PROJECTS T3 Sterling Road and T3 Bayside Phase 1

ARCHITECTS–T3 STERLING ROAD DLR Group Architecture inc. (Design Architect and Architect-of-Record) and WZMH (Local Affiliate Architect)

ARCHITECTS–T3 BAYSIDE WZMH Architects (Executive Architect) and 3XN (Design Architect)

TEXT Lloyd Alter

In 1970, Barton Myers and Jack Diamond bought the Eclipse Whitewear Building on King Street in Toronto and converted it into offices. They left the brick walls and massive wood structure exposed, and kept visible all the conduits, ducts, sprinkler pipes and other mechanical paraphernalia, layering in industrial lighting. When you entered the space, you got the shock of the old: the existing warehouse adapted for modern use. Soon, warehouse conversions were happening around North America, including in San Francisco and in Minneapolis, where a renovation of the half-million-square-foot Butler Building became the continent’s most prominent example.

Creative industries loved these spaces, which quickly filled with architects, advertising firms, and tech startups. Jane Jacobs understood this, writing in The Death and Life of Great American Cities, “Old ideas can sometimes use new buildings. New ideas must use old buildings.” 

But old buildings were not without their problems. The floors were usually mill decking, where lumber such as 2x10s were nailed to each other to carry the heavy industrial loads. Noise passed right through them, as did dirt: staff would often find dust and debris on their desks. 

In 2016, real estate developer Hines built the continent’s first large new mass timber building, which they called T3 (for Timber, Transit, Technology). They aimed to capture the look and feel of a warehouse, without the drawbacks. It was sort of a new-old building. Hines noted in their marketing materials at the time:

“We love old brick & timber warehouses. We love the feel of them, the originality, and the entrepreneurship that lives inside their bones. They are cool places to collaborate, create, and innovate. Unfortunately, these buildings lack good natural light, are drafty, noisy, and have outdated HVAC systems. So we asked ourselves, why can’t we solve these problems by selecting an authentic location, surrounded by heritage buildings, and construct a brand new, vintage building? All the charm of an old brick & timber building, with none of the downsides.”

The Minneapolis T3, designed by Canadian mass timber pioneer Michael Green and American firm DLR Group, was built with glue-laminated columns and beams. Its floor slabs were made of Nail-Laminated Timber (NLT) supplied by StructureCraft of British Columbia, and nailed together in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Modern NLT was developed in Germany in the 1970s by engineer Julius Natterer. NLT was used because it was in the building codes and could be made anywhere, by anyone with a nailgun; Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) was not yet approved or manufactured in North America. Unlike conventional construction, with mass timber, the supplier often acts as the timber structural engineer and builder, delivering the complete package. StructureCraft says, “Our Engineer-Build model brings responsibility for all the steps of engineering and construction under one roof, to a company that has significant experience taking on this responsibility. Engineer-Build synthesizes and smooths out the building process.”

T3 Minneapolis was a success, and Hines took the concept to other cities, with a total of 27 buildings completed, under construction, and in design. The most recent finished T3s are in Toronto, where Hines has opened two projects: T3 Sterling Road and T3 Bayside. 

Hines pitches its T3 projects as “timber buildings with a conscience,” claiming “T3’s exceptional amenities prioritize health and well-being, and the natural wood interior and bright, inspiring spaces help people feel—and do—their best.” Research backs this up. An Australian study, Workplaces: Wellness + Wood = Productivity found that “Employees surrounded with natural wooden surfaces on average reported higher personal productivity, mood, concentration, clarity, confidence and optimism—and were more likely to find their workplaces relaxing, calming, natural-feeling, inviting and energising.” These ideas are captured in the concept of “biophilia,” a term coined in the mid-80s by Harvard professor Edward O. Wilson to refer to humans’ fondness for nature, including plants, wood, and natural light.

Hines also points to the environmental benefits, noting that building with wood avoids the emissions that come from making steel or concrete, which together total about 15 percent of global carbon emissions. “When a tree is taken and used in a building that will last for centuries,” the developer writes, “that piece of wood is storing that carbon dioxide in the material for the life of the building.” 

For T3 Sterling Road, Hines brought DLR Group and StructureCraft together again, including lead designer Steve Cavanaugh, who worked with Green on T3 Minneapolis. StructureCraft’s roles once more encompassed acting as the timber structural engineer, coordinating timber sourcing, and providing supply and installation. The team also included WZMH Architects as the local architect of record. 

Toronto’s Sterling Road district has become a hotbed of warehouse conversions and brewpubs, anchored by the Museum of Contemporary Art; the New York Times has described it as “newly hip, its appeal broadening beyond the small cadre of tuned-in artists and bohemian types who for years have had it to themselves.” The site certainly nails the Transit of the T3 moniker, with a short walk to the Bloor subway and the UP Express train, which connects to downtown and the airport. The environmental importance of location and available transit is often underestimated: Alex Wilson of BuildingGreen calculated that the energy used by tenants commuting to a building was 2.3 times the energy consumed operating the building.

Phase 1 of the Sterling Road project includes two buildings totalling 300,000 square feet, constructed of glulam columns and beams, and with Dowel-Laminated Timber (DLT) floors. DLT was developed in the 1990s by a German company which called it Dübelholz, German for “dowelled wood.” Holes are drilled in softwood lumber with a moisture content of about 15 percent, and hardwood dowels, dried to about 8 percent, are driven in. As the dowels absorb moisture from the surrounding wood, they expand, locking the assembly together. StructureCraft has built sophisticated DLT machinery in its Abbotsford plant, which can spit out massive 12-foot-wide by 60-foot-long panels.

Sterling Road is a bit rough around the edges, and the design for T3 Sterling aims to be edgy as well, with exposed diagonal bracing and steel bars added on the exterior to emulate the appearance of industrial windows. The program is geared towards young urbanites; while the upper floors are conventional leased office space, the ground floor has a large co-working space, a well-equipped gym, and bicycle storage. 

Different types of mass timber have distinct looks and feel, and DLT can be finished in different ways. T3 Sterling’s DLT is made of 3”-wide boards with a kerf on the corner, giving it a seriously industrial look, like you used to get in warehouses when wood was thicker. While most modern office buildings have a 30-foot-by-30-foot grid, mass timber is not cost-effective at that span, so the grids in the T3 are 20-by-30. DLR lead architect Steve Cavanaugh explained that many layouts were tested against the grid, and it was found to maintain planning flexibility. 

Although they both share the T3 label and are made of mass timber, T3 Bayside is a very different building from T3 Sterling Road. It’s located in the rapidly developing area just east of the downtown core, and is surrounded by new residential towers.

In branding this building, Hines adjusted the second “T” in T3 to substitute “Talent” for “Transit,” because it’s a fairly substantial 24-minute walk to Union Station. (A light rapid transit line, approved by the City in 2019, is currently in the design phase.) WZMH is back as the architect of record, with Danish firm 3XN as lead designer. 

Where T3 Sterling Road is industrial and edgy, T3 Bayside is all business. Its defining architectural feature is a stepped, recessed band of glazing ringing the façades, which permits a succession of double-height spaces. The original concept included grand stairs running through these double-height spaces from ground to top floor, but this was before the pandemic, when it was anticipated that the building might be occupied by a single tenant who would appreciate the interconnection of their spaces. However, the market has changed significantly, and the building is starting to be leased to smaller tenants. The double-height spaces are now called “opportunities,” and are currently filled with removable slabs. Common areas on the first, second, and third floors do remain connected, resulting in a small set of dramatic spaces, linked by enticing stairs.  

As at T3 Sterling, the columns and beams of T3 Bayside are made of glue-laminated timber, but this location’s slabs are Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). The laminations in CLT are made up of 2x4s, laid up flat to form a layer; the next set is laid at 90 degrees to the layer below, and so on. The whole sandwich is glued together in giant presses. CLT was invented in the States and patented in 1923, but modern CLT was developed by Professor Gerhard Schickhofer at Graz University in the 1990s. Austria had a large lumber industry, but being landlocked, exports were expensive. Turning lumber into CLT added significant value.

CLT is more dimensionally stable than DLT, and can act as a two-way slab, supported on columns without beams. However, Hines specifies a column-and-beam design so they can get competitive pricing between the different mass timber technologies. To avoid the noise transfer that was endemic in older warehouse conversions, the CLT floor is topped with a sound mat and 2.6 inches of concrete.

CLT is usually more expensive than DLT, but the wood, structural design and assembly for T3 Bayside is supplied by Nordic Structures. Nordic is a subsidiary of Chantiers Chibougamau, a vertically integrated lumber company controlling close to six million acres of black spruce Quebec forest; the company processes 15 percent of the renewable resources in the province’s woodlands. Geographically, Quebec is a lot closer than British Columbia, so it is likely that the reduced transport expense helps to balance out costs.

In the base building, there are no dropped ceilings to block the view of the mass timber beams and slabs, and no raised floor—all mechanical and electrical services are exposed. What is normally hidden and often installed haphazardly has to be precise and straight. Every conduit and duct is laid out in advance in the BIM model; notches are cut into the tops of beams for them to pass through. With rare exceptions, the electrical conduits in both Toronto T3s are a work of art, resembling a circuit board rather than a typical electrical installation. The ventilation ductwork is also lovely to look at; in Bayside, there is a narrow structural bay without beams running around the core so that the main supply ducts can run east-west, while the smaller ducts run north-south between beams. It is all brilliantly coordinated. No lighting is installed in the base building; that is added after the tenant layouts are determined. 

Hines notes that T3 Bayside “will store 3,886 metric tons of carbon dioxide.” However, this isn’t counted or credited by LEED. According to the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) report, “biogenic carbon is excluded since it is assumed that at the end of life, the wood will be disposed and the embodied carbon will be re-emitted back into the atmosphere.”

The treatment of biogenic carbon in LCA calculations is a major topic of discussion—and controversy—in both the industry and academia. Some in the industry don’t believe any credit should be given for carbon being stored in the wood, given that roots are left to rot in the ground, slash is left behind, scrap is burned to kiln-dry the wood, and wood panels are transported from factory to site in fossil-fuel-powered vehicles. Others, like Paul Brannen, author of the book Timber!, claim that so much carbon is sequestered in the wood that developers should be able to sell carbon credits for every tonne stored, to help reduce the cost premium and to encourage more wood construction.

Some also worry that building out of wood will lead to deforestation and the loss of old-growth timber. Hines counters by saying: “The trees we use at Hines come from responsibly harvested forests/certified sustainable forests. The forests in the U.S. and Canada, for example, reproduce the timber required for T3 buildings every 20 minutes.”

Adding to their claims, Hines measures and mentions “avoided emissions,” the carbon emissions that don’t happen because of the decision to go with wood. They note in a FAQ that “Compared with steel or concrete, T3 Sterling Road’s timber construction avoids emitting approximately 1,411 metric tons of carbon dioxide into our atmosphere.” I question the idea of avoided emissions, thinking that it’s like being on a diet and crediting the calories of the chocolate cake I didn’t eat. 

