Category: People

Sam Cooper takes over leadership of Holmes Group

The Holmes Group Board is delighted to announce Sam Cooper will step into the Holmes Group Managing Director role in July 2026.

Sam first started with Holmes in 2001, adding US and international experience with Thorton Tomasetti based in New York, before returning to Holmes in 2013. As Managing Principal for Holmes in Australia and New Zealand, Sam has been leading the largest part of the business since 2022. During his time as Managing Principal, Sam has presided over a highly successful period for the business in Australasia.

Sam will take over from John Hare, who held the role over a very prosperous decade for Holmes Group, during which the business nearly doubled in size and significantly extended its international reach. John will continue at Holmes, guiding strategy, supporting the development of our leaders, and continuing to make a strong contribution to the engineering industry at the highest level.

Mark Whiteside, current Regional Manager for the South, takes over from Sam as the Managing Principal for Holmes in Australia and New Zealand. Mark has been at Holmes since 2004, including many years as a Project Director and Business Manager for the Christchurch office, and most recently as Regional Manager in the South Island.

These changes all take effect on 1 July 2026, with a long transition period ensuring continuity and stability for Holmes and our clients and partners.

 

Celebrating 30 Years of Fire at Holmes

Fire Practice 30 Year Celebration!

This year marks an extraordinary milestone for our Holmes Fire Practice—30 years of delivering innovative fire engineering solutions.

Our Fire team has grown from a small practice to an industry leader, recognised for our commitment to technical excellence, innovation, and collaboration. To mark the occasion, we enjoyed a morning tea across our New Zealand and Australian offices, sharing stories and reflecting on the collective effort that has brought us here today. 

This milestone wouldn’t have been possible without:

  • Our team: the incredible dedication of our team, who bring passion and expertise to every project.
  • Our clients: the trust of our clients who have allowed us to be part of their journey.
  • Our community: the support of our project partners, who have advocated for fire safety across our projects.

Here’s to the next chapter of our Fire Practice! Thank you to everyone who has been part of this incredible story both within Holmes and for those connected to our business—this celebration is thanks to you.

 

 

Martin Feeney recognised as Distinguished Fellow by Engineering NZ

We are thrilled to congratulate Martin Feeney on being recognised as a Distinguished Fellow of Engineering New Zealand Te Ao Rangahau.

Martin has been at Holmes for 30 years and was one of the first engineers to practice fire engineering in Aotearoa.

In their announcement, Engineering NZ outlined Martin’s status and contribution in glowing terms:

“(He has) become one of Aotearoa’s, and the world’s, acknowledged experts in structural fire engineering. He has written and presented many papers and spent countless hours contributing to the development of standards and guidelines that advance the state of practice. He was instrumental in developing IPENZ Practice Note 22, Documenting Fire Safety, a major step forward in clarifying the often-complex relationship between fire engineering and the other design disciplines. He continues to contribute widely through his roles in the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and other industry bodies.”

Martin’s contributions to fire engineering are nothing short of incredible, and we’re proud to say he’s part of Holmes.

 

Scholarship award for Timber Conference in Norway

Michael Williamson, Design Engineer at Holmes ANZ recently attended the World Conference on Timber Engineering (WCTE) in Oslo, Norway, after being awarded a scholarship by the NZ Timber Design Society. We had the pleasure of catching up with Michael to hear more about his amazing trip and what he learned about what’s new in the world of timber.

 

Q: How did you end up going on this trip? What was the process for being selected?

Michael: I was awarded a scholarship from the Timber Design Society. The application was a two-page proposal about how to increase the uptake of engineered timber in NZ. My proposal focused on how to give NZ practitioners the confidence to solve engineered timber challenges through sharing challenges and solutions on real world projects. There is plenty of uncertainty around many aspects of the delivery of engineered timber projects, and we need to share successes and failures on our NZ projects to help reduce this uncertainty and advance our industry.

 

Q: What inspired you to apply?

Michael: After working on a mass timber project, I found that I enjoyed the technical challenge of timber, so I to gain exposure to the wider industry. Designing in timber is a great way to reduce carbon emissions from construction, so it’s an opportunity for us structural engineers make a difference towards mitigating climate change. Going to Europe was a bonus too!”

 

Q: What was the top 3 take aways from the event?

Michael: My main learnings were around how the the world of timber is changing in regard to structural engineering.

