World's first bamboo structural manual targets low-carbon buildings

The University of Warwick, in collaboration with international partners including the University of Pittsburgh, Arup, INBAR, and BASE, has developed the world’s first structural engineering manual for bamboo. This comprehensive guide aims to fill a longstanding gap in engineering standards that has limited bamboo’s use in modern construction despite its strength, low cost, and sustainability. Bamboo, a fast-growing and effective carbon sink, has historically been sidelined as industrial building codes favored steel, concrete, and masonry. The new manual, published by the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) and freely accessible globally, provides detailed design principles for using bamboo poles as primary structural elements and introduces Composite Bamboo Shear Walls to enhance resilience in earthquake- and typhoon-prone areas. Targeted primarily at engineers working in tropical and subtropical regions where bamboo is abundant, the manual seeks to promote safe, durable, and low-carbon bamboo buildings worldwide. It addresses critical safety concerns such as fire performance and risk mitigation, although it does not cover scaff