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A Zero Carbon Hybrid Wood Supertall Future

Course Overview

With buildings generating 40% of global carbon emissions, we need to achieve net-zero by 2050 to meet the Paris Agreement target and limit global warming to 2°C. Timber sequesters an average of 1.9 metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent emissions per cubic meter (Sathre & O’Connor, 2010). While a purely mass timber tall building may not be the most cost-efficient solution, a hybrid structure can maximize the overall use of wood by volume in the most cost-efficient manner. Floor systems in buildings contribute as much as 73% of the environmental impact of a high-rise building’s structure (Lankhorst et al., 2019), making them an excellent target for reducing embodied carbon.

DIALOG’s patent- pending Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS) takes advantage of the benefits of cross-laminated timber (CLT) combined with pre-stressed concrete to achieve a 12-metre column-free span. The HTFS is proposed as part of our Hybrid Timber Tower, a 105-storey mixed-use prototype that is being evaluated and tested by DIALOG and EllisDon. The prototype structure consists of the hybrid timber floor, combined with a concrete core and an external steel frame. Fire safety is achieved in the floor panels as the exposed wood chars to form a protective layer, while the non-combustible concrete and steel band continues to support the panel. The exposed CLT panels also provide a biophilic appeal, which has shown to support cognitive function as well as physical and psychological well-being (Vidovich, 2020). DIALOG, EllisDon, FPInnovations and other partners have completed the first phase of small-scale testing on over 40 panels. We are scheduled for fire testing of the panels in Ottawa with NRCan this fall with full scale testing of the 12-meter panels starting in late 2022.

Learning Objectives

Describe how hybrid mass timber systems—such as the Hybrid Timber Floor System (HTFS)—reduce embodied carbon and support zero‑carbon goals in high-rise, mixed-use developments.
Explain the structural, fire safety, and performance characteristics of hybrid CLT–concrete floor assemblies, including how charring, concrete bands, and steel elements contribute to long-span capability and code compliance.
Evaluate the role of multidisciplinary research, prototyping, and large-scale testing in validating hybrid timber technologies for supertall applications, including their impacts on sustainability, biophilia, and cost efficiency.

Course Video

https://vimeo.com/1109758270?share=copy

Speaker Bio

Craig Applegath, BSc, BArch, MArchUD, PPOAA, AIBC, NSAA, AIA, FRAIC, LEED® APBD+C
Founding Partner & Architect
DIALOG

Craig Applegath is the founding principal of DIALOG’s Toronto Studio, and a passionate designer who believes in the power of built form to meaningfully improve the wellbeing of communities and the environment they are part of. Since graduating from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University with a Master of Architecture in Urban Design Craig has focused his energies on leading innovative planning and design projects that address the complex challenges facing our communities, as well as on his advocacy of sustainable building design and urban regeneration and symbiosis. Craig’s area of practice includes the master planning and design of institutional projects, including post secondary education, healthcare facilities, as well as the design of innovative mixed-use- facilities.

Craig was a founding Board Member of Sustainable Buildings Canada, a Past President of the Ontario Association of Architects, and the current moderator of SymbioticCities.net. Craig has lectured or taught at Harvard, the University of Toronto, the University of Waterloo, as well as at many professional and sector related conferences around the world. In 2001 Craig was made a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada for his contributions to the profession of architecture. In 2017 he was presented with the OALA Honourary Membership Award for his contributions to the cause of landscape architecture in Ontario.

Neel Bavishi, PEng, CEM
Building Performance Analysis, Associate
DIALOG

Neel is passionate about applying the art and science of building performance simulation and data-driven design to produce positive outcomes for the built environment. He embraces holistic solutions that minimize the environmental impact of building assets while providing enhanced value to building owners, developers, policymakers, and designers through improved well-being and reduced total cost of ownership. Neel believes that an integrated and collaborative approach that incorporates diverse perspectives is essential for delivering high-performance buildings.

A mechanical engineer by training, Neel is well-versed in whole-building energy modelling for both new and existing buildings and lifecycle cost analysis, design optimization, and data visualization. His experience includes developing energy models for green building certification programs, carbon-neutral retrofit studies and district energy strategies, and the development of net-zero energy and emissions policies and standards for municipal, provincial, and federal government bodies. His projects span various asset classes, including recreational facilities, commercial high-rise towers, multi-unit residential buildings, hospitals, data centres, and transit facilities. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in the province of Ontario and is a Certified Energy Manager.

Cameron Ritchie, PEng, PE, PhD, BSE
Structural Engineer, Associate
DIALOG

Cameron is an Associate on the Structural Engineering team in DIALOG’s Toronto studio. Since graduating with a PhD from the University of Toronto, Cameron has acted as a structural design engineer and project manager across a variety of sectors and project types, including healthcare, institutional, government, and retail. He has experience in all stages of a project delivery, from feasibility studies through construction administration and management.

Cameron is DIALOG’s project manager for the hybrid timber floor system (HTFS) research program, working closely with industry partners EllisDon. He is passionate about exploring mass timber wherever possible as a sustainable solution to our building needs.

