Category Archives: Wood, Paper & Green Building

Modern timber construction continues to go from strength to strength, with the latest major development recently revealed for Sweden. Described by its creators as the world’s largest wooden construction project, it will include an impressive 2,000 homes, as well as office and retail space – all built primarily from timber. As its name suggests, Stockholm Wood City will be located in the Swedish capital. It’s really more of a neighborhood and will be focused on housing, plus retail space, restaurants, as well as office space and public meeting spaces. The buildings will showcase the natural beauty of the wood. In addition to its use of sustainably sourced construction materials, Stockholm Wood City will also reduce its carbon footprint with rooftop-based solar panels, which will be connected to batteries and reduce its draw on the power grid. Significant greenery will be planted on the rooftops and terraces too.

AUSTRIA — Timber construction is in vogue and this applies not only to residential construction or some office buildings, but also to the hotel industry. More and more hoteliers and restaurateurs are relying on wood as a material for a combination of feel-good atmosphere, nature, modern design and charming down-to-earthness. Guild master Friedrich Egger from the state timber construction guild is convinced that “building with wood stands for comfort and the highest quality”. According to Egger, the natural building material wood is rapidly gaining ground in the holiday hotel industry. Master wood builder Josef Rainer emphasizes that “the modern, constructive quality wood construction has absolutely nothing to do with the folkloric-kitschy lederhosen style of construction. It’s more about authenticity and modern zeitgeist.” Thanks to the high degree of prefabrication of the timber construction, tourism professionals can also benefit from shorter implementation times and only have to interrupt their operations for a much shorter time.

The latest report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the Timber Industries, ‘Timber Construction: Barriers and Solutions’, provides a set of policy recommendations to expand low-carbon timber construction in the UK. Increasing the use of timber in construction has been recommended by both the Climate Change Committee and Environmental Audit Committee to decarbonise the UK’s built environment and achieve net zero by 2050. The report looks at how the government can achieve this through policies that increase demand for sustainable timber, increase the resilience of timber supply, tackle misconceptions about building safety and expand low-carbon construction skills. This latest APPG report complements the work of the Timber in Construction Working Group, which was set up by the government in 2021 to identify significant actions that should be taken to increase the number of timber structures built in the UK.

UK — A massive timber office block in central London is set to be the UK’s first of its kind. On the corner of Gray’s Inn Road and Clerkenwell Road, the brand new structure will replace a building from the 1960s. Being built over the former Holborn Town Hall, the nine-storey block by Piercy&Co will use 100 percent renewable energy and is set to be carbon net zero. …‘[With this approach] comes the responsibility of designing a building that sets a high standard for ecologically responsible construction, and a design that is of a quality and adaptability that ensures the building has the best possible chance of still being here in 100 years’ time.’ The project is set to be complete in early 2026.

The Biden administration proposed new rules for protecting imperiled plants and animals that would reverse changes under former President Donald Trump that weakened the Endangered Species Act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to reinstate a decades-old regulation that mandates protections for species newly classified as threatened. That provision was dropped under Trump as part of a suite of changes to the species law encouraged by industry. Officials also would drop consideration of economic impacts when deciding if animals and plants need protection. Another change would expand requirements for federal agencies to consult with the wildlife service or the National Marine Fisheries Service before taking actions. Industry groups and Republicans in Congress have long viewed the Endangered Species Act as an impediment to economic development. …Many of the changes under Trump were finalized during his last weeks in office.

GERMANY — The federal government wants more wood to be used in house and apartment construction. According to the cabinet decision, the federal government should set a good example and rely more on renewable raw materials in construction projects. According to the German government, by 2030 significantly more will be built with wood instead of concrete or stone. The cabinet decided on a corresponding initiative to promote the use of renewable raw materials in the construction and addition of floors to buildings. …The federal government’s wood initiative relies primarily on indirect support. One of the eight fields of action mentioned is that the federal government itself builds more with wood as a role model. Research, innovation, knowledge and skilled workers should be secured, as should the supply of raw materials. …The government also wants to remove obstacles to timber construction and create equal competitive opportunities with other building materials.

Metsä Group has decided to build a new Kerto LVL mill in Äänekoski for the production of beam and panel products used in the construction industry. Kerto LVL products significantly reduce the carbon footprint of buildings compared to many other materials. The value of the investment is Euro 300 million, and the mill is expected to begin production in late 2026. The mill’s annual production capacity is approximately 160,000 cubic metres, which represents a 50 per cent increase in the company’s total Kerto LVL capacity. Kerto LVL production primarily serves the construction industry in the European market. …Kerto LVL (laminated veneer lumber) is a construction material which combines material efficiency with the high added value of wood. Kerto LVL’s excellent technical performance makes it suitable for very versatile construction uses such as elements and modular construction.

Veszprém, Hungary — Budapest-based design practice Hello Wood has created a temporary, geometrical pavilion made of planted wooden containers shaped in a caleidoscope-like manner, with names of cities and villages engraved on them, symbolizing the collaborative efforts of the 116 municipalities participating in the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 European Capital of Culture program. “For each municipality participating in the VEB2023 program, we have designed a unique planter box, with the name of the municipality clearly displayed on the side, containing a sapling.” …The historical significance of the site, which was home to one of the largest furniture factories in the region for some 120 years, was also a key factor in the design. This historical heritage is commemorated by the cladding of the planter boxes, which is made from almost 120-year-old reclaimed timber, the old larch planking from the recently renovated Drechsler Palace in Budapest.

Gia Lai, Vietnam – The Central Highlands province of Gia Lai, once known as the “timber industry tycoon”, is devising a clear strategy to put its wood processing industry on solid footing when it comes to exports to the European Union (EU). Gia Lai is now home to nearly 300 wood production and processing facilities, mostly small-scale operations that engage in timber logging and processing to supply raw materials and wood chips to processors and exporters outside the province. With a forested area of over 150,000ha and approximately 90,000ha of rubber plantations, the province is considered a significant source of raw materials for wood producers and processors. The province is working to create a legal framework to ensure the legality of Vietnamese timber exports to the European market under the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance, and Trade.

Timber Development UK is stepping up to eliminate misconceptions about timber buildings in Timber Typologies – a groundbreaking new book produced with Waugh Thistleton Architects. Timber Typologies aims to clear up the confusion which persists around timber building systems and their appropriate applications. It brings clarity and consistency to the variety of timber systems and options which exists for policy makers and built environment specialists alike. You can download download Timber Typologies for free for free from the Timber Development UK website. It is intended as a primer – a ‘beginner’s guide’ – for all the different timber solutions. This book will help build understanding for developers, policy makers, designers and stakeholders to make the right decisions and deliver the best buildings possible using timber.