Table Of ContentMATERIAL STRATEGIES IN
DIGITAL FABRICATION
Author Christopher Beorkrem shows how material performance
drives the digital fabrication process and determines technique. He
has recreated and dissected 36 of the most progressive works of
architecture of the last few years, with perspectives from the designers
so that you can learn from the successes and failures of each project.
Using consistent language and the simplest construction techniques,
he identifies the important characteristics of each material, including
connection types, relative costs, deformation, color, texture, finish,
dimensional properties, durability, weathering and waterproofing to
link the design outcomes to form. The book is divided into five main
chapters by material — wood, metal, concrete, hybrids, and recycled
— to help you reference construction techniques for the fabrication
machines you have on-hand.
Includes projects by SHoP Architects, Nader Tehrani, Gramazio &
Kohler ETH, Steffen Reichert, Achim Menges, Thomas Heatherwick,
Heather Roberge, Happy Box Architecture, Asbjørn Søndergaard,
Matsys, Ammar Eloueini, Ball Nogues, Sebastien Wierinck, nArchitects,
Foreign Office Architects, WORKac, SoftLab, Tom Pawlofsky and
Philippe Block.
Christopher Beorkrem is assistant professor of architecture at the
University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
MATERIAL STRATEGIES IN
DIGITAL FABRICATION
Christopher Beorkrem
First published 2013
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Simultaneously published in the UK
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor and Francis Group,
an informa business
© 2013 Taylor and Francis
The right of Christopher Beorkrem to be identified as author of
this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections
77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Beorkrem, Christopher.
Material strategies in digital fabrication / Christopher Beorkrem.
pages cm
Includes index.
1. Building materials. 2. Architecture--Technological innovations.
3. Manufacturing processes--Data processing. 4. Manufacturing
processes--Automation. 5. Computer integrated manufacturing
systems. I. Title.
NA4100.B46 2012
721'.040285--dc23
ISBN: 978-0-415-53364-5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-415-53366-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-203-10067-7 (ebk)
Publisher's Note
This book has been prepared from camera-ready copy
provided by the author.
Aquisition Editor: Wendy Fuller
Project Manager: Laura Williamson
Production Editor: Kyle Duggan
Book Designer: Mikale Kwiatkowski
Cover Design: Jenny Beorkrem
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank first the talented designers, architects, artists, and
photographers who supported this book through their contributions of
drawings, diagrams and images.
I am grateful to my colleagues and students at the College of Arts
and Architecture at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte,
for the generosity of their time and thoughtful feedback throughout
this process. In particular, the support of Eric Sauda, Greg Snyder,
Matt Parker, Bryan and Jen Shields, Jeff Balmer, and Nick Senske, was
invaluable. I could not have done it without them. UNC Charlotte has
provided financial support for this project, thanks to Ken Lambla and
Jay Dominick.
My bright, patient and diligent student collaborators included:
Ryan Barkes, Samantha Buell, Wynn Buzzell, Dan Corte, Patrick Gaither,
Mikale Kwiatkowski, Daniel McBride, Mitch McGregor, Taylor Milner,
James Rodgers, Carson Russell, Jeff Scott, and Brian Smith.
To my parents for their continuous love and support.
I would like to thank my sister, Jenny, for her impassioned design
sensibilities, and constant willingness to collaborate, in work and in life.
And to Kelly, for her enduring love, encouragement, guidance and
patience throughout this project.
CONTENTS
8 Introductio n
14 Chapte r 1 Timber/Wood
16 Dunescap e SHoP Architects
22 Immaterial/Ultramateria l Nader Tehran
28 Th e Sequential Wall Gramazio & Kohler
34 Th e Ripple Wall Digital Arts Center
40 ZipRocke r schindlersalmerón
46 ICD/ITK E Pavilion Achim Menges and Jan Kippers
52 Winnipe g Skate Shelters Patkau Architects
58 Responsiv e Surface Structures Steffen Reichert - Achim Menges, Instructor
64 Stratifcation s Gramazio & Kohler
70 Trondheim Camera ObSCUra Norwegian University of Science & Technology
74 Chapte r 2 Metals
76 Rea l Good Chair Blu Dot
80 Materia l Formations in Design Elijah Porter
84 Flatfor m Marble Fairbanks
90 Croatian Pavilion Leo Modrcin et ai.
94 Fran k Residence Addition Happy Box Architecture
100 Aqu a Tower Studio Gang Architects
106 L a Maison Unique Heatherwick Studio
110 Betwee n the Sheets Heather Roberge, Instructor
Chapter 3 Concrete/Masonry 114
C.A.S.T. Beam Mark West 116
P_Wall Andrew Kudless 120
Unikabeton Asbjørn Søndergaard, Per Dombernowsky 124
290 Mulberry Street SHoP Architects 130
Structural Oscillations Gramazio & Kohler 136
Freeform Catalan Thin-Tile Vaults Philippe Block 142
Chapter 4 Hybrids 148
Feathered Edge Ball Nogues Studio 150
CHROMAtex.me SOFTlab 156
MoMA PS1 Canopy nArchitects 160
Periscope: Foam Tower Matter Design 166
CoreFab-Nubik Ammar Eloueini 172
Spanish Pavilion Alejandro Zaera-Polo AZPA/FOA 178
Chapter 5 Recycled/Pre-Cycled 182
P. F. 1 WORK.AC 184
Packed Tom Pawlofsky, Instructor 188
Cardborigami Tina Hovsepian 194
Pallet Canopy Digital Arts Center 198
Pipe Furniture Sebastien Wierinck 204
Table Cloth Ball Nogues Studio 210
Photo Credits, Project Credits, References and Index 216
INTRODUCTION
Process-based design has quickly become an tight parameters. For instance, the precast brick
accepted method for the conceptual development of veneer used on SHoP’s 290 Mulberry development is
architectural form. At a multitude of scales, architects constrained to a 3⁄ " corbel or overlap, brick-to-brick.