But any negativity disappears when you walk into either T3 Sterling Road or T3 Bayside. The spaces look good. They smell good. Fondle the columns, and they feel good. The biophilic effect is instantaneous. One may argue about the exact count of kilograms of carbon emissions stored or avoided, but as wood expert Dave Atkins noted about building materials, it all comes down to one principle: “If you don’t grow it, you mine it.”

The T3 buildings give tenants the culture, the aesthetics, the warmth, and the biophilic effects of an old warehouse building, with modern technology and services, and without the noise and dust. The carbon savings, however they are measured, are a wonderful bonus.

Lloyd Alter, formerly an architect and real estate developer,  is the author of The Story of Upfront Carbon (New Society Publishers). He currently writes a popular Substack newsletter, Carbon Upfront!

T3 Sterling Road

CLIENT Hines | ARCHITECT TEAM DLR Group—Stephen J. Cavanaugh, Kevin Curran, Kelly Goffiney, Charlie McDaniel, Bobby Larson, Kailey Smith, Neely Sutter. WZMH—Ted DuArte (MRAIC), Robert Sampson (MRAIC) | STRUCTURAL Magnussen Klemencic Associates | MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL TMP | LANDSCAPE Janet Rosenberg Studio | INTERIORS Partners by Design | CONTRACTOR Ellis Don | AREA 28,234 m2 | BUDGET Withheld | COMPLETION Spring 2024

ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 45.6 kWh/m2/year

T3 Bayside Phase 1

CLIENT Hines | ARCHITECT TEAM 3XN—Competition Phase: Jens Holm, Audun Opdal, Kim Herforth Nelson, Elizabeth Nichols, Sai Ma, Monty de Luna, Sean Lyon, Matthias Altwicker; Design Phase: Jens Holm, Matthias Altwicker, Elizabeth Nichols, Laura Wagner, Sai Ma, Catherine Joseph, Jacquelyn Hecker, Ida Fløche, Thomas Herve, Aleksandre Andghuladze, Farzana Hossain, Benji Magin, Christian Harald Hommelhoff Brink, Lydon Whittle, Sang Yeun Lee, Ann Christina Ravn, Thomas Lund, Eliana Nigro, Dora Lin Jiabao, Majbritt Lerche Madsen, Morten Norman Lund; Execution Phase: Matthias Altwicker, Catherine Joseph, Elizabeth Nichols, Jens Holm. WZMH—Robert Sampson (MRAIC), Nicola Casciato (MRAIC), Len Abelman (MRAIC), Paul Brown, Ted DuArte (MRAIC), Nazanin Salimi, Derek Smart, Liu Liu, Ashley McKay, Samer Richani, Akhilesh Ahuja, Terek Aly, Loc Nguyen, Tracey Gaull| STRUCTURAL DESIGN Magnusson Klemencic Associates | MASS TIMBER PRODUCTION Nordic Structures | MECHANICAL The Mitchell Partnership Inc. | ELECTRICAL Mulvey & Banani | LANDSCAPE Janet Rosenberg & Studio | INTERIORS Partners by Design | CONTRACTOR Eastern Construction Company Ltd. | CODE Vortex Fire | CIVIL WSP | GEOTECHNICAL EXP | CONTROLS AND SECURITY HMA Consulting | ACOUSTICS Cerami & Associates Inc., HGC Engineering (Site Plan only) | SUSTAINABILITY Purpose Building Inc. | ENERGY MODELLING EQ Building Performance | ENVELOPE Entuitive Consulting Engineers | COMMISSIONING RWDI Consulting Engineers & Scientists | TRANSPORTATION BA Consulting Group Ltd. | WIND Gradient Wind Engineering | VERTICAL TRANSPORTATION Soberman Engineering Inc. | SIGNAGE Kramer Design Assoc. Ltd. | BUILDING MAINTENANCE EQUIPMENT RDP Engineering Inc. | AREA 23,341 m2 | BUDGET Withheld | COMPLETION Fall 2023

ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 141.3 ekWh/m2/year | WATER USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 0.3 m3/m2/year (water use reduction of 45% compared to the LEED baseline, including greywater reuse in toilets from water collected on the roof and stored in a cistern)

As appeared in the November 2024 issue of Canadian Architect magazine

The post Timber Redux appeared first on Canadian Architect.

Over the past decade, engineered mass timber has evolved from a new and innovative choice of structural material to becoming almost mainstream. Canadian architects have played a major role in the material’s acceptance in the North American building industry, with British Columbia architects at the vanguard of harnessing Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) around 10 years ago. 

As the three in-construction projects featured on the following pages demonstrate, Canadian mass timber expertise continues to advance—and in Michael Green’s case, it is garnering international projects. Moreover, architects including MTA with Acton Ostry are looking beyond the material’s vaunted renewability and carbon-sink aspects to make their mass-timber buildings even more environmentally sound. And lastly, architects like Intelligent City are integrating and overhauling the very process of designing and building with mass timber. 

The material choice still requires something of a helping hand in terms of subsidies and investment. Though few architects speak freely about it, choosing an engineered wood structure is usually a more expensive way to build—at least for the moment. But that could change quickly as the immense carbon costs of construction become reflected in pricing and in regulations. And as more innovative and impressive projects near completion and prove their mettle, Canadian architects will continue to show that they remain at the forefront of mass timber innovation.

Limberlost Place

An innovative structural system and pre-fabricated envelope set new standards for mass timber public buildings.

LOCATION George Brown College, Toronto, Ontario

ARCHITECTS Moriyama Teshima Architects + Acton Ostry Architects

Even while still under construction, Limberlost Place is hauling in acclaim. Part of George Brown College’s waterfront campus in Toronto, the building has pulled in over a dozen awards, including the RAIC’s 2023 Research & Innovation in Architecture Award, and a Canadian Architect Award of Excellence. Expect more accolades upon its projected completion in January of 2025. 

At 10 storeys high, Limberlost Place is one of the world’s tallest mass-timber institutional buildings. Buildings of this typology must meet onerous construction codes and design considerations; this one will serve 3,400 students and staff. Teaching and gathering spaces occupy the full structure, including a tall-wood research institute, childcare centre, classrooms, and areas for lounging and study. MTA’s Vancouver-based joint-venture partner, Acton Ostry Architects, has already established a benchmark in designing the 18-storey Brock Commons Tower at the University of British Columbia, at the time the tallest mass-timber project in the world. 

Like Brock Commons, Limberlost Place is a hybrid structure of CLT, concrete, and steel. But where Brock Commons’ CLT was mostly hidden under drywall, roughly 50 per cent of Limberlost’s is exposed to view, including its nine-metre-span beams and every column in the building. Its 10-storey height clocks in four storeys above the conventional pre-CLT code, “so we had to be meticulous about every element,” says MTA principal Phil Silverstein, who is the construction administration lead on the project. 

While many North American mass-timber structures are still sourced from overseas suppliers, Limberlost has taken a made-in-Canada approach. Its prefabricated envelope system arrived in two-storey panels assembled in Windsor, Ontario, and delivered just-in-time to eliminate on-site storage needs. The prefab wall panels have been manufactured up to 11.7 metres high and are quickly assembled on site and supported by jack posts.  The CLT for Limberlost Place—manufactured largely from fast-growing black spruce—comes from Quebec-based Nordic Structures. 

As we walked through Limberlost mid-construction, we could already sense the dramatical verticality of its interior, dominated by a three-storey-high glazed foyer connected to smaller common spaces—“breathing rooms,” as design partner Carol Phillips calls them—on the second and third levels. The open volume of the foyer is anchored by a 16-metre-high glulam column, the heaviest member of the entire project, weighing in at 22,000 pounds. “Timber doesn’t like to transfer loads very well,” notes Silverstein. “Timber likes to work vertically.” 

In horizontal terms, a major innovation is the ultra-generous 9.2-metre span of the teaching spaces. It’s essentially a “beamless” construction system: its main structural member is a timber-concrete slab band, composed mostly of CLT, topped by a layer of reinforced concrete. “It’s an extremely shallow system,” notes Phillips, allowing for greater floor-to-ceiling heights as well as column-free spaces ideal for large-group instruction. 

The building has environmental attributes well beyond its use of mass timber. Solar chimneys on the east and west façades will draw air up and through the building from operable windows, to harness the stack effect and establish a natural convection system for temperature regulation. The building informally meets Passive House standards and meets the energy targets for LEED Platinum status, according to the architects, although they will apply for LEED Gold. 

The most salient value of the project is that it will provide a paradigm for many more sustainable mass-timber public buildings in the future. “This isn’t a one-off,” says Silverstein. “It’s a starting point.”

Flora

Canadian mass timber expertise is being tapped for this project in Europe.

LOCATION Nanterre, France

ARCHITECTS MGA | Michael Green Architecture + CALQ Agence d’Architecture

The first thing you notice about Flora is the sensuality of its form. Even in mid-construction, its rounded corners, jogged massing, and prow-like base distinguish it from the other rectilinear buildings around it. Its principal designer, Michael Green, avers that the building’s voluptuous shape is entirely logic-based, following the irregularities of the site and the material economy of avoiding 90-degree corners that often end up as wasteful underused space. 

Flora is a nine-storey mixed-use complex, with offices and retail slated for the lower floors, and a mix of market and non-market housing above. Here in Nanterre, a fast-growing suburb of Paris, Green has teamed up with local architecture firm CALQ Agence d’Architecture to bring his knowledge, design, and powers of persuasion to France. CALQ’s website states that the firm’s main reason for using mass timber is to combat “le réchauffement climatique.” Green concurs. And Woodeum, the Paris-based real-estate developer and the project’s client, promotes itself as a specialist in low-carbon wood architecture—making Canada’s best-known mass-timber advocate a natural choice for a partnership. 

This summer, as Green surveyed the busy construction site in person for the first time, he noted some of the distinctions between building in France versus in his homeland. For instance, the interior of Flora is enlivened by a spiral staircase—a charming, fun, and space-saving element. In Canada, the building codes disallow spiral staircases, because they are allegedly dangerous—although, as with so much in life, risk calibration is partly a subjective matter.

Although the French remain détendu about risks that furrow the brows of Canadian code-writers, they are rigorous about certain other requirements that enhance sustainability and quality of life, notes Green. Their national building code includes the stipulation for cross-ventilation, for instance, while our national building code has nothing of the sort for residential construction.

In Green’s most recent TED Talk, he unpacked his bid for the next big transition in mass-timber engineering and design: a system based on biomimicry. He foresees a future of plant-based materials whose lignified tissues and cellulose are reinforced in a way that will allow the architecture to carry loads in the same way as tree branches, with an aesthetically pleasing curvilinearity that would have an inherent structural logic. And instead of the standard spruce-fir-pine now used for most Canadian mass timber, the choice of plant will be based on what’s local and ecologically appropriate. “It might be bamboo in one region, and then grass, or salal, or hemp in another,” he says. His concept “is going to be a big thing. It’s not happening yet, but it will in ten, twenty years,” he avows. “As humans, we’re very resistant to the idea of starting over. But we need to rethink all aspects of the built environment.”

