by Web Editor | Aug 30, 2017 | News
Engineered wood is also known as man-made wood or composite wood, and these are quite popular in recent times due to their cost effective and ecofriendly properties. These woods are formed of composite materials manufactured by binding the strands, fibers and particles all together with the help of suitable adhesives. These engineered woods can be made by utilizing wastes such as sawmill waste, rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, wheat straw and other wood wastes thus making them cost effective and environmentally friendly. Engineered wood is mainly used as a substitute to hardwood and concrete.
In many construction building projects, the products of engineered wood are used as an alternative of steel in beams. One of the advantages offered by engineered wood products is that it can be designed as per the demand and custom specifications of the end user. The main users of engineered wood products are construction developers, architects, designers etc. Promotion of green life and regulations concerning deforestation has led the global engineered wood market to expand with a decent pace.
Government norms and regulations such as Bharat stage emission standards or European emission standards regarding CO2 emissions are driving the market for engineered wood at whole different level. Owing to the factors like cost efficiency, enhanced quality, waste reduction and environmentally friendly nature, the engineered wood market is expected to witness significant growth in the market. There are certain innovations in the technologies and machining systems have been developed in order to improve the efficiency and quality of the products which are expected to further drive growth of the market.
Although the global engineered wood market has potential opportunities in the future still the manufacturers of engineered wood products face some challenges regarding durability and fire resistant properties of engineered wood products. There are certain adhesives like Urea-formaldehyde used in the manufacturing of engineered wood products which are quite toxic. Also some products such as particleboard may not be suitable for outdoor use as they are more prone to humidity. The ongoing developments regarding advanced grading and better material selection techniques is expected to result in improved definition of timber quality and efficient performance of the products.
From LANEWS.org: https://www.lanews.org/growing-industrialization-will-influence-the-engineered-wood-market-growth-2017-2027/
by Web Editor | May 24, 2017 | News
One building stands out in the old logging town of Prince George, Canada. Encased in a sleek glass facade, the structure towers above most of its neighbors, beckoning from afar with the warm amber glow of Douglas fir. Constructed almost entirely from timber in 2014, the 8-story, 30-meter building is among the tallest modern wooden structures in the world. But it is more than an architectural marvel. As the home of the Wood Innovation and Design Centre at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC), it is also an incubator for wooden buildings of the future — and a herald for a movement that could help to tackle global warming.
The building is less like a log cabin and more like a layered cake, constructed from wooden planks glued and pressed together, precision cut by factory lasers and then assembled on site. All told, the university avoided the release of more than 400 tons of carbon dioxide by eschewing energy-intensive concrete and steel, and the building locks up a further 1,100 tons of CO2 that was harvested from the atmosphere by British Columbian trees. In total, that’s enough to offset the emissions from 160 households for a year.
Wooden construction has ancient roots, but only in the past two decades have scientists, engineers and architects begun to recognize its potential to stave off global warming. By substituting concrete and steel with wood from sustainably managed forests, the building industry could curb up to 31% of global carbon emissions, according to research by Chad Oliver, a forest ecologist at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. In time, such a shift could help humanity to pull CO2 out of the atmosphere, potentially reversing the course of climate change.
“It’s the plywood miracle,” says Christopher Schwalm, an ecologist at Woods Hole Research Center in Falmouth, Massachusetts. “This is something that could have a significant impact on the riddle that is global environmental change.”
From Nature.com: https://www.nature.com/news/the-wooden-skyscrapers-that-could-help-to-cool-the-planet-1.21992
by Web Editor | Feb 10, 2017 | News
A new report from market research firm Allied Market Research (AMR) projects that the global engineered wood market is estimated to reach $41.273 billion by 2022, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.8 percent from 2016 – 2022. North America and Europe, being the developed markets, account for nearly 70 percent of global engineered wood production, while still maintaining high CAGRs.
Engineered wood demand is expected to remain high during the forecast period as it is an alternative to concrete and hardwood. Engineered wood products are widely used by architects, builders, code officials, and building designers aware of energy-efficient framing practices that conserve energy, speed-up construction, cut labor cost, and reduce waste.
