Wood In Architecture Issue 1, 2022

www.panelsfurnitureasia.com 

ISSUE 1, 2022 

Pavilions for one 

and all 

Wood for good: 

Mass timber can 

reduce construction 

phase by 69% 

Holistic hotel 

experience with 

American hardwood 

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CONTENTS 

16 

28 32 

2 WOOD IN ARCHITECTURE • ISSUE 1 – 2022

CONTENTS 

04 Editor’s Note 

06 News 

THE BIG PICTURE 

16 Pavilions for one and all 

SUSTAINABILITY 

28 CO2 storage in wood 

32 If companies want net-zero 

carbon offices, they need to 

focus on building materials 

35 Wood for good: Mass timber 

can reduce construction phase 

emissions by 69% 

MATERIALS AND 

TECHNOLOGY 

38 Clicking into place with 

Threespine TM 

41 A second life: Upcycling 

disposable chopsticks into 

ready-to-use panels 

DESIGN 

44 OMA reveals first quadrant of 

KaDeWe Berlin with wood-clad 

escalators 

46 Façade ribs made with local 

cedar wood 

STRUCTURAL 

ELEMENTS 

48 The public library at the 

heart of a compact, vibrant 

city 

52 Binzhou Yangxin Ten 

Thousand Mu Pear Garden 

tourism centre 

FLOORING 

54 “Nothing is lost, everything 

is transformed”: Cork 

flooring with Amorim Wise 

47 Antimicrobial power for the 

wood we walk on 

FIT-OUTS 

60 Holistic hotel experience 

with American hardwood 

63 KAB House: A home for 

housing 

66 Events Calendar 

67 Index of Advertisers 

38 

56 44 

06 

WOOD IN ARCHITECTURE • ISSUE 1 – 2022 3

EDITOR’S NOTE 

The beautiful, 

the innovative, 

the eco-friendly 

Take a look around you — how many of your 

furniture or household items are made of 

wood, and what are they used for? Which 

parts of the wall, flooring or fit-outs are 

wood-clad, or designed with wood veneer? 

Chances are you have at least one furniture 

item or part of your house that is made 

of wood. It is everywhere. With recent 

innovations, wood is greatly expanding its 

applications across the furniture, furnishings 

and construction industries. 

In this issue, we showcase the best that 

wood has to offer us — the beautiful, the 

innovative, the eco-friendly. The cover story 

is a testament to that, showing how versatile 

wood can be in building pavilions (p.16). 

Whether it is arched roofs with wide spans, 

interlocked timber joints, or prefabricated 

panels, the five pavilions showcased 

highlight the innovativeness of wood in its 

structural applications. 

Material innovations are aplenty too. 

ChopValue SG recycles discarded chopsticks 

into wood-based panels to be used for 

furniture items, such as charcuterie boards 

or tables (p.41). Amorim Wise specialises 

in flooring made with cork wood waste, 

thus making it sustainable while making full 

use of cork properties suitable for flooring 

applications, such as acoustic and thermal 

insulation, and improvement of indoor air 

quality (p.54). 

With the recent COP26 pledge of reducing the 

global temperature by 1.5°C, more attention 

is turned to wood for its climate positive 

quality, especially in helping the construction 

industry to reduce its global greenhouse gas 

emissions. Ken Hickson advocates for more 

mass timber buildings, citing that mass timber 

can reduce construction phase emissions by 

69% (p.35). Meike Siegner and Cory Searcy 

from the Department of Mechanical and 

Industrial Engineering, Ryerson University, 

likewise argue that net-zero carbon offices 

can reduce the carbon footprint of companies 

(p.32). 

Finally, we have various projects in this issue 

that exemplify the beauty of wood in its 

design applications, such as the Cozoo Tourist 

Centre by Continuum Architecture & Design, 

which features façade ribs made with cedar 

wood sourced locally in Anhui, China (p.46), 

the Rosewood Hotel Hong Kong made with 

American hardwoods like white oak, walnut 

and cherry (p.60), and many more. 

Take your time to pore over every project, and 

enjoy reading the issue! 

YAP SHI QUAN | Assistant Editor 

WOOD IN ARCHITECTURE 

PABLO SINGAPORE 

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4 WOOD IN ARCHITECTURE • ISSUE 1– 2022

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NEW DATE: 8-11 AUGUST 2022 

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NEWS 

FIVE INDIAN FURNITURE DESIGNERS REMAKE THREE 

EXISTING PIECES IN AMERICAN HARDWOOD 

1 2 

On a whole, the designers all 

expressed satisfaction and 

fascination at being able to 

adapt American hardwoods into 

their designs, with some also 

commenting on their favourite 

choice of hardwoods. Bram Rouws, 

director of Bram Woodcrafting 

Studio, commented on the 

versatility of American hardwood 

in terms of “the grain and finish”, 

and how the hardwood is carbon 

negative upon arrival in India, thus 

making it attractive in terms of its 

environmental and sustainability 

standards. 

1 Ergos by Bram 

Woodcrafting 

Studio (Image: 

Govind 

Vishwanath) 

2 Comet console 

by Esvee Atelier 

(Image: Esvee 

Atelier) 

3 Drawer Poufs 

by Studio Wood 

(Image: Vaibhav 

Bhatia) 

3 

Five Indian furniture designers have 

unveiled finished furniture items 

remade using American hardwoods 

as part of REMAKE, the first design 

collaboration in India led by the 

American Hardwood Export Council 

(AHEC). The project challenged these 

designers in selecting three pieces 

from their existing furniture range 

and remaking them using American 

hardwoods. 

REMAKE was conceived by AHEC 

as a response to the need for 

hands-on experience with American 

hardwoods in India’s evolving 

furniture manufacturing sector. This 

collaboration aims to inspire the next 

generation of furniture designers and 

help the Indian market discover the 

untapped potential of US hardwood. 

Launched in late 2020, the project 

involved designers such as Bram 

Woodcrafting Studio, Esvee Atelier, 

Kam Ce Kam, Studio SFDW, and Studio 

Wood. Available hardwood species 

include American red oak, white oak, 

cherry, hard maple, tulipwood or 

hickory, all of which were supplied 

by AHEC from a stock of American 

hardwood species held in India, which 

was donated to AHEC by Allegheny 

Wood Products. 

Rouws elaborated: “I believe that 

American red oak and cherry have 

the potential to be big in India. 

As a company, we place great 

importance on the environmental 

credentials of the materials we 

work with and find in American 

hardwoods a way to continue 

fulfilling our timber requirements 

while consuming responsibly.” 

Despite the challenges posed by the 

global pandemic and the inability 

to travel to India, AHEC was able to 

remotely launch REMAKE with the 

five designer-makers. According to 

AHEC, the onset of COVID-19 and 

enforced lockdown enabled them 

to spend a lot of time conducting 

in-depth research into India’s 

furniture manufacturing sector and 

identify a number of companies 

previously unknown. Many of 

these companies are already using 

imported temperate hardwoods for 

their production, which is primarily 

targeted at India’s domestic 

market. 

Saif Faisal, founder of Studio 

SFDW, added: “Working with 


NEWS 

cherry was a new experience for 

me; it was quite fascinating as the 

wood is quite dense and the grains 

gorgeous. This inspired me to 

explore computer numerical control 

(CNC) milling with it for objects with 

finer details and smaller in scale. 

American white oak in contrast is 

very strong and its resilience to take 

any shape and structure. This made 

it possible for me to achieve a piece 

that is flatpack with neat joinery 

and details. The Nightstand in white 

oak is my favourite as it brings 

the beauty of natural wood and 

technology together in a harmonious 

way.” WIA 

4 5 

4 Mausam Side Table and Mera Chair by 

Kam Ce Kam (Image: Anmol Wahi) 

5 Split Bench by Studio SFDW (Image: 

Edwin Lawrence) 


NEWS 

SCM AND RANDEK TEAM UP 

IN TIMBER CONSTRUCTION 

SCM and Swedish company Randek have 

sealed an agreement for the worldwide 

supply of all-round, integrated solutions for 

timber construction, where the aim is to be 

a one-stop supplier for the complete timber 

construction process, offering a range of 

solutions for beams, walls, timber frame, 

X-lam/cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels 

machining. 

Randek specialises in offering automation 

solutions for customers within the 

prefabricated house manufacturing 

industry. The new partnership also aims to 

further expand and strengthen the range 

of technological solutions already provided 

by both players across the globe and 

complementary to one another: SCM, for 

offering numeric control machining centres 

capable of processing different construction 

elements; and Randek, for its technologies 

in the prefabricated house sector. 

The partnership will also allow each 

company to offer the other party’s products. 

It also intends to increase the range of 

their products and expand the solution 

SCM’s area xl, a CNC 

machining centre 

(Photo: SCM) 

competence, production capacity and level 

of specialisation of both companies. 

“Our global partnership with Randek 

significantly and strategically expands 

our offer of products and services for 

timber construction, guaranteeing our 

customers access to a wide range of 

specific technological solutions dedicated 

to machining prefabricated walls with 

increased production efficiency and a better 

return on investment,” said Tommaso 

Martini, manager for timber construction 

business in SCM. 

“An agreement with a global leading group 

like SCM, with sound industrial expertise 

and an extensive international distribution 

network, means we can further strengthen 

our presence on the most relevant markets, 

offering the customer an even more direct, 

widespread service,” said Ola Lindh, CEO of 

Randek. 

Randek and SCM will develop and deliver 

equipment for an advanced house factory 

for the production of modules in wood and 

steel frame. The customer consulted Bosch 

Engineering and Production Services to 

perform an analysis of potential suppliers. 

“The decision to recommend our customer to 

choose Randek and SCM was based on their 

long experience in this kind of business and 

their high standardisation level. In addition, 

the visit at the suppliers’ premise was very 

impressive and has shown us that these are 

the right companies with the right spirit to 

fulfil the requirements and wishes of our 

customer,” said Markus Wörnle, senior project 

manager of Bosch Engineering and Production 

Services. WIA 

STORA ENSO INVESTS 

€9 MILLION IN AUTOMATED 

CLT COATING LINE 

Stora Enso will be investing €9 million in an automated cross-laminated 

timber (CLT) coating line at the Ybbs sawmill in Austria. The investment 

will further strengthen Stora Enso’s position as a provider of engineered 

wood products for low-carbon, sustainable buildings. 

Stora Enso aims to lead the development of the growing mass timber 

construction market. In the construction industry, there is a labour 

shortage and pressure to shorten the construction time on-site. The 

investment enables industrially pre-applied CLT coatings on the CLT walls 

and floors produced at Stora Enso’s Ybbs site. The automated coating 

solution results in shorter construction times and higher wood protection. 

“With this new automation line, we can apply high-quality water-based 

coating to approximately 500,000m² of CLT walls and floors per year. Our 

customers will benefit from improved protection of CLT against moisture, 

sunlight, insects and fire, as well as nicely coloured visual surfaces,” said 

Lars Völkel, executive vice-president of the wood products division. 

The automated CLT coating line is expected to be finalised in Q3 2023. 

The Ybbs sawmill is located to serve all markets in central Europe. WIA 


NEWS 

DOMOTEX TO 

TAKE PLACE IN 

JANUARY 2023 

Deutsche Messe has announced that the 

next edition of DOMOTEX will take place in 

Hannover, Germany, from 12-15 Jan 2023. 

The decision on the date in January 2023 was 

taken following market discussions. DOMOTEX 

will be a face-to-face event with additional 

digital offerings, which means exhibiting 

companies and trade show guests from all over 

the world will be able to exchange information 

on new products and current trends in the 

industry on-site and virtually. 

want to allow our customers to finally meet 

in person again, to be inspired and to forge 

new business relationships,” said Sonia 

Wedell-Castellano, global director DOMOTEX, 

Deutsche Messe, Hannover. 

“Having already had to cancel DOMOTEX twice 

due to the pandemic, we would have liked to 

give the industry its platform again this year. 

However, after intensive discussions with 

exhibiting companies, unfortunately, a majority 

couldn’t be found for a late summer edition of 

DOMOTEX in September 2022. The preferred 

option of the entire market is to keep the usual 

date right at the beginning of the year.” 

Meanwhile, DOMOTEX Turkey, the trade 

show for carpets and floor coverings in 

Turkey and the Middle East, will continue to 

take place in Gaziantep, Turkey, from 14-17 

May 2022. DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR, 

dedicated to the Asia-Pacific region, will 

also be held from 25-27 May 2022 in 

Shanghai, China, at the National Exhibition 

and Convention Centre (NECC). WIA 

“With the new date of DOMOTEX in January 

2023, we want to give the players in the carpet 

and floor coverings industry the greatest 

possible long-term planning security. We 


NEWS 

AUSTRALIAN PROGRAMME 

TO INVEST AU$300 MILLION IN 

MASS TIMBER BUILDINGS 

On behalf of the Australian government, the 

Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) will 

be investing in an AU$300 million programme 

to encourage mass timber construction 

across the property sector in Australia. 

The Timber Building Programme aims to cut 

construction-related emissions, providing 

a greener alternative to conventional 

construction materials. The CEFC determined 

through research the need to transform 

the approach to construction to achieve 

an economy-wide transition to net zero 

emissions. 

The $300m will be invested in projects 

Australia wide, including commercial 

offices, retail, industrial, healthcare and 

education. Finance may also be available 

for multi-residential apartments, seniors 

living and student accommodation projects. 

Concessional finance may be available under 

certain circumstances. 

According to CEFC, eligible projects will be 

considered on a case-by-case basis and 

may include those which: use low-carbon 

engineered wood products in large-scale 

construction; have secured appropriate 

materials source, accreditation and embodied 

carbon outcomes; require $20-75m in 

CEFC debt finance; are commercially 

sound, reflecting the rigorous investment 

requirements of the CEFC; and comply with 

the CEFC Investment Policies, Guidelines and 

Risk Approach. 

Ian Learmonth, CEO of CEFC, commented: 

“Timber has been used in construction for 

generations. Innovations in engineered 

wood products have created new 

opportunities for mass timber construction 

to be used in larger projects, creating the 

potential for immediate and long-term 

environmental benefits. 

“Our new Timber Building Programme will 

help finance this transition by encouraging 

owners, developers and builders to use lower 

carbon engineered wood products in their 

projects. The CEFC has a strong track record 

in financing new market developments, from 

large-scale solar to cleantech start-ups. 

We are excited to bring this expertise to 

sustainable construction.” 

Founded in 2012, the CEFC is an Australian 

government-owned establishment, dedicated 

to accelerating investments in Australia’s 

transition to net-zero emissions. WIA 

WINNERS AND DESIGN TRENDS OF ICONIC AWARDS 2022: 

INNOVATION INTERIOR REVEALED 

The Iconic Awards 2022: Innovation Interior, 

helmed by the German Design Council, 

has announced the winners of its “Best of 

Best”, “Winner” and “Selection” labels, and 

also trends in the furnishings industry and 

developments in interior design. 

As part of the German Design Council’s Iconic 

World platform, the Iconic Awards 2022: 

Innovation Interior shows developments and 

trends in design and furnishings each year, and 

brings together architects, product designers 

and property developers with the furnishings 

industry. The German Design Council, since 

1953, has been a centre of expertise in 

communication and knowledge transfer within 

design, branding and innovation. 

The COVID-19 pandemic was again a theme for 

this year’s awards. Explaining its choices, the 

jury said, “The pandemic is resulting in a variety 

of deep changes to day-to-day life. There 

are numerous designers responding to these 

changes with vision. Work meetings and private 

events are being held by video conferences, 

and online delivery services and retailers are 

supplying people with basic food and goods. 

