Rick Collins, Structural Timber Expert, JW Timber Framer + Consult

Rick is recognized for his expertise in both the history and the future of timber frame building. His portfolio encompasses visionary buildings that redefine the role of wood in the built environment, as well as authentic restoration and preservation work.

A structural timber expert who is committed to the Preservation & Continuation of our built and natural heritage; Rick is a Master Carpenter with formative experience in metalwork and mechanics, and one of only 20 people in North America to carry the certification of Journey Worker Timber Framer. He has a BS in Forest Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and served in the USMCR as a Combat Engineer. Rick is also a self-taught scholar in the methods and tooling that were used by Europeans who settled the Midwest from the 1600s-1800s.    

A long-time cultivator of creative energies within the US timber framing trade, today Rick focuses his energy as a consultant and a subject matter expert– adding to the efficiency, and context of a project by grounding process with practicality and linking community with place.