In 2031, the tallest wooden tower in the world should be Swiss The bank UBS has set its sights high. The proof is in the tower it is planning in the district of Altstetten, in Zurich. The tower, scheduled for completion in 2031, is to be 108 metres tall, making it the tallest wooden tower in the world. Unless, that is, another project overtakes it: a wooden skyscraper planned for Basel for the same year, as a building for the Bank for International Settlements. It will be 122 metres high! (SH) 350 and 400 kilos of CO2, whereas a cubic metre of wood traps 1,000. “However, instead of using cubic metres of wood to create spectacular structures, a better idea would be to use it in square metres,” he says. In other words, wood could be used to cover surfaces instead of forming the framework of very large-scale construction projects. The specialist cites the example of the stone walls of Grisons houses, where wood is fitted to the interior walls, significantly improving the home’s insulation and comfort. This approach could be adopted to insulate part of the estate: person Stephan Meierhofer. “Wood is very sturdy and, even in the event of a fire, retains its load-bearing capacities for a long time,” he explains. Construction is set to begin in spring. On the way to world records Even taller will be a tower planned by UBS in the Altstetten district of Zurich. The skyscraper will be 108 metres tall when it is completed in 2027, making it the tallest wooden building in the world. Its offices will house 2,800 employees. Wooden buildings are also going up in French-speaking Switzerland. The Tilia Tower (Latin for “lime tree”), on which construction began in 2024, will combine wood and concrete. It will capitalise on the strengths of hardwoods, like beech, which are sturdier than softwoods. This 85-metre building will be built in the Prilly district in the east of Lausanne. Close by, the Malley Phare Tower is to be constructed on an existing building. The 2,000 cubic metres of wood required for this residential building come from fir and spruce, 95 per cent of which comes from Switzerland. The tower is set to be completed this year. “What is the best way to use wood with regard to the environment and biodiversity? That is the question,” according to forestry engineer and emeritus professor in wood sciences Ernst Zürcher. One cubic metre of reinforced concrete generates between Old-school: a wooden “high-rise” in La Sage (canton of Valais) – one of the first forms of multi-residential living. Photo: Cortis und Sonderegger,13Photo Zwhatt – the 75-metre high-rise due to be built in Regensdorf (canton of Zurich). As the model on the left shows, the building will consist of a massive concrete pillar surrounded by a skeleton frame of wood. Photo: Pensimo, Boltshauser Architekten Itten Brechbühl AG / Kengo Kuma & Associates Swiss Review / April 2025 / No.2 15
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