“Meanwhile the range of digital entertainment 

media has reached record levels. The added 

burden and the increased stress factor at work 

and among families are paired with a loss of 

options for relaxation, exercise and recreation. 

Travelling to exotic destinations or partying is 

out of the question. Many of our priorities have 

changed. This has had a substantial impact 

on design, as we saw during our evaluation of 

the many entries for the Iconic Awards 2022: 

Innovative Interior.” 

Some of the trends outlined by the German 

Design Council include increasing demand for 

hygiene products and new hygiene concepts 

in a wide variety of design domains, all while 

incorporating smart technology; the pandemic’s 

effect on the formal and aesthetic design of the 

The V-Alpin is a project by Martin Ballendat which 

was awarded the “Winner” label, manufactured by 

Voglauer Gschwandtner & Zwilling (Image: German 

Design Council) 

objects, culminating in a shift towards cool, muted 

tones, a clean design language and minimalism 

involving only the essentials; high demand 

for mobility, in a working world which values 

flexibility, remote working and adaptability; and 

material innovations that crease new forms and 

objects, and minimise carbon emissions, all while 

improving users’ well-being. WIA 


NEWS 

QUEBEC WOOD EXPORT BUREAU DEVELOPS TOOL TO 

CALCULATE CO2 IMPACT IN BUILDING DESIGNS 

Robotics & Innovation has 

reported that the Quebec Wood 

Export Bureau (QWEB), a nonprofit 

organisation for wood 

product manufacturers in Canada, 

has developed a machine learning 

tool with global AI consultancy 

Brainpool.ai which calculates the 

impact of CO2 in choices of earlyphase 

building design. 

According to QWEB and 

Brainpool.ai, the tool CarbonFixer 

aims to help the building 

and construction industry 

decarbonise by showing how 

much CO2 is emitted in their 

design-related choices of 

using concrete and steel, in 

comparative scenarios with 

wood and bio-sourced building 

materials. 

The building industry is 

responsible for 38% of the 

total global energy-related CO2 

emissions, mainly due to the 

use of steel and concrete, with 

concrete alone accounting for 

8%. The partnership between 

QWEB and Brainpool.ai hence 

aims to explore carbon-neutral 

alternatives of building materials. 

Eli Gould, US architect liaison 

and software project lead for 

QWEB, described CarbonFixer 

as “like using a mortgage 

calculator before going to the 

bank, it gives an idea of what 

to expect”. Architects and 

sustainability professionals 

can feed the tool basic building 

data, such as dimensions, area 

and structural data, to produce 

scenarios that compare the use 

of steel, concrete or timber. 

It also has pre-sets for fire 

resistance and acoustics and 

offers design considerations 

with industry-specific 

knowledge and norm. 

“Attitudes to using wood in 

construction are changing,” 

said Gould. “We wanted to 

build a tool that counters the 

greenwashing around nonsustainable 

building materials 

and gives architects and 

construction firms the data and 

confidence to explore timber 

options. 

“The Brainpool.ai team has 

been instrumental in developing 

the CarbonFixer, they were fast 

Photo: BAM/Trevor Palin 


and passionate and have created 

something very robust that we can 

soon launch to market.” 

Kasia Borowska, co-founder and 

managing director of Brainpool.ai, 

added: “CarbonFixer is a complex 

application because of the volume 

of data that has to be collected. 

Our team of backend developers 

and ML experts collated the data 

quickly and built a robust proofof-concept 

for the application, 

which the CarbonFixer team 

can develop further into the 

future. The project shows how 

environmental AI has a growing 

role in the construction industry 

PEFC/01-00-01 

Constructing Constructing the Future with 

Sustainable the 

Timber the Future with 

Sustainable Timber 


PEFC/01-00-01 

PEFC/01-00-01 

Discover more at: 

Discover www.pefc.org 

Discover more more at: at: 

www.pefc.org 

from proving how sustainability is 

feasible, through to automating 

building designs to find the most 

eco-efficient plans.” 

Robotics & Innovation explained 

that the final version of the 

tool will incorporate a machine 

learning engine which will 

continuously improve the accuracy 

of calculations and inputs. Future 

plans include integrations with 

popular design software and a 

bank of archetype structures 

ready to be used and customised 

by design studios. WIA 

Source: Robotics & Innovation 

Your assurance of 

Your assurance of 

responsibly Your assurance sourced of timber 

responsibly sourced timber 

responsibly sourced timber 

Ask your suppliers for PEFC-certified 

Ask 

wood Ask your your products 

suppliers for for PEFC-certified 

wood wood products 

Choose PEFC 

Choose PEFC 

Choose Caring for our PEFC forests 

Caring globally and locally 

Caring for for our our forests forests 

globally globally and and locally locally 

PEFC/01-00-01 

PEFC/01-00-01 

PEFC – Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification 



Image: Darwin Vegher/Unsplash 

PEFC INFOGRAPHIC AD MAY 2020 (B).indd 1 31/07/2020 11:03 

PEFC INFOGRAPHIC PEFC INFOGRAPHIC AD MAY 2020 AD (B).indd MAY 20201 (B).indd 1 31/07/2020 31/07/202011:03 

11:03 


NEWS 

SLOW: A PROJECT BY AMERICAN 

HARDWOOD EXPORT COUNCIL 

Berlin’s Museum of Decorative Arts, 

Kunstgewerbemuseum, has opened its 

permanent collection for an intervention from 

26 Nov 2021 to 20 Feb 2022, showcasing 

and celebrating emerging design talent and 

the sustainability and versatility of wood as a 

design material. 

Initiated by the American Hardwood Export 

Council (AHEC), Slow consists of nine projects 

from emerging designers working with 

American red oak, cherry and hard and soft 

maple. Woven among the museum’s existing 

exhibits, these contemporary designs represent 

design voices that articulate new ways of 

thinking about sustainability and accountability 

in terms of design, materiality and production 

process. 

From one or more of the aforementioned 

hardwoods, each designer has created an 

object that reflects their approach towards the 

theme “slow design for fast change”. The result 

is a range of products, including bowls, chairs, 

benches, shelving systems, tables and modular 

furniture elements. This variety reflects voices 

and ideas that are united by an emphasis on 

sustainability, longevity and a focus on quality. 

Nine young designers were hand-picked by 

a selection panel comprising their university 

tutors, the project’s manufacturing partner, 

German workshop Holzfreude, three mentors – 

Hanne Willmann, Sebastian Herkner and Garth 

Roberts – and the AHEC team. 

“RE;Collection” by Hansil 

Heo, displayed during 

American Hardwood 

Export Council’s Slow 

exhibition 

The designers are: Maximilian Beck, Clémence 

Buytaert, Simon Gehring, Hansil Heo, Sarah 

Hossli and Lorenz Noelle, Anna Koppmann, 

Haus Otto (Nils Körner and Patrick Henry Nagel), 

Theo Luvisotto, and Maximilian Rohregger. 

According to AHEC, the concept of “slow” – as 

understood in terms of slow fashion or slow 

food – is a response to the lifestyle changes 

borne from COVID-19. Products that keep 

materials in circulation for as long as possible are 

increasingly appealing. All over the world, oncehectic 

routines have been forced to slow down 

drastically, making people even more aware 

of what and how they consume. As such, the 

concept of “slow” has come to entail a holistic 

approach to creative thinking, processes and 

products. 

Among some of the pieces designed and were 

displayed in Kunstgewerbemuseum include: 

“Leftover Synthesis” by Simon Gehring, which 

explores better use of wood scraps from furniture 

production, combined with computational design 

methods, using American cherry, maple and red 

oak; “Rocking Chair” by Clémence Buytaert, 

a rocking chair made using American red oak; 

“RE;Collection” by Hansil Heo, a sculptural 

storage system inspired by historic Korean 

culture, and made using American cherry, maple 

and red oak; and others. 

“Strong, tactile and visually appealing, wood is 

essential in an era of plastics, over-consumption 

and climate change, because of its low impact on 

the environment and the fact that it can be easily 

recycled,” commented David Venables, European 

director of AHEC. “As well as being a material for 

making, it is also a low-impact fuel and a carbon 

store. This project presents four underused 

timbers and questions the assumption that the 

most well-known varieties of wood are always 

the only ‘right’ woods to use.” WIA 

BECK LAUNCHES LIGNOLOC WOODEN NAILS 

WITH HEAD FOR FAÇADE APPLICATIONS 

After LIGNOLOC received the German general 

construction technique permit in 2020, the 

new wooden nail system with head tailored for 

façade applications will be launched in 2022. 

Developed by Austria-based fastening 

developer Beck, LIGNOLOC is a collated 

wooden nail for future-oriented use in 

industrial production and ecological wood 

processing. Made with central European beech 

wood, the design of the LIGNOLOC nail point 

and the large amount of heat generated by 

friction when the nail is driven in at a high 

speed will cause the lignin of the wooden nail 

to weld with the surrounding wood to form a 

substance-to-substance bond. 

The most recent version of the LIGNOLOC F60 

pneumatic nailer has already been adapted to 

accept nails with head and is available now. 

The main target application is horizontal and 

vertical wood cladding. The nail with head 

allows exterior cladding panels to be held 

securely in position. 

According to Beck, it has a blunt anti-splitting 

point and is suitable for the most common 

softwood façades as well as a range of other 

LIGNOLOC (Image: Beck) 

applications, both indoors and outdoors, such 

as privacy screens, garden sheds, gazebos, 

room dividers, among others. WIA 


NEWS 

AURECON APPOINTS 

NEW MANAGING 

DIRECTOR TO DRIVE 

GROWTH IN GREATER 

CHINA 

Alton Chow, new managing 

director of Aurecon, Greater 

China (Image: Aurecon) 

International design, engineering and advisory 

company Aurecon has appointed Alton Chow 

as its new managing director of Greater China. 

With this new appointment, Chow will take the 

lead to grow Aurecon’s business in Greater 

China and work with the team to deliver 

innovative and sustainable solutions to clients. 

This move is part of Aurecon’s strategy 

to further strengthen its position in the 

infrastructure and engineering sector in 

Greater China. Recent years have seen the 

company bolster its leadership team and grow 

its presence steadily in the region. The team 

has been winning and working on noteworthy 

projects such as the recent MTR Hung Shui Kiu 

Station, Tuen Ma Line extension, the Hong Kong 

West Kowloon Terminus, The Mills, and Tseung 

Kwan O – Lam Tin Tunnel. 

Approximately HK$100 billion (US$12.8 billion) 

is expected to be invested annually in Hong 

Kong’s infrastructure over the next decade, 

in addition to the $120bn stimulus package 

announced earlier this year. Infrastructure 

development is also a key highlight in this 

year’s Chief Executive’s Policy Address 

2021 where there is a focus on Smart Cities, 

developing a new Northern Metropolis, 

establishing transport infrastructureled 

developments and building an ecoenvironment, 

among other initiatives. 

Commenting on his new role, Chow said: “It is 

refreshing to see an innovative company like 

Aurecon pivot towards growth and expanding its 

operations with purposeful and deliberate intent. 

I also appreciate that Aurecon is committed to 

quality and has grown a culture that focuses on 

talent. This is crucial to any consulting business, 

especially in the design, engineering and advisory 

sectors. 

“Along with that, I see immense potential in 

the region, and I am confident that together as 

a team, we can and will collectively advance 

our growth and maximise this region’s market 

opportunities.” 

Prior to this appointment, Alton was with AECOM 

for over seven years. He served as vice-president 

and global head of commercial development as 

well as Asia head of architecture. In these roles, 

he expanded the company’s market share in 

the US, Middle East and Asia through strategic 

alignments with key global clients. Earlier in 

his career with the organisation, Alton was the 

managing director for Mainland China where he 

was responsible for the business’ restructure, 

driving record growth during his tenure. WIA 

NATURAL RESOURCES CANADA SUPPORTING SUSTAINABLE AND 

INNOVATIVE WOOD CONSTRUCTION 

Jonathan Wilkinson, the Canadian Minister 

of Natural Resources, has announced a 

CA$887,000 investment to support the 

replacement of the Duchesnay Creek 

Bridge that connects the City of North Bay, 

Ontario, Canada, and the Nipissing First 

Nation, Ontario. The Government of Ontario 

contributed $17m. 

This is in line with Canada’s goal of investing in 

the increased use of wood in the construction 

industry, to achieve their climate change 

goals while increasing the demand for 

Canadian wood products and creating jobs for 

Canadians. The goal is supported by Natural 

Resources Canada, a department of the 

Federal Government of Canada that researches 

and develops policies on natural resources, 

energy, minerals and metals, forests, earth 

sciences, mapping, and remote sensing. 

Wilkinson said: “There is no solution to climate 

change that does not involve our forests. 

Creating new markets for Canadian timber 

supports our forestry workers, creates jobs 

and gets us to net-zero. By supporting the 

use of wood in construction, we are taking 

action to protect our planet and support our 

communities.” 

Funding for this project is provided through 

Natural Resources Canada’s Green 

Construction through Wood programme, which 

encourages the use of wood in non-traditional 

construction projects, such as tall and lowrise 

non-residential buildings and bridges. 

The programme aims to position Canada as a 

world leader in innovative timber construction 

systems and technologies and in the lowcarbon 

economy, and also help Canada achieve 

its 2030 climate change goals. 

The funding supported the design and 

construction of the new replacement bridge 

and was made to maintain the original timber 

aesthetic of the old bridge. By building with 

wood, this project will result in a total carbon 

benefit of 991 tonnes of CO2, which is 

equivalent to taking over 190 cars off the road 

for a full year. The bridge was built through a 

limited partnership of Nipissing First Nation and 

Miller Paving, which provided employment and 

training opportunities for the community. 

Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services, 

concluded: “Using green construction materials 

and including employment and training 

opportunities with the local community, this 

project shows others how to make sure what 

we build as a country can help with our goals 

of a cleaner and more inclusive country. A big 

congratulations to all involved.” WIA 


NEWS 

ASCENT TOPS OFF AS “WORLD’S TALLEST MASS TIMBER 

HYBRID TOWER”: NEW LAND ENTERPRISES 

Top-down view of Ascent. (Photo: Korb + Associates Architects) 

In mid-December 2021, the final mass 

timber beams, columns and cross-laminated 

timber (CLT) roof were set into place at 

downtown Milwaukee’s Ascent construction 

site. This makes Ascent 284ft, or roughly 

86.5m-tall, making it officially “the world’s 

tallest mass timber hybrid tower” at the time 

of going to press, according to New Land 

Enterprises, the real estate development 

and property management company behind 

Ascent. 

Ascent, a mass timber structure in 

Milwaukee, US, broke ground at the 

intersection of Kilbourn and Van Buren in 

August 2020, with timber construction 

commencing in June 2021. Six months later, 

general contractor C.D. Smith Construction 

topped off the innovative tower at 25 storeys. 

The construction process used prefabricated 

columns and beams with factory integrated 

connectors, making the construction process 

approximately 25% faster. 

“Today is the culmination of years of 

determination and innovation for New 

Land and our partners,” commented Tim 

Gokhman, managing director of New Land 

Enterprises. “Together, we’ve shown that 

we can build a more beautiful, sustainable 

and precise building faster, paving the way 

to transform development in the US. The 

crews involved in construction have done 

an amazing job and should be very proud of 

today’s milestone.” 

New Land Enterprises did not set out to break 

the world record when the project began 

more than three years ago, but after several 

design revisions, the height of the tower 

climbed four feet taller than the current 

record holder in Norway. 

