Timber! Reducing the environmental impact of office fit out cycles
A series of modular, stackable and sustainable timber design concepts are positioning timber as a suitable material for commercial office fit-outs and furniture. This project, led by Professor Perry Forsythe and Associate Professor Grace Ding, seeks to deliver an alternative to traditional office fit-out materials like glass, aluminium and plasterboard, which require substantially more energy than timber to produce, manufacture and transport. The resulting design concepts overcome the existing challenges of using timber in office interiors, such as its cumbersome nature, and deliver design solutions that can be retained by multiple tenants in order to reduce strip-out waste, thereby reducing the environmental impacts of tenancy churn in commercial offices.
Researchers: Professor Perry Forsythe and Associate Professor Grace Ding
Funder: Forest and Wood Products Australia Limited (FWPA)
Collaborators: Aquenta, Demolition Plus, Gunnersen, Timber Development Association, Hume Doors