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A University of Oregon-led initiative to revolutionize the mass timber sector in the Pacific Northwest has been selected as a semifinalist in the highly competitive National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engines program. Source: Timberbiz The NSF Engine: Oregon Mass Timber Innovation Engine, led by principal investigator Judith Sheine, professor of architecture in the UO College of Design and director of design of the TallWood Design Institute, is among just 29 semifinalist teams nationally. The announcement builds on the project’s momentum from a US$1 million NSF Engine strategic planning award granted in 2023 and the work of the TallWood Design Institute, a joint initiative of the UO and Oregon State University. “This exciting next step affirms our region’s potential to lead a national transformation of our construction industries,” Ms Sheine said. The mass timber initiative “leverages Oregon’s world-class strengths in timber R&D, abundant forest resources, and manufacturing capacity to build a thriving and resilient mass timber ecosystem.” The initiative targets three pressing national and regional challenges: rural economic resilience, forest health and affordable housing. By advancing technologies across smart forestry, advanced manufacturing and resilient building systems, it aims to revitalize and modernize Oregon’s legacy timber industry and generate high-wage, future-ready jobs in both rural and urban communities. Mass timber, an engineered wood product, can be made from small-diameter logs and underutilized timber species, providing commercial markets for logs thinned from forests to reduce wildfire risk and promote forest health. It provides an alternative to steel and concrete in construction. Due to its ability to be prefabricated in factories, the method speeds production, in housing in particular, and reduces waste and carbon emissions. The new terminal at the Portland International Airport is a visually stunning testament to mass timber’s diverse uses. The initiative proposes to amplify R&D and commercialization in: Smart forestry: high-tech harvesting, fibre supply mapping and assistive technology for loggers Advanced manufacturing and building products: new bio-based materials, robotic fabrication and product innovation Resilient building systems: modular housing, retrofits for seismic and climate resilience and design-for-disassembly strategies The 2023 NSF Engine strategic planning grant allowed the UO to build a regional coalition of more than 90 collaborators — including industry, accelerators, tribal nations, higher education, workforce and career mentoring organizations, and investment firms, including key partners Timberlab, Freres Engineered Wood, the Port of Portland, Oregon State University, Washington State University and Portland Community College — to develop a blueprint for scaling innovation and translation to commercialization. Ms Sheine said the project is a comprehensive strategy to reimagine forest management, revitalize rural communities and strengthen the domestic construction supply chain while creating scalable housing solutions and resilient building systems. “The Oregon Mass Timber Innovation Engine is an extraordinary opportunity to harness use-inspired research and translate innovation into real-world practice,” said Anshuman “AR” Razdan, vice president for research and innovation at the University of Oregon. “The proposed efforts leverage the world-class research and innovation capacity from our state’s R1 research intensive institutions while driving workforce and economic growth for Oregonians, particularly those in rural areas.” The NSF Engines program, launched in 2022, is designed to supercharge regional innovation ecosystems and foster economic growth in critical technology areas. The program has already yielded a tenfold return on federal investment through public-private and philanthropic commitments nationwide.    

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UPM is deepening its over 15-year collaboration with the Baltic Sea Action Group (BSAG) by developing forestry water protection. The new commitment focuses on research into sustainable forestry and the development of new practices in peatlands, among other areas. Source: Timberbiz “As part of our Forest Action forest responsibility program, we want to be at the forefront of promoting sustainable practices in forestry water protection. A lack of clear, research-backed information in certain areas is still holding back the development of effective practices. We want to offer research plots that can be used to find concrete ways to reduce environmental impacts on water and climate emissions in forests, for example,” says Tuomas Kara, Environmental Manager at UPM Forest. “Research supported by companies can be a significant step forward in finding and mainstreaming more sustainable practices,” says Jussi Heinonsalo, Professor of Forest Sciences at the University of Helsinki.The plots will be integrated into a wider network of plots coordinated by the University of Helsinki, which is open to all researchers to conduct scientific studies. “According to studies, the impacts of forestry on water quality and carbon balance are significant, which supports the promotion of better practices. We will have the opportunity to explore with researchers, in particular open questions related to the regulation of groundwater level and to the carbon cycle, as well as impacts on water bodies,” says Taina Ihaksi, Director of the BSAG Forest Project. New operating models for water protection in forest management In addition to research, practical forestry measures are also being developed as part of the collaboration. New guidelines are being drawn up for water protection in forestry, both for UPM’s own forests and privately owned forests. UPM is also committed to communicating the new operating models and guidelines to its forest owner customers. “We aim to give greater attention to water bodies affected by forest management and to take into account their special characteristics. The impacts of forestry on water bodies are addressed through everyday decisions: Which type of regeneration or soil preparation methods are chosen? When to harvest? What kind of machines are used and where? “This is already a part of everyday activities in forestry. However, there is still plenty of room for improvement in preventing environmental harm, and for that, we need more science-based information. Small changes in forest management methods can also help restore water conditions in forests towards a more natural state. Implementing research results requires commitment and continuous training of personnel,” says Ihaksi. Long-term collaboration for the protection of the Baltic Sea will continue. “The collaboration between UPM and BSAG is a great example of long-term and multidimensional work that has succeeded in developing operating methods and finding new solutions. The commitments have covered topics that are central to the Baltic Sea, ranging from harmful chemicals to nutrient recycling and maritime emissions. It’s only natural that the next theme was found in the forest sector,” says Sami Lundgren, Vice President, Responsibility, UPM. Among others, UPM was the first Finnish shipper to commit to BSAG’s Ship Waste Action initiative and to discharge its sewage from sea transport to land for recovery from spring 2022.

