The $5.6bn cost of the 70-storey W350 Project is expected to be twice that of a conventional building

Elle Hunt reports: A skyscraper set to be built in Tokyo will become the world’s tallest to be made of wood.

The Japanese wood products company Sumitomo Forestry Co is proposing to build a 350 metre (1,148ft), 70-floor tower to commemorate its 350th anniversary in 2041.

Japan’s government has long advertised the advantages of wooden buildings, and in 2010 passed a law requiring it be used for all public buildings of three stories or fewer.

A render of the interior of the W350 tower. Photograph: Sumitomo Forestry Co

Sumitomo Forestry said the new building, known as the W350 Project, was an example of “urban development that is kind for humans”, with more high-rise architecture made of wood and covered with greenery “making over cities as forests”.

The new building will be predominantly wooden, with just 10% steel. Its internal framework of columns, beams and braces – made of a hybrid of the two materials – will take account of Japan’s high rate of seismic activity. The Tokyo-based architecture firm Nikken Sekkei contributed to the design … (read more)