Size14,963 square metres
OwnerThe University of British Columbia
Structural EngineerEquilibrium Consulting Inc.
Engineered Wood FabricatorMercer Mass Timber LLC
Structural systemsHybrid / OtherMass timberMid risePassive House / High performancePost + beamPrefabricated
Project materialsCross-laminated timber (CLT)Glue-laminated timber (Glulam)
At the time of construction, the Earth Sciences Building (external link) was the largest panelized wood building in North America.
Because it was home to The University of British Columbia’s (UBC’s) earth sciences labs, the five-storey, double-winged building connected by an atrium had to live up to the latest in green building technology. The solution was the extensive and innovative use of CLT, LSL and glulam. More than 1,300 cubic metres of mass timber went into the construction, and all of it was sourced and engineered in British Columbia.
The Earth Sciences Building has a hybrid floor system of LSL and concrete that is lighter than solid concrete and provides excellent sound absorption. The roof and canopies are constructed from CLT.
In the atrium, a standout five-storey cantilevered floating staircase built entirely out of solid timber is the first of its kind in the world—almost four-metres wide with landings that double as meeting areas. Full-storey steel glulam hybrid transfer trusses convert the entire second-floor structure into a ‘roof truss’ capable of carrying the load of the remaining floors.
If a fire were to occur, engineering of the wood products and building design ensures exterior layers of the mass timber will char, preventing the interior of the product from burning and maintaining structural integrity. The building is coated in a fire retardant material that would also slow a fire. Diagonal glulam braces at the end of each storey resist seismic loads.
It was crucial that the buildings have a low carbon footprint. Wood was a natural choice for the Earth Sciences Building because wood is durable, adaptable, versatile, and uses less energy than conventional concrete and steel. Each ton of dry wood product offsets between 1.8 and 2.0 tons of CO2, which means the wood materials that went into the Earth Sciences Building will sequester about 1,094 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Learn more about the Earth Sciences Building and other mass timber buildings on the UBC Point Grey campus.