// ON THE RECORD
WoodWorks Atlantic
WoodWorks Atlantic (Atlantic WoodWORKS!) is a non-profit regional program operated by the Maritime Lumber Bureau (MLB) that promotes and supports the use of wood in non-residential and multi-unit construction across Atlantic Canada. It provides free technical advice, code-compliance guidance, and educational resources to architects, engineers, developers, building/fire officials, and government on light-frame and mass-timber structural systems. The program is the Atlantic regional arm of the Canadian Wood Council (CWC) national WoodWorks network and is funded by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), Natural Resources Canada, the Canadian Wood Council, and Atlantic provincial governments. Its mandate is to increase demand for regionally produced wood products by helping design and building teams make wood construction commercially and technically viable.
📍 Amherst, Nova Scotia, CanadaEst. 2011✓ 90% first-party verified
// CLIPS FROM WoodWorks Atlantic
“what we're accustomed to here is well my father built it that way and his father built it that way”
“getting a container freighted from China costs 30 times more than what it did in 2018”
“the issue is you want to catch this into design if you're catching this during construction it's going to cost you more”
“imagine you're building a shiny new building and your envelope leaks or your system fails”
“net zero is any building that if you add renewable energy you can get to net zero”
“we have a new technology licensed from NRC to measure the R value non-destructively of low slope roofs”
“if the roof doesn't leak water it's fine”
“I always go back to first principles and I think of reduce reuse and recycle”
“the efficiency preferred partner network is a collective of over 300 partners”
// LESSONS FROM WoodWorks Atlantic
Commission the building envelope early in design — catching defects in design is exponentially cheaper than fixing them during or after construction.
Third-party envelope commissioners are welcomed by contractors, not feared — they provide independent validation that protects everyone, including trades proud of their work.
The new energy code's air-leakage requirements mean building owners will need envelope testing on all new projects — subcontractors should price for this work now.
Selling high-performance building products in Atlantic Canada requires mindset change before product demonstration — the market defaults to 'my father built it that way.'
Mass timber conversations in Atlantic Canada are accelerating faster than any other market segment the Rothoblaas rep has seen — budget over-runs, not lack of interest, are the primary bottleneck.
Invest in passive house envelope quality first (R40-R50, airtight) before adding renewable energy systems — the envelope lasts 50-100 years while mechanical systems last 10-20.
// SELECTED PROJECTS
Cunard Street Live/Work/Grow, Halifax
CompletedTechnical advisory / advocacy support (project profiled by WoodWorks Atlantic; MLB hosts its cost-comparison study)
First-of-its-kind regional multi-storey mass-timber building: glulam columns/beams + nail-laminated timber floors on a concrete foundation; 3 office levels, 2 residential levels (7 units), rooftop garden terrace. Architect: Fowler Bauld & Mitchell (FBM / FBM Architecture), principal Susan Fitzgerald (FBM acted as its own client). Won a Halifax Urban Design Award and a Wood Design & Building Award citation. Vinicius Correa described the glulam frame being erected on site during the podcast interview (BuildGreen Atlantic, Halifax Convention Centre). MLB hosts a cost-comparison PDF for this project at atlanticwoodworks.ca.
Wood Solutions Conference Halifax 2025
CompletedCo-organizer (with the Canadian Wood Council)
Held November 19-20, 2025 (welcome reception Nov 19, full education day Nov 20). Focused on tall wood, sustainability, and low-carbon housing via prefabricated light-wood-frame and mass-timber systems. Presented by WoodWorks Atlantic and the Canadian Wood Council.
2025 Building Tour: Mass Timber and Modular Wood Construction
CompletedOrganizer
October 8, 2025 (12:00-16:00 ADT). Lunch-and-learn plus guided tours of a six-storey modular residential development and a mass-timber addition at the Confederation Centre of the Arts. PPE required; CE credits offered. Event page live on atlanticwoodworks.ca.
// KEY PEOPLE
// NOTABLE