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define systemic parameters or networked linkages that To minimize cost they were required to create a single
value relational dynamics over traditional, linear notions precast mold, but inventively blocked out portions
of design. From SHoP Architect’s materially constrained of the mold to create a variety of different building
methodology,1 to urban-scale ecology linked design façade components, from that single mold. The project
systems like those outlined in Charles Waldheim’s becomes a diagram of its own constraints, minimizing
text The Landscape Urbanism Reader,2 designers are customization, while maximizing formal outcomes. It
drawn away from the metaphor, back to logic-based is a process with a sustainable ethic applied not as an
(responsive) form-making processes. Designers overlay but embedded in its very inventions.
empowered by new technology now consider form
as it is defined by identifiable systems. This evidence- The material performance of a project such as
based, parametric methodology is a response to two 290 Mulberry (p. 130) is defined primarily by the
decades of digitally-derived projects, often produced designer’s need to create an identifiable façade, within
simply for their novelty. the constraints of a city’s zoning regulations and a
developer’s pro forma. The use of a certain lot size
As far back as 1993 Juhani Pallasmaa was recognizing predefines a number of units, of a particular size, which
(and arguing for) a new “eco-functionalism” derived will ensure profitability. However, there is also a desire
through linkages between technology, materiality to create an identifiable icon for the project on a
and form. prominent corner site. The material response, in this
instance, helped create an iconographic brick façade,
Ecological architecture also implies a view of while minimizing the effect on the unit size and overall
building more as a process than a product. construction cost (see details on 290 Mulberry p. 130).
And it suggests a new awareness in terms
of recycling and responsibility exceeding the The parametric links, which SHoP created between the
scope of life. It also seems that the architect’s city’s zoning regulations, the developer’s fiscal constraints,
role between the polarities of craft and the manufacturer’s construction specifications, and their
art has been redefined. The priority of own design intentions, exemplifies the type of parametric
representation will be replaced by the priority relationship this text seeks to celebrate.
of performance. After decades of affluence
and abundance, architecture is likely to THE MATERIALLY RESPONSIVE PARAMETER
return to the aesthetics of necessity in which
elements of metaphorical expression and In recent years, designers have developed processes
practical craft fuse into each other again; utility for layering performance-based feedback into the
and beauty again united.3 early stages of design development.4 This is often
a response to the tendencies of a construction
Material-constrained processes, as they have been industry that values efficiency - resulting in excessive
used to date, are typically tied to unit-based logics or waste - over environmental steadfastness. However,
systems, often limited in scale and scope by relatively a systematic design process, applied specifically to
material constraints could frame awareness of the THE MATERIAL PARAMETER
interconnectivity between the mediums of ecology,
parametric modeling, and CNC fabrication. David Material selection can be based on a variety of choices.
Gissen outlines an architectural ideology based Often designers select materials for their shelf life,
upon the definition of Architectural Political Ecology.5 phenomenological qualities, or for the flexibility of their
Gissen defines a variety of concepts to accomplish detailing or connection. However, the connection detail
a “production of nature.” He is attempting to look is most crucial to a system’s flexibility and the aesthetic
beyond the superficialities of so-called “green” design of complex architectural forms. From a simple nail to a
to a set of strategies that embrace substantive custom fabricated joint, the connection detail contains
design rather than the relatively mundane aesthetics the information for delimiting the articulation and
of environmental awareness as an applied layer to performance of a system.
architectural design. This type of substantive design
is defined by the tangible knowledge of material Throughout this text the connection detail will be mapped
characteristics, such as: dimensional properties, as visibly as possible and discussed in language describing
durability, deformation, water proofing and weathering the specificity of its geometry (dimensions, angles,
(if applicable), connection types, relative costs, color, rotational capacity and strength).
texture, and finish. These characteristics define
some of the performance criteria, which can and Materially relevant digital design was most visibly
should be layered into the early stages of each design and memorably defined by one project; Dunescape,
process, linked to their formal expression through by SHoP Architects. Dunescape used a simple
parametric design. Further, these performance-based construction technique, uniquely grounded in it’s
characteristics can be identified as the primary device own efficiency. The simple 2" x 2" wood lamination
for delimiting form through parametric design, most creates a repetitive spatial sequence of sections. The
often through geometric relationships. construction technique afforded the designers the
ability to work through the material to articulate a new
“Form-finding” as defined by Andrew Kudless is “the formal typology of construction and craft within digital
self organization of material under force to discover design. Dunscape's ultimate success rests fully on a keen
stable forms.” Using both analog methods of understanding of the relationship between method,
tension-only models hung in chain and fabric, and using material(ity), construction and assembly; all of which
advanced software tools such as Thrust Network Analysis are critical elements of the knowledge necessary to
(Philippe Block) there are many examples included in produce a model of craftsmanship (see Chapter 1 for
the following pages of work which attempt to respond details on the material responsiveness of Dunescape).
to the form as it falls into stasis with gravity. These tests
can result in forms hung in space as with Feathered The intent of this text is to map through materiality
Edge (p. 150), by Ball Nogues, or the fabric-formed the simplest methods for making complex parametric
beams of Mark West and C.A.S.T. (p. 116). These forms, whether constructed by unskilled labor, or using
forms can also be inverted to create compression-only complex systems of hybrid materials and assembly with
forms as with Philippe Block’s Catalan Thin-Tile Vaulting 7-axis robots.
(p. 142).
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