Mass timber is reshaping how we think about construction. With cross-laminated timber (CLT) offering the strength of concrete at a fraction of the weight and carbon footprint, the building industry stands at a critical turning point.
As a structural engineer with three decades of experience, I believe we’re only beginning to embrace the potential of mass timber. What started as a novel idea in the 1990s is now a scalable, code-approved and commercially proven solution for today’s environmental and economic challenges. From faster builds and lower costs to measurable reductions in embodied carbon, the case for mass timber is stronger than ever.
Clear Environmental and Financial Benefits
There are three key, interconnected forces pushing mass timber from a small-scale alternative to a mainstream solution. First, the importance of climate accountability stemming from the growing urgency to reduce the carbon implications of buildings. According to the World Green Building Council, buildings are responsible for almost 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with 28% of that total figure attributable to operational emissions and 11% to materials and construction.
Mass timber can make a dramatic difference to mitigating the effects of global warming. Wood acts as a “carbon sink,” with each cubic meter of CLT able to sequester 1 ton of CO2, and lifecycle analyses show that mass timber buildings can reduce embodied carbon by 30-50% compared to steel or concrete construction.
Regulation maturity is another critical factor. The 2021 International Building Code (IBC) allows mass timber buildings up to 18 stories, a milestone that was further strengthened by federal support. The USDA’s $10 million Mass Timber Competition has funded 39 projects since 2020, including HDR’s award-winning hybrid design for a governmental building.
Additionally, the economic benefits are plain to see. Mass timber buildings can see a 25% faster construction speed thanks to digital modelling and prefabrication. The final product, whether an office, hotel or mixed-use scheme, can carry rental premiums of around 15% due to the better sustainability credentials of wood, finds the 2023 International Mass Timber Report. Further industry research reveals that utilizing mass timber can reduce total construction costs by 12% and deliver a 15-20% faster return on investment than traditional methods.
Reimagining Sustainable Design and Construction
At HDR, we have translated this potential into real buildings, completing more than 70 mass timber projects throughout North America in the past two decades, with recent examples including Canadian Nuclear Lab Campus, Orange County Sanitation District Headquarters, and more.
A stand-out project is the new West Wing at Lakeside Resort in Penticton, Canada, for RPB Hotels. This 127,550-square-foot, 70-suite hotel building is constructed using mass timber, and we worked closely with an engineering team throughout the design stages to ensure that the building exceeded all standards of the building code, with careful consideration to acoustic properties and fire separations.
A wood structure such as this offers many advantages, particularly regarding environmental efficiency. One of the core design decisions on the project was to expose the wood wherever possible, with no additional finishes required. Light wood frame components were also prefabricated, and the overall lighter structure (the building weights less than half of an equivalent concrete structure) allowed for a foundation system without piles, also resulting in significant material, time, and cost savings. In fact, the construction schedule was lowered by an estimated six weeks.
A Bold New Vision for Building the Cities of Tomorrow
What does the future hold? Mass timber has transformational potential as a viable material defining our urban landscape, with several likely trends on the horizon.
Digital collaboration has a major role to play in its success. Today’s BIM-driven workflows can reach 1mm precision in fabrication and, with advanced tools, including those incorporating the fast-advancing capabilities of AI, timber can become the “new concrete” for parametric design.
By adopting cutting-edge technologies and methodologies, we can create higher buildings of timber-concrete-steel hybrid construction. With risks of fire, seismic, and vibration well understood and mitigated, mass timber vertical urbanism is achievable.
Wider use of mass timber can support circular economy principles, with buildings designed from the outset for disassembly and reuse at the end of their life. Moreover, every mass timber component could have a digital passport, a tracking system that could enable up to 90% material recovery, turning demolition materials into a valuable renewable resource.
The time to make key decisions is now, and the payoff can be considerable for all. Policymakers can align zoning codes with decarbonization goals, ensuring that cities capture carbon rather than emit it. Architects can create designs that harness the biophilic power and natural warmth of wood to enhance the wellbeing factor in buildings. For developers, mass timber offers a way to combine safeguarding the health of the planet with measurable commercial upside, from higher returns to quicker delivery times. Not to mention an easier route to securing planning approvals and adhering to tightening sustainability accreditations.
This is not about replacing steel and concrete, but about elevating potential to create better and more sustainable cities for the next generation.
