TRISTAN WALLWORK

Structural Engineer
 LOCATIONS

global and local

• over 8,000 employees
• 200 offices
• 20 countries
• 11 offices in the UK and Ireland

Ramboll is a leading engineering, design and consultancy company at the forefront of

innovation. From across 200 offices we apply our engineering skills and passion to a wide
range of projects in the UK and around the world.
Why am I here........?

Why am I here........?

.....How did I get here....?

MY JOURNEY....
CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

....50 mins!
ARENA/UK MARKET
.....why timber?

• Construction $155bn (£100bn) • Construction $70bn (£45bn)

• 10% economy (GDP) • 6% economy (GDP)
• Population 60 million • Population 34 million

• 12% forestation • 54% forestation

• import over 80% timber • 10 percent of the world’s forests
• ...no timber industry to speak of(?)
ARENA/MARKET DRIVERS
(negatives)
• Education

• Timber engineering not taught at UK universities

• Over 200 UK Engineers (med-large practices)

• Approx 10 designing in (CLT) timber!

• Design responsibility?
• specialist timber design

• Fragmented industry
• 17 different timber trade organsations

• UK Concrete & steel industry

• Very strong/active lobby!
 POLICY & INFLUENCE .....lots to read!
IPCC 2007 government non- government
(Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change)

‘.....wood products can displace more fossil-fuel intensive construction

materials such as concrete, steel...’

‘.....the embodied energy in building materials need to be considered...’

Zero carbon targets

trend towards MMC
(prefabrication)

• Skills shortage
• Quality
• Waste
• Health & Safety
• Energy use
 ZERO CARBON TIMETABLE (UK)
…is it possible?

• 2016 - All new homes in UK

• 2018 - All new public sector buildings in UK

• 2019 - All new buildings in UK

Zero carbon.....definition?

Final UK Govt report issued Autumn 2010

EMBODIED CARBON
…what is it & why is it important?
Embodied Carbon
Raw
Materials
• Carbon (energy) produced/emitted by:
• Extract, process, fabricate
• Transport to site End of Life Delivery
• Erect on site
• Maintain
• Dismantle Building Lifetime

Onsite
• Different measures: Maintenance
activities

• Energy (kwh)

• Carbon (C) Operations

• Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Operational Carbon

• CO2 is emerging as the common metric

• CO2 accounts for 85% of GHG emissions
EMBODIED CARBON
…why is it important?
embodied vs operational carbon
 EMBODIED CARBON

Each person (in UK) contributes approx

10tCO2 per year

Typically 50-60% embodied carbon

saving (concrete or steel)

Open Academy saving 2700tCO2

Equivalent 30% renewables for Concrete 1,900 tCO2

20 years?
Steel & Precast 2,100 tCO2

CLT 1,200 tCO2

Sequestered 2,700 tCO2

CLT -1,500 tCO2

CO2 sequestered CO2 emitted

CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

 CLT DESIGN (overview)

• CLT panel manufacture (Europe)

• 2.95m wide (typical 2.4m)

• 16.5m long (typical 13.5m)
• Typical 50mm to 300mm thick (500mm thk possible)

• Strength Grade C24

• Spruce
• European Technical Approval (ETA Certificate)
CLT DESIGN (overview)
Approx 12 no. CLT panel manufacturers (Europe)

6no. ‘major’ manufacturers:

KLH 700,000m2
Stora Enso 500,000m2
Mayr Melnhof-Kaufmann 500,000m2
Binderholz 400,000m2
Merk Finnforest 200,000m2
Schilliger 200,000m2

