STRUCTURAL TIMBER ASSOCIATION the use of structural timber is vital in the quest to meet construction’s net zero obligations, but the industry should adopt a pragmatic approach towards hybrid construction to overcome insurance hurdles.
A FORCE FOR CHANGE
This is broadly the line taken by the recent RISCAuthority report entitled Insurance Challenges of Mass Timber Construction and a Possible Way Forward. Investigating the risk of mass timber structures on behalf of 24 insurers, including Axa, Aviva and Zurich, the report concludes that adopting a hybrid approach is the best solution if we are to allay insurers’ concerns around fire and water damage.
01 What next for the structural timber sector? Andrew Carpenter, Chief Executive of the Structural Timber Association (STA), assesses where the timber construction sector currently stands and where it could go next. The use of timber in construction has received increased attention in recent months and years. As the issue of sustainability has become more acute, we are seeing many architects, contractors, housebuilders and clients looking at how the use of low carbon materials can be expanded. Versatile and with a long history of use in construction, timber is at the forefront. With a growing demand to deliver more affordable and social homes in the UK, Homes England has conducted research into modern methods of construction (MMC), finding that when compared to traditional methods, MMC was able to deliver homes faster. In addition to the developments in the housing sector, engineered timber solutions such as cross laminated timber (CLT). In 2019, the Government announced the Health Infrastructure Plan, which includes a commitment to building 40 new hospitals by 2030 and
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a focus on net zero, digitalisation and MMC. Under the plan, schemes must include 70% offsite construction, which leans heavily towards timber as the primary building material, in order to secure funding. Whilst these developments are exciting, we believe that to see a more widespread adoption of timber in 2022, raising awareness about the benefits of timber, particularly its ability to contribute to net zero carbon, will be crucial. While traditional building methods are aiming to be carbon neutral by 2050, timber offers the opportunity to achieve net zero now. What’s more, with the use of timber now enshrined in the Government’s Build Back Greener strategy, more widespread adoption of structural timber seems inevitable. With so much potential and a wide range of opportunities to expand the use of timber, the coming years will be an exciting time in the sector. At the STA we are actively working to promote the benefits of timber to the wider industry, overcome the barriers to its widespread adoption and are committed to helping our members take advantage of the push for low carbon construction. RISCAuthority Response The construction and insurance industries must work together if we are to increase the use of structural timber that is safe and cost effective. Increasing
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Recommending that multi-storey mass timber buildings are constructed using a concrete core and lower levels, the report argues that this would make it much easier for insurers to offer their backing. At the STA, we have always advocated using the right product for the right application and so we welcome this sensible approach, which could prove an easy route to increasing the overall volume of timber used in construction – thus delivering lower levels of embodied carbon. Not surprisingly, the STA believes that timber is an excellent building material when used in an appropriate context and our objective is to champion its many benefits. However, we firmly believe that this should be achieved by providing fact-based, unbiased information that facilitates informed specification choices. Education is key and we are actively engaging with the insurance industry via the Time for Timber campaign to communicate the wealth of testing evidence available and help them to understand the use of timber from a risk management perspective. To that end, we have produced a series of guides and a white paper, the Insurance Industry Guide to Mass Timber in the UK. Moving forwards, we would welcome further collaboration with stakeholders in these industries to achieve the overall goal of safely delivering lower carbon buildings. www.structuraltimber.co.uk
IMAGES: 01. Timber is central to the UK’s zero carbon future
