Connecting the Goals

Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen

Carlo Ratti
Martin Tamke Editors

Design
for Rethinking
Resources
Proceedings of the UIA World Congress
of Architects Copenhagen 2023
Sustainable Development Goals Series
The Sustainable Development Goals Series is Springer Nature’s inaugural
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Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen •
Carlo Ratti • Martin Tamke
Editors

Design for Rethinking

Resources
Proceedings of the UIA World
Congress of Architects Copenhagen
2023

123
Editors
Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen Carlo Ratti
CITA (Centre for Information Senseable City Lab
Technology and Architecture) Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Royal Danish Academy— Cambridge, MA, USA
Architecture, Design, Conservation
Copenhagen, Denmark

Martin Tamke
CITA (Centre for Information
Technology and Architecture)
The Royal Danish Academy—
Architecture, Design, Conservation
Copenhagen, Denmark

ISSN 2523-3084 ISSN 2523-3092 (electronic)

Sustainable Development Goals Series
ISBN 978-3-031-36553-9 ISBN 978-3-031-36554-6 (eBook)
[Link]

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Scientific Committee

General Reporter, Alternate General Reporter

Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen, Professor and Head of CITA (Centre for

Information Technology and Architecture), The Royal Danish Academy—
Architecture, Design, Conservation.
Martin Tamke, Associate Professor, CITA (Centre for Information Technol-
ogy and Architecture), The Royal Danish Academy—Architecture, Design,
Conservation.

Panel Chairs

Panel 1: Design for Climate Adaptation.

Billie Faircloth, Research Director KieranTimberlake, Adjunct Professor
University of Pennsylvania.
Maibritt Pedersen Zari, Educator and Researcher, Associate Professor,
Auckland University of Technology.

Panel 2: Design for Rethinking Resources.

Carlo Ratti, Professor and Director of the Senseably City Lab, MIT,
Founding Partner of CRA—Carlo Ratti Associati.
Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen, Professor and Head of CITA (Centre for
Information Technology and Architecture), The Royal Danish Academy—
Architecture, Design, Conservation.

Panel 3: Design for Resilient Communities.

Juan Du, Professor and Dean of the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture,
Landscape and Design, University of Toronto.
Anna Rubbo, Senior Researcher, Center for Sustainable Urban Development,
The Climate School, Columbia University.

Panel 4: Design for Health.

Arif Hasan, Chairperson Urban Resource Center Karachi, former Visiting
Professor NED University Karachi, former member of UNs Advisory Group
on Forced Evictions (PA)

v
vi Scientific Committee

Christian Benimana, Co-Executive Director and Senior Principal MASS

Design Group

Panel 5: Design for Inclusivity.

Magda Mostafa, Autism Design Principal Progressive Architects, Professor
of Design at the Department of Architecture, The American University in
Cairo.
Ruth Baumeister, Associate Professor of Theory and History of Architecture,
Aarhus School of Architecture.

Panel 6: Design for Partnerships for Change.

Sandi Hilal, Co-director DAAR (Decolonizing Architecture Art Research),
Lise Meinert Visiting Professor, Lund University.
Merve Bedir, Fellow at BAK (Basis voor Actuele Kunste) Utrecht.

Special Advisors

Katherine Richardson, Professor in Biological Oceanography and Leader of

Sustainability Science Centre, University of Copenhagen.
Chris Luebkeman, Leader of the Strategic Foresight Hub, Office of the
President, ETH Zürich.
Thomas Bo Jensen, Head of Research, Aarhus School of Architecture.
Camilla Ryhl, Research Director, Bevica Fonden.
Peer Review Committee

We would like to thank all members of the Peer-Review Committee for this
volume for their enduring effort and valuable advice.
Luca Breseghello,
Nadja Gaudilliere,
Niels Martin Larsen,
Fujing Ma,
Dagmar Reinhardt,
Diego Alejandro Velandia Rayo,
Adrien Rigobello,
Dana Saez,
Hugo Mulder,
Hao Wu,
Xan Browne,
Tomas Vivanco,
Tom Svilans,
Mia Münster,
Jonas Runberger,
Mathilde Marengo,
Mokolade Johnson,
Tobias Schwinn,
Saqib Aziz,
Paul Nicholas,
Aswini Balashanmugam,
Lotte M. Bjerregaard Jensen,
Shafique Rahman,
Tom Buckland,
Ingrid Halland,
David Jenny,
Deepika Raghu,
Anders Kruse Aagaard,
Oliver Tessmann,
Catherine De Wolf,
Kathy Velikov,
Thomas Wortmann,
Axel Kilian,
Aleksandra Anna Apolinarska,
Giovanni Betti,

vii
viii Peer Review Committee

Rodrigo Velasco,
Olga Popovic Larsen,
Kathrin Dörfler,
Philipp Eversmann,
Philippe Block,
Anita Ollár,
Brady Peters,
Markus Hudert,
Anja Kunic,
Hanaa Dahy,
Svenja Keune,
Anke Pasold,
Elise Elsacker,
Matthias Haeusler,
Vladimir Simon Montoya Torres,
David Andreen,
Stefanie Weidner,
Mariana Popescu,
Urszula Kozminska,
Timo Carl,
Nikol Kirova,
Marina Diamantidou,
Mohammad Habib Reza,
Jana Revedin,
Alexandre Monnin,
Henriette Bier,
Tim Schork,
Jan Wurm,
Felix Heisel,
Daniel Lee,
Yu Ye.
Preface

