Wednesday to Sunday 14.00 – 18.00

Wood spreads a spirit of optimism. Some of the most interesting debates about the future are being conducted around the material in architecture and urban development. Whether it’s about CO2 emissions, the development of technology, changes in urban landscapes or our relationship with nature:

Wood is always at the centre of the discussion. Starting from the material, TOUCH WOOD explores the potential in architecture and invites a differentiated reflection on our built future. Practical and visionary at the same time, TOUCH WOOD delves into the universe of wood and opens the view to an environmentally friendly architecture of the future.

Curated by Carla Ferrer, Thomas Hildebrand and Celina Martinez-Cañavate.

The exhibition is accompanied by the publication TOUCH WOOD – MATERIAL, ARCHITECTURE, FUTURE, edited by Carla Ferrer, Thomas Hildebrand and Celina Martinez-Cañavate, Zurich: Lars Müller Publishers 2022, ISBN 978-3-03778-697-0.

Download Flyer (german)

Oslo International Timber Conference will be held on June 14th and 15th at Kulturhuset in Oslo. It is an arena which brings together the latest from the world of timber architecture including technical innovative solutions, modern use of timber and award-winning architecture.

Our team will talk about projects from a large and varied timber portfolio of advanced timber structures and timber connections.

More infos here

The Obwaldner Kantonalbank (OKB) deliberately chose wood as the building material for its new headquarters. The basement and the access core were realised in solid construction. The five storeys above ground were built in timber. The natural building material also characterises the interior design.

Five storeys, 18 m high and a total area of 8,800 m2. Quadrum – as the new building is also called – consists primarily of a wooden construction with a square ground plan. The wooden supporting structure with a grid dimension of 2.8 m is built in skeleton construction (columns plus beams) entirely in ash wood from the canton of Obwalden. In the offices there are visible
composite timber-concrete ceilings with a span of 8.4 m are installed in the offices. The composite ceilings consist of wooden ribs (composite girders made of ash and spruce) and a concrete overlay. GSA technology was used as the connecting material.

Read the article from Holzkurier (german)

The International Conference on Timber Bridges (ICTB) took place from 9 – 12 May in Biel. Many thanks to the organisers for the great and interesting 4 days of expertise in timber construction. You can download the documents here.

The locomotive shelter in Zweisimmen opened its doors about 2 years ago. Now it has been nominated for the “Constructive Alps” competition. This awards prizes to the most sustainable buildings in various Alpine countries.

The building is 298 m2 in size and was constructed from simple wood. Why?
Wood has many advantages for prefabrication and in element construction. With wood you have a shorter construction time than with other materials.
We were very pleased to do the factory planning and manufacture of the construction with our GSA-Technology (LMV).

Read the article in the Jungfrau Zeitung (german)

More than just a game: at Swissbau 2022, Holzbau Schweiz will be demonstrating the performance and competitiveness of the Swiss timber construction industry with the “Jenga” high-rise wooden building. The project is a good example of the fact that there are no upper limits to the building material and innovations in the timber construction sector.

In the form of a study competition, eleven teams of architecture students from the Bern University dealt with the development of a wooden high-rise building. A mock-up on a scale of 1:1, consisting of two full storeys with a cantilever, is intended to impress visitors from afar.

The fastening technology of the supporting structure is carried out with the fittings of neue Holzbau AG Lungern, which is constantly developing high-performance connections for components in softwood and hardwood. The assembly of the connection technology on the beech wood components is prepared in the factory in Lungern. In mid-April, n’H Lungern will deliver the ready-made components directly to Basel.

Video Swissbau

The legendary scene with James Bond on the Schilthorn (2970 m above sea level) in the Bernese Oberland in the 1960s probably contributed significantly to making the sport of curling known worldwide. In the mountain village of Mürren, located below the summit, people have been indulging in this winter sport for a long time. Recently, it has even been possible to do so there, protected from the weather – under a wooden roof that stretches over the ice surface as a light construction.

In order not to touch the existing 25-centimetre-deep concrete pool and the surrounding cooling corridor with the installations for the ammonia refrigeration system, the foundations for the wooden supports were placed outside this existing area. It was clear to the architects from the outset that the supporting structure was to be made of untreated spruce wood. The primary girders consist of glued laminated timber girders with a cross-section of 52 by 52 centimetres. The distance between them is three metres. In order to make them statically effective, they were sub-tensioned with steel tension rods (M64). This way, they can withstand a snow load of nine kilonewtons per square metre. Transporting the components to car-free Mürren proved difficult. Especially when it came to the long primary girders. They therefore had to be cut in half and fitted with assembly joints.

Here is the report from FIRST (german).
Copyright: www.wirholzbauer.ch and www.magazin-first.ch.

A bench made of wood? Why not! With its new headquarters, the Obwaldner Kantonalbank is setting an example in terms of architecture and sustainability. And at the same time it strengthens the region as a business location.

The bank building is accessed via the two-storey hall with elegantly curved stairs and distinctive furnishings, which is why the space is more reminiscent of a hotel lobby than a bank branch. Here, the construction of the building reveals itself and it becomes visible what makes the building so special: the bar supporting structure made of wood. At this point, however, it should be noted that the building is not a purely wooden structure, but a hybrid construction.

Here is the report from FIRST (german).
Copyright: www.wirholzbauer.ch and www.magazin-first.ch.