Finnhus

USING WOOD INSTEAD OF OTHER MATERIALS CAN BE AN ADVANTAGE

The production of wood products uses less energy (usually sourced from finite fossil fuels) compared with some other building materials. A natural part of our environment, wood is a renewable resource that provides wide-ranging benefits − from habitat, employment and recreational activities to carbon sequestration.

THE ENVIRONMENTAL ADVANTAGES OF WOOD

From governments to owners, designers and occupiers, there is an increased focus on improving the sustainability of our built environment. When compared with other building materials, wood products can play a positive role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

DESIGN A SMALLER ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT WITH WOOD

When choosing building materials, it's important to consider the amount of energy (often derived from finite fossil fuels) used in the manufacturing process. Compared with some other building materials, the production of wood often requires less energy in the harvest, transportation and manufacturing processes − this is called embodied energy. Substituting wood for another material can be an easy and economical way to reduce a structure's carbon footprint. It is estimated that, in Europe, a 10% increase in the percentage of wooden houses constructed would produce sufficient CO2 savings to account for about 25% of the reductions prescribed for Europe by the Kyoto Protocol.

Wood has the best thermal insulation properties of any mainstream construction material

• 5 times better than concrete
• 10 times better than brick
• 350 times better than steel.

Wood also has the lowest embodied energy of any mainstream building material

• A tonne of brick requires four times the amount of energy to produce sawn softwood
• concrete five times
• glass six times
• steel 24 times
• aluminium 126 times