Two construction science specialists from EllisDon say Canada’s homegrown mass timber construction sector is creating its own momentum, with the cost gap between the product and traditional materials continuing to decrease and innovators learning new best practices with every successful project. As of Jan. 1, Ontario’s Building Code has been updated to allow construction of mass timber buildings up to 18 storeys, up from 12 storeys. An RBC report estimated the market could reach $4.9 billion by 2030 if global demand continues to grow at an annual rate of 14.5%. The same study noted widespread adoption of wood, specifically mass timber, could cut embodied emissions in buildings by as much as 25%. Mark Gaglione and Vincent Davenport say success breeds success in the sector. Two of the firm’s Toronto projects that were completed in the past year-and-a-half, T3 Sterling Road from Hines and Centennial College’s A Block Expansion project, used mass timber from British Columbia and Quebec respectively.