Find out why more timber in more buildings is exactly what New Zealand needs
Decoding timber
Dive into the wide range of benefits timber offers before, during and after construction.
Timber, particularly in mass-scale design and construction projects, is competitively priced compared to other building material choices, including steel and reinforced concrete. And since timber elements are typically lighter than concrete or steel elements, using wood as a building material can significantly lower time and costs for transportation, foundation design and construction, on-site erection and waste management.
For example, mass timber flooring systems can be made off-site and then rapidly craned into position on-site, significantly cutting the construction time required and delivering a much faster turnaround time.
Forests are New Zealand’s largest renewable resource and are vital in our move toward a more circular, zero-emissions economy. Forests provide plenty of environmental advantages, preventing surface erosion, providing fresh air, improving freshwater quality, providing wildlife habitats and supporting ecosystem health. But they also produce materials, energy, and wood products that are at the heart of the emerging bio-economy, including timber for the built environment.
Durable timber construction will provide long-lasting, aesthetically pleasing, and eco-friendly solutions, reducing the environmental impact. Used across residential, commercial, and industrial construction, the durability of timber can depend on the species, construction detailing, heat & mass transfer (building physics), installation and exposure during construction, treatment, and maintenance. But with the right planning, design and construction techniques, timber is one of the strongest building materials available.
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