is required a thicker plywood material for example may be used other web materials might comprise fibrous cement or like material or other high strength planar materials such as chipboard particle board and plastics type materials various species of timber would be suitable to form the timber poles particularly those type of species that tend to have a relatively constant diameter for a considerable portion of their length to minimise waste during the trimming and circularising processes referred to previously plantation pine materials tend to form suitable true rounds other materials that might be considered for example include coconut douglas fir and various eucalypt species in some applications high strength bamboo poles might be considered the timber poles will typically be treated against insect damage and fungus and might be impregnated with various timber protection products and or fire retardants as mentioned above the joists described herein can be used in many different applications and in particular the joists will be suitable for use as columns of a structure in which case the lower ends of the columns might either be embedded in concrete or supported on studs which in turn are embedded in concrete foundations it will be appreciated that the dowel type connection described herein is advantageous since it transfers connection loads directly along the central axis of the timber pole the bore hole along the core of the timber pole serves to remove only the weakest portion of the timber pole also the scalloped end of the poles serve to increase the bearing surface area of the pole ends thereby ensuring a well supported transfer of loads between different components within the structure as.