Following extensive research led by the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) since 2001, the restrictions on the use of wood as a building material contained in the fire protection regulations have steadily been reduced. Over the years, wooden components protected with a non-combustible coating have become on par with non-combustible construction methods, and the use of wood in all building categories was approved in 2015 in accordance with the Swiss fire protection regulations. 

According to a statement from Lignum, the umbrella organisation of the Swiss forestry and timber industry, wood will now be used for the first time in a high-rise in Switzerland: a ten-storey office building made of wooden components will be built in Risch Rotkrez on the site of the Suurstoffi development, a residential, recreational and commercial district owned by Zug Estates AG. With its 1,500 residents and 2,500 jobs, the site will also be used by students from the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts.

The foundation stone for Switzerland’s first wooden high-rise was already laid in August, and the building will take less than two years to build. The use of wood-concrete composite structures result in a drastically shorter construction time compared to conventional construction methods.

“One of our conditions was for the planners to work with Building Information Modelling (BIM),” said Kim Riese, head of project development and construction at Zug Estates. The digital planning and process chains used in timber construction make it possible to adhere to building schedules without incurring higher costs than in massive construction methods.