Designs on timber

By - , Build 178

Structural engineer Andy van Houtte is a keen advocate of the use of timber in construction. A judge in the annual Timber Design Awards, his involvement also extends to managing the development of a comprehensive series of timber design guides.

78-18

Q. What is your background in the industry, and is this the industry sector you wanted to enter post university?

I studied forestry, wood products and engineering at the University of Canterbury and the Virginia Tech in the US, graduating with a Bachelor of Forestry Engineering and a Master in Structural Engineering, and I recently completed the MBA executive programme through Massey University. I did have a couple of opportunities post university for civil construction companies. However, a career in wood products and engineering design was the attractive option for me, and I have been in the industry ever since.

My professional experience started in timber processing plants on work experience at Fletcher Challenge Forests, then Carter Holt Harvey and subsequently full-time employment at Nelson Pine Industries when I left university. I spent 13 years at Nelson Pine Industries developing laminated veneer lumber (LVL), an engineered wood product used in residential, commercial and industrial applications where its high strength and light weight are significant advantages.

Following this, I worked as a structural engineer at CGW Consulting Engineers designing a variety of structures but with a focus on timber buildings. I also consult to the Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association (WPMA) for the development of a series of NZ Wood Design Guides. Last year, I was the Associate Director on the BRANZ Board, which was good governance experience.

I am also a co-owner and director of Potius Building Systems, a company that designs and manufactures commercial timber floor and roof panels and supplies to building companies around New Zealand.

Q. What are your thoughts about moving New Zealand to a net-zero carbon economy, and what role will the use of timber in construction play?

It’s a big ask to move to a zero-carbon economy quickly, while maintaining our lifestyle and economic wellbeing. I think that New Zealand can be a global leader in the way in which we manage our environment and how we interact with it. We just need to be clever and use our competitive strengths to achieve it.

Timber, as a building material, is a sequester of carbon and can play a role in the net-zero carbon economy along with economic growth in our primary and manufacturing industries. Timber systems have been developed that are equal to or cost less than steel and concrete alternatives in commercial buildings. In building structures in timber, we sequester rather than release carbon into our environment. There have been studies to show that this could potentially reduce our cities’ carbon footprint going forward by around 20%.

One issue with the uptake of timber buildings is the lack of understanding around its benefits and confidence of designers to use it.

Q. What was the thinking behind developing the NZ Wood Design Guides?

Initially, the WPMA, funded by timber processors, requested that some funds be diverted into developing guides to help specifiers design timber buildings. Early in the planning process, we developed a roadmap for around 50 design guides that would form a comprehensive suite of literature. However, this goal is dependent on further funding.

The development of the NZ Wood Design Guides is a great way to capture the advancements and innovations that New Zealand is making in building timber structures. We are quite advanced in our timber engineering and innovation, and New Zealand has a small but growing group of timber practitioners.

The design guides are a collaborative project that engages people across the built environments from forest growers through to manufacturers, fabricators, construction companies, specifiers, councils, designers and developers. The authors and working groups are chosen as subject matter experts and generously provide their time to complete the guides and share their expertise. The design guides can be downloaded at nzwooddesignguides.wpma.org.nz.

Q. What are your thoughts about the uptake of engineered wood products in construction in New Zealand, and are our architects being bold enough in pushing the limits of this technology?

Most major construction companies and design firms have built buildings using engineered wood products, so it is no longer an unknown quantity. As an industry, we are in the stages of refining the technology, gearing up the prefabrication industry and capitalising on the advantages of this type of construction. Developers are certainly aware of the technology and are more open to exploring options for future proofing their investments. Engineered timber is well positioned to offer cost effective structures, sustainable buildings, seismic resilience, speed of construction and social responsibility to developers. We are also seeing our manufacturers invest in digital manufacturing, which is creating new opportunities for mass customisation and setting the industry standard for dimensional accuracy and product quality.

Some leading architects are pushing the boundaries of designs, using the advantages of the suite of engineered wood products available and advanced digital manufacturing techniques. However, we are only at the beginning, and we will see some really clever designs in the near future as designers start with timber as the preferred structural material from the outset of the project. Designers are beginning to design to the strengths of engineered wood, creating structures that are uniquely suited to timber, while allowing the material to drive the structural form.

Q. What excited you as a judge in the Timber Design Awards, both in terms of aesthetics and projects that push the boundaries?

I was excited to be asked to be a judge of the Timber Design Awards, both by being honoured to review other people’s work and as an acknowledgement of my expertise in this field. The judging process is quite rigorous, and there is an overwhelming sense of responsibility to spend the time to judge the projects equally and fairly, while getting to know the projects as best we can. The best part is the debate with the other judges where you get to see the projects from different perspectives.

The most notable trends in the 2020 Timber Design Awards entries are the use of newly developed timber cladding and insulation products. This is a real shift towards designing for manufacturing and assembly buildings that exceed minimum Building Code standards. They are also an evolution in letting the timber products drive the design of the structure. Some of the structures being entered are only viable because they are built of timber, hence we are beginning to see the evolution of structural forms because we have the timber products that allow it.

Q. Have you any other comments?

I would like to acknowledge the support from BRANZ for the development of the NZ Wood Design Guide series as one of our financial supporters. BRANZ does an amazing job for the construction industry and is at the forefront of addressing many challenges our built environment is facing.

Download the PDF

More articles about these topics

Articles are correct at the time of publication but may have since become outdated.

78-18

Advertisement

Advertisement