Regional focus
Alpine pride
SAMI ANTEROINEN, Photos: rüegg architekten ag & Marika Hildebrandt
Wood construction fosters a strong sense of regional identity in the Alpine region – but delivers plenty of innovative edge, too.
Wood has been a traditional – even iconic – construction material in the Alps for centuries. Its various advantages have never been more important than now. As a sustainable resource, wood is the truly climate-friendly alternative for all builders. Helping cut building costs and time, wood construction features excellent energy efficiency with a low carbon footprint. What is more, wood-built homes make for ex- tremely enjoyable living environments. Nadja Riedweg , Head of Marketing and Sales of Swiss Balte schwiler AG, reports that wood construction is steadily gaining market share throughout Switzerland, especially in multi-family houses. Balteschwiler specialises in timber products for inhouse building and facades, terrace- and garden building. The department of Architecture, Wood and Civil Engineering at Bern University of Applied Sciences calculates that timber con- struction currently accounts for 15.6 per cent of all construction categories. “The use of timber is noticeably on the increase, especially in our company, which uses large format panels such as Kerto® LVL,” says Riedweg.
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