Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1274063
J U LY 2 0 2 0 | 41 Engineered Wood Products P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E SY S T RU C T U R EC R A F T B U I L D ER S I N C .; R EN D ER I N G CO U RT E SY WO O D WO R K S! B C Higher & Higher Engineered wood products are entering an exciting era by NATALIE BRUCKNER I f you have read the various studies and reports out there on the engineered wood market in Canada, you may be a little con- fused. There seems to be an overwhelming amount of doom and gloom, and yet, when you look at the stats and speak to the experts, the story is very different. Recent trends have seen an increased use of engi- neered wood products in the construction sector, in part as a result of new standards for taller engi- neered wood buildings, in part because of the wide range of innovative technologies and products that allow for bigger and better, and in part due to the increasing awareness around the environmental and wellness benefits of wood use. With recent advances in the technological under- standing of wood and automated manufacturing processes, the experts at StructureCraft agree that mass timber continues to be on the rise. Updates to codes and an increasing variety of structures built in mass timber reflect its viability and permanence as a construction system. The warm esthetic, sustain- ability, and biophilic nature of wood appeal to the up-and-coming generation; its unique market offer- ing, speed of construction, and increasing economic viability appeal to owners across North America. The new University of Idaho Basketball Arena (under construction) will be the first all-timber arena in the U.S. in over 30 years. It showcases the versatility of wood in long spans and freeform geometry. Long spans up to 140 feet are solved with hybrid timber/steel trusses, prefabricated to allow for fast installation. Just completed, The Soto mass timber office building in San Antonio is one of the first North American projects to support heavy brick off a mass timber frame. These projects demonstrate the challenges that are being solved with timber in exposed architectural structures. B.C.'s early adoption of the 2020 National Building Code of Canada (NBCC), which includes increas- ing the maximum height limit for wood buildings to 12 storeys (42 metres in height) using Encapsulated Mass Timber Construction (EMTC), is indeed an exciting development in the industry, and as Lynn Embury-Williams, executive director of Wood Works! BC says, "mass timber is now recognised as an important competitive structural building system." B.C.'s early adoption of the code is jurisdiction- specific, and so far 13 communities have met the requirements and the City of Vancouver, which has its own building code, has passed a bylaw allowing up to 12 storeys in wood with additional require- ments. "This is all possible due to the technological advancement of mass timber systems," she says. "While light-frame wood construction will remain a mainstay in buildings six storeys and under, mass timber is now becoming a mainstream structural building system that is an economic, high-perfor- mance, and low-carbon alternative that meets and, in some cases, exceeds safety standards including fire protection in tall buildings." The EMTC provisions call for exposed structural mass timber elements to be encapsulated by gyp- sum wallboard or other materials to add to mass timber's inherent fire resistance. "This comes after years of rigorous scientific testing, government-sup- ported research and industry consultation as well as the first tall wood project in B.C. – the 18-storey Brock Commons Tallwood House, which was com- pleted in 2017 at UBC," explains Embury-Williams. To date, there are well over 200 buildings in B.C. built with mass timber, and Wood Works! BC has a list of well over 20 tall wood buildings they are mon- itoring. These are mostly residential, and a few are offices and mixed-use. One of the first projects to be built in B.C. under the new building code is Tallwood 1 in Langford, B.C. – a 12-storey mass timber, mixed- use residential and commercial building. Western Archrib, which has been designing, manufacturing, and custom fabricating glulam structural wood systems since 1951, has continued to see year-on-year growth. Andre Lema, in charge of business development, says the early adoption of the 12-storey wood construction standard is one of the reasons and that he is now seeing interest from a more diverse group. "We are getting a lot of developers contacting us directly as they explore the use of wood as a viable alternative. We are talking with them almost daily," Lema explains. He says the challenge with this increased inter- est is one faced by many trades...the lack of skilled personnel who can construct more technical build- ings. However, he was recently thrilled to hear from British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) who sent out a survey looking to address this from the educational aspect. When it comes to projects, Western Archrib is involved in some very exciting developments, many of which are pursuing Passive House certification, because, as Lema explains, it is a "complementary industry as wood helps with the passivity." One of those projects was Clayton Community Centre in Surrey, B.C., which at 76,000-square foot is believed to be Canada's largest Passive House facility to date. "The framing system is especially Tallwood 1, Langford, B.C. The Soto mass timber office building, San Antonio, TX.