A $1 billion timber tower as part of the Sydney central station tech and innovation hub revealed earlier this month joins a growing number of major multi-storey timber projects internationally
The lightweight timber structures use a hybrid construction method to push height boundaries with a concrete core to stabilise them against the wind.
However, a recent set of plans shied away from this method—developed by Sidewalk Labs from Alphabet, the parent company of Google.
The plans reveal an entire “mass-timber” precinct including a 35-storey tower with a timber exoskeleton in Toronto, Canada.
Take a look at some of the future timber towers globally that push the limits of architectural and sustainable design.
Related: La Trobe’s $100m Timber Student Housing Nears Completion
T3 Bayside
Toronto, Canada
Developer: Hines Canada
Architect: 3XN Architects
Storeys: 10
Completion: 2021
The T3 Bayside is the first of two timber office towers constructed in the masterplanned Bayside Toronto community.
Skellefteå Cultural Centre
Skellefteå, Sweden
Developer: Skellefteå Municipality
Architect: White Arkitekter
Storeys: 19
Completion: 2021
Commissioned by the Skellefteå Municipality, the design was chosen as a to nod to the area’s long history in timber construction.
Terrace House
Vancouver, Canada
Developer: PortLiving
Architect: Shigeru Ban
Storeys: 19
Completion: 2020
The timber for the project is sourced from a sustainably-managed forest in British Colombia.
Nordic Light
Oslo, Norway
Developer: Bane NOR Eiendom
Architect: Reiulf Ramstad Architects
Storeys: 27
Completion: N/A
The design won a competition to become the city’s central railway station in 2017.
Tree House
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Developer: Provast
Architect: PLP Architecture
Storeys: 37
Completion: 2024
The design was selected by the Municipality of Rotterdam in December 2019, with construction expected to commence in 2021.
Canada’s Earth Tower
Vancouver, Canada
Developer: Delta Land Development
Architect: Perkins & Will
Storeys: 40
Completion: N/A
The hybrid tower will utilise a concrete core for lateral stability with the rest of the structure made from CLT.
W350 Project
Tokyo, Japan
Developer: Sumitomo Forestry
Architect: Nikken Sekkei
Storeys: 70
Completion: 2041
The completed building is set to be three times taller than any existing timber building.
