Welcome to NLGA

The National Lumber Grades Authority (NLGA) is the organization responsible for the establishment, issuance, publication, amendment and interpretation of Canadian lumber grading rules and standards.  NLGA is the only recognized rules writing body for lumber grades and standards in Canada.

The NLGA Grade Rule incorporates the National Grading Rule for Dimension Lumber (NGR).  The NGR establishes standard lumber grades and grade names for all commercial species of dimension lumber, thus assuring lumber users of uniform design criteria and performance throughout Canada and the U.S.

The NLGA Grade Rule is approved and enforced by the Canadian Lumber Standards Accreditation Board (CLSAB) for “Canadian Standard Lumber” and by the American Lumber Standard Committee, Incorporated (ALSC) Board of Review for “American Standard Lumber”.  These approvals enable acceptance of dimension lumber graded according to the NLGA Grade Rule for structural use under Canadian and American building codes.

NLGA also establishes and monitors structural lumber design values of Canadian species.  These lumber design values are approved by the CSA O86 Technical Committee on Engineering Design in Wood for use in Canada and by the ALSC Board of Review for use in the U.S.

The membership of NLGA consists of all the independent lumber grading agencies operating in Canada (which are accredited by the CLSAB and ALSC) that oversee the grading activities of certified Canadian lumber producing facilities.