Metsä Wood is calling on all architects and engineers to share their innovations in wood construction. The objective is to share knowledge of prefabricated elements and grow the use of wood in construction. Metsä is now sharing its own innovations and offering EUR 30,000 in prize money to exceptional designs during 2017. 

"Being open and sharing knowledge speeds up the technical development of the timber structures due to the versatile network of people with different skillsets involved", says Jussi Björman, Director of Technical Customer Service, Metsä Wood.

When the modular wood construction industry grows, everybody wins

We are committed to working with architects who use innovative modular wood elements for building design - giving pioneers in wood construction the chance to move their designs from the desktop to actual projects.

By sharing your innovations and insights with your fellow modular wood experts around the world, you can build a reputation for yourself internationally, and you'll also benefit from advice and reviews of your work from our platform's expert panel. The Open Source Wood initiative also offers the chance to collaborate effectively with your peers - wherever they are.

Why participate?

We asked professionals what they think about the idea of Open Source Wood. Some of them have already sent us designs.

"If I have learned anything in my time teaching, it is that good ideas rarely come out of thin air. Rather than a sudden breakthrough, innovations tend to arrive through the integration and development of ideas and practices over time. This is especially true for architecture and construction. Today we need larger networks to share our ideas and to gain knowledge produced by others that may be working on similar problems."
- Philip Tidwell, Aalto University, Finland

"An industrial way of building with wood has the future: it reduces CO2 emissions and the use of fossil raw materials, and besides that is energy saving in many aspects. Metsä Wood's Open Source Wood initiative points the way to support the growth of building with wood."
- Maarten Van der Breggen, Maskerade Flexible Building System, Netherlands

"It is important that we share knowledge about building with wood, as it is the most sustainable material available in this era of increasing global warming and natural disasters."
- Johanna Byrne, Architect, Ireland

"[Metsä Wood's Open Source Wood initiative] is not only profit-oriented, but also aims to solve the problem of the Individual and social lives of humans, alongside the importance of the environment."
- Mohammad Jamshidi, Saman Agin Engineering Co LTD. Teheran Iran

How to join

Metsä Wood is building an Open Source Wood platform where professionals interested in wood construction can share their ideas and collaborate. The platform will be launched at the beginning of 2018.

Before the platform is up and running you can upload your designs via a web form. Designs uploaded by the end of this year will be eligible for the Metsä Wood Awards 2017. Prize money of EUR 30,000 will be awarded to one or more building elements or modules using Kerto® LVL (laminated veneer lumber) products as a major component. The other criteria are:    

• Fast: the design enables fast building processes.          
• Light: the design is lightweight.      
• Green: the design improves the CO2 balance of the building.

Join the Open Source Wood initiative now: www.opensourcewood.com

Images:  http://databank.metsagroup.com/l/sP66w8wrn-hs

For more information, please contact:

Henni Rousu,
Communications Manager,
Metsä Wood
tel. +358-40-554-8388,
henni.rousu@metsagroup.com

Kirk Nichols,
VP Sales, Americas,
Metsä Wood USA
mobile: (404)-861-1098,
kirk.nichols@metsagroup.com

For press information in UK, please contact:

Matt Trace,
Director,
Defero Communications
tel. 07828663988,
matt@deferouk.co.uk

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SOURCE Metsä Wood