More speed and quality with modular design

Contrary to general assumptions, the design process for industrial wood construction can be both fast and high quality.  In fact, wood is often the best solution for the project at hand.

“Frequently, a very fast execution is needed due to limited space or other constraints related to the work site. The lightness of the wood has been a deciding factor for us in choosing wood elements in those challenging situations”, architect Fabienne Bulle from Fabienne Bulle architecte & associés explains.

Prefabricated wood elements enable fast, efficient and easy design without reducing quality. Reports on the benefits of such a lean approach are convincing: In a study of companies that have applied lean construction methods, 84% report higher quality in construction and 80% experienced greater customer satisfaction.

“In addition to customer satisfaction, design firms benefit from shorter design times since more projects can be handled per designer per year,” Matti Kuittinen, architect and researcher from Aalto University, points out.

Prefabrication enables better collaboration between partners

Designing with wood does not have to be a laborious and time-consuming process. Technical advantages, such as building information modeling (BIM’s), help to enhance the design process. 

In any building project, an insufficient flow of information between the client, builder and various design agencies collaborating on the same project may create problems.
 
“One way to enable easier interaction is to also utilize “prefabrication” in design. Instead of developing designs from scratch each time, predesigned elements can be used. This enables smoother collaboration, speeds up the design process and eliminates mistakes”, Kuittinen says.

Open Source Wood: an open platform for innovative wood construction

In June, Metsä Wood launched its Open Source Wood project, where architects, designers and engineers are invited to join forces to innovate and share information relating to construction based on wood elements.

This project is a continuation of the Plan B campaign, and is aimed at expanding the market for urban wood construction by combining expertise from different countries. Metsä Wood is promoting element design by offering EUR 30,000 in prize money for element-based designs that make innovative use of Kerto LVL.