3d printing

MVRDV has designed a unique coral-inspired 3D printed retail facade that uses ocean plastic for the Tiffany & Co. store in Singapore Changi Airport. Highlighting the heritage brand’s commitment to sustainability (including coral conservation), the facade was created in collaboration with Amsterdam-based Aectual, a company working with circular 3D printed materials, and Milan-based engineers BUROMILAN. Courtesy of Tiffany&Co. When developing the design for the 3D printed facade, MVRDV picked out several distinctive design attributes that are intrinsic to Tiffany’s identity and history. These range from “touches of Tiffany Blue® to the use of innovative materials, inspired by Louis Comfort Tiffany&... More

Swiss-based global building materials and aggregates company Holcim has launched Phoenix, a pioneering and circular 3D printed concrete bridge. Built in partnership with the Block Research Group (BRG) at the Institute of Technology in Architecture at ETH Zürich, Zaha Hadid Architects Computation and Design Group (ZHA CODE), and incremental3D, Phoenix demonstrates the interplay between low-carbon and circular technologies in infrastructural development.  Vincent Delesvaux Launched at Holcim’s recently inaugurated innovation hub in Lyon, France, Phoenix demonstrates an approach to innovative and sustainable building solutions. The project is an evolution of Striatus, an earlier 3D printed concrete bridge developed by... More

Studio RAP is an architectural design company with a difference. The Rotterdam-based studio works with robots to challenge conventional approaches to architecture and construction. From its workshop in Rotterdam’s RDM Innovation Dock, Studio RAP’s team of architects, designers, roboticists, programmers, and researchers combine computational design with innovative digital fabrication methods. In 2016, Studio Rap completed the Netherlands’ first robotically fabricated building, designing a large vault made up of 225 unique wooden panels with an eight-meter (approx. 26 feet) span. More recently, the studio completed an unusual project on Amsterdam’s P.C. Hooftstraat. Named Ceramic House, the project utilized Studio... More

The use of 3D printing in architecture is on a rapid upward trajectory as architects, academics, engineers, and construction experts find ever greater applications for this technology. Whether or not 3D printing will revolutionize the industry is a matter of ongoing discourse — like any technology, it will have its advocates and critics. 3D printing, also known as “additive manufacturing”, is comparable with the once ubiquitous inkjet printer. The inkjet creates characters and images by squirting ink droplets onto paper in a controlled manner. In a similar way, the 3D printer “prints” or layers a material mix, making a physical object from a three-dimensional digital model. The layering is controlled and repea... More

Rotterdam-based design studio The New Raw has designed and manufactured a sinuous 18-meter-long piece of furniture for the entrance zone of an office building in Utrecht, the Netherlands. The sculptural and multifunctional element is inspired by geological layers and 3D printed with approximately 880 kilograms of plastic waste. Copyright: Michele Margot The New Raw designed and manufactured the Stratum furniture on behalf of PicNic, the online supermarket wanted such an object in the entrance hall of its new office in Utrecht. The furniture swings, bends and takes on different heights and widths; it forms, for example, a planter, a counter, a bench, a small desk and a standing table. Copyright: Michele Margot Drop-off la... More

The Striatus bridge is structured solely through compression. The Block Research Group (BRG) at ETH Zurich in collaboration with Zaha Hadid Architects Computation and Design Group (ZHACODE) and incremental3D used computational design and robotic manufacturing to revive a traditional master builders’ technique. The bridge is circular by design and combines masonry with 3D printed concrete. Using material only where needed to significantly reduce its environmental footprint.      By dry assembly without binders, each element can be repurposed repeatedly. The structurally informed bridge opens up a world of possibilities with concrete that could potentially answer ecological questions. The pavilion is part of the &l... More

A consortium of the government, knowledge institutions and industry came together to develop the new technology with the dream of solving the housing shortage in the Netherlands. Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) conducted research and developed the BIM models to print. The concrete mortar needed for 3D printing was developed by Saint-Gobain Weber Beamix, and together with TU/e developed the printing technology. The municipality of Eindhoven co-initiated and facilitated the project. Bart van Overbeeke “With this small building, a first major step has been taken today in the development of construction into a high-quality manufacturing industry. From design to implementation, digitalization leads to sustainable and affo... More

The Vessel Collection is a series of 3D-printed, metal-plated vases. They are digitally designed and produced, while finished by hand by Alessandro. They are an experiment and exploration of the fine line between the digital and the crafted. Part of the Vessel Collection, the Square Vases started as an experiment of form making. The vases are increasingly perforated and warped, creating complex curves that push the form inwards, while revealing gradually the contents of their interior. The vases were then 3D printed and metal plated in three different ways. For this one, after it has been printed, sanded and painted, layers of copper and silver patination were applied. The vase is very strong and durable due to the electroforming at 300 mic... More

Boero is a self-produced lamp. Boero Lamp takes shape and inspiration from an object of peasant nature, a container of water for hens; the use of the name Boero derives from the Dutch “Boer” which means peasant. The application of the handle to the opposite of the empty side, made Boero particularly functional, they allowed the realization of an essential lamp, but at the same time particularly effective and functional. Thanks to the presence of two particular elements, a 180 ° rotating handle and a 300 cm cotton and linen electric cable, the Boero Lamp can be easily positioned almost anywhere you want to obtain an ideal atmosphere lighting.Each element of the Boero Lamp is Made in Italy using a 3D printer. The material used is a high quali... More