WoodSolutions Study Tour in Norway and Sweden
Norway and Sweden are widely regarded as beacons of excellence when it comes to timber manufacturing.
In June, a select group of 15 architects, engineers, developers, and building professionals joined FWPA Statistics and Economics Manager Kevin Peachey for a WoodSolutions Study Tour in each of these countries.
Led by timber engineer and CEO of the Timber Development Association, Andrew Dunn, this immersive experience provided a unique opportunity to explore ground-breaking local timber projects and innovative fabrication facilities and meet the brilliant minds behind them.
From multi-storey residential buildings to Olympic sporting facilities, municipal structures, office buildings, and even a multi-storey timber car park, each visit offered invaluable insights into the potential of timber as a construction material.
The tour encompassed both ongoing construction sites and completed projects, enabling the group to witness the full lifecycle of timber structures.
This latest tour builds upon the successes of previous WoodSolutions Study Tours, so don’t miss your chance to be part of the next transformative experience and make sure you stay tuned for announcements of future study tours!
More information on the tour can be found by clicking here.
A Walk on the Wood Side: Sydney Free Walking Tour
In May, a group of 15 participants including architects, engineers, builders, and building designers gathered at Sydney’s Walsh Bay, from where the WoodSolutions team led a tour of some of Sydney’s recent dynamic projects showcasing various applications of timber.
The 7km walk then took the group to a number of impressive Sydney buildings, all recognised for their innovative use of timber in construction. These included Walsh Bay Arts Precinct, Barangaroo House, Pyrmont Bridge, International House and Damaru House.
The group proceeded to join a WoodSolutions networking event the CBD office of engineering firm Northrop, where refreshments were provided.
Feedback from participants was very positive, and included:
“The walking tour was a wonderful celebration of timber in construction, both how it has been used (and endured) and how it can innovate and still be relevant within modern construction. The tour set an ambitious program, but its guides were flexible enough to follow the feet and interests of the group. The walk commanded an afternoon but kept our interest throughout, so was an enjoyable and informative experience.” – Isabelle Pfaeffli, beeboCONSTRUCTIONS
“Thank you again for organising the WoodSolutions Walking Tour! It was very interesting and informative.” – Matthias Mikolaj, Austrian International Trade Advisor
WoodSolutions Seminar: Contemporary Timber Design Update
On 27 June, a range of speakers at the forefront of contemporary timber design took to the New South Wales Teacher Federation Conference Centre in Sydney’s Surry Hills, to provide updates to fellow timber design professionals on the very latest developments in timber construction.
Delegates heard from Karl-Heinz Weiss of Weiss Insight about his incredible journey in global mass timber design, and his perspectives on the potential of mass timber going forward.
Luke Johnston and Sam Morris of Architectus shared how Barker College’s Maths and Student Hub is gaining attention for its sustainable design and use of mass timber.
Adam Jones of CLT ToolBox presented on the use of software (including AI) and application program interfaces for automated end-end timber design.
Daniel Scheibmai-Simpson of Strong-Tie explored the evolution of mid-rise timber buildings constructed with mass timber products and light timber frames.
Kevin Berry of TTW outlined the design process of two newly constructed timber grid shell structures.
Sabrina Tapson of MBM spoke about the upfront factoring of carbon emissions calculations into cost planning.
And finally, Andrew Dunn of TDA considered what the future holds for timber prices, following two years of elevated prices for building materials.
WoodSolutions Seminar: Innovations in Engineered Wood Construction
The interest in engineered wood construction continues to take the world by storm, and Australia punches well above its weight in terms of innovation, new product/system development, off-site manufacturing, design creativeness and the delivery of amazingly beautiful projects.
Join us for this WoodSolutions Seminar to hear from some of Australia’s leading timber industry and building professional experts who will present the latest knowledge on key design, specification, design tools cost, supply and construction considerations for delivering innovative engineered wood construction solutions using products and systems, involving lightweight timber-framing, heavy timber post and beam, and massive timber panels such as LVL and Cross Laminated Timber (CLT).
The seminar presentations will feature a range of exemplary Australian timber and hybrid construction projects, and as a special themed case study, the amazing new T3 Collingwood project, currently being constructed in Melbourne, will be featured from an architectural, engineering, fabrication, and construction perspective.
This event is a must for all building and design professionals including architects, building designers, engineers, certifiers, developers, builders, regulators, educators, and students.
Andrew Leighton’s tour of Australian Bluegum Plantations
On Tuesday 9 May, FWPA CEO Andrew Leighton continued his nationwide tour of member facilities, this time by touring the harvesting operations of Australian Bluegum Plantations (ABP) in the Green Triangle. At the invitation of ABP CEO Russ Hughes, Andrew saw first-hand the impressive efforts being made by CBP to protect Koalas in their plantations.
Acknowledging NAIDOC Week
The FWPA team acknowledged and celebrated Indigenous Australians at a recently-held internal event to mark NAIDOC week. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines’ and Islanders’ Day Observance Committee.
NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia during the first week of July each year, to celebrate and recognise the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.
For the celebratory afternoon tea, the FWPA team ordered food from a local Melbourne-based, Aboriginal-owned catering company called Bunji Catering. The team was also excited to have the opportunity to view the artwork of the 2023 National NAIDOC Week Poster Competition winner, Bobbi Lockyer. Bobbi is a proud Ngarluma, Kariyarra, Nyulnyul and Yawuru artist, born and based on Kariyarra Country in Port Hedland.