Introduction

In the autumn of 2022, as part of the preparations for the UIA World
Congress of Architects 2023 Copenhagen we invited Panel Chair and MASS
Design Group architect Christian Benimana to Copenhagen to speak to our
collegiate and students. In his introduction he outlined the dramatic land use
change in Rwanda following the country’s population growth over the last
50 years. Pointing to the maps he argued that we have passed a tipping point
and that our given societal infrastructures cannot simply be extended or
optimized to support this new situation. We cannot build 500 universities or
600 hospitals, he said, instead we need systemic change to rethink what a
university is, what a hospital can be. We need to question how our institu-
tions, infrastructures and communities can change in the way they address
those in need and what access can be, and therefore also how architecture,
its practices, embedded knowledge and products can be methods of insti-
gating change.
The present proceedings present six volumes examining the knowledge
foundation for such change. As proceedings for the Science Track of the UIA
World Congress of Architects 2023 Copenhagen Sustainable Futures—Leave
no one behind, they contain a total of 296 papers investigating, show casing
and arguing for how change can be imagined across the built environment.
By asking how architecture can help achieving the UN Sustainable Devel-
opment Goals (SDGs), the presented papers collect the research- and
practice-based results of a global community. Together they ask what the
future of the built environment can be and how design as action and as
knowledge can create new roles for architecture and the communities it
serves.
This preface starts with the articulation of our profound gratitude to the
Scientific Committee and the community of submitting authors and peer
reviewers that have been part of this effort. During the last two and half years
we have worked together with the Scientific Committee’s Panel Chairs and
Special Advisors to form a vision for the Science Track. The process has
been an education. Not only in our understanding of the SDGs, the trans-
formative power of design creation or the wider societal role of the built
environment, but also in keeping our minds open to the many positions that
architecture can be thought through and its critical role in engaging—inter-
facing, informing and developing—different knowledge cultures and

ix
x Preface

perspectives. We therefore start by thanking the 17 members of the Scientific

Committee, the contributing 656 authors of the 296 accepted papers, the
1486 authors of the more than 750 paper submissions and the 536 peer
reviewers that have all made this project possible.

Platform

The UIA World Congress 2023 Copenhagen starts with an ambition. Pitched
in 2017, only 1 year after the launch of the UN Sustainable Development
Goals, the central nerve is the articulation of the profound agency of archi-
tecture and how it plays an acute role in achieving the SDGs. In the congress,
the Science Track is given a particular role. Initiated early in the planning
process, the aim has been to place the Science Track at the heart of the
congress in order to collect its underpinning knowledge foundation and shape
its criticality through a broad outreach to a global community. Sustainability,
like architecture, is a wicked problem. Its solutions are dependent on the way
we ask, the methods we use and the contexts in which we work. To ask how
architecture can be part of the dynamic fulfilment of the UN SDGs is to ask:
who are the communities we design with and for, what is the knowledge we
draw upon and how can its sharing change how we think about what our built
environment can be.
One of the central drivers in our preparatory work for the Science Track
has been the realizations of the blindness of the UN SDGs to the agency of
architecture. The SDGs seek to steer behaviour both through impacting
legislation and wider societal value sets. They establish priorities and gal-
vanize efforts across communities by identifying targets and providing shared
yard sticks in the form of indicators. In doing so they inscribe a world view
of its defining actors; the governmental bodies, industries and communities
that can be leveraged upon to instigate change. And in this world view
architecture is strangely absent. At present, none of the UN SDGs declare
targets that directly articulate architecture as a driver for change nor are there
any indicators that evaluate its role. The built environment is only mentioned
as a driver for resilient communities but without real value setting of the role
of planning and design. This despite the extensive and complex impact
architecture holds on human and non-human well-being; the way we live our
lives, shape equity and use our resources.
For us this realization has led to the overarching aim of using the congress
to build awareness. To argue for and demonstrate how architecture has the
ability to afford change in the way we understand and construct the world
around us and therefore how it as a situated practice engaging directly with
both legislation, industry and the communities in which architecture takes
place can become a direct way of effecting change.
Preface xi

Vision

The Science Track is formed around six panels of which this volume is one.
The vision of the six panels is to articulate six differentiated perspectives onto
how architecture can be part of achieving the SDGs while reinforcing their
interconnectedness. The panels are in part mapped to existing fields while at
the same time suggesting new. By bringing together otherwise fragmented
knowledge across the breadth of architecture’s research and practices, the
aim is to bring together knowledge across research, practice and education to
provoke new perspectives, new alliances and concrete action. In articulating
the panels, the Scientific Committee asks pertinent and provocative questions
that challenge the field and position the SDGs as active goal posts. These
questions form the chapters of each volume asking how architectural
knowledge creation can innovate the thinking, design and making of
architecture.

– Design for Climate Adaptation With profound urgency, global commu-

nities are acting and adapting to the earth’s changing climate. Our built
environment, the most common habitat of humans, should interact with
the earth’s ecosystems and climates in a sustainable and regenerative way.
‘Design for Climate Adaptation’ emphasizes people, multiple forms of
research, knowledges and action for high- and low-tech solutions that
make buildings, neighbourhoods, landscapes, cities, and regions regen-
erative, resilient and adaptive to climate change impacts.
– Design for Rethinking Resources Design shapes our world, from the
places we live in to objects we use every day. As we grow more aware
of the limits of our planet’s resources shifting from an exploitative to a
restorative, regenerative and circular design ideology becomes funda-
mental. ‘Design for Rethinking Resources’ examines approaches to
resourcefulness in architecture; how sustainability challenges the foun-
dations of our material practices and how they can change with it.
– Design for Resilient Communities A resilient community anticipates,
adapts to and recovers from adversity. Climate change, the global pan-
demic and political upheavals in many countries have revealed social,
economic and environmental inequalities that threaten communities
worldwide. These fault lines disproportionately impact the poor, people of
colour, the racially or ethnically marginalized and women. ‘Design for
Resilient Communities’ encourages innovative solutions and facilitates
the development of knowledge and skills necessary for adaptation and
recovery.
– Design for Health Architecture and health are inseparable. From the
direct design of hospitals and places for healing to the strategic design of
infrastructures and city planning, architecture affects physical and mental
health of individuals and communities. ‘Design for Health’ asks how
architecture can reconceive health as a design issue. How land rights
impact healthy living; how legislation, planning and building impact
inequality and access to water and how single buildings and the civic
construction of hospitals, health clinics and community buildings can
xii Preface

operate in unison with local environments and ecologies to create a safe

and healthy space for all.
– Design for Inclusivity No individual deserves to experience space in a
manner that is less safe, less comfortable or less accessible as a result
of their identity or challenges. Sustainability, in its most holistic defini-
tion, cannot be achieved without a collective act. ‘Design for Inclusivity’
aims to critically define the constructs and categories of who exactly we
are excluding, and why, in order to mindfully develop strategies to mit-
igate this exclusion.
– Design for Partnerships for Change ‘Design for Partnerships’ is about
recognizing the asymmetrical relationships between states, public spaces,
civil societies and private domains to find new balances for the existing
power structures. By challenging the ontology of universalism, it exam-
ines how architecture and the built environment can play an essential role
in creating a ground for care through local governance, space making
practices, imaginaries and scenarios of plural(istic) political, socially and
ecologically sustainable futures.

