Mass Ply Design Tools: Design With Freres Products for Free in SPEC Toolbox

Engineers are more likely to specify mass timber products when they can evaluate them clearly during design.

This is the practical reality of getting a project designed, detailed, reviewed, and built. When two materials can do the job, the one with clearer design information and fewer unknowns often has the advantage.

That is one of the reasons we are pleased to share that Freres Mass Ply products are now available in SPEC Toolbox, a free browser-based structural design platform used by engineers across North America.

For engineers, architects, and project teams considering Mass Ply, this means Freres products can now be evaluated earlier and more easily during design. Instead of starting with a blank spreadsheet or digging through static product data, engineers can work in a platform built to support real structural design decisions.

SPEC Toolbox allows users to design with Freres products across floors, walls, beams, and columns. The platform also supports fire design and connection design, with connection supplier products integrated into the same environment.

Because mass timber design is not limited to choosing a panel. The details around spans, loading, fire resistance, connections, and documentation all influence whether a product makes it into the drawings.

Making Mass Ply Easier to Specify

Mass Ply CLT panels and Mass Ply Lam products are built for serious structural applications. But for any engineered wood product to be used well, design teams need access to current product data and practical design tools.

SPEC Toolbox helps remove some of the technical friction that can slow down specification.

Engineers can now design Mass Ply CLT floors and walls, along with Mass Ply Lam beams and columns, directly in the platform. They can also work through fire design and connection detailing, then produce a full PDF calculation report.

In SPEC Toolbox, engineers can see the methods behind the checks and generate reports that show the design approach. For a profession that has to defend its calculations to reviewers, authorities, owners, and project partners, that transparency is important.

Current Data in One Place

Mass timber design has often required engineers to build and maintain their own tools. That can mean private spreadsheets, copied section properties, separate connection assumptions, and files that need to be checked every time product data changes.

With Freres products live in SPEC Toolbox, engineers can work from manufacturer-supported information maintained within the platform.

That gives design teams a cleaner starting point. It also helps reduce the risk of working from outdated data or separate assumptions that do not match the product being specified.

For project teams, this can make early evaluation more practical. An engineer can sit down, test design options, review outputs, and better understand where Mass Ply may fit before the project is too far along.

A Practical Step for Mass Timber Design

Mass timber continues to gain ground because more owners, architects, engineers, and builders are looking for efficient structural systems with a lower-carbon material profile and strong aesthetic value.

Even so, good products still need a clear path into the design process.

Having Freres Mass Ply products available in SPEC Toolbox gives engineers another way to evaluate Mass Ply during concept development, schematic design, and structural planning. It also supports better conversations between designers, suppliers, and project teams earlier in the process.

The platform is free for engineers to use in the browser. There is no desktop installation required, and engineers can begin designing with Freres products directly through SPEC Toolbox.

For teams considering Mass Ply on an upcoming project, this is a useful place to start. Use SPEC Toolbox to evaluate Freres products, generate calculation reports, and better understand how Mass Ply may work within your design.

Then, when your project is ready for a deeper conversation, connect with the Freres Mass Ply team. We can help review project needs, answer product questions, and support the next steps from design consideration to project planning.

Start designing with Freres Mass Ply products for free at SPEC Toolbox.