Mass Plywood Panels in Oakland, California, High-Rise Highlight Faster Installation

California-based developer oWow, in conjunction with Seattle-based DCI Engineers, are working on completing a 19-story mixed-use housing development project in Oakland, California, using mass timber plywood panels, according to a feature by ENRCalifornia (8-24-23). When completed, “1510 Webster” will be one of the tallest point-loaded mass timber buildings in the country.

oWow’s president Andy Ball said that from the outside of the project that features 236 apartment units and ground-floor commercial space, the structure is nearly indistinguishable from neighboring concrete structures. Yet inside, Ball says, the use of a mass plywood paneling system enabled contractors to construct the building’s floors in nearly half the time and with half the labor usually needed for concrete development.

Ball also told ENRCalifornia that “Typically with concrete, you’d be moving pretty quickly at seven days [per floor]. But we can put an entire floor in with this mass ply product in [around six hours]. We are moving so quickly, that we are finishing up a new floor as fast as every three days.”

The 1510 Webster project began in October 2022 with the abatement, demolition, and shoring up of an existing three-story concrete building. The building’s foundation was poured in the second week of January, followed by the core and shear wall six months later. According to Ball, the installation of the mass ply panel system began on May 4th.