Reclaimed Plywood Pavilion – Fall 2025

In Fall 2025, the Timber Tectonics studio reclaimed plywood panels to create a demonstration pavilion for the City of Tualatin’s Community Park extension. University of Oregon’s Architecture and Oregon State University’s Wood Science and Engineering students worked together to research, design and prototype reusable plywood building methods.

The class focused on reclaiming panels whose 2D profiles could be efficiently & precisely cut with a Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) router and joined minimal metal fasteners to simplify how the project could be replicated.

Initially, groups of three students modeled and diagrammed the construction process for an existing plywood building system. After reviewing the varied approaches, each group proposed their own system for the Tualatin park structures. The class worked as a whole to consolidate the best features from these proposals into a quickly buildable project. They looked at how modular components could be cut within the dimensional constraints of reclaimed 24” x 96” x 1/2” plywood panels and later re-used. They looked at ways to create longer, stronger elements such as constructing composite box elements or lamination. They designed and tested joints that enable fast assembly and disassembly, selecting pegged tongue-and-grooves for the frame with mortise and tenons for the wall panels.

The pavilion’s size and technical requirements were reduced to simplify the problem. The structure did not have to keep people warm but just protect from rain and moisture. So students detailed the roof, open walls and supports to reduce the wood’s moisture exposure, also testing sealants for the different components.

For the final pavilion, components were prepared in Eugene and Corvallis, with plywood lamination, MPP platform cutting and the collaborative final two-day assembly happening in Corvallis. See below for more information.