Cross-laminated timber (CLT) has revolutionized the construction industry by offering a more sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to traditional building materials. As the popularity of CLT houses continues to grow, the role of lighting in these buildings becomes increasingly important.
Innovative lighting solutions are not just about fixtures and control systems; the mounting solutions are also crucial. Otherwise has developed a patented mounting system that allows frameless lighting solutions to be attached to ceilings, walls and floors. This system provides a beautifully integrated and discreet solution that supports modern architecture and design.
Otherwise’s system also includes Wireless switches that operate without the need for intrusive and expensive wiring. This means that lighting solutions can be installed and modified easily, while maintaining a clean and minimalist appearance.
All plans for penetrations are prepared by Otherwise and delivered directly to the CLT element manufacturers. This ensures that the penetrations are correctly sized and neatly executed, reducing installation challenges related to lighting.
When Designing lighting for a CLT house, it’s essential to consider the building’s architecture and the intended use of space. In the interiors of a CLT house, lighting should enhance the natural beauty of the wood while meeting practical needs. Well-designed lighting highlights the aesthetic qualities of CLT structures, such as the warmth and texture of the wood. At the same time, the design can use spotlights to emphasize specific elements of the space, such as wood panels or interior features.
As technology advances, so do lighting solutions. Smart lighting systems that can adjust lighting automatically based on environmental factors or user needs offer new possibilities. These systems allow the lighting in CLT houses to be optimized more precisely, creating unique and energy-efficient solutions.
Lighting in a CLT house is not just a technical solution, but an integral part of the overall design and ambiance of the space. The right choice of lighting not only complements the aesthetic appeal of the building but also enhances its functionality and adaptability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the most common questions about lighting in cross-laminated timber (CLT) buildings — why CLT needs specialist solutions, Otherwise’s patented mounting system, how penetrations are coordinated, and how lighting enhances CLT’s natural beauty.
CLT is a solid structural element — you cannot chase cables into it after the fact, and cutting penetrations in the wrong place compromises both structure and appearance.
In a conventional plasterboard ceiling, a lighting change is an hour of work. In a CLT ceiling, every penetration has to be planned in advance, sized correctly, and executed during element manufacturing — because the exposed timber surface is the finished ceiling. This means the lighting designer has to be in the project from the very start, coordinating with the CLT manufacturer before elements are fabricated, not after walls are up.
A patented frameless mounting system that allows lighting fixtures to be installed into CLT ceilings, walls and floors without visible housings, trim rings, or any gap between the fixture and the timber surface.
The system is designed so that the fixture appears to grow directly out of the CLT element — the wood grain runs right to the edge of the light. This level of integration is only possible when the mounting detail is coordinated with the CLT element during manufacture. Otherwise prepares all the penetration plans and delivers them directly to the CLT manufacturer, ensuring correct sizing and clean execution before the element leaves the factory.
Otherwise prepares a full set of penetration drawings and delivers them directly to the CLT element manufacturer — so holes are cut at the factory, correctly sized, cleanly executed, and ready for fixture installation on site.
This removes the biggest risk in CLT lighting: site-cut penetrations that are the wrong size, wrong position, or that tear the exposed timber face. Factory penetrations are CNC-precise, structurally correct, and finished cleanly. When fixtures arrive on site, installation is quick and predictable — no remedial carpentry, no visible damage to the CLT surface.
CLT’s warmth and timber texture call for light that enhances rather than competes — warm colour temperatures, carefully directed beams, and a frameless integration that makes the wood the hero.
Key principles: dim-to-warm or tunable white fixtures match the emotional warmth of timber; grazing light along a CLT wall surface brings out the laminate layers and grain; recessed spotlights in the ceiling draw attention to specific architectural features like a column, a corner junction, or an exposed beam. The goal is always the same — the light should feel native to the material, not installed on top of it.
Smart lighting turns the same CLT interior into different experiences — work-mode bright and task-focused in the morning, warm and intimate by evening — all without adding any visible technology to the architecture.
Because Otherwise’s wireless control system requires no dedicated cabling beyond the power supply, the CLT structure stays clean. Wireless battery-free switches can be flush-mounted into the timber or furniture without the cable runs that would otherwise require routing through a solid element. The result: a CLT home that is fully smart-controlled, with none of the technical infrastructure showing anywhere.
Otherwise has developed a patented system for frameless lighting in CLT — designed and coordinated directly with element manufacturers from day one, so nothing needs to be fixed on site.