Critical Positions

The two and half years of preparation has been an inspiring experience
through which we have witnessed the power of architectural thinking in
action—its interweaving of the critical and the creative ideation as well as its
inherent inventiveness orientation towards the future. As part of the curation
of this work we have defined a series of critical positions by which to
understand the correlation between architectural thinking and the UN SDGs.
A first position has been to challenge the inherent anthropocentrism and
perceived lack of hierarchy between the goals; the Tabula Rasa effect as
Johan Rockström names it [Rockström 2016]. The SDGs have been criticized
for failing to recognize that planetary, people and prosperity concerns are
interconnected [Kotzé 2022]. In forming the six panels of the Science Track
we seek to position a rupture to the modernist axiom that the environment is
situated outside of us. Instead, we understand the SDGs as a balancing
between planetary and human needs which needs to be holistically addressed.
A second position is the critical appreciation that the SDGs retain an
adherence to an underlying model of growth. The Science Track asks what
the future practices of architecture can be, what the ethical roles of archi-
tectural design are and how architecture knowledge can create change in how
architecture is produced both within and without of models of growth. It
seeks to identify who the partners of architecture practice can be both through
grassroot community action and through industry-based models.
A third position is the challenge of the embedded universalism within the
SDGs. The SDGs maintain a universalism that is common to the UN system
and underlies much of UN’s work. However, this fundamentally modernist
position of understanding sustainability as ‘a problem to be solved’ and
placing agency with legislation leaves questions of agency, voice and power
Preface xiii

unchallenged. The Science Track seeks to incorporate this criticism through

the panel calls and their associated sub-questions by provoking reflection on
the perceived neutrality of architecture’s own humanist traditions and insists
on the question of how architecture is produced, by people and for people.
The challenge to universalism has also led to a review of the scientific
practice of knowledge dissemination. The call for papers deliberately
encourages exchanges and learnings across different knowledge and practice
silos. This is effected through differentiated publication formats that include
scientific knowledge production as well as design-based knowledge pro-
duction, narrative formats such as oral history, visual essays, as well as
dialogue-based exchanges and argumentative essays. The aim of these for-
mats is to expand the possibility of transdisciplinary knowledge exchange
and include voices that are not commonly part of academic and professional
discourse.
The fourth and final position is to understand the SDGs as part of a
changing world. The SDGs set out a 14-year long project. Any project of that
length needs to build in methods of reviewing its own fundamental value sets
and core conceptual foundation. The intensifying and accumulating effects of
climate change, the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the continued
stress on the world’s resources and the escalating multi-partisan war in
Ukraine have deep and unequal repercussions on global communities. To
engage with the SDGs is to correlate the goals to a changeable understanding
of both needs and means. It is to commit to a continual address of both the
contexts and instruments of change-making. In the Science Track, our focus
on the concrete and the actionable through presentations of cutting-edge
research, real-world case studies and near-future focused arguments call for a
situated understanding of the SDGs. This emphasis contextualizes the SDGs
within the multiple and diverse practices of architecture as well as the dis-
parate places in which architecture takes place. The perspectives, methods
and means are purposefully broad. They seek to represent the breadth of the
solution space needed for the systemic change needed. They also purpose-
fully include different voices and different styles to make present the different
actors, different knowledge streams and different institutions that create this
change.

Perspective

The result is a six volume proceedings tracking a wide and multifarious

interpretation on how architecture can be part of achieving the SDGs. Across
their individual chapters we see a breadth of enquiries asking who the
communities are, who the actors are and what the means of architectural
production are. They ask how we can shape the methods of architectural
thinking we well as their associated technologies, how they can be distributed
and what is the consequence of their sharing.
The proceedings instantiate a moment in time. As research strands, they
are part of larger trajectories of knowledge creation. Where our aim for the
World Congress is to facilitate new discussions and exchange enabling
xiv Preface

synergy across silos and geographies, it is clear that the full potential of this
conversation is only just beginning. The World Congress coincides with the
half-way mark of the SDGs. Launched in 2016 and with a projected com-
pletion date of 2030, we need to transition from a place of planning and
speculating to one of action. The work of the Science Track is therefore
marked by a sense of urgency. The desire is to define the effort of this work
not in terms of their individual results, but more as a launch pad for future
exchange and collaboration. We hope that what is created here is a com-
munity of dedicated actors all with a shared stake in the well-being of future
generations. Our hope is that the legacy of this project will be that we can
retain this commitment and grow its stakeholders to mature these proposi-
tions into actionable change.
We profoundly thank the Scientific Committee for their immense effort and
profound engagement in shaping the Science Track. Thank you to: Billie
Faircloth, Maibritt Pedersen Zari, Carlo Ratti, Anna Rubbo, Juan Du, Arif
Hasan, Christian Benimana, Magda Mostafa, Ruth Baumeister, Sandi Hilal,
Merve Bedir, Katherine Richardson, Chris Luebkeman, Thomas Bo Jensen
and Camilla Ryhl.

Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen

General Reporter
Copenhagen, Denmark
Martin Tamke
Alternate General Reporter
Copenhagen, Denmark

References

Kotzé LJ, Kim RE, Burdon P, du Toit L, Glass L-M, Kashwan P, Liverman D et al (2022)
Chapter 6: planetary integrity. In: Sénit C-A, Biermann F, Hickmann T (eds) The
political impact of the sustainable development goals: transforming governance through
global goals? Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 140–171
Rockström J, Sukhdev P (2016) The SDGs wedding cake—Stockholm resilience centre.
Retrieved from [Link]
[Link]. Accessed on 04 Apr 2023
Editorial

The Weight of Cities

“How much does your house weigh?” Buckminster Fuller famously asked
this question in the 1920s, while promoting his lightweight, mass-produced
Dymaxion house that he hoped would democratize homeownership in the
same way that the Model T had done for cars. The 1929 version provided an
incredible ratio of living space to mass: 150 m2 for only 2700 kilos (Reed
2002).
The question of weight was effective because it focussed people’s
attention to an oft-overlooked concept: the weight of a building. Such a
measure may seem nonsensical at first, as most people never consider it.
However, today, as the climate crisis threatens cities everywhere, Fuller’s
question is becoming a heavier one. Much of a building’s weight does not
press into the ground, but instead floats in the atmosphere and traps sunlight.
In other words, mass often indicates embodied energy and CO2 emissions.
We may not feel the weight of the built environment, but the planet does. We
need to lighten the load.

