Upcoming Events

Woodworks – Evolution of Wood Based Construction Systems

Christoph Dünser is an Austrian Architect and the partner of Hermann Kaufmann Architects (Schwarzach, Austria), along with Stefan Hiebeler and Roland Wehinger. Christoph’s career path parallels the surge in the use of wood and, in fact, is epitomized in his presentation – demonstrating increasing competence and understanding of how wood can be used in small projects and how this experience leads to effective use of this natural material in increasingly large and more complex projects.

Christoph has been the lead designer for a wide variety of innovative wood structures, from small, remote passive design residential structures using CLT, to multi-family residential buildings, to larger commercial and institutional buildings. In 2010 he began working on a breakthrough building that brought together composite design, prefabrication, ultra-high performance and rapid construction. That project culminated in Life Cycle Tower 1 in Dornbirn Austria, an 8-storey tall structure made using pre-fabricated, mixed-material elements and was erected in 8 days in March 2012. He has also worked with Acton Ostry Architects on the tallest contemporary wood structure in the world, the 18-stories Brock Commons Building at UBC.

With his passion for timber construction, Christoph will be discussing how wood can offer significant solutions for the future of the built environment. Wood sets limits, yet allows mani­fold applications. It is precisely these challenges that make designing and building with wood so fascinating and make successful projects such an exciting source of inspiration for the future. Christoph suggests that constructing with wood is an ideal option as the material is produced by energy from the sun, and absorbs and stores CO2 from the atmosphere. In addition, wood can be adequately disposed of and recycled and requires little energy to be worked – compared to metals, plastics and min­eral-based construction materials.