  • Fire performance is still the most limiting, challenging and contentious aspect of mass timber buildings. There were a lot more questions than answers.
  • CLT is really becoming the hot engineered timber product. It’s being used for diaphragms, floor plates in point supported contexts (no gravity beams) and walls as part of the lateral frame. There appears to be strong potential for CLT, but there is still plenty of research and work to be done to increase its uptake.
  • It’s a lot easier to design a mid or high rise mass timber building in regions without earthquakes, but there are some cutting-edge, seismically resistant timber buildings coming out of the West Coast of the States and the Pacific Northwest. We should start to see similar buildings popping up around NZ in the next few years.

 

Q: In your opinion, where do you think NZ ranks currently in relation to the rest of the engineering world when it comes to mass timber and sustainability?

Michael: NZ is a bit behind Europe in regard to the uptake of mass timber, however, our regulations around reducing our construction emissions to achieve the national net zero carbon emissions 2050 target should push us to be a leader in sustainability. There is good reason why NZ is probably a bit behind – we have to deal with a significant seismic hazard, and the knowledge around the seismic performance of mass timber buildings is still developing. In my opinion, NZ ranks near the front for mass timber engineering in regions of high seismicity – perhaps this also says that there is still a bit of work to do in this field.

Q: Tell us one weird thing you ate/drank/saw/did while at the conference. 

Michael: I tried reindeer at a restaurant after the conference!

Congratulations from all of us at Holmes ANZ on winning the scholarship! 

Meet Daly Peeti – Drafter and creative.

ANZAC Day is happening tomorrow (in Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia), and we had the pleasure of speaking with Daly Peeti, one of our Drafters who is part of the Infrastructure Team in Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland)—but did you know she also served in the Royal New Zealand Navy?

 

Question: So, Daly, tell us a little about yourself and your former career.

Daly: I was part of the Royal New Zealand Navy for eight years; I joined straight out of High School. During my time with the Navy, I have been a Systems Combat Specialist and an Electronic Technician (specialising in Radars). I have completed six deployments: an Ice Trip to Antarctica, a six-month tour of Southeast Asia, deployment to Canada, various shorter deployments here in Aotearoa NZ, an anti-piracy tour in the Seychelles, East Coast tour of the US, and I even went on an exchange with the Royal Navy for a year based in Portsmouth.

 

Q: That’s such an amazing list of experiences and an incredible life to lead! So, what made you decide to change careers and become a Drafter? Can you tell us a little more about that?

Daly: Sure! I was ready to settle down. Not seeing my partner for nine months out of the year (he was also in the Navy) and being away from family–I was looking for something a little closer to home. I wanted to pursue something I was really passionate about, and after trying different placements and discovering what I enjoyed most I realised I really enjoyed the papers I was doing part-time online while still in the Navy.

Q: Wow! So, you were still in the Navy full time and studying as well? That’s impressive! Was there something that inspired you to choose Drafting?

Daly: I’d done Graphic Design in High School. And after doing Unitec part-time for one and a half years I decided I wanted to do it full-time to complete my studies. So, I left the Navy to focus on finishing my studies, but I am still a Reservist with the Royal New Zealand Navy.

 

Q: Was there a particular reason you chose a Drafting career in Engineering?

Daly: Yes! Jess Baker and Mark Polglase came to do a presentation at Unitec about Holmes, and what they talked about sounded really interesting. After chatting with Jess a bit more I discovered I could do a six-month placement in the Infrastructure Team and then swap (with Sara, who has now left) to do a six month placement in the Structures team. But I’ve really liked learning everything here in the Infrastructure team, so I am quite happy to stay here for now and progress more with my skills.

Interviewer: That’s really cool that you get the opportunity to influence and shape where your career takes you!

Q: What does ANZAC Day mean to you?

Daly: It’s about honouring the people who put their lives on the line. The sacrifice they made by leaving their families.
At the RSA on ANZAC Day, it’s incredible to hear the stories from the older guys on what it was like for them, and as time goes on these opportunities to hear their stories are fewer–there isn’t many of them left. And, as a Reservist I still can help and give back too.

Q: Do you have plans for ANZAC Day tomorrow?