Towards a Metabolistic Architecture

Conceptualizing the weight of cities is at the heart of the field of industrial

urbanism and the subject of the UN Resource Panel’s reports (IRP 2018).
Here, weight is understood not only as a measure of resource consumption
but—more generally—a means of managing environmental impacts over the
full life cycle of production. By asking us to consider cities as a circular
metabolism through which resources flow, this highly multidisciplinary
approach challenges twentieth-century perceptions of resources as funda-
mentally neutral, apolitical and endlessly available at market cost. Currently,
cities have little control over their environmental footprints. By provoking us
to imagine the weight of the urban organism to which this metabolism
belongs, researchers such as Mark Swilling and Marina Fischer-Kowalski
warn us of the hidden costs of resource ignorance. They challenge city
leaders to radically rethink how resources are strategized and deployed across
our society—envisaging circular design strategies that cascade materials

xv
xvi Editorial

through different use-scenarios to most fully exhaust the extracted, avoiding

waste and its detrimental impact on the environment.
But how do we measure the weight of the city? Much of a city’s weight
does not press into the ground, but instead floats in the atmosphere, choking
our lungs and trapping our sunlight. Of course, the relationship between mass
and emissions is not a perfect correlation. As designers we can consider how
every pound of material we employ falls differently on the scales of
sustainability. If we use a measure like CO2 emissions, we could even say
that there are forms of ‘positive weight’ and ‘negative weight’. Producing a
tonne of concrete generates around 600 kilos of CO2 (Nature 2021). When
we compare this with the emerging field of advanced timber construction,
which has far greater potential for carbon storage, more weight might mean
more environmental integration. It is estimated that producing one tonne of
dry timber removes 1.8 tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere (Cambridge
2019).
To achieve such changes, we need to improve our ability to measure the
problem. It may seem daunting to manage the complex accounting of carbon,
land, energy, water, raw materials and cost, but the rise of digital
technologies is giving us a twenty-first-century toolkit with which to
approach this task. As we craft the buildings of the future, the advanced
computing of ‘digital twins’ and Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) allows us to
track the emissions implications of a given design choice. Once built, sensors
can help us to verify and validate our models. Advanced sensing technology
and artificial intelligence analysis allow us to track—precisely and in real
time—how our schemes for sustainability hold up against the tests of reality.
These sophisticated simulations and their real-life counterparts in sensor data
enable critical assessments of design in context of how resources are
deployed, their intensity and their performance.
Further expansions of these methods push us to integrate end-of-life
scenarios into early-stage design. Our agency as designers is being expanded
by our ability to conceptualize not only the building programme and lifetime,
but also calculate and calibrate the further propagation of building
components and materials in future uses. Designing for adaptation, for
disassembly or for re-materialization challenges the conceptualization that
design is an end-point, instead positioning it as an intermediate position
along the cascading flow of materials where resources are not only extracted,
transported, used and disposed, but also filtered for multiple reuses as they
cascade into more and more intricate life cycle paths.
Could weight become a means of accounting for resource flow through
our larger built environment? If lightness directed the postmodern movement
both through high-tech visions and through economy-driven axioms of
resource optimization, weight here implies both conceptual and direct ways
of broadening designers’ vision to consider the impact they make on the
wider world.
Editorial xvii

Consequences of Weight

But what is weight in context? Returning to Swilling and the UN Resource

Panel’s report, the core message is that a city’s well-being, its sustainable
performance and the ability to design and manage its material flow are
closely tied with its ability to afford social equity (ibid). Resources are
inevitably deeply entangled in the socio-ecological networks of their
extraction and deployment.
Resource scarcity tends to be understood as a quantitative problem. But
resource extraction, and the implied results of over-extraction, such as illegal
mining or the felling of protected forests, have deep impacts on the
communities and ecologies in which they take part. As such, resource
deployment and design are fundamentally ethical decisions. Existing design
methods have little or no ability to inform designers on the ethics of resource
choice. At a coarse level we might be conscious of particular endangered
species or build awareness of specific unethical fabrication processes, but we
lack consolidated conceptual as well as practical models to steer the impact
of design decisions on their socio-ecological contexts.
The present emergence of such models straddles a high- and low-tech
divide. On the one hand, systems design and resilience modelling enable the
analysis of socio-ecological systems and the way extraction impacts on their
embedded balances (Tamberg 2020). On the other hand, new models of
grassroots-driven, participatory and community-focussed resource thinking
challenge the globalization of industrial building practice, instead insisting on
the localization of resource and building technology. Local crafts, traditional
knowledge and a return to grown resources allow alternative ways of
accounting for and sustainably ensuring resource longevity.
What results is a challenge to the embedded universality of the concept of
weight. As if we were occupying varying gravities, weight is not the same
from place to place. While this insistence on context and place supports the
rupture with resources as neutral and apolitical, it complicates the transfer-
ability and value of its results.

Building Vision on a Global Research Stage

It is through this complexity we enter the conceptualization of the UIA World

Congress of Architects 2023 CPH Science Track panel Design for Rethinking
Resources. It draws upon the UN Sustainable Development Goals and 2030
Agenda, whose central, transformative process is ‘leave no one behind’. In
adopting and situating this agenda for architecture, this promise is a guide for
the UIA World Congress of Architects 2023 CPH. These Proceedings collect
the contributions of a global collegiate of designers, researchers and
educators. Together, our global collegiate of designers, researchers and
educators report on a wide array of projects that challenge, rethink and
propose new ways for architecture to understand its material practices.
Design for Rethinking Resources challenges us to question the origins and
xviii Editorial

