INTRO Columbus (9th & High)
Accelerating Urban Student Living Through Integrated Tall Mass Timber Engineering
INTRO Columbus (9th & High) in Columbus, Ohio, establishes a landmark benchmark for high-performance, rapid-delivery mass timber construction within high-density student housing. Rising 13 stories adjacent to The Ohio State University, the 22,481-square-meter (approx. 242,000-square-foot) Type IV-B facility is recognized as one of the tallest mass timber student housing developments in the United States. Designed by DLR Group for Harbor Bay Real Estate Advisors, the project proves that large-scale commercial residential builds can achieve aggressive sustainability goals while dramatically compressing the construction schedule. By pairing an innovative hybrid mass timber structural system over a concrete podium, the project achieved a pivotal milestone by topping out on September 8th, a remarkable 10 weeks ahead of schedule.
Strategic Synergy and Schedule Acceleration
The standout achievement of INTRO Columbus was beating the baseline critical path by two and a half months, proving the schedule efficiency unlocked when developers, designers, engineers, and fabricators collaborate from early pre-construction. To replace traditional cast-in-place concrete and high-embodied-carbon steel, the team utilized prefabricated Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) floor panels supported by structural Glued-Laminated Timber (glulam) framing. The off-site prefabrication workflow significantly mitigated noise, crane congestion, and site disruption along a high-density university corridor. Inside the structure, the exposed natural timber framing introduces a warm, biophilic living environment across residential suites and amenity hubs, providing long-term psychological well-being for students alongside high thermal and acoustic performance.
Project Highlights
10-Week Schedule Compression: Achieved structural topping out 10 weeks ahead of schedule on September 8th, demonstrating the rapid assembly speed of prefabricated mass timber on dense urban sites.
Tall Timber Precedent: Reaches 13 stories across 22,481 square meters, ranking among the tallest mass timber student housing communities in North America.
Embodied Carbon Reduction: Leverages a renewable timber superstructure over a concrete podium to drastically reduce upfront carbon compared to conventional concrete or structural steel high-rises.
Precision CNC Prefabrication: SmartLam precision-manufactured the CLT floor decks and glulam frame components using robotic CNC technology, ensuring sub-millimeter tolerances and eliminating costly field modifications.
Standardized Hardware Integration: Utilized pre-engineered Simpson Strong-Tie connector and fastener assemblies to streamline structural connections and accelerate crane hook cycle times.
Technical Execution
Delivered under the construction management of Elford Construction, the project’s structural success relied on seamless collaboration between structural engineer Forefront Structural Engineers, Inc., and SmartLam North America. Through an integrated Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA) workflow, the engineering team coordinated beam pockets, connection seats, and tolerance handoffs in 3D long before materials hit the shop floor. SmartLam manufactured the precision CLT floor panels and heavy glulam framing members, delivering a complete “kit-of-parts” engineered for immediate crane erection. Paired with Simpson Strong-Tie structural connection systems, the erection crews maintained continuous hook movement, keeping tolerance transitions tight between the concrete podium and the 13 timber stories. This end-to-end alignment insulated the critical path from delays, creating a repeatable standard for high-rise mass timber student housing across the nation.