ARCA QUALITY CERTIFICATION FOR TIMBER BUILDINGS. ARCA BUILDING CERTIFICATION. WHEN THE FORCE OF NATURE JOINS WITH THE STRENGTH OF MAN

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1 ARCA QUALITY CERTIFICATION FOR TIMBER BUILDINGS. ARCA BUILDING CERTIFICATION. WHEN THE FORCE OF NATURE JOINS WITH THE STRENGTH OF MAN

2 ARCA THE MARK OF QUALITY FOR TIMBER BUILDINGS ARCA, ARchitettura Comfort Ambiente (Architecture, Comfort, Environment), is the first certification system designed specifically for timber buildings. ARCA certifies not only turnkey buildings but also individual wooden components such as windows, doors, flooring, staircases, X-Lam panels. Who is ARCA intended for? Builders in the timber industry and manufacturers of doors, windows, flooring, staircases, X-Lam panels who wish to certify and guarantee their work by demonstrating the quality of their products. Designers, who are given the opportunity to attend a complete training course and obtain ARCA accreditation in order to design buildings that meet the required standards. Clients, who by demanding ARCA certification are given a guarantee that they can live and work in buildings that are safe, comfortable, efficient and sustainable. ARCA was devised in order to promote quality timber construction, to provide reliable and transparent guarantees of the performance of wooden buildings and to assure people s living and working comfort. ARCA provides accreditation for professionals and companies who undertake to work in accordance with specific quality criteria in order to enhance the prestige of timber construction. How the ARCA brand was born ARCA really does provide a complete service. It certifies all the performance features of a timber building: resistance to earthquakes and fire, durability, energy saving, soundproofing, comfort and environmental sustainability. ARCA provides four levels of certification: green, silver, gold and platinum. G R E E N S I L V E R G O L D PLATINUM The performance of an ARCA house An ARCA certified building is guaranteed to provide the following performance: technical performance earthquake resistance and safety fire resistance and safety, even in the event of a protracted fire energy efficiency soundproofing air permeability controlled mechanical ventilation management construction quality regulations: all work carried out correctly maintenance plan: instruction booklet for the use of your house 10-year posthumous insurance policy: 10-year guarantee from the builder sustainability certified wood from responsibly managed forests integrated design programme: a team of experts at your service low emission materials: short supply chain and use of local products The Autonomous Province of Trento, as part of its plan for the development of the Forestry, Timber and Energy Supply Chain launched in 2009, devised a certification project aimed specifically at the timber housing market: a niche market within the sustainable building industry providing attractive growth prospects. ARCA drew on the experience acquired through the SOFIE project, the seven-storey house that became famous throughout the world in 2007 for having survived unscathed an earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale. Today ARCA is the logical development of the SOFIE project, and can be applied to all types of timber structures, be they built with X-Lam panels or other systems such as the wooden-frame system. Responsibility for running the ARCA project was given to Trentino Sviluppo and to Habitech, the Energy and Environment Cluster. The system was developed by exploiting local research experience (University of Trento, CNR-Ivalsa), the knowhow of companies and institutions and the skills of GBC (Green Building Council) Italy. The result is a certification system that is transparent, efficient, effective and able to guarantee the quality of the building, starting from its performance in terms of reliability, durability and energy efficiency. Building in wood There are two main construction systems for wooden buildings, depending on the base element: either X-Lam panels or the wooden frame consisting of beams and uprights. The X-Lam construction system is based on the use of multi-layered glued wooden panels to build the walls and floors. The wooden frame structure consists of wooden uprights and cross-beams, reinforced with nailed panels.

3 THE ADVANTAGES OF AN ARCA CERTIFIED BUILDING traditional building kwh wooden building consumption kwh per year kwh integrated design resistance to earthquakes fire resistance energy consumption and soundproofing ARCA guarantees you the services of a multi-disciplinary design team. The various professionals meet together right from the start to come up with the best design for your house in every aspect. You get off on the right foot, saving both time and money. ARCA has acquired its excellence through the SOFIE project, the seven-storey building which was the first in the world to withstand unscathed an earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale (the Miki platform, Japan, 2007). In the event of fire, wood is consumed slowly and at a constant speed. An ARCA house is R60: this means that the structure resists fire for at least one hour, allowing time for the occupants to be evacuated and for emergency action to be taken to save the building. A wooden wall 35 centimetres thick has twice the energy containment capacity of a traditional wall. A house can be designated ARCA if it passes the blower door test (which measures air permeability) and the acoustic certification test to ensure greater comfort. durability flexible systems safe chimney environmental sustainability An ARCA house is designed and built using methods that can guarantee its durability. It is guaranteed for a period of time similar to that which is usual for traditional buildings, and there is also the possibility of ten-year posthumous insurance cover. Electrical sockets and other systems can be moved safely, simply and flexibly, because they are located outside the load-bearing structures, not inside the walls. With the chimney of an ARCA house the roof does not catch fire. The temperature of the surface in contact with the wood never exceeds 85 C. Wood is a natural, ecological material which produces very low carbon dioxide emissions during its lifetime, and after the end of its life cycle it is easily disposed of. ARCA awards a higher score for timber that is sourced locally and from sustainably managed forests. timber structure waterproof cement base outer natural thermal (wood fibre) wainscotting ground upright multi-layer panel natural thermal outer plaster hemp fibre plasterboard electrical and plumbing systems chimney Every cubic metre of concrete replaced by one cubic metre of timber means over one ton less of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. CO 2-1 ton In terms of CO 2 emissions, the construction of one three-storey timber building is the equivalent of removing 2600 cars per year from the roads. 5 cm cavity 1 cubic metre 1 cubic metre concrete timber concrete timber

4 TIMBER QUALITY BUILDINGS PH: CARLO BARONI

5 ARCA Casa Legno Srl