entangled belongings of the materials we use and how their extraction,

displacement and deployment disrupt socio-ecological belongings while
creating new possibilities.
In this new paradigm, architecture, the design and production of our built
environment, becomes not only the creation of the new or the response to
changing societal needs, but also a strategization of resources; an ethical
practice shaped around the concerns of how materials flow through our
societies impacting our environment, its ecologies and the people it engages.
The 2030 Agenda and SDGs ask us to consider our material footprints. In the
central indicator 8.4.1 (UN2022), they challenge us to measure the attribution
of global material extraction per capita and per GDP to be able to understand
the impact and equity of our consumption.
The work of conceptualizing and curating this UIA World Congress
Science Track panel centres around these questions. In one of our pre-events
leading up to the congress, resource management theorist Helmut Rechberger
asked us to address not just resource scarcity, but also the impact that
business-as-usual models have on our landfills. Challenging us to imagine the
projected weight of the city of Vienna and the fact that it will double by
2050, Rechberger reminds us that cities act as unwanted end-points as
resources meet their end-of-life.
Design for Rethinking Resources journeys through these questions.
Through the six chapters collecting 46 papers, authors present novel
scientific research questioning what resource streams, practices and associ-
ated technologies can amount to a sustainable architecture. They ask us
to rethink our material practices by (re)introducing new and old crafts,
conceptualizing the city as a resource bank, creating new computational
practices to steer the cascading of resources through the built environment as
a material chain, ideating what bio-based renewables can be, and probing the
post-extractive practices of tomorrow.
Our process started with a mapping. By reading through the SDGs and
their associated indicators and targets we searched for the way questions of
resource impact the Sustainable Design Goals (SDG). What we found was an
overwhelming sense that the conceptualization of resources—their origin,
ownership and rights for deployment act as a cornerstone to all 17 goals. The
SDGs ask: Who has the right to resources and by what means? Who extracts?
What pollutes? What land, what water, what energy and what body is
implicated in extraction? Who has access and at what cost? What are the
balances of our material footprint, from country to country and from Global
South to Global North? What is the impact on CO2 emissions and how can
technology ensure resource efficiency? What are the needs of the environ-
ment and what model of social equity must they be balanced with?
In response, we have defined Design for Rethinking Resources across six
questions defining six sub-panels together challenging the way resources are
thought of across architecture. The questions follow an unravelling of how
resources flow through the built environment, moving from questions of
extraction, through production, assembly and management to models of
recycling. In places they consolidate known stepping stones and in others
Editorial xix

they expand the dialogue to bring in further dimensions to what it means to

understand design as the strategization of resources.
Each question has attracted papers from a global community across
disparate sub-fields creating new interfaces between knowledge fields. In line
with the wider UIA World Congress 2023 CPH Scientific Committee focus
on fostering broad inter-cultural exchanges of independent, coherent and
authoritative scientific papers, our aim is to create a global conversation
enabling knowledge sharing across localities and knowledge cultures. As
such, each sub-panel brings in culturally specific contributions that support
each other and bring perspective to the breadth of conditions in which
architecture is produced.

Six Questions for Design for Rethinking Resources

The six chapters that structure these proceedings move along the flow of
materials from sources through use to waste. They question how resources
are employed, advance the techniques and technologies by which they are
used, track their cascading and ideate methods for understanding the city as a
resource map. They ask how bio-based material practices can present
alternate replenishable sources for the material of the built environment and
challenge us to reimagine the role of heritage and the traditions of craft.
Post-extractive Visions
The proceedings start with a series of provocations. Arriving from different
corners of the field, the papers bring together theory and case studies to
imagine architecture beyond extraction. The papers offer a broad critical
assessment of past and present extractive practices and their impact on local,
regional and national ecologies. They ask us to question what post-extractive
technologies might be and how biological technologies that employ living
organisms for material production can present new horizons for the way we
understand the built environment.
Localizing Resources
Resource management challenges the way we understand equality across
multiple social, economic and political divides. The second chapter prompts
us to rethink the globalization of resource deployment. Localizing Resources
asks how participatory and community-focussed local resource thinking can
challenge the way we work with materials. From eggshells to recycled
timber, from earthen bricks to coconut fibres, the chapter presents a series of
cases demonstrating how ‘thinking local’ can foster socio-ecological
networks that facilitate meaningful and contextualized resource cascading.
Heritage to High-Tech
Local resources entail local craft. Heritage to High-Tech positions crafts-
manship in the context of resources. It reminds us how local traditions and
vernaculars are situated in sensitively balanced socio-ecological networks
that already incorporate circular principles of cascading and renewable
strategies. In developing this position for a sustainable future, it asks both to
xx Editorial

carefully examine what these practices entail and what their interfacing with
transposed building knowledge and new technologies can be.
Fabrication Futures
Digital modelling, analysis and fabrication allow us to innovate design
practice. Advanced modelling for material optimization, cyber-physical
augmentation along with LCA, digital twins, material passports and data
basing for resource stock suggests new territories for data-driven material
management. Fabrication Futures asks us to rethink how materials are
deployed. How can their intensity and performance allow for a lighter and
less impactful material practice? Designing for disassembly can help us to
imagine a more flexible and reconfigurable building stock.
Restarting from Renewables
Bio-based materials present a particular perspective on circular thinking.
They are renewable, potentially abundant, carbon-neutral and recyclable.
Restarting from Renewables asks us to imagine our material world as one we
are co-producing through practices of growing and harvesting, transforming
the perception of our surroundings from something inert to something alive.
By spanning different technological perspectives, from the traditions of
bamboo construction to the fermentation of mycelium reinforced weaves to
the implementation of biochar cementitious composites, the papers present a
series of cutting-edge case studies.
The Value of Waste
Circular principles ask us to reconsider the waste streams of production. How
can models of cascade thinking and recycling reallocate material resources?
What models of circularity can transform production and mitigate waste
streams such as pollution, water overuse and energy efficiency? The Value of
Waste asks what are the necessary infrastructures for cascading and how can
buildings, cities and the wider built environment be understood not only as
shelters for the present, but as resources for the future.

Conclusions

With our new research, we could address problems around cities and
sustainability that have bedevilled us for decades. In 1995, Richard Rogers
called for architects to ‘define an ethical stance’, and pursue the creation of
sustainable buildings that would ‘work into the cycle of nature’. He noted
that ‘cities are consuming three-quarters of the world’s energy and causing
three-quarters of the world’s pollution’, and warned that these environmental
consequences would only worsen because ‘over the next 30 years, a further
two billion people are expected to be added to the cities of the developing
world’ (Rogers 1998).
Those decades have gone by, but the condition Rogers described has
scarcely changed but for growing more urgent. Today the effects of climate
change are here, and 30 years from now the urban population is projected to
double.
Editorial xxi

Now, finally, a new shared research foundation in our field has a chance to
truly change our trajectory. The linear economy has condemned our
resources and planet to the same one-way path from extraction to waste.
Adopting high-tech and low-tech methods, and more importantly embracing
a fundamental change in mindset about the costs our built environment
incurs, can take us from one track to the other. We must develop the
consciousness—of cities, of the environment, and of ourselves—which
Buckminster Fuller exhorted us to acquire when he first asked what a
building weighs. Instead of weighing us down, cities, architecture and the
resource strategizing they embody can lift us up.

Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen

Professor and Head of
CITA—Centre for Information Technology and Architecture
The Royal Danish Academy—Architecture, Design, Conservation
Copenhagen, Denmark
Carlo Ratti
Professor and Director
Senseable City Lab
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, USA
Founding Partner
CRA—Carlo Ratti Associati
Turin, Italy

References

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Rogers R (1998) Cities for a small planet. Westview Press, Boulder Colorado, pp 27
SDG indicator metadata (2022). [Link]
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sowing-seeds-for-timber-skyscrapers-can-rewind-the-carbon-footprint-of-the-concrete-
industry
Swilling M, Hajer M, Baynes T, Bergesen J, Labbé F, Musango JK, Ramaswami A,
Robinson B, Salat S, Suh S, Currie P, Fang A, Hanson A, Kruit K, Reiner M, Smit S,
Tabory S (2018) The weight of cities: resource requirements of future urbanization.
A Report by the International Resource Panel (IRP). United Nations Environment
Programme, Nairobi, Kenya
Tamberg L, Heitzig J, Donges J (2020) A guideline to modelling resilience of complex
systems
Contents

Post-extractive Visions
Upcycled Regionalism: The Aesthetics of Geopolymer
Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Ingrid Halland and Stian Rossi
Post-extractive Material Practice: The Case of Quarried
Stone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Jonathan Foote, Urszula Kozminska, and Nikola Gjorgjievski
Towards a Nature-Inspired Bio-digital Platform Powered
by Microbes as a Circular Economy Infrastructure
in the Practice of the Built Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Rachel Armstrong
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture
for Sumptuous Convivialities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Sarah Kantrowitz
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Aurélie Mosse, Daniel Suárez Zamora, and Bastian Beyer
Synthetic Natures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Winka Dubbeldam
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human
Material Activism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni

Localising Resource
The Soil of New Culture Studios: A Spring for African
Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Jite Brume, Alvaro Velasco Perez, and Demas Nwoko
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New)
Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Dorcas Oluwaseyi Adeoye, Babajide Agboluaje,
Olubukola Abosede Akindele, and Samuel Bolaji Oladimeji

xxiii
xxiv Contents

India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem Towards Circular

Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Deepika Raghu and Catherine De Wolf
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production
Paradigm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Xan Browne, Olga Popovic Larsen, and Will Bradley
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber
Biocomposite for Fabrication and Use in Remote Locations . . . . . 155
German Nieva
The Scope of Egg Waste Use in the Built-Up Environment:
A Study on the Viability of Eggshell Waste as an Organic
Building Material . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Esther Kiruba Jebakumar Clifford

Heritage to High-Tech
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental
Misalignment Between Environmentalism and Patronage-Based
Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Scott Shall
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making
for Situated Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Wesam Al Asali
Re-use in Danish Vernacular Architecture: Examples
and Their Future Versatility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Birgitte T. Eybye
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling
on a Bounded Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Nicolai Bo Andersen and Victor Boye Julebæk
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Andrea Veglia and Francesca Thiébat
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence
of Remakri Area in Bangladesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Anindita Laz Banti
Ancestral Earthen Construction Techniques Updated
to the Needs of the People in the Central Andes of Peru,
an Experience of Research and Training of Architecture
Students Based on Community Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Vladimir Simon Montoya Torres
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Daniel Suárez and Natalija Miodragović
Contents xxv

Fabrication Futures
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing
for an Efficient Concrete Beam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Hao Wu, Yu Li, Xingjie Xie, Xiaofan Gao, and Philip F. Yuan
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted
Textile Membranes as the Means to Sustainable Material
Culture Within Membrane Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Yuliya Sinke, Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen, and Martin Tamke
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural
Acoustics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
Isak Foged
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future
for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
Saqib Aziz, Emil Brechenmacher, Brad Alexander, Jamila Loutfi,
and Christoph Gengnagel
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design
and Construction Circularity Through Material Digital Twin . . . . 409
Anja Kunic, Roberto Cognoli, and Roberto Naboni
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging
Computational Design Tools for a More Virtuous Material
Extraction and End-of-Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423
Nadja Gaudillière-Jami, Max Benjamin Eschenbach,
and Oliver Tessmann
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning
from Three Robotically Fabricated Demonstrators. . . . . . . . . . . . . 437
Jens Pedersen and Dagmar Reinhardt
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud
Partition Walls: Integrating the DfD Concept into Building
Component Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 451
Harrison Huang, Lu Li, Nan Xia, and Mengdi Zhao
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass Customization:
The Case of Chengdu Agricultural Expo Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465
Tianyi Gao, Sijia Gu, Liming Zhang, and Philip F. Yuan

Restarting from Renewables

Prototyping Thatched Facades—Global Scaling of Local
Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Henriette Ejstrup and Anne Beim
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular
Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491
Erik Zanetti, Eszter Olah, Tamara Haußer, Gianluca Casalnuovo,
Riccardo La Magna, and Moritz Dörstelmann
xxvi Contents

A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious

Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513
Nikol Kirova, Areti Markopoulou, Jane Burry, and Mehrnoush Latifi
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking
for Bamboo Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527
Jed Long
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry . . . . . . . 543
Phil Ayres, Adrien Rigobello, Claudia Colmo, You-Wen Ji,
Jack Young, and Karl-Johan Sørensen
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating
Mycelium for Living and Decentralized Architectures
in Rwanda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563
Nina Sharifi, Yutaka Sho, Daekwon Park, Morgan Noone,
and Kiana Memarandadgar
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets and Their
Robotic Deposition for Biodegradable Non-standard
Formworks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 581
Benjamin Kemper
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System
with Mycelium-Based Composites and Bacterial Cellulose . . . . . . . 597
Natalia B. Piórecka, Peter Scully, Anete K. Salmane, Brenda Parker,
and Marcos Cruz
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design
Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 615
Alessandro Stracqualursi and Maria Beatrice Andreucci

The Value of Waste

Extending the Circular Design Framework for Bio-Based
Materials: Reconsidering Cascading and Agency Through
the Case of Biopolymer Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 635
Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen, Gabriella Rossi,
Anders Egede Daugaard, Arianna Rech, and Paul Nicholas
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions
Centering Circular Systems of Food, Energy, Water,
and Waste: A Case for Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 647
Geoffrey Thun, Tithi Sanyal, and Kathy Velikov
Can Digital Matchmaking Boost Circular Construction?
Lessons from Reusing the Glass of Centre Pompidou . . . . . . . . . . 667
Catherine De Wolf, Sultan Cetin, and Nancy Bocken
Tak for Sidst: A Field Study of Demolition in Denmark . . . . . . . . 677
Tom Buckland
Contents xxvii

Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock.

