The mass timber sector needs to gain greater market share of the broader building industry in order to increase demand for wood procured from U.S. forestlands. This project helps to increase demand for mass timber in three key ways by:
1. tapping into the industrial building sector currently not leveraging wood
2. quantifying the social benefits of building with wood procured from responsibly managed forests
3. telling the story of how building with wood procured from responsibly managed forests contribute to social and environmental benefits.
Through a collaboration of forest, sustainability and building experts, this project will:
(1) provide a replicable, scalable roadmap leveraging the use of mass timber in a traditional industrial building application
(2) quantify social Return on Investment (ROI) and act as a template for how an otherwise traditional industrial building can positively impact society
(3) meet Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and sustainability goals
(4) promote healthy communities all while meeting urban design aesthetic criteria
This innovative and unique, showcase-worthy project helps bridge the gap and tell the story of how building with wood procured from responsibly managed forests helps address numerous benefits in and beyond the forest. Furthermore, it will illustrate how these benefits can be realized when constructing in-demand, industrial buildings.