Construction has just begun on the Tor Alva, or the White Tower, the world’s largest 3-D printed tower. Designed by architects Michael Hansmeyer and Benjamin Dillenburger and printed with concrete by the technology university ETH Zurich, 8 out of 32 structural columns have been completed. Nestled in the village of Mulegns in the Swiss Alps, the White Tower is designed as a venue for music and theater events. Standing at 30 meters, the design features 32 distinct Y-shaped columns, each boasting a pattern of textured details.
In 1993 a young professional couple with two toddlers and a large suburban lot in Naarden, a town less than half an hour's drive southeast of Amsterdam, approached Ben van Berkel to design an unusual house. They envisioned it as progressive and innovative in every way possible. More than that, they wanted a kind of building that “would be recognized as a reference in terms of renewal of the architectural language.” Before settling on the architect, they spoke to several candidates, including Rem Koolhaas. They chose van Berkel who five years earlier, together with his then-wife Caroline Bos co-founded their eponymous practice, because as he told me, “I went to the site and studied it carefully and already had ideas about what I called the four quadrants of the landscape. I knew what kind of house it would be. I could see clearly where different rooms would go, how they would be shaped, and how they would relate to each other.” The couple couldn’t resist. Yet, there would be no rush on the project which took five years to complete, most time was invested in its design, going through many iterations and refinements, all based on the Möbius loop.
Timber has been a popular source of construction material for thousands of years. Through sawing, milling, and other engineered wood conversion processes, various wood forms have been created and applied in products, furniture, and architecture. However, these processes can sometimes alter the basic lines of wood structure. The stems can be split, grain patterns changed, and some woods, such as oak and cedar, are easily reduced while others can become intractable. This led to the exploration of whole timber forms in ancient structures, such as log cabins, which layered timber in different cross-sections to form home profiles. Through design, the use of trunks or branches of trees in their entirety can accentuate their innate mechanical properties for structural sustainability. Although these practices are fairly absent in contemporary building techniques, new technological innovations expand the prospects of timber construction in architecture.
Professionals in the AEC industry are well aware of the issues that grapple the built environment. That the construction industry is the largest consumer of materials and is responsible for 40% of all carbon emissions is a commonplace fact. Construction work is also a large waste generator and could greatly benefit from circular design principles. Almost three-quarters of all construction projects tend to be over budget, and nearly half of the spending on buildings goes into the overheads. In a fast-paced world with multi-faceted challenges, technology, and digitization seek to deliver significant solutions.
Technology is disrupting the creative industry and it's only getting better, and faster. Innovation in the architecture industry has never been as rampant as it is at this moment. The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) in architecture - the first genuine 21st-century design method - is changing the way buildings are imagined and designed. AI image generatorslike Midjourney and DALL-E provide an efficient and explorative way of conceiving architectural concepts. Generated in less than 5 minutes, these images unveil an interesting design aesthetic that is emerging. In an exclusive interview with ArchDaily, architect and educator Matias del Campo hypothesizes what the future of architectural aesthetics would be.
Nature has continually played muse to architects. Colors and forms from the natural world find themselves embedded in artificial edifices. Buildings are also shaped by patterns of the wind and sun, topography, and vegetation. While architecture is informed by the effects of nature, buildings have been proposed as inert objects that remain static in a biologically evolving world. Anthropocentric concrete “jungles” are devoid of life, separating humans from natural environments and causing imbalances that have manifested as pandemics. What would cities look like if there were no boundaries between humans and ecosystems?
Paul Carneau, Design by Data alumni working with the 3d printing facilities at Ecole des Ponts ParisTech - Photo by Stefano Borghi
The Advanced Master[1] “Design by Data” in Computation Design & Robotics for Architecture and Construction was launched in 2016 and is one of the latest programs in innovative professional education at l'École des Ponts ParisTech. The program was designed to meet the increasing need of the professional sectors of architecture and engineering for combining architectural awareness and skills in creative engineering. Design by Data trains professionals to master advanced design tools (coding, generative design, machine learning) as well as digital manufacturing and design processes (robotics, 3D printing, and mechatronics) applied to architectural and construction projects.
Clayton Miller is an Assistant Professor at NUS, part of BUDS Lab, a scientific research group that leverages data sources from built and urban environments to improve energy efficiency and conservation, comfort, safety, and satisfaction of humans. He holds a Doctor of Sciences from the ETH Zürich, an MSc. (Building) from the National University of Singapore (NUS), and a BSc. Masters of Architectural Engineering (MAE) from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln (UNL).
ArchDaily had the chance to interview Miller and find out his point of view on how programming and data science can help in improving architecture and construction.
THE PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE: An Online Interactive Conference with global frontiers. Two-Day Online Conference with Live Presentations, Tutorials, Interactive Sessions, Live Mentorship & Panel Discussions. A collaborative initiative by ParametricArchitecture (PA) with rat[LAB]EDUCATION, DesignMorphine, A>T
What: Computational Design: NEXT is a collaborative initiative by some of the global frontiers of Computational Design to open up an Online Learning platform as a comprehensive ONLINE CONFERENCE comprising of discussions, dialogues, tutorials and mentorship to a global audience through thought-provoking and meaningful dialogues curated by Parametric Architecture (PA), one of the leading media platforms focussing on Computational Design and its various subsets.
