The event organized by Urbasofia, Habitech and Comune di Trento took place on the 17th of October 2022, physically at Palazzo Geremia, Trento with around 15 participants, many of them local architects, engineers, and municipality officers.
The focus of the workshop was to explore how Build-in-Wood technical innovations (Building System and Digital Pilots) could respond to the challenges and opportunities of the local wood value chain identified so far under the umbrella of the Build-in-Wood project. Thus, the workshop was addressed mainly to wood materials suppliers, technicians, professionals, architects, engineers, developers, ARCA Certification network (wood value chain stakeholders) and Trentino’s local enterprises.
The presentations from the day of the event were mostly held by the Build-in-Wood project partners and Comune di Trento as follows:
Why build in wood now? What is Build-in-Wood all about? - Habitech
The process of working with Early Adopter Cities and several conclusions from the 1st workshop in Trento - Urbasofia
Sustainability assessment of building systems – University of Siena
Build-in-Wood technical innovations and pilot projects – Waugh Thistleton Architects
Build-in-Wood Digital Pilot Project within the framework of the urban regeneration policies of Trento: METAPROGETTO and EX-SIT Area regeneration plan - Comune di Trento & C. F. Møller Architects
"All stakeholders need to be heard and considered and only by working together we can achieve great sustainable buildings.”
Takeaways from the workshop
Although the certified management of forestry in Trentino is advanced, the use of wood for construction purposes is still limited; local wood products being mostly related to packaging;
Local challenges identified for the development of wood as a construction material at the local level: cost of the resource (also from a transportation viewpoint due to the mountainous morphology of Trentino); lack of a thriving system of wood construction enterprises; lack of private sawmills, regulatory gaps, the maintenance of wood over time;
90% of the participants perceived the Build-in-Wood system highly applicable / usable in the Trentino Region
Participants considered that the building system and digital pilot give a good head start in increasing the use of wood in constructions in Trento and other regional municipalities
Among the potential implications at the local/regional level of the paradigm shift in the construction sector, the participants highlighted several benefits as: increasing construction speed and simplicity of execution, creation of new realities and opportunities which are no longer based on traditional construction techniques, raising customer's awareness of the use of wood and what this entails; but also a set of challenges as: greater knowledge and specialization needed in carpentry, finishing and use of the wood resources and products, need for technical and targeted training and consultation (architects and engineers), cost-product ratio and to facilitate procedures for using wood in construction;
Among the local challenges which have to be overcome, the participants highlighted: wood supply and “forest to city” value chain and enhancing the production of wood products, not just packaging; the need to develop more good practices/examples as well as the necessity of study the supply chain with specific verification of growth times and consumption cuts.
The participants jointly explored how Build-in-Wood results can support Trento and Trentino’s municipalities in increasing the use of wood in constructions, what will be the implications of the anticipated paradigm shift and how would that modify the future of different related domains. The main aim of the discussions was to put the base for identifying how the future planning and policy framework of Trento can support this paradigm shift if the city decides to build with wood.
Many thanks to the seven Build-in-Wood partners, who contributed to the workshop: Habitech, Urbasofia, University of Siena, Waugh Thistleton Architects, C. F. Møller Architects, proHolz Tirol, Rothoblaas
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