If there was a subtitle for the latest series of seminars for architects organised by Canada Wood and the Canadian High Commission, it could have been, when designing with timber, “anything goes”.
During the seminars, held in London and Edinburgh this month, architects had their appetite for wood whetted by stunning examples of timber in construction alongside the technical detail needed for its application.
Canadian architect Marianne McKenna, whose slide show illustrated her practice’s use of Canadian and tropical timbers, summed up the spirit of the seminars when she said: “You can do practically anything with wood.”
Building on the success of last year’s inaugural seminars in London and Dublin – and the growing interest in wood – the theme was again timber house construction.
“Timber house construction is timely given the government’s ambitious building programme and increasing interest in timber and timber frame,” said Canada Wood’s market development co-ordinator Patrick Cooper in his opening remarks. This had been helped by technical developments and that wood was recognised for its “overwhelming credentials in terms of sustainability”.
Limitless potential
Marianne McKenna’s sentiments about the limitless potential for timber were shared by Nicholas Nagy, Canply‘s director of technical and quality services. Describing plywood’s possibilities, from concrete formwork to the famous peaked roof of the Sydney Opera House, Mr Nagy said: “You can build anything, anywhere, any time”.
Canadian plywood, he said, had five “smart” characteristics – sustainability, multi-dimensional, assured performance, regulatory acceptance, and top-notch quality – and could be used in a variety of applications. There were examples of multi-layer wood construction in ancient Chinese furniture and the English and French were using multi-layered woods in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Today’s modern product is mainly used by the construction sector for sheeting in roofs, walls and floors and Canply’s members make two patented products – Easy T&G Floor and Easy T&G roof. However, it is also an “economical choice” for exterior siding. Speciality boards are available with grooves and the product gives “a pleasing rustic appearance”, said Mr Nagy.
Canada’s sustainable forest management was a thread that ran throughout the seminar and Mr Nagy reiterated plywood’s sustainability credentials. It is sustainable in terms of its forest resource, he said, and also its production. All of the log is used, as mill waste goes to the pulp and paper industry and the peeler cores are used for fencing.
While there was an “instinctive resistance” to wood because it burns, Mr Nagy pointed out that in a fire, wood chars and the structural integrity remains. He also cited research that showed that in deaths from fires, 0.2% were the result of walls or floors collapsing while 90% were caused by combustible materials.
Also, he added, plywood can be impregnated with fire retardants or treated with intumescent paints.
Among plywood’s other attributes are that it performs well in earthquakes and the cellular structure means it has good sound attenuation properties.
John Park asked the question of why does wood have to prove itself when it has been used for centuries – including in high-stress situations such as the propellers of the Mosquito and Brunel’s Walkham viaduct.
Rigorous standards
The long distances Canadian exports have to travel is recognised, he said, but, when the products come from some of the most rigorously monitored forests in the world and are made to rigorous production standards should they be discounted from designers’ options?
Richard McRae of the Western Red Cedar Association (WRCA) described the species’ performance characteristics as unique. “It’s a wonderful thermal insulator and has a natural fungicide,” he said.
“No warranty can match western red cedar’s centuries of proven performance,” said Mr McRae.
Illustrating his talk with examples of cedar in residential and commercial applications, he shared Marianne McKenna’s view that anything is possible. “Western red cedar has no limits to its applications apart from your imagination,” he said.
Cedar decking is an alternative to tropical hardwoods or treated softwoods and the species meets all UK codes and standards for timber construction.
The US remains WRCA members’ largest market, while in Europe, the UK is the largest market – and there is potential for further growth.
“There’s an awful lot of opportunity for western red cedar to be used as decorative cladding in the UK,” said Mr McRae.
Other speakers at the seminar were Kelsey Housing Association director of operations Jane Porter, who described how the organisation met the government’s challenge to build a £60,000 house; Doug Stewart of DGS Construction, a certificated Super E builder; and Katy Abusow, certification adviser to the Forest Products Association of Canada.