Advancing Computational Building Design enables forward-thinking architects and engineers to accelerate their adoption of generative, digital design tools across their projects. You’ll hear how your peers are leveraging computation and iterative design processes to inform decision making and provide the power to clients to better visualize their future asset and drive collaborative relationships with designers.
Returning for its 4th year, ACBD is back and will be reuniting the AEC community in Denver to yet again provide the actionable insight required to allow computational design to expand and change the face of architecture.
Grasshopper Masterclass Webinar - Computational Design Webinar Series
Permutable Morphologies is a Parametric Certification webinar Course that focuses on designing forms by means of algorithms. The course is based on understanding the process of building shape, translating a standard 3D modelling process into grasshopper vocabulary and then automating it to interpolate infinite design iterations as solutions while documenting design problems for further use.
The course is carefully crafted for beginners and advanced users alike. It doesn’t matter if you are someone who has no prior knowledge of visual programming or scripting and want to start from scratch. Alternatively, if you’re already somewhat experienced, and you want to know methods
In a study recently published by AIA, less than 13% of architectural firms have incorporated building performance as part of their practice. With buildings contributing 40% of total carbon emissions leading to climate change, just 25 projects are roughly equivalent to planting 1 million trees each year. In addition to that, teams that are able to showcase data-driven and performance-driven decision-making and feature an energy analysis in every pursuit are able to increase fees and generate more revenue. Although integrating building performance sounds like a no-brainer, it proves to be difficult at many firms, because in addition to the practical changes, it requires a culture shift. That culture shift can only happen if the tools are easy to use, accurate, and mesh well with current workflows. Right now is the perfect time to tackle these culture changes due to a few reasons:
Courtesy of Workshop Architects, Cooper Carry, OLIN, and Gilbane
Today in the United States, buildings account for nearly 40% of carbon emissions (EESI) and 78% of electricity usage. The most sustainability-focused firms run energy simulations for less than 50% of their projects (10% for a typical firm) and only doing so late in the process when design changes are limited and insufficient to combat red flags found in the performance report (AIA 2030 report). We can make building performance widespread once we help the entire community discuss the subject in terms of investment and return. Especially during a project pursuit, since having the buy in from the whole team helps ensure the key project metrics are met. Owners are seeking out teams who are using actual metrics and data driven processes that affect their bottom line. This new approach to practice is what makes the younger teams’ standout and will benefit both the climate and the bottom-line. Here are 5 ways to talk about building performance in your project pursuits:
In 2016, Ecole des Ponts ParisTech has established an advanced masters program with a focus on digital fabrication and robotics. Currently recruiting for its fourth installment, the Design by Data Advanced Masters Program appeals to architects, engineers, and tech-oriented designers. Since its launch in 2016, the program’s director Francesco Cingolani has sought to shape the relationship between architecture and technology by creating a cross-disciplinary culture between the two.
As previously mentioned on Archdaily, students study the main components of the program - computational design, digital culture and design, and additive manufacturing and robotic fabrication - throughout the 12-month program to fulfill Design by Data’s main objectives while working with peers in a dynamic learning environment. While providing each participant with both technical skills and an aesthetic eye, the program ensures students will also gain critical knowledge of current innovative trends and ongoing research. By exposing them to technology through hands-on use of tools of digital fabrication, the program will teach students to approach design through a process-oriented lens.
Credits: Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy / Architect : ZHA & AECOM / Automatization Processes for Digital Fabrication : ECHOES.PARIS
Applications are open for the third edition of the Design by Data Advanced Master® in Computational Design, Digital Manufacturing and Building Technologies opening in September 2018 in Paris.
Design by Data provides attendees with a cross-disciplinary culture of computational design and a comprehensive knowledge of cutting-edge technologies in the fields of parametric architecture, robotics, digital manufacturing and 3D printing for the construction industry.
International BIM Competition 2017 - Computational Design, Analysis and Optimisation for DfMA
The competition is to develop a concept design of an academic building as a redevelopment project to replace the Block D & E-Canteen Block to support the expanding educational activities in BCA Academy. The new building block should be able to host a minimum 3,000 students’ capacity with a maximum 23,500sqm Gross Floor Area (GFA) including usable space, public circulation and service area.
The key aspect of the competition this year is to generate design options through computational approach for analysis and optimization that captures the design challenges and requirements mentioned above for the final optimized option.
The Design by Data Advanced Master® in Computational Design, Digital Manufacturing and Building Technologies provides attendees with a cross-disciplinary culture of computational design and a comprehensive knowledge of cutting-edge technologies in the fields of parametric architecture, robotics, digital manufacturing and 3D printing for the construction industry.
FABRICATE is a triennial international peer-reviewed conference with supporting publication on the theme of Digital Fabrication. The FABRICATE 2017 conference aims to instigate discussions on constructed projects and cutting-edge research in the context of computational design and digital fabrication between leading experts in academia and industry. The event will convene over April 6 - 8 2017 at the University of Stuttgart.
The Call for Work for FABRICATE 2017 received over 250 submissions from institutions and practices coming from 45 countries. These include The Bartlett School of Architecture UCL, Institute for Computational Design and Construction of the University of
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