Daly: Yes. I’ll be taking my Nana to see the local ANZAC Day parade. Reservists are allowed to attend services in their uniform–but that’s a personal choice to do so.
It’s been so long since we have been able to hold celebrations on ANZAC Day, it’s nice to have the freedom to get together. I remember during the height of COVID lockdown I lived in a Navy house, on a street with quite a few Navy houses, and we all dressed up in our uniforms and went to our Letterboxes for ANZAC Day–it was quite moving.

Q: Thank you so much for sharing with us Daly, I really appreciate the time. It’s been incredible hearing about this amazing life you’ve already led prior to joining Holmes!

Daly: Thanks for having me!

First human entry to the Christ Church Cathedral!

In case you missed it—last week, after more than two years of strengthening work, humans were finally given the all clear to safely enter the Ōtautahi (Christchurch) Christ Church Cathedral for the first time since Urban Search and Rescue in 2011, post earthquake!

As part of the Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Project team, our very own Manager of Structures South, Peter Carney, was one of two people (pictured) to enter the site.

Prior to human entry, ‘Spot’ the remote-controlled robot dog, drones, and an impressive remote-controlled digger were the only technologies to have entered the Cathedral—as part of the Reinstatement Project. So it was a true privilege and honour for Pete to be one of the first humans to enter this site!

Our team of expert structural engineers and drafters are proud to be part of the team helping deliver this important ‘Rebuild Christchurch’ project. The Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited (CCRL) was established in August 2018 with the sole purpose of reinstating Christ Church Cathedral. Holmes is proud to be working alongside Keith Paterson (CRRL’s Project Director), the team at Naylor Love, Rawlinsons, Warren and Mahoney, and Heritage Professionals William Fulton and Jenny May.

[Image credit: © Tom Cuthbert \ Belmont].

Read more here: First human entry into Cathedral since 2011 (christchurchcathedral.org.nz)

 

Advancing fire safety through standards: Sarnia Rusbridge’s contribution to shaping industry best practice

“Involvement does not take up a huge part of your time, and the contribution you make has a lasting benefit for the industry – and for the country.”

Sarnia Rusbridge, Principal here at Holmes and National Chair of the Society of Fire Safety was recently interviewed by Engineers Australia about her contribution to shaping industry best practice.

Read about her career journey and the value of practical, people-focused design in the snippet below and the full interview here.

Sarnia Rusbridge has built a distinguished career in fire safety engineering, applying her expertise to major infrastructure projects and championing practical, people-focused safety solutions. As National Chair of the Society of Fire Safety, she has helped guide the profession’s future direction and strengthen collaboration across the industry.

We spoke to Sarnia about her journey into fire engineering, the importance of diversity in standards development and how more engineers can play a role in shaping the standards that underpin the built environment.

What initially drew you to engineering, and how did you discover your interest in fire safety engineering?

I had just finished a degree in mechanical engineering and was eager to get out of uni and move into the real world. Unfortunately, New Zealand was going through a bit of a recession and there was very little mechanical engineering work available. 

I remembered that we had someone come in and speak to our final year class about fire engineering, and it struck me as a field with good work opportunity and strong prospects. I didn’t know much about it going in, but pursuing fire safety engineering turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made…

Continue reading the full interview here: Sarnia Rusbridge’s contribution to shaping industry best practice.

Going Green: Sustainability in engineering. An interview with Lisa Oliver, Project Director

‘For returning Kiwi with offshore experience in sustainability and design there has never been a better opportunity to bring those skills home and get involved in a wide variety of projects.’

Lisa Oliver, Project Director here at Holmes was recently interviewed by Kea New Zealand about her passion for mass timber design, her involvement in sustainability, and how Aotearoa New Zealand is well placed to lead the repurposing and strengthening of existing buildings.

Read her interesting insights and where structural engineering has taken her (and her family!) in the world here: Lisa’s Kea Interview

 

Assessing buildings after the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

Who runs the (engineering) world

A Holmes Fire Engineer is a challenger to the expected, motivated to find the best solution for all, and is curious in the face of a new problem. 

Making up nearly 15% of our current team, the women at Holmes have played an important role in our success across Australia, New Zealand and the US. From graduate roles to branch managers, Holmes firmly believes in giving women the tools and support they need to reach their professional goals. As the industry continues to expand and engineering becomes a more common career choice for women, we believe that we have been extremely fortunate to find the right engineers for our team so far but also look forward to discovering talented female fire engineers to join us.

