Digital fabrication in architecture

192 Pages·2012·38.361 MB·English

by  Dunn, Nick

DIGITAL
FABRICATION
IN ARCHITECTURE
Published in 2012
by Laurence King Publishing Ltd
361–373 City Road
London EC1V 1LR
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www.laurenceking.com
Design copyright © 2012 Laurence King Publishing Limited
Text © Nick Dunn
Nick Dunn has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs,
and Patent Act 1988, to be identified as the Author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced
or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval
system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
A catalog record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978 185669 891 7
Designed by John Round Design
Printed in China
Front cover: Nordpark Cable Railway, Innsbruck, by Zaha Hadid © Roland Halbe
NICK DUNN
DIGITAL
FABRICATION
IN ARCHITECTURE
Laurence King Publishing
Contents
06 Introduction 74 INTEGRATION
14 A brief history
76 Introduction
20 Fabricating architecture
77 Hybrid techniques
in the digital age
84 Nonstandard design and mass
24 About this book
customization
25 Getting started
88 Digital fabrication principles
26 Digital tools and machines
90 Laser cutting
for fabrication
96 CNC milling and routing
102 Rapid prototyping
30 GENERATION 108 3-D scanning
111 Robotics
32 Introduction
34 CAD
40 NURBS
116 STRATEGIES
44 Meshes
118 Introduction
49 Curvilinear formations
120 Nonlinearity and indeterminacy
54 Parametric and generative design
121 Digital tooling
60 Algorithmic architecture
130 Contouring
66 Morphogenesis
140 Folding
148 Forming
158 Sectioning
166 Tiling
176 Future fabrication of architecture

184 Conclusion
186 Glossary
187 Further reading
188 Index
192 Acknowledgments

Related study material is available on the Laurence King website at
www.laurenceking.com

6
Introduction
Architecture is fundamentally concerned with two core software, which allows parametric systems and complex
activities: designing and making. Of course, these are “biological” organizations to be generated and explored,
not mutually exclusive and often inform one another in a offers new avenues of holistic design production and detailed
continuous dialogue as projects progress from concepts, component manufacturing for the architectural designer.
through design development, to final form—typically These massive shifts in design processes have implications in
the realization of a building. The ability to effectively material culture far beyond the discipline of architecture, as
communicate creative ideas remains a central aspect ever more research and development is conducted at cross-
of the discipline. With the development of numerous disciplinary levels worldwide. In addition, the application
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) and other software of CAD technologies as part of the production of physical
packages, the variety of design processes available models and prototypes is becoming increasingly widespread
to architects, which may influence the fabrication of through processes such as CAD/CAM (Computer-Aided
architecture and its components, is greater than ever. Manufacture), Computer Numerical Control (CNC) milling,
Of specific interest in this field is the recent capability to and rapid prototyping. The translation of computer-
integrate analog and digital techniques and processes generated data to physical artifact is not a one-way street;
to produce physical objects, whether three-dimensional processes may be reversed with equipment such as a three-
concept diagrams, scale models, or full-size prototypes. dimensional scanner, or digitizer, which is used to trace
The increasing proliferation of computers and advanced contours of physical objects directly into the computer.
modeling software has enabled architects and students Therefore, this book will focus on the inspiring possibilities
alike to conceive and construct designs that would be offered by digital fabrication for architecture, with all the
very difficult to develop using traditional methods. In different technologies and techniques that are now available
particular, the emergence of new computational modeling for the holistic and componential making of designs.
Above Above right
The prevalence of digital images in the The pursuit by Supermanoeuvre of innovative
design and communication of architecture design and fabrication processes is typified by
is commonplace. Even so, this imposes no Supermatter I, where a mould was first designed
limits on designers’ creativity—as is shown algorithmically. Fused Deposition Modeling
by this digital montage for NOX’s proposal was used to 3D print a positive so that a bronze
for The Three Graces hotel and office towers cast could be produced via a lost mould process
in Dubai. The design is based on the idea to form a complex self-supporting structure.
of a “networked” skin offering a symbolic Prototyping of this nature has significant
gateway to the Khor Dubai Wharfage. potential for architecture as full structures
may be realized from lightweight formwork.
Introduction 7
Above
This stereolithographic prototype of the
skeletal structure for Kokkugia’s project Fibrous
Tower is part of a series of investigations
that explore the generation of ornamental,
structural, and spatial order through an
algorithmic design methodology. Conceived
as a load-bearing shell that distributes forces
across its network, the physical model is
a direct translation of the sophisticated
design data that satisfies such criteria.
Right
Zaha Hadid’s Mobile Art Pavilion for Chanel
takes advantage of digital imaging and
construction processes to create a design
with fluid geometries and dynamic space.
Below
Digital fabrication techniques provide architects
with a spectrum of applications, transforming
even long-held traditional methods of
representation such as modelmaking. This
digital model for Coop Himmelb(l)au’s
design for BMW Welt, Munich, was used
to make laser-cut components to achieve 4th
its complex geometrical formal qualities. 3rd
2nd
1st
8 Introduction
The design for Hills Place, London, by
Amanda Levete Architects, developed this
sculptural façade as a logical response to
the narrow street, thereby maximizing
the natural daylight available. The form is
achieved through a system of aluminum
profiles, more commonly used in the
production of ship hulls. The façade
is fabricated using curved 5½-inch
(140mm) profiles that are connected on
site. The metallic silver coating is a high-
performance paint typically applied to
the surface of yachts. Self-cleaning glass
and discreet hidden gutters ensure the
façade retains its sculptural qualities.
Introduction 9
Right
The architectural possibilities of developments
in material technology continue to increase,
fueled by digital fabrication methods. For
the Swarovski Crystal Palace, Greg Lynn
FORM developed an installation utilizing
cutting-edge technology from the nautical
industry, in which carbon and aramid fibers
are sandwiched between transparent Mylar™
sheets to produce a series of very strong yet
lightweight “sails” less than 1/25 inch (1mm)
thick. With their potential application as spatial
dividers or enclosures for future projects,
the innovative design may provide a key
stage for more research and development.
4th
3rd
Above Above 2nd
Vector Wall by Reiser + Umemoto demonstrates Research into materials and their design 1st
the ways in which a laser cutter may be used opportunities informs the work of Barkow
to perforate a flexible or semiflexible material Leibinger—as shown in their speculative
with multidirectional patterning, reinterpreting Coil Tubes. Using laser-cutting technology
the common wall. The model illustrated to form a spiraling pattern on a rotating
here was further developed as a full-size steel tube, the subsequent geometry allows
prototype to explore the potential application flexibility while segments also remain locked
of the design and its adaptability. Refer to together. By the addition of LEDs into the
page 142 for how the project developed. tube, variable lighting effects are possible
dependent on the degree of bending.
10 Introduction
Left
Office for Metropolitan Architecture’s (OMA)
design for the China Central Television (CCTV)
Headquarters proposed a digital media façade,
allowing the building to display moving
images and footage across its envelope.
Left and above
The Gwanggyo Power Center near Seoul,
designed by MVRDV, has been developed
using a combination of digital design tools and
manual modelmaking techniques. This hybrid
process of creative flow between different
modes of investigation is characteristic of the
evolving nature of digital design in architecture.
Left
Foreign Office Architects’ (FOA) seminal
design for the Yokohama International Port
Terminal, completed in 2002, coupled the
concept of folded surfaces as circulation
loops with the tectonic realization
afforded by digital design tools.