Kingston students construct replica of 17th century Japanese bridge

Kingston University students will display a 1:3 replica of Japan’s 17th century timber Kintaikyo Bridge at Ecobuild. One arch of the complex structure has been constructed using individual components made from 700m of sustainably sourced timber, spanning approximately 12m.

Footprint spoke to senior lecturer Tim Gough, who discussed how the project focused on understanding embodied energy and sustainable materials during the construction process. Three key elements to the project were: materiality, form and strategy.

Materiality: The use of timber results in a low-carbon structure.

Form: By using an arch configuration, significant spans can be achieved without the need for steel.

Strategy: The largest timber section is just 50mm x 75mm. Therefore the members could be made up entirely of offcuts from another process.

This approach could be applied to many other projects.

See the 1:3 replica of Kintaikyo Bridge at Ecobuild this week.

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