Japan Promotes Decarbonization with Wood Construction for High-Rise Hotel

A high-rise hotel with upper levels made of wood has opened in Sapporo, and operator Mitsubishi Estate Co. said most of the lumber used to construct the 11-story building was sourced from Hokkaido.

The top three stories of the Royal Park Canvas Sapporo Odori Park hotel are made of wood, while the 8th story is a hybrid construction of reinforced concrete and wood, and the first seven floors are made of reinforced concrete.

The company hopes the hotel, which opened on Friday, will promote environmental issues such as decarbonization and local production for local consumption.

About 80% of the lumber used in the construction for beams and walls was produced in Hokkaido, and cross-laminated timber was used for the floors to ensure the structural strength.

The company built the nation’s first hybrid wooden high-rise condominium in Sendai in 2019. It set up a company last year to supply building materials made from domestic timber together with a major construction firm and other companies.

Wood building materials have a lower carbon footprint than reinforced concrete. For this reason, the company hopes to increase the number of wooden buildings in the future.

Construction of mid- and high-rise wooden buildings is expected to increase in the future, following the enactment of legislation in October to promote the use of domestic timber in private buildings that made it easier to receive support from the national and local governments.

(Source: The Japan News | Pic: Construction, BAKOKO)

Related Articles

Investors/Business
News
Foreign investment in Japan’s apartments more than doubled to US$5.9 billion in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, from US$2.7 billion a year earlier, according to Real Capital Analytics, which tracks deals worth at least US$10 million. So far this year, the segment has attracted US$704 million in foreign capital with another US$161 million still pending.
General
News
Foreign nationals with “specified skilled worker” visa status are once again entering Japan following the easing of border control measures in March related to the coronavirus. Foreign workers have sometimes waited years for permission to enter the country. Many have found employment at nursing homes, which have suffered labor shortages.
General, Investors/Business
News
Japan’s work culture is in many ways a legacy of decades past, a time when most women got married, quit their jobs and raised a family, while their husbands became the sole breadwinner with long work hours. Unfortunately, raising a family and caring for elderly family members has stereotyped women as the lesser valued gender in the eyes of an employer. The coronavirus is giving this inequality a shake-up...
General, Investors/Business
Information
So you’re ready to buy your first property in Japan? Or maybe you’ve already been down that rabbit hole and are wondering if you’ve done something wrong? One commonly overlooked concept in purchasing real estate around the world is due diligence. By definition, due diligence in terms of real estate is care taken by research and analysis of a property and its affiliations in preparation for a transaction. One of the quirks about the Japanese real estate market, however, is that the due diligence is only conducted once your offer is accepted.