Mitsui Fudosan and Takenaka Corporation announced on September 29th that they have begun studying to construct a new office building in Nihonbashi, Tokyo, which will become the largest and tallest wooden building in Japan when completed. The 17-story building with a height of 70 meters will have a total floor area of 26,000 square meters. Timber of more than a thousand cubic meters will be used in the structure. The materials will be harvested in the forests owned by the Mitsui Fudosan Group in Hokkaido. Takenaka Corporation's fire-proof laminated timber "Moen-Wood" is used for the main structural part. Construction is scheduled to start in 2023.

The project is one of the efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals set by UN and the environmental conservation. It is expected that carbon dioxide emissions during construction can be reduced by about 20% compared to steel structured office buildings of the same scale. The developer determined that the use of wood in architecture will increase the comfort of office workers and visitors, and create new value and landscape for buildings in the urban area. The company aims to raise the fund through ESG financing.

Moen-Wood has been certified as the fire-proof structure material by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The timber can insulate and absorb heat when on fire, and can be used for columns and beams without fire resistance covering on the surface. (2020/09/30)