Australia’s timber engineers are developing new window systems that use new types of timber that not only meet 7‑Star NATHERS energy ratings but also excel in high‑wind environments. Funded by Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI), a $200‑million‑plus institute backed by $100 million in Commonwealth funding, the AFWI–AGWA Modernising Timber Windows project is looking beyond traditional hardwood timbers – like Vic Ash – to develop the next generation of windows that can take the fight to aluminium and uPVC.
For years, the timber window industry has been stuck in a bind. Increasingly tougher building codes have raised performance expectations just as supplies of traditional hardwoods have dwindled, allowing aluminium to overtake timber as the dominant window material in recent decades. Yet up to 200 Australian joinery companies still manufacture timber windows and doors — a supply chain that has endured despite very little change in approved designs over decades.
Under the National Construction Code, manufacturers are required to either test every window they produce or rely on a tiny set of approved designs — just four in total, none of which reflect today’s demands for glazing, wind, or energy. As a result, it has left the timber window value chain with little flexibility and no room to innovate.
However, the AFWI-funded project is looking to break that deadlock.
Working with the Australian Glass & Window Association, the Australian Timber Development Association is generating new structural and performance data across a wide range of solid and engineered wood products. And instead of relying on outdated assumptions about which species “should” be used, they are testing how different timbers behave under modern loads, how they interact with insulated glass units, and — crucially — how they perform under AS 2047, Australia’s mandatory performance standard for windows and external glazed doors.
“Timber windows haven’t fallen behind because the material isn’t capable,” according to Kylan Low, the Timber Development Association’s engineer, who worked with Jesse Ross, an engineer at the Australian Glass & Window Association, to bring the project to life. “They’ve fallen behind because the data hasn’t kept up with changes in codes, glazing, and timber supply.”
“This project is about closing that gap through proper testing and giving the industry tools it can actually use.”
In total, 10 timber suppliers from across Australia are involved in the project, including Australian Sustainable Hardwoods (ASH) — the country’s largest hardwood processor — and the rapidly expanding Pentarch Group. According to Daniel Wright, ASH’s National Business Development Director, ASH’s Plantation Oak, a high‑value engineered product made from Shining Gum that would otherwise be exported or used for woodchip, is now undergoing testing. “From our perspective, Plantation Oak is moving from development to the mainstream with MASSLAM, and it is well-suited to markets like windows,” Wright told Wood Central. “That’s why we are involved in this project.”
Low said the next tranche of tests, due in the coming weeks, will be pivotal. Speaking to Wood Central, he said the data will help identify the best species and designs that are ‘fit for purpose’. “It’s the kind of information the industry has been craving for a very long time,” he said.
The work could give manufacturers and joiners the flexibility they’ve lacked for years. And with traditional species like Vic Ash becoming much harder to source, the project’s species‑substitution validation approach could be one of its most important contributions — allowing joiners and manufacturers to operate ‘business as usual’ as availability changes.
And the windows are evolving, too. Low said profiles and details are being redesigned to accommodate heavier glazing and higher wind pressures, with an emphasis on manufacturability and realistic supply chains. The aim, he said, is to ensure that timber windows are fully aligned with the buildings they serve.
One of 30 research projects through its National Open Call and its three research centres at the University of Tasmania, the University of Melbourne and the University of the Sunshine Coast, AFWI is fast becoming one of Australia’s largest research institutions.
Last month, Dr Joseph Lawrence – AFWI’s executive director – said the $23 billion dollar forest value chain has a “once‑in‑a‑generation” opportunity to partner with world‑leading researchers and accelerate innovation at scale. “It makes us one of the largest research institutes in Australia, currently, which is very significant,” Dr Lawrence said. “The intent is always for industry and the research sector to join hands with the government to get the best return on investment.”
Housing (and doors and windows), he said, is one of the most obvious areas where Australian timber can deliver immediate benefits and solutions. “That’s where we see a real opportunity for Australian timber to be ramped up — for engineered wood to be ramped up — to be producing faster, safer and higher‑quality housing, all made here. So we can solve all the potential crises we are facing around shortages.”
