The aim of this paper is to provide a numerical simulation for giving a technical answer to some problems that a structural engineer has to solve when designing a timber building based of Platform Frame technology, i.e., composed of light-frame timber shear walls. For a fully anchored wall, a finite element model, aimed at determining wall stiffness, strength and ductility, is presented. The shear wall is considered as lacking of any constructive imperfection. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.