Back to the here and now: French authorities, like their North American counterparts, are still nervous about transitioning the entire structural framework of buildings to mass timber. That’s not the way Green would have it. The ground floor of Flora is concrete, and so it’s essentially a hybrid structure.  All over the world, including here in Canada, notes Green, “concrete use is driven largely by code. So, you have different trades, you have two different structural materials, you have finger-pointing.” It’s not the cheapest or the most efficient way of building, but it will change, he expects, or at least hopes. “We’re still stuck in a version of the old system. It’s time to move on.”

Intelligent City

An integrated system of design and manufacturing is the project.

LOCATION Delta, British Columbia

In some ways, the Intelligent City factory in Delta, B.C., seems like some sort of sci-fi film set. A giant robot lumbers around in a caged space, looking oddly like a Meccano dinosaur. And yet this metallic creature may well be the future master builder of the region. Controlled by a petite woman holding what looks like a PlayStation remote-control device, the robot is building mass timber components for the firm’s first real-world project. 

“We saw that the delivery of infill urban housing—multi-housing in particular—was difficult to develop,” says Cindy Wilson, the company’s co-founder with architect Oliver Lang. “Every time you have a new person come to a team, they have their own way of thinking how things should be done. So how could we curate a system that is more integrated and could be repeated at scale?” 

By unifying and distilling the messy process of construction into software-controlled prefabrication, the firm essentially smooths over the schism between design and manufacturing, and streamlines the custom design work that is usually dedicated to discrete buildings. Since the Intelligent City team has more control of the overall process, they can also ensure more price stability. This was evidenced in one of their current projects. “During Covid, the price of construction almost doubled,” notes Wilson. “But importantly, about 60% to 80% of a building’s superstructure is our components, so those prices remained stable. We’ve also developed an ecosystem of a supply chain.”  

As previously reported in Canadian Architect, Intelligent City—the sister firm of Lang Wilson Practice in Architecture Culture (LWPAC)—opened its manufacturing facility in Delta, B.C., two years ago. Now the factory is thrumming as its staff and ultra-high-tech software produce the largely pre-assembled components for the “product proof,” a kind of miniature sample building that staff work on to determine where and how the components will later be assembled on-site. 

The firm’s first “real-world” building will be the Vancouver Native Housing Society’s Khupkhahpay’ay Building, a nine-storey housing project to be built in East Vancouver by GBL Architects and Ventura Construction Corporation. Intelligent City is producing the building’s Passive-House façade system. 

The two-year period from factory inception to the launch of actual construction reflects the typical process of testing, commissioning and certification of the building systems and the robotics, but this first real-world project will smooth the way for more projects, built faster, says Wilson. To create a system that would not only be repeatable and scalable but also customizable, the Intelligent City team has streamlined the entire process of building, from preliminary design to construction, so that design and manufacturing are integrated from the start. The fruits of this work are most impressive at the end stages: remote-controlled with proprietary software, the factory’s giant robot lifts, positions, and custom-cuts oversized panels of mass-timber walls, floors, and ceilings. The cuts are unique to each product and can vary in size and shape, allowing electrical channels and ventilation ducts to be embedded in the components before they even leave the factory. Crucially, the customization is instantly and economically adjusted for each component and each project by altering the instructions to the robot. 

The result is a convergence of two processes—architecture and construction—that are normally sequential, separate, and rarely align as well as we’d like them to. There is usually no downtime from delays in material delivery or labour shortages. Once on-site, the components will be assembled much more rapidly than in conventional on-site construction, with much of the electrical and ventilation elements already embedded in the structural framework.

Wilson and Lang believe that Intelligent City’s approach will have an impact not only on the take-up of climate-friendly mass timber, but also in addressing the housing affordability crisis. “The more control we have over the building, the more we can control costs,” says Wilson. “This is where we can really make a difference in affordable housing. It’s not just time, materials, or labour. It’s how we can roll out the creation of housing at scale, in a systematic, predictable way.”

The post Spreading the Wood: Three projects that are leading the way in Canadian mass timber innovation appeared first on Canadian Architect.

Limberlost Place, the first institutional building in Ontario constructed from mass timber with net-zero carbon emissions, has achieved a significant construction milestone by reaching its highest point in construction.

The installation of the last wood and steel beams has been completed in the 10-story facility situated within George Brown College’s (GBC) Waterfront campus, located in the East Bayfront community of Toronto.

In celebration of a significant construction milestone commonly referred to as “topping off” within the industry, Limberlost Place saw project partners and the skilled trades workforce come together to commemorate the occasion. They signed a beam before it was hoisted into position atop the building.

The construction of Limberlost Place’s structure involved a complex installation process that included a carefully choreographed sequence for placing each mass timber column and cross-laminated slab band. Among the notable features of this structure are three three-story mass timber columns, some of the largest of their kind in North America.

The “topping off” ceremony marks a pivotal moment in the project, signifying a shift in focus towards the completion of the building’s exterior envelope, the initiation of interior fit-up work (which includes the installation of other mass timber elements like the learning landscape feature stairs), and the commencement of the building’s commissioning phase.

Limberlost Place, designed by Acton Ostry Architects and Moriyama Teshima Architects, with construction management overseen by PCL Construction, will serve as the future home to GBC’s schools of architectural studies and computer technology, as well as the Brookfield Sustainability Institute. This innovative and forward-looking facility will provide students with a unique learning environment. Notably, its design and construction have garnered international awards and exceed the Toronto Green Standard’s requirements for reduced carbon emissions, leading to changes in national and provincial building codes for mass-timber structures exceeding six stories.

Limberlost Place’s construction is characterized by its unique blend of mass-timber components sourced from Canada and a structural steel core. This combination forms the foundation of the building’s structural integrity.

A total of 139 cross-laminated timber and concrete composite slab bands underwent prefabrication at an off-site facility before being transported to the construction site for their final installation. This strategic prefabrication approach streamlined the construction process.

Each individual cross-laminated timber piece, boasting a weight of 17,000 pounds, received meticulous preparation, including the incorporation of kerf plates, screws, rebar, concrete, M&E sleeves, roof anchors, and column bases. This attention to detail ensured the structural soundness of the components.

To facilitate efficient installation, the slab bands were methodically organized in the sequence of their installation, precisely designating the location for each timber element within the building’s framework.

The overall structure integrates approximately 1,190 pieces of cross-laminated timber and 571 glue-laminated mass timber pieces, showcasing the extensive use of timber in the construction.

The cross-laminated timber utilized in the project amounts to a substantial 3,310 cubic meters, while the glue-laminated timber totals 822 cubic meters, underscoring the considerable use of timber as a sustainable building material.

Additionally, the construction relied on a significant volume of 5,850 cubic meters of concrete to meet structural requirements.

Further highlighting the complexity and magnitude of this remarkable project, Limberlost Place incorporates over 22,306 distinct steel components, illustrating the intricate engineering and scale of the endeavor.

Project team:

Owner: George Brown College

Architect: Moriyama Teshima Architects in joint venture with Acton Ostry Architects

Construction Manager: PCL Constructors Canada Inc.

Mass Timber: Nordic Structures

Structural Engineer: Fast + Epp

Mechanical and Electrical Engineer: Introba

Structural Steel Design-Assist: Walters Group

Building Envelope: Morrison Hershfield

Sustainability Consultant: Transsolar

The post Ontario’s First Mass-Timber, Net-Zero Institutional Building Tops Out appeared first on Canadian Architect.

Within the heart of British Columbia’s Squamish Valley is the newly built Leon Lebeniste Fine Furnishings & Architectural Woodworking industrial facility. The 2,700-square-metre purpose-built facility, designed by Hemsworth Architecture, emphasizes quality and sustainability, rare attributes for an industrial space. The three-storey building sits within the natural landscape of Squamish and reflects the longstanding traditions of craftsmanship and manufacturing in the region.

A specialized custom furnishing and woodworking practice, Leon Lebeniste had outgrown their previous, smaller facility, and was in need of a larger space for manufacturing and design. Leon Lebeniste founder Jon Hewitt reached out to architect John Hemsworth of Hemsworth Architecture after seeing Hemsworth’s BC Passive House Factory project in Pemberton. Hewitt envisioned a local hub for makers and creatives to gather. “We care about design, and we wanted to work in a place that reflected that. We also wanted it to be approachable, where people could come by and it could be a gathering place for makers in Squamish.”

During the design and construction process, Hemsworth Architecture took a collaborative approach with Hewitt. Provided with a clear vision for the space and specific goals for the workspace, Hemsworth Architecture was able to take the brief and provide recommendations with a focus on sustainability.

The new Leon Lebeniste building is nestled within the mountains of British Columbia’s Squamish Valley, in the industrial district of the town of Squamish. A premier destination for world-class adventure activities, the town is popular with outdoor athletes, and has in recent years evolved to attract increasing creative talent with its close proximity to Vancouver. This new design and production space for Leon Lebeniste fits into this growing shift. Offering more than a typical cookie-cutter development, the building is intentionally designed to have a meaningful and positive impact for its occupants as well as for the broader community.

In contrast to similar facilities in the surrounding industrial district, the Leon Lebeniste building’s main facade features a long strip of floor-to-ceiling glazing, allowing views into the production facility from the outside. “Industrial spaces tend to be a black box,” explains Hemsworth. “Instead, we chose to open up the ground floor to create a real relationship between the exterior and interior. We designed this in a way to bring in the community, so that when people are passing by day or night, they have a view into a local workspace.”

Beyond the front-facing window, the rest of the exterior is clad in vertical red cedar slats, treated with a natural preservative to extend their life and minimize maintenance, and custom profile metal panelling.

Walking into the Leon Lebeniste building, the shop floor is revealed from the entranceway, creating a sense of openness and transparency. A large staircase leads to the floors above which provides a sense of scale and allows in additional natural light from the upper floor. The factory itself occupies the entire main floor, and includes an automated five-axis milling machine, custom veneer production, and a traditional millwork layout and assembly area. The space was thoughtfully custom-designed with the required machinery in mind, to ensure the workspace would accommodate both the current and future equipment needs. High ceilings and extensive glazing bring in ample natural light and create a sense of spaciousness throughout the main factory floor.

The office and design spaces on the mezzanine level above the production floor offer additional space for work and collaboration. Overlooking the production floor itself allows for a holistic sense of the operation, avoiding a separation between the office and production staff.

“Even though the design process is technologically driven, you still need a direct relationship and access to what’s going on on the shop floor,” explains Hemsworth. A small kitchen and communal space are also included on this floor, allowing for staff to come together and encouraging mingling between all employees.