This International Women in Engineering Day #INWED2021, we’ve chosen to shine the spotlight on a few of the women engineers in our Leadership team. In each of their roles and as engineers, they’ve brought their own talents, skills and drive to the table to support Holmes and the wider team as mentors, educators, problem-solvers and luminaries.

Click on their images below to find out a little more about each of these inspiring women.

Sarnia Rusbridge

Project Director

Sydney AU

Kathryn Devine

Business Manager | Project Director

Auckland NZ

Keryn Goble

Project Director

Auckland NZ

Alyson Blair, Senior Fire Engineer Downtown

Alyson Blair

Senior Fire Engineer

San Francisco US

Celebrating diversity at Holmes

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We know diversity and inclusion is a significant opportunity to build stronger, more creative, more resilient teams at Holmes. Each member’s personal journey, vibrant personalities and aspirations offer unique perspectives to complex problems and contribute to the culture we’re so proud of.

This past week, we joined our colleagues in Sydney celebrating Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and those in Aotearoa New Zealand celebrating Pride Month. Holmes is committed to ensuring our people are comfortable and feel respected in their environment—regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

To provide an opportunity to grow and prioritise diversity at Holmes, Together@Holmes (TAHi) was born. TAHi has been formed with a group of people around the business who are passionate about Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DEI) at Holmes.

Our long-term vision at Holmes is to be more representative of the communities we serve— and the places we live and work.

At Holmes, we encourage our team to dream big and therefore, empower them to achieve their goals;

  • In an environment where you can relax and be yourself.
  • Where we recognise and value diversity of thought and approach.
  • With equal support and equal opportunity to grow and develop.

Holmes opens in Melbourne

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We’re excited to announce Holmes is now operating in Melbourne!

Following the success of over 20 years in Sydney, and two years in Brisbane—our Melbourne office will allow us to more easily service and add value for our increasing number of clients in Victoria.

We will be bringing the high levels of quality and service that Holmes is renowned for. In addition, we want to open the Melbourne market’s eyes to the cost savings and design potential that performance-based structural fire engineering can bring to projects of all sectors.

Launching the expansion south will be Mathew Freeman (CPEng), a Technical Director here with us at Holmes.

In the 11+ years Matt has been with Holmes, he’s become a Chartered Professional Engineer on the National Engineers Register in Fire Safety and is an accredited Fire Safety Engineer [QLD, NSW & VIC]. Matt specialises in Fire Safety Engineering, Infrastructure Fire Safety, CFD Modelling, Evacuation Assessments, Interim Fire Safety Strategies, Building Code of Australia (BCA) Assessments and has had extensive experience on projects from all sectors.

Matt not only brings a wealth of technical knowledge with him but also has the necessary business experience, having successfully managed the Sydney office as Branch Manager. We have no doubt that Matt will bring his secrets of success to the Melbourne market.

Matt will continue to be supported by the 25+ engineers in our Sydney and Brisbane offices, and our greater international team.

Get in touch to find out more about Holmes and how we can develop fire safety strategies that work best for you.

SAFIR Update; Improved Connections Supporting Faster Analysis

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Holmes Fire provided financial support for the new updates of the SAFIR non-linear finite element program with our very own Linus Lim providing input on connections development. SAFIR is a specialist finite element program that has been developed by Professor Jean-Marc Franssen (University of Liege) and Associate Professor Thomas Gernay (Johns Hopkins University) for the bespoke analysis of the structures in fire. From the numerous structural fire projects that Holmes Fire have undertaken, we recognised the need to improve the rotational hinge definition in the previous versions of the SAFIR program and provided financial support for the development of a new rotational hinge model in SAFIR, which also included the added ability to model semi-rigid connections. These new connection capabilities will enable engineers to represent boundary conditions of structural supports and connections more accurately. This can result in faster run times, better predictions of structural fire performance of real structures and can result in greater optimisation of fire protection of steel structures.

This development has been eagerly anticipated by the wider SAFIR user community due to the programs more user-friendly interface which results in faster implementation of these connections in the program and includes faster analysis times which will enable the faster delivery of results on projects.

Find useful resources and more about SAFIR here.

Celebrating 30 years with Martin Feeney!

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Our Holmes team in Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of their Principal, Martin Feeney at Holmes Group with a morning tea. As one of the founders of Holmes Fire, Martin has had a pivotal role in shaping the company and its success as well as within the fire engineering industry.

