WOODLAND ENTERPRISE CENTRE

Arising out of an architectural competition, the first of the buildings at the Woodland Enterprise Centre demonstrates the use of local wood in contemporary timber design.

The winning team, led by Feilden Clegg Bradley, used atelier one engineers and InWood Developments Ltd,  to research the use of small-section timbers, rather than heavy beams, to support the structure.

Build from both softwood and hardwood timber harvested in the South East, including a structural gridshell from locally-grown chestnut coppice, this building demonstrates how timber can be used to create elegant and low-impact developments, which contribute to the local economy, and maintains our environment by stimulating new markets for traditional woodlands.

The innovative feature of this design is the use of small dimension sweet chestnut timber, which is naturally durable, and very strong, especially when grown quickly from coppice woodlands.  By selecting short lengths of defect-free timber, and then re-joining them using modern glues and manufacturing processes, the timber laths can be assembled as structural building components for interior joinery or exterior use, including untreated rain-screen cladding.