May 30, 2025 (Industry Intelligence Inc.) –
A roundup of recent trends pitting technology against the printed word:
Trees: Theodore Roosevelt’s presidential library will be North Dakota’s largest mass-timber project
Given Theodore Roosevelt’s legacy of conservation, it’s fitting that his presidential library will mark North Dakota’s largest mass-timber project. One year after groundbreaking, Mercer Mass Timber (MMT) has finished Phase 1 of the library in North Dakota’s Badlands, according to a company release on May 20. Phase 1 centered on the museum’s curved-roof structure, engineered with custom glulam connections and steel wrapped in wood to mimic the Badlands’ rolling topography. MMT supplied roughly 1,800 square meters of cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glulam for the 93,000 sq. ft. structure, delivering a 3,031-tonne CO₂ reduction. Phase 2 begins in June to add canopies designed for photovoltaic panels, which enhance the site’s sustainability and outdoor mass-timber use. The library is scheduled to open July 4, 2026.
Tech: Carnival Cruise rolls out paperless tour tickets
With airports and even an airline going paperless, Carnival Cruise is following suit by eliminating paper tickets for its shore excursions. Instead of using physical tickets, guests will use their Sail & Sign cards, linked to the HUB App for digital confirmations, check-in and last-minute bookings, Cruise Critic reported May 7. After launching in Australia, the system is now piloted with some tour operators in the Bahamas and the Caribbean. Carnival will roll it out fleet-wide at its new private destination, Celebration Key, in July, then expand across the Bahamas, Caribbean and Mexico by year-end, and onto Alaska and Europe cruises by next summer.
Trees: Missoula repurposes fallen trees into trail signs and kiosks
Some of Missoula, Montana's fallen trees have returned to the city as trailhead signs and kiosks thanks to its Parks and Recreation’s Zero Wood Waste program. The initiative reduces lumber costs while keeping logs out of the mulch pile, KPAX reported May 23. Managing roughly 42,000 trees, the city has repurposed salvaged hardwood into smooth boards that are suitable for signs, while big beams can be used to construct kiosks. After replacing North Hills signs in 2024, crews renewed all 65 markers on Mount Jumbo this year and will refresh signs on Mount Sentinel and Dean Stone next summer. Localities around the country have taken up similar projects, especially in disaster sites like Altadena, California, and Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina.
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