Optimized Design and Fabrication of Economical, Double Curved Metal Facades

While there is an increased desire for complex geometry in the built environment, affordable fabrication processes are still in their infancy.1 Economical workarounds have historically existed including the use of developable surfaces (Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles), rationalization techniques(Mercedes Benz Museum, Stuttgart) and cold bending techniques(Experience Music Project, Seattle). More recently the Dongdaemun Design Park (DDP), designed by Zaha HadidArchitects in Seoul, South Korea utilized a multi-stretch forming machine, with two mating dies and high pressure.2 At the University of Arizona researchers have developed an economical technology to manufacture precision, compound-curved aluminum metal sheets for satellite communication dishes, answering a need for increased high-speed internet demands. This developed technology has been recently expanded and adapted for economical building façades, in collaboration with the architecture department, giving an opportunity to connect space technology with the built environment, natural forms and systems. This paper disseminates the associated optimized design process, manufacture and installation of a full-scale demonstration project of this technology on the aforementioned college campus.

https://doi.org/10.35483/ACSA.AM.110.7

Volume Editors
Robert Gonzalez, Milton Curry & Monica Ponce de Leon

ISBN
978-1-944214-40-1