Can Engineered Timber be the Mainstream Construction Material?

This report, submitted to the Queensland University of Technology, examines the potential of engineered timber as a mainstream construction material for the coming centuries. It explores the material's sustainability, usability, and applicability in the construction industry, particularly for medium-rise structures. The report delves into the benefits of engineered timber, including its strength-to-weight ratio, ease of use, and environmental advantages compared to traditional materials like steel and concrete. It also addresses challenges such as the absence of a local supply chain and social perceptions regarding fire risk. The methodology involves a qualitative approach, utilizing secondary data from academic journals and industry sources. The report discusses the making of Cross-laminated Timber (CLT), timber tower anatomy, and the adaptability of engineered timber. Ultimately, the report aims to determine whether engineered timber can become the primary construction material, considering factors such as cost, efficiency, and environmental impact, offering insights into the future of sustainable construction practices.

Content
A report submitted to the Queensland University of Technology
School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment
in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the unit.
SEM 2 2018
UXH400 - 2 RESEARCH PROJECT 1 - PART B
ASSESSMENT 2: FINAL REPORT
Can engineered timber be the mainstream
construction material for the centuries to come?
“A sustainable approach for the medium rise construction industry”

s
Abstract.......................................................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
Introduction.............................................................................................................................................3
Background..............................................................................................................................................3
Research Aims & Objectives....................................................................................................................6
METHODS/DATA ANALYSIS.........................................................................................................................7
RESULTS & DISCUSSION.............................................................................................................................10
Engineered timber: A game changer in the Construction Industry........................................................11
Making Cross-laminated Timber........................................................................................................13
Timber Tower Anatomy.........................................................................................................................15
What makes MET such an adaptable building material?.......................................................................16
I. Solid and tough though lightweight...............................................................................................17
II. Saves time and labor costs during construction............................................................................17
III. Naturally fascinating.....................................................................................................................17
IV. Performs to resist the components..............................................................................................18
Wood and Climate Change....................................................................................................................18
Wood and Impacts on Life cycle............................................................................................................19
LIMITATIONS/CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................20
Limitations.............................................................................................................................................20
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................21
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................................21

Abstract
Sustainability and climate change have become among the most pressing issues in the
construction industry of in the global context. Architects, other designers as well as contractors
are striving to coming up with buildings and structures that are not only comfortable, habitable
and meets the human occupant demands but also environmental friendly and sustainable with
regard to the ever changing climatic conditions. This paper seeks to explore the usability and
applicability of wood as a sustainable building material. Wood has proved to be a better material
in comparison with steel and concrete as it combines the features of strength and lightweight.
INTRODUCTION
Introduction
Wood, the derivative of timber is a natural and organic having been used for several
decades and stayed in the construction industry where it has been used in the construction of
bridges, buildings among other different types of structures. Wood thus remains a very
significant construction material even in the current day construction industry, thanks to research
and enhanced technology that has seen improved understanding and knowledge of the behaviour
of the material. The research and technological improvements have seen the designers comes up
with ways of using timber in manners that are not only efficient but also safe besides in more
tricky and fantastic applications (Khatib, (2016).
Background
Timber has numerous significant features. One of such is the relatively warm texture as
well as a fascinating look making it mostly applied in the internal finishing besides being used
for the main assembly. Working with timber is very easy and it is possible to be generated into

an avalanche of sizes as well as shapes. Timber as well boasts of high ration of strength to
weight as well as excellent thermal insulation properties. It is possible to use timber jointly or
composite with steel as well as concrete and has remained to be the only single construction
material which do not result in greenhouse emissions and can confidently be declared to be
highly recyclable and entirely renewable (Ramage et al., 2017).
Making a choice on construction has often remained a challenge and a thorn in the mind
of builders who are all set to go ahead and erect their structures thereby initiating a subject of
argument in the industry, making a comparison between the relative benefit of timber, masonry
as well as steel construction. In general terms, conventional there have been dominantly two
main technologies that have been adopted in residential or commercial architecture around the
globe.
While one of such technologies is traditional masonry, the other one has been what is
termed as lightweight construction which mainly makes use of timber or associated products.
Each of the two technologies has undergone massive evolution over the period that have mainly
been brought about by changes in the culture, climate as well as the advances in technology nit
forgetting the experience that the various societies have had in the use of each of the
technologies (Sharma, Gatóo & Ramage, 2015). The construction industry at large now
demonstrates a transition and tilt towards modular as well as lightweight construction. This is
inclusive of the emergence of lightweight pre-manufactured frames of steel for use in residential
housing that are as well rapidly finding their way into the market of late.
Masonry has emerged and remained as one of the main construction materials since time
memorial globally which and is utilized as a load bearing material as well as a cladding to most

