2. use timber and biobased alternatives
There is much to be gained from building in timber. Starting a design process with timber and biobased alternatives contributes strongly in sustainability.
advantages of using timber
It is important that an architect encourages clients to use more timber. It has a warm appearance, but moreover it has important characteristics related to circularity:
- Like trees, it can store CO2 during the whole life cycle.
- A wooden building can store CO2 for a long period of time.
- timber has a lower CO2-emission than traditional construction materials, such as steel and concrete.
- timber strucures are lightweight, which reduces the amount of materials for de foundation. Also less energy is necessary for production and transport of construction wooden materials.
- timber construction elements can be prefabricated, which reduces construction time.
- timber is one of the few renewable construction materials.
Furthermore we collaborate closely with FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) as partners to ensure using sustainably produced timber construction materials.
development of wood construction industry
Structural loads, large spans, high density buildings or even the scale of a project were reasons to discourage the use of timber. However the timber construction industry has developed significantly. Currently it is more feasible to apply timber structural elements, such as Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) and Kerto-Ripa. These are prefabricated construction components with considerable load-bearing capacity that can replace other building materials such as brickwork and concrete. Such developments create more possiblities for timber as a construction component.
Concrete, steel, and aluminum are responsible for 23% of the world’s total CO2 emissions. We present are experienced with building alternatives, sharing our insights on designing with wood and biobased materials for significantly reduced carbon.
