New Senate Bill Introduced to Create Financing for Mass Timber

A new bill introduced in the Michigan Senate could create new financing opportunities for mass timber construction and mass timber manufacturing and fabrication in Michigan. Senate Bill 1191 (sponsors Sens. Sam Singh and John Damoose) would create a revolving loan fund to provide meaningful funding support to advance mass timber. Read the bill below and keep an eye on it if you're interested!

MassTimber@MSU and Climate Futures Host Event at U-M Climate Week

We had a great group at University of Michigan’s second annual Climate Week for our "Emerging Innovations in Mass Timber: Regional Advancements in Policy, Practice, and Education" event, co-hosted with Climate Futures/Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning, University of Michigan. This event gathered leaders from policy, industry, design, and education to explore the innovations needed to scale a mass timber ecosystem across the Great Lakes region.

Thanks to our amazing lineup of speakers – Adam Smith (SYNECDOCHE), George Berghorn (MSU Department of Forestry), Luke Barnett (Sam Beauford Woodworking Institute), Susan Jones (atelierjones llc), Kathryn Fernholz (Dovetail Partners, Inc.), Ben Ridderbos (Gensler), Sandra Lupien (MassTimber@MSU), – and to our collaborator Jen Maigret.

Celebrate Michigan’s Mass Timber Momentum 

Registration is still open for our annual celebration of Michigan mass timber momentum! The 2026 Michigan Mass Timber Update is set for December 16 at the Vanguard by Marriott in Ann Arbor. This event, hosted by MassTimber@MSU, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and Renewable Resource Solutions, is a one-day gathering featuring short, upbeat presentations by an array of folks actively advancing mass timber in Michigan. We are happy to welcome Turner Construction Company as presenting sponsor.

MassTimber@MSU Attends the Mass Timber+ Conference in Philadelphia

We had an amazing time at Mass Timber Plus hosted by WoodWorks in Philadelphia. Sandra Lupien facilitated a panel featuring Aaron Schiller and Robert Hairstans on new models and policies to scale mass timber housing using regional wood.

In addition to Sandra, our mighty Michigan group included Jill Ramirez of Three Squared, Inc., Ben Ridderbos of Gensler, Sadashiv Mallya of Lawrence Technological University, Jacob Loew of Progressive Companies, Tim Lasher of Clark Contracting Services, and Chad Thelen of Clark Construction Company. In addition to featuring great content and an expo hall, the conference offered an ideal opportunity to reconnect with hundreds of colleagues from across the country and around the world to help build #MIMassTimberMomentum!

Berghorn, Lupien Join Housing Innovation Workshop in DC

MassTimber@MSU's Sandra Lupien and George Berghorn participated in "Transforming Timber Systems: Scotland-USA Housing Innovation Workshop" in Washington, DC. Hosts Edinburgh Napier University, Built Environment - Smarter Transformation, MOD X, and University of Arkansas convened 18 academic and industry professionals from across the U.S. to consider ways to build international partnerships to accelerate timber innovation, affordable housing, and industrialized construction. We look forward to ongoing collaboration around these opportunities!

Michigan Group at the 2027 International Mass Timber Conference

As always, we are looking forward to recruiting a Michigan group to attend the International Mass Timber Conference & Expo in Portland, Oregon, in the Spring (March 16-19, 2027). If you are a mass timber champion or just starting to become interested in mass timber construction or production, this conference is the place to dramatically expand your knowledge, your understanding of this ecosystem, and your network.

If you want to join our Michigan group, please email Sandra Lupien with your email address and we will send you a 10% discount code and also get you plugged into communications with our Michigan group.

Early bird registration (30% discount for regular passes) ends November 19.

George Berghorn Speaks at the 18th GRIHA Summit in New Delhi, India

MassTimber@MSU Research Director George Berghorn traveled to India last week to speak at the 18th GRIHA Summit. George spoke on the panel titled “Low Carbon Envelope - Low Impact Buildings.” Following the conference, George presented a seminar to the graduate students at the Lady Irwin College (University of Delhi) Resource Management and Design Application Department, titled “Building Regional Ecosystems for Innovative Sustainable Construction Materials: A Case Study of MassTimber@MSU.”

MI Mass Timber Community of Practice - Recording Available

If you missed the last community of practice meeting, the recording is now available on our website! A huge thank you to our speakers, Bob Dressler and Scott Charney of Quality Buildings, and Michaela Harms of Simpson Strong-Tie, for their presentations on mass timber system sourcing and cost estimating.

If you're actively involved in mass timber in Michigan and would like to attend future meetings, visit the link below.