Onwards and Upwards: Largest Ever Midrise 2×4 Project Completed in Kyushu
Work being done with our key partners in Japan to diversify 2×4 business and expand Canadian dimension lumber in the midrise market segments is moving in the right direction. A notable example is a new employee dormitory recently completed in Kitakyushu. Japan staff from our Tokyo office were invited for an explanation and completion tour of the project on August 28th. It is important to note the project was selected by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) as a leading example as a “Promotion Project for the Development of High-Quality Wooden Buildings and Related Facilities” in FY 2023. Construction began in April 2024, and the project was subsequently completed at the end of July of this year.
The project features three-hybrid 5-storey structures – with the first floor being a reinforced concrete (RC) combined with a platform frame construction (PFC) structure that makes up the second to fifth floors. The upper four floors were designed and constructed in wood (2×4 construction method), to reduce the building weight and achieve superior seismic performance. The basic design of the building utilizes a box-shaped hexahedral structure, with panels composed of framing and structural sheathing serving as floors and walls. The roof employs a nail plate truss assembly, adopting the most suitable wood frame structural assemblies for both off-site and on-site construction. In addition, the first floor’s reinforced concrete construction addresses flood prevention needs specific to the buildings location and provides enhanced 2-hour fire resistance to meet the building code. In total the four large buildings which make up the project, with a total floor area of 19,400 m², including a common area building, which is a 2-storey steel frame structure centrally located connecting the three employee dormitories which each have a total floor area of 5,648 m² and 200 rooms per building.
The project is a milestone in that it is the largest 2×4 project ever built in Japan, using extensive amounts of Canadian SPF, plywood, and other engineered wood projects in its construction. Images inside and outside the employee dormitory building’s explanation and completion tour on August 28th below.