The Importance of Wood and Timber in Sustainable Buildings, 1st ed. 2022 Innovative Renewable Energy Series

This book emphasizes the important message that architects and structural engineers must strive to ensure that the buildings they design and construct should not be major contributors to climate change. Rather, they should be exploring the use of green materials and building methods ? such as timber, wood, and associated materials ? in order to safeguard the environment. These sustainable materials are not only environmentally friendly, but they have the added benefit of being easy to manufacture, cost effective, often locally available, and easily replenished. Moreover, it has been demonstrated that wood and timber are viable materials in the construction of a wide variety of building types, including medium and high-rise buildings.

The Importance of Wood and Timber in Sustainable Buildings brings together a distinguished group of contributors from different cultures and building traditions to address why now is the time to rethink our constructionmethods and explore replacing many of the carbon intensive materials that are currently being used with wood and timber. 

Introduction.- Inspired by Nature: The Wood Structure for Natural Architecture - Examples of Projects in Different Climate Zones.- Timber as a Sustainable Construction Material in Malaysia.- Multiple Ways of Using Timber for Sustainability in Buildings and the Future Approach.- Energy and Environmental Performance of Prefabricated Wooden Buildings.- Organic Construction Material – Applicability in Continental Climate.- Sustainable Wooden Construction of Traditional Houses in Moderate Humid Climate of North Iran.- Sustainable Buildings Wood Attraction in Vernacular Islamic Architecture: Solar Shading Devices and Natural Ventilation for Indoor Comfort.- Bamboo: The Forgotten Versatile Material.- Green Building Issues Using Wood and Timber in Buildings in the Arabian Gulf Countries.- Wood as a Sustainable Building Material From Old to Contemporary Experiences: Review and Assessment of Global and Egypt’s Examples.- Wood Buildings in Portugal.- The Role of Wood in the Architectural History of Mosques in the Middle East.- One Floor at a Time: Cross-laminating a Sustainable Future for Mass Timber in North America.- Contemporary Wood Architecture for Sustainable Buildings.- The Role of Wood in Current Sustainable Building in Thailand as Architectural Ornaments.- Sustainability of Malay Wood Craftsmanship for Malaysia’s Regional.- Architectural Identity.- Traditional Uses of Wood in Architecture.- The Use of CLT and Timber Technology in Current Construction and Its Impact on the Advances on Environmental Design.- Conclusions.

Prof Sayigh taught in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Reading University and University of Hertfordshire From 1966 – 2004. He was Head of Energy Department at Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) and Expert in renewable energy at AOPEC, Kuwait from 1981-1985.

He started working in solar energy in September 1969. In 1972, he established with some colleagues in Saudi Arabia “The Journal of

Engineering Sciences” in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and in 1984 he established International Journal for Solar and Wind Technology, as an Editor-in-Chief. This has changed its name in 1990 to Journal of Renewable Energy. He is editor of several International journal published in Morocco, Iran, Bangladesh, Nigeria and India. He established WREN and the World Renewable Energy Congress in 1990. Member of various societies related to climate change and renewable energy. He is Chairman of Iraq Energy Institute since 2010.

He was consultants to many national and international organizations, among them, the British Council, ISESCO, UNESCO, UNDP, ESCWA, UNIDO and UN. He run conferences and Seminars in 54 different countries, published more than 600 papers. He edited, written and associated in more than 100 books. He supervised more than 82 MSc. and 36 PhD students. He is editor-in- chief of the yearly Renewable Energy Magazine, 2000-2016. He is the founder of WREN and Renewable Energy Journal published by Elsevier & was the Editor-in-chief for 30 years from 1984 – 2014.

He is the Editor-in-chief of Comprehensive Renewable Energy coordinating 154 top scientists, Engineers and researchers’ contribution in eight volumes published in 2012