Star Metro - Element5 Mass Timber Celebrates Grand Opening of Expanded Manufacturing Plant in St. Thomas, Ontario

$107 Million Project will be Supported by the Province of Ontario

ST. THOMAS, ON / ACCESS Newswire / September 17, 2025 / Element5, a North American leader in the design, fabrication, and assembly of mass timber buildings, officially opened a new state-of-the-art Glulam production line and expansion to its manufacturing facility. As part of the government's plan to build a more resilient forestry sector, Ontario Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade Vic Fedeli announced that Ontario is providing $8 million in funding through the Invest Ontario fund towards the $107 million expansion.

Element5's growth is reinforced by a strategic investment from parent company, the HASSLACHER Group, one of Europe's largest and most innovative timber producers, as well as by partnerships with federal and provincial governments.

Expansion Fuels Rapid Growth
The expansion marks a significant milestone in Element5's remarkable growth and in Canada's rapidly growing advanced wood construction sector. The company is Ontario's first certified manufacturer of cross-laminated timber, and the expansion more than doubles the size of the plant from 130,000 square feet to over 350,000 square feet.

The expansion also doubles the facility's production capacity from 50,000 cubic meters annually to 100,000 cubic meters annually of cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glued-laminated timber (Glulam) products.

When the St. Thomas facility first opened in 2020, it stood on a greenfield site with just 15 employees. Less than five years later, the workforce has grown to 175 highly skilled professionals. The support from Invest Ontario will create an additional 150 jobs, growing the company's workforce to over 325 employees.

Ten Years, Over 300 Mass Timber Projects Delivered
Founded in 2015, Element5 has delivered more than 300 projects across Canada and the United States. Its portfolio includes student residences, luxury condominiums in New York City, arts centres on the East Coast, as well as offices, firehalls, Indigenous community projects, libraries, and multi-residential housing developments throughout Ontario. Most notably, the company has carved out a leading role in affordable housing.

Affordable Housing Solutions
Element5 has developed a flexible, mass-timber design for multi-unit housing that reduces costs, shortens construction timelines, improves quality, and cuts carbon emissions - all while creating warm, welcoming spaces that support occupant well-being.

To date, Element5 has completed ten affordable housing projects, with another ten currently under construction or in development. At a time when the construction sector faces labour shortages, supply chain disruptions, and escalating complexity, prefabricated mass timber offers a scalable, sustainable solution to Canada's urgent need for affordable housing.

"Ontario's forestry and wood manufacturing sectors support tens of thousands of jobs across the province," said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation, and Trade. "As our government delivers on our plan to protect Ontario, Element5's expansion will create over a hundred new jobs and bolster the province's wood manufacturing supply chain, increasing the forestry sector's competitiveness and unlocking new opportunities for workers, builders and homeowners."

Element5 Expansion Details - Facts and Figures

• Built with a striking combination of structural steel and mass timber, the expansion adds a state-of-the-art Glulam line to the existing cross-laminated timber (CLT) line (Glulam is used for large beams and columns, while CLT is used for floors, roofs, and walls).

• Giant "fishbelly" Glulam beams featured in the Canopy shipping area are 80ft long and 9ft deep, and come from Element5's parent company, the HASSLACHER group in Austria.

• To support the expanded production, additional wood drying systems were added (used to keep the moisture content in the wood level to prevent warping and shrinking).

• A new 57,000 square foot building was built adjacent to the main building to house a lumber sorting line equipped with multi-sensor quality scanner called "Goldeneye" by MiCROTEC^©.

• Completing the expansion is two-storey, 18,000 square foot front office, using CLT produced by Element5.

• In total, 602 m³ of Glulam and 229 m³ of CLT were produced by HASSLACHER and Element5.

• This mass timber used on the project, sequesters and stores the equivalent of 625 tons of CO₂ from the atmosphere.

Further Quotes

"This expansion represents a bold step forward for Element5, our partners, and the mass timber industry in Canada," said Chris Latour, President of Element5. "We are proud to provide innovative, sustainable building solutions that help address Canada's urgent need for affordable, climate-friendly housing and infrastructure. With our expanded operations, we are even better positioned to support communities across Ontario and North America."

"At Invest Ontario, we are expanding our scope to respond to a changing economic environment including support for affordable housing which is a priority for Ontario," said Khawar Nasim, CEO of Invest Ontario. "This project advances that focus by supporting a homegrown mass timber supplier that is instrumental in meeting the growing demand for affordable, modular construction."

"The opening of our new site in Canada marks a major milestone - for Element5 as well as for the entire HASSLACHER group," said Christoph Kulterer, CEO and Owner of the HASSLACHER group. "With Element5, we have found the ideal partner to advance modern timber construction. Canada offers the perfect conditions: access to high-quality raw materials, a growing market, and a clear commitment to sustainability. We have come here with a long-term vision - to stay, and to help shape the future of building with wood. True to our motto: From wood to wonders."

About Element5
Element5 is a mass timber producer offering a full range of structural engineering, modelling, production, and assembly. This customer-oriented approach ensures the delivery of high-precision mass timber construction solutions. Founded in 2015, the Company established its own production facility in 2020. Element5 has offices in Toronto, manufacturing operations in St. Thomas, Ontario, and is a pioneer in the mass timber revolution in North America.
https://www.elementfive.co

About the HASSLACHER group
The HASSLACHER group is a globally active innovation leader in the field of intelligent and integrated system solutions for modern timber construction. The family-run enterprise has had its roots for generations in the use of wood as a wonderfully renewable raw material and for more than 120 years has stood for pioneering spirit, performance, quality, sustainability, and social responsibility.

Together with its 2000 employees, HASSLACHER produces innovative products in the areas of sawn timber, profiled timber, glued laminated timber, cross laminated timber and structural finger jointed solid timber for the European and international market. True to our motto "From wood to wonders."
https://www.hasslacher.com

Media Contacts

Element5
Diana Tamblyn| Head of Marketing & Communications
[email protected]

HASSLACHER Group
Ruth M. Buechlmann | Head of PR & Communication
[email protected]

SOURCE: Element5

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

S.Morin--SMC