Wood frame construction is generally built using dimensional lumber, engineered beams and trusses. In North America, it is the most widely used framing system for single family and multi-dwelling homes. Wood Frame Construction is attractive for smaller projects due to its widespread availability, low cost and usability. It is easy to procure and easy to build with. In Canada, we harvest and manufacture these products locally, so supply shortages and lead times are generally a non-issue outside of pandemic situations. We recommend wood frame buildings for single family homes, multi-dwelling buildings and small commercial buildings that are not subject to high moisture or combustible materials.

Timber Post Frame construction is a simple and fast system for large footprint buildings. Built using wood timbers as structural columns, this system does not require a conventional substructure foundation. The foundations are simply augured holes with the timber columns cast into a shallow concrete friction pile. Steel piles or precast concrete piles can be used as well. The advantage of this is speed and less materials. Rather than sheathing, most Timber Post Frame Structures are strapped using dimensional lumber and finished with an exterior metal clad. The buildings can be insulated, heated and fully finished inside. We recommend Timber Post Frame Buildings for Hay Sheds, Cold Storage Buildings, Shop Buildings, Airplane Hangers and Agricultural Buildings.

Conventional Steel Frame Buildings are most commonly used in commercial and industrial applications where the classification of the building requires non-combustible construction. Conventional steel frames are designed and engineered then manufactured in a fabrication shop. Once the site is ready, the steel package arrives, and certified iron workers erect the structure using both welded and bolted connections. Once the steel frame and joists are installed, metal deck is added to the roof to complete the building diaphragm and steel stud infills are positioned between the perimeter columns. From there, composite sheathing and the remainder of the building envelope can commence. Although currently volatile due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, steel building can be a good solution for commercial retail buildings, gas stations, restaurants and other commercial type properties of a certain scale.

Insulated Concrete Forms are a prefabricated insulated block that act as the insulation and concrete form for basements and exterior walls. The blocks are designed with insulation on the interior and exterior wythe of the form which are held together by fiberglass ties. The blocks simply click together much like Lego creating the geometry of the building. Once installed, reinforcing and concrete are added inside the block assembly creating the structure. ICF is a long lasting and extremely air-tight system for residential houses and small commercial buildings. We recommend Insulated Concrete Form Construction for people who want to build their forever home and/or want an upgraded system from traditional wood frame construction.

Precast concrete is a prefabricated building system that combines all of the architectural, structural and insulating components of a wall assembly into a single item. Precast Concrete is manufactured off-site in an environmentally controlled production facility and shipped to site. It is an extremely durable product that is commonly used for buildings subject to the harshest working conditions. It is very thermally efficient and extremely fast. With proper planning, Precast Concrete construction is very easy to build with and can incorporate flexible design options for future growth. Hawi Construction has over 8-years of experience working with precast concrete and greatly believes in this product. We recommend precast concrete for commercial, industrial and agricultural buildings of a certain size and design.