Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore is planning an ambitious five-year build of its new $180 million business school. NTU’s president Subra Suresh, described the wooden construction as the university’s “most ambitious sustainable construction project to date”.

The six-storey building will be constructed from wood and house the Nanyang Business School. On completion in 2021, it will be Asia’s largest wooden building at 40,000 square meters (131,233.6 square feet). The building aims to reach some pretty lofty green standards: “Ninety-five per cent of our buildings are already certified Green Mark Platinum, and we are seeking to be the greenest university campus in the world,” Suresh said.

The mass-engineered timber building was designed by RSP Architects Planners & Engineers, the firm behind Changi Airport Terminal 4. The prefabricated building elements will be constructed offsite and will be created from renewable forests. On-site installation will be minimal, thus reducing pollution and waste and using less labor than traditional construction methods.

The University aims to bolster this eco-friendly build with other sustainable initiatives like charging for plastic bags, reducing energy, water usage and waste by 35 percent by 2021 and by 50 percent in 2025. The university will also add additional solar installations so 7-10 percent of its energy comes from renewable sources.