B.C. to host global mass timber conference in 2025
The annual event brings together mass timber experts from around the world.
Brock Commons is an 18-storey mass timber building in Vancouver. – Province of B.C.
Key Takeaways:
- The fifth Woodrise International Congress will take place Sept. 22-26 in Vancouver in 2025.
- This year’s congress is taking place in Bordeaux, France and has 3000 participants from 20 different countries.
- FPInnovations will serve as the Canadian organizer for the 2025 event.
The Whole Story:
The world’s mass timber community is coming to B.C.
Global experts in mid- and high-rise timber construction will gather in Vancouver from Sept. 22-26, 2025, for the fifth Woodrise International Congress.
Started in 2017, Woodrise brings diverse stakeholders together around a shared goal of low-carbon construction and sustainable cities.
“I am proud that Vancouver will host Woodrise 2025. B.C.’s entrepreneurs and construction industry professionals are excited to showcase their work and our local talent,” said Premier David Eby. “Our province is a leader in wood and mass-timber construction. This is a perfect match between event and location.”
Officials noted that per capita, B.C. has 11 times more mass-timber buildings than the rest of North America and is a leader in wood and mass-timber construction. In addition, Vancouver is a centre for North America’s leading timber design and engineering professionals.
“Mass timber is a strong, clean building technology that is at the centre of our province’s future construction blueprint,” said Brenda Bailey, minister of jobs, economic development and innovation. “Through our Mass Timber Action Plan, the B.C. government, First Nations and industry are taking a leadership role in wood construction.”
FPInnovations is part of the international Woodrise organizing committee, along with FCBA, a technological institute dedicated to promoting the forest and wood products sector in France, and the Japan International Association for the Industry of Building and Housing. As the Canadian organizer of Woodrise, FPInnovations is a private non-profit organization specializing in the creation of solutions that support the global competitiveness of the Canadian forest sector.
FPInnovations’ team of researchers has produced numerous guides and reference tools that have helped evolve building standards in Canada and around the world in recent years. FPInnovations has research and development laboratories in Quebec City, Montreal and Vancouver, and technology-transfer offices across Canada.
“Canada has a rich portfolio of projects in the field of mid- and high-rise timber construction,” said Stéphane Renou, CEO, FPInnovations. “The construction of the Brock Commons Tallwood House building, an innovative 18-storey hybrid building, which was the tallest mass-timber building in the world, was the just the beginning of innovative leadership for B.C. in the mass-timber industry.”
It is not the first time Canada has hosted. The conference was held in Quebec City in 2019.
