Stora Enso has received approval for producing and delivering CLT panels to the U.S. in accordance to the International Building Code (IBS), company announced. The CLT panels can now be produced to be certified in compliance with the North American CLT standard ANSI/APA PRG 320-2019, Standard for Performance-Rated Cross-Laminated Timber.

The changes in the 2021 issue of this code now allow to construct buildings from mass timber of up to 18 storeys, compared with just five before. This clearly paves the way for a new market in mid-rise wooden construction and fossil-based materials such as concrete and steel can be replaced to a much greater extent in North American construction.

The CLT panels by Stora Enso will be manufactured in its biggest mill, in Ybbs in Austria. Stora Enso plans to apply for the same certification for Zdirec mill in the Czech Republic, its 4th CLT production facility with an estimated start-up in Q3 2022. The CLT panels from Ybbs can be produced with a width of up to 9.68 feet (2.95 meters) and a length of up to 52.5 feet (16 meters).

“Previously, we have been restricted to buildings no taller than five storeys or special one-off assignments, so this is a real game changer for us. This ‘license to operate’ is very exciting news for the North American market and gives us the opportunity to provide CLT also to the US and Canada,” said Steve Lieberman, Business Development Manager for North America at Stora Enso.

“The mid-rise building segment has been traditionally using concrete and steel, but the certification means that wood as a raw material has the possibility to reach the market in a much bigger way than before. The massive-engineered wood element CLT is particularly useful for building wooden constructions that go beyond five storeys”, he added.

“We have proven already in other overseas markets such as Singapore or Australia that we can deliver for big and small projects across the globe from our production facilities in Central Europe. We’ve had some very successful and big projects such as The International House in Sydney or Library at the Dock in Melbourne or also the Singapore Management University. Expanding these activities to North America is definitely another milestone in our vision to be a global leader of innovative wood-based solutions”, stated Gernot Weiß, Head of Business Line CLT. “We believe strongly in the growth of CLT and the outstanding dynamic development of the North American market.”

The ICC-ES Evaluation Report ESR-4381 and Listing Report ESL-1170 can be found on the company’s  CLT downloads page.

Photo: Steve Lieberman, Business Development Manager for North America at Stora Enso.