Wood touted as next big thing in highrise buildings
The University of British Columbia' Brock Commons in Canada showcases technology as highest timber tower in world
Have we been overthinking urban development? Could wood skyscrapers make tower construction shorter, quieter and less intrusive?
Proponents of the technology think so.
“It’s really a shift. People have realized that we’ve got a renewable building material here. Why don’t we use it?” said Bill Downing, president of Structurlam Products, a company that makes parts for mass timber construction. “Rather than bringing in steel from China, for example, maybe we should use the material in our own backyard.”
The University of British Columbia is building the word’s tallest timber tower, which is going up significantly faster than expected. Construction was predicted to take 20 months. But nine months after building started, Brock Commons is already 17 storeys and the final 18th floor is being built this week. Faster construction times are primarily a result of the prefabricated, mass timber pieces that are used to construct timber buildings. Large cross-laminated timber panels (CLT) and columns are made off-site and then delivered in the order in which they’re needed.
“It’s like a big Lego package that arrives on site,” said Downing. “It arrives with the right pieces to be installed at the right time. It’s all prefabricated. You install it, bolt it together and it’s done.”
But the technology is not without controversy. There have been heavy lobbying efforts for and against mass timber. The lumber industry is pushing the environmental benefits and cost savings of highrise timber towers and playing down fears of rot, mildew and fire; the cement and steel industries are trying to prevent mass timber from finding broader application to mid- and highrise buildings by focusing on the strength and durability of their industries’ materials.
Charles Kelly, president of the BC Ready-Mixed Concrete Association, said the CLT products used for mass timber construction were a positive development for construction but added that it’s more suitable for individual housing than mid- and highrise buildings.