Swinerton is deepening its investment in mass timber construction with the appointment of longtime company leader William Silva as its new director of national mass timber. The move comes as demand for the material continues to accelerate across the U.S., pushing contractors to expand their technical capabilities and streamline delivery approaches.
Silva, a 15-year Swinerton veteran with more than three decades of industry experience, will oversee the company’s newly created mass timber center of excellence. The initiative is designed to unify Swinerton’s construction teams with its mass timber affiliate, Timberlab, while centralizing expertise, strengthening internal education, and advancing research that can reduce project costs and schedules.
According to a Dec. 9 release, Swinerton and Timberlab have already delivered more than 80 mass timber projects nationwide, with another 30 projects currently in design or under construction. Combined, the portfolio accounts for nearly 6.5 million square feet of mass timber work. The companies also recently topped out a 192,000-square-foot cross-laminated timber manufacturing facility, demonstrating their expanding influence in the sector.
Silva has been instrumental in Swinerton’s mass timber strategy for years. He led the firm’s first mass timber project in 2016 and has since helped position the contractor as one of the nation’s most active adopters of the technology.
“William’s leadership in mass timber is unmatched,” said Tim Kretzschmar, Swinerton’s COO. “His expertise and vision will accelerate our efforts to make mass timber a mainstream construction solution.”
The new center of excellence is expected to play a major role in strengthening the mass timber ecosystem — both inside and outside the company. Swinerton said the initiative will advance industry-wide advocacy, particularly around policy reform that could support more widespread adoption.
It will also pursue research aimed at optimizing cost and schedule efficiency, expanding grant-supported innovation, and reducing barriers that have limited mass timber’s market share. This comes at a time when heightened sustainability goals, supply chain pressures, and tariff impacts on steel have increased interest in alternative building materials.
Earlier this year, Timberlab CEO Chris Evans noted that mass timber gives contractors valuable flexibility amid steel price volatility, telling Construction Dive that the material offers a viable option as steel tariffs continue to influence pricing.
Growth in mass timber use has been dramatic. Data from WoodWorks shows U.S. multifamily, commercial and institutional mass timber projects have risen from 439 in 2018 to 2,598 as of September 2025 — a nearly sixfold jump in just seven years. The building type has gained traction for its sustainability profile, structural performance, and ability to reduce embodied carbon.
With that level of interest, Swinerton’s decision to formalize a national leadership role and innovation hub signals that the company expects demand to strengthen further.
Swinerton, based in Concord, California, has emerged as one of the top-profile contractors embracing mass timber as both an economic and environmental strategy. Silva’s appointment solidifies the firm’s commitment to scaling the material’s use and shaping the next wave of industry standards, manufacturing capacity, and project delivery models.
As more owners, universities and developers seek low-carbon construction options, Swinerton’s unified mass timber infrastructure could place the company at the forefront of a rapidly expanding market.
Originally reported by Matthew Thibault in Construction Dive.