An Urban Mining Method Based on Machine Learning
for Enabling Building’s Materials Reuse Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . 685
Areti Markopoulou, Oana Taut, and Hesham Shawqy
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing
a Business Ecosystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 703
Meredith Miller, Thom Moran, and Christopher Humphrey
Circular Economy Principles as Obstacles to Creativity?—A
Study of Architects’ Expectations of Challenges and
Opportunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 715
Mia B. Münster and Marie-Jo Gutenkauf
Post-extractive Visions
 Upcycled Regionalism: The
Aesthetics of Geopolymer Concrete

Ingrid Halland and Stian Rossi

Abstract site-specificity of the mine becomes an aes-

thetic quality of GPC surfaces; different waste
Sometimes the more powerful act is not to
products from different mines produce differ-
make new, but to make anew with what we ent textures and colors. Like a “spolia” for our
already have. Since the built environment ac- times, site-specific traces of a modernist
counts for around 50% of all raw material ex-
paradigm of mass-extraction are aesthetically
tracted from the earth (European Commission visible in the upcycled GPC surface. The
2018), the transition to a circular economy for paper aims to develop a conceptual framework
this industry will require extensive restructur-
for critical reflection on aesthetics and upcy-
ing in terms of resource extraction and cling of materials. By combining theory from
production patterns. This paper argues, how- the humanities with examples from architec-
ever, that aesthetics also plays a significant
tural practice, the paper introduces the term
role for rethinking resources. The paper “upcycled regionalism” to unpack the aes-
examines the aesthetics of Geopolymer con- thetic potential of GPC.
crete (GPC)—a low carbon sustainable build-
ing material based on circular principles— Keywords
recently developed by the Norwegian start-up
company SafeRock. GPC answers the demand


Upcycling Aesthetics Architecture theory

for circular economy in the building industry

Ethics Deep ecology
through upcycling of waste. SafeRock
announced their first pilot project in 2021, a In 1864, the Norwegian Titanic Iron Ore Com-
GPC made with mining residues from the pany bought the mining rights to a geologically
mine Titania in Norway. SafeRock’s GPC is complex area close to Jøssingfjorden in Roga-
based on on-site production, eliminating both land, Norway, which was rich in ilmenite—a
transport emissions and time. Importantly, the black titanium-iron mineral. The iron mine was
relatively unprofitable until the company Elek-
trokemisk Industri (today called Elkem) became
interested in the mining waste, namely, titanium.
I. Halland (&)
The Oslo School of Architecture and Design, Elektrokemisk was founded in 1904 with the
University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway goal of creating an international industrial com-
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] pany based on mass-utilization of Norwegian
S. Rossi natural resources. In the early 1900s, an ethos of
Saferock As, Chief Commercial Officer, Sola, technological optimism dominated the young
Norway

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 3

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
4 I. Halland and S. Rossi

Fig. 1 Nedre Helleren

hydropower plant from 1907.
Photo JanOve Grastveit

nation-state (Norway gained independence from find a new future for the unprofitable mining
Sweden in 1905). The optimism was largely waste titanium.
caused by path-breaking technological innova- After years of experiments, reports, mistakes,
tions in hydroelectric power that had boosted the and patents, a team of chemists, entrepreneurs,
rather poor country’s capability for industrial and geologists found a solution that was to rev-
production (Fig. 1). The Norwegian Ministry of olutionize the modern world. The patent for the
Trade joined forces with Elkem in 1907, and a industrial production of titanium dioxide—filed
special committee for electrometallurgy was in 1910 by Norwegian chemist Peder Farup—
appointed to evaluate the unprofitable ilmenite marked the start of a world industry: the inter-
ore in Jøssingfjorden, the aim being: (1) to utilize national pigment industry based on the sulfate
the surplus energy from the area’s recently-built process for mass-producing a non-toxic, absolute
dams and hydropower plants (Figs. 1 and 2) to white paint that resisted miscoloring due to dirt

Fig. 2 The Titania land

deposit will reach its limit in
2024. Photo Johnslien (2019)
Upcycled Regionalism: The Aesthetics of Geopolymer Concrete 5

and rust. Production for the global market began 1 Challenge I: What can
in the mine Titania AS in Sokndal, Norway in Architecture Do
1916—and the company is still a key player in with Modernism’s Waste
the global production of titanium dioxide. Products?
Throughout the twentieth century, titanium
dioxide was increasingly used in mass- Resource scarcity, natural disasters, and wars
production of surfaces (as a coating for con- have throughout global history caused creative
crete, glazing for ceramics, and additive in architectural reconstructions based on available
plastic), thereby titanium dioxide changed the resources. The use of found objects and the reuse
aesthetics of surfaces in architecture and design, of waste building materials—so-called spolia—is
making surfaces—all over the globe—smoother, an ancient tradition that is shared globally
brighter, flatter, and more opaque (see Halland through all societies and ages. The word “spolia”
and Johnslien 2023). Titanium dioxide can be derives from Latin “spolium,” meaning stripping,
considered a material signature of modernism; an depriving, or robbing of something that covers—
almost invisible hermetic techno-natural skin that or the act of stripping off an animal’s skin.
materialized values of technological progress, Another meaning is to strip, deprive, or rob of
homogenization, and durability into and into arms or equipment, in other words, to disarm.
objects and environments worldwide. The ancient use of spolia was not only func-
After a hundred years of mining, the extrac- tional, but profoundly symbolic; to use waste
tion of ilmenite has left an irreversible change in products as an aesthetic strategy to rewrite the
the local landscape. The environmental trace of past on a metaphorical level, through disregard-
mass-extraction of natural resources consists of a ing, violating, and cannibalizing the achieve-
vast cut through the surface of the earth and a ments of predecessors. The time has come to use
gray artificial desert of mining waste (Fig. 2). modernism’s waste products as spolia. The time
The desert of waste designates a regressive and has come to make use of the numerous deserts of
outdated approach to resources—an approach mining waste—that is putting land under pres-
that considers raw materials as limitless resour- sure and disrupting ecosystems. Yet how can
ces. As we have known for over fifty years,1 this architecture combine such critical and aesthetic
approach cannot be sustained. design strategies as “upcycled spolia” with real-
life economic and functional renewal?

