A significant number of building materials are based on wood. Wood
competes with other materials and products for many building applications
from structural framing to cladding. Wood appears to be preferable because
of its aesthetic and structural properties, its versatility, economic cost and
environmental benefits. However, timber wastage within the construction
industry is incalculable. Waste occurs at all stages of the timber resource
stream: procurement, conversion, installation, use, maintenance, dismantling
and eventual disposal. Much of this loss can be avoided through eco-design
strategies based on a better understanding of the total resource flows.
This thesis addresses the ecological implications associated with the use and
over-exploitation of timber in building construction. Applying bio-sensitive
design principles and using a life cycle approach, the thesis examines ways
of maximising timber resource yield through appropriate materials selection,
design strategies and construction techniques to reduce their ecological
footprint.
Finally, an easy-to-use guide that incorporates economic and aesthetic-value
criteria to the analysis is developed. The guide is aimed to offer a flexible
decision-support tool that enables designers and other people involved in the
construction industry to comprehend in a systematic way, the multiple
dimensions interacting when selecting timber-building products. It is thus,
intended to explore in practice the implications and trade-offs of state of the
art timber products with the ultimate aim of integrating the ecological
dimension to the decision-making process.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/219309 |
| Date | January 1998 |
| Creators | Santana, Maria Elena, n/a |
| Publisher | University of Canberra. Architecture and Building |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Rights | ), Copyright Maria Elena Santana |
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