Modulix can also connect wooden elements to concrete, while leveling out the floor slab as well © Sihga
SIHGA’s fastening specialists do not come up with ideas for new products only in the test laboratory or in the office. The challenges which need to be mastered usually come directly from the construction site, and it is a matter of listening carefully, identifying problems and developing suitable solutions. One of those challenges is the “plate madness”, as Johann Gruber, master carpenter and head of product management at SIHGA, calls it. This refers to the need for leveling out the possible unevenness of a concrete floor before the CLT walls are lifted in. “As a rule, plastic spacers are stacked up and then glued together in a laborious process, which sometimes takes the assembly team a whole day,” Gruber says, outlining the problem for which SIHGA will soon have two patented solutions in its portfolio.
The first solution is a leveling anchor which combines the fastening and leveling of a threshold in one step and can also be inserted directly into the concrete if necessary. “The stepless adjustment is then done via an intelligent, mechanical system. The fitters can determine the appropriate level using laser measurement and then set up the leveling anchors with high precision in just a few simple steps,” Gruber says, explaining the idea which has already been tried and tested in practice. He does not, however, want to go into technical details any further, as SIHGA will only launch this solution on the market in spring 2025. “Compared to the plate method, the assembly team sometimes saves themselves a whole day of work on the construction site, as our leveling anchors can easily be set and adjusted on the same day of assembly,” managing director Jane-Beryl Simmer says, summarizing the main advantage of the product in one sentence.
Exactly in the wall
The Modulix connector, which Sihga does not want to show in detail yet, is anchored in the CLT elements in the factory and has to be fixed on the construction site with just one screw. In the end, the connection is completely concealed © Sihga
As a second solution for this area of application, SIHGA developed the Modulix anchoring system for leveling out uneven floors – only one of the many advantages of this product. Modulix essentially consists of two parts which are already inserted into the wood in the assembly hall and then only need to be locked with a side screw on the construction site. “Contrary to conventional angle systems, Modulix is placed in the wall, which is why it can absorb shear and tensile forces particularly well,” Gruber says about a key advantage of this newly developed product, which is currently in the approval process.
In addition, Modulix saves a huge amount of time on the construction site, as a calculation example for a two-story residential building with 160 m² of floor space shows: Previously, around 135 angle connectors had to be fastened with around 30 fitting screws or anchor nails each. Now, only one screw is needed for each of the 86 Modulix elements required on the construction site. As a result, almost 1,000 screws fewer are needed on this particular construction site, since each Modulix connector is attached to the wood with eight screws already in the factory. According to Simmer, the Modulix connector is completely concealed, which has both visual and fire safety advantages. Furthermore, the connection can be loosened with just one screw, meaning that a structure can be completely disassembled without any damage. In addition to being a wood-to-wood connector for the following floor, Modulix can also be used to connect wooden walls to reinforced concrete floor slabs and to level out any unevenness.
Little helpers
Winkelix is a practical drilling and screw template for the precise screwing in of full-threaded screws © Sihga
If the assembly is done with the well-known angle connectors, SIHGA product developer Benedikt Kaiser-Mühlecker has a third solution for leveling out walls. The Distancer is a steplessly adjustable disc spacer which can be used to easily compensate for any unevenness regardless of the type of connection. This product, too, helps make the use of countless plates a thing of the past.
For the easy adjustment of Modulix and leveling anchors without having to bend down, SIHGA recommends Orakelix. Equipped with a leveling laser receiver and precise measuring scale, the base areas of CLT walls can be set up just as well as substructures of terraces.
Full-threaded screws often have to be screwed in at different angles due to requirements for structural safety. SIHGA developed the practical Winkelix drilling and screw template, which allows 6.5-, 8- and 10-mm screws to be screwed in with precision, with possible angles ranging from 30° to -30°. “This product simplifies the daily work of carpenters and also makes timber construction even safer,” Simmer says, explaining the advantages of the new products and the corporate philosophy in just a few words.