“This continues to be a job of amazing 

scale as we top off the building and 

proceed with the buildout,” said Chris 

Johansen, project manager at C.D. Smith 

Construction. “We have a veteran-led 

team of talented craftsmen that really 

took ownership and are always looking 

for ways to build faster, smarter, safer.” 

With timber installation complete and 

glazing mostly up, the project is already 

moving into its final phase of interior 

buildout. The building’s 259 luxury 

apartment homes will feature exposed 

timber ceilings and columns, finishes 

and appointed fixtures. Ascent will also 

offer amenities including an indoor and 

outdoor seventh-floor pool, a rooftop 

cinema, a golf simulator, and a fitness 

centre. It is scheduled to open this 

summer. WIA 


BIG PICTURE 

Pavilions 

for one and all 

A shelter for the weary, an outdoor classroom for youths, a performance 

venue for curious passers-by — these are a few of the many possibilities 

that pavilions can offer to the public. Here, we invite everyone to 

imagine themselves within these pavilions, admire their versatility, and 

marvel at how wood is an integral part of their structural beauty. 


BIG PICTURE 

Efficient, economical, 

ecological and 

expressive 

PROJECT: BUGA Wood Pavilion 

LOCATION: Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg, Germany 

ARCHITECTS: Computational Design and Construction 

(ICD) and the Institute for Building Structures and 

Structural Design (ITKE) at the University of Stuttgart 

COVERED AREA: 500m² 

SHELL AREA: 600m² 

PHOTOGRAPHY: ICD/ITKE University of Stuttgard 

TEXT: ICD and ITKE 

The BUGA Wood Pavilion celebrates a new approach to 

digital timber construction. Its segmented wood shell is 

based on biological principles found in the plate skeleton 

of sea urchins, which have been studied by the Institute 

for Computational Design and Construction (ICD) and the 

Institute for Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) 

at the University of Stuttgart for almost a decade. 

As part of the project, a robotic manufacturing platform 

was developed for the automated assembly and milling of 

the pavilion’s 376 hollow wood segments. This fabrication 

process ensures that all segments fit together with submillimetre 

precision like a big, three-dimensional puzzle. The 

wooden roof spans 30m over one of BUGA’s main event and 

concert venues, using a minimum amount of material while 

also generating an architectural space. 

WOOD IN ARCHITECTURE • ISSUE 1– 2022 17

BIG PICTURE 

1 2 

1 Finished hollow 

wood segment with 

finger joints and bolt 

holes 

2 Preformatted plates 

and finished hollow 

wood shell segments 

3 Detail view of spine 

arch of the BUGA 

Wood Pavilion 

4 Interior and flexible 

event space of the 

BUGA Wood Pavilion 

BIOMIMETIC LIGHTWEIGHT 

CONSTRUCTION 

The BUGA Wood pavilion provides an 

architectural attraction at the central summer 

island of the Bundesgartenschau 2019 in 

Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. 

Following the precursor research building of 

the same project team, the LAGA Exhibition 

Hall in Schwaebisch Gmuend, the research 

goal of the BUGA Wood Pavilion is pushing 

the architectural articulation and structural 

performance of biomimetic segmented wood 

shells onto a new level: With the same small 

amount of wood per square meter as in the 

LAGA project, is it possible to build a shell 

that reaches triple the span? And can this 

structure remain fully reusable, so that it can 

be deployed on a different site after the BUGA 

without any loss of performance? 

To achieve this goal, the pavilion builds on the 

biomimetic principle of using less material 

by having more form, both on the level of the 

overall shell and its individual segments. In 

order to minimise material consumption and 

weight, each wood segment is built up from 

two thin plates that plank a ring of edgebeams 

on top and bottom, forming large scale 

hollow wooden cases with polygonal forms. 

The bottom plate includes a large opening, 

which constitutes a distinctive architectural 

feature and provides access to the hidden 

connections during assembly. The lightweight 

building elements are connected by finger 

joints, which follow the morphological principles 

of anatomic features found on the edge of sea 

urchins’ plates. In the assembled state, the 

shell works as a form-active structure through 

its doubly-curved geometry. 

INTEGRATIVE (CO)DESIGN 

New ways of building require new ways of 

designing and manufacturing. The BUGA Wood 

pavilion was conceived under the paradigm 

of co-design, where possibilities in design, 

engineering and fabrication are explored 

through continuous computational feedback 

within an interdisciplinary team. In this 

project, the co-design algorithms developed 

by the project team generate the shape of 

each element of the pavilion according to 

architectural design intent and structural 

requirements, while all robotic fabrication 

aspects are directly embedded and negotiated. 

The design of the pavilion happens concurrently 

and in feedback with the design of the robotic 

manufacturing set-up, which is a bespoke 

development for the project. 

The integrative process enables the design and 

engineering of 376 plate segments with 17,000 

different finger joints in response to multifaceted 


BIG PICTURE 

3 4 

design criteria, from the scale of the overall 

structure down to sub-millimetre details. 

Without any loss of precision, this multi-scale 

approach allows addressing architectural and 

structural considerations concurrently. Despite 

the pioneering character of the project, and 

despite a short development time of only 13 

months from commission to the opening, the 

integrative computational process allows for 

the careful design of each building element in 

minute detail. 

ROBOTIC PREFABRICATION 

Compared to a solid wood plate, the hollow 

building segments reduce weight and 

material, but they increase the number of 

building parts eightfold and lead to more 

complex manufacturing. Thus, striving for 

higher resource efficiency needs to go hand in 

hand with automated robotic manufacturing of 

the shell segments. For this, a transportable, 

14-axes robotic timber-manufacturing 

platform was developed by ICD University of 

Stuttgart and BEC, a manufacturer of robotic 

applications for industrial automisation, 

and located at the industrial partner 

MuellerBlaustein Holzbauwerke 

for production. The platform includes two 

high-payload industrial robots mounted 

on a 20-foot standard container base. The 

flexibility of industrial robots allows the 

integration of all prefabrication steps of the 

pavilion’s segments within one manufacturing 

unit. 

During production, each shell segment 

is robotically assembled. This entails the 

placement of preformatted timber plates 

and beams, their temporary fixation with 

beech nails, and the controlled application for 

the structural glue joint between plate and 

beam. In a second step, the finger-joints and 

openings are machined into the segments 

with 300μm accuracy. From the assembly of 

beams and plates, to multi-tool machining 

and sensorial process- and image-based 

quality control, everything happens in a fully 

automated workflow, controlled by two million 

custom lines of robotic code that were directly 

exported from the computational design 

framework, according to ICD and ITKE. On 

average, the assembly time per segment is 

eight minutes, with the high precision-milling 

taking another 20-40 minutes. 

A NOVEL STRUCTURE AND 

ARCHITECTURAL SPACE 

The prefabricated shell segments were 

assembled in within 10 working days by a 

team of two craftsmen, as reported by ICD and 

ITKE, without the usually required extensive 

scaffolding or formwork. After connecting 

all segments with removable bolts, a layer of 

ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) foil 

was rolled over the pavilion in eight strips to 

provide waterproofing. Untreated larch facade 

plates provide the external cladding of the 

pavilion. All building elements are designed for 

disassembly and reuse on a different site. 

The pavilion’s loadbearing wood shell achieves 

a column-free span of 30m, but weighs 

36kg/m². Drawing a line from traditional 

carpentry to high-tech robotic fabrication 

methods, the BUGA Wood Pavilion showcases 

the possibilities for efficient, economical, 

ecological and expressive wood architecture 

that arises at the intersection of master craft, 

digital innovation and scientific research. 

The BUGA Wood Pavilion is located at a central 

crossroad within the wavy landscape of the 

BUGA summer island. Three arches form 

openings in the main directions and guide 

visitors into the pavilion’s interior. Hosting 

concerts and public events, the shell creates 

a smoothly-curved space that provides good 

acoustics and generates an architectural 

atmosphere. This is especially true at night, 

when thousands of LED lights embedded in 

the shells inner openings light up and bathe 

the pavilion’s interior in subtle, warm and 

welcoming light. 


BIG PICTURE 

Designed and fabricated by Skidmore, 

Owings & Merrill (SOM) and the 

University of Michigan Taubman 

College of Architecture and Urban 

Planning, the pavilion is an open-air 

learning lab and gathering space for a 

high school in Chicago’s South Shore. 

Prefabricated 

and sustainable 

PROJECT: SPLAM Pavilion 

LOCATION: Chicago, Illinois, US 

CLIENT: EPIC Academy 

ARCHITECTS: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, 

and University of Michigan Taubman 

College of Architecture and Urban Planning 

IMAGES: Kendall McCaugherty and Dave Burk 

The SPLAM pavilion, which stands for 

SPatial LAMinated timber, showcases 

the potential for prefabricated 

timber framing panels using robotic 

technology to advance more 

sustainable and efficient methods of 

design and construction. 

Spatial-laminated timber (SLT) 

proposes an evolution of conventional 

framing systems using an optimised 

timber structure. The pavilion, unveiled 


BIG PICTURE 

in September 2021 at the opening of 

the Chicago Architecture Biennial, is a 

full-scale prototype of a single-storey 

SLT structural framing system used in 

mid-rise, fire-resistant construction. 

Lighter in weight than conventional 

building framing methods, SLT reduces 

material use by 46% compared to a 

cross-laminated timber (CLT) panel. 

The pavilion demonstrates a solution 

that could reduce timber consumption 

and overall carbon footprint if used to 

construct an entire building. 

“Weaving together timber beams like 

threads in fabric, SPLAM explores 

the idea of using smaller pieces of 

wood than conventional mass timber 

construction systems. Doing so means 

that the wood can be sourced from 

more rapidly renewable forests, or, 

in theory, even from the salvaged 

components of deconstructed 

buildings,” said Scott Duncan, SOM 

design partner. 

The team chose timber for its inherent 

sustainable qualities, as a renewable 

resource which has the capacity 

to sequester carbon compared to 

conventional concrete slabs. The 

pavilion comes together using 

interlocking timber joints, which allows 

for shorter and salvaged wood beams 

to be used. 

“Automated manufacturing 

technologies enable us to precisely 

and efficiently prefabricate a kit 

of parts which can be delivered to 

the construction site on demand, 

leveraging skilled labour where it 

is most effective in the process,” 

said professors Ng Tsz Yan and Wes 

McGee. 

SPLAM is a permanent addition to EPIC 

Academy’s South Shore high school 

campus. The pavilion will host a series 

of performances during the Biennial, 

and will function as an outdoor 

classroom and performance venue 

afterwards, contributing to the future of 

post-pandemic teaching and learning. 

The pavilion was designed and 

constructed in partnership with 

Autodesk, McHugh Construction, 

Gremley & Biedermann, and REX 

Engineering Group. 


BIG PICTURE 

1 


BIG PICTURE 

A structural 

beauty 

PROJECT: CLT Park Harumi 

LOCATION: Tokyo, Japan 

ARCHITECTS: Kengo Kuma & Associates 

COMPLETION DATE: 5 Dec 2019 

IMAGES: Kawasumi Kobayashi Kenji 

Photograph Office / Satoshi Takae / Hiroshi Kuwahara 

TEXT: Kengo Kuma & Associates 

Kengo Kuma & Associates designed 

a temporary cross-laminated 

timber (CLT) pavilion for events and 

performances for an open area in 

the district of Harumi, Tokyo, Japan. 

In the semi-outdoor space, the CLT 

Park Harumi was built by weaving 

leaves made from CLT panels of 

160cmx350cm and 21cm-thick with 

a steel frame, creating a structure that 

appears to be reaching up in a spiral 

shape towards the sky. 

Transparent kite-shaped pieces made 

from TEFKA fluororesin film were used 

to close off the gap between the CLT 

panels in order to prevent the entrance 

of rain and wind, while allowing light to 

filter through the CLT leaves like trees 

in a forest. 

The Meiken Lamwood Corporation 

used Japanese cypress from Maniwa 

city in Okayama prefecture to make 

the CLT panels. After their period of 

use in Harumi comes to an end, the 

panels will be transported back to the 

Hiruzen National Park in Maniwa and 

reassembled in an area surrounded by 

greenery. 


BIG PICTURE 

A resting point 

PROJECT: Helsinki 

Biennial Pavilion 

LOCATION: Lyypekinlaituri, 

Helsinki, Finland 

SCALE: 187m 2 

CLIENT: City of Helsinki, 

Urban Environmental Division 

ARCHITECTURE AND 

DESIGN FIRM: Verstas Architects 

TEXT: Verstas Architects 

This pavilion is the entry to the Helsinki 

Biennial, an art festival that takes place on 

the island of Vallisaari, Helsinki, Finland. 

Ferries from the pavilion will take visitors 

from the harbour in the old town of Helsinki 

to the archipelago. The wooden swirl of 

the pavilion stands out in contrast to the 

19th-century maritime city. The Market 

Square and the façade of neoclassical and 

neo-Renaissance buildings, such as the City 

Hall, the Old Market Hall and the Cathedral 

surround the pavilion. Instead, the form of 

the temporary pavilion, reminiscent of a 

giant’s kettle, echoes the coastal cliffs of 

Vallisaari that the ice age has rounded. Its 

deck connotes wooden ships that still visit 

the harbour during a herring market. Verstas 

Architects designed the temporary pavilion to 

prepare the visitor for the journey to the art 

festival on the Vallisaari island. 

A TERMINAL FOR THE ART 

BIENNIAL 

The Helsinki Biennial is expected to attract 

300,000 visitors. It is part of Helsinki’s 

strategy to make the archipelago more 

accessible, attractive and better serviced for 

the public. The Vallisaari island, previously a 

military area, has recently been opened to the 

public. The Biennial Pavilion will house tourist 

information as well as ancillary spaces in a 

simple rectangular volume next to the pavilion 

proper. The pavilion is a place to wait for the 

ferry in all weathers. In sun, one can rest on 

the sloping deck that provides a vantage point 

to the Market Square and the Baltic Sea. In 

case of rain, there are benches to wait under 

the tent-like roof, which triangular timber 

frames support. 

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION 

Verstas Architects studied the form of the 

pavilion with the help of modelling clay models 

and then designed it digitally. The digital 3D 

building model guided the construction in the 

wood workshop directly, without conventional 

construction drawings. The workshop, too, 

was in a port town, hence the pieces were 

brought to Helsinki in a barge. The pavilion 

is assembled of prefabricated elements 

connected with bolts. Open elements consist 

of glue-laminated timber frames and steel 

ties, clad with laminated veneer lumber and 

topped with fine-sawn pine battens. Lighting is 

hidden in slots between the frames. The deck 

is made of oiled pine planks, while the round 

yard is paved with greyed crosscut logs and 

white quartz sand. 

1 


BIG PICTURE 

2 

3 4 

1 The wooden pavilion is reminiscent of the cliffs 

of Vallisaari or old wooden ships (Image: Tuomas 

Uusheimo) 

2 The Market Square and the façade of neoclassical 

and neo-Renaissance buildings surround the pavilion 

(Image: Pyry Kantonen) 

3 The visitors can wait for the ferry under a tent-like roof 

(Image: Pyry Kantonen) 

4 The inner courtyard is paved with cross-cut logs and 

quartz sand (Image: Pyry Kantonen) 


BIG PICTURE 

An experiment 

with archetypes 

PROJECT NAME: Wooden Pavilion #1 — 

Experiment on Space Prototype 

ARCHITECTS: LIN Architects 

LOCATION: Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, China 

AREA: 50m² 

COMPLETION YEAR: December 2021 

TEACHING RESEARCH AND 

MATERIALS SUPPORT: RAC Studio 

PHOTOGRAPHY: Liu Songkai 

and Lin Lifeng 

TEXT: Lin Lifeng 

THREE KEYWORDS 

Are there any new architectural space 

prototypes that can be discussed? This 

question is the starting point of LIN 

Architect’s experimental project, which 

is located near the river in the tourist 

area of Jiangxin Island in Zhenjiang, 

Jiangsu province. In this project, 

the architects sacrificed functional 

elements and looked for keywords 

that can define spatial elements in the 

environment. 

