The rise and rise of CLT buildings

Dr Keerthi Ranasinghe discusses how cross-laminated timber is helping architects go to new lengths Architects’ desire to create sustainable structures has pushed technological innovations beyond the imaginable. Cross-laminated timber, or CLT for short, has been drawing a lot of attention... View Article

European Standard for concrete structures is revised

BSI, the business standards company, has revised BS EN 206 Concrete – Specification, performance, production and conformity. The European Standard applies to concrete for structures cast in situ, precast structures, and structural precast products for buildings and civil engineering structures.... View Article

Calling for a shift in focus

Frank Werling of Finnish wood specialists Metsä Wood says the green agenda in construction must shift towards sustainable production of building materials – and timber leads the way as an alternative to steel and concrete. A brief history of timber... View Article

Why a wood first policy stacks up

Greg Cooper of B & K Structures discusses the positive impact which cross laminated timber has made within the built environment. As construction makes up a total of 45 per cent of carbon emissions in the UK, sustainability is an important... View Article

Timber reaches new heights

‘How tall’ is now the question facing those striving to build the tallest timber buildings around the world. Peter Wilson of Timber Design Initiatives explains that as the boundaries of engineered timber technology expand, the use of wood in buildings... View Article

Building-in cost benefits

As construction heads towards decarbonisation, choice of building materials is increasingly crucial. Andrew Carpenter of the Structural Timber Association (STA) outlines why timber provides built-in cost benefits. Cost is one of the main considerations for architects and specifiers when choosing a... View Article

Travelling light – Travel Centre, Lahti, Finland

Bus and rail shelters are rarely seen as works of art but the copper-clad shelter for a new road-rail intersection in Lahti, Finland, is something of a metal masterpiece. Michael Willoughby reports from the Land of the Midnight Sun. What... View Article

Why the UK should think zinc

Zinc has been widely used in Europe for centuries but remains largely overlooked in the UK. Alex Murphy of VM Zinc looks at its key benefits and describes how to make zinc installations a success. Robust, easy to maintain and... View Article

Powder coating, by design

Richard Besant from Powdertech (Corby) provides tips on how to achieve the best possible coating appearance and integrity in the metal finishing process during design and manufacture. As with so many things, beginning with the end in mind can pay... View Article

Shaping our city skylines

Steve Thompson of EOS Facades shares his views on the latest developments in light steel framing for a variety of different living environments. The speed of construction coupled with enhanced quality and high levels of sustainability make light steel frames an... View Article

Facades for the future

Stephen Anderson of CMS Window Systems discusses what he sees as the bright future for unitised aluminium systems in sustainable facade design and build. The speed at which the building sector has adopted modern methods of construction (MMC) has been... View Article

The lowdown on lead

Lead remains highly specified but many construction professionals are unaware of the various types available or the quality standards. Boudewijn Tuinenburg of Midland Lead explores the sector’s knowledge of lead’s accreditations and green credentials. Over the past few months, the... View Article

Aluminium and sustainable cities – three exemplars

Specifying aluminium for windows, structure and cladding is an affordable way of creating durable architecture with performance benefits. Prof Michael Stacey reports. As part of the Towards Sustainable Cities (TSC) research programme, my practice Michael Stacey Architects, working with KieranTimberlake, architects... View Article

Smarter glass

Russell Shipton, marketing manager, ESG, explains why smart glass has come of age and why it has clearly got a bright future. The past 20 years has seen a dramatic increase in the use of glass as both an external... View Article