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For nearly a century, Washington’s timber industry produced everything from paper and two-by-fours to the massive wood beams that hold up the Tacoma Dome. Lumber mills were the backbone of logging towns throughout the Northwest. Source: Oregon Public Broadcasting But the industry has been on a long decline since the 1990s. Now, President Donald Trump wants to reduce foreign competition and increase U.S. logging to bring back those jobs. The timber industry is not immune from layoffs. In June, a plywood mill along the Columbia River closed and laid off all of its workers. And another one is laying off 112 people. Those layoffs are part of this bigger trend that’s been happening for decades. Today, the state has about 100,000 timber-related jobs, including mills. That means Washington has lost about a quarter of its timber jobs in the last 30 years. The loss has been devastating to rural communities built around those sawmills, like Morton, Washington. Morton lies about an hour’s drive southeast from Seattle. It’s a sleepy little town, with a population of just over 1,000, and a big wooden statue of a lumberjack as you drive in. But back in the 1950s, it was known as the “railroad tie capital of the world.” The Hampton Mill is still the economic heart of the community today. It’s survived the waves of closures over the years. Inside, the first thing that hits you is the strong, sappy smell of freshly cut wood. The mill itself is like a giant machine. It looks highly automated, with just a few dozen people managing it all. Back in the old days, there would have been a lot more people doing these jobs. Today, this mill produces enough lumber each day to frame 70 houses. You see logs in all stages of being cut apart, flying around on conveyor belts. Some chutes carry the wood like a log ride at the fair. Once they’re cut down to studs, it becomes more like a really fast merry-go-round. It feels a little like a carnival — one where it’s easy to get your fingers cut off. “Obviously, keep your hands inside the rides at all times,” warned mill manager Aaron Poquette. The Hampton Mill is still the economic heart of the community today. It’s survived the waves of closures over the years. Inside, the first thing that hits you is the strong, sappy smell of freshly cut wood. The mill itself is like a giant machine. It looks highly automated, with just a few dozen people managing it all. Back in the old days, there would have been a lot more people doing these jobs. Plus, lumber from Canada is so much cheaper — because of its vast timber lands and the Canadian government’s involvement in setting prices on its lumber. The U.S. currently imports a third of its wood from Canada. There’s a lot for small communities to gain by bringing back sawmill jobs. They’re good jobs in rural communities, where jobs like that are hard to come by. Dennis Barnes, a mill worker in Morton who plans to retire soon, is in favour of increasing timber jobs. He started as an entry level worker, but now, he’s in charge of quality control. He monitors a huge computer system that keeps track of every single board as it moves through the mill. He plans out maintenance schedules for the saws, some of which must be sharpened several times a day. “It’s been a good job,” he said. “I’ve been here 26 years. Lots of change. We’ve had some rough times, but, overall, it’s supported my family, and it’s been a good living.” Barnes’ career path illustrates how, over time, mill jobs are becoming more highly skilled and valuable. Now, with AI technologies entering the mill, doing things like visually grading the quality of each board, that transition continues. Poquette says it’s difficult to convince workers to move or commute to Morton, so his company has been training existing entry-level workers for those more technical jobs. At the end of his career, Dennis Barnes has a nice 401(k), and plans to stick around Morton after retiring. “I’ve lived here all my life, and I plan on staying here,” he said. The economies of small towns like Morton depend on mill jobs. Over the decades, Morton has already lost half of its timber jobs, and people there don’t want to lose any more. At the same time, many small rural communities also depend on tourism, tied to the area’s natural beauty. But that industry could be harmed by more logging. In some ways, this feels like a very Pacific Northwest story — it involves lumberjacks, after all. But in others, it’s a story playing out in rural communities across the country. Industrial jobs used to anchor them, and now that the anchor is gone, a lot of these towns are adrift. It’s a story that’s driving the political moment right now. And when small towns lose mills, it’s not just the jobs that go away. It’s the whole infrastructure for producing wood products. Without that production capacity, it makes us reliant on non-local sources of all the wood products we need. And we need a lot of them. Seattle is a city built out of wood. It’s hidden in the walls of our homes and apartment buildings. It’s in the paper we use and the particle board in our furniture. Without this industry, Seattle and other cities like it would have to import a lot of those things from somewhere else. In many ways it’s about self-sufficiency. Mill operators say the Northwest has this valuable local resource that we could be managing, using, and selling with good local jobs. Or, we can pay other people in other places to import the same resource — and those people might not have the same values we have in terms of protecting the environment. Blue collar sawmill jobs seem like exactly the type of thing President Trump wants to […]