After analysing the site, they 

focused on three keywords for the 

design: ergonomics, proxemics, 

and behaviourology. 

Ergonomics: The scale of human 

behaviour is one of the concerns 

of this project. By observing and 

understanding the behaviour 

of people, the architects can 

discover all kinds of possibilities 

of space. 

Space proxemics: Proxemics 

is a concept developed by 

anthropologist Edward T. Hall in his 

book, The Hidden Dimension. For 

Wooden Pavilion #1, the architects 

deepened and extended this 

concept of proxemics, applying it to 

the category of physical space, and 

discussed how intimate, private, 

social and public spaces are 

defined and designed at different 

scales. 


BIG PICTURE 

Behaviourology: On behaviour, 

from the perspective of architects 

Yoshiharu Tsukamoto and Momoyo 

Kaijima, human, nature and 

architecture are discussed as a whole, 

because the study of this project does 

not involve the category of urban daily 

life pattern. 

Therefore, the behaviourology of 

various elements in the natural 

environment was studied and 

explored. Breeze, sunshine, sound 

of waves, drizzle, sweet Osmanthus 

fragrance, all of which affect the feel, 

perception, touch, hearing, visual 

elements, are the design materials. 

ARCHETYPE DESIGN 

Through keyword research, LIN 

Architects began to create new forms 

of space in response to the various 

design elements surrounding it. 

Human behaviour, such as sitting, 

squatting, lying down, meditating, 

listening, peeping, wandering, 

overlooking and staring, forms the 

space. The act of light, such as the 

rising and setting of the sun, the 

passing of the last light, the coming 

of the lamp, and the illumination, is 

a dialogue between space and time. 

Finally, surrounding environment 

elements like the brushing sea breeze, 

rustling leaves, chirping frogs and 

singing cicadas, is the medium of 

dialogue between people and space. 

MATERIALS AND STRUCTURE 

LIN Architects prioritised the 

combination of steel and wood 

structure. Steel is easy to be hot-bent 

to shape the main structure matching 

the spatial form, while wooden keel 

is the secondary structure, and 

the texture and characteristics of 

wood interact with the surrounding 

environmental elements, producing 

new traces. Steel and wood are 

prefabricated in the factory and 

welded together on site. WIA 

3 



CO2 storage in wood 

By Per Friis Knudsen, director, Global Timber Asia 

The storage of CO2 – how it is tied up 

in wood, and how the well-being of our 

forests globally is necessary so that it 

stays healthy and continues to tie up all 

that CO2 – is a topic of interest to me. 

Wood is one of the keys to a sustainable 

future. That is not news for our industry 

and our followers, and hopefully, this is 

what our children learn in school. 

Wood is a renewable resource as it 

feeds on CO2, water, nutritious soil, and 

sun rays. Wood stores approximately 

1 tonne of CO2 per 1m 3 of wood. 

Wood does not use any machinery 

to grow and to store CO2 and it is 

thereby CO2-negative. It can replace 

other materials that are CO2-positive 

materials that are manufactured using 

heavy machinery such as steel and 

concrete, used, for example, in the 

construction of housing. The best thing 

is if we help forests to stay healthy, it will 

tie up even more CO2 in wood. 

Per Friis Knudsen is the director of Global Timber 

Asia and is responsible for sales and trades in Asia. He 

has years of experience in the global wood industry 

and is a qualified furniture maker with comprehensive 

expertise in the wood furniture business. Before 

joining Global Timber in 2013, Knudsen worked and 

travelled across countries and cultures. With Asia 

being his greatest interest, he decided to settle in 

Malaysia from where he has worked with hardwood 

trade ever since. 

HOW CAN WOOD HELP SAVE 

THE ENVIRONMENT? 

Most air pollution comes from towns 

and industries, whereas a forest usually 

has a clean environment. A fresh breath 

of air and far away from polluting 

factories and towns. However, this has 

led me to wonder about the connection 

between the two areas. If that is the 

case, the air from the forest where I 

get my wood in Denmark is clean and 

does not contain severely polluted air. 

However, if I had imported and bought 

the wood from a country with higher 

pollution rates, would the wood be 

just as clean, or store more CO2 as the 

surrounding area is more polluted? 

This would lead to questions such as, 

should we plant a forest in very close 

proximity to a town or industrial area 

with high levels of pollution? Should 



year. Thus, planting multiple tree species in 

urban areas can help in CO2 mitigation and the 

subsequent climate change. 

we plant forests to prevent polluted air from 

getting into the atmosphere and swirling 

around and spreading to the clean forest? 

Can we draw a hard line between the air that 

is polluted and air that is not? And is CO2 

different in the wood itself with different 

levels of pollution? 

Looking at a map from Global Forest Watch, 

China has enormous areas of land covered 

in trees but unfortunately, most of it is in 

central China, which is far away from the 

main pollution centres. China has grown its 

forest by 40% over the last 30 years. That 

equals an area of 629,367km 2 , and to put it 

into perspective it is about the area of Texas, 

US. I then wonder, how much pollution 

does this forest collect and store? Does it 

help China to get cleaner air? Or does all 

the pollution in this global world enter the 

atmosphere and spread equally around the 

world and find a tree to store it in no matter 

if it is a red oak tree in the Appalachian or a 

beech tree in Denmark? 

With these questions in mind, I called our 

freelance consultant Krishnanunni Ravindran 

to ask him about this. 

Most air pollution and 

harmful GHG comes from 

towns and industries 

Per Friis Knudsen: Would it help to plant 

more trees near very polluted areas, such 

as urban and industrial areas, to absorb the 

CO2 emissions at an early stage to prevent 

the CO2 to get into the atmosphere? 

Krishnanunni Ravindran: Yes, growing trees 

in towns and industrial areas can significantly 

address the problem of urban air pollution. 

Trees can absorb CO2 and other toxic 

particles, odours, and pollutant gases, thereby 

effectively filtering these chemicals from the 

air. Trees growing in the street proximity can 

absorb more pollutant gases than distant 

trees growing miles away from the source of 

pollution. Thus, trees absorb CO2 from the 

atmosphere and release oxygen in return 

through the process of photosynthesis. 

Depending on the attributes of the tree — the 

species, age, leaf type, canopy structure, and 

others — and the environmental conditions, 

the amount of CO2 absorbed by trees may 

differ. Some trees are sensitive to changing 

environmental conditions and absorb different 

amounts of CO2 in different seasons. Some 

are insensitive to seasonal changes in 

environmental conditions and absorb more 

or less the same amount of CO2 around the 

Knudsen: We hear terms like CO2, nitrogen 

dioxide (NO2), methane (CH4), and sulphur 

dioxide (SO2) from time to time, but we 

always focus on CO2. What are the other 

elements? Where do they come from and 

what impact do they have on us? Can they 

be absorbed? Which of these gases is the 

biggest problem for the environment? 

Ravindran: Apart from CO2, there are a lot 

of gases in the atmosphere such as nitrogen 

oxides, ammonia, CH4, SO2, ozone (O3), water 

vapour (H2O), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and 

others. They are released from many natural 

sources such as volcanoes, decomposition 

of organic matter, respiration, and the 

combustion of fossil fuels. All these gases are 

now commonly known as greenhouse gases 

(GHGs) because of the warming effect it has 

on our environment. Well, these gases are 

purposely meant for keeping us warm and 

comfortable on earth. Without these gases in 

the atmosphere, we would have experienced 

zero-degree Fahrenheit, making life impossible 

on earth. However, a gradual increase in the 

amount of these gases in the atmosphere 

could increase the temperature of the earth, 

causing serious problems to mankind. 

Trees can absorb CO2 and other toxic particles, 

odours, and pollutant gases, and when planted near 

industrial areas, can address urban air pollution 



Out of the many GHGs, CO2 is the largest in 

concentration and of most concern because 

of its potential warming effect. Other gases 

such as SO2, ammonia, nitrous oxides, 

are also harmful to life when present in 

amounts beyond the permissible limits. We 

can of course mitigate some of these gases 

by planting more trees, which absorbs 

them through their leaf pores, roots, and 

bark surfaces. Trees are, therefore, an ideal 

solution to abate global warming caused by 

these greenhouse gases. 

Knudsen: When I burn wood, do I then 

release the same amount of CO2 that was 

absorbed and stored in the wood in the 

first place? What is the waste material 

from burned wood? 

Ravindran: Trees store carbon in their 

leaves, trunk, branches, and extensive 

roots. Also, trees store a significant amount 

of carbon, around 48%, in the nearby leaf 

litter and soil. So, not all absorbed CO2 is 

released upon burning wood. 

By burning wood, we unlock the carbon 

stored in it, releasing it as CO2. The 

resultant is ash and it is mainly comprised 

of calcium compounds, potash, phosphate 

and other hard metals like iron, copper, 

zinc that the tree absorbs during its 

lifetime. 

Knudsen: Is it possible to calculate how 

much CO2 a km 2 of forest can absorb? For 

example, can we calculate how much CO2 

storage we lose for each football field of 

deforestation? 

Ravindran: This is difficult to answer as the 

amount of CO2 absorbed by trees depends 

on their attributes and the environmental 

conditions under which they grow. On 

average, a mature tree absorbs 22kg or 

48lb of CO2 annually. However, different 

studies have given different values, 

complicating its calculation. Findings from 

North American forests show that CO2 

uptake by forests is around 0.5kg/m 2 per 

year. Thus, 1km 2 would absorb around 

500 tonnes. This would be far higher for 

old-growth forests compared to forests that 

have regrown after harvest. 

Carbon remains stored in wood — whether as timber or paper — until it is burned or rots 

Knudsen: One of my favourite things to say 

is “use more paper and wood — plant more 

trees”. The meaning is that we should trap 

and store more CO2 in paper and wood that 

can be recycled and reused repeatedly. Is 

there a difference between how much CO2 

wood and paper contain? 

Ravindran: Carbon remains stored in wood 

until it is burned or rots, no matter if it is timber 

or paper pulp. Paper is a processed material, 

and therefore, its production costs a lot of 

emissions. Also, not all paper that ends up 

in the trash is recycled. It is mostly burned, 

unlocking all the carbon stored in it. Thus, 

reducing paper use and increasing timber 

production is what I would recommend for 

mitigating CO2. 

ENDING THOUGHTS 

What I have learned already in 2022 is 

to continue my Global Timber New Year 

resolutions and additionally start recycling 

more paper. Also, it sounds like a beautiful 

thought to plant more forests in and 

around polluted areas. But how easy is it 

to carry out and why has it not been done 

yet? One answer could be that the terrain 

surrounding some of these areas is not 

suitable for growing a forest. For example, 

India and Pakistan have large parts of 

barren areas where just about nothing can 

grow. Can we then plant something else 

instead like bushes to store CO2? WIA 

References: 

1. Visual Capitalist. Mapped: 30 Years of Deforestation and 

Forest Growth, by Country. 

This article was first published on Global Timber’s website and 

is reproduced here with permission. 


W O O D & W O O D W O R K I N G 

20-22 JANUARY 2021 

HANOIWOOD 2023 

河内木工机械展 

NEW DATE: 

9-11 FEBRUARY 2023 

Venue: 

International Centre of 

Exhibition (I.C.E ), Hanoi 

91 Tran Hung Dao Street, Hoan Kiem 

District, Hanoi , Vietnam 

QR Code to exhibition 

location on Google Map 

JOINTLY ORGANISED BY 

M A C H I N E R Y 

BINH DUONG FURNITURE ASSOCIATION 

PANELS & FURNITURE GROUP 

VIETNAM TIMBER AND 

FOREST PRODUCT ASSOCIATION 

T R A D E F A I R 

Pablo Shanghai 

Contact: Rain Ma 

Mobile: (86) 182 1755 3837 

Email: 2229204646@qq.com 

PLEASE CONTACT: 

Pablo Publishing & Exhibition Pte Ltd 

3 Ang Mo Kio Street 62 #01-23 Link@AMK 


Tel: (65) 6266 5512 Mobile: (65) 9621 4283 

Email: williampang@pabloasia.com


If companies want net-zero 

carbon offices, they need to 

focus on building materials 

By Meike Siegner, post-doctoral research fellow, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 

Ryerson University; and Cory Searcy, professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, 

and vice-provost and dean of Graduate Studies, Ryerson University 

In 2020, the extraction, transport and 

manufacturing of materials for the building 

sector accounted for 10% of global 

greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. If buildings 

are to make meaningful contributions to 

keeping global temperature rise to 1.5°C above 

pre-industrial levels, limiting emissions from 

building materials is crucial. 

To achieve this objective, engineered versions 

of age-old building technologies, like wood, 

straw or bamboo, are critical. These biobased 

building materials generally demand less 

energy in manufacturing and have the 

ability to capture and store carbon through 

photosynthesis. 

This is why experts in green building policy, 

climate science and architecture increasingly 

tout the benefits of transforming buildings 

from a giant source of carbon into a large 

carbon sink. 

As scholars of business sustainability and 

bio-products markets, we closely observe 

the trends in green building and construction 

industries, and the reactions these provoke 

in sectors of the economy looking to cut 

emissions. With corporate announcements 

on the rise that publicise natural materials 

like wood as “the new concrete” in company 

offices and warehouses, we believe it is time 

to take a closer look at the opportunities and 

limitations of making building materials part of 

a company’s net-zero carbon pledges. 

THE RISE OF NET-ZERO CARBON 

OFFICES 

The past two decades have seen the use of 

green buildings as an explicit tool to reduce 

the carbon footprint of companies. It is now 

commonplace for business offices to feature 



the latest in engineering and building 

operations, from energy efficiency 

and on-site heating and cooling, to 

waste reduction and recycling. 

Bloomberg’s European headquarters, 

for instance, has earned the title 

of the world’s most sustainable 

office building for combining all 

these measures. From a company 

perspective, going beyond 

operational efficiency, to also 

focusing on building materials, is a 

logical step. 

Walmart offers one example of the 

use of biobased building materials. 

The retail giant is set to finish its new 

home office in Bentonville, Arkansas, 

US, by 2025. It is the largest 

corporate campus project in the US 

that uses mass timber, a group of 

large engineered structural wooden 

panels that have gained market 

acceptance following changes in 

building codes, for the construction of 

multi-storey and tall wood buildings. 

Structurlam, a Canadian company 

that delivers mass timber, opened a 

fully automated facility in Walmart’s 

home state where it procures lumber 

from forests in the region to complete 

the project. Similarly, Google will 

soon finish its first mass timber office 

complex. 

Microsoft already opened a building 

on its Silicon Valley campus that uses 

over 2,100 tonnes of cross-laminated 

timber (CLT), a wood panel system 

that is projected to reach a global 

market size of more than US$3 billion 

within the next five years. 

Some European firms like the 

German retail chain Alnatura are 

using prefabricated loam in their 

headquarters, and automaker BMW 

is about to open an electric vehicle 

showroom in California that has 

flooring made from hemp wood. 

