CWC to test fire safety of building tall mass timber buildings
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OTTAWA, Ontario – The Canadian Wood Council (CWC), working with the Canadian and Ontario governments, plans to conduct a series of five separate research burns on a full-scale timber structure in Ottawa. 

CWC said, “The purpose of the project is to support market acceptance of tall and large mass timber buildings in Canada.”

The two-story structure will be subject to five burns over the summer of 2022, with the first and largest scheduled to take place at the end of June.

CWC is a strong advocate of mass timber construction, which it said through wider acceptance and adoption will solidify Canada’s global leadership in the bio-economy and forest sector in “achieving a low carbon, built environment.”

According to CWC, the objectives of the fire research burn demonstrations include: 

  • Showcasing that mass timber construction is a safe and viable alternative to other more conventional construction systems (steel and concrete) for constructing large or tall buildings;
  • Supporting the implementation and adoption of the 2020 edition of the National Building Code of Canada; and
  • Supporting the transition to performance-based codes and future code change proposals to extend the use of mass timber to other building types, heights, and sizes and increase the amount of exposed timber permitted.

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Rich Christianson | President/Owner/C-Level

Rich Christianson is the owner of Richson Media LLC, a Chicago-based communications firm focused on the industrial woodworking sector. Rich is the former long-time editorial director and associate publisher of Woodworking Network. During his nearly 35-year career, Rich has toured more than 250 woodworking operations throughout North America, Europe and Asia and has written extensively on woodworking technology, design and supply trends. He has also directed and promoted dozens of woodworking trade shows, conferences and seminars including the Cabinets & Closets Conference & Expo and the Woodworking Machinery & Supply Conference & Expo, Canada’s largest woodworking show.