New building at the University of Zurich built with timber
30.03.2023
The multifunctional laboratory building on the Irchel campus of the University of Zurich is a good example of how office and educational buildings are built with wood today. A recently published study by WüstPartner proves that office buildings in timber construction are competitive.
In May 2020, WüstPartner published the timber construction indicators for investors with a focus on residential buildings for the first time. This was followed in July 2022 by the survey focusing on office buildings. With this short video, WüstPartner summarizes the findings from the last survey. The conclusion is clear: timber construction is also competitive in the field of office buildings and interesting for investors.
The construction costs (BKP1-5) of the evaluated timber construction projects amount to around CHF 5,200/m2 HNF (median) and are thus slightly below the value for comparable office buildings in solid construction (CHF 5,444/m2). Timber construction is thus absolutely competitive with comparable solid buildings. It is also ahead in terms of sustainability. Every cubic meter of timber used saves one ton of CO² from the atmosphere.
Holzbaukennzahlen für Investoren - Bürobauten
WüstPartner, im Auftrag von Lignum, Holzwirtschaft Schweiz, und des Bundesamtes für Umwelt (BAFU)
In large projects, architecture must have an ear for structural analysis
For a timber building to be competitive, timber construction principles must be taken into account from the start of planning. For load transfer, it is important that the structural concept is defined early and that the columns are arranged one above the other. That's why timber structural engineers belong on every design team from the start. If you want to convert an office building already planned in concrete office building to a timber construction? We are happy to help. Perhaps TS3 technology offers the solution.
New office and laboratory building Y80
Timbatec has many years of experience in planning office buildings. Here we provide insights into recently realized office buildings and commercial properties. A current example is the multifunctional laboratory building on the Irchel campus of the University of Zurich. In addition to office, storage, technical and infrastructure rooms, the new building primarily provides highly installed laboratory space totaling 2,450 m². On top of the two-story solid structure, the three-story wooden building complex with 3.8 meter high rooms was recently completed.
The laboratory building is designed to meet the demanding requirements of everyday research. The heavy X-ray equipment exerts high point loads, and the many pieces of research equipment require many wall penetrations. The challenges could be solved with trusses and hardwood beams.
Timbatec was allowed to do the factory planning for this lighthouse project. Many thanks to all involved, especially to Implenia Holzbau and Christian Keiser from Lignitec for the pleasant cooperation.