Business offices now feature the latest in engineering and building operations, from energy efficiency to waste reduction 

and recycling 



Prefabrication helps optimise material use and model adaptive structures 

that can be deconstructed, modified and reassembled 

Cross-laminated timber 

GREEN CONSTRUCTION MEETS 

PREFABRICATION 

What unites these technologies is the 

potential to combine climate benefits with 

the shift towards off-site construction and 

prefabrication, where the planning, design, 

manufacturing and partial assembly of building 

elements occur at a location other than the 

final building site. 

Many of the manufacturers that offer buildings 

made from biobased materials are, in fact, 

a new class of technology start-ups that are 

backed by large investors. 

Prefabrication helps optimise material use 

and model adaptive structures that can be 

deconstructed, modified and reassembled, 

thereby reducing the need for virgin resources. 

This provides companies with flexibility 

in planning for the long-term use of their 

office buildings, sales stores, warehouses 

and factories, without having to think about 

demolishing a structure. 

LIMITATIONS OF BIOBASED 

BUILDING MATERIAL 

Biobased building materials have their 

limitations. Harnessing their environmental 

potential requires that they are sourced from 

sustainable supply chains. From a climate 

perspective, building wooden office towers 

with timber can be counterproductive if large 

amounts of carbon dioxide are emitted in the 

logging, transport and manufacture of wood 

products. 

A company may also ask whether new 

buildings are needed in the first place. After all, 

the lowest carbon footprint is that of a building 

that is never constructed. 

Companies may consider using biobased 

building materials in retrofitting and 

remodelling existing offices or factories instead 

of building new ones. Serial retrofit initiatives, 

of the kind spearheaded by governments in 

Europe and suggested for Canada, already 

funnel capital into the scale-up of industries 

for prefabricated building technologies, 

like facades made from wood and recycled 

materials. 

Ultimately, as with all corporate environmental 

strategies, simply introducing biobased 

products and materials to the company, be 

it in office buildings or elsewhere, without 

having resources in place to monitor their 

environmental efficacy, for example, in 

procurement, installation and use, can 

backfire. 

THE FUTURE OF BIOBASED 

BUILDING MATERIALS 

Building materials can play a key role when 

considered as a part of a broader strategy in 

companies’ efforts to reach net-zero emissions. 

Over 450 firms around the world have already 

pledged to finance the transition to net-zero 

emissions by 2050. 

The issue of materials in construction is gaining 

attention on a global scale as well. With more 

than 130 events focused on the built environment 

at the COP26 summit in November 2021, 

buildings received more attention than ever. 

That being said, biobased products and 

materials will require even more attention going 

forward. A likely bottleneck in assessing when 

and how to use biobased building materials will 

be just how quickly industries normalise the 

use of lifecycle costing tools, such as whole life 

carbon accounting. 

Progress on the adoption of these tools has been 

slow, but the recent signing of whole life carbon 

requirements by 44 large companies offers hope 

that the time for net-zero carbon buildings may 

indeed be ripe. WIA 

This article was first published on The Conversation’s website and 

is reproduced here with permission. 



Wood for good: Mass timber 

can reduce construction 

phase emissions by 69% 

By Ken Hickson 

we found that substituting conventional 

building materials for mass timber reduces 

construction phase emissions by 69%, an 

average reduction of 216kg CO2e/m 2 of floor 

area.” 

The research study entitled “Wood buildings 

as a climate solution”, by Austin Himes and 

Gwen Busby of the Mississippi State University 

Department of Forestry in the US, found that 

analysis was “unanimous in showing emissions 

reductions when building with mass timber 

compared to conventional materials”. 

So, scaling up low-carbon construction, 

assuming mass timber is substituted for 

conventional building materials in half of 

expected new urban construction, could 

provide as much as 9% of the global emissions 

reduction needed to meet 2030 targets for 

keeping global warming below 1.5°C. 

SCION Innovation Hub by RTA Studio/Irving Smith Architects in New Zealand, which won the Best Use of Certified Timber Prize 

“Wood for good” is no longer an idle wish. It lighting, also known as operational emissions, 

is a vital move for the planet if we are going to and the harder to eliminate emissions 

seriously cut emissions and attain net zero by associated with the extraction, processing 

2030. 

and manufacturing of building products, or 

embodied emissions. 

We know that the built environment is 

responsible for 40% of global emissions. This The world is finally waking up to this, and 

is confirmed by the World Green Building backed up by science, we now know that 

Council, a non-profit of businesses and 

timber construction can be the single most 

organisations working in the building and important way to cut emissions. 

construction industry. 

A 2020 report in Developments in the Built 

Emissions come from the energy we consume Environment by Elsevier showed that: “Based 

within buildings for heating, cooling and on 18 comparisons across four continents, 

Driven by Green Building Councils and 

enterprising timber companies and supported 

by the Programme for the Endorsement of 

Forest Certification (PEFC), we are seeing 

a remarkable and welcome move to timber 

construction in Asia-Pacific, as well as in 

Europe and the Americas. 

When we announced in September 2021 

that it was good enough that six of the eight 

finalists for the World Architecture Festival 

(WAF) Best Use of Certified Timber Prize 

— awarded by PEFC — were for projects in 

the Asia-Pacific, we reported that “there is 

also been a big boost for mass engineered 

timber (MET) by architects and builders in the 

region, most notably in Japan, Australia and 

Singapore”. 



1 

Park, Rotorua, New Zealand, SCION is a 

reinvention of the headquarters building of 

the Crown Research Institute that specialises 

in technology development for the forestry 

industry. 

It was chosen as the most outstanding of the 

eight shortlisted projects from around the 

world. It is also the winner of the WAF award 

in the category Completed Buildings - Higher 

Education and Research. Proudly showcasing 

PEFC-certified timber in a diagrid structure, the 

building requires less material than traditional 

MET buildings. 

2 

The judges highlighted the focus of the project, 

away from gravity mass timber buildings 

to geometrically stiffened forms to help in 

earthquake conditions. 

1 The Ariake 

Gymnastics 

Centre in Japan by 

architectural firm 

Nikken Sekkei 

2 The Climatorium 

in Denmark by 3xn 

architects 

3 Daruma House 

in Australia by 

architecture and 

design firm Tzannes 

It was also noted that the building achieved 

embodied carbon zero at the time of 

completion and showcased dovetail node 

joints that slot together, in an expression of 

craftsmanship and beauty. 

“SCION Innovation Hub pays tribute to the 

local indigenous community and its history, 

as well as being a forestry research centre. 

Both are aligned with PEFC’s principles 

around community respect and continuous 

innovation,” highlighted PEFC’s acting CEO, 

Michael Berger. 

PEFC said there were 22 built environment 

projects entered, spreading from the 

Americas and Europe to Africa, Asia and 

Oceania. While all these buildings have their 

use of certified timber in common, their 

style and purpose vary widely: from higher 

education and research to community spaces 

and sports facilities, to name only a few. 

Australia is in the lead, both for collecting two 

finalist slots in the WAF/PEFC global contest 

— and it has won the award in previous years 

— but also through the work of XLam, using 

Responsible Wood-certified cross-laminated 

timber (CLT) for structures in Australia. 

Modular building company Fabregas has 

decked out its New South Wales central 

coast warehouse with locally grown and 

manufactured timber from XLam, meeting 

the Australian standard for sustainable forest 

management, a prerequisite for Responsible 

Wood, a certification organisation that issues 

PEFC certifications in Australia and New 

Zealand. 

The winning project for 2021, though, came 

from New Zealand. It was seen as a cuttingedge 

showcase for engineered timber, not 

only in terms of the aesthetic but also what it 

contributes to a carbon-zero future. 

The WAF-PEFC Best Use of Certified Timber 

Prize went to SCION Innovation Hub by RTA 

Studio/Irving Smith Architects. Located 

at the edge of the Whakarewarewa Forest 

Japan also featured as one of the WAF-PEFC 

finalists for the Best Use of Certified Timber 

Prize with its Ariake Gymnastics Centre, 

entered by architects Nikken Sekkei in the 

Sports category. 

PEFC and its national governing body in Japan, 

the Sustainable Green Ecosystem Council 

(SGEC), has also drawn attention to another 

significant timber sporting stadium, which was 

completed in time for the Tokyo Olympics. 

The Ariake Tennis Forest Park Clubhouse 

Indoor Tennis Court involved SGEC/PEFC 

project certification — the first time for a major 

Olympic facility — which was carried out by 

Japan Gas Appliance Inspection Association 

(JIA). 



PEFC summarises this by confirming it is a 

global certification system that upholds the 

highest possible standards for the construction 

industry and highlights the importance of 

timber – certified, of course — as the building 

material of choice. 

Besides awarding prize-winning designs and 

buildings, PEFC has also reported in recent 

months on the rapid rise of MET projects in 

Singapore. These have included two major 

projects by Venturer Timberworks, one for 

National Parks at Jurong Lake Gardens and one 

for the People’s Association at Bedok Reservoir. 

Both of these are being lined up for chain-ofcustody 

(CoC) project certification. 

They will follow on from the Changi Chapel 

and Museum for the National Heritage Board, 

which was PEFC’s first project certification in 

Singapore, carried out by Double Helix Tracking 

Technologies. 

PEFC-certified timber is also being used in 

one of the largest education facility buildings 

in Singapore. The Nanyang Technological 

University (NTU) in Singapore is adopting 

sustainable materials and innovative 

construction methods to develop its campus. 

The latest project, Academic Building South, 

is a showcase of sustainable construction 

and largely utilises Stora Enso CLT to be the 

new home for Nanyang Business School. At 

40,000m 2 , it will be one of the largest wooden 

buildings in Asia upon completion. 

It is in line for PEFC project certification, too, 

and is a fine example of the move to timber 

as the best construction material. It is also an 

integral part of NTU’s mission to become the 

greenest campus in the world by this year, 2022. 

PEFC explains that its project certification 

enables a built environment project to attain 

3 

the highest level of certification available, giving 

the chosen project added environmental value 

and a ‘solid green’ reputation. 

It provides architects, builders and property 

developers with a clearly defined view of 

what needs to be achieved and delivered. 

The process behind project certification is 

also clearly defined. It can be applied to any 

construction concept or any other one-off 

project where timber is used. 

As expectations grow for companies to source 

responsibly, business interest in project CoC 

certification is increasing. It offers several 

important benefits: 

First, it provides companies with competitive 

advantages for their PEFC-certified projects 

in an increasingly environmentally-conscious 

world. Next, it allows project members to make 

a bold statement of sustainability and sound 

ethical sourcing of timber and forest-based 

products. It also enables project managers to 

take advantage of PEFC certification even if not 

all project members have obtained PEFC CoC 

certification. 

The certification also complies with legislation 

— PEFC’s due diligence system excludes wood 

from conversions, illegal and other controversial 

sources. Additionally, since two-thirds of the 

world’s certified forest area is PEFC-certified, 

the certification offers more than 230 million 

hectares of fibre and timber. And lastly, 

businesses acquire a competitive advantage 

over competitors with the CoC certification. 

PEFC also reminds all architects that they have 

the opportunity to line up for the WAF-PEFC 

Best Use of Certified Timber Prize for 2022. 

Now in its 15th year, the annual WAF offers 

architectural prizes globally and makes the 

point that winning a WAF award will “elevate 

your practice and help build your global 

reputation as leading architects, plus, all 

entries will be featured on the World Buildings 

Directory”. 

Best Use of Certified Timber is one of the 

prizes awarded every year by WAF. A special 

jury, including a PEFC representative, will 

identify entries that have used certified 

timber in an innovative, educational or artistic 

manner. The early bird deadline to enter is 

8 Apr 2022, and the entry deadline is 6 May 

2022. Shortlisted architects will be contacted 

to confirm that the timber specified and used 

in the project originates from certified sources 

demonstrating leadership in sustainable 

design. WIA 

PEFC believes that architects play 

a critical role when recommending 

building materials, by specifying only 

those which have a positive impact on 

the environment. Timber is the obvious 

choice, but it must come from certified 

sources and not be illegally logged or the 

result of deforestation. 

It is important to use materials which 

conserve natural resources rather 

than exploit them. Each building 

material selected has its impact on the 

environment, whether at manufacturing, 

installing or demolition stages. It is 

important to choose materials wisely, 

ideally from sustainably managed 

forests and with chain-of-custody 

certification. 


MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGY 

Clicking into place 

with Threespine 

By Yap Shi Quan 

Threespine is a tool-and-hardwarefree 

click technology used in furniture 

assembly, taking away the need for 

nails, dowels and glue to assemble 

the panels. Instead, it uses a tongueand-groove 

principle with a flexible 

glass-fibre re-enforced plastic insert 

as the key feature that locks the panels 

together. 

Adapted from the floor locking 

technology developed by Välinge 

Innovation, Threespine combines 

Välinge’s R&D experience in wooden 

flooring and furniture with HOMAG’s 

expertise in industrial furniture 

manufacturing. Jonas Banestig, senior 

key account manager of furniture 

technology, Asia, Välinge Innovation 

Sweden, explained to Wood in 

Architecture how it works: “Each 

profiled joint contains some of the 

plastic inserts along its length. When 

a furniture panel is positioned and 

pushed down, the insert retracts into 

a groove, and as the panel reaches its 

final position, the insert snaps out into 

a wedge groove with a ‘click’ — that is 

the sound which signals that the panels 

are locked.” 

Without nails or dowels, the concern 

of stability naturally rises. But 

Banestig assured that the strength of 

the panel comes from the profile using 

“the entire depth of the product” 

instead of conventional fittings 

with point-wise connection: “In 

combination with a back panel that 

can be clicked instead of nailed, this 

therefore creates a stable furniture 

even during assembly.” 

PRODUCTION 

Välinge offers a range of profiles that 

complements different kinds of panel 

joints, with corner and mitre joints 

being the most commonly used in 

every furniture — whether it is basic 

kitchen cabinets or high-end design 

furniture. They also complement panels 



1 2 

1 The stability of 

Threespine uses 

the entire depth of 

the product instead 

of just point-wise 

connection 

2 Threespine can 

be profiled into 

panels of more 

than 22mm down 

to 6mm mitre 

joints 

3 Threespine is 

applicable to 

various joints, 

such as mitre and 

corner joints 

3 

of various thicknesses, from “more 

than 22mm down to 6mm mitre joints”, 

depending on the material. 

These mean that Threespine can be 

profiled into various kinds of furniture, 

such as cabinets, drawers, tables and 

bookcases. Manufacturers can also be 

creative in their design with the various 

board thicknesses and panel joints, 

choosing profiles best suited for the 

product and optimised for the production 

setup with machinery by HOMAG. 

When manufacturing furniture with 

Threespine, manufacturers can use the 

same production line for both factory 

assembly and ready-to-assemble. This 

allows them to offer a future-proofed 

omnichannel approach, suited to the 

changing retail landscape and increase 

in online sales. 

Furthermore, with the plastic insert 

slotted into the furniture panel in the 

production line, the panels will be 

ready for assembly as soon as they 

roll off. This saves time and effort that 

would otherwise be spent fiddling 

with small fittings and components, 

thus streamlining production. This 

also ensures that the quality of the 

finished furniture product is determined 

during production, and not by the end 



consumer. As such, end consumers 

will only need to click the panels 

together, thus resulting in “fewer 

claims and returns”. 

CAPACITY 

According to Banestig, Threespine 

was not developed for small-scale 

solution to assembly, but optimised 

for high capacity, industrial volumes. 

That is not to say, however, that it is 

unsuited for smaller manufacturers. 

As he elaborated: “Threespine 

allows manufacturers to grow and 

expand with the technology. It is not 

unusual for manufacturers to start 

with a number of CNC machines 

and gradually grow into automated 

through-feed production processes. 

The licensees for Threespine 

stretches in production capacities 

from 20,000 up to a million units per 

year.” 

