Construction of SAWA, what could be Rotterdam’s first wooden residential tower, has been put on hold due to a shortage of timber and other construction materials.
Work on the SAWA project, a 50-meter-high cross-laminated timber tower by Mei Architects, has been delayed until September 2021.
“The timber shortage is a problem at the moment,” said Harmen Brink, a representative of the project. “The prices of timber are explosively high at the moment, which makes it a bit more difficult.”
The 16-story SAWA project will provide 109 homes in the former dock area of Schiemond in Rotterdam.
Over 90 percent of the wedge-shaped block, including its structure, will be built of CLT using timber coming from sustainably managed forest in Scandinavia. “For every tree felled for SAWA, three trees are replanted,” the project’s website says.
The project will use 4,500 cubic meters of timber according to the architect.
The delay follows reports of soaring costs of materials including timber, steel and concrete around the world as construction ramps up in the wake of the pandemic, which disrupted supply chains.
Lumber prices have fallen this month from last month’s highs but still remain higher than pre-pandemic levels, the New York Times reported this week.
Timber shortages have been particularly acute in France as architects switch to more sustainable building practices cause a surge in demand in the country, which is also preparing for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
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