“The rising popularity of engineered wood over hardwood is attributable to its cost-effectiveness and eco-friendly aspect,” says AMR research analyst Yogiata Sharma. “Also, stringent regulations with regards CO2 emission and rapid deforestation are factors likely to propel the adoption of engineered wood. Despite the reservations, surrounding its usage due to safety concerns, composite wood has proved to be a huge commercial success.”
The market is expected to move at a higher pace in Europe and North America, owing to high disposable income and widespread awareness of the benefits of engineered wood among the populace. The engineered wood industry in Europe will be driven by the rise in demand for engineered timber, substantial use of resources, and increased import of raw wood from Asia-Pacific and LAMEA.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/almanac-market-data/engineered-wood-market-reach-413-billion-globally-2022?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news,canadian_news
by Web Editor | Jan 18, 2017 | News
Mass timber is sprouting up in cities in North America and abroad. After years of feasibility studies and design proposals, buildings six stories or taller constructed primarily from pre-engineered wood products are being considered in cities around the world.
In London, one proposal, called the Splinter, would rise to 100 stories. In Chicago, Perkins+Will (in collaboration with Thornton Tomasetti and the University of Cambridge) has designed an 80-story high-rise with 300 duplex apartments. If built, River Beech—a key component of P+W’s master plan for the Riverline development—would be made almost entirely from mass timber.
So-called “plyscrapers” are still a tiny sliver of nonresidential construction. In the past five years, only 17 buildings seven stories or taller have been completed worldwide, mostly in Europe and Canada. Six more have started construction, according to the American Wood Council.
Mass production of timber for high-rise construction is still in its infancy in North America. Specifying these products in the U.S. faces resistance from insurers, regulators, and code officials. Steel fabricators and concrete suppliers disparage mass timber for taller buildings on the grounds of safety and durability.
Proponents cite the speed at which tall buildings can be constructed using pre-engineered wood and mass timber’s ability to sequester carbon. Joey-Michelle Hutchison, RA, LEED AP BD+C, CSBA, Associate Vice Principal, CallisonRTKL, says, “The role of mass wood is going to grow because of the demand for sustainable design.” Researchers from Yale and the University of Washington, in a study published in the Journal of Sustainable Forestry (March 28, 2014), postulated that using wood substitutes for constructing buildings (and bridges) could save 14–31% of global CO2 emissions.
From Building Design + Construction: https://www.bdcnetwork.com/mass-timber-what-heck-wow
by Web Editor | Nov 21, 2016 | News
WoodWorks, a proponent of large-scale wood construction in the U.S., launched an updated version of its free carbon calculator, adding more options for buildings made from cross-laminated timber (CLT) and other mass timber products. The addition reflects rising interest in large scale wood building construction.
WoodWorks, which receives finding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture as well as timber companies and forest products manufacturers, promotes use of wood products as a means to store carbon, instead of building materials such as cement and steel that require fossil fuel energy to manufacture, a move that can help reduce greenhouse gases.
“The carbon calculator is a useful tool for building owners and designers who’d like to gain insight on the environmental value of alternate designs,” said Bill Parsons, Senior National Director of the Architectural & Engineering Solutions Team at WoodWorks. “It also provides information that allows them to express the carbon benefits of their wood building projects.”
To calculate the carbon benefits of a wood building, users access the carbon calculator at www.woodworks.org/carbon-calculator and enter nominal wood volume information. The calculator then estimates:
• How much time it takes U.S. and Canadian forests to grow that volume of wood
• The amount of carbon sequestered in the wood products, and
• Greenhouse gas emissions avoided by not using more fossil fuel-intensive materials.
• It also uses the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator to equate the total carbon benefit to number of cars off the road and home operational energy.
From Woodworking Network: https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/news/woodworking-industry-news/free-carbon-calculator-shows-how-much-co2-wood-construction-saves?ss=news,news,woodworking_industry_news,news,almanac_market_data,news
