Expertise Working with Timber

KIRK has delivered:

• The first timber structure delivered in Australia for over 60 years for the AEB (Advanced Engineering Building) at UQ (University of Queensland) in 2012.
• The first timber diagrid structure for the Mon Repos Turtle Centre in 2020.
• Australia’s first all locally sourced and manufactured mass engineered timber office - the NIOA Timber Tower completed in 2021 was recently awarded the Named Award for Commercial Architecture the Queensland Chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) State awards in 2022.
• Queensland’s first mass engineered house using exclusively CLT as the primary structure in 2022.
• The first timber university project in Queensland for the Stage 2 for the University of Sunshine Coasts Moreton Campus to be completed in 2023.

Mass Engineered Timber, also known as MET, refers to manufactured timber products that have been engineered with an improved structural integrity. Mass engineered timber construction systems are a sustainable solution to conventional structural materials such as steel and concrete.

Mass engineered timber (MET) is can be used in low to mid rise buildings.

Types of Mass Engineered Timber:

• Cross-laminated timber | CLT
• Glue Laminated Timber | GLT
• Laminated Veneer Lumber | LVL

CLT stands for Cross-Laminated Timber. CLT is a form of mass engineered timber manufactured through a panelised construction method.

To create CLT's distinct structure, a minimum of three panel layers are stacked, glued, and pressed together oriented perpendicular to the layer above or below. The cross-lamination of alternating layers created during this process, is what gives CLT its rigid, defined, and unique structure.

CLT’s perpendicular arrangement of layers is what provides each panel with its inherent strength and spanning capabilities. Depending on the number of layers and thickness of the panels, a multitude of design possibilities are possible.

Benefits:

• CLT is a versatile building material which can be used both internally and externally when protected.
• Suitable for both structure and design.
• CLT allows for a high degree of precision and accuracy during construction
• Maintains its strength and spanning abilities in both directions.
• Timber sequesters carbon, making CLT suitable for low carbon design.

Glue-laminated timber (GLT) is manufactured using a panelised construction method, similar to CLT. The difference in their structural make-up is how the timber panel layers are oriented during the gluing process.

GLT's panel layers are stacked in the same direction.

The Timber Tower is an experimental project the first non-residential building in Australia using locally grown and manufactured mass timber to create the 5-level structure. The NIOA Timber Tower was erected in less than a month with the entire building, including the integrated fitout for 90 staff, fully completed in 7 months.

This advanced building is the first tall building to utilise CLT as the primary vertical structure in Australia and was developed in direct response to the project challenges of limited build time, limited site, a fixed floor area, and the construction challenges of an occupied and operational site of national significance. The tower form occupies the entire available site. The fully fabricated approach to structure and building systems allowed for “just in time” construction assembly. Timber panels were lifted directly from the transport vehicles, and the adoption of the raw structure as the primary finish provides a domestic quality to the spaces. Additional (dry trade) wall elements continue the logic of prefabricated timber elements, such as plywood. The resulting effect of exposed timber structure, smaller intimate column free floor plates, and generous windows produces a completely new typology for the commercial office.

Timber was used throughout the building and served as the primary material for the structure, cladding, linings, windows & doors, thus providing lower embodied energy, and a sustainable alternative to aluminum or steel. The versatility and light weight nature of timber means it can be efficiently designed and altered. It is simple to be installed, disassembled, recovered, reused and/or recycled.

KIRK's Mon Repos Turtle Centre devised an innovative and highly sustainable solution to the challenges of building a large public building in the Great Barrier Reef conservation and protection zone. The Mon Repos Turtle Centre is a world-class, vibrant community hub offering authentic experiences that inspire action and create opportunities for connections between Mon Repos' visitors and turtles. The Centre celebrates the unique qualities of the place as the southern gateway to the Great Barrier Reef.

In response to the harsh coastal climate and sensitive wildlife surrounds, the building was primarily constructed using timber for structure and linings. The pre-fabricated, locally sourced, Glulam timber diagrid superstructure, external copper folded cladding panels and internal plywood linings removed waste for both manufacturing and onsite assembly while having an enduring life span. Mixed mode, naturally ventilated and daylighting strategies were employed throughout this state-of-the-art Mon Repos Turtle Centre, reducing reliance upon energy-consuming man-made systems.

Mon Repos Turtle Centre was envisaged from the outset as being constructed in locally grown and manufactured glulam timber. Hyne Timber, a world leader in glulam timber manufacture, is based nearby in Maryborough. The prefabricated timber structure was delivered and fully erected in 2 weeks which saved valuable constructed time. The transportation to the site was minimised through the ability to stack the timber members in single lengths. Erection occurred with a single mobile crane and less than a total of 2-4 riggers.