hodology for Further Research,Including Acceptability and Desirability
This ongoing research is work in progress and findings are still speculative. Two problems require focus: firstly, models of urban infill; then the study of how the use of the CLT systems can play an important role in achieving a more livable city with better models of infill housing (CLT as a sustainable construction system for urban infill). Both problems are relevant and intertwined.
Further research is required to better understand both the social acceptance of CLT multi-storey apartment living in urban centres; e.g., what triggers people to choose a more urban lifestyle by moving back to the city centre, into timber high-rise. Researchers at the Zero Waste Centre for Sustainable Design and Behaviour (sd+b) are planning two research projects to increase the knowledge base required to introduce CLT construction systems into the Australian building/construction and development sectors. The first (Project ‘CLT 1’) relates to developing acceptable solutions for regulatory approval of CLT buildings and addresses the technical barriers required to ensure a safe, acceptable product for urban infill development, including the obvious question of fire safety. The fire performance of CLT panels and timber high-rise buildings has been subject to extensive testing and detailed evaluation over the last decade; e.g., the measured burning speed of CLT panels is around 0.6 mm per minute [34,72,73,74].
The second area of research (Project ‘CLT 2’) is still in development and is likely to explore further the sustainability of CLT buildings, focusing on occupier acceptance for infill development in Australian cities and industry supply chains’ capacity to sustainably satisfy demand to 2030. The proposed research methodology will include the Delphi Approach, which aims to obtain consensus amongst a group of experts on issues where subjective opinion must be resolved (but opinions differ), by identifying group opinion as more valid than individual opinion.
In the coming year, the Centre plans to conduct a comprehensive analysis and post-occupancy evaluation of all eight case studies, in close consultation with the developers and government agencies responsible for the housing developments. It will consist of questionnaires completed by the residents to determine the performance of the timber housing as described by a matrix of indicators, including: operational energy and water consumption, affordability, environmental sustainability, and social sustainability factors such as desirability, adaptability and social acceptability. Results will subsequently be published in papers and a book publication. The process will shift the focus from simple questions of technical efficiency to the behaviours and attitudes of the occupants of the selected CLT buildings, transforming their household consumption and current housing management practices into quantifiable evidence. We will compare the POE results with the aims of the case studies to inform subsequent CLT housing developments. We will also consider perceptions of the social status of residents in CLT housing projects by others in the neighbourhood and include provision for suggestions from the residents for improvements in this regard.
The aim of this research is to develop a comprehensive model of Australian CLT housing construction that offers effective guidance for the future delivery of affordable and sustainable housing by considering the needs and expectations of future consumers, the perspective of housing providers, and the structural challenges presented by the requirement to improve affordability and sustainability. The next step is the POE which, in addition to in-depth analysis of the selected cases, will include a mapping exercise comparing the concept with the experiential reality. The resulting comprehensive indicator matrix will enable us to develop a rigorous model on which Australian CLT initiatives can be based. For instance, answers need to be explored to the following questions:
What are the barriers