Scrimber: Award for innovative timber construction product

Researchers at the Institute for Materials and Wood Technology IWH at Bern University of Applied Sciences BFH have teamed up with Timber Structures 3.0 AG and the newly established company Scrimber CSC AG to develop the innovative timber construction product Scrimber. The project has now been awarded the top prize in the “KliWa Ideas Pool” competition organised by the Office for Forestry and Natural Hazards of the Canton of Bern. The company will receive CHF 50,000.– in prize money.

Timber product for load-bearing applications

Scrimber is designed to perform the same functions in construction as reinforced concrete, but with a considerably lower carbon footprint. Wood has many benefits as a construction product. It requires a relatively low level of energy to process, does not emit any additional CO₂ in contrast to cement-based materials, and much of the CO₂ absorbed by trees during their lifetime is retained in buildings. Cross-laminated timber (CLT) already ticks these boxes. However, strong demand for this product means that it is relatively expensive. Its wood utilisation is not particularly high either. The Scrimber product is based on an innovative machining technology that enables wood utilisation of almost 100%. In addition, lower-quality input materials, including recycled wood, are to be used for production.

Rewarding innovative forestry projects

The “KliWa Ideas Pool” innovation competition was launched with the aim of shining the spotlight on and promoting the inventiveness and innovative strength present in the industry. Due to climate change, the forest ecosystem is facing major changes and challenges for which novel solutions will have to be found.