The top floor features additional industrial and office spaces, designed with the goal of sharing the building with other makers and environmentally focused creators in the Squamish community. A future public cafe with a rooftop patio and a living green roof open to exceptional views of the Stawamus Chief is planned to further situate the building within the mountainous landscape. The top floor is instrumental in serving as an incubator for small, local companies specializing in innovation, design, and production.

Natural materials are emphasized throughout the structure, with mass-timber cross laminated timber (CLTs) used for the floors and roof, and a Glulam post and beam structure throughout. All interior and exterior walls are wood framed, with all wood products used in the construction sourced from sustainability-focused producers in British Columbia. By prioritizing the use of renewable mass timber and wood throughout the entire building, the embodied carbon of the project is significantly lower compared to similar industrial buildings in the area that typically use tilt-up concrete construction.

Another advantage of building with CLTs and Glulam is that they are approximately 1/5 of the weight of concrete, enabling the building to perform significantly better from a seismic perspective. The use of wood also pays homage to the history of Squamish as a timber-based town.

Rather than simply standing alone, the building is intentionally built to provide a positive impact to the greater community of Squamish and the evolution of this growing town. What’s more, the building has also served as a clear example within the greater Canadian architectural context of how the progressive use of timber-based construction has become a viable option for building owners as they confront the challenges of climate change.

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A new report on the use of wood in the design and construction of kindergarten to grade 12 schools has just been released. The report, titled Wood Use in British Columbia Schools, has been co-authored by BC- based Thinkspace Architecture Planning Interior Design and Fast + Epp, structural engineers, and provides a practical guide to the use of wood in K-12 schools. 

Commissioned by Forestry Innovation Investment, a Crown agency responsible for promoting the BC forest industry, the report is intended to be a resource for school districts, administrators, design professionals or anyone working in the education sector who is curious about the use of wood in school design and construction – but doesn’t want to get mired down in a highly technical research paper.  

All three companies are based in British Columbia, and the report focuses on local case studies as well as local building code requirements. There are, however, are a number of broader applications and lessons that can be learned and applied to design and construction opportunities in schools across Canada, particularly as they relate to alternative solutions for three- and four-storey wood construction. 

The report, which was compiled with input from structural engineers, code consultants, and sustainability experts, takes a fact-based approach to the topic. It also seeks to dispel some of the myths surrounding the use of wood in large-scale construction projects, including the notion that wood structures are inherently unsafe in the event of a fire.  

An excerpt from the Executive Summary lays out the report’s approach: 

Wood, particularly in British Columbia, is an inherently valuable resource for the design and construction community, with a huge opportunity to increase its use in both new construction and renovations and upgrades. Wood is an amazingly useful and resilient material. Thanks in part to advances in the industry, wood can now be used in applications that were traditionally reserved for concrete and steel – and it should be a regular part of our architectural, engineering, and construction vernacular.

One sector that deserves special attention when it comes to an increased use of wood in design and construction is the education sector, with a focus on K-12 schools. 

Each school project, regardless of whether it is new construction, an addition / expansion, or a retrofit, represents an opportunity to further the provincial and federal governments’ desire to reduce carbon emissions and footprints, work towards net-zero, and support local forest-based economies. Additionally, school districts have ready access to homegrown technology that is leading edge, globally. In other words, there are many reasons to use wood in schools. 

When asked about the goals for the report, lead author Ray Wolfe, Architect AIBC, noted, “We wanted to produce something that was useful for a wide audience. We’re strong proponents of the use of wood in schools, and want to make the subject – as well as the ideas around using wood – accessible to as many people as possible. We think we’ve done that here. We hope it will spark useful discussions, and ultimately lead to more K-12 schools being designed and built with wood.” 

The report explores a broad range of topics, in particular:  

• the various potential use of wood for structural and non-structural applications, including the current trend towards mass timber structures 
• highly relevant case studies on recently completed schools / schools under construction / schools in design, including three- and four-storey mass timber schools, and notes on costing for these schools compared to traditional construction methods 
• key considerations and processes for using wood in schools, including sustainability, student health and well-being, and ease of construction  
• an overview of the sustainability implications of building with wood  

• the challenges to address with building codes, specifically the need for alternative solutions in municipalities that currently limit the height of combustible (wood) structures to two storeys 
• recent advances in wood use technology, including new structural capabilities of wood, the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) when designing schools with wood, and the use of modular wood construction 

Each of those topics is explored in detail in separate chapters, and then summarized at the end of the report. Some of the key findings include:  

• wood is a highly viable option for school construction for a number of reasons, including its nature as a sustainable product, a reduced carbon footprint, health and well-being of students, and ease of construction 
• hybrid mass timber construction, which combines wood with limited steel and concrete use, is an alternative to mass timber-only or steel-and-concrete construction – particularly in jurisdictions that are still getting comfortable with the use of combustible construction for larger schools 

• wood use alone does not make a building inherently sustainable, and high-performance sustainable design is needed to ensure environmentally sound schools 
• mass timber, when it is adequately designed and fabricated, does not need to be encapsulated in order to meet fire resistance ratings as laid out by building codes, meaning that its natural beauty can shine through and provide biophilic benefits to students and staff  

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The Government of Canada has contributed over $550,000 to the Hybrid Timber Floor System Project led by EllisDon and DIALOG. The project is funded through the Green Construction through Wood (GCWood) Program and the Investments in Forest Industry Transformation (IFIT).

EllisDon and DIALOG’s patent-pending Hybrid Timber Floor System is an innovative approach to the existing concept of hybridizing structural materials. The Hybrid Timber Floor System, a mixture of different materials such as concrete and steel combined with mass timber, offers a reduction in carbon and an increase in building design possibilities.

As a composite of post-tensioned concrete, CLT and a structurally engaged topping, it also allows mass timber–based floor systems to be used in nonresidential long-span construction that had previously been limited to traditional building materials.

According to EllisDon and DIALOG’s study, this Hybrid Timber Floor System means mass timber can be used to meet the clear spans often desired in the commercial and institutional sectors while delivering exposed finishes. This ability means greener construction options, meaningful use of local natural resources and benefits to the bioeconomy.

The EllisDon and DIALOG study is currently underway at EllisDon’s modular fabrication facility, located in Stoney Creek, Ontario; the facility is an industrial building of over 27,000 square meters that is fully fit for prefabricated volumetric modules and panelized building components. The project will be completed later this year, with ongoing full-scale and long-term testing planned post-study.

Natural Resources Canada’s IFIT program facilitates the adoption of transformative technologies and products by bridging the gap between development and commercialization. IFIT-funded projects help diversify the forest product market through high-value bioproducts such as bioenergy, biomaterials, biochemicals and next-generation building products. The GCWood program supports innovative lowcarbon wood construction as part of Canada’s goal of reaching net zero by 2050. The program increases awareness of and capacity for innovative tall wood buildings, timber bridges and low-rise wood buildings.

“Replacing steel and concrete with wood — which has significantly less embodied carbon — means that tall buildings could be designed to be lower in embodied carbon. The Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS) provides greater spans that are ideal for open floorplates or mixed use. HTFS is a gamechanger over traditional hybrid wood construction. It allows for the possibility of using CLT in buildings of any type, height and size at a competitive cost,” Craig Applegath DIALOG Partner.

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Housing technology company Intelligent City has raised $22 million, bringing the total capital invested in the firm to $30 million. According to the company, the funding will be used to scale operations, commercialize its Platforms for Life (P4L) building solution, grow factory automation, and expand its footprint across and beyond Canada.

The raise includes Series A venture funding with participation by BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice, Greensoil PropTech Ventures, UIT Growth Equity GP, Fulmer & Company, and over 30 independent investors, in combination with government programs and accelerators such as the Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) Investments in Forest Industry Transformation program (IFIT), the Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) Seed Fund, and the Next Generation Manufacturing Supercluster (NGen) Manufacturing Project Funding. Fort Capital Partners acted as financial advisor and placement agent for the Series A and Seed rounds. 

“We are focused on revolutionizing an industry that is notoriously slow to innovate while making a significant impact on our climate with lower carbon emissions from the construction and operations of buildings,” explained Oliver Lang, CEO, and Co-Founder of Intelligent City. “By utilizing green building strategies and patented technology to deliver affordable, mass-customizable urban housing, we can help cities to adapt more quickly as the needs of people and the planet evolve.”

By developing a flexible yet scalable technology and design platform, the company departs strongly from the construction industry’s typically fragmented and hierarchical design and construction processes. Focusing on a deep vertical integration of building systems, software, manufacturing automation, and supply chain contracts, the company can help developers achieve nearly 100 percent cost certainty, deliver 1.5 times the number of residential units on the same site compared to traditional methods, and realize savings of up to 50 percent on life cycle costs per home.  

“Intelligent City’s technology is set to enable the future of the built world to be more climate-resilient by replacing emissions-intensive materials such as concrete and steel with a renewable material that naturally sequesters carbon,” said Matt Stanley, Director, BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice. “We are excited to support the team to accelerate the development and scale-up of its mass timber building system and advanced offsite manufacturing capabilities.”

Intelligent City’s end-to-end, product-based approach uses proprietary parametric software for design, construction cost estimation, carbon footprint confirmation, material quantifications, and precision manufacturing. At the same time, the company’s innovative manufacturing technology brings automation to the prefabrication of building components. As a result, the company provides data on the life cycle and performance of the building before construction even begins. 

“As PropTech industry disruptors, we were excited by the combination of Intelligent City’s platform technology with prefabricated and modular mass timber products to radically speed up construction and dramatically reduce carbon emissions,” said Dana Goldman Szekely, Senior Principal with Greensoil PropTech Ventures. At the same time, Jamie James, Managing Partner at Greensoil PropTech Ventures, will join the Board of Directors of the company.

In combination with mass timber construction, Intelligent City utilizes the energy-efficiency standards of Passive House design to achieve a 90 percent carbon emissions reduction in its buildings. This concept uses building science principles to attain specific energy efficiency and comfort levels. It includes continuous insulation and air-tight seals, high-performing windows and doors, balanced heat- and moisture-recovery ventilation, and minimal space conditioning throughout the entire building.

“ESG technologies are not only imperative but demanded by building operators, owners, and tenants. Our investment in Intelligent City resulted from careful consideration of the future landscape of the construction industry as well as the vision and the passion demonstrated by the entire team at Intelligent City,” said Patrick Robinson, Chairman of UIT.

With a pipeline of more than 2,300 homes, Intelligent City is supported by leading developers in Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, and the United States, including two high-rise projects in Downtown Vancouver, one of which is supported by the BC Mass Timber Demonstration Program. The company was previously granted funding by the CleanBC Building Innovation Fund, the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP), and Natural Resources Canada’s Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada program (BESC). The technology platform has also been awarded the Solar Impulse Efficient Solution Label.

“Affordable, efficient, and attractive housing is lacking globally. As cities and developers scramble to construct more buildings on pre-existing urban lots, Intelligent City developed a fundamentally better and faster way to erect buildings that are more energy-efficient and cost-effective,” explained Yuri Fulmer, Founder, and Chairman of Fulmer & Company.

