VUILD’s niyodo river stud house in japan is made entirely out of timber planks

Niyodo River Stud House supports Kochi’s local forestry industry

Japanese design studio VUILD completes gabled Niyodo River Stud House using only locally sourced wooden planks. Niyodogawa Town in Kochi Prefecture is developing municipal housing as part of its efforts to support the local forestry industry and attract new residents. The residential project utilizes 30×105mm wooden studs, a material typically exported for Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) panels, to construct the entire building without the use of glued panels or plywood. Designed for efficient disassembly and relocation, the structure maximizes the use of locally sourced timber, reducing both costs and CO2 emissions while strengthening the regional supply chain.

VUILD uses wooden studs sourced from Niyodogawa’s forests

VUILD’s architectural team designs structural components to be under three meters in length to align with the capabilities of a small CNC router (ShopBot) installed in the town. By processing timber locally—from milling and drying to fabrication and assembly—the project minimizes transportation requirements and intermediaries, reducing environmental impact while promoting economic circulation within the community. The project presents a model for sustainable construction that integrates forestry practices with housing production, demonstrating a localized approach to material sourcing and building processes.

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project info:

name: Niyodo River Stud House
architect: VUILD | @vuild_architects

design team: Koki Akiyoshi, Hiroyuki Nakazawa, Kanaho Moriya, Toshiki Nishimura, Kano Corporation Co., LTD (Aya Handa, Shinichi Tsuji)　 

structure: DN-Archi Co., Ltd.

location: Niyodogawa Town, Kochi Prefecture, Japan

photographers: Tomoyuki Kusunose, VUILD

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