of the frames structures. Block and brick masonry have remained the material that are used for
construction and are used by extension in all types of construction. The modern masonry
structure of today are however slim when compared against the ancient constructions that used
the same materials; adopting the use of the latest materials as well as the methods of design.
Steel frame construction has as well been used both in commercial and residential housing before
and is still in use. The construction of steel frame is done using light weight gauge steel even
though some of the steel frames are prefabricated. Among the challenges that may crop in during
the use of either of the two construction materials include disputes and delays emanating from
coming up with new regulations for building as well as agreement certificates, suppliers to the
conventional building sector (Dickson & Parker, 2015).
Following the shortcomings associated with the use of steel and concrete as the main
building material, a miracle building material has set in- a construction material that is as much
environmentally friendly as that which removes carbon from the environment and atmosphere as
opposed to increasing the volume of the already existing capacity. Timber is one of those
construction materials with which assemblages are able to go up at very high speeds which in
turn lower the nose and levels of disruptions at the building sites during construction.
The odds of timber building and of timber utilization as load-bearing material rely upon
the quality criteria. The most vital factor is the practical utilization of timber with the end goal to
build its use in development furthermore, make it focused in contrast with other constructional
materials. Timber as a material for supporting frameworks is a characteristic introduction for
utilization of wood in further developments. Subsequently, a wide range of wood as well as
timber, from round wood to squared timber via composite regions manufactured from sheets as

well as squared timber, alongside additionally glue laminated timber, compressed wood, and so
on, particularly when joined using various stuff, must be created as well as utilized (Mayo,
2015).
A few favourable circumstances incorporate light weight, reusing, simple to erect as well
as crush warm features and so forth. The two greatest impediments are invasion of creepy
crawlies as well as fires and may be talked about later in this investigation. Diverse materials are
being utilized in various nations as made reference to brick work are being utilized for most part
for the development of private lodging what's more, steel more for greater structures such as
distribution centers and so forth. Wood isn't generally utilized in development of lodging in the
world despite more usually utilized in different nations like America however is showing up. The
main concern in this study thus seeks to extensively address the possibility of using engineered
timber as the mainstream construction material for the coming centuries following an analysis of
such factors as the cost, efficiency, availability, environmental concerns among other issues. A
study is conducted to establish the benefits, shortcomings as well as the innovative ideas behind
engineered timber that would render it usable or otherwise not adoptable as the mainstream
construction material in the future centuries (Coombs, 2018).
Research Aims & Objectives
The aim of this exploration is to assess the capacity and achievability of designed timber as
an essential development material for medium ascent structures. Research to date show the
development business is one of the real players for Greenhouse Gas (GHG) outflows and
recognizes the need to embrace imaginative and supportable development strategies to moderate
the issues in connection to it. Notwithstanding that, specialists' sentiments following their

exploration in this field, decide a few advantages over conventional development in the event
that we embrace this strategy. This task plans to address the accompanying:
 To aid enhance the present specialized and social comprehension of the hindrances to
executing CLT into medium ascent timber structures
 To address the difficulties presented by a nonappearance of a neighbourhood inventory
network, government enactment which neglects to explicitly address CLT
 To assess how negative social impression of flame hazard and timber toughness are
overseen

METHODS/DATA ANALYSIS
As per the possibility of this examination, qualitative approach of methodology to
research will be adopted to help in discovering that the entire investigation targets as well as
focuses are viably alongside satisfactorily met. The examination is more of a prominent measure
of exploratory which means at the point when of satisfaction of examination, it is projected that
learner will have a nitty gritty and unsurprising the capacity and achievability of designed timber
as an essential development material for medium ascent structures. The qualitative research
would envelop an elaboration in the capacity and achievability of designed timber as an essential
development material for medium ascent structures. An illumination would, thusly, be offered
through emotional research concerning the capacity and achievability of designed timber as an
essential development material for medium ascent structures (Harris & van de Kuilen, 2016).
The investigation will make utilization of the four stages of subjective research among
them hypothetical stage, sketching out stage, exploratory stage, and data examination and
explanation arrange. The connected stage is the hidden time of subjective research and is
comprehensive of the determination of capacities among them creativity, deductive reasoning
and in addition firm building up to set up the start of the investigation. This stage incorporates
grabbing an establishment and likewise the purposes of the investigation through
conceptualization, theory and moreover a read and review of the proposals of different people.
The framework and organizing stage comes straightaway and for the example of this
investigation, meetings will be grasped to pick up information equipped towards watching out
for the subject of the exploration

