Timber hybrid construction - an approach whose time has come

摘要

Combining more than one material is something craftsmen, engineers and architects have been doing for generations to join the properties of different materials, creating a system or product that has a performance greater than that of its constituent parts. Cob wall or masonry panelled houses are good historic examples of a hybrid form of construction. A more recent example is reinforced concrete. The compressive properties of concrete are combined with steel - a material that has high tension capacity - to create a hybrid structural system.