He also advised manufacturers that 

before applying Threespine to their 

furniture, they should consider how 

they are able to offer an assembly 

technology suitable for the growing 

omnichannel market, and how relevant 

the existing range is to that change. 

COLLABORATION 

Since Threespine was developed for 

industrial volumes, Välinge chose to 

consult and collaborate with HOMAG 

to develop a suitable equipment that 

produces the Threespine profiles. 

Udo Mauerer, vice-president for Asia- 

Pacific of HOMAG Asia, commented on 

the fruitfulness of their collaboration: 

“At times it was challenging for both 

sides with respect to concepts and 

technical executions. However, in 

the end we came up with some good 

solutions that we have launched into 

the markets, with several machines 

installed around the globe. We have 

also started to jointly participate in 

events, shows, and livestreams. Since 

both sides have increased marketing 

activities, the interest for these 

products have increased and we are 

seeing more and more inquiries.” 

Banestig expressed similar enthusiasm 

about the collaboration, and 

concluded: “Working closely with 

HOMAG, we feel like our journey of 

revolutionising the furniture industry 

— in much the same way we did 

with the flooring industry — is just 

beginning. With HOMAG’s machine 

expertise and our R&D experience, 

a new paradigm shift is underway 

for how manufacturers, retailers, 

and customers at home experience 

furniture assembly. It is a really 

exciting time.” WIA 

“With HOMAG’s machine expertise and our 

R&D experience, a new paradigm shift is 

underway for how manufacturers, retailers, 

and customers at home experience furniture 

assembly.” 

Jonas Banestig 

Senior Key Account Manager, Furniture Technology Asia 

Välinge Innovation Sweden 

“At times it was challenging for both [Välinge 

and HOMAG] with respect to concepts and 

technical executions. However, in the end we 

came up with some good solutions that we 

have launched into the markets.” 

Udo Mauerer 

Vice-President for Asia-Pacific 

HOMAG Asia 



A second life: Upcycling 

disposable chopsticks 

into ready-to-use panels 

The premise behind the design of disposable wooden chopsticks is also 

causing wastefulness: Once used, throw it away. But in the resourceful 

hands of ChopValue SG, discarded chopsticks take on a second lease 

of life as panels for various applications – from serve ware and home 

office setups to decorative pieces. 


opening of its first international 

franchise in Singapore which will serve 

as the flagship and training Accoya facility cladding for 

its regional expansion. Spearheaded 

by Evelyn Hew, managing director at 

ChopValue SG, the Singapore office has 

outlined its aim to transform 35 million 

chopsticks within the first three years 

in business – that is equivalent to 100 

tonnes of urban resources that would 

otherwise be discarded. 

Tables made with 

upcycled chopsticks 

Disposable chopsticks are the 

product resulting from the fast-paced 

social life; it is convenient and even 

considered “hygienic” as they are 

discarded after use. Traditionally made 

from wood, disposable chopsticks 

are now mostly made from bamboo 

instead as it is more economical and 

environmentally friendly. And with 

sustainability awareness on the rise, 

more innovations are being placed to 

give these disposable items a second 

life, one of which is from ChopValue, 

a company that upcycles used 

disposable chopsticks into panels that 

can be used for a range of purposes. 

ChopValue is a circular economy 

furniture and design company 

headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. 

Since its founding in 2016, the 

company has recycled over 

50 million chopsticks. In April last 

year, ChopValue announced the 

She told Wood in Architecture: “In 

Singapore, we throw out at least 

500,000 chopsticks every single day. 

We see that as a potential to divert 

them away from our waste stream, 

which could have landed in our 

incineration plant. 

“We also see bamboo as a renewable 

resource. Typically, bamboo has a 

denser composition than softwoods 

and is, therefore, more resistant to 

environmental changes and scratchresistant, 

both of which make utilising 

bamboo advantageous compared to 

wood-based products. Our conversion 

of chopsticks into products extends 

their lifetime indefinitely, thereby 



extending the time that carbon dioxide 

remains stored as well.” 

Although disposable chopsticks do not 

constitute a large portion of the waste 

generated in Singapore each year, 

Hew expressed hope that ChopValue 

SG’s presence will inspire others to 

transform other urban harvests into a 

viable resource, and added: “We hope 

that with ChopValue SG’s presence, 

we can lead the way for an alternative 

view of how to handle the waste we 

create.” 

In the first five months of collection, 

ChopValue SG collected 1.2 million 

pairs of chopsticks from about 105 

partner restaurants, hospitals and 

schools, she revealed. “We are also 

looking to strengthen our outreach 

efforts in the next few years. We hope 

to partner with as many restaurants, 

hospitals, schools, offices and 

organisations in Singapore and our 

ambitious goal is to upcycle every 

single chopstick thrown out.” 

Besides leading ChopValue SG, Hew is a 

serial entrepreneur, running businesses 

ranging from restaurants to private 

fleet leasing services. She is currently 

managing SmartCity Solutions, a 

small- and medium-enterprise (SME) 

founded in 2015 that provides Internet 

of Things (IoT) solutions to the waste 

management industry. 

Together with her team, she had a 

view into the waste problems faced 

in Singapore, such as challenges in 

recycling and upcycling, a lack of offtakers 

for recyclables, contamination in 

recyclables, and the lack of innovative 

and scalable products made from 

recycled materials. Her search for a 

solution to waste management led to 

ChopValue. 

“I’m heartened to see that the 

sustainability awareness is picking 

up in Singapore,” she said. “Without 

a comparison to Canada, I believe 

that there is much more we can 

do in Singapore to raise that level 

of awareness and involve different 

stakeholders to make that happen.” 

FROM CHOPSTICKS TO 

PANELS 

The process of turning disposable 

chopsticks into wood panels begins 

with the first step of collection, which 

is the basis of the business. ChopValue 

SG collects used disposable chopsticks 

from its partner restaurants twice a 

week and transports them back to their 

micro-factory for further processing. 

The collected chopsticks are then 

sorted by length and aligned using the 

shaker table, and anything that does 

not belong, such as plastic or paper 

sleeves, will be removed by hand. A 

week’s worth of chopsticks can be 

sorted in less than two days. 

Once the batch of chopsticks is sorted, 

the chopsticks are packed vertically 

in the chopstick totes, which are then 

used for resin application. The resin 

used is water-based, toxic-free and 

food safe – which means the chopsticks 

are safe to be manufactured into items 

such as cheeseboards or charcuterie 

boards. 

The resin-coated chopsticks are 

subsequently spread onto trays for 

drying, and placed in the dryer for 8-16 

hours. At high heat, it will sanitise the 

chopsticks, eliminate all bacteria and 

remove any moisture. To ensure a high 

degree of hygiene, Hew assured that 

the disposed chopsticks are further 

fumigated with 99% ethanol as a 

disinfectant. 

After drying, the chopsticks are 

loosened and weighed to the specific 

tile density requirement and placed 

into the press, where the tiles are 

formed. The tiles are then extracted 

from the press and hot-stacked and 

1 

2 

3 



4 

1 Collection stage of 

processing chopsticks to 

become panels 

2 Sorting stage 

3 Once sorted, the 

chopsticks are ready to 

be pressed 

4 Office desk and table 

setups 

5 ChopValue SG also does 

customised orders, like 

trophies and awards 

6 Cheeseboard and 

butcher block 

5 

air-conditioned for 24 hours before further 

processing. Finally, after the panels cool down 

and normalise to the environment, they are 

planed to the required thickness and formatted 

in 7x7-inch tiles. 

Where strength and durability of the raw 

material are concerned, Hew explained 

that despite it being made entirely out of 

used disposable chopsticks, the ChopValue 

Natural Microfibre Performance Material is a 

“highly densified, solid composite material” 

made from compressed, resin infused urban 

harvested lignocellulose-based fibres. 

“It is strong than oak, harder than maple and 

as durable as teak,” she said. 

6 

To further demonstrate the quality of the 

material, ChopValue SG conducts two hardness 

tests – the Janka hardness and Brinell scale – 

to demonstrate the material’s robustness. The 

Janka test measures the resistance of a sample 

of wood to denting and wear, and likewise, 

the Brinell scale measures the hardness of 

materials with an indenter. The results found 

were 2,450 on the Janka test and 90N/mm 2 on 

the Brinell scale, according to Hew. 

Currently, ChopValue SG’s range of products 

includes wall décor, phone and tablet stands, 

tables and desks, coasters, cheese and 

charcuterie boards, among others. Besides 

these ready-made items, they also manage 

customised projects such as rebuilding wall 

panels, decorative pieces and corporate 

gifts. WIA 


DESIGN 

OMA reveals 

first quadrant of 

KaDeWe Berlin 

with wood-clad 

escalators 

Wood-clad escalators 

within a concentric void 


DESIGN 

project introduces four quadrants which 

fragment the original mass into smaller, 

easily accessible and navigable sectors. 

With this project, OMA and KaDeWe 

address the accelerating shifts in 

consumer behaviour and the challenges 

and opportunities brought by online 

retail that are affecting the traditional 

department store. 

DESIGN INFORMATION 

PROJECT: KaDeWe Berlin 

LOCATION: Berlin, Germany 

ARCHITECTS: OMA 

CLIENT: KaDeWe Group 

ESCALATORS: Hundt Consult, 

Geyssel Fahrtreppen 

PHOTOGRAPHY: Marco Cappelletti 

The Berlin department store Kaufhaus 

des Westens (KaDeWe) opened the 

doors to the first quadrant of the 

masterplan designed by architecture 

studio OMA. A concentric void spanning 

six floors holds a series of wood-clad 

escalators. At the base, in extension of 

the Tauentzienstraße main entrance, 

the void serves both as a retail and 

event space. Outside, a new twostorey-high 

shop window for digital 

and analogue presentations has been 

introduced on the corner of the streets 

Tauentzienstraße and Passauer Straße. 

Rather than treating the existing 

building as a singular mass, the 

Ellen van Loon, partner at OMA, 

commented: “The renovation of the 

KaDeWe aims to redefine the dynamics 

between retail space, its patrons, and 

the urban environment, in a time when 

e-commerce is reshaping our relation 

with in-person shopping. The project 

reinterprets the fundamental elements 

of a typology that has remained virtually 

unchanged for more than 100 years.” 

The masterplan and renovation of the 

Berlin department store, ongoing since 

2016, marks OMA’s first project for 

KaDeWe Group. The project is led by 

Ellen van Loon and Rem Koolhaas, with 

project architect Natalie Konopelski. 

van Loon is also undertaking the design 

of the new store by KaDeWe Group in 

Vienna. WIA 


DESIGN 

Façade ribs 

made with 

local cedar 

wood 


PROJECT: Cozoo Tourist Centre 

LOCATION: Anhui, China 

ARCHITECT: Kostas Grigoriadis, 

Continuum Architecture & Design 

INTERIOR: Li Zhang, Evogma Group 

CLIENT: Evogma Group, Cozoo 

AREA: 180m 2 

TEXT AND PHOTOGRAPHY: 

Continuum Architecture & Design 

The centre’s roof and 

observation deck for the 

enjoyment of surroundings 


DESIGN 

1 

The Cozoo Tourist Centre is located 

in the Huangshan Mountain region 

in southeast China and consists of a 

tourist information space, local craft 

display and storage area, staff rooms, 

restrooms and an observation deck. The 

main design objective was to eschew 

an object-in-the-landscape approach, 

and instead integrate the building in the 

surrounding landscape, both formally as 

well as materially. 

2 

On a formal level, a staircase placed 

at each end of the building allows it to 

be continuous with the ground plane 

while enabling continuous longitudinal 

movement over and across it. As a result 

of this, the centre’s roof becomes an 

extension of the public space around it 

and can be openly accessed for enjoying 

views of the mountainous surroundings. 

1 Straight 

segments of the 

ribs 

2 Façade ribs 

made with cedar 

wood sourced 

and worked 

on by local 

craftsmen 

3 The centre 

consists of 

a tourist 

information 

space, local craft 

display, and staff 

rooms 

3 

The majority of materials, such as the 

cedar wood used for the façade ribs, 

were locally sourced to minimise their 

carbon footprint. Initially designed 

to be curved, the ribs had to be 

rationalised into straight segments, 

one measurement vertically and one 

across to mark each vertex, that could 

be easily hand-cut to size and shape 

by local craftsmen in the village’s wood 

workshop. The different segments were 

glued together, polished and varnished 

before being installed on the facade. 

Formally, their width varies gradually 

from one end of the building to the 

other, swelling higher up to mark the 

centre’s entrance. They also shade 

the interior from the low hot sun in the 

summer, while allowing sunlight into 

the space for passive heating during the 

winter. 

Funded by a national strategic plan 

fund for reversing urban migration 

and working with budget constraints, 

local materials and available tools and 

machinery, the endeavour created 

a sustainable focal point for local 

inhabitants and visitors of this remote 

rural region. WIA 


STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS 

The public library 

at the heart of 

a compact, vibrant city 

Inspired by the forests, Nasushiobara City Library 

is more than just a library. 

1 



PROJECT NAME: Nasushiobara City Library 

LOCATION: Nasushiobara, Tochigi, Japan 

DATE OF COMPLETION: January 2020 

SITE AREA: 4,011.49m 2 

BUILDING AREA: 3,078.21m 2 

TOTAL FLOOR AREA: 4,967.69m 2 

STRUCTURAL ENGINEER: 

Kanebako Structural Engineers 

CONSTRUCTION: Ishikawa/ Ikoma/ 

Ban Construction Joint Venture 

CREDIT INFORMATION 

ARCHITECTURE: Mari Ito/UAo 

PHOTOGRAPHY: Daici Ano 



1 2 

6 

1 The lines of sight filter through the 

latticework dividers that gently partition 

the space which creates the atmosphere 

of looking between trees in a forest 

2 The “leafline” is a louvered ceiling that 

covers the entire interior, modelled on the 

lower edge of a forest crown 

3 The “forest pockets” are atria that 

resembles small clearings in the woods 

where the sky suddenly becomes visible 

and light pours in 

4 Today, public libraries no longer just serve 

as a “third place” for people to gather, it 

also sparks vital learning and interaction 

About 150km north of Tokyo, the 

Nasushiobara City Library is a library and 

community centre located in the city of 

Nasushiobara. 

Awarded the commission in a 2016 

competition, the design drew inspiration 

from the forests, an important part of the 

city’s identity. 

“When we step into a forest, we sense 

the subtle yet constant change in season, 

weather, plant and animal life, absorbing 

these transformations in multiple 

emotionally powerful ways,” explained 

Urban Architecture Office, the architect 

for the Nasushiobara City Library. 

“Similarly, as visitors walk freely 

through the library, they experience 

layers of subtle changes unfolding 

across softly defined borders, from the 

aphorisms and other exhibits displayed 

at various locations in the building to 

the activities and other human-caused 

transformations taking place.” 

Through the stimulation of multiple 

senses, the design is intended to 

spark new realisations and learning. 

The first floor is a lively, accessible 

space filled with intersecting 

subtleties, while the stacks on the 

second floor provide a comfortable 

space for reading or research. 

The three key features of the 

building: forest pockets, radiating 

bookshelves and leafline are as 

described. 

FOREST POCKETS 

The “forest pockets” are atria that 

resembles small clearings in the 

woods where the sky suddenly 

becomes visible and light pours 

in. They have no clearly defined 

purpose but instead are available 

for community events, exhibits 

and other uses. Sounds and sights 

escape upwards and outwards, 

allowing visitors in other parts of the 

building to feel the activity in these 

spaces. 



