Timber: the Building Material of the Future.
11th December 2020
As the construction industry evolves, and as we as a studio progress towards more complex and large scale developments, it seems ever more important to reflect on the methodologies we hold as fundamental. With this in mind, we recently watched "Timber: the Building Material of the Future" from the RIBA and produced by Swedish Wood.
The CPD serves as an introduction to the current building methodologies, design practices and environmental implications of off-site prefabricated structural timber. The biggest take away for us was the breadth of options available for timber prefab systems, and the potential of integration into existing practice methodologies. Integrated at an early stage, the structural fabric of the design can be aligned to suit the constraints of the proposed material and required building standards. Although this requires an early investment of time into ensuring the system works, research shows that this investment is paid back once the project reaches site and construction time is drastically reduced.
The lecture also discusses how the use of timber has benefits in reduced impact to the environment. A publicised Swiss study in 2019 suggested a worldwide tree planting programme could remove two-thirds of all emissions from human activities. In addition, the reduction in site waste from offsite fabrication, and the recycling potential of waste wood have a drastic impact on carbon emissions.
The lecture seems to suggest the potential of offsite prefab timber panels has not yet been reached, something we are looking forward to exploring further nest year.
