Following on from our series of articles looking at the possibilities and benefits of building with timber, we spoke to Rod Pindar, a principal at Fitzpatrick + Partners (F+P), about some of the work the practice is doing, with a focus on their Macquarie Park project.

In this interview, Pindar shares why Australia’s building and design industry will move towards mass timber construction (MTC) in coming years even though it has a long way to go.

“We think it’s important that the knowledge of timber is out there and freely available,” he says.

“We’d like to see buildings get built in timber, we’d like to see multi-storey commercial buildings built in particular. We know CLT has been proven in the residential market and that will continue to grow, but the commercial market really is the tough nut to crack.”

Pindar also notes that hybrid systems are a good first step in introducing timber into buildings so people can get used to how it works and its benefits, including the accuracy and possibilities of pre-fabrication:

“The more that people start to understand the possibilities and the more the detailing and knowledge of how to price it, how it works on site gets out there, it’s only going to be used more and more.”

Built projects such as Forte and Library at the Dock will aid this shift towards MTC as people can walk through them and experience for themselves the benefits of timber construction.

Geraldine Chua

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