waste. Through

finger jointing, undesirable timber sections can be removed to improve the strength
and appearance of the timber product. Therefore, finger jointing is an ideal way for

improving the efficiency of sawn mills as it minimizes waste of timber (Ayarkawa et
al. 2000).

Most of the locally available timber species are hardwood. Although there have been

several studies done in the past on the strength of finger jointed sections of

softwood, only few such studies have been done on hardwood. Finger jointing is
already being used in Sri Lanka to produce non-structural timber products such as

furniture. The mechanisms and machinery required to perform this finger jointing
on hardwood are already available in the country. Because of its good structural

performance, finger jointed hardwood can be recommended for use as structural
elements by the construction industry in Sri Lanka.

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