Timber construction is one of the most prevalent methods of constructing buildings in North America and an increasingly significant method of construction in Europe and the rest of the world. Timber Engineering deals not only with the structural aspects of timber construction, structural components, joints and systems based on solid timber and engineered wood products, but also material behaviour and properties on a wood element level. Produced by internationally renowned experts in the field, this book represents the state of the art in research on the understanding of the material behaviour of solid wood and engineered wood products. There is no comparable compendium currently available on the topic - the subjects represented include the most recent phenomena of timber engineering and the newest development of practice-related research. Grouped into three different sections, 'Basic properties of wood-based structural elements', 'Design aspects on timber structures' and 'Joints and structural assemblies', this book focuses on key issues in the understanding of: * timber as a modern engineered construction material with controlled and documented properties * the background for design of structural systems based on timber and engineered wood products * the background for structural design of joints in structural timber systems Furthermore, this invaluable book contains advanced teaching material for all technical schools and universities involved in timber engineering. It also provides an essential resource for timber engineering students and researchers, as well as practicing structural and civil engineers.