3 

RADIATING BOOKSHELVES 

Radiating bookshelves form the 

framework of the entire building. 

On the first floor, lines of sight filter 

through the latticework dividers 

that gently partition the space. This 

creates the atmosphere of looking 

between trees in a forest, creating 

an interconnected, constantly 

changing panorama of layered 

activity. 

On the second floor, the radiating 

shelves form a real-life version of 

the pie charts used in the Japanese 

library classification system, 

improving searchability and enabling 

circulation routes that cut across the 

categorised stacks. 

LEAFLINE 

The “leafline” is a louvered ceiling 

that covers the entire interior, 

modelled on the lower edge of a 

forest crown. The height variations 

in the polyhedral form create a 

number of loosely divided spaces of 

various sizes. Dappled light pours 

through the louvers to the first floor, 

creating a varied light environment. 

The result is an interconnected, forestlike 

space that gently enwraps visitors, 

turning the surrounding cityscape as 

well as the everyday activity in the 

library into a variety of ever-changing 

scenes. 

Today, public libraries no longer just 

serve as a “third place” for people to 

gather, it also sparks vital learning and 

interaction that ripples through the 

wider community as social capital, 

contributing to the development of 

the city as a whole. The awareness 

and knowledge that individuals gain 

in this “forest of words” return to their 

neighbourhoods as a resource capable 

of setting off significant change and 

inspiring lasting awareness in the 

broader community. Those are the 

ideals that the Nasushiobara City 

Library embodies. WIA 

4 



Binzhou Yangxin 

Ten Thousand 

Mu Pear Garden 

tourism centre 

LOCATION: 

Yangxin County, 

Hubei, China 

SIZE: 3,530m 2 

DEVELOPER: Pu Su Pear 

Garden (Shandong) Cultural 

Tourism Development 

ARCHITECTS: Shanghai 

Green-A Architects 

1 



China has undergone urbanisation from being 

a predominantly rural society to seeing most 

of its people live in cities within just 30 years, 

moving from 20.6% urbanisation in 1982 to 

60.6% in 2020. During this transformation, 

skyscrapers and developments were built 

across the country, and hundreds of millions 

of people upgraded to new homes. However, 

a hangover effect of this is overpopulated 

megacities and challenges for rural villages 

and towns that bled working-age populations 

who left to pursue new opportunities. 

To address this issue, the Chinese government 

has drafted new policies and plans to revitalise 

rural areas through tourism, agriculture and 

cultural programmes. Many Chinese recognise 

that their roots lie in the countryside, and 

although they might not want to live there, 

they are interested in reconnecting with their 

heritage. China’s vision for prosperous rural 

communities is tied to a more sustainable way 

of developing the tourism industry, through 

an environmental lens using green building 

materials and prefabrication. In support of 

those efforts, Canada Wood demonstrated 

the benefits of building with wood through 

the Binzhou Yangxin Ten Thousand Mu Pear 

Garden project in the province of Shandong. 

Functioning as a visitor centre, the project is 

situated in a large development zone called 

‘Ten Thousand Mu Pear Garden’, a component 

of the Binzhou city government’s tourism 

plan. The design of the building has various 

features, with inspiration for the roofline 

coming from the floral bloom of a pear, where 

the natural composition of a flower lends 

itself to the building structure. Supported by 

glue-laminated timber (glulam) columns, the 

spacious atrium provides an open and warm 

space for visitors. The glulam is made of 

Canadian Douglas fir harvested from British 

Columbia’s sustainably managed forests. 

The roof structure and prefabricated glulam 

posts accelerated the speed of construction 

enabling the building to be enclosed in about 

eight weeks, with the entire project completed 

in less than four months. 

The Canada Wood China team collaborated 

with the local government and the developer 

to provide them with technical design support 

and on-site quality control. Wood construction 

is making inroads in the booming tourism 

market, due to recent advances in local 

engineering and the manufacturing of glulam 

in China. WIA 

This article was first published on Canada 

Wood’s website and is reproduced here with 

permission. 


FLOORING 

The maxim “nothing is lost, everything 

is transformed” is typically attributed 

to a famous chemist and has its roots 

in scientific studies, but in the hands of 

Amorim Cork Flooring, a new meaning 

emerges. The company is dedicated to 

transforming cork waste and residue 

into cork flooring, ensuring that no 

waste is left unused, everything is 

productively used. 

“Nothing is lost, 

everything is 

transformed”: 

Cork flooring 

with Amorim Wise 

1 

Amorim Cork Flooring is part of 

Corticeira Amorim, a global producer 

of cork products based in Portugal. 

As Corticeira Amorim developed 

through the years, they realised that 

the cork waste from the production of 

cork stoppers was too valuable to be 

disposed. Hence, they formed Amorim 

Cork Flooring, whose purpose is to 

turn this waste into cork floor and wall 

coverings. 

As Catarina Gonçalves, marketing 

manager of Amorim Cork Flooring, 

explained to Wood in Architecture: 

“Amorim Cork Flooring itself was 

born from the very concept of circular 

economy. And more than using 

natural raw material, the company’s 

sustainability culture puts great value 

into its production process, making 

sure it complies with environmental 

principles.” 

Made with cork waste, cork flooring by Amorim 

Wise is not only sustainable, it also provides 

thermal and acoustic insulation and improves 

indoor air quality, all while being comfortable to 

the sole. Amorim Cork Flooring, the company 

behind Amorim Wise, tells us more about their 

specialty in cork flooring and their commitment to 

sustainability. 


Their attention towards sustainability 

does not stop there. To further 

concentrate their efforts on sustainable 

practices and operations, Amorim Wise 

was created, their green brand which 

sells “polyvinyl chloride (PVC)-free 

products based on cork and recycled 

materials”. 

CARBON NEGATIVE 

PRODUCTION 

Amorim Cork Flooring’s emphasis on 

sustainability begins as far back as the 

harvesting process in the production 

chain. Gonçalves explained that the 

bark extraction of cork oak trees is done 

manually, which means no heavy and 


FLOORING 

pollutant machinery is used. The cork 

treatment and storage facilities are 

also located close to the forests, thus 

minimising carbon footprint in this 

initial step of the process. 

Once the cork arrives at Amorim 

Cork Flooring’s facilities, it passes 

through a stabilisation period of 

minimum six months, after which it is 

transformed into granules of different 

dimensions and densities. During 

this step, the company implements 

an integrated production process, 

where all cork waste and surplus are 

reused by collecting, granulating and 

reincorporating it in the production 

process. 

2 

The company also leverages on 

cork dust from production lines by 

vacuuming and conducting it to silos 

where it is burned, thus generating 

energy through biomass. As a 

result, “more than 60% of energy” 

consumed in their factories is 

obtained from burnt cork dust. 

“This approach, combined with the 

use of raw material, allows Amorim 

Cork Flooring to reach a carbon 

negative balance in the entire 

process — carbon emissions resulting 

from the creation of new products 

are lower than what the process 

captures, thus helping to reduce 

global warming potential,” said 

Gonçalves. 

Notwithstanding the production 

process, cork itself is biodegradable 

and recyclable. For each tonne of 

cork produced, the cork oak forest 

can capture “up to 73 tonnes of 

CO2”, she reported. In fact, cork 

products maintain this storage 

capacity through their entire lifecycle. 

Moreover, after the first harvest, cork 

oak can be extracted and stripped 

15-20 times during its lifespan, at 

intervals of at least nine years apart, 

which makes it a renewable resource. 

3 

CORK FLOORING 

What makes cork suitable for 

flooring solutions? It is light, elastic, 

compressible, and is able to adapt to 

variations of temperature and pressure 

without suffering alterations because 

50% of cork’s volume is air. Cork 

flooring can also maintain an optimal 

temperature for a long period of time, 

thus providing a pleasant feel when 

walking barefoot. 

Furthermore, because of its honeycomb 

cell structure, cork’s low conductivity 

to heat, noise and vibrations makes it a 

natural thermal and acoustic insulator. 

According to Gonçalves, tests have 

confirmed that compared to walking on 

laminate floors, cork floorings reduce 

the walking sound up to 53%. On top of 

that, cork is also fire retardant, resistant 

to abrasion, and hypoallergenic. 

Cork’s ability to retain CO2 even after it 

has been processed and transformed 

also helps to improve indoor air quality. 

“An Amorim Wise product can have 

a carbon balance of up to 193kg of 

CO2/m 2 , thus ensuring a purer and 

cleaner air,” elaborated Gonçalves. 

“The indoor air quality of Amorim 

Wise products is tested and certified 

through several Indoor Air Quality 

certificates, such as TÜV PROFiCERT, 

a transnational certificate for volatile 

organic compounds (VOC) emission and 

air quality. 

“All of Amorim Wise products have the 

TÜV certificate, as well as the French 

certification for VOC emissions with the 

highest level of A+. Other certificates, 

such as the Green Guard, identify 

products that have low chemical 

emissions, ensuring that the tested 

1 Inspire 700 

2 Cork Pure 

3 Harvesting of 

cork oak is done 

without cutting 

or damaging the 

tree 


FLOORING 

products can be used in environments 

such as schools and healthcare 

facilities.” 

GOING DIGITAL 

During periods of lockdowns and 

social distancing measures, Amorim 

Cork Flooring saw the pandemic as an 

opportunity to reinvent themselves in 

terms of communication, as Gonçalves 

said: “We used everything at our 

disposal to speed up the pace of 

digitalisation in our company, creating 

specific tools to keep our costumers 

close despite the distance.” 

She cited their Digital Ecosystem as an 

example, which comprises websites 

in 13 languages, providing the needed 

information regarding their products. 

They also invested in digital campaigns 

during the pandemic to lead consumers 

to their websites, and they have a 

flooring simulator where consumers 

can test the company’s products in 

their space just by taking a picture 

with their phone. Virtual tours of their 

showroom and factory, and virtual 

training for their products are also 

available for their clients. 

AMORIM WISE’S PORTFOLIO 

Currently, Amorim Wise offers a range 

of solutions that can fit spaces from 

residential to high traffic commercial 

areas. Their cork flooring is designed 

for commercial areas like restaurants, 

since it can create a balance between 

hard and soft floors by reducing 

heel strike impacts and related body 

tensions, while providing the needed 

stability to reduce effort for walking. 

These solutions also come in three 

different visuals — wood, stone and 

cork. Gonçalves remarked that cork 

visuals are still a favourite within the 

architecture and design community, 

even though recent technologies 

allowed them to replicate any kind 

of visual on cork, as she elaborated: 

“Architects and designers have always 

shown special preference for natural 

and sustainable products. While they 

look for organic and natural textures, 

related with the concept of biophilic 

design, they also favour sustainability, 

having in mind environmental issues 

and circular economy.” 

Some of their solutions include: 

Inspire 700, Cork Pure, Wood Pro, and 

Dekwall. 

The Inspire 700 range is a floating 

solution with a negative carbon 

balance. It is made of cork and 

recycled materials, comes in cork and 

wood visuals, and can be used in any 

residential or commercial space. 

Cork Pure is a glue-down solution 

with a selection of cork veneers 

in different colours, for customers 

looking for a more biophilic design. 

Within Cork Pure, the Cork Pure 

Signature Collection offers veneers, 

colours, dimensions and finishes that 

allows customers to create “more than 

17,000 combinations” — all of which 

can be applied on the floor and wall. 

Wood Pro is a glue-down solution for 

professionals. It has low thickness and 

high performance, with a selection 

of wood visuals that can fit any 

commercial space. And lastly, Dekwall 

is Amorim Wise’s wall coverings range, 

exclusively with cork visuals. 

For upcoming innovations or design 

collections, Gonçalves concluded: 

“Amorim Wise will continue to develop 

sustainable and green products while 

focusing on transparency regarding its 

composition, lifecycle and materials.” WIA 

4 

5 

4 Inspire 700 SRT 

5 Dekwall 


FLOORING 

Antimicrobial power 

for the wood we walk on 

By Graham Harvey, global group director, Microban International 

and odours, but also to help extend 

its longevity. This article discusses 

the benefits of built-in antimicrobial 

chemistries and describes how they can 

be used in all different floor types to 

reduce the growth of microbes, without 

affecting the characteristics of the 

chosen material. 

WHY TRADITIONAL 

CLEANING IS NOT ENOUGH 

Microbes are small living organisms 

that are found all around us, and their 

ability to rapidly multiply in different 

environments makes them difficult to 

control. Bacteria, moulds, fungi, algae 

and viruses in undesirable locations 

can cause illnesses, surface stains, bad 

odours and reduced product life due to 

contamination or degradation. 

Traditional cleaning methods using 

Traditional cleaning 

methods using 

disinfectants are 

short-term solutions 

From left: Bacteria, 

mould, fungi, algae 

and viruses 

Wood or wood-effect flooring is 

a feature in stylish homes and 

commercial premises. The appearance 

of wood floors can be achieved in 

several ways – from solid hardwood to 

wood-effect laminate or even luxury 

vinyl tiles (LVTs) – with factors including 

cost, durability, ease of installation and 

appearance affecting choice. However, 

whichever material is selected, floors 

can be subject to a whole host of 

contaminants as a result of foot traffic, 

pets, food residues or cleaning lapses. 

In a study carried out by the University 

of Arizona, 96% of shoes were found 

to be populated with faecal bacteria, 

and an array of other microorganisms. 

Minimising the colonisation of bacteria, 

mould and mildew on a floor is 

important, not just to prevent stains 

disinfectants are short-term solutions, 

offering limited residual activity 

against microbes, which can build 

up and grow again as soon as the 

footfall returns. Some floor types are 

also harder to clean than others. For 

example, disinfecting hardwood or 

engineered wood floors is challenging 

since manufacturers advise against 

using excessive water or harsh cleaning 

chemicals. Finding the right balance 


FLOORING 

Selecting a flooring 

option with built-in 

antimicrobial 

technology is ideal 

between maintaining a high standard 

of cleanliness and reducing the 

wear caused by vigorous cleaning is, 

therefore, an important goal. Flooring 

that has antimicrobial product 

protection built-in, or wood flooring 

treated with a coating, offer an extra 

level of protection to support regular 

cleaning protocols. 

HOW ANTIMICROBIALS 

WORK 

Antimicrobial additives work 24/7, 

interacting with microbial cells 

to prevent their reproduction. 

Technologies of this kind can be 

built into some products or come in 

the form of coatings that adhere to 

surfaces, effectively acting as barriers 

to reduce the microbial population. 

Either way, they become an integral 

part of the floor, and cannot be 

washed off or worn away, making this 

approach the ideal complementary 

solution to cleaning in both household 

and commercial settings. 

Different floor types of course require 

different solutions: 

Solid hardwood: Solid hardwood 

floors are often associated with a 

high-end finish, but microbes do not 

discriminate. Disinfecting hardwood 

floors is tricky as moisture and harsh 

chemicals are not recommended. 

Similarly, built-in options are 

challenging as the boards are made 

from a natural material. Instead, 

a thin urethane top layer infused 

with antimicrobial properties can be 

added to the surface, adding a layer 

of protection without affecting the 

quality or appearance of the wood. 

Engineered wood: Engineered 

wood floors give the natural finish 

of solid hardwood floors, but are 

more versatile for specific situations, 

such as where there is underfloor 

heating, or in areas that experience 

fluctuations in heat and humidity, 

such as conservatories. They are 

also usually a more affordable 

option compared to their solid wood 

counterparts. However, as the top 

wear layer is made from natural wood, 

they still have the same restrictions 

on cleaning as solid wood floors, so 

adding an antimicrobial layer as a 

coating to the wood surface is an ideal 

solution. 

