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Why Wood

Wood is a sustainable, natural, attractive product, with excellent properties of durability, acoustic performance and fire performance.

Wood is a source of inspiration. It has been used to create some of the most stunning, iconic buildings and structures of our time. Wood has a number of design benefits and as an appearance product it is exemplary. This section looks at some of these excellent reasons for using wood.

Canterbury Rebuild

Wood: the Canterbury rebuild material of choice

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Sustainability

Wood is our most sustainable raw material. As a building material, its credentials are unparalleled. Wood results in far less carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere than competing building products.

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Forests and wood

From planting to harvesting and the processes in between, this section contains information about forests and wood.

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Cost comparisons research

In this section you will find information on the costs of building with different timber elements.

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Case studies

Here you will find Inspirational examples of wood-use in buildings from New Zealand and around the world. From appearance to structural uses, these examples showcase the very best in timber design.

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Case study

Waterfall Chapel

Waterfall Chapel

South Pacific Architecture

Key Features
  • This private chapel was hand-built by the local farming community.
  • Several species of cut timber were available and used in a manner that reduced the requirement for other materials.
  • The exterior is clad with radiata pine board and batten while the interior uses a mixture of oil-finished timbers.
  • A wide pivoting entry door is made from split macrocarpa with a taraire frame.
  • A cross-glazed wall contains a mix of redwood, saligna, Japanese cedar, white poplar and puriri.
  • The ceiling uses radiata pine and macrocarpa sarking.

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