Ongoing work to support building code changes is an important part of the market development program, as it opens up new markets to wood use. For example, a recent building code change in South Korea, facilitated by Canada Wood, will open up the low-rise multi-family (apartment) residential market to wood construction.
Previously, due to concerns about sound passing between units, regulations required thick concrete floors in multi-family residential buildings of three to four stories (the Dagagu and Dasaedae markets). This made wood-frame construction less competitive to other building systems.
Industry professionals thought the regulation went too far, but lacked a coordinated response. Canada Wood helped the industry build a case for change, including technical input from the National Institute of Forest Science, and industry support from the Korean Wood Construction Association.
Regulators accepted the new research and changed the code. Since the multi-family sector makes up 80 percent of all new home construction, this change is a significant win for Canada Wood.
A midrise project in Korea that applies the Wood Infill Wall system using Canadian S-P-F | Photo: Canada Wood
