The Institution of Structural Engineers The Institution of Structural Engineers
Timber
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This section of the website explores the use of timber in construction.

Topics covered include:

  • Developments and good practice
  • Use as a structural material
  • Climate impact, carbon emissions and sustainable design

Resources and events

Course
<h4>Timber workshop: design through worked examples - October 2026</h4>

Timber workshop: design through worked examples - October 2026

This one-day, online advanced practical workshop teachs complex timber engineering through worked examples. It encourages problem-solving through teaching tools and group discussion.

Date – 20 October 2026
Location – Online
Price – £315 - £465 + VAT
Course
Amesbury School detail, wooden structure

Eurocode 5: the essentials of timber design - October 2026

This one-day, online course offers an introduction to timber design to Eurocode 5.

Date – 19 October 2026
Location – Online
Price – £315 - £465 + VAT
The Structural Engineer
View of Newnham College Boathouse in Cambridge in the sunshine and featuring badge on the front of the building

Local, sustainable, reusable – a new boathouse for Newnham College, Cambridge

This article describes the project for a new boathouse for Newnham College in Cambridge, which uses locally grown green timber and woven willow in its construction.

Date – 1 May 2026
Author – Mark Jacobs and Kate Shipley-Dyke
Price – £9.95
The Structural Engineer
Three graphics showing grain or lamination discontinuities in timber

Technical Guidance Note (Level 2, No. 27): Analysis modelling for mass timber structures (part 2)

This note discusses analysis modelling considerations specific to mass timber structures. Part 2 looks at element properties and types, hybrid/composite structures and connections, as well as presenting a short example.

Date – 1 May 2026
Author – The Institution of Structural Engineers
Price – £9.95
The Structural Engineer
Three timber connection graphics side-by-side showing the assessment of rotational stiffness of timber connections

Technical Guidance Note (Level 2, No. 26): Analysis modelling for mass timber structures (part 1)

This note introduces analysis modelling considerations specific to mass timber structures, highlighting unique material properties that must be considered.

Date – 1 April 2026
Author – Matt Caldwell
Price – £9.95
The Structural Engineer
Exposed timber piles on site showing single row of piles below masonry walls

Conservation compendium. Part 23: Preservation of timber foundation piles

This article aims to outline the historic use of timber pile foundations, their key characteristics, and how to preserve them for the future.

Date – 1 April 2026
Author – Rick Roelofs
Price – £9.95
Training
<h4>Structural timber engineering in East Africa</h4>

Structural timber engineering in East Africa

This resource supports the Institution’s Pan-African Structural Engineering Knowledge Partnership.

Date – 5 March 2026
Author – Various
Price – Free
Training
IDEA StatiCa

​​Fire design principles for structural engineers​

Engineers must be clear on their responsibilities regarding the performance of the structure in fire.

Date – 20 February 2026
Author – Various
Price – £88.40 - £340 + VAT
Manuals
<h4>Manual for the design of bamboo structures to ISO 22156:2021</h4>

Manual for the design of bamboo structures to ISO 22156:2021

This Manual provides much needed design guidance for the structural use of bamboo, to help this sustainable material be used in accordance with ISO 22156.

Date – 28 November 2025
Author – D Trujillo et al
Price – £34.95

Featured events and resources

Guidance
Blue abstract blocks

Timber and sustainability

This article discusses timbers and carbon, availability and end-of-life issues.

Date – 18 June 2020
Author – Sustainability Panel
Price – Free