Stora Enso is delivering prefabricated Sylva™ CLT Floors for a groundbreaking 39-storey hybrid mass timber commercial tower in Sydney, set to become the world's tallest of its kind.

This impressive project, designed for Atlassian's new Australian headquarters, integrates advanced mass timber construction techniques to significantly reduce the building's carbon footprint while achieving the highest levels of sustainability certifications. The tower will feature seven "habitats" with naturally ventilated parks, showcasing the future of low-carbon, urban architecture.

Meet the co-owners

The building, co-owned by Dexus and Atlassian, will be home to Atlassian's new Australian headquarters and the anchor of Tech Central, Australia's largest technology and innovation hub.

Atlassian is an Australian technology company with the mission is to unleash the potential in every team. Atlassian's products help teams organise, discuss and complete their work. Atlassian has 11,000+ people across 14 countries and over 300,000 customers.

Contractor

It is being delivered by Australian-owned national contractor, Built, in joint venture with Obayashi.

Consultants

The architect for the base building is a collaboration between SHoP Architects and Australian architects BVN. The structural engineering design was concepted by Eckersley O'Callaghan and developed / delivered by TTW.

Mass timber structure

The structure will include 7,640 m³ of Sylva™ CLT Floors by Stora Enso, and 4,220 m³ of glued laminated timber (GLT/glulam) by our partners, WIEHAG Timber Construction. Together the mass timber elements will significantly reduce the building's overall carbon footprint. The entire structure will be wrapped in a steel exoskeleton.

The building is designed with seven timber "habitats," consisting of three mass timber floors each featuring a naturally ventilated park. The ventilation strategy permeates the mixed mode spaces adjacent the ventilated park area, enhancing the building's sustainability and comfort.

Manufacturing the Sylva™ CLT elements from PEFC certified wood generated 402 tonnes of greenhouse gases (CO₂e). However, the carbon dioxide removed from the air and stored in the floors and roofs is 5,821 tonnes of CO_2. Source Stora Enso Carbon Calculator based on_. third-party verified environmental product declarations.

The emissions avoided by using Sylva instead of non-renewable construction materials is a staggering 8,732 tonnes of CO₂e.

The project is leveraging Stora Enso's Sylva Services, which will apply UV and hydrophobic coatings in their fully automated coating line. They will also be applying End Grain Sealer, Insecticide, and using Stora Enso's Technical Support and digital tool Sylva360™ to increase on-site/logistical efficiencies.

Sustainability

The project aims for top-tier environmental standards, including Platinum LEED and Platinum WELL certifications, and 6-star Green Star, 5.5 Star NABERS Energy Commitment Agreement and 4 Star NABERS Water ratings.

The project included Sylva primarily because of the material's low carbon footprint as third-party verified environmental product declarations. The transport of the CLT and LVL elements generated a little over 200 tonnes of CO2e, which is less than the emissions would be for, say, transporting to neighbouring Paris, France, as sea freight is more efficient and wood is a relatively lightweight building material. (Source: Stora Enso Carbon Calculator).

Importing CLT from countries like Austria, where the technology and expertise are well-established, allows Australia to leverage advanced manufacturing techniques and high-quality materials that may not yet be widely available domestically. (Architecture & Design)

Integrating heritage into modern design

An important aspect of the project is the integration of the existing heritage-listed Parcels Shed building, which previously housed Railway Square YHA. The heritage timber from this building has been preserved and will be incorporated into the new development, serving as a public accessible space. The 137 room YHA on-site will be included in the lower levels of the new tower, maintaining its historical significance while contributing to the modern design. (Built)

Did you know prefabricated Sylva kits have been used to build several of the tallest high-rise timber buildings around the world, including notable projects in Australia? Here are some of the key projects:

Mjøstårnet in Brumunddal, Norway: At 85.4 metres tall, this 18-story building was the tallest timber building in the world at the time of its completion in 2019.

25 King Street in Brisbane, Australia: This 10-story, 52-metre tall office building was Australia's tallest engineered timber building when it was completed in 2018.

International House Sydney: Another significant project in Australia, this building is known for its innovative use of timber and has won multiple awards for its design and sustainability.

Hall Street, First Passivhaus in Tasmania.

First Building, in Australia's newest city in over a century on the doorstep of the new Western Sydney International Airport (WSI).

Atlassian will be 182 m tall when completed. To put that in perspective:

The Gherkin in London: 180 m/591 ft.

Nauru House in Melbourne: 182 m/597 ft.

Tour Granite in La Défense, Paris:183 m/600 ft.

Trianon in Frankfurt stands at 186 m /610 ft.

Turning Torso in Malmö is 190 m/ 623 ft.

Millennium Tower in Vienna stands at 171 m/ 561 ft) to the roof, but including its antenna, it is 202 m/663 ft.

Space Needle in Seattle is 184 m /605 ft.

Learn more

Watch our short Sylva Talks video about building at scale with Sylva: Sylva Talks.