Specifying timber for healthy buildings
The impact our buildings have on how we work, heal, learn and rest is highly significant, whether it is productivity in offices, patient recovery, student performance, or our own comfort at home – all are influenced by the indoor environment and the design, products and systems used to create and furnish our buildings.
Modern construction has seen a rise in the use of natural materials, including timber. This Wood Information Sheet (WIS) looks at the increasing evidence base that underpins the use of timber in construction, especially in interiors, where people will interact with materials either directly by visual or haptic senses, or indirectly through smell, air quality, humidity buffering and thermal comfort.
This WIS is an overview of the subject with signposts to more detailed sources that are listed at the end.
Contents
- Biophilia and the connection to nature
- Materials and indoor air quality
- Regulations and certification
- Perceptions of wooden surfaces and ‘wood preference’
- Timber specification
Suggested Reading
Adhesive-bonded repair systems for structural timber
Although there is an increasing interest and application in using adhesive-bonded connections for new buildings, the main demand for this technology in the UK is for repairs to structural timbers. The original concept was aimed at repairing historic structures. However, the technology is increasingly being used for repairing modern materials...
21/04/2017 | Wood Information Sheet
Adhesives for structural use
Adhesives are widely used in non-structural applications such as furniture manufacture and joinery. They are also used in the manufacture of panel products such as plywood, particleboard, fibreboard and oriented strandboard (OSB), of which some grades are used structurally.
Glulam and structural timber composites such as cross laminated...
05/08/2019 | Wood Information Sheet
Assessment and repair of structural timber
Repairs become necessary when a building is no longer safe or serviceable for its intended purpose, or to restore or improve its appearance, performance or function.
Timber structures can be repaired using traditional all-timber methods, mechanical fasteners and adhesives, but only following survey and assessment that take account of...
25/03/2019 | Wood Information Sheet