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Some of New Zealand’s brightest students have competed in a 72-hour ‘design-athon’ event to create resilient housing that can withstand multiple disasters. Source: Timberbiz The BRANZ (Building Research Association of New Zealand) event called ArchEngBuild featured 40 final-year students from across the country in architecture, engineering, construction management, landscape architecture, and sustainable engineering. The students met for the first time at the University of Auckland and were split into 10 teams to compete for the $12,000 cash prize. This year’s brief was to design a resilient, sustainable and affordable community building concept that safeguards people from hazards like flooding, earthquakes, fire and high winds. It also needed to be adaptable to different family needs and quickly reinstated if disaster struck. The hypothetical site for the development was at the bottom of the Auckland Domain, an area hit hard by the Auckland Anniversary flooding in 2023. Flood-resilience was a strong feature of the winning team’s design which included water retention ponds and timber buildings on stilts. However, it was the focus on community that stood out for the judges. The winners developed a housing concept called Rauhītia, which means to gather, shelter and care for collectively. The largely modular design featured a mixture of townhouses, apartments and standalone homes as well as a community facility and childcare centre to encourage multigenerational living and togetherness. The winning students are: Enoch Shi, University of Auckland architecture student Beatrice Hong, Otago Polytechnic, construction management Bella Mercardo – Victoria University of Wellington, sustainable engineering Shivam Bansal University of Auckland, structural engineering The winners were announced by BRANZ Board Chair Nigel Smith at a prize giving event at the University of Auckland. “This event wasn’t just about meeting a brief-it was about reimagining the future of resilience in our built environment. “The competition challenged students to work collaboratively to push the boundaries of what’s possible in designing buildings that don’t just withstand disaster but adapt and thrive in the face of New Zealand’s unique environmental challenges. “This focus is critical-not for some distant future, but for projects that urgently demand fresh thinking today,” said Nigel Smith. Architecture student Enoch Shi contributed the winning result to strong teamwork and a clear focus on community at the core of their concept. “When we started the project, we asked ourselves, what does resilience mean to us? It can mean different things, but for us it really meant creating communities that protect and serve each other. Research shows the communities that are more bonded together are much more prepared in the face of disaster,” Enoch said. The judges were impressed by the strong interdisciplinary collaboration under intense time-pressure pressure. “The main theme this year was resilience. It was about building for hazards, but the winning team understood that it is about community at its heart. Their project provided a great base for a diverse population and a healthy community a mixture of housing technologies like medium density and townhouses,” said Ferdinand Oswald, Senior Lecturer of Architectural Technology, University of Auckland. Overall, the judges were impressed with all of the students’ optimism and creativity in solving some of today’s biggest challenges – including resilience, sustainability and affordability in our buildings. These are key focus areas for BRANZ through its independent research and testing to support better buildings in Aotearoa New Zealand. “These students are going to change the building industry,” said BRANZ Chief Executive Claire Falck. “They are hitting the real world with the right attitude and focus on collaboration and innovation to overcome the significant challenges facing our industry and communities.” BRANZ is proud to fund ArchEngBuild, through the Building Research Levy, along with industry sponsorship from: Concrete New Zealand Metals New Zealand The Timber Design Society, Southbase New sponsors this year: The Sustainable Steel Council.   The 2025 judging panel included: Ferdinand Oswald – Senior Lecturer of Architectural Technology at The University of Auckland Craig Hopkins – CEO of Generation Homes Ana Petrovic – Senior Structural Engineer at AECOM Anne Carrington – Senior Associate with Warren & Mahoney Architects, and Andrew Norriss – Landscape Architect Director – HoneStudio.

