Timber Revolution Puts on Pace in West

What’s old is new again as timber construction makes inroads across the country. But despite the presence of major wood products manufacturers such as Wesbeam and Wespine, the construction trend has been slower to rise in Western Australia. That is about to change. A pioneer in the development of timber buildings in WA is specialist builder-developer Bluerock Projects. Its Midland 51-apartment timber build-to-rent project Tuohy Garden Apartments is moving ahead after the developer picked up a key site last year. Bluerock chose timber not only for its environmental advantages but also its commercial credentials, according to director Daniel Rainone. “We are a commercial developer and build-to-rent provider, so it’s not a vanity project, it doesn’t rely on grant money or subsidies, it’s a for-profit project and the way we made it for profit is building in timber,” Rainone says. Forest and Wood Products Australia head of built environment programs Kevin Peachey says that the benefits of working with timber are being recognised more widely. “There was a lack of knowledge, but that has dramatically changed during the past 10 years,” Peachey says. Getting the model right As a builder-developer, Bluerock was in a prime position to experiment while keeping an eye on cost, Rainone says. “We undertook a pilot project in 2019, which is currently the largest timber highrise in WA, although it will soon be replaced by others,” he says. ▲ Bluerock’s DeHavilland Apartments in Midland used engineered LVL timber for beams, columns and joists. “We [Rainone and fellow Bluerock director Stuart Hawley] designed and tested it ourselves, putting our money where our mouth was. “Consultants, funders and the state government came on that journey and we were able to refine it, focusing on cutting down on waste and being more efficient with structural design.” That project, the four-storey, 10-unit DeHavilland Apartments, was a 10-month process from start to finish, Rainone says. Its current Midland project of 51 apartments has a program of 15 to 16 months. While it is hard to make a true comparison, build times are about 10 to 20 per cent less as a builder-developer using timber, he says. These timeframes are improving as the construction and development industry shares its knowledge, according to Peachey. ▲ The Kajstaden Tall Timber Building at Lake Mälaren in Västerås, Sweden. “They are doing some record-breaking stuff in Sweden, for example, putting up eight-storey mass timber construction residential apartments to a point of effective lockup in just a few weeks.” Sweden’s timber buildings first began to appear in the 2000s. In 2019 CF Møller Architect’s Kajstaden Tall Timber Building took three days per floor to build and “the world’s largest wooden city”, a 2000-home project in Stockholm by Swedish developer Atrium Ljungberg, began in October of 2024 and is expected to complete in 2027. “They are finely tuned machines over there and have done hundreds of these projects, so there are lots of learnings and gains to be made,” Peachey says. Densification Western Australia has been slower to catch on to timber due to its long history with brick, and its penchant for low-density development. But this is changing and the Bluerock project is joining the likes of Grange Development’s approved 51-storey timber tower to grow WA expertise as development moves upwards and outwards. “Perth, like many city centres, is seeing some urban densification policies,” Peachey says. “There is rezoning happening that will open the door to mid and highrise and as the pie grows, timber is becoming one of the options, in midrise construction especially.” Moving away from more traditional building methods has been a challenge for WA builders and developers, according to Rainone. ▲ Bluerock’s Tuohy Gardens Apartments will be WA’s largest timber frame apartment complex. “Brick construction over here is a big part of our history, we have incredible suppliers and that has filtered through to local builders with their own ways of procuring and building projects,” Rainone says. “They are used to doing it in a certain way and it’s worked for them. “There’s not been a need, despite rising costs, to change the way their business works because it’s been so successful, but as a newer, younger company, it’s an opportunity to set ourselves apart.” As Perth heads skyward, timber could be a way forward. “Alongside improved construction methodologies and design, we found it was a lot quicker, we cut down the trades required on site,” he says. “And we’re a full-structure timber building, rather than laminated, therefore we limit the number of suppliers and contractors once we’ve done that groundwork. ▲ Another notable Perth project is the largest mass-engineered timber building in WA, the Boola Katitjin building at Murdoch University. “We have great WA suppliers and trades, we have everything we need to do it, we just need to adapt it to meet local needs.” It also helps that WA has strong supply chain credentials with timber, Peachey says. “A lot of the demand for timber is met by local supply, but there are clean pathways in for imports if we need to complement that and that would be coming through Perth,” he says. “And with the well-documented increase in construction costs, timber prices have actually levelled out for a few years now.” The future of timber Across the country the current housing undersupply means the sector cannot rely on one method, Rainone says. “There needs to be diversity in the way we approach construction, so buyers, funders, suppliers and governments can have a method that is best suited to their environment and aims. “And diversity means we can avoid some of the current pitfalls and price rises.” Timber can be one solution to the pressures of densification and construction costs, Peachey says. ▲ Grange Developments’ $350-million project will be the “world’s tallest timber building,” according to the developer. “There has been an increasing knowledge and recognition of the benefits of timber, and with that we’re seeing a ramp up of capacity and that will flow into the market, we will see more and more timber buildings in Perth.” While it’s been “a labour of love” to get timber projects over the line so far, it’s a methodology that will snowball in WA, Rainone says. “You forget how innovative construction is—it’s an industry for people who love making things and solving problems, and the industry has responded really well to alternative ways of doing things. “Timber won’t replace traditional construction but it can sit alongside it as a viable option.”

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