Martin started as a structural engineer in May 1986 when Holmes Consulting (the name our Structures and Infrastructures Practices used to be called) was Holmes Wood Poole and Johnson and after a brief stint at Hera, he joined the newly formed ‘Holmes Fire’ team (the name our Fire Practice was called) in 1996. It is fair to say Martin’s contribution, not only to Holmes Fire, but the fire engineering community, in general, is unsurpassed. He has been a leader in all aspects of fire engineering, and a huge part of the success of Holmes.

Congratulations on this amazing achievement Martin!

It’s been a decade! Richard Green—10 years at Holmes.

It’s been a decade! Richard Green—10 years at Holmes.

Richard is a Fire Engineer based in our Sydney office and is a very valued member of the team. After dedicating ten years of his working life to Holmes Fire, we asked him some questions to get an insight into the culture at Holmes Fire and how Fire Engineering has developed for him over this time.

Why Holmes Fire?

The best thing about Holmes is definitely its people and its culture. When I met Glen, Holmes Fire Australia’s CEO, back in Christmas of 2007, I felt straight away that Holmes Fire was the kind of place that I’d like to work. It was soon after, I met some of the staff, many of whom are also still here today only confirming that this was a team I would work well with and ultimately learn a lot from and time has proved that!

 

What is your greatest achievement at Holmes Fire?

From a project perspective, It would definitely have to be finishing V by Crown in Parramatta, which will be completed construction in the next couple of months.

Personally however, managing to keep a work life balance is also a great achievement for me, considering when I started at Holmes I had a very different life, sans kids! But maybe ask me that again when I have to start doing the school drop offs and I may have a different response!

 

What have you seen change at Holmes over the last 10 years?

Pleasingly, not much. Holmes has kept a consistency in how they practice and their culture. Apart from the increase in staff numbers as the company has grown, noting it has now doubled in numbers, it is still the same place I started at 10 years ago.

 

What makes Holmes a great place to work?

That one is easy! The people.

 

Reflecting on your work, do you have any key projects that have been important and particularly influential for you, since you have been at Holmes?

As mentioned prior, V by Crown as it had a bit of everything from a Fire Engineering perspective, so I definitely learnt a lot.

Top Ryde City Living would also be up there. As one of my first major projects with Holmes Fire, this will always be memorable, and as a bonus the team on the project were great, always making a project more rewarding to be a part of. Despite some late stage hurdles, it was a great project to complete.

 

What have been the biggest changes you have seen in the industry?

The housing boom in Sydney which has affected the growth of high density living, this is seen through the increased level of high-rise residential projects we have worked on over recent years.

A great positive change for me would be the culture shift of Fire Engineers within a project team, being recognised as a value add for a project rather than a necessary evil. The shift of including Fire Engineers within the early developments of a building is growing and we are noticing the positive role this has on the overall management of a project’s fire safety strategy through both the design and construction.

Finally, social media has created a wider conversation and platform to share ideas and innovation within the engineering environment as a whole. This, for us is shrinking the gap between disciplines and improving innovation within design, engineering and construction as a whole.

 

On behalf of Holmes Fire and the wider Holmes Group, we would like to thank Richard for his contribution over the years, not only to his projects but to our company. Congratulations on this great achievement!

Holmes is heading to Antarctica!

Holmes is heading to Antarctica!

Holmes is pleased to be the appointed Fire Engineer for the redevelopment of Antarctica New Zealand’s Scott Base. Mike Inwood and Reuben Costello from our Holmes, Fire Practice team, are the primary team for the project.

Holmes will be working within the building services team, led by Steensen Varming.
The wider consultant team include:

Architecture: Jasmax–Hugh Broughton Architects

Quantity Surveying: Turner and Townsend

Structural/Civil Engineering: WSP Opus

Building Services: Steensen Varming

The existing Scott Base facility is reaching the end of its functional life. The redevelopment of Scott Base will allow scientists from across the globe to continue researching some of the most important science of this generation. The outcome will be a facility fit for purpose to support our world-leading scientists in one of the most isolated places on Earth for the next 50 years.

The design of a building in Antarctica presents specific challenges due to the remote location and unique climate. The design and implementation of fire safety at the base needs to consider life safety in the immediate period during the fire event, long term operation of the base post fire, and asset protection/robustness.

