Prefabricated Timber Housing Systems
Providing a scalable solution to effectively address persistent housing supply challenges.
Project Overview
Updated March 6, 2025.
The Problem
The AEC industry often faces challenges in delivering housing projects due to extensive design, municipal approvals, and construction timelines. The complexity of these projects—combined with stringent code compliance and permitting processes—frequently results in delays and unforeseen design changes. These bottlenecks hinder scalability and contribute to economic and social challenges in providing housing solutions.
Recent building code updates now permit unencapsulated mass timber construction up to 8 storeys and encapsulated mass timber construction up to 18 storeys. This shift creates new opportunities to accelerate mid-rise housing production through prefabricated mass timber construction. Modular timber structures can simplify system complexities, enhance adaptability, and streamline code compliance. By leveraging off-site prefabrication and on-site assembly, they offer a scalable solution to address housing supply challenges.
How We Are Solving It
Led by Perkins&Will Canada Architects in collaboration with ASPECT Structural Engineers, Introba, Credos Project Management and the School of Interactive Arts & Technology at SFU; this project aims to design and validate a scalable housing solution using mass timber, modular construction and off-site manufacturing techniques guided by computational design methods.
The proposed solution focuses on developing a pre-engineered, regulations-ready modular housing system for 7-8 storey multi-family residential buildings. By leveraging modular design, the project will explore opportunities to streamline design, permitting, and construction workflows, accelerating housing production. By leveraging modular design, the project seeks to streamline design, permitting and construction workflows through off-site prefabrication and on-site assembly. This adaptable system will be designed for scalability across different building heights, supporting higher-density housing while aligning with B.C. Housing, City of Vancouver guidelines and making it suitable for adoption and use in other parts of the country.
