I'm a rookie, so I don't profess to be an expert on timber framing. I have learned that many inspectors require that timbers be graded. Makes sense, in that someone needs to give that inspector some assurance that the timber is as strong as the engineer assumed it was when the engineer approved the plans.

I have heard from others that there is a timber organization out there that will teach and certify someone in your shop to grade timbers. The annual charge for this is $2k to $3k, and the stamp must not leave the shop. This is cost prohibitive for a small shop. And a decent timber framer surely can grade timbers, even if he has to have a little training in the requirements.

So, why not start with timber grading? See if the Guild will explore with the timber grading organizations some way we can be trained at Guild meetings, and for a reasonable fee each year, certify the grade of the timbers that go into our frames. This might already be covered by your insurance. That's something else that the Guild could check.

Heck, for what I know this was tried by the Guild years ago. Anyone know if there has been any work on this before?

Now an engineering stamp, that seems much more of a stretch to me. I think timber framers sleep better at night knowing that an engineer has reviewed and approved the frame.

As I have said, if you can teach someone the rules for grading, why should they have to be part of a business to be certified? There is no reason. Qualified is quailified. Annual cost for a stamp? I'm sure it's reasoned that those fees maintain the "standards organization". With the expertise and experience of certain guild memebers and already being an established organization(and we already pay dues to maintian the organization), it is likely feasable that they could maintain and administer the standards for grading and selection. They'd have to vote as to whether that is something they'd want to take on.
I also understand it is desireable to maintain some sort of control of stamps. What is a stamp? It's a mark that denotes that the person has been trained and passed minimum grading standards. Each stamp should show the organization as well as a number that designates who's stamp it is. It should also be required that training be renewed at some interval(like a driver's license). Each owner of a stamp is responsible for their own stamp. If it's misused, the individual should be liable, not the organization. The organization can only assure standard rules, training, and administration of testing.
Once again, the point is to allow hobbyists or others doing timberframing on a small scale or small scale sawing operation, to grade their own stuff or for friends or to be available locally to help other guild members. Certification should also be verifiable online - a building inspector could look up the stamp number and verify that it is current, valid, and contact info for the grader is available.
One example is UL. UL is a recognized standards organization. They also have to certify products which leaves some companies hostage to their schedule, fees etc. Other standards orgs have popped up to combat this, like CSA.

DKR,

Good idea. I think the Guild should look into making it easier for us to become certified graders. I will see what kind of interest I can stir up about this. Obviously it is already seen as an issue, as I can remember several grading courses being offered over the last few years at various guild events.

Gabel

I took the BC Interior Timber Grading course in 1998, and I'll tell you, I learned more about wood grading while working as a timber framer than I did during my 4 weeks and much money spent at the college....

Here's some background about adding the grading workshop at the Western Conference:
The Log Homes Council of the NAHB funded the research that developed the grading standards (for logs, but also applicable to timber). This particular certification is through them, so they require membership to use it. I guess they have right to try to recoup their investment. This was brought to us by Robert Savignac as a potential workshop since he was presenting at the Conference anyway, and we thought we'd give it a try, and perhaps attract some log builders to our event.
We have had grading workshops at a number of Guild events and will have one at the Camp Letts rendezvous and I'm offering one at Heartwood in June. But these are 1/2 - 1 day, and do not give certification; that requires a much longer course from NELMA. We will probably offer one of those as well soon, although NELMA already offers those that you could go to.
The grader certification is, in my opinion, appropriate for bigger companies that mill their own timber and regularly use engineered drawings that specify grade. In my experience in western Massachusetts, I have rarely, if ever, required engineer's or grade stamps. I'm lucky. If I did need either, it might be cheaper to just pay for a grader (like Jim did) or buy graded timbers than to get certified.
Anyway, I shudder to think of what some local sawyers have provided over the years, and any timber framer should know the rules and methods for grading. It's not that hard, but there are subtleties and interpretations that make a workshop better than just trying to learn it from a book. Each grading agency, including NELMA, has the grading book you can buy on their website.
So back to the Coeur d'Alene workshop: you don't need to be from a company to take the workshop. But you need to be if you want to use the certification legally. If all you want is the knowledge and damn the stamp, then take the workshop.