The tallest timber office tower in the world will soon be built at 5 King Street, Brisbane, in a $140 million Lendlease development.

The building will be constructed from cross-laminated-timber and glue-laminated timber, also known as glulam.

Timber products are gaining in popularity for high-rise buildings around the world, for the material's faster and more cost-effective construction methods, environmental benefits, and comparable strenth to traditional steel and concrete building materials.

Buildings made from timber products have a lower carbon footprint than other buildings, because of the more-efficient construction methods, but also because of the way the building operates.

The building will be constructed from CLT, pre-fabricated panels, which will be among the first produced at Lendlease's new manufacturing plant.

The new tower is aiming to achieve a 6 Green Star Design & As Built rating, making use of sustainably sourced, engineered timber classes, LED lighting, occupancy sensors, optimised air-conditioning, and rainwater harvesting.

The project, which is being backed by Impact Investment Group, will be located at 5 King Street, and will be the tallest timber office tower in the world, and the largest by gross floor area. The tallest timber high-rise in the world is a student accommodation tower in Vancouver.

The architect is Bates Smart. “We see timber buildings as the next generation of workplace,” said Bates Smart director Philip Vivian, adding the buildings are suitable “for a creative class looking for rich environments that enhance wellbeing and productivity.”

"The property at 5 King is the latest example of high-performance workplaces setting new benchmarks in environmentally sustainable building practices," said Lendlease's chief executive for property Kylie Rampa.

See also:

South Australia's first timber apartment tower

The timber age

The parks and gardens transforming Australia