Wood– building material of the future Features and advantages
Building with wood
Wood is becoming increasingly popular as a building material. The natural material has excellent properties and unique ecological advantages. Therefore, it is a question of ecological responsibility and common sense to build with wood and to live and work in buildings made of wood. We use state-of-the-art technology and standardised processes to process sustainably produced wood into a load-bearing and flexible building material. From this, we manufacture sophisticated roof structures made of glulam and large-format, solid building components made of X-LAM – individually according to our customers’ requirements. We also manufacture complete room modules from solid wood, which then only have to be erected and connected at the construction site. All our components are characterised by a high degree of prefabrication and are delivered by us to the construction site just in time.
FAQ –
Building with wood
Why should I build with wood, even though wood burns?
Wood has a kind of natural fire protection and components made of wood behave well in the event of fire: a layer of charcoal forms on the components, which conducts heat poorly and protects the core of the cross-section. On average, a burn-off of 0.7 mm/min can be expected. In 30 minutes, the cross-section is reduced by around 20 mm on all sides, in 60 minutes by 40 mm. The remaining cross-section bears the loads. All fire resistance classes can be achieved.
Is it true that wood as a building material rots and is not durable?
From a biological point of view, wood is a very resistant and durable building material. Dry structural timber is hardly attacked by wood-destroying fungi and insects when used properly in buildings. Therefore, it is by no means necessary – as was often assumed in the past – to treat the wood with chemical preservatives to protect it from damage by fungi and insects. The various measures of constructive wood preservation without chemical treatments and using primarily native woods are summarised in the recently revised standard DIN 68 800. We see the best examples of the durability of wood all over the world. Many of the oldest buildings on earth are made of wood and still stand today as they did many centuries ago.
Are forests cleared for the production of wooden components?
The DERIX-Group is PEFC-certified and only uses wood from sustainable forestry. This means that for every tree used, a new one is planted. In this way, we actively counteract the emergence of deforested areas and ensure that we maintain the wood cycle and that the material continues to be available without restriction in the future. Sustainability and responsibility for future generations is also a major concern for us, and one that takes up a lot of space in our company.
Is it true that building with wood is expensive?
If one compares the initial investment costs of a timber building with those of conventional new buildings, they are in fact usually not significantly cheaper. However, if one considers the entire life cycle of the building in the economic assessment, including the effects on resources and the climate as well as on the health of the people living and working in the building, the priceless advantages become clear: building with wood enables short construction times and creates space gains through slim constructions. The natural building material is healthy, ecological, renewable, climate-friendly and can even be used in a circular manner, as it is recyclable and thus ensures a residual value for the building after its use. We are committed to taking back all our building components at the end of their useful life.
Am I allowed to build several storeys with wood at all? What restrictions are there?
Indeed, we have to deal with many different laws and building regulations worldwide (and also throughout Germany). In the meantime, however, these political framework conditions are largely harmonising in the possibilities of using wood in multi-storey buildings, including high-rise buildings. There is a recognisable political will to introduce a sustainable and climate-positive product as early as the shell construction stage. Feel free to contact us about the currently valid framework conditions in your federal state or country – our regionally and nationally active engineers and partners will be happy to advise you.
Advantages of wood
as a building material
Sustainable, healthy, durable – those who build with wood benefit from the numerous advantages of the natural raw material. Furthermore, timber construction also offers economic advantages. For example, the high degree of prefabrication of our building components enables a fast construction time and the relatively low dead weight of the load-bearing constructions has a positive effect on transport costs. Get to know the advantages of wood as a building material.
Sustainability
Building with wood means building sustainably
By using wood as a sustainable building material, the construction projects also become sustainable – this has a positive effect on the property valuation according to ESG criteria. During its entire life cycle, a timber construction project benefits from the enormous advantages in the CO2 balance, because CO2 is permanently stored in the timber components. The production and transport of the components also produce lower emissions than other building materials. In addition, wood is a circularly usable building material that also offers a wealth of possible uses in subsequent use.
