Why Timber?

Climate change

The world’s climate is changing and this only seems to be accelerating. In order to slow this change there is an urgent need to de-carbonise the building sector which accounts for 39% of global CO2 emissions. Unfortunately, we’re not currently on track to achieve this by 2050. If someone said they had invented an incredible machine to take in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert it to oxygen and water, you might think they were a genius! Nature has beaten us too it! Arboralis will always look to utilise timber where possible and offset more energy intensive non-renewable materials like concrete and steel.

Sustainable forestry

We’re often asked “but isn’t chopping down trees counter-productive to arresting climate change”? All the timber specified by Arboralis is from sustainably-managed forests, certified through either FSC or PEFC. By using the mature trees and replanting new ones we continue to take in CO2 from the atmosphere while the carbon within the harvested timber is locked into the structure for its lifetime. As structural engineers this is the greatest impact we can have on the environment.

Speed and simplicity

Once you’ve experienced a modern prefabricated timber building site, it’s hard to go back! With the heavy pre-coordination and precision fabrication, timber buildings can be very fast, safe and clean to install. A clear understanding of the assembly requirements, tolerances and fixing design is vital to be able to unlock these benefits. Arboralis understands the supply chain, from tree through to installation and maintenance, and can support projects to be more efficient through the process

Health, well-being and biophilia

Timber is a natural and healthy material that humans have always utilised and feel comfortable around. There are significant benefits to health and well-being from building using timber and more and more research is showing that these can have significant impacts on outcomes from our building. We are part of a landmark study into the health and wellness benefits of timber buildings which will study stress indicators in people in both timber and more conventional buildings and look at productivity and financial benefits associated with timber.