Minnesota Office Building Made Of Wood Would Be A U.S. First

by | Mar 4, 2015 | News

Last November, the Hines development company unveiled plans for a new office building in the North Loop section of Minneapolis. Seems like ordinary news, except that the building would be the first of its kind in the U.S to be made primarily of wood. The builders refer to the project as “T3” for “Timber, Technology and Transit.”

“This building is very unique,” the lead architect, Michael Green, told the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission earlier this month. “It is the first large-scale office building built of timber in America. It is part of a revitalization of century-old ideas of how to build buildings.”

At the federal level, the U.S. is encouraging the use of sustainable wood products in building. The MinnPost reports that Green says that wood grown sustainably has a smaller carbon footprint than concrete and steel. If this seven-story building were to go forward, it would include a foundation and a first floor made of concrete and steel and six stories of mass timber construction.

As Next City columnist Alexis Stephens reported in “Can Taller Buildings Make Toronto More Affordable?,” the province of Ontario recently relaxed height restrictions on wood-frame construction to encourage residential density.

In Minneapolis, the MinnPost notes, the city has been flexible. Dan Callahan, supervisor of the city of Minneapolis’ plan review section, said he has had several meetings with the T3 team to talk through building code issues. The building would fit under code sections for heavy timber buildings. Callahan said he expects further meetings to get more information and to present the design team with other issues the city has before a formal permit application is received.

From NextCity.org: https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/minneapolis-office-building-wood-plans

Norbord, Ainsworth Lumber Await Go-Ahead From U.S. Justice Dept.

by | Feb 11, 2015 | News

From: Panel World Staff

Norbord Inc. and Ainsworth Lumber Co. Ltd. announced that the Supreme Court of British Columbia has granted a final order approving the previously announced merger of Norbord and Ainsworth. Meanwhile Norbord and Ainsworth are providing the U.S. Dept. of Justice with the information it has requested about the transaction. Subject to the satisfaction of all closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close by the end of the first quarter.

The merger would create the largest OSB producer in the world with an OSB production capacity of 7.7 billion SF, according to the companies.

Norbord, based in Toronto, operates seven OSB North American mills, (six of them in the U.S. South) with one mill in Quebec, along with four mills in Europe. Ainsworth, based in Vancouver, BC, operates four Canadian OSB mills—three in Western Canada and one in Ontario. Prior to this transaction, Norbord reported it was third in OSB production capacity behind Louisiana-Pacific and Georgia-Pacific.

The new company will have opportunities to increase capacity through the expansion of Norbord’s OSB production in Western Europe, the restart of Norbord’s two idled mills in North America, and the completion of Ainsworth’s second line in Grand Prairie, Alberta.

The combined company will operate under the Norbord name. Upon completion of the transaction, Norbord shareholders will own 63% and Ainsworth shareholders will own 37% of the combined company.

Read more on this story in the March issue of Panel World…