Coming in the second last slot is the test organize that will tag along the collection of data
as well as preparing them arranged for examination that will be driven in resulting stage. With
the utilization of the portrayed out methodologies for data amassing, the required data which is
examinations on the capacity and achievability of designed timber as an essential development
material for medium ascent structures are secured for the explanations behind data examination.
The accumulated information may be fed into records of PCs or codes to ascertain that the data
contained in that is free from adversity, devastation or control. Examination as well as
additionally translation of assembled information includes the fourth time of the emotional
research of this examination. The possibility of the information assembled chooses and impacts
the choice of the technique that will be gotten. PCs may be changed in accordance with secure
the technique of quantifiable examination (Taylor, 2016).
Data sourced from secondary sources would be collected majorly from t academic
journals, locales, and furthermore sources from a fascinating industry. Distinctive procedure
would be laid to guarantee the most correct and noteworthy discretionary data is assembled for
explanations behind examination. The principle run is singling out those articles and journal
which are about the examination purpose of the examination that is on the capacity and
achievability of designed timber as an essential development material for medium ascent
structures. Gathering organized by most significance makes it easy to assemble and additionally
assembling those which analyze a comparable subject together. This significance is excessively
thorough of those which analyze the subtopics of the basic subject (Verma, 2018). Discoursed on
the subtopics have a tendency to give an all-around examination of the identical and from now
on aiding in expanding better understanding.

Once more of comparable method is that the auxiliary wellsprings of information used
for data social occasion should peer-explored articles and journals so to speak. By partner
studied it infers the reports are made by pros or scientists and a while later investigated or cross-
checked by various scholars in a comparative expertise to ascertain absolutely no abnormalities
or bungles with regard to their content before prior to them being published. This serves as a
guarantee that the information within the reports is most exact alongside being those which are
acknowledged to be within the most in the current style information understanding.
The accompanying worldview would be the extent that the date of publication of the
chosen journal or article. The secondary sources of data will simply pick those sidekick
investigated journals as well as in addition articles which were conveyed after five years i.e.
from 2013 and later. Much the equivalent as some different locales, the field of scholastics
undergoes colossal as well as quick dynamisms following the global changes which occur in
human life.
Information likewise changes and systems are always revived to such a degree, to the
point that structures which could have been effectively a decade down the line may be rendered
outdated hence can no longer be used in the present structure. It is henceforth that most cutting
edge journals as well as articles are chosen to guarantee there is a to a great degree strong
connection link which is elaborated in the articles as well as journals in line with the
contemporary occasions in a comparative field. This could redesign energetic and basic
formation of an examination (Kuzman et al., 2018).

RESULTS & DISCUSSION
Mass built timber is designed for manageability, for sturdiness, for the majority. Lately,
the green development has enhanced considerable believability. With relentlessly diminishing
assets, governments are feeling the strain to search out eco-accommodating answers to assist
infrastructural and populace development. Previously, organizations embraced green innovation
basically on the grounds that it was the moral activity. While the thinking still maintains this day,
progressions in green innovation has likewise settled on it a fiscally sensible decision. There are
presently different eco-accommodating development arrangements which may add to long haul
cost funds for the proprietors, while profiting the earth.
Mass built timber (MET) is generated by existing strong and composite wood-based
items, for example, measurement wood, sheets, and boards (Loss, Piazza & Zandonini, 2016).
Such items are then jointly stuck to shape items displaying enhanced secondary uprightness for
various purposes for development. They are thus sliced to measurements particular to venture at
the production lines, before being conveyed for on location gathering. At Singapore's Nanyang
Technological University, a S$35 million games lobby called The Wave was authoritatively
uncovered in April 2017. The Wave is the fourth structure in little city-state to join MET in its
plan. It is likewise touted as the principal expansive scale development venture in South-east
Asia to utilize MET (Woods, Mazur & Gales, 2017).
Engineered timber: A game changer in the Construction Industry
Contrasted and steel or cement, CLT, otherwise called mass timber, is less expensive,
less demanding to gather, as well as more heat proof, on account of the manner that wood singes.
It's additionally more economical. Wood is inexhaustible the same way any product, and it's a

carbon sink, sequestering the carbon dioxide it assimilated amid development even after it's been
transformed into timber. Waugh Thistleton gauges that the wood in Stadthaus stores 186 tons of
carbon while the steel and cement for a comparable, ordinarily fabricated pinnacle would have
created 137 tons of carbon dioxide amid generation. Wood nets reserve funds of 323 tons.
Figure 1: Cross-laminated Timber panels often cut to the specifications and the assembled the
site of construction: Extracted from (Woods, Mazur & Gales, 2017)
Demographers forecast the urban citizenry of the planet will twofold of every 36 years,
expanding the interest for ever-taller structures in ever-denser urban regions. Regardless of
whether designers alongside development firms assemble those towers from unsustainable stuff
such as steel as well as cement or utilize new materials among them CLT may be having a
colossal impact on the wellbeing of the Earth? Put in an unexpected way, the world's urban
future may just lie in its most established building material.