Mid-Rise Buildings, Seismic Studies, Woodworks

Innovative Strategies for Light-Frame Mid-Rise Buildings in High-Seismic Regions

Innovative Strategies for Light-Frame Mid-Rise Buildings in High-Seismic Regions presents a detailed design example and practical guidance for engineers and builders responding to rising seismic demands on Canada’s West Coast. With the 2020 National Building Code of Canada significantly increasing seismic forces—particularly in Vancouver and Vancouver Island—conventional light-wood-frame (dimensional lumber) shearwall systems often no longer meet code requirements without costly additions.

This guide, prepared by WHM Structural Engineers for WoodWorks BC and the Canadian Wood Council, explores two high-capacity shearwall solutions: Mid+Std walls, a code-compliant adaptation of Midply construction that achieves roughly 50% greater capacity than standard walls without increasing wall length, and Double Nail walls, a research-based approach using double rows of edge nails to match Mid+Std strength. Combined with lightweight floor topping strategies, these systems enable six-storey light-frame buildings to remain viable and cost-competitive even on poor soils and in the highest seismic regions.

Cost analysis shows Mid+Std walls incur about a 30% framing cost increase over baseline, while Double Nail walls add about 20%, both more economical than doubling corridor wall lines. The publication includes complete design calculations, construction considerations, and conceptual connection details to help practitioners implement these strategies confidently.

This resource equips designers, contractors, and owners with practical, innovative approaches to maintain the competitiveness of light-frame wood construction while meeting the stringent seismic requirements of the latest building codes.

CWC, Premium, Structural Engineering

Introduction to Wood Building Technology

Engineers, architects, building code officials, builders, developers, students and professors all turn to Introduction to Wood Building Technology – the most current guide to the construction of wood buildings.

Bridges, CWC, Infrastructure, Premium

Wood Highway Bridges

Wood Highway Bridges demonstrates how wood bridges can be designed to be assembled rapidly, resist deterioration caused by de-icing chemicals, and utilize stress-laminating in decks to provide long-term performance.

Civic Buildings, Woodworks

Art Gallery of Ontario (Renovation and Addition)

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) was founded in 1900 as the Art Museum of Toronto. In 1919 it became the Art Gallery of Toronto and in 1966, took on its present name. The original gallery was a home (The Grange) built around 1817, located on the south side of the AGO facing Grange Park (Figure 1). In fall 2008, the Art Gallery of Ontario received wide acclaim when its recent renovation and addition, designed by Frank Gehry, was opened to the public. The work involved the renovation of existing spaces and the addition of 9,016 m2 (92,000 ft.2) of new floor space. The renovation and addition to the AGO is notable for several reasons. First, the design needed to unify and enhance previous constructions done in 1918, 1929, the 1970s and the 1980s. The design team made extraordinary use of structural and decorative wood elements to achieve this goal, as well as to lure, calm, entice and amaze visitors. In addition, the AGO needed to remain functional for prolonged periods during the construction process. Finally, the wood design, fabrication and erection was very complex. In the words of Bill Downing of Structurlam Products Ltd., the glulam supplier, in reference to the Galleria Italia portion of the AGO, “This is the most complex wood structure in North America.”

CWC, Premium, Structural Engineering, Wood Foundations

Wood Piles

Wood Piles provides clear and concise coverage of a topic that is often considered obscure However, wood piling has been used around the world to support heavy loads for centuries – and it is still in use today

Commercial Buildings, Woodworks

B.C. Restaurants (The Old Vines & The Hooded Merganser)

Eating and drinking are social activities best enjoyed in a warm, relaxing and comfortable atmosphere. These activities have had a long association with wood, which has traditionally been used for making tables, chairs and other furniture as well as for wine casks and beer barrels. Wood floors and exposed beams have been features of hostelries and restaurants across the world for centuries, and continue to lend a unique quality to contemporary dining establishments. The two examples included here are both located in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia. Although they are very different in architectural character, they both use wood with great effectiveness to create the appropriate dining ambience.

Civic Buildings, Woodworks

Shane Homes YMCA At Rocky Ridge Calgary, AB

Calgary’s aspirations to become a world-class city are supported by its recent investments in infrastructure and architecture, including the $192-million Shane Homes YMCA at Rocky Ridge, which was bolstered by the largest private donation ever contributed to the local YMCA. Shane Homes is a Calgary-based development company, established in 1979, that contributed $3.5 million for the project.

This is the first recreational facility for the northwest corner of the city, serving a community of more than 100,000 residents. Nestled in Calgary’s rolling foothills, the curvilinear design of the Shane Homes YMCA at Rocky Ridge is inspired by the surrounding landscape. The building is sited within a natural park featuring reconstructed wetlands. Multiple pathways and a timber pedestrian bridge curve throughout the site, linking to the regional pathway system.

Glulam timber is the primary structural component, allowing for a geometrically complex design at considerably less cost than other materials. The dramatic silhouette is dened by the largest freeform timber roof structure in North America. Construction began in 2014, and since opening to the public in January 2018, this new recreation centre has become a bustling hub of sport and activity. The Shane Homes YMCA has won numerous awards, including a 2019 Wood WORKS! Prairie Wood Design Award, a 2018 Canadian Wood Council Award and a 2017 CanBIM Best in BIM Award.