Given the location and harsh environmental conditions in Antarctica, certain bespoke fire safety solutions, developed from first principles, will be required to ensure that the designs either meet, or indeed surpass, NZ fire safety design and best practice.

The team at Holmes is looking forward to the challenges ahead.

For further information:

http://www.antarcticanz.govt.nz/whats-new/new-zealands-coolest-redevelopment/

Photo Credit: Photo from ANZ attributed to Fiona Shanhun.

A new Fellow of the institution of Engineers Australia has been announced

A new Fellow of the institution of Engineers Australia has been announced

We would like to extend a big congratulations to our Project Director, Sarnia Rusbridge who has been awarded the status of Fellow of the institution of Engineers Australia. This is a very prestigious accolade worth celebrating.

Sarnia has been with Holmes Fire for nearly 13 years, and as an established senior in our team, Sarnia is a positive mentor for our junior and senior fire engineers alike. Sarnia brings significant experience to our clients from her involvement in projects of all scales offering fire engineering performance solutions, BCA Assessments, performance based design and fire safety upgrades.

Sarnia is accredited as a Chartered Member of Engineers Australia (CPEng) and a Registered Engineer on the National Professional Engineers Register (NPER) in Fire Safety. Her involvement over the years with the Society of Fire led her to be Chair of the NSW Chapter. Additionally Sarnia is a C10 Accredited Certifier (Fire Safety Engineering Compliance) in NSW, a Registered Professional Engineer (Fire Engineering) of Queensland (RPEQ) and a Registered Building Practitioner (Engineer / Fire Safety) with the Building Practitioners Board of Victoria.

The greater team at Holmes Fire would like to congratulate Sarnia for achieving fellowship. Her hard work and dedication over the years to her colleagues and clients, in addition to her greater commitment to the fire engineering industry, is now deservedly honoured by this title.

Another Chartered Professional Engineer joins the Holmes team!

Another Chartered Professional Engineer joins the Holmes team!

It’s an exciting start to the year for Holmes. We’re pleased to announce Erik Carlsson has achieved the status of Chartered Professional Engineer under the Engineers Australia accreditation scheme.

Erik has been part of the Holmes team since 2011. Graduating from Lund University in Sweden, Erik developed his Fire Engineering skills in the Sydney office whilst also assisting our Aotearoa New Zealand offices, as required. After 18 months working in our San Francisco office, he is now back in Australia working with the Sydney team. Erik brings a global mind-set and experience to our team—helping us to think outside the box that the Australian regulatory system can sometimes impose.

We’d like to congratulate Erik, after all his dedicated work over the years—this is a well-deserved achievement to have his competency officially recognised by Engineers Australia. And for Holmes, it’s great to add another Chartered Professional Engineer to our already experienced team, enabling us to deliver even more high quality fire engineering for our clients. Well done Erik on your hard work, it’s a fantastic accolade!

Holmes opens office in Brisbane, Queensland

Holmes opens office in Brisbane, Queensland

Holmes is pleased to announce the official opening of an office in Brisbane. This expansion will enable the Holmes team to more easily service the increasing number of clients in Queensland who are adding value to their projects through the implementation of Performance Based Fire Engineering.

The office will be led by James O’Neill, who is already hard at work on local projects. With support from the Sydney team, we’re able to service Queensland projects of any size. So, if you have a project in Queensland that is on the horizon, let us know and we will tell you about all the benefits the project can achieve through a fire engineering approach.

Tall Timber: The way of the future

Tall Timber: The way of the future

Buildings constructed of engineered timber products such as glulam, Cross Laminated Timber (CLT), and Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) are starting to pop up all across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. It’s easy to see why, as timber has many advantages when compared to more traditional materials such as steel or concrete and there is a real demand in the market for the cost and carbon savings that timber can deliver, as well as the excellent aesthetic exposed timber can provide to a building’s design.

Engineers Australia featured a nine page spread about timber buildings in their March 2017 issue to explore why there is such a growing demand. In writing the piece, the EA editors sought the input of one of Fire Engineers here at Holmes, James O’Neill (who is our resident timber expert) having completed his PhD on the performance of multi-storey timber buildings exposed to fire.

You can read the article from the Engineers Australia magazine here.

Courtesy create magazine published by Engineers Australia.