Time for mass timber and prefab? B.C. eyes changes to 'bias' in building code
Materials and methods for building housing have hardly changed in a century in British Columbia and the provincial government is now looking at ways to bring housing online faster and more sustainably.
Prefabrication and mass timber construction make up only a small portion of the housing built in the province and the housing minister sees regulations ripe for change to make them a more attractive option for builders.
“It means you can get projects done at double the speed and actually way more sustainable than using traditional methods,” said Ravi Kahlon of pre-fab construction.
“We (also) need to look at the building code to find ways to make the ability to use mass timber in housing much more smooth. We know there’s a bias against mass timber in the building code.”
In B.C., houses and townhomes are essentially built from scratch on-site, but in much of the world panels are pre-fabricated more efficiently in warehouses and assembled on-site.
“We save approximately two months off the construction schedule compared to a traditionally-built on site,” said Norman Morrison, founder of Ajia Custom Pre-Fab Homes, one of the few companies offering that model of homebuilding.
“We use panelized structural framing because that still allows us to be completely custom, we can literally build any size, shape or style.”
LOTS OF TALK, LITTLE MOVEMENT ON MASS TIMBER
Pre-fab construction is also how mass timber projects are built, but the technology isn’t widely used for a number of reasons, even though the current building code allows projects of up to 12 storeys.
“It’s a chicken and egg situation,” said Brad Doff, with SFU’s Renewable Cities Program, explaining that because it’s not widely used, there’s not a lot of wood fibre for the panels, and there’s not much produced because it’s not widely used. https://www.renewablecities.ca/
Mass timber construction involves taking smaller pieces of lumber, engineering them together with bonding agents. This makes them so strong they can replace concrete and steel but with a dramatically reduced carbon footprint and faster assembly; many of the panels are pre-fabricated off-site.
“There are a number of barriers to this relatively new technology and building type. Some of them are at the regulatory level,” said Doff, who is encouraged that Kahlon is enthusiastic about the technology and reducing hurdles.
“We're not going to see the uptake of mass timber or prefabrication if the system's going to slow us down and developers aren't going to save the money to get occupants in there earlier because that’s where we see a lot of cost savings.”
DESIRE FOR INNOVATION, BUT BARRIERS REMAIN
Six-storey wood-frame structures are common in B.C., but there are only a handful that are taller, even though the technology is proven. UBC’s Brock Commons is 18 storeys tall but remains an outlier.
“It really is, I think, an opportunity for us, as we go forward. We already have in BC more mass timber buildings than all of North America combined, so we are leading the way,” said Kahlon.
“Not only can we support forestry in British Columbia, we can support innovation but at the same time ensure that our buildings are sustainable. There’s not many products that allow you to do all those things.”
So all eyes are now on his government to see if they’ll follow through with their commitments to modernize the process, invest in non-market housing, and let industry move as fast as it’s able, rather than as fast as red tape will allow.x
“We’re talking about a big paradigm shift,” observed Doff. “We've seen other industries -- agriculture and retail -- just explode in productivity, 1500 per cent over the last 75 years and construction is just a couple percent each year over that same time span.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW After hearing thousands of last words, this hospital chaplain has advice for the living
Hospital chaplain J.S. Park opens up about death, grief and hearing thousands of last words, and shares his advice for the living.
Some Canadian families will receive up to $620 per child today
More money will land in the pockets of some Canadian families on Friday for the latest Canada Child Benefit installment.
BREAKING Iran fires at apparent Israeli attack drones near Isfahan air base and nuclear site
An apparent Israeli drone attack on Iran saw troops fire air defences at a major air base and a nuclear site early Friday morning near the central city of Isfahan, an assault coming in retaliation for Tehran's unprecedented drone-and-missile assault on the country.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Ottawa to force banks to call carbon rebate a carbon rebate in direct deposits
Canadian banks that refuse to identify the carbon rebate by name when doing direct deposits are forcing the government to change the law to make them do it, says Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault.
Ontario woman loses $15,000 to fake Walmart job scam
A woman who recently moved to Canada from India was searching for a job when she got caught in an online job scam and lost $15,000.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Colin Jost names one celebrity who is great at hosting 'Saturday Night Live'
Colin Jost, who co-anchors Saturday Night Live's 'Weekend Update,' revealed who he thinks is one of the best hosts on the show.
Nearly half of China's major cities are sinking, researchers say
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.