Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Japan reveals plans for world's tallest wooden skyscraper

W350 tower will be 350-metres tall and have balconies on all four sides 

Monday 19 February 2018 22:39 GMT
Comments
The W350 tower will be ten per cent steel but mainly wood
The W350 tower will be ten per cent steel but mainly wood (Sumitomo Forestry)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Plans have been drawn up to build the world’s largest wooden skyscraper.

Japanese company Sumitomo Forestry is proposing to build a 350-metre 70-storey building in Tokyo.

The new building, which is being referred to as W350 Project, will be ten per cent steel, combined with 180,000 cubic metres of indigenous wood.

The internal beams and braces will have a mixture of steel and wood and will be able to withstand the regular earthquakes that hit the region.

It will have balconies on all four sides as well as greenery from the ground to the top floor.

The project is expected to cost twice as much as a conventional skyscraper that size – coming in at approximately 600bn yen (£4.02bn).

That figure may however be reduced as technology advances between now and 2041, when the project is scheduled to be completed.

The current tallest wooden building is a 53-metre student residence in Vancouver.

Other wooden sky scrapers are currently under proposal with a 244-metre building in Chicago being considered.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in