“By making effective use of Canada’s forest resources through low-carbon building systems, Canada is becoming a world leader in sustainable wood construction practices, increasing energy efficiency and climate resilience in our communities while simultaneously enhancing the global competitiveness of our forestry, wood manufacturing and construction sectors. That’s why our government is pleased to support projects like this one — to help lower emissions, create good jobs for workers and build better neighborhoods for everyone,” says The Honorable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources.

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In 2020, I led a studio at the University of Toronto’s John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design that asked: How can we halve the carbon emissions of buildings over the next decade? Our collective research focused on strategies for benchmarking and reducing embodied carbon, using a series of real-life Toronto multi-unit residential buildings as case studies.

Towards Lower-Carbon Materials

The Ha/f Research Studio has since worked to build on this initial research. Working with the City of Toronto’s Green Standards Team and Mantle Development with the support of The Atmospheric Fund (TAF), we are currently developing embodied carbon benchmarks for Part 3 buildings across Ontario. The ongoing study involves stakeholders representing the full spectrum of our industry and included nearly 50 voluntarily submitted project life cycle assessments (LCAs). This intake reveals that LCAs are being conducted across Ontario, and are being performed throughout the design and construction process. The number of respondents familiar with the tools suggests that the market can support this type of analysis.

As part of the study, the City’s team requested an assessment of two active, City-owned projects to understand their embodied carbon and find potential reductions, and to understand how future policies should align with design phases and existing planning submission milestones. Both projects—the Western North York Community Centre and the Toronto Paramedic Services Multifunctional Paramedic Station—are 2021 Canadian Architect Award recipients, and have had embodied carbon and operational performance as key drivers of their designs from the outset. Working directly with the City’s project managers and the architectural teams, Ha/f produced detailed LCAs and reduction recommendations that targeted material specification changes, given that each project is nearing design completion.

The Paramedic Services Multifunctional Paramedic Station’s LCA revealed six main sources of upfront emissions that could be improved upon, without requiring significant redesign or additional construction cost. Given their relative impact, the floor slab insulation, concrete mix, and floor sealant were obvious places to focus. Of note is the project’s CLT roof structure—the use of mass timber has served to reduce the project’s total embodied carbon, resulting in a value of 380 kgCO2e per m2—a figure on the low end of our benchmarking spectrum.

We circled back to the client and architect teams with the suggestions shown in Figure 2. Through straightforward material and specification swaps, the project could avoid upwards of 800 tonnes of CO2e—or roughly 44 years of Canadian per capita emissions. Following a brief review period, the architects responded that 5 of the 6 changes would be implemented, and that initial costing feedback stated the changes were cost negligible. Forty-four years’ worth of emissions avoided through a two-week study reveals, to me, just how simple the first steps towards the radical reductions required of us are, and that substantial reductions are immediately achievable through existing, readily available options.

Mass Timber and the Impact of Biogenic Carbon Sequestration

Building further on last year’s studio, I wanted to broaden Ha/f’s understanding of embodied carbon in contemporary construction through a focus on the “it” material for carbon reductions: mass timber. Given the surge in attention that mass timber has received, this year’s students took on case studies to better understand the promise—and limitations—of this family of materials. How does the embodied carbon footprint of mass timber buildings compare to the largely concrete structures of the previous year’s studio, which averaged 505 kgCO2e/m2? To expand this question across geographies, we assessed the structure, envelope and finishes of mass timber projects from Sweden, the UK, Ontario, Washington, and Oregon, engaging many of the world’s leading mass timber architects in the process.

Initially, the carbon advantages of mass timber were not as evident as expected. This year’s research study set averaged 443 kgCO2e/m2 for new construction, or roughly 90% of last year’s study set. A caveat for this comparison is that the mass timber projects from this year’s study are largely commercial uses, and as a result have far less internal walling, which serves to reduce their totals in comparison to last year’s multi-unit residential buildings. Ultimately, the embodied emissions associated with the extraction, manufacturing, erection, occupation, and ultimately disposal of either building stock are near equal.

However, if carbon storage via biogenic sequestration is taken into account, the net average drops dramatically to 192 kgCO2e/m2—roughly 40% of typical construction. There is currently a lot of debate about how best to account (or whether to account at all) for carbon storage in LCA reporting, due in large part to the complexities of forestry practices around the world, and the unknowns of a building’s ultimate service life. Our studio visited local operations to better understand the seedling-to-sawmill process. This experience prompted the students to investigate the sources of timber across the range of projects, an exercise that enabled a greater appreciation for the impacts of forestry at-large, and a keener sense of the challenges related to the lack of reliable data.

Overall, it became clear that responsibly sourced wood, when accounting for bio-sequestration, can be a low-carbon solution for structure, envelope, and interior finishes. Beyond wood, the re-emergence of less processed, organically based materials also offers promising carbon-storing options for structure, envelope, and finishes.

Envelopes: Embodied Carbon Meets Thermal Performance

Focusing on envelopes, this year’s case studies stood in stark contrast to the highly emissive, thermally low-performing, aluminium-based unitized glazing systems of the multi-residential buildings that we examined last year. The envelopes of this year’s study reveal substantial upfront and operational emission reductions achieved by (a) reducing window-to-wall ratios, and (b) incorporating mass timber into the façades themselves. These savings are further amplified by a whole-life carbon assessment, given the comparatively short lifespan of the unitized systems. Envelopes that achieve high R-values and also serve as carbon sinks offer our profession a promising direction of travel. 

Geography Matters with Mass Timber

In comparison to other materials, the provenance of mass timber has significant and disproportionate impacts on the resulting global warming potential (GWP). Where mass timber supply and manufacturing was regionally abundant, the footprint of the timber was roughly 10-15% less than in projects where the engineered material was sourced trans-continentally or internationally. Of the four Toronto mass timber projects, only one used wood sourced in the province
of Ontario, while all CLT and glulam elements were still imported from either European or western North American sources. 

Beyond the impact of continental transportation, the location of processing is a significant factor in how emissive one product is relative to another. As a result, industry-wide generic Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) can be significantly different to manufacturer-specific EPDs for the same product class. A close examination of EPDs early in a project’s development can help ensure the eventual sourcing of timber that is sustainable, low-impact, and importantly, available. In the case of the Catalyst Building, we had two LCAs to compare: one conducted by the Carbon Leadership Forum in 2019 and ours in 2022. The delta between generic data and that of the eventual supplier resulted in a 40% increase of the project’s total embodied carbon. Variations between manufacturer emissions relate in large part to the carbon intensity of the power grids that their facilities sit upon. A sawmill in Alberta emits roughly eight times that of one in Washington State; as a result, a tree cut in BC feeding into either mill would carry much higher embodied carbon if cut and dried in Alberta. Geography matters.

A Whole-Life Carbon Perspective

Finally, the benefits of mass timber are most significant if we are able to take a whole-life carbon perspective that accounts for upfront material emissions, reduced life-cycle operational emissions, and future disassembly and reuse of structural materials. Marrying the reductions afforded by mass timber’s biogenic storage capacity with high-performing, low-GWP façade systems can result in buildings with significantly reduced footprints upfront, as well as over the life of the project. Whether or not we build in mass timber, we need to take a whole-life carbon view to ensure decisions made to reduce operational emissions are not resulting in significant, unintended upfront emissions.

Any further delay in concerted global action will miss a brief and rapidly closing window to secure a liveable future.  

—Hans-Otto Pörtner, co-chair of IPCC working group 2, February 28, 2022.

The time is now. Our entire industry needs to adopt a whole-life approach to the buildings we design. We need to address the magnitude of emissions associated with our daily design and specification decisions. As evident in the examples above, a short investigation into a material class’s provenance could result in the avoidance of several lifetimes’ equivalent of emissions.

Canadian architects, engineers, and planners have a disproportionate responsibility when it comes to addressing climate change, and only by taking a whole life view will we be able to balance reductions in operational emissions with reductions in embodied carbon emissions.

We are here to support your practice, institution, or municipality to take this on. We look forward to discussing this research and its findings with you, at your request.

The Ha/f Research Studio was conducted at the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design.  It was led by Adjunct Professor Kelly Alvarez Doran, co-founder of Ha/f Climate Design, and Senior Director of Sustainability and Regenerative Design at MASS Design Group.

The project team included graduate students Saqib Mansoor, Bahia Marks, Robert Raynor, Shimin Huang, Jue Wang, Rashmi Sirkar, Ophelia Lau, Huda Alkhatib, Clara Ziada and Natalia Enriquez Goyes.

Project partners from the architectural community included White Arkitekter, Waugh Thistleton, Hawkins/Brown, Lever Architects, Michael Green Architects, Bucholz McEvoy Architects, ZAS, MJMA, Patkau Architects, BDP Quadrangle, and Moriyama & Teshima Architects.

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The Williams Lake First Nation government administration building is a dynamic two-storey hybrid mass timber facility located in the central interior of British Columbia.

Designed by Thinkspace, with the chief and counsel of the Williams Lake First Nation, the project is the administrative home for the 857 members of the T’exelcemc, or Williams Lake First Nation (WLFN), offering a full range of services, including education, healthcare and economic development. The building, which serves as headquarters for the Nation’s elected leadership, also includes council chambers, cultural exhibit space, and an archeological laboratory.

This 17,700 sq ft building was designed to be spatially efficient. Despite its modest size, the use of transparency, light, and thoughtful programmatic distribution ensures an impressive presence. The design challenge was to represent past values and placemaking, while simultaneously creating a warm and modern feel that embodies contemporary WLFN values and identity. Selecting an exposed mass timber structure and choosing to use wood extensively throughout the space makes that vision come to life. 

The wood landscape inside and outside the building acts as an armature, providing ready-made framing for artwork and cultural objects. Careful attention to detailing and connections create a clean aesthetic, complementing and supporting the desire for a modern, efficient building that is representative of the T’exelcemc identity. 

The building planning diagram combines an interconnected two-storey linear atrium with a one-storey gallery, council chamber, and research wing. The parti for the massing and program allows the two interlocking volumes to create a clear and identifiable entry that connects indoors and outdoors while still making the exhibit space at the entryway a focal point.  

An open design in the administration space allows for transparency, light, and artwork dispersed throughout the building’s volumes, thanks in large part to the atrium. Clerestory glazing brings natural daylight to both levels of the administration zone. The workspace is flexible and adaptable, and consists of both open and closed offices. Wood is always visible, and part of the day-to-day experience for staff.

Wood was chosen for the building for cultural, aesthetic, biophilic, and constructability reasons, but also because of its sustainable properties. Locally- and regionally-sourced wood products significantly reduced the building’s carbon footprint, and will sequester CO2 for its lifespan. In terms of operational sustainability, the building incorporates state-of-the-art mechanical and HVAC design, complete with dynamic heat recovery, maximized ventilation, and sophisticated control systems. Lighting controls and LED fixtures exceed ASHRAE standards while simultaneously reducing energy consumption. High-efficiency windows naturally expose southern sunspaces and create a warm environment while reducing the need for additional lighting or energy draw. Xeriscape landscaping will reduce water consumption, conserve natural flora, and contribute to local animal habitats. The pond beside the building was preserved after turtles, a sacred species for the T’exelcemc, were discovered there. 

