SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
Moelven glulam for taller, stronger timber buildings in urban areas
- Published March 23, 2023; updated March 23, 2026; estimated reading time 2 minutes. Category: Architecture and construction.
- Moelven Limtre manufactures, designs and builds with glue-laminated timber (glulam), made by bonding small timber layers with structural adhesives. The article says glulam has strength comparable to steel, lower embodied energy and carbon, earthquake and fire resistance, and greater design flexibility than steel, reinforced concrete or conventional timber. It can span long distances without intermediate columns and form curved structures.
- The article compares glulam beam production with steel beam production, saying steel requires about 2–3 times more energy and 6–12 times more fossil fuel. Glulam’s relatively low weight is presented as useful for dense urban construction on existing structures that cannot carry substantial loads, and for building on slopes or clay/quick-sand ground. Wood is described as renewable, storing atmospheric carbon and reducing construction waste; referenced studies say timber environments can benefit occupants’ wellbeing and performance.
- The page cites a global glulam market value of USD 4.76 billion in 2016 and a forecast CAGR of 5.9% from 2018–2025. It describes Moelven Limtre as a European glulam leader that developed tall-timber construction methods in the early 1990s. Its Mjøstårnet project is described as the world’s tallest timber building at the time: an 18-storey prefabricated structure whose timber frame was built at one storey per week. The article also mentions collaboration with Sumitomo, which aimed to build a 350-metre timber headquarters in central Tokyo for its 350th anniversary in 2041. SDGs 3, 9, 11 and 12 shown.
- Company: MOELVEN LIMTRE AS, Lundemovegen 1, 2390 Moelv, Norway; moelven.com/uk/. No individual contact is displayed.