Open Source Wood Hackathon catalyses architectural innovation

The first Open Source Wood Hackathon took place on 13th December in Nantes, France at the Ecole Supérieure du Bois. The challenge was to create an innovative wood element for building design in multidisciplinary teams, mentored by experts

The event brought fifteen participants together to generate innovative wood designs using laminated veneer lumber. The hackathon was held in collaboration with the International Institute of Wood Science and Technology (Ecole Supérieure du Bois). The school provides higher education focusing on timber engineering.

Participants were divided into three teams and challenged with different construction problems. The day resulted in three innovative modular wood solutions. The winning work of the day was named Kert’eau. It is a clever concept of a floating residential neighbourhood offering 300 housing units.  Short descriptions of all three concepts can be found from opensourcewood.com/hackathon.

By creating an open innovation platform around modular wood construction, the organiser, Metsä Wood, is aiming to connect the local wood construction industry with global knowledge to facilitate innovation, collaboration and growth.

Philippe Blanchard, lecturer at Ecole Superieure du Bois says:

“Engineered wood is the material of the future for urban building. The Open Source Wood Initiative is a great way to promote sustainable building,”

© Mestä Wood