Category: Hub News

The ARC Advance Timber Hub are pleased to advise we have a HDR Opportunity available at The University of the Sunshine Coast.

Hub Node: Performance of Building Components
Hub Project: Role of moisture in the long-term performance of mass timber building elements
Program: PhD
Location: The University of the Sunshine Coast
Research area: Moisture intrusion in mass timber buildings has important implications for both physical performance and risk of biological degradation (Mould and Decay). Mould is a significant issue, and it affects both mass timber and light weight timber systems. This project will build upon previous research to better understand moisture ingress pathways and the implications of wetting on building elements, as well as help identify methods for excluding or removing moisture once it has entered a structure.

Link to opportunity:

Detrimental role of moisture in the long-term performance of building elements

The ARC Advance Timber Hub members are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Colin MacKenzie; a stalwalt of the timber industry in Australia. To learn more about Colin, please view the Timber Queensland tribute to Colin MacKenzie aka ‘The Timber Expert’.

Professor Keith Crews, ARC Advance Timber Hub Director and Chair of the 2025 World Conference on Timber Engineering, spoke exclusively to Wood Central about the importance of timber in the circular economy.

The ARC Advance Timber Hub are pleased to advise we have a HDR Opportunity available at The University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus.

Hub Node: Performance of Building Components
Hub Project: Connection Systems for Extended Building Life
Program: PhD
Location: The University of Queensland, St Lucia Campus
Research area: This project aims to create a clear and common understanding in the Australian engineering community around connection design through experimental performance evaluation and development of design guidance.

Please see link to opportunity:

Investigating timber connection performance for extended building life

Six Australian engineers will receive a full pass to the World Conference on Timber Engineering (WCTE), hosted in Brisbane June 22-26, 2025, thanks to the Gottstein Trust—Australia’s national education trust for wood products—which has secured the passes for timber engineers. For more information see Wood Central article below, or click here.

Professor Keith Crews, ARC Advance Timber Hub Director and Chair of the 2025 World Conference on Timber Engineering is featured in this Wood Central article on how Queensland has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver a Games that offers a lasting legacy not just for Brisbane but all parts of Australia with the use of better timber and smarter design.

WoodSolutions has launched the Australian Timber Design Competition 2025. This national competition challenges the next generation of architects, engineers, and timber specialists to design a hypothetical, sustainable Athletes Village for the Brisbane 2032 Games. 

Who can enter:

• Open to 3rd-year and 4th-year university students in:
  • Engineering
  • Wood science
  • Other timber-focused programs
• Open to Master’s students in:
  • Architecture
  • Related disciplines
• Open to Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students in a related field
• Recent graduates may be considered on a case-by-case basis

Finalists
All the applicants will be judged according to the judging rubric. Up to three finalist teams of four applicants will receive a $1,500 cash bursary to cover travel and accommodation as well as sponsorship for attendance at the World Conference on Timber Engineering 2025 in Brisbane (Including welcome, conference, Gala dinner).

Submission Deadline: 12pm noon (AEST), Friday 2 May 2025 

For more information please see: Australian timber design competition 2025 now open for entries

A unique opportunity has been unveiled with The Gottstein Trust offering six fully paid conference places at the upcoming World Conference on Timber Engineering (WCTE), being held in Brisbane from the 22nd to 26th June 2025.

These conference scholarships are made available for Australian engineers in the early stage of their professional career.

Further details and the application form are found on the website. Applications will close at midnight on March 30th and can be lodged anytime before then, through the online form.

The Gottstein Trust is delighted to support the significant global conference as it comes to Australia, and expects that competition for the six WCTE Gottstein scholarships will be strong.

 

Great to see more media coverage of the research that Mahmoud Abu-Saleem and ARC Advance Timber Hub Chief Investigator, Associate Professor Joe Gattas are leading. The publication the media coverage is referring to is titled “Timber-Cardboard Web-Core Sandwich Panels for Lightweight Housing Applications” (TCWS) and has been published in the Q1-ranked “Structures” journal. This open-access article can be accessed at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352012425001298?via%3Dihub

In May 2023, the University of Queensland hosted a local workshop focused on the theme “Urban Transition with Wood for Enhanced Resilience of Cities and Forests.” The event explored how timber can play a crucial role in the transformation of urban environments to improve sustainability and resilience. Building on the discussions and insights from this workshop, Australian representatives travelled to Japan in November 2024 to participate in a series of global workshops organized by the Tohoku Forum for Creativity.

The Australian delegation included ARC Advance Timber Hub Investigators – Dr Lisa Ottenhaus and Kim Baber from the University of Queensland, Mick Stephens and Clarissa Brandt from Timber Queensland, Kevin Peachey from Forest and Wood Products Australia (FWPA), and Travis Wacey from the CFMEU. The workshops were held across multiple locations in Japan and brought together an international group of researchers, students, and industry professionals.

Presentations and discussions were led by experts from prestigious institutions such as Tohoku University, Okayama University, Chalmers University of Technology, Technical University of Dresden, the University of Canterbury, and the University of Auckland. Kyoto University also contributed to the dialogue. A broad range of perspectives on timber-based urban development were shared, including those from timber processors, manufacturers, industry associations, architects, and engineers.

Participants also had the opportunity to visit various sites, including iconic timber structures designed by renowned architect Kengo Kuma. Other notable visits included native and plantation forests, a biomass plant, and the Meiken Lamwood CLT (cross-laminated timber) factory. A particularly poignant visit was to the de Sendai 3/11 Memorial Community Center and the ruins of buildings destroyed by the 2011 tsunami, which underscored the importance of resilience in both urban design and disaster recovery.

The series of workshops concluded with a collaborative session that identified timber education and research as key areas for future synergy and growth. Following the workshops, the Australian delegation continued their study tour in Tokyo, where they met with industry stakeholders and toured several notable timber structures, including the Ariake Gymnastic Centre in Tokyo, designed by Nikken Sekkei.

The conversations and collaborations initiated during these workshops will continue to evolve, with a significant follow-up event scheduled for the World Conference on Timber Engineering in 2025. This global exchange highlights the growing importance of timber in creating resilient, sustainable urban futures and emphasizes the potential for continued international cooperation in this field.

For more information about the Tohoku Forum for Creativity’s Future Society Design Program, visit their website.