Granada, September 27, 2023. This month has seen the completion of the restoration work on the Patio de la Capilla del Hospital Real, headquarters of the rectorate of the University of Granada (UGR), the great work that has allowed the ‘resuscitation’ of this emblematic architectural space. The Granada-based company Dávila Restauración de Monumentos has undertaken the renovation of the original slabs of the patio, dating from the 16th century, as several of the wooden beams were fractured by the overload of a stone staircase added in the first half of the 20th century.

Given the need to respect the original type of material (wood) and the impossibility of increasing the size of the beams, the Annona Arquitectura studio, in charge of the restoration project, and the Andalusian Structural Wood Research Unit (UIMA) of the School of Building Engineering of the UGR found the solution in an innovative product, laminated beams reinforced with carbon fiber.

“Carbon fiber, a high-performance material in terms of its high strength and stiffness with very little section, has allowed the resulting laminated beams to have very high strength and stiffness, with a minimum increase in the beam section, thus enabling them to meet the restoration requirements of a BIC building,” explained Professor Antolino Gallego, coordinator of the UIMA.

This technology was developed three years ago in a UIMA research project, and is now being transferred through the company Iberolam Timber & Technology, a spinoff of the University of Granada that emerged from the LIFE Wood for Future project. The calculation of the beams for the estimated loads has been carried out by the technical office of the company Iberolam and the beams have been elaborated at UIMA, with its own machinery available.

 

In addition, to maintain the connection with the materials of the territory, the laminated beams have been made with laricio pine extracted from the Navahondona Mountain of the Natural Park of Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas, through a collaboration between the LIFE Wood for Future project and the Delegation of Sustainability, Environment and Blue Economy of the Junta de Andalucía in Jaén.

“The laricio pine is the conifer with the highest resistance and rigidity in Europe. This, together with the use of carbon fiber embedded in the laminate and the careful selection of the boards, has made it possible to achieve a 32% increase in stiffness and 90% increase in strength compared to the most demanding laminated beams available on the market (GL32h)”, highlighted Francisco Rescalvo, UIMA researcher in charge of the technical part of this project.

Antolino Gallego highlighted the important work of UIMA, the first laboratory to be installed in the San Isidro Sugar Factory (future ‘ecocampus’ of the UGR), “as an R+D+i unit that not only researches to publish its results, but to transfer them, commercialize them and create an impact on the territory, and specifically on the architectural heritage of Andalusia, Granada and the University itself. It is research and development of the University for the University itself”.

The professor stressed the willingness of the UIMA, within its commitment to sustainability and the environment, to “contribute to the promotion of wood construction and restoration of heritage buildings in Andalusia”.

Victoria Carreras, president of Iberolam and of the Agrupación de Productores Marjal Chopo, explained that this spinoff from the UGR “is a company with capital from Granada that allows to put on the market new structural products of poplar and laricio pine generated in the LIFE Wood for Future project”.

“Contributing with our company to the University to improve its heritage, when it is the University itself that has generated the company, is a great pride”, said Carreras, who recalled that Iberolam can participate, with its knowledge and its products, in the future rehabilitation of the Sugar Factory, declared BIC.

The delegate of the Regional Ministry of Sustainability, Environment and Blue Economy in Jaén, María José Lara, highlighted the Andalusian Government’s commitment to forestry use as a key to the conservation of our forests, since proper forest management promotes biodiversity and prevents fires.