Berkeley Wood Lab

Welcome to the first annual mass timber conference of California!! The Berkeley Wood Lab is pleased to host the gathering at the Richmond Field Station on May 20th in partnership with @caforestryandfire (Katie Harrell) @bay_area_council (Patrick Kallerman) and Forell& Elsesser (Masume Dana). We have a full day of presentations and discussions about the emerging mass timber California industry. See evolving agenda and registration in link bio. Spots are limited. Thanks for the financial support of @swinerton1888 @rothoblaas.north.america @ucberkeleyarch and Forell & Elsesser. Hosting with @ced_berkeley @natureatcal @ucanr

Forest to Forest: A Circular Ecology for Timber is opening Tonight at the Berkeley CED Wurster Gallery as part of the Lau Just Climate Futures 2026 Exhibition: The Weather to Come! Opening: April 7, 2026, 6 PM On view: April 7–21, 2026 Hours: Mon–Fri, 9 AM–4:30 PM Forest to Forest examines wood not as a static building material, but as a living, biogenic substance moving through ecological and temporal cycles. Through a constructed 2×4 gallery framework, decaying wood samples, and drawings tracing timber across California landscapes, the exhibition reveals wood in states of growth, use, decline, and regeneration. Centered on research at UC Berkeley’s Russell Research Station, the project explores how reclaimed lumber can be returned to forest ecosystems through designed decomposition—reframing architecture’s relationship to material lifecycles and ecological systems. Presented by the (Im)material Matters Lab in collaboration with Paul Mayencourt of the Berkeley Wood Lab. Project Team: Naomi Lucia Manuel, Lincoln Ruiz-Truong, Joseph Sungjune Byun.

“It’s essential that we reimagine how we build,” says Assistant Professor Paul Mayencourt. With guidance from Mayencourt and the UC Berkeley Wood Lab (@berkeley.woodlab ), Humboldt County’s Mad River Mass Timber (@madriver_masstimber ) is pioneering the commercial manufacture of dowel-laminated timber (DLT) in the state. The first vertically integrated producer of mass timber in California, MRMT transforms waste wood from our forests into construction-ready building panels. Unlike traditional construction lumber, DLT panels can be made from a wide variety of wood species. Weak or small-diameter trees that cannot otherwise be used for construction, such as red fir, hemlock, and Ponderosa pine, can be joined together to create strong DLT panels. DLT can also repurpose fire-damaged timber, which until now has not had a commercial use. This partnership demonstrates how CED’s technical and design expertise can impact, at scale, the state’s transition to greener building practices. The commercialization of this technology promises to lead to the creation of a new sustainable manufacturing sector in California that benefits our forests, the climate, and the economy. Read more on our website: ced.berkeley.edu/news/mass-timber-uc-berkeley-research-mad-river-dlt Images: 1 – Mad River Mass Timber DLT samples showing variety of species and finish profile. Photo: @saylorbuxcelphotography . 2 – UC Berkeley architecture students visitng Mad River Mass Timber facility, with Assistant Professor Paul Mayencourt, at far left, and MRMT President George Schmidbauer. 3 – UC Berkeley Wood Lab. Photo: Ramon Weber. 4 – DLT. 5 – DLT floor panel in process at Mad River Mass Timber. #MassTimber #DLT

For the mass timber industry to be a good steward of our forest, we need to consider the diverse range of wood species that the ecosystem offers. Our mass timber research promotes the use of local Californian softwood species. These local species offer a diverse range of architectural expression: varying in color, grain, smell and density. The Nail-Laminated Timber samples include: Alaskan Yellow Cedar, Douglas Fir, Sugar Pine, Port Orford Cedar, Western Red Cedar and Hemlock. Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Jitske Swagemakers #masstimber #local #DIY #madeincalifornia #NLT

The Berkeley Wood Lab hosted one of the first California-wide Mass Timber Meetup with the Bay Area Council @bay_area_council and Marisha Farnworth @marishafarnsworth . Great time to share research updates with colleagues, friends and partners and gather everyone around a vision for mass timber in California. Looking forward to the next meetup in February 2026 at the Richmond Field Station. #masstimber #localwood #berkeleywoodlab #bayareacouncil #californiamasstimber

