Mass timber has been hailed as the solution to architecture’s notorious sustainability problem – that buildings account for nearly 40% of global energy use is by now a worn and overcited fact. But timber isn’t the world’s only renewable material, and architects and engineers have begun looking elsewhere for other possible steel and concrete replacements. One such possibility that has recently come to light is engineered or laminated bamboo, a highly sustainable and structurally impressive material. Below, we investigate how laminated bamboo is made, what its primary qualities are, and how it compares to timber.
Bamboo: The Latest Architecture and News
The Millenium Bridge / IBUKU
Sharma Springs / IBUKU
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Architects: IBUKU
- Area: 750 m²
- Year: 2012
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Professionals: AsharSaputra, CV Solusi Strategis
Hideout / Studio WNA
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Architects: Studio WNA
- Area: 50 m²
- Year: 2015
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Manufacturers: Freemite, ISEH Bambu Bali
Luum Temple / CO-LAB Design Office
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Architects: CO-LAB Design Office
- Area: 250 m²
- Year: 2019
8 Mexican Projects That Use Bamboo
Mexico is a country known globally for its traditional and contemporary architectural elements. The construction techniques characteristic of each region and the use of materials according to thermic, economic, or aesthetic needs result in unique spaces.
Bamboo as a constructive or decorative element, coating, facade, or roof has proven its superiority over materials such as plastic and steel.
While it is true that research on this material has advanced significantly in recent years, we know that there is still much to learn. Many architects are seeking knowledge from the past to apply to their current techniques. Below, we've selected a list of 8 Mexican projects that explore the use of bamboo in the hands of architects and artisans.
NLÉ MFS IIIx3 Prototype Launched in China Explores Ecological Intelligence
As part of a collaboration between the Centre Pompidou and the Mao Jihong Arts Foundation, the Cosmopolis #1.5: 'Enlarged Intelligence' exhibition features the developments of NLÉ Makoko Floating School. The Minjiang Floating System (MFS IIIx3), the fourth prototype and the third iteration of the prefabricated self-built system for water, investigates methods to counter the challenges posed by urbanization and climate change.
Earlier prototypes of the Makoko Floating School include the Waterfront Atlas (MFS II) launched in Venice, Italy and the Minne Floating School (MFS III) in Bruges, Belgium. The project, initially developed for the water in Lagos, is now usable in all these sites including the Jincheng Lake in Chengdu.
The Go-To Guide for Bamboo Construction
Bamboo is an ancient building material that has been used in a variety of countries and building types. A sustainable material with a unique aesthetic, it is arguably one of the greatest architectural trends of the moment.
This material's structural and sustainable qualities demonstrate that bamboo can be three times more resistant than steel and grow about 4 feet (1.22 meter) in just one day.
The Fuzhou Strait Culture and Art Centre / PES-Architects
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Architects: PES-Architects
- Area: 153000 m²
- Year: 2018
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Manufacturers: Dasso, Fujian Dehua Fujie Ceramics Co., Ltd., Fuzhou Ketao Building Material Co., Ltd, Fuzhou Lepu Ceramic Board Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Fuzhou Yicheng Building Material Co., Ltd., +3
Deployable Bamboo Structure Pavilion / Bambutec Design
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Architects: Bambutec Design
- Area: 345 m²
- Year: 2018
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Manufacturers: Alpargatas, Poly-Urethane, Tak^^e, Take
Lost Villa · Valley Land Boutique Hotel Interior Design / DAS Lab
Chuan's Kitchen / Infinity Mind
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Interior Designers: Infinity Mind
- Area: 450 m²
- Year: 2017
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Professionals: Shanghai Yuanhe Construction Co Ltd.
This Retractable Bamboo Yurt Can Be Easily Transported and Installed
Tradition and innovation. Those are the two pillars within which Bamboo U's workshop’s creative pendulum strives to swing. Following the practice of ancient Mongolian yurts, participants of Bamboo U, a build and design course in Bali, have created a bamboo yurt which can fold like an umbrella and can be deployed in an instant. Under the guidance of the German master-builder Jörg Stamm, students built the first retractable yurt prototype in Bali during Bamboo U’s last edition in April.
Sombra Verde's 3D Printed Bamboo Structure Bridges the Gap Between Tradition and Technology
Bridging the gap between the old and the new is never easy. Traditional building methods, where you often adjust to the unpredictability of a natural material, seem to contrast with the mechanical precision of modern construction. Sombra Verde - a bamboo gazebo developed by AIRLAB and Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) as part of Singapore’s Urban Design Festival 2018 - bridges this gap. The traditional raw bamboo poles, used extensively throughout Southeast Asia, are combined with 3D printed connectors, utilizing a series of new technologies. The result is an iconic, lightweight structure in Singapore’s Duxton Plain Park that promotes the use of public space, sheltering the population from both the intense sun and heavy rain.
Stone, Glass, and Bamboo Meet in Foster + Partners' Recently-Opened Apple Store in Macau
Foster + Partners has published photographs of their recently-opened Apple Store in Macau, intended as a “new oasis of calm” against the city’s buzz and excitement. The store, opened on June 29th, was designed in response to a brief calling for “an inviting, contemplative space, where technology, entertainment, and arts come together to make a positive contribution to the city.”
Apple Cotai Central was designed in a close collaboration between Foster + Partners and Apple’s chief design officer Sir Jonathan Ive, a collaboration which has previously produced Apple stores at Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and Regent Street in London.
The Sun Shed of Chun Qin Yuan Ecological Farm Renovation / Mix Architecture
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Architects: Mix Architecture
- Area: 6800 m²
- Year: 2018
Meijie Mountain Hotspring Resort / Achterboschzantman Architecten
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Architects: Achterboschzantman Architecten
- Area: 6000 m²
- Year: 2015
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Manufacturers: Vitra