Mass timber buildings are cropping up across North America, along with factories that manufacture these versatile, sustainable, engineered wood building materials. That’s because mass timber offers a compelling suite of benefits. Manufacturing mass timber can play an important role in achieving forest health management goals, contribute to rural economic development, and provide new opportunities in the manufacturing sector. For the architecture, engineering, and construction industry, building with mass timber can reduce project construction times and costs, reduce construction crew sizes and equipment needs, and create beautiful buildings that people love to work, learn, and live in. Made from a renewable resource, mass timber is less carbon-intensive to produce than other common building materials; plus, these wood materials store carbon absorbed by trees, keeping it out of the atmosphere where it would contribute to climate change.
Michigan State University is at the forefront of efforts to realize these benefits in Michigan and the Great Lakes Region. MSU built the state’s first mass timber building – the STEM Teaching and Learning Facility – on the site of the former Shaw Lane Power Plant, adjacent to Spartan Stadium. The two new mass timber wings provide 117,000 square feet of modern teaching labs and collaboration space.
MassTimber@MSU leverages lessons learned from building the STEM facility, along with research, education, outreach, communications, policy, and partnerships to advance sustainable mass timber construction and manufacture in Michigan and the surrounding region.
In addition, faculty in the Department of Forestry and School of Planning, Design and Construction are developing mass timber adhesives made from lignin, tools to predict construction costs and timelines for mass timber buildings, and mass timber made from salvaged lumber content in mass timber in service of MassTimber@MSU’s mission.
Top Stories
Michigan State University awarded $650k National Science Foundation Grant to Develop Mass Timber Curriculum
The National Science Foundation recently awarded Michigan State University a grant to develop mass timber design and construction curriculum! The project team will use the funding to expand the capacity of mass timber projects nationwide, increase access to the technology, and train a mass timber design and construction workforce to increase mass timber adoption in the US.
Finnish Delegation Visits MSU Mass Timber Building, Labs
When the State of Michigan recently hosted a trade delegation from Finland to visit site related to Michigan’s bio-economy, the MSU Department of Forestry’s Chairperson Dr. Richard Kobe was honored to welcome the group for a mass timber-focused tour of the MSU STEM Facility, led by MassTimber@MSU Director, Sandra Lupien and Dr. George Berghorn (Assistant Professor Construction Management/Research Director MassTimber@MSU) and a visit to the #bioproducts lab of Dr. Mojgan Nejad. Industry representatives from Granger Construction, IDS - Integrated Design Services, Timber Systems, and Walbridge also helped welcome the delegation, which was organized by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. We look forward to continuing to identify opportunities to collaborate with our Finnish counterparts under a Memorandum of Understanding signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
MSU STEM Facility receives top honors from national construction industry association
The Association of General Contractors has honored Granger Construction for its work on the MSU STEM Teaching and Learning Facility, naming the building the most significant construction project of the year
MSU STEM Facility Earns WoodWorks Award for Using Mass Timber
WoodWorks, the non-profit educational arm of the American Wood Products Council, acknowledged the use of mass timber in the Michigan State University STEM building with its 2022 Wood Design Award for Wood in Schools.
News
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Offsite Insights Series Features MassTimber@MSU Director
Published on June 8, 2022
Sandra Lupien appeared in June 2022 to talk mass timber. -
National Science Foundation Awards MSU $650K to Develop Mass Timber Curriculum
Published on May 27, 2022
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Michigan State University a $650,000 grant to develop mass timber design and construction curriculum -
MSU Today Podcast: "Sustainable mass timber industry evolving at MSU with potential to enhance Michigan’s economy"
Published on April 6, 2022
MassTimber@MSU Director Sandra Lupien appeared on the MSU Today Podcast with Russ White. -
Kobe and Lupien weigh in on the role of forests and mass timber in state's climate plan
Published on April 2, 2022
As the State of Michigan moves to finalize a major climate plan, MSU Forestry faculty are weighing in on the need for forests and forests products, including mass timber, to be part of the solution. -
Director of MassTimber@MSU, Sandra Lupien, named a Notable Leader in Sustainability by Crain’s Detroit Business
Published on March 23, 2022
Crain's Detroit Business has named Sandra Lupien, director of MassTimber@MSU, a Notable Leader in Sustainability.
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