The building is connected to the ground via a site-built galvanized steel structure. The steel posts start at grade and extend above the floor beams, making the floor appear sunken yet floating. The posts go up to a cylindrical beam which connects to the NLT roof panel’s deeper members. The roof panels overhang beyond this cylindrical beam, emphasizing the legibility of the panel as panel. A stainless steel bathroom block is tucked into the NLT panels and holds the wet functions of the pavilion. The roof panels are clad in weathering steel. They tilt and pinch a vertical panel with glass cladding on either side, through which solar hot water piping is visible. NLT Recreation Pavilions Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Sarah Gunawan, Terrestrial Pursuits Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry #nlt #naillaminatedtimber #masstimber #tahoe

The second pavilion is a bathroom and wash stand, constructed from large panels lifted into place by crane trucks. Each panel is built up from dimensional lumber with different depths (e.g. 2x4s with 2x8s every 18”). The deeper members function as attachment points, drainage channels, plumbing chases, etc. NLT Recreation Pavilions Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Sarah Gunawan, Terrestrial Pursuits Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry #masstimber #madeincalifornia #tahoe #naillaminatedtimber

Smaller lengths of dimensional lumber, which would otherwise be turned into sawdust or mulch, are nailed together to form massive wood blocks. These blocks are stacked up to create a counterweight for horizontally and vertically cantilevered NLT panels. Wooden separators placed between the wood blocks cantilever out to hold gear while people take a break. A waterproof membrane is stretched and tightened over the roof panels to protect the lower level from the elements. It also creates a special super-tent on the upper level. Depending on the weather, the membrane can be opened or closed to provide the right climate for a tea house. NLT Recreation Pavilions Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Sarah Gunawan, Terrestrial Pursuits Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry #masstimber #tahoe

A common method of creating mass timber panels in the US is through gluing layers of wood together to produce a product called Cross Laminated Timber (CLT). Other methods exist though, and they require no glue and less expensive machinery, which makes them well suited to manufacturers who want to test the mass timber market without committing to massive capital expenditures. One of these alternative methods, which uses nails to connect individual dimensional lumber pieces into a larger panel, is called Nail Laminated Timber (NLT). The project is a study in the architectural possibilities of NLT through the design of three pavilions for outdoor recreation in the Tahoe region. The first pavilion is a gateway to the trail networks. It functions as a bus station and secret tea house. NLT Recreation Pavilions Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Sarah Gunawan, Terrestrial Pursuits Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry #masstimber #diy #naillaminate #madeincalifornia

We have been exploring novel applications of dimensional softwood for solid wood shell structural systems. As an accessible construction material that is affordable and ubiquitous, dimensional lumber inherently carries great potential for more complex geometries and structural systems. In this paper, we examine the potential of using dimensional lumber for nail-laminated solid wood shells, adding value through new systems of assembly. @jitskeswagemakers will be presenting this research at the International Association for Shell & Spatial Structures, Mexico City in the coming weeks! Solid Wood Shells Project Team: Jitske Swagemakers, Paul Mayencourt

The workforce housing design for Alpenglow's wood products campus in Tahoe uses nail-laminated timber (NLT) panels produced locally. The design for the cabins translates ecological care into architectural expression. repurposing small-diameter logs from fire prevention and forest restoration efforts. Alpenglow is a planned innovative, small-diameter logs wood products facility. We received support from the California Board of Forestry to design mass timber workforce housing in California mountain communities. Thanks Alpenglow for working with us! NLT Affordable Housing for Alpenglow's future workforce Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Jitske Swagemakers #masstimber #local #diy #workforcehousing #madeincalifornia #naillaminatedtimber Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry

Alpenglow housing is a proposal for affordable workforce housing built using nail-laminated timber panels and located on the eastern edge of the Tahoe National Forest, perched at 6,000 feet above sea level. The steep terrain reveals sweeping views over the alpine canopy, where three wooden cabins trace the contour of the hillside. The roof pitches, constructed from NLT panels, shift playfully in dialogue with the jagged mountain peaks beyond. Inside, the angled floor plan made possible through mass timber construction opens the living spaces to natural light, framing dramatic vistas and creating a sense of immersion in the landscape NLT Affordable Housing for Alpenglow's future workforce Project Team: Paul Mayencourt, Jitske Swagemakers #masstimber #workforce housing #diy #naillaminated #madeincalifornia Funded by the Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, California Board of Forestry.