This innovative, inspired building serves a highly functional purpose, but it also makes a profound statement. It speaks to the pride the Williams Lake First Nation has in its heritage and culture, an awareness of the land and natural resources, and the importance of defining its own identity within a physical context.  

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DIALOG has officially filed for the patent of its Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS), a zero carbon prototype that received an award for Fast Company’s “2021 World Changing Ideas” in architecture earlier this year. Once approved, the system could lead to the introduction of mass timber structural solutions into the supertall tower category. 

The Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS) combines cross-laminated timber panels with steel, and concrete to build high rise towers with a significantly reduced carbon footprint. When incorporated with other smart building technologies, such as photovoltaic panels, algae bioreactors, or other renewable energy solutions, towers as tall as 105-stories could achieve carbon neutrality.   

“Floor plates typically comprise approximately 70 percent of building material utilized in high-rise towers. By focusing our talents and resources on creating more innovative floor plate solutions like this one, we believe that we can make a major dent in the environmental footprint of the built environment in the not-so-distant future,” said Craig Applegath, AIA, a founding Partner at DIALOG and one of the project’s key leaders. 

The patents have been filed by the international design firm in Canada, the United States, the European Union, Australia and China.    

With post-tensioned steel cables encased in concrete bands and embedded into Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) panels, DIALOG’s HTFS will allow for a 40-foot (or 12-metre) column-free span, where standard CLT design systems currently span just three-quarters of that distance.

“This HTFS will maximize the use of sustainably harvested wood in high-rise construction in the most cost efficient, energy efficient, and elegant manner. In doing so, the design will also give occupants access to sustainable, beautiful, exposed natural wood in their spaces,” said Thomas Wu, a structural engineer and Partner with DIALOG.   

Once the patents are approved, the structural system will then require localized approvals to coincide with area code requirements around fire, health, and life safety. While awaiting patent approval, DIALOG is working in partnership with EllisDon to develop scaled panels for thorough structural testing.  

“The hybrid panel presents a unique value proposition allowing for carbon sustainability, the ability for offsite prefabrication, and long-span exposed ceilings desired by many commercial tenants,” said Mark Gaglione, P.E. the Director of Building and Material Sciences with EllisDon, “We are excited to be working with DIALOG to help make this concept idea a reality as soon as possible,” 

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Intelligent City, the sister company to Vancouver architecture firm LWPAC, has begun building net-zero, mass timber urban housing projects in a newly opened factory on River Road in North Delta, British Columbia.

Intelligent City’s factory combines several technologies to design, manufacture, and deliver buildings as customizable one-stop solutions. An adaptable building platform made from large mass timber assemblies forms the foundation. Its co-founders Cindy Wilson and Oliver Lang, who have worked in architecture for 25 years, have led the company since its foundation in 2008.

The setup for the factory involved developing and commissioning robotic technology to facilitate manufacturing, with the goal of producing affordable, high-performance turn-key homes. This marks the completion of an extensive testing agenda to verify the performance of the company’s Platforms for Life (P4L) building system in accordance with the Encapsulated Mass Timber Construction (EMTC) building code.

“Today marks a very important milestone for Intelligent City. We are leading the housing industry through a product- and platform-based approach to address affordability, livability and climate change issues. We are now the first in the world to use advanced robotics to automatically assemble mass timber building systems that have been tested to meet the latest building code and net-zero standards,”  said Oliver Lang.

Recently, Intelligent City won the Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada competition, and the company has also received financial support from a variety of funding programs in Canada. The BC Government supported Intelligent City’s business with $460,000 in funding from the CleanBC Building Innovation Fund.

“When it comes to tackling the issues of climate change and housing, we know we need to be at the leading edge of innovation,” said Minister Ravi Kahlon. “This type of tech and ingenuity are the type of solutions that advances B.C.’s building sector in a sustainable way. Using mass timber is key to creating a more resilient forest sector. It’s the construction material of the future and it allows us to rethink what’s possible. We are happy to support these types of projects through our CleanBC building innovation fund.”

Intelligent City is focused on the construction of mid-to-high-rise urban housing as well as commercial buildings through the convergence of mass timber, design engineering, automated manufacturing, and proprietary software. The company is currently working on projects totaling 2,880 homes in Canada and 1,400 homes in the U.S., many of which are supported by BC Wood.

To offer flexibility, the company has integrated its building platform in a proprietary automated software and manufacturing workflow. Both allow for a high level of customization without creating additional complexities or cost. The company is expected to deliver its first projects in early 2022 in Vancouver, BC.

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PROJECTS Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) Site Entrance Building, Support and Maintenance Facility, and Science Collaboration Centre, Chalk River, Ontario

ARCHITECT HDR, as part of CNL IPD NB Poly Party Team

PHOTOS © 2020 Kevin Belanger, courtesy CNL IPD NB Poly Party Team, unless otherwise noted

In February 2020—during simpler pre-pandemic times—I had the rare opportunity to visit the construction sites for a series of three projects by HDR at the Chalk River Laboratories Campus, about 200 kilometres northwest of Ottawa. The innovation taking place at Chalk River relates not only to nuclear energy, but also, surprisingly, to two trends in architecture: mass timber construction and integrated project delivery (IPD) team processes.

Science of Tomorrow

The Chalk River campus sits on unceded Algonquin Anishinabek territory, on a picturesque 3,700-hectare plot at the edge of the Ottawa River. The site is relatively remote—a choice that was likely strategic when the facility was established in 1944. Today, security remains a critical concern, given the sensitive nature of work and material on site. Chalk River Laboratories has had a rich and complex history of nuclear research since its establishment under the purview of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), a federal Crown corporation. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) now manages and operates the site on behalf of AECL. Among other things, Chalk River Laboratories was engaged in the operation and sales of CANDU reactor technology, as well as the production of a meaningful percentage of the world’s supply of radioactive isotopes for medical use.

Today, it is among Canada’s key sites focused on technological innovation to support clean energy technology, including materials research and sustainable power generation. For instance, Chalk River’s vision for a Clean Energy Demonstration, Innovation and Research Park (CEDIR) is focused on advancing low-carbon hybrid energy generation systems, including small modular reactors. That spirit of innovation also shows in the campus’s recent approach to planning and architectural development.

Fostering a Campus

In 2017, CNL engaged HDR and Urban Strategies to develop a master plan for the campus, envisaging how, in parallel with its broadening research, the physical fabric of Chalk River Laboratories might become more like a university-style science and technology campus. Despite the secure nature of the work on site, there was a goal to foster a sense of public space that would support Chalk River’s academic-based community of researchers. Toward this goal, the plan considered key metrics such as walkability, health, security, safety and wellness. Ultimately, the master plan recommended investment in site infrastructure, and the addition of several new buildings, which would be coordinated with the decommissioning of aging facilities.

HDR was retained as the lead architect for the first phase of this work, which included the construction of three key buildings, all of which are now complete or underway.

The completed 4,650-square-metre Site Entrance Building serves as the public face for the Chalk River Laboratories, with a smaller front volume providing refined spaces to welcome both visitors and staff, and a larger section behind that supports procurement, warehousing and logistics services across the entire Chalk River site.

The similarly sized Support and Maintenance Facility provides flexible open space, allowing a consolidation of resources to support both maintenance and manufacturing activities. When I visited, this building was at an earlier point in construction, providing the tour with a very clear reading of its structural elements in isolation.

The Science Collaboration Centre was not yet out of the ground in early 2020, but is now well underway. This will be largest of the three buildings, providing six storeys of multi-use space that includes large, open plan studios. Once complete, it will act as the campus heart, offering the site’s most outward architectural expression of innovation.

Mass Timber Fortune

Early concept schemes for the three buildings proposed sculptural forms that would not look out of place on a forward-looking university campus. They would be poised to capture architectural design awards—but perhaps not yet grounded in the spirit of innovation of Chalk River Laboratories.

The introduction of mass timber as a structural element—at the suggestion of the client—was clearly a turning point in the evolution of the buildings’ design. HDR design principal Donald Chong was no stranger to wood. Prior to joining HDR, Chong was one of three partners at Williamson Chong Architects (now Williamson Williamson), and he shared the Professional Prix de Rome for the firm’s research project, Living Wood. The prize enabled the firm to travel internationally to visit manufacturers and designers working on the cutting-edge of cross-laminated timber (CLT) technologies.

Chong built the sustainability case for Chalk River by highlighting mass timber’s ability to both divert carbon (by replacing materials such as concrete and steel) and to sequester carbon (a function inherent to the natural growing process of trees). A Sankey diagram served to illustrate the impact—using metric tonnes of carbon as a measure that could be easily understood by all parties—and helped to secure roughly $4 M in funding through the Green Construction through Wood (GCWood) program, administered by National Resources Canada (NRCan).

IPD Serendipity

Perhaps serendipitously, this development roughly aligned with the introduction of Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) to the project, through the involvement of constructor Chandos, a pioneer in the field. IPD is a process in which the project’s owner, contractor, designers, key consultants and trades explicitly agree to share in the project’s risk and reward. If managed effectively, it creates a collaborative and transparent mechanism for decision making—particularly for complex and innovative projects, such as those at the forefront of wood construction technology.

Paired together, IPD and mass timber served to advance the project in ways that were mutually beneficial to all parties involved. In fact, Chong argues that mass timber and IPD needed each other to succeed. It was through the IPD “big room”—a physical or digital space wherein the whole team gathers, breaking down large decisions into smaller ones in a decision matrix, and then putting proposals to vote—that the case for wood was validated.

Though not necessarily binding, the decisions made through this collaborative process speak to a trust in the group’s wisdom, a factor inherent to the success of IPD. It is this trust that fosters an engaged team, with all parties invested, both metaphorically and contractually.

In the case of Chalk River, the team collectively found that the premium on the cost of wood (compared to steel or concrete) was offset when broadening the comparison to consider factors such as fire protection, interior finishes and speed of construction.

Mutually Beneficial

Beyond the initial confirmation to proceed with mass timber, IPD also allowed for critical collaboration between trades, suppliers and the design team to help de-risk the material selection. While wood construction is ancient, mass timber is relatively nascent, and requires early, detailed, and ongoing information regarding price, supply, and available technology in order to take advantage of key benefits, such as speed and accuracy of construction.

Nordic Structures acted as the trade partner in the integrated team, and early on, toured the team through its dedicated forest lot and factory operation. Throughout the process, they continued to provide a depth of knowledge that would otherwise have been absent from the team. This included such details as offering analyses of the grain structure within their black spruce tree stock, which informed explorations into routing out material from structural members. During design and construction, Nordic worked within the studio-like IPD big room, collaborating closely with key members, such as structural engineers LEA Consulting, to optimize the design to the specificities of their supply chain.

