Eco-friendly homes are rising fast to the center of attention. Country house, which used to be mainly reserved for retirees, have recently attracted attention among young people for living or as their second house. This naturally leads to a demand for wooden houses rather than concrete or rebar. In the United States, the boom in wooden houses has led to a shortage of building materials and a sharp rise in the price of North American lumber. In Housing is a company that constructs premium but cost-effective wooden houses with which it presents a new paradigm in the Korean wooden house market.

 

In Housing builds a house on trust

As the saying goes, “Once you build a house, you will grow old for 10 years.” That means building a house is not an ordinary task. When I think about these words, I think it stems from the difference in the intention of the client and the builder. What is the best house? Using the best materials and beautifully designed by a famous company does not make it the best house. The best house will be the one where the builder uses the best materials and makes it at a reasonable price. In Housing CEO Nam Ki-moon is a wood craftsman who has been specializing in making and processing wooden furniture and slab for a long time. He has recently expanded his business into a wooden house business. 

 

CLT (Cross Laminated Timber) is the best wood building material to replace iron and concrete

The biggest feature of the wooden houses manufactured by In Housing is that it uses CLT materials. CLT is a structural wooden building material developed in Europe. It is a thick solid wood laminated by crossing them with each other. CLT is highly stable in terms of insulation and durability and can be manufactured in various thicknesses and lengths, making it the best building structural material to replace iron and concrete in Europe. The use of CLT is also steadily increasing worldwide. 

However, in Korea, CLT has been imported. Naturally, the price was very high, so it was not often used in wooden houses. So In Housing went directly to CLT production. The company currently has all facilities and equipment for production abroad. CEO Nam says, “We are constructing wooden houses by manufacturing CLT ourselves using solid wood imported from Europe.” 

 

Korea’s first directly produced CLT can make a small house in one day

The laminated board used in CLT is a wood composed of a wide board by bonding wood of uniform thickness in the length and width directions. 

Therefore, rapid construction is possible. In Housing, the first in Korea to directly produce CLT, manufactures and processes all columns, beams, and walls in the factory and then installs them on site. CLT is done by cutting and erecting the wall as it is, then inserting the insulation and raising the outer wall to finish the whole process. 

Red pine is the most commonly used CLT in In Housing. Red pine is a European pine tree. It is harder and clearer than cedar, red in color, and has a beautiful pattern with impressive wood rings. Because of its strong water resistance, it is widely used in house construction and interior finishing materials. In Housing focuses on small or mobile houses sized from 19 to 52 square meters. In the case of a small house, the CLT is cut at the factory, then moved to the site and used by a crane or forklift. So it is done in one day including all installations such as septic tanks, boilers, floors and sinks. 

 

Top rated windows used in the United States and Europe increase insulation

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport specifies the minimum thickness required for insulation material construction to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. CLT, which is solid wood, is basically very thick, so it has very good insulation. The CLT itself is a wall. All existing internal processes disappear. If you keep building the CLT, it becomes a wall, and it is very easy to make windows and doors. CEO Nam says, “CLT can simply be considered a complete wooden house. In addition, windows of the highest European or American insulation grade are used to further enhance the insulation effect.” 

 

Offering the best wooden houses at the most reasonable prices

In addition to the housing business, In Housing is also engaged in order to made furniture and wood slab. Nam has more than 10 years of experience in the field and is regarded as one of the best in Korea. He makes the furniture and sinks himself on receiving the order, so the finish is flawless. The advantages of CLT wooden houses are quite numerous, but because CLT itself is very expensive, the construction cost is generally also very high. If CLT is imported and constructed as before, the construction cost per square meter is up to 12 million won. However, since In Housing directly manufactures CLT, it can be constructed for 700~800 million won, which is similar to a general wooden house. 

The company attracted great attention at the KOREAN BUILD held in COEX last month through showcasing a variety of eco-friendly houses. CEO Nam plans to expand the business scope from small houses to general country houses and pensions in the future. 

신태섭 기자  tss79@naver.com