International Conference on Innovations in Wooden Construction opened at SPbGASU
On April 22-23, SPbGASU is hosting the International Scientific and Practical Conference "Innovations in Wooden Construction". The event has brought together scientists, practitioners and business representatives from Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Germany and the Netherlands. The focus of their attention is on current trends and prospects of wooden construction in Russia and in the world.
Welcoming the conference participants on behalf of the SPbGASU Rector Evgeny Rybnov, Vice Rector for Science Irina Drozdova noted that the Organizing Committee, with the support of the Association of Wooden Housing Construction, managed to gather a representative composition of speakers and form a relevant range of scientific and practical industry-related topics.
“Today, wooden construction is actively developing, new capacities for the production of modern building materials are introduced, the demand for country houses is growing.
Designing multi-storey buildings using timber structures is an important issue widely discussed today. It reflects a growing interest in wooden construction on a previously unattainable scale. Our university conducts research in this area, trains engineering and scientific staff.
The SPbGASU Department of Metal and Timber Constructions is among the leaders in the implementation of contractual work and experimental research,” told Irina Drozdova.
The conference participants were also greeted by Maxim Molchanov, Director for Scientific and Technical Development of the Association of Wooden Housing Construction, and Andrey Kirillov, President of the ‘Russian West’ (Russky Zapad) company.
President of ‘Russian West’ Andrey Kirillov
According to Aleksandr Chernykh, DSc, head of the SPbGASU Department of Metal and Timber Constructions, the conference participants are called upon to analyze the situation in wooden construction outlining the achievements and prospects of the industry, the use of modern building materials from engineered wood, calculations and design of residential and public buildings, sports and industrial facilities using BIM technologies, as well as to discuss the results of research conducted by young scientists.
Aleksandr Chernykh identified three main tendencies in wooden housing construction today.
✔ First, a new concept for the development of the Russian forestry complex has been adopted, in which special attention is paid to wooden housing construction. From January 1, 2022, it will be prohibited to export round unprocessed timber from our country.
✔ Second, in the context of the pandemic there is an increased demand in wooden housing construction. More and more people want to buy a piece of land and build a wooden house on it. This demand resulted in a shortage of sawn timber and components. Demand for timber construction is a positive trend, but increasing the capacity will take time.
✔ The third trend is the construction of apartment buildings using new materials: CLT panels (cross-laminated timber). Currently, blocks of such houses are being designed in the Kemerovo region and in Moscow. There is a shortage of such materials, and to overcome it, two plants for the production of CLT panels were launched in Russia – in the Leningrad and Vologda regions.
At the conference, scientists and practising specialists analyzed the market situation, considered new projects and solutions, regulatory support for advanced technologies, as well as issues of construction quality and claims. One of the tasks of the conference is to promote research carried out by scientists from SPbGASU.
Maxim Molchanov, Director for Scientific and Technical Development of the Association of Wooden Housing Construction
Director for Scientific and Technical Development of the Association of Wooden Housing Construction Maxim Molchanov presented his report entitled "Trends and Development of Wooden Construction in Russia and Abroad." The speaker analyzed the main tendencies in timber construction and noted the dramatically increased cost of timber materials both in Russia and in the world.
General Director of ‘Phaeton’ LLC Viktor Shmakov, PhD, delivered a report on the strategy for the development of industrial wooden construction in Russia. He gave an exhaustive analysis of the reasons for growing requirements to low-rise prefabricated buildings. More and more people are working remotely and would like to live outside the city. The speaker dwelled on the lack of qualified personnel and a new bank service – mortgage loans offered for the construction of low-rise wooden houses. The choice of timber materials for house building is determined by economic, environmental and energy saving factors.
Svetlana Kiryutina, PhD, Director of the Institute for Forensic and Technical Investigation at SPbGASU, spoke about the expert practice of resolving controversial issues on wooden building structures in court.
According to the SPbGASU Rector Evgeny Rybnov, business representatives come to our university for advanced scientific solutions in the field of using new building materials. SPbGASU scientists conduct research on the properties of materials made of engineered wood, which are in high demand by industry professionals.
Text: Elena Shulgina
Photos: Sergey Klishis
✔ Find out more about the SPbGASU Department of Metal and Timber Constructions