.......total combined output approx. 3,000,000m2

CLT DESIGN (overview)
Typical structural schemes • Loadbearing Facade

• Crosswall

• ‘Hybrid’ (steel/CLT)
CLT DESIGN (overview)
Typical Details

Walls/floors Slab/walls
CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

THE BRIEF Open Academy, Norwich

• UK’s largest CLT building

• £20m new build secondary school

• GIA 9,500m2
THE BRIEF Open Academy, Norwich

• 3500m3 timber

• 2700t CO2 stored

• Equivalent to 30% renewables for

20 years or carbon neutral for 10
years?
OPEN ACADEMY design concept

3-D exploded view

Sheppard Robson Architects

OPEN ACADEMY structural concept
OPEN ACADEMY structural concept
OPEN ACADEMY loadbearing facades

• Loadbearing facades (3-storeys)

• Narrow piers

• Full height windows

• Facetted wall panels

OPEN ACADEMY loadbearing facades

CLT panel joint details

• external walls

• internal walls
OPEN ACADEMY loadbearing facades
 OPEN ACADEMY loadbearing facades

• Disproportionate collapse

• Tie forces?
OPEN ACADEMY floors

• Floor vibration (8Hz)

• Deflection

• Crushing at piers

• Typical 7.5m span

• 230mm thk floor panels

• One-way spanning

• Tapered floor panels

• Edge protection
OPEN ACADEMY floors

• Exposed soffits

• Crushing
• Flexibility

• Wetting…
OPEN ACADEMY floors
OPEN ACADEMY steel

• Steel structure (localised

high bearing stress)

• Interface/coordination
• Connection details
OPEN ACADEMY building services

• installation (clear flat soffits)

• Soffit fixings - no hammer drill

required
....We don’t always get it right first time!
OPEN ACADEMY forum
•Curved balconies

•Flat CLT panels

OPEN ACADEMY forum roof

• Double curvature roof • ‘leaning’ glulam arches

• 29.0m span • 78mm thk CLT roof panels

OPEN ACADEMY geometry

• Complex geometry

• Glulam tied arches (radial/’leaning’)

• Flat CLT roof panels – twist!

OPEN ACADEMY forum roof, glulam arches
 OPEN ACADEMY Programme

Sports Hall (4 days) !!

• CLT structure 17 weeks

• Programme saving 18-20 weeks

• Sports Hall erected in 4 days

TIMELINE

3 weeks (25.06.09) 10 weeks (16.08.09) 17 weeks (04.10.09)

OPEN ACADEMY …complete!!

Photos: Hufton and Crow

CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

LESSONS LEARNT - ECONOMIC CLT BUILDINGS
Opportunities

• Programme
• To optimise programme advantage maximise repetition and adopt rectilinear forms.

• Early weathertight date allows ‘vertically stacked’ programme (follow-on trades)

• Grids and spans

• Plan with 2.35m grid where possible (up to 2.95m possible but transport cost increases).

• Limit spans to 7.5m where possible (greater spans >230mm thick panels).

• Loadbearing facade
• Use loadbearing CLT façade structure, preferably with a punched window approach.

• Windows are pre-ordered as CLT tolerances are high.

• Roof
• A simple CLT roof profile also aids an early watertight date (slight falls if possible).

• Foundations
• Shallow strip foundations are more likely possible if a load bearing wall structure is adopted.

• Waste
• You pay for holes, plan board layouts to suit opening where possible.

• Construction waste associated with the structure is virtually zero

ECONOMIC CLT BUILDINGS
Other advantages

• Airtightness
• CLT structures typically offer higher levels of airtightness (2-3m3/m2/hr) than traditional
construction (Passivhaus approach)

• Quality
• Surface grade finish of boards can be specified for exposed finish.

• Services installation
• CLT forms a easy surface to fix to and services installation is likely to be quicker when compared
to conventional construction.

• Secondary (steelwork) structure

• Secondary framing or brackets are virtually eliminated in CLT structures.

• Embodied carbon
• A typical CLT structure will require significantly less energy to manufacture than a steel or
concrete building.

