BETTER BUILDING SOLUTIONS

SFI OFFERS THE WORLD’S MOST RELIABLE SUPPLY OF SUSTAINABLE BUILDING SOLUTIONS.

Buy SFI Certified Products button

SFI-certified wood is a good choice for construction and renovations because it is a sustainable, natural, and renewable resource. The SFI label means the forest the wood comes from is managed sustainably to ensure many benefits, like mitigating climate change. SFI is also implementing a new Climate Smart Forestry Objective that will require SFI-certified organizations to ensure forest management activities address climate change adaptation and mitigation measures.

Building with wood has environmental and economic benefits. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they grow, sequestering and storing carbon while producing oxygen—this reduces greenhouse gases and improves air quality. The benefits of building with wood also include conserving water, ensuring biodiversity, and supporting sustainable jobs in rural areas.

The U.S. Green Building Council recognizes SFI‑certified wood. This means using SFI-certified wood can earn points in LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) projects. LEED is the most widely used green building rating system in the world.

Demand is growing for mass timber, including cross-laminated timber (CLT). CLT—a prefabricated, solid engineered wood panel product—is as strong as traditional building materials like steel and concrete, yet it offers the additional environmental benefits associated with wood. Highly technical and precise, CLT is made by compressing and bonding layers of wood together in alternating directions. Building with CLT is generally faster, safer, and more efficient than traditional building materials and processes. SmartLam, Katerra, and Structurlam, all prominent CLT manufacturers in Canada and the US, are certified to SFI, meaning they and their customers are furthering the environmental benefits of CLT.

Building with wood has health benefits. In the U.S., humans spend 90% of time indoors and have become increasingly disconnected from nature. Building with wood supports biophilia—humans’ innate draw and affinity for nature—and has been linked to reducing stress, improving cognitive function and creativity, accelerating healing, and fostering an overall sense of well-being. By increasing connectivity to the natural environment, biophilic design helps connect people to nature in the buildings we live and work in.

Mass Timber Panels Installed at PDX Airport in Portland

FEATURED ARTICLE

THE FOREST-TO-FRAME PHILOSOPHY
Like farm-to-fork, mass timber embraces the ethos “forest-to-frame” – transforming how people think and relate to buildings.

Construction Industry and Improving All Our Lives

FEATURED ARTICLE

CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY AND IMPROVING ALL OUR LIVES
Mass timber bringing disruption to the construction industry and improving all our lives.

University of Idaho's new mass timber arena

FEATURED ARTICLE

U OF I’s NEW ARENA FEATURES MASS TIMBER FOR INNOVATIVE, SUSTAINABLE DESIGN
Our build environment need not conflict with the natural world, writes guest columnist Dennis Becker.

VIDEOS

GREEN BUILDING EDUCATION AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Creating a New Path for Forest Products in Green Buildings- Continuing Education Unit PDF

Creating a New Path for Forest Products in Green Buildings
Continuing Education Unit from McGraw-Hill July 2016
Take the online test and receive an AIA credit or GBCI CE credit, click here.

Certified Wood Branches Out- Continuing Education Unit PDF

Certified Wood Branches Out
Continuing Education Unit

Buildings Made with SFI-certified Wood

Building and certified wood plays a key role in mitigating climate change, improving occupant health and well-being, and bridging the gap between rural and urban economic development. One of the ways we support this is by sponsoring the Wood Design & Building Awards, in partnership with the Canadian Wood Council, with the SFI Sponsorship Award. Learn more about the award here.

2019 Wood Awards Leaderboard Ad
SFI director highlights the importance of certification in mass timber construction

FEATURED ARTICLE

SFI DIRECTOR HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF CERTIFICATION IN MASS TIMBER CONSTRUCTION
As the mass timber building movement gains momentum, designers and builders need assurance that the wood products on the market are of high standards on a number of fronts. The Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI), the largest single forest certification standard in the world, is one of three certification agencies to provide that assurance.