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Tresah is Victoria’s first mass timber condo development.

Beautiful, unique mass timber homes

As we move toward a more sustainable way of life in our everyday activities, it only makes sense that we also consider where we live. Our choice of home and how it is constructed can significantly reduce our overall environmental impact. Tresah is built from wood from here for here and believes that supporting local industry and sustainability is necessary for progress.

What is Mass Timber?

Wood is the most abundant and naturally renewable building material on the planet and takes the least amount of energy to produce than any other building material. Mass Timber offers all the engineering benefits of traditional reinforced concrete construction while at the same time reducing the carbon emissions on production and with the added capacity to store carbon long-term (centuries) rather than emit carbon as concrete and steel do.

The two primary Mass Timber technologies that will be used to build Tresah are cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glue-laminated timber (glulam; GLT). CLT is fabricated from laminating lumber in perpendicular layers, resulting in strong panels that are ideal for building floors, walls, and roofs. Glulam is made by bonding individual pieces of lumber together with durable, moisture-resistant structural adhesives to form columns, beams, and headers

Benefits of Mass Timber

Sound Performance

Mass Timber building materials do not conduct sound as well as concrete or steel, creating buildings that are quieter than traditional concrete and steel construction. With appropriate attention to detail in the design and construction of floor and wall assemblies, Mass Timber buildings can deliver high acoustic performance and reduced sound transmission, creating a comfortable, quiet living environment.

Happiness & Well-Being

Exposed wood in buildings is considered a restorative property and has been linked to improved well-being. The presence of wood elements in our homes reconnects us with nature and has been found to reduce stress and support creative thinking.

Superior Insulator

Wood has natural insulating properties that result in comfortable living environments that require less energy to heat and cool than traditional concrete and steel. The fabrication of Mass Timber is extremely precise, allowing the wood to fit together perfectly, resulting in a naturally-insulated material that lowers overall heating costs.

Affordability

Mass Timber’s lighter weight, reduced impact on the ground and prefabricated building assembly have the potential to lower construction costs and shorten construction timelines, ultimately helping to address affordability. With the expected increase in carbon pricing, Mass Timber’s lower carbon emittance will also contribute to the affordability of building with wood compared to concrete and steel.

Fire Safe

Significant testing of Mass Timber elements has confirmed they can be engineered to meet or exceed building codes requirements for fire safety. The sheer size of mass timber is the most significant factor in its fire safety performance.

Seismic Genius

Wood is naturally lightweight, flexible, and strong, and when engineered for Mass Timber, it greatly reduces the weight and seismic load of a building, offering outstanding seismic performance. At 25% less mass than traditional concrete and steel construction, Mass Timber hybrid buildings are much less susceptible to damage during earthquakes.

Carbon Master

The manufacturing of Mass Timber produces very little carbon and maintains the carbon that the original tree captured and stored over time. Rather than creating or releasing carbon, Mass Timber buildings hold carbon within their structure, reducing the amount of carbon emissions in the atmosphere.

Stellar Embodied Energy

It takes significantly less energy to construct a Mass Timber building than using other materials such as concrete and steel. In addition to the huge carbon benefits and lower environmental impact of Mass Timber, wood grows naturally and is renewable. A bonus of building with Mass Timber is that the small amount of waste that is produced during construction can be repurposed into architectural elements of the building or used for biofuel.