• For every 1000m2 of building built in CLT instead of steel or concrete, up to 350t of CO2 is
saved/stored (this could represent up to 10 years of operational CO2 emissions).
ECONOMIC CLT BUILDINGS
Things to watch

• Design Responsibility
• Engineers should design CLT
• Knowledge/understanding CLT supply chain (design using standard panel sizes)

• Building Services
• Early and detailed design coordination is required (prior to panel fabrication).

• Acoustics
• specialist advice should be sought at early design stage.

• Floor vibration
• Determine design limits for intended use (e.g. 8Hz natural frequency)

• Exposed finishes
• Early attention to details required (fixings)
• Board grade (cost allowance for upgade)
• Staining (rain + UV)
• Drying shrinkage cracking (gradual commissioning of building heating system)
ECONOMIC CLT BUILDINGS
Things to watch (continued)

• Fire
• Fire engineered approach - exposed CLT panels can be engineered for 1-2hr fire resistance.
• Exposed CLT will require a spread of flame treatment (UK).

• Thermal mass
• CLT has a significant thermal mass but less than exposed concrete soffits (nat vent).

• Flexibility
• Internal load bearing walls can be perceived as reducing future flexibility.

• Cost Comparison
• Not just capital cost of frame – consider additional inherent benefits of CLT (i.e.
programme/foundations/facade substrate/secondary steelwork, etc)
CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

WORK BY OTHERS Tall Buildings

• Stadthaus, London, UK
•Architect: Waugh Thistleton
•Engineer: Techniker

• world’s tallest timber building (9-storeys)

• erected in 28 working days (4 carpenters
+ mobile crane)
WORK BY OTHERS Tall Buildings

• FORE St, London, UK

•Architect: Waugh Thistleton
•Engineer: Techniker

• 25-storey residential block

• (Under design development)
• Competitive with concrete frame
construction
WORK BY OTHERS Tall Buildings

• LIFECYCLE TOWER, Austria

Architect: Hermann Kaufmann ZT GmbH
Sub-consultant: TU Graz
Joint Venture Partners: Rhomberg Bau GmbH
Wiehag GmbH
Hermann Kaufmann ZT GmbH
• 30-storey office block
• Passivhaus standards
• Glulam frame
• Timber/concrete composite floors
• CLT core??
WORK BY OTHERS

• St Loup Chapel, Switzerland

Architect: LOCALARCHITECTURE (project architects)
Bureau d’Architecture Danilo Mondada

In collaboration with: Shel (EPFL Ibois lab)

Architecture, Engineering and Production Design
Photos courtesy of: Milo Keller

• folded plate structure

• temporary building
• roof 60mm thick CLT panels
• walls 40mm thick CLT panels
WORK BY OTHERS
Timber Towers, Germany

• 25m test tower (glulam/CLT)

• 100m tower (certified):
• delivered in 10no. Trucks
• erected in 2 days
• saves approx 300 tons steel
• tower cross-section: 2.4x2.4m top
6.0x6.0m base
• mass & base dia = steel
• 200m tower possible!
CONTENTS

Introduction

Why Timber? (key drivers)

CLT design overview

CASE STUDY – Open Academy

Lessons Learnt

Other European projects

R+D / Future projects

R+D/FUTURE PROJECTS

Timber/concrete composite floors

• to be used in Ramboll school project

• Dance floor spanning 10.0m

• Floor vibration (>8.5Hz)

• acoustics

• first use in UK

• Insitu testing
R+D/FUTURE PROJECTS

CLT Floor vibration

• long span floors (>7.5m)

• University of Cambridge/Ramboll research project

• Insitu testing of completed buildings

• Sofistik FEA modelling

• Damping

• Half lap panel joints

• establish design criteria/limits (schools?)

R+D/FUTURE PROJECTS

City Academy, Norwich

• £20m new-build school

• 10,000m2 GIA

• ‘hybrid’ steel/CLT structure

• Long span floors

• ‘stick-built’ CLT loadbearing facade panels

Tristan Wallwork
Associate Director
Buildings and Design
T +44 (0)1223 369220
tristan.wallwork@ramboll.co.uk