The combustibility of natural wood presents a negative impact for using this material in buildings. Timber elements can be cladded with boards made of non-combustible materials. This study represents a group of options for increasing the resistance of timber against the effects of fire and the possibility of slowing down the effect of thermal degradation of wood. The aim of this study is focused on an experimental testing of structures with timber elements protected by cement fibre boards as a non-combustible fire retardant. Cement fibre boards are fibre-reinforced composite materials used for systems of dry constructions. These boards present the highest degree of fire reaction class (A1). The behaviour of the structure, loaded by the effects of fire, was monitored during the experiment. The specimen was tested with reduced dimensions. The temperature loading corresponded to the procedure according to the standards. The final fire resistant (FR) results were evaluated in accordance with the requirements for the selected limit states of FR. This was assessed based on the measured temperatures and the whole condition of the tested specimen. The specimen fulfilled the fire-separating function of the structure for the classification times.

Wood is a natural anisotropic material that is used in building construction because of the advantageous properties of wood. Speed of construction and the final price of the building represent the main advantages of timber houses. On the other hand, the main disadvantage of these buildings can be the low fire resistance due to the flammable properties of natural wood. There are many limitations for designing these kinds of buildings in the Czech Republic. The limitations are presented in the standards and laws of the CR. This article focuses on the comparison of the methods for testing structures using timber construction elements. The paper presents and compares experimental testing results of a timber structure’s fire resistance in a combustion chamber.

Reliable integration of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Building Energy Modeling (BEM) is essential to sustainable design and renovation because energy-efficiency decisions depend on consistent analytical models. However, native gbXML exports often contain geometric and semantic inconsistencies that can distort energy assessments. This study evaluates native export limitations and the effect of middleware-based transformation on BIM-to-BEM interoperability. A residential building was modelled in Autodesk Revit and Graphisoft Archicad. gbXML exports and the BIMTWIN workflow were assessed using geometry, analytical integrity, and heat-loss indicators; only geometric results were compared with the Energy Performance Certificate. Although all workflows generated gbXML files, their analytical quality differed substantially. The middleware-transformed model deviated by only +1.53% and +2.25% from the reference external and internal volumes, respectively. Native Revit export omitted intermediate floor constructions and produced a total heat loss of 95,785 W, 25.2% higher than the 76,533 W obtained from the transformed model. Native Archicad export produced fragmented geometry unsuitable for reliable heat-loss calculation. The results show that BIM-to-BEM interoperability should be treated as a controlled validation and transformation process. By reducing analytical errors and manual reconstruction, this approach supports more reliable assessment of energy-efficiency measures and better-informed decisions in sustainable building design and renovation.

Timber structures represent an ever-increasing part of buildings. It is necessary to approach the design of wooden buildings comprehensively and meet all the requirements for this kind of construction. The combustibility of natural wood restricts the use of this material in buildings compared to traditional building materials. The limitations are given by the national regulations and legislation. The properties of each structure must be proven before its use in buildings. This paper deals with the experimental fire resistance testing of the timber structure. The conditions during the test were followed according to standard procedures and the measured data were compared with the results according to standard testing.