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Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, is calling on Queensland-based small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) working across agriculture, food and related technologies to apply for its next Innovate to Grow program. Source: Timberbiz Delivered as part of the Queensland Government-funded Regional University Industry Collaboration (RUIC) program, this research and development (R&D) training program guides businesses through developing and implementing research strategies with support from experienced researchers and industry mentors. Dr George Feast, CSIRO’s Director for SME Connect Programs, said Queensland businesses are brimming with fresh ideas, but turning those concepts into market-ready innovations requires the right mix of expertise, networks and funding. “We’re helping SMEs with a pathway from concept to commercialisation, with access to world-class researchers at regional Queensland universities, and matched R&D support – as well as support from our specialist team of facilitators,” Dr Feast said. A recent CSIRO report found collaborations with universities and research institutions helps SMEs develop new products and services, increase speed to market and address challenges and opportunities specific to their industry. Lloyd Tailby from Erkmark Australia completed CSIRO’s Innovate to Grow in 2025. “The program was a big help in guiding me to refine the problem and progress with collaboration,” Mr Tailby said. “This is a valuable program for any small business with good ideas who want to explore R&D opportunities.” CSIRO’s Innovate to Grow: Agriculture, Food & Technology – Queensland is open to SMEs developing or supplying solutions in: Agriculture technology (agritech) Food and beverage manufacturing Crop innovation Livestock and aquaculture Alternative proteins Packaging, handling and storage Transport, logistics and provenance Other For more information and to apply visit https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/funding-programs/SME/Innovate-to-Grow/Agrifood-and-Technology-QLD/Apply

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RTA Studio’s housing system, set to launch next month, uses pre-cut cross-laminated timber panels to deliver a three-bedroom home, from factory to installation, in just six weeks. Source: Jason Ross, Woodcentral One of New Zealand’s top architects is days away from launching a new flat-pack housing system that could help solve the squeeze not just in New Zealand’s built-up cities but could be exported into global markets. Today, Wood Central spoke to Richard Naish, founder of RTA Studio, who presented the case for the Living House to the world’s top timber engineers at the World Conference on Timber Engineering in Brisbane. Naish—who is behind Scion House, one of the world’s most beautiful buildings and the new Fisher and Paykel headquarters, said the system consists of 36 pre-cut cross-laminated timber modules (supplied by Red Stag’s Timberlab operation. the country’s sole cross-laminated timber fabricator) and can be assembled by crews with little experience in cross-laminated timber: “The only specialist required is the crane operator.” Speaking to Wood Central from the sidelines, Naish said the 85-square-metre, three-bedroom house is carbon-zero, can be built in six weeks, and costs just $300,000 (including GST): “We have a nationwide building consent,” he said, “which allows us to ramp up delivery given New Zealand is home to one of the world’s least affordable housing markets.” According to Habitat for Humanity, 300,000 families in New Zealand live in less-than-adequate conditions. Around 4000 children wake up in a motel room every morning, and 27,000 are on the waiting list for Government housing and first-time home buyers, making the Living House a potential game changer for public and affordable housing. “Our system is pre-cut to site and has services mounted, which allows us to slash the labour costs dramatically,” Naish told the conference, making the installation costs much more affordable than traditional construction. “We also ran the numbers on timber frame cassettes and opted for cross-laminated timber given superior carbon sequestration.” Wood Central understands that the 3-bedroom home system optimises materials, streamlines suppliers, and requires a team of three for fast, straightforward assembly saving time, effort, and resources. Beyond finding an appropriate site, choosing a licensed builder and applying for site-specific permits and certifications, developers need to purchase a detailed design package from RTA Studios, decide on design pallets and appliances and order the modules. Naish’s presentation was one of dozens delivered on the fourth day of WCTE 2025, which featured keynote discussions from Katharina Lehmann, CEO of Blumer Lehmann, Ralph Belperio, Major Projects Director at Aurecon, and Harry Mills, from Built by Nature. Wrapping up tomorrow, more than 950 delegates will hear from Phillip Tondl, Design and Innovation Manager from Lipman, Guy Gardiner, founding director of Gardiner Vaughn and Gerald Epp, mass timber pioneer and founder of Structurecraft.

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