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When I&E Construction wanted to use nail-laminated timber to showcase the interior of its new headquarters in Wilsonville, crews got busy.

The panels were fabricated in a shop in Woodburn. What that meant in practice was workers grading and then firing nail guns into two-by-fours. Again and again. It took three workers 10 days.

鈥淲e went through 18, 19 boxes of nails,鈥� said Jim Cleghorn, an I&E Construction superintendent.

The company is nearing completion of the renovation and expansion of its new headquarters slightly east of Interstate 5 at Wilsonville. The structure is 23,000 square feet, including a 4,500-square-foot roof deck. It was recently given a temporary certificate of occupancy.

I&E used hemlock fir from Parr Lumber instead of enduring long lead times for cross-laminated timber or another building material. The timber panels represent a design highlight for the makeover of the former Pioneer Pacific College office building.

鈥淲e figured that NLT would be something that could be shop-fabricated or fabricated on site, on a tight timeline,鈥� said Ryan McTague, a Woodblock Architecture senior designer who was involved in the project’s design. 鈥淲e did some renderings, and it looked great.鈥�

The new location, 27375 S.W. Parkway Ave. in Wilsonville, was purchased from the college. Cleghorn declined to reveal the project’s cost.

I&E, a general contractor that works on multifamily and commercial projects, outgrew its former headquarters in the Clackamas area, Cleghorn said. That property was sold to Pap茅 Machinery.

I&E wanted an architectural highlight to bring a unique element to the building. The construction company settled on using nail-laminated timber in consultation with project designer Woodblock Architecture and DCI Engineers. After the wood beams were trucked in, they were installed to form the roof deck and ceiling.

Cleghorn, who recently joined I&E from a small remodeling company, said working with nail-laminated timber was a new experience.

鈥淥nce I wrapped my head around it, it came together pretty well,鈥� he said.

The toughest part was figuring out how to integrate skylights into the nail-laminated timber, McTague said.

鈥淲e had to get on site and figure out where all the panel joints are,鈥� he said.

One manufacturer, StructureCraft Builders in Abbotsford, British Columbia, has phased out nail-laminated timber in favor of dowel-laminated timber 鈥� an all-wood product. Nail-laminated timber can still be produced for specific projects, according to StructureCraft’s website.

Overall, McTague said the material worked as designed and he’d be happy to use it in another project.

鈥淚’d love to use it again as a structural finish material,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t gives the material a lot more texture. It looks nice.鈥�

The headquarters project has charged ahead despite the coronavirus pandemic. During a recent site visit, workers were busy. They appeared to be observing social distancing, but none was wearing a mask. Shared equipment was being wiped down regularly, Cleghorn said.

The construction team has encountered some snags, but work has continued without serious interruption. Acquisition of certain materials has proved challenging, Cleghorn said.

鈥淭he glass, in particular 鈥� the lead time is just killing me,鈥� he said.

Woodblock Architecture sought permits for the project in October. Final completion is on track for mid-June, Cleghorn said.