Cultural & Public, Engineered Timber, Commercial

STIDC and KIRK are sowing seeds for Sarawak's timber transformation

Sowing the seeds for Sarawak's timber transformation

As seen in the Dayak Daily:

Engineered timber is fast revolutionising the global building industry. Recognised for its carbon-neutral credentials, timber offers a sustainable, renewable, safe, and efficient alternative to conventional concrete and steel. Curiously, Southeast Asia has been slow to join the global timber transformation, with fewer than 1,700 mass timber projects commissioned as of December 2022. The Sarawak Timber Industry Development Corporation (STIDC) and KIRK, leading architects in engineered timer, are hoping to change this.

STIDC and KIRK are bringing together global experts in timber to speak on the immense economic opportunity of engineered timber at the International Conference on Engineered Wood Sarawak 2023 in Kuching this May 16th-17th.

KIRK is spearheading several ground-breaking timber projects in Southeast Asia including a proposed new building, conceived in partnership with Arkitek KDI, set to be the world's largest single floor timber structure if built as designed, spanning 15,500 m² under roof. Timber buildings of this scale will all but necessitate the rapid development of the local timber industry and could position Sarawak as a hub for engineered timber distribution and construction.

We’re on the precipice of a global timber revolution. Timber's remarkable sustainability credentials make it the carbon-neutral building material of the future, with countless large-scale developments in the works now in Australasia, North America and Europe. To reap the full benefits of this remarkable opportunity, Sarawak and other optimally placed regions must begin sowing the seeds for industry development now.

- Richard Kirk, Founder and Director of KIRK.

About STIDC's International Conference on Engineered Wood Sarawak 2023

KIRK's Founder and Director Richard Kirk will be presenting our timber building design expertise on Day 1 of the conference.

We have also curated a group of leading Australian engineered timber advocates as fellow speakers, including:

  • Peter Ayres, Managing Director of Aurecon, presenting "Mass Engineered Timber in Singapore including NTU Academic Building South Case Study"
  • Callum Lillywhite, Associate Structural Engineer at Aurecon, presenting "The Opportunities for Timber in Different Sectors and How to Think Timber for a Building Structure"
  • Rick Beardwood, Associate and Senior Building Surveyor with Certis Group, presenting "A Regulatory Perspective on Performance-based Design"
  • Harry Wall, senior Fire Engineer and Team Leader at Omnii, presenting "Mass Engineered Timber and Fire Engineering"

For the full list of speakers and event program, head to the Conference website.

KIRK's engineered timber expertise

KIRK is a market leader in mass engineered timber architecture. Our portfolio of projects showcases a number of ground-breaking timber designs, including:

We regularly share our timber architecture expertise with companies looking to take advantage of this growing opportunity and elevate their next building development.

For more, contact our Brisbane or Kuala Lumpur studios.


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