Health
Healthier living and working with wood
On average, we spend around 90 percent of our lives indoors. Therefore, our goal should be to create spaces in which we can live and work as healthily as possible. With our X-LAM and Glulam components, you create a solid foundation for this. The wood used has a positive effect on the indoor climate: it absorbs moisture and releases it again, creating a warm and cosy atmosphere. This has a measurable positive effect on well-being and health – especially on the heart rate. In addition to this natural moisture regulation of the wood, the adhesives used in our wooden components do not contain any declarable quantities of formaldehyde. In 2021, DERIX X-LAM even became the first cross-laminated timber ever to receive the ‘Cradle to Cradle Certified® Gold’ seal and was awarded ‘Platinum’ in the ‘Material Health’ category.
Statics & Co.
Best conditions for statics, planning and building physics
Due to its excellent properties, wood as a building material offers great advantages for statics, planning and building physics. Wood is a very light and at the same time enormously load-bearing building material with which very large spans can be realised without supports in hall construction. Complex geometries are possible due to the easy handling and universal applicability of solid wood components such as our X-LAM or Glulam. Thus, slimmer exterior wall constructions can be built, as wood has its own high thermal insulation effect due to its highly load-bearing structure and therefore the exterior insulation can be reduced – thus net usable space is gained. Further advantages lie in fire protection: due to the formation of a pyrolysis layer, wood protects itself in case of fire. Furthermore, solid wood is very easy to plan for all fire protection requirements due to the calculation of the burn rate.
| Property | Glulam | X-LAM |
|---|---|---|
| Thermal conductivity parallel to the adhesive joints | 0.13 W/(mK) | 0.13 W/(mK) |
| Thermal conductivity perpendicular to the adhesive joints | 0.15 W/(mK) | 0.13 W/(mK) |
| Water vapour diffusion resistance number | 40 | 20–50 |
| Raw density (spruce) | 450 kg/m³ | 450 kg/m³ |
| Burn rate | ß0= 0.70 mm/min | ß0= 0.65 mm/min ßn= 0.70 mm/min |
Construction time
Build faster with wooden components
Wood is a material that is easy to work with and can be prefabricated to a high degree thanks to the latest manufacturing technologies – both in element construction and in modular construction. The prefabricated timber components are then quickly assembled on the building site and quickly fastened by simple fasteners. Wood is also a dry building material, so that the subsequent trades can be assembled directly on the building site. Wood thus fits perfectly into the methodology of lean construction management, even as a building shell.
Longevity
Building for eternity
The durability of wood as a building material is a great advantage, because it allows buildings to be constructed that last for many decades. Many of the oldest buildings on earth are made of wood, such as the Norwegian Stave Church or the Chinese pagodas. However, correct planning is essential here – especially with regard to permanent structural wood protection against weathering or water ingress. With correct planning and implementation, wood as a building material is resistant to chemically aggressive climates. Unlike concrete and steel, chlorides, salts, carbons and the like are less likely to damage wood. are less damaging to wood.
Optics
Appealing appearance through wood
The high quality of wood as a building material is also reflected in its appearance. Through the use of different types of wood and various surface treatment options, wood can be used in very different visual ways. In this way, buildings with a unique appearance can be constructed with wood.
Economic efficiency
Economical for a lifetime – and even longer
In the initial investment, the economic advantages of wood as a building material are usually not yet apparent. But over the entire life cycle, the economic benefits are very clear – from production to use to reuse. The high degree of prefabrication of timber elements, for example, shortens the construction time, which in turn saves costs. Savings are also made in the utilisation phase – due to the low energy, care and maintenance costs. In the end, the circular building material wood is still economical after its useful life, because wood does not only have one life – after its first life, there are many more possible uses in other buildings or in other wood products.
Solid wood construction vs. timber frame construction
Many people are familiar with timber frame construction or timber post and beam construction from the past. We in the DERIX-Group deal exclusively with the solid wood construction method, which differs greatly from the other construction methods. Unlike timber frame construction or timber post construction, our glulam and X-LAM elements are solid and without cavities. The solid timber construction method has further decisive advantages:
- Simple, uncomplicated construction
- Even complex geometries can be easily implemented
- Advantages in fire protection
- Greater binding of CO2 due to more wood
- Visible wood surfaces possible
- Better indoor climate
- Variable surface design
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topics
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