PLP/Architecture is hoping to build a timber tower in London. Here’s part of their research proposal:
The use of timber as a structural material in tall buildings is an area of emerging interest for its variety of potential benefits; the most obvious being that it is a renewable resource, unlike prevailing construction methods which use concrete and steel. The research is also investigating other potential benefits, such as reduced costs and improved construction timescales, increased fire resistance, and significant reduction in the overall weight of buildings. The conceptual proposals currently being developed would create over 1,000 new residential units in a 1 million sq ft mixed-use tower and mid-rise terraces in central London, integrated within the Barbican.
The tall timber buildings research also looks towards creating new design potentials with timber buildings, rather than simply copying the forms of steel and concrete construction. The transition to timber construction may have a wider positive impact on urban environments and built form, and offers opportunities not only to rethink the aesthetics of buildings, but also the structural methodologies informing their design as well.Just as major innovations in steel, glass, concrete revolutionised buildings in the 19th and 20th centuries, creating new typologies such as Joseph Paxton’s Crystal Palace and the Parisian arcades described by Walter Benjamin, innovations in timber construction could lead to entirely new experiences of the city in the 21st century
While they don’t state the height of the proposed building, they do mention 93,000 sqm 1000 units. Here’s a picture of the proposed tower:
See the project page for more pics. Lloyd Alter of Treehugger.com attended the Green Building Festival and reports:
[Kevin Flanagan of PLP] also noted another reason why he loves wood buildings so much:
We have an affinity for nature and wood. We are calmer and more sociable when nature is in sight. Heart rate goes down and we became more sociable when surrounded by wood; it even promotes healing.
There are many issues that still have to be resolved here. Architects like Waugh Thistleton in London or Acton Ostry in Vancouver cover up the wood with drywall for fire protection, whereas PLP exposes wood inside and exposes the wood structure outside, which is problematic because of moisture. But it is beautiful and provocative imagery.
Reading and writing about timber high rises can afflict you with a certain new sensibility. For instance, on a recent vacation trip, our host’s home is located next to a building under construction, and I could not help but notice how much concrete was being used in the six story edifice. I wondered how the use of cross-laminated timber might have affected and even enhanced the final product. I hope PLP gets to build this London structure and can provide comparative data to a more conventional approach to the project.