Another early example of big room collaboration was in establishing the spacing of the column grid. By seeking input from all parties—from the mass timber supplier to the furniture systems manufacturer—the team optimized the grid to best meet spatial, structural, envelope, services, and fabrication requirements simultaneously. Whether through IPD or a different contractual relationship, early interaction with suppliers such as this is crucial for the success of any mass timber project. This was true before the pandemic—and is even more true now, as the wood market continues to experience price volatility.

On the other side of the equation, as a new industry, mass timber also allows for a reconsideration of many current construction practices—often for the better. By rethinking sequencing and staging requirements, the construction timeline could be optimized. For instance, the team benefitted from the fact that structural mass timber members and panels can be lifted in place directly from a flatbed truck, with no intermediate staging zone required. Moreover, a successful IPD process demands a high level of precision and accuracy, from the extensive digital planning stage through to erection. Mass timber is particularly suited to capitalizing from such a demanding coordination process, since the material is prefabricated to very tight tolerances. These types of opportunities encouraged all team members to keep an open mind, and fostered a spirit of innovation throughout the project.

Innovation through Rationalization

The integration of mass timber in these three buildings oriented HDR’s design towards rectilinear compositions, focused on building systems and elements. The resulting buildings deliver a high degree of structural legibility, beginning with the articulation of their timber systems. Regular grids of columns also set these buildings up as flexible, futureproof structures that can easily accommodate changes in use.

Above the glulam columns, a system of girders, beams, and purlins is carefully orchestrated to allow for the unimpeded integration of building services tight to the timber deck. To minimize operational energy use, the designs opted to avoid using raised access floors or dropped ceilings for distributing services—the solutions most commonly chosen in mass timber structures. Instead, the three buildings leave mechanical and electrical elements exposed, in keeping with a tradition exemplified in Canadian works by the likes of Barton Myers, Ron Keenberg, and Carmen Corneil.

Small areas of dropped ceiling are present mainly around the core, where principal services—including main duct lines and fan coil units—are grouped. The minimal dropped ceilings act as service trays, and allow for easy side access for servicing or for future adaptation. An array of distribution lines—including ducts, sprinklers and conduit—then run throughout the floorplate. They are aligned parallel to the purlins, and above the larger structural members, in what are essentially service troughs framed by the layered timber structure. Beyond creating an aesthetically appealing and spatially optimized solution, this decision had the added benefit of allowing for more exposed wood structure, saving time and money by reducing finishing and coordination requirements.

Much of the buildings’ structure can be read on the exterior. On the nearly complete Site Entrance Building, the columns clearly establish a visual order that informs the organization of the façade, while the beams and roof structure evoke a building entablature behind the glazing. Drawing inspiration from projects such as Mies van der Rohe’s IIT College of Architecture and Peter Behrens’ Turbine Factory, the elevations are a thoughtful, ordered composition of glazing, ceramic tiles and insulated metal panels. The minimalist façade treatment allows for a strong legibility of the structure, and is in keeping with the concept of flexible open space behind.

Campus as Opportunity for Iteration

One key advantage of working through a collection of campus buildings is the ability to iterate, learning from previous designs. Aided by the rigorous tools of IPD, HDR worked to refine their designs, details and techniques as they progressed from the Site Entrance Building, to the Support and Maintenance Facility, to the Science Collaboration Centre. This had a notable impact on the evolution and refinement of the timber construction systems used.

This process is particularly notable in the development of the buildings’ column design.

The evolving design of the structural columns was informed by the thinking that led to a simplified distribution of building systems through the x and y dimensions of the ceiling. Over the course of the three projects, the column designs came to more tightly integrate vertical pathways for conduit distribution, completing the circuit with the z dimension.

The culmination of this process is the fluted column of the Science Collaboration Centre. Visually, it appears as a split column, which allows for conduit to be surface-mounted within a reveal on its face, in keeping with the exposed aesthetic of the ceiling. This vertical channel also has the advantage of connecting to a space on the ceiling between a pair of purlins. This pair has been reorganized from the Site Entrance Building system—in part to simplify erection and to optimize timber deck spans—but has an added benefit of providing an organized service pathway on the ceiling.

The innovation of the column design goes beyond this, by extending to its interaction with the structural beams. In the Site Entrance Building, the columns used a steel-chair-and-knife plate connection off the side of the columns to support the beams—a very typical connection detail. However, through a cost-benefit analysis, the team determined that the process of erecting the structure could be simplified if the connection was created through the articulation of the column itself. Taking cues from Japanese joinery and barn construction, the team introduced notches at the top of columns to provide the beam bearing support. The result is an elegant detail that simplifies fireproofing strategies and speeds construction.

The three mass timber buildings currently underway at the Chalk River Campus are a study of architectural innovation—in terms of both wood construction systems and the IPD project delivery method. The symbiosis between mass timber and IPD allowed for an active refinement of details that collectively inform an elegant, efficient system for building in wood.

What is the ultimate legacy for this project? Architect Don Chong sees the buildings less as specialized facilities, and more as prototypes for how mass timber can most effectively be deployed for standardized commercial and institutional structures. With an optimized prototype, Chong believes, mass timber buildings could become the brick-and-beam warehouses of the 21st century. HDR’s three buildings will doubtless expand the collective body of timber knowledge—even if few architects are able to visit them—with impacts that may go far beyond the security gates of Chalk River.

Architect Leland Dadson is a mass timber specialist at MJMA. He is involved with mass timber projects including the University of Toronto Academic Wood Tower (in association with Patkau Architects), and the Queen’s University John Deutsch University Centre Redevelopment (in association with HDR).

OWNER CNL | BUILDER CSJV (Chandos Sullivan Joint Venture) | ARCHITECT HDR | ARCHITECT TEAM Donald Chong, Susan Croswell, Justin Purdue, Paul Howard Harrison, Jeremy Van Dyke, Somayeh Mousazadeh, Min Hoo Kim, Sebastian Wooff, Shelley Greenaway | STRUCTURAL LEA | MECHANICAL/SUSTAINABILITY Integral Group | ELECTRICAL/CIVIL Jp2g | TIMBER Nordic Structures | ENVELOPE (BUILDER) Flynn Canada | MECHANICAL/ELECTRICAL (BUILDER) JMR Electric | FRAMING/DRYWALL/CEILINGS (BUILDER) Marcantonio Constructors Inc. | SYSTEMS FURNITURE (BUILDER) Advanced Business Interior | BUILDING CONTROL (BUILDER) Siemens Canada

SITE ENTRANCE BUILDING
AREA 5,016 m2 | ESTIMATED BUDGET $30.6 M | COMPLETION September 2020 | ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 101 kWh/m2/year

SUPPORT AND MAINTENANCE FACILITY
AREA 4,800 M2 | ESTIMATED BUDGET $32.8 M | COMPLETION March 2021 | ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 143.3 kWh/m2/year

SCIENCE COLLABORATION CENTRE
AREA 8,918 M2 | ESTIMATED BUDGET $62 M | COMPLETION March 2023 | ENERGY USE INTENSITY (PROJECTED) 130.4 kWh/m2/year (without Data Centre); 373.8 kWh/m2/year (with Data Centre)

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Katerra, the modular prefabrication startup and timber construction company is reportedly shutting down and plans on letting its thousands of employees go, according to The Information. Vancouver-based Michael Green Architecture, which was acquired by Katerra in 2018, is unimpacted by the closure.

Despite the $2 billion investment by SoftBank to support the company in upending the construction industry using cross-laminated timber (CLT), The Information’s recent report reveals that Katerra will shut down this month and drop its current construction projects.

The potential construction giant, which launched in Silicon Valley in 2015 acquired Michael Green Architecture (MGA) and Lord Aeck Sargent in 2018.

“We are sad for the many people impacted by this decision. However, we are grateful that these actions have no impact on our operations, other than the movement of MGA shares back into our control. We are fortunate that we have been insulated from Katerra’s challenges because Principals Michael Green and Natalie Telewiak have been and remain the controlling Directors of the firm,” says Michael Green Architecture. “Our team remains busy with fun projects and great clients, and we are excited to continue to innovate and move forward to help solve the greatest challenges of our time; for people and planet.”

Katerra was founded by Michael Marks and Fritz Wolff. Based in Menlo Park, California, the startup company used software to manage construction, with a model of fabricating and supplying everything from wall systems to hardware.

The company planned to lead in creating multi-unit residential buildings as well as commercial structures. In December 2020, Katerra received another $200 million infusion from SoftBank, reportedly giving the Japanese company a majority stake.

The mass timber construction firm aimed to bring “the Silicon Valley approach to building,” by reducing reliance on skilled labor and automating the building process, according to The Architect’s Newspaper.

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In 2013, architect Michael Green recorded a TED talk entitled “Why We Should Build Wooden Skyscrapers.” To date, it’s been viewed more than 1.3 million times and translated into 31 languages.

“For many viewers, the idea of a massive building made of wood was a bizarre paradigm shift,” notes blog DesignMilk. “For Green, whose Michael Green Architecture works exclusively with timber buildings, it was another step on the long path towards building a lower-carbon future.”

In the decade since its founding in 2012, MGA | Michael Green Architecture has established itself as an internationally recognized leader in the tall wood movement, and as an expert in advanced wood construction. The firm has garnered four Governor General’s Medals for Architecture and two RAIC Awards for Innovation. Michael Green has spoken at the White House and at the Paris COP21 Climate Summit; Green and principal Natalie Telewiak have also delivered numerous presentations at wood and construction conferences and at universities. Michael Green has authored publications and guidelines to advance the wood construction industry, including the books The Case for Tall Wood Buildings and Tall Wood Buildings, now both in their second editions.

This research has been put into action in MGA’s built projects. When completed, the Wood Innovation and Design Centre (WIDC) in Prince George, B.C., was the tallest modern mass timber building in the world. The facility was conceived to showcase the potential for building mid-rise and high-rise structures using engineered mass timber products. With the exception of a mechanical penthouse, there is no concrete used in the building above the ground floor slab.

The Catalyst Building (completed with architect of record Katerra), constructed out of cross-laminated timber, is pursuing Zero Energy and Zero Carbon certifications, which would make it one of the largest buildings in North America to meet both standards. It’s the first office building in Washington State constructed out of cross-laminated timber (CLT), and a milestone in the advocacy for sustainable office buildings in the United States. Located near a railway and pedestrian bridge, the design demonstrates how a prefabricated mass timber construction approach can address site-specific conditions and limitations through deep integration between construction materials, construction techniques, operational practices and design.

MGA also designed the T3 office building in Minneapolis (with architect of record DLR Group)—the largest modern mass timber building in the United States at the time of its completion. To respond to its site, straddling the Historic Warehouse District and the urban core of downtown Minneapolis, the design marries traditional, industrial proportions with modern materials and detailing.