Sheet vinyl: Wood-effect vinyl flooring 

combines the look of real wood with 

durability, flexibility and the waterresistant 

features of vinyl. However, 

it can be particularly susceptible to 

staining from the growth of mould and 

mildew, especially as it is often used 

in areas that are frequently exposed 

to spills and higher humidity, such 

as kitchens, bathrooms and laundry 

rooms. For well-rounded protection 

against microbes, antimicrobial 

chemistries can be infused into all 

three layers of the material structure 

– the foam, vinyl and surface topcoat 

– before extrusion, calendering or 

coating. 

LVT: Wood-effect LVTs are a cheaper 

alternative to traditional wood 

flooring but offer similar durability 

and hardwearing features. However, 

spills and dirt can fall through the 

seams and seep under LVTs where 

it is hard to clean, and liquids can 

become trapped and will not easily 

evaporate. Antimicrobial technology 

can be incorporated into both the 

surface wear layer and the preattached 

underlay, helping to prevent 

stains, odours and premature 

degradation caused by bacterial and 

fungal growth. 

Laminate: Laminate is regularly 

used for flooring in hygiene-critical 

spaces such as healthcare, consumer 

and commercial environments, 

and is also a popular choice as 

an alternative to tiles and vinyl in 

homes. Selecting laminate with 

a wood-grain effect gives the 

illusion of a wood floor, but it is 

easier to maintain. Antimicrobial 

technologies can be easily and 

cost-effectively implemented by 

laminate manufacturers. Highpressure 

laminate (HPL) is a 

thermosetting material and, as such, 

is often marketed as having a natural 

resistance to microbial proliferation. 

However, these properties have a 

limited lifespan and will eventually 

wear off. Importantly, global biocidal 

regulations also do not permit 

the marketing of any laminates 

as being antimicrobial unless 

they contain a registered biocide. 

Antimicrobial laminate protection 


FLOORING 

Antimicrobial technology 

can be added to some 

floor types during the 

manufacturing process 

150x210mm--CORRECTED-MARAPR.pdf 1 18/2/22 11:21 PM 

the flooring material, which has been selected 

to fit the practicalities and appearance of its 

surroundings. With many consumers asking for 

products that are not only easy to clean but also 

help to alleviate anxieties around cleanliness, 

selecting flooring and floor products with 

built-in antimicrobial technology puts builders, 

architects and designers at the cutting edge of 

innovation in cleaning. WIA 

can be introduced into HPL during the final 

resin bath of the impregnation process. 

The result is a laminate surface that is 

protected from microbial growth, ultimately 

reducing the risk of cross-contamination, 

and complementing existing cleaning 

practices. 

Underlay: Underlay is an important factor 

for the finish of a wood floor, as it can 

improve floor stability while providing 

insulation, sound reduction and moisture 

protection. Antimicrobial additives can 

be added to the underlay during the 

manufacturing process, providing continual 

protection from the growth of stain and 

odour causing bacteria, mould and mildew, 

prolonging the lifetime of the product. 

Nobody wants to have to replace an entire 

wooden floor due to premature degradation 

of the underlay. 

C 

M 

Y 

CM 

MY 

IT’S ALL IN THE FINISH 

Selecting an option with built-in 

antimicrobial technology offers an ideal 

solution when fitting a new floor, as a 

replacement or in a new property. However, 

wood floors are designed to be longlasting 

and replacing them to gain these 

benefits may not be practical. Antimicrobial 

technology can also be added to floor 

finishes such as varnishes, waxes and oils, 

meaning protection can be added during 

routine maintenance. 

CY 

CMY 

K 

CONCLUSION 

Antimicrobial experts can incorporate 

product protection into a range of 

flooring types and finishes for a systemic 

approach to cleaning. Most importantly, 

all of these can be achieved without 

affecting the quality, design or finish of 


FIT-OUTS 

1 

Holistic hotel experience 

with American hardwood 

American white oak, walnut and cherry’s beauty, versatility and durability 

shine through in this family-owned hotel in the heart of Hong Kong. 


FIT-OUTS 

The Rosewood Hotel Hong Kong 

opened its doors in March 2019, 

towering over the Victoria Harbour. 

With American hardwoods including 

white oak, walnut and cherry integral 

to the interiors, elegance is at the 

heart of the design. 

John Chan, regional director for 

Greater China and South East Asia 

of the American Hardwood Export 

Council (AHEC), said: “We are 

absolutely delighted that after close 

to two years of the pandemic, we 

were able to organise this physical 

seminar to meet with the specifier 

community once again. The Rosewood 

Hotel stands as a testament to 

American hardwood’s beauty, quality 

and sustainability. We look forward to 

more opportunities for us to gather 

and demonstrate the use of American 

hardwood in 2022.” 

In her address, Alison Chi, the 

studio’s managing director, said that 

the Rosewood Hotel was designed 

as a tribute to the ownership 

family, standing as a beacon on the 

Victoria Harbour, demonstrating 

modern heritage and innovation in 

international hospitality design. Just 

as the family’s estate was handed 

down through the generations, it was 

important for the design of the hotel 

to go beyond being aestheticallypleasing 

and to also offer a consistent 

holistic experience, and last for 

generations. 

1 American walnut 

for the lift doors 

2 Quartersawn 

American 

white oak walls 

chamber-fumed 

to achieve the 

brown patina 

3 Quartersawn 

American white 

oak for the 

flooring 2 

3 

ELEGANT BEAUTY 

Chi explained how the holistic 

design touches on all of the senses: 

“American hardwood materials 

transition from day to night, taking 

us from morning light to night light 

elegantly. In day light, it is very 

elegant. In candescent light, the wood 

glows warmly. It brings an emotional 

quality to the experience and an 

intangible value to the space that is 

much more than just visual.” 


FIT-OUTS 

arts and crafts tradition. The use of 

American hardwood thus added to 

the sense of timelessness embodied 

in the design. 

As Chi elaborated: “There is a 

longstanding tradition and heritage 

to the materials that we love. Beyond 

the richness of the wood grain that is 

in itself extraordinary, it connects us 

to the tradition of craftsmanship and 

to the past. These materials have 

engaged with people generations 

before us.” 

3 

DURABILITY 

American white oak was used 

for the flooring of the guest 

rooms. Jonathan Boulay, from the 

company that supplied the wood, 

said: “American white oak is the 

number one hardwood for flooring 

in the world. It is hard enough 

to withstand high traffic and its 

beauty lasts for generations. It is 

sustainably managed and more 

plentiful in US forests now than even 

50 years ago.” 

The white oak used in the Rosewood 

Hotel was quartersawn and 

chamber-fumed for six weeks to 

achieve the brown patina in the 

floors and walls, as Boulay explained: 

“When white oak is quartersawn, 

it remains dimensionally stable 

with much less width and thickness 

expansion and contraction than other 

hardwoods. It is used to build sailing 

ships and wine barrels, a testament 

to its closed grain and resistance to 

American cherry 

for the foyer on 

each floor 

CONSISTENT HOLISTIC 

EXPERIENCE 

Chi’s team envisioned building a 

hotel that goes beyond being a place 

you can stay and experience one 

time, but rather a place you can live 

in. As such, it was important for the 

hotel to have a consistent wood 

quality that carries guests across all 

the spaces, from arrival to the guest 

room. The use of American white 

oak imbues calmness and harmony. 

HERITAGE AND 

TIMELESSNESS 

As a legacy crop that has been 

passed down from generation to 

generation, American hardwoods 

have had a long heritage, tradition 

and connection with the global 

the effects of water, either directly or 

in the atmosphere.” 

To demonstrate the durability, 

Boulay used an example of French 

chateaux with American white oak 

floors that have been trodden on by 

generations for over 400 years and 

still look beautiful. AHEC believes 

that the Rosewood Hotel will be 

similar for years to come. WIA 


FIT-OUTS 


LOCATION: Copenhagen, Denmark 

YEAR: 2017-2021 

SIZE: 7.400m² 

CLIENT: KAB 

ARCHITECT: Henning Larsen 

LANDSCAPE: SLA 

ENGINEER: NIRAS 

PHOTOGRAPHY: 

Laura Stamer, Poul Christensen 

Henning Larsen is an architecture, landscape 

architecture, urbanism, and interior, graphic, 

and lighting design studio. Their latest project, 

a new 7,400m 2 headquarters for housing 

association KAB, is a building at a crossroads 

— literally and metaphorically. Located on the 

axis, between one of Copenhagen’s oldest 

neighbourhoods and one of its newest, the 

building bridges Danish office culture with 

home life. 

“With KAB, the challenge was to create 

something simple out of something complex,” 

explained Signe Kongebro, global design 

director and partner at Henning Larsen. “We 

were interested in the play between the office 

and the home — the two places in which we 

spend the majority of our daily lives — and 

were interested in how we could infuse the 

headquarters with the best of both worlds.” 

A BUILDING FOR THE MOMENT 

Copenhagen is facing a housing crisis. 

However, unlike many cities which face the 

problem of speculative development and 

financial interests changing housing to an 

opportunity for investment, in Copenhagen 

there are not enough places to live. 

KAB House: 

A home for 

housing 

Ground level and reception desk 

When KAB was founded in 1920, Copenhagen 

faced the same problem it does today. 

As people flooded to the capital from 

the countryside, housing could not keep 

pace. Housing associations like KAB were 

established to develop, build, rent and 

administrate properties, and to make sure 

that prices remained fair. Today, KAB manages 

over 64,000 units across Greater Copenhagen, 

housing approximately 120,000 residents, or 

10% of the city’s population, with a quarter 

million more registered on waiting lists. 


FIT-OUTS 

The variety of services KAB provides, from 

the administrative to the more social or 

outreach oriented, would make for a complex 

assignment in any new headquarters. But the 

challenge of KAB’s new headquarters runs 

even deeper — the building is representative 

of Denmark’s approach to collectivism, 

welfare, and the home itself. 

A HOME FOR HOUSING 

The architectural approach to KAB takes 

traditional elements of the home — the living 

room, the stairs, the garden, the kitchen — 

and applies them to the workplace. Things 

begin traditionally office-like: The ground 

level is open and airy, the large reception 

desk flanked by a plant-filled seating area 

behind which the office canteen nestles. It 

is once you make your way up the stairs that 

the feeling changes. 

1 

2 

Within the atrium, nearly everything is clad 

in wood, giving the space a soft, ‘hyggeligt’ 

feeling — a Danish and Norwegian word for 

cosiness and warm atmosphere, for enjoying 

the good things in life with good company 

— and adding scent and texture not often 

associated with the workplace. The slender 

stairs cut back and forth across the middle 

of the atrium, alighting on large community 

kitchens on each floor. 

“The stairs are a play on the classic stairwell 

of residential buildings, which is typically the 

place you meet your neighbour,” explained 

Troels Dam Madsen, associate design 

director at Henning Larsen. “In the KAB 

House, we added a layer of visibility, texture, 

and beauty to what is usually a very practical 

space.” 

The western edge of the atrium is a wall of 

windows, behind which the main meeting 

rooms, outfitted to resemble rooms in a 

house, and private offices are located. This 

move marks the border between the private 

office space and the space that is accessible 

to the public, while also suggesting 

something a little more subtle. When one 

peeks into the windows of the meeting rooms 

from the stairs, one observes a household at 

work. 

3 


FIT-OUTS 

THE HOUSE AT CROSSROADS 

For all the cues inside, the KAB House 

could hardly be mistaken for a home on 

the outside. Located between several 

neighbourhoods and perched on a multilayered 

intersection that sees traffic, 

KAB marks a transition space in the 

growing city. 

1 The exterior of KAB 

House 

2 Within the atrium, 

nearly everything is 

clad in wood, evoking 

a ‘hyggeligt’ feeling 

3 Roof garden 

4 The stairwell 

segueing into other 

rooms 

5 The stairs are a 

play on the classic 

stairwell design of 

residential buildings 

In response to this medial situation, 

this house is designed with no front or 

back, its pentagonal shape opening into 

the city on all sides and framing views 

onto the streets Vesterbro, Sydhavn, 

Carlsberg, and Valby. The red-brick 

exterior evokes the materiality and 

pragmatism of the properties it has 

overseen since the 1930s, with some 

flair in the contemporary bricklaying. 

Landscape design studio SLA’s 

parkland around the KAB House invites 

neighbours and passers-by to stop in 

green surroundings. At the top of the 

KAB House there is a green roof garden 

where visitors and employees can take 

a break and enjoy views of the railway 

body and Copenhagen. 

4 

Mette Skjold, partner at SLA, explained 

the design: “With the KAB House, we 

have designed an urban nature that gives 

employees, visitors and neighbours in 

Vesterbro a green and inviting rest break. 

The landscape draws character from the 

creative environments of the local area 

and continues the raw surroundings of 

the existing railway terrain by creating 

a robust and identity-creating nature 

design — from street level to roof garden. 

In this way, the nature design binds both 

the KAB House together with the local 

area, while acting as a buffer against the 

noise and particle pollution of the track 

terrain.” 

5 

The building is a gathering place for 44 

housing organisations, approximately 

120,000 residents, and provides the 

framework for 400 KAB employees’ 

daily work. KAB moved in in June 

2021. WIA 


EVENTS CALENDAR 

2022 

The Big 5 Saudi 

28 – 31 

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 

Architect’22 

26 April – 01 May 

Bangkok, Thailand 

MARCH 

APRIL 

MAY 

INDEX Dubai 

24 – 26 

Dubai, United Arab Emirates 

China (Beijing) International Building 

Decorations & Building Materials 

Exhibition 

26 – 28 

Beijing, China 

JUNE 

Carrefour International du Bois 

01 – 03 

Nantes, France 

Project Qatar 

06 – 09 

Doha, Qatar 

South China International Industry Fair 

07 – 09 

Shenzhen, China 

JUNE 

Design Shanghai 

09 – 12 

Shanghai, China 

MegaBuild Indonesia 

16 – 19 

Jakarta, Indonesia 

China Architecture Design Expo 

23 – 26 


FENESTRATION BAU China 

23 – 26 


Archidex 

29 June – 02 July 

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 

AUGUST 

BIFA WOOD Vietnam 

08 – 11 

Binh Duong, Vietnam 

SEPTEMBER 

Design Beijing 

21 - 23 

Beijing, China 

FIND Design Fair Asia 

22 – 24 

Singapore 

2023 

Delhi Wood 

02 – 05 

Delhi, India 

NOVEMBER 

China Yiwu International Forest 

Products Fair 

01 – 04 

Zhejiang, China 

DECEMBER 

The Big 5 Dubai 

05 – 08 

Dubai, United Arab Emirates 

Hanoi Wood 

09 – 11 

Hanoi, Vietnam 

FEBRUARY 

MARCH 

Salone del Mobile. Milano 

07 – 12 

Milan, Italy 


INDEX OF ADVERTISERS 

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS 

Advertiser 

Page 

Advertiser 

Page 

American Hardwood Export Council 

OBC 

Panels & Furniture Asia House Ad 15, 67 

American Lumber 9 

Softwood Export Council 

IFC 

Baillie Lumber 7 

Sylvawood Expo 1 

BIFA Wood Vietnam 2022 5 

Technik Associates, Inc 

IBC 

Hanoi Wood 2023 31 

Kuang Yung Machinery Co., Ltd 59 

Malaysian Wood Expo 2022 68 

PEFC 11 

Scan to download 

WIA Issue 1, 2022 ebook 

@panelsfurnitureasia 

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29/7/21 9:18 AM


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Wood In Architecture Issue 1, 2022

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