CARPENTRY Flashcards

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CARPENTRY Flashcards

Carpentry, the art and trade of cutting, working, and joining timber. The term includes both structural timberwork in framing and items such as doors, windows, and staircases.

In the past, when buildings were often wholly constructed of timber framing, the carpenter played a considerable part in building construction; along with the mason he was the principal building worker. The scope of the carpenter’s work has altered, however, with the passage of time. Increasing use of concrete and steel construction, especially for floors and roofs, means that the carpenter plays a smaller part in making the framework of buildings, except for houses and small structures. On the other hand, in the construction of temporary formwork and shuttering for concrete building, the carpenter’s work has greatly increased.

Because wood is widely distributed throughout the world, it has been used as a building material for centuries; many of the tools and techniques of carpentry, perfected after the Middle Ages, have changed little since that time. On the other hand, world supplies of wood are shrinking, and the increasing cost of obtaining, finishing, and distributing timber has brought continuing revision in traditional practices. Further, because much traditional construction wastes wood, engineering calculation has supplanted empirical and rule-of-thumb methods. The development of laminated timbers such as plywood, and the practice of prefabrication have simplified and lowered the cost of carpentry.