The firm has its sights set on yet greater heights. In partnership with Gensler, MGA collaborated with Google-affiliate Sidewalk Labs to develop a proof-of-concept for the world’s tallest mass timber building—a 35-storey structure on Toronto’s waterfront.

MGA is currently working on a 23,000-square-metre multi-activity centre in the mining town of Gallivare, Sweden (with architect of record Maf Arkitektkontor), a nine-storey mixed-use mass timber building in France (with architect of record Calq), two multi-residential developments in Victoria, B.C., and, in collaboration with Human Studio, a wood-framed affordable housing development in Prince Rupert, B.C.

MGA’s projects range in scope, size, context, and budget—but all demonstrate an ambition to create sustainable and meaningful spaces constructed of natural materials. In addition to its expertise with wood, MGA’s team has also gained experience in areas such as LEED, Passive House, and net-zero carbon construction.

Social and urban sustainability are also integral to their approach. The Dock Building, located on Jericho Beach in Vancouver, provides support spaces and workshops for a large marina of sailboats, on a very modest budget. The simple design demonstrates that all projects—from working industrial buildings to boutique museums—can and should be realized with grace and architectural dignity.

Ronald McDonald House of British Columbia (completed by MGA; project started at mcfarlane green biggar architecture + design) is a 73-unit residence for out-of-town families with children receiving medical treatment at BC Women’s and Children’s Hospital. The design ambition was to preserve the nurturing, closely bonded social connections found in the organization’s original 12-family Shaughnessy house. Built with a tilt-up CLT wood structure, the design integrates layered spaces to help families find both solace and community as they go through one of the most significant and challenging moments of life with their severely sick children.

MGA’s signature aesthetic results from reductive design and careful material choices. “We believe that to build for a more sustainable planet, we must use less and waste less,” they write. “That includes building less—and certainly only providing what is needed and nothing more.” They seek sustainable, local sources for their timber and other materials, create buildings that will remain useful and attractive beyond the typical design life, and emphasize passive design in their approach to building performance. 

The firm gives back to the professional community through educational initiatives in timber construction and sustainable practice. In 2014, Michael Green founded the Design Build Research Institute (DBR), an education and research non-profit. DBR provides design-build courses for students of all ages, along with free online education courses to help the public, industry professionals, public policy makers, code authorities, and the development industry understand how to build with mass timber. The firm has cultivated long-standing relationships with policymakers, allowing them to advocate effectively for changes that allow for the more widespread use of advanced timber construction beyond MGA’s own work.

“Rather than shying away from the unknown, we are passionate about pushing past the limits of what industry and the public think is possible for buildings,” writes MGA. “We are leading a revolution in wood that has our network throughout the Pacific Northwest region and across Canada deeply engaged and excited about the future.”

Jury Comments :: MGA | Michael Green Architecture deserves recognition as a leading architectural firm because of their ability to consistently deliver leading-edge timber buildings, carefully designed to a high degree of aesthetics and performance. This firm shows its passion for innovation and sustainability through its many finely crafted wood buildings—and displays its commitment to education through the design-build studio held every year to expose young architects to the design and construction of actual structures.

They have distinguished themselves for their ability to translate focused material research and technical pursuits into a notable and innovative body of work that embodies a deep commitment to sustainability.

MGA has become one of the world’s leading voices on the future of wood design through their advocacy, and in doing so, they carry the banner for Canadian architecture internationally. In this sense, the work of Michael Green Architecture acts as an ambassador for Canadian architecture.

The jurors for this award were Susan Ruptash (FRAIC), André Perrotte (FIRAC), Drew Adams (MRAIC), Marie-Odile Marceau (FIRAC), and Susan Fitzgerald (FRAIC). 

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Vancouver-based Leckie Studio is a 20-person practice founded by architect Michael Leckie in 2015. The studio operates across a range of scales and typologies, including architecture, interiors, product design and environmental design.

During his architectural internship, Michael Leckie worked at firms including Patkau Architects in Vancouver and Atelier 66 in Athens, Greece, developing an appreciation for modern regionalist practices in different parts of the world. Leckie Studio’s work is primarily located in the Cascadia Region (also known as the Pacific Northwest), with completed projects in Canada, the United States and Mexico.

In the midst of global mediatization, the studio writes that it “strives to continually reassess the notion of modernism, meaning and truth.” In architectural terms, it uses an approach informed by critical regionalism, creating places grounded in both site and context.

The studio’s designers believe that architecture has the potential to transform mundane realities in positive and meaningful ways. This is evident in a start-up venture co-founded by Michael Leckie, The Backcountry Hut Company. The company sells prefabricated building systems that take a “kit-of-parts” approach, giving clients a balance of support and agency in the design and construction of small shelters. The resulting buildings can range in size from a 10-square-metre A-frame cabin to a 185-square-metre two-storey dwelling. Leckie Studio’s associated research into mass timber prefabrication has opened up multiple other opportunities, including custom structures for remote worksites and demountable community pavilions.

Leckie Studio is often purposefully modest in its approach, espousing German designer Dieter Rams’ maxim, “Less but Better.” For the Ridge House in Portland, Oregon, it created a compact three-storey home that replaced a larger traditional house with failing foundations. The architects were challenged to create a much more spatially efficient version of its predecessor, within the budget that had originally been allocated for a renovation and addition. The resulting home offers a range of spatial qualities, richly compensating for its smaller size in comparison to the original house.

In Full House, a single-family residence in Vancouver, the studio created an intergenerational home that can be reconfigured to operate across a variety of family configuration scenarios. The architecture is easily reconfigurable to accommodate a range of programmatic scenarios. It can transform from being one large, five-bedroom intergenerational home to two discrete dwelling units: a three-bedroom suite and two-bedroom suite, or a four-bedroom suite and one-bedroom suite.

The firm has completed other notable residential projects in both rural and urban settings. Camera House, in Pemberton, B.C., uses a series of vaulted rooms to focus daylight and frame views of the surrounding forest and distant mountains. In the Vancouver Courtyard House, a home with a long, narrow floorplan is given unexpected visual depth through the introduction of a central, three-sided courtyard.

Social and urban sustainability are at the core of Bricolage, the team’s second-place entry to the City of Edmonton’s 2019 Missing Middle Infill Design Competition. The project proposes stacked rowhouses with an equal mix of affordable rental studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units. Studio units can be internally connected to the dwellings above or below. The City of Edmonton has awarded Leckie Studio the opportunity to proceed with the proposal, with anticipated completion in 2024.

Currently under construction is the Arts Student Centre at the University of British Columbia, a compact three-storey building that will provide a new home for the Arts Undergraduate Society. The cylindrical form is a response to the building’s idiosyncratic site within a continuous campus commons, and simultaneously at the corner of an intersection.

Leckie Studio takes an integrated approach to environmental sustainability, aiming first and foremost to create lasting, resilient designs. The practice pays close attention to the sourcing of materials that go into its projects, seeks out techniques that prolong the lifespan of wood while reducing the necessity for chemical treatments, and collaborates with contractors who prioritize sustainability in their construction practices. Leckie Studio’s multi-family residential and institutional designs integrate passive energy and natural daylighting, while its single-family residential designs are informed by Passive House standards.

For the IDS Vancouver installation Untitled (392 Sheets of Plywood), the studio created a sculptural enclosure where visitors could take refuge from the trade show floor. The space was loosely bounded by 392 sheets of pine plywood, which were assembled through interlocking, friction-fit connections. After the show, the structure was dismantled and subsequently re-purposed with minimal material waste.

Working with colleagues Rodrigo Cepeda and Clinton Cuddington, Michael Leckie is the co-founder of the non-profit Cascadia Architecture Foundation, which aims to serve as a platform for critical discourse in architecture, landscape design and planning throughout the Pacific Northwest. Leckie also recently led a graduate level design studio at the UBC School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture.

Jury Comments :: In a short time, Leckie Studio Architecture + Design has produced a diverse collection of exquisite projects which demonstrate their extraordinary commitment to regionalism and their skillful understanding of materials, all evidenced by the enthusiastic support of their clients. Their work demonstrates careful attention to craft, materiality, and the specificity of place. The various projects enter an elegant dialogue with nature, and the use of wood contributes to this integration.

Leckie Studio’s beautiful and well-executed buildings show a depth of research, craft and understanding of materiality. They have also demonstrated a commitment to sustainability with their focus on research into sustainable prefabricated mass-timber construction. With their lovely DIY cabin, they offer a refreshing option for the construction of small remote cabins, incredibly accessible to anyone with basic building skills. Their work displays a high degree of conceptual clarity and attention to detail in executing an impressive breadth for a young firm, spanning from private residences to public buildings. There is no doubt: Leckie Studio has a bright future ahead.

The jurors for this award were Susan Ruptash (FRAIC), André Perrotte (FIRAC), Drew Adams (MRAIC), Marie-Odile Marceau (FIRAC), and Susan Fitzgerald (FRAIC). 

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The RAIC has announced MGA | Michael Green Architecture as the recipient of the RAIC 2021 Architectural Firm Award. The Award recognizes the achievements of a firm for its quality of architecture, service to clients, and innovations in practice. It also takes into account the firm’s contribution to architectural education and professional organizations, as well as public recognition.

Honoured with four Governor General’s Medals for Architecture and two RAIC Awards for Architectural Innovation, MGA | Michael Green Architecture is recognized for their sustainable architecture and developing carbon-neutral buildings with advanced wood construction.

The firm was founded in 2012 by Michael Green, who is known for his research, leadership, and expertise in the tall wood movement and building with timber products. Green’s work in mass timber construction is evident in both the firm’s practice and in academic theory, with Green authoring ‘The Case for Tall Wood Buildings’ and popularizing the phrase ‘mass timber.’ Michael continued to share his passion for the environment and the case for building with wood through his 2013 TED Talk, Why We Should Build Wooden Skyscrapers.

In 2018, Natalie Telewiak became a Principal at MGA. With an education in architecture and engineering, Natalie brings an approach rooted in material logic. Together, Michael and Natalie run MGA from the office in Vancouver, British Columbia.

“MGA | Michael Green Architecture deserves recognition as a leading architectural firm because of their ability to consistently deliver leading-edge timber buildings, carefully designed to a high degree of aesthetics and performance. This firm shows its passion for innovation and sustainability through its many finely crafted wood buildings— and displays its commitment to education through the design-built studio held every year to expose young architects to the design and construction of actual structures,” says the jury.

The Jury for the 2021 Architectural Firm Award: 

Susan Ruptash, FRAIC
BDP Quadrangle
Toronto, ON  

André Perrotte, FIRAC
Saucier+Perrotte Architectes
Montreal, QC   

Drew Adams, MRAIC
LGA Architectural Partners Ltd.
Toronto, ON    

Marie-Odile Marceau, FIRAC
McFarland Marceau Architects Ltd.
Vancouver, BC  

Susan Fitzgerald, FRAIC
Fowler Bauld & Mitchell Ltd.
Halifax, NS   

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