2 Challenge II: How to Combine

Critical Design with Real-Life
Solutions?
1
The environmental movement owes much of its legacy
to the 1972 book The Limits to Growth. The book has Perhaps a more well-known material signature of
been claimed to be the most successful publication in the 20th Century architecture is Portland cement
field of environmental studies, mainly due to the book’s
wide-ranging influence, selling 12 million copies in more (OPC) (Forty 2012; Langdalen et al. 2018).
than 30 languages. The argument of the book was that five During the post-war period, OPC became the
factors—pollution, population, agricultural production, most widely used material in the construction
natural recourses, and industrial production—were fully
industry. It also developed into one of the most
entangled and dependent on each other, so no single
action addressing one, or two, of the factors would have lethal on the planet, closely associated with toxic
any effect on the whole. According to the authors, the substances like asbestos, cadmium, and silica.
most likely future scenario would be a total world collapse For every ton of Portland cement produced,
by mid-21st Century. Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L 4000–7500 MJ of energy are consumed, releas-
Meadows, and Jørgen Randers, The Limits to Growth: A
Report for the Club of Rome’s Project on the Predicament ing approximately 1 ton of CO2 in the process
of Mankind (London: Earth Island Ltd., 1972). (Mehta and Monteiro 2014). This accounts for a
6 I. Halland and S. Rossi

significant portion of global CO2 emissions. 2018). On a laboratory scale, geopolymers

Clearly, the hegemony of OPC has to be chal- developed for zonal isolation have shown superior
lenged in the name of sustainability. It is for that properties compared to OPC. The raw materials
reason that scientists, industry players, and gov- used in the traditional geopolymers are suscepti-
ernments are actively seeking low carbon alter- ble to change or have high CO2 emissions as they
natives to OPC concretes. are usually fly ash-based or metakaolin (clay)
However, recent research on Danish archi- based products. Due to a lack of consistency in the
tectural practice has proven the value of material waste streams obtained from coal power plants or
upcycling: “Results show that the recycling/ heavy industry, there is either a technical limita-
upcycling strategy is the most effective in tion to deliver a unique solid phase to be mixed
reducing the embodied carbon” (Birkved et al. with the hardener, or the material simply does not
2020). The Norwegian start-up company Safe- have the potential to significantly reduce the car-
rock aims to produce fully CO2 neutral concrete bon footprint. In response, Saferock has patented
by upcycling byproducts from the mining true geopolymeric materials in which its hardener
industry. Geopolymer concrete (GPC)—recently phase is a potassium silicate solution (Fig. 4). The
developed by Saferock—is a low carbon sus- rock-based formulations are based on (i) norite, a
tainable building material based on circular solid waste generated during the production of
principles. Made from mining waste, which ilmenite, and (ii) granite particles below 63 lm,
represents 27% of the total waste generated from treated as a waste when producing granite as an
economic activities and households in the EU aggregate to concrete and asphalt. Saferock’s
(Eurostat 2016), GPC provides a more stable and ambition is to offer unique rock-based geopoly-
sustainable long-term supply, in addition to mer binders as a sustainable substitute to OPC in
offering the potential of circular economy value an increasing number of applications for the
propositions through upcycling of waste (Fig. 3). building and construction industry. As a break-
Geopolymers, also known as inorganic poly- through innovation in sustainable building mate-
mers, are mainly composed of aluminosili- rials, the technology will cater to large-scale
cate obtained from waste streams which react in technical requirements, health and environmental
presence of alkali silicate solution (Khalifeh et al. conditions, and market needs. Based on mining

Fig. 3 Photo OIOIOI (2021)

Upcycled Regionalism: The Aesthetics of Geopolymer Concrete 7

Fig. 4 From ilmenite to

mining waste to geopolymer.
Displaying material
circularity in Saferock’s
material lab. Photo Halland
(2021)

residues, raw materials are abundantly available these two approaches to rethinking waste: 100
for widespread international use. Research grants years ago, the rethinking of waste was entirely
from the Research Council of Norway and the economically driven—governed by an attitude to
University of Stavanger, and financial support resources that considered raw materials as a
from Innovation Norway, Enova, Equinor Ven- limitless supply. Today, Saferock aims to rethink
tures, and private sponsors, have secured USD 5 waste conditioned by principles of systemic cir-
million to finance Saferock’s first pilot factory. cularity—an attitude to resources that considers
The new site-specific factory will be operative raw materials as a limited supply. Moreover,
before the end of 2023 and will use waste mate- today designers play a key role in rethinking
rials from the Titania mine in Sokndal (see Fig. 2). waste.
By using modernism’s waste products as a spolia
for our times, Saferock’s GPC is a concrete
example of a critical design project with profound 3 Challenge III: How to Make
symbolic value, that at the same time also offers a Systemic Change Desirable?
functional real-life solution for the industry.
As an almost ironic twist of circularity, Culture theorist Mark Fisher (2009, 2012) has
Saferock now reconfigures history by reusing the argued that in order to find a realistic way of
unprofitable waste from the Titania mine—that making a sustainable future, we need to reclaim
was originally initiated by the ambition of mak- capitalism’s most essential drive, namely desire.
ing the waste product titanium into a profitable Fisher challenges the notion that capitalism is the
product. Today, 100 years after the titanium only driver associated with desire. In agreement
dioxide innovation, an interdisciplinary team of with Fisher, the authors of this paper believe that
entrepreneurs, geologists, and engineers again a key gap for future sustainability is to rethink
visit the mine in order to innovate a new future. aesthetic desire. Architecture needs to demon-
After years of experiments, reports, mistakes, strate that aesthetic desire can exist outside the
and patents, Saferock is now ready for its first capitalist drive for mass-extraction, production,
pilot project with GPC from the Titania mine. and consumption. We must use aesthetics as a
However, there is a major difference between driving force for change. New solutions in
8 I. Halland and S. Rossi

Fig. 5 Future circular design

in 1969: From the exhibition
“Og etter oss...” [And After
Us...], made by students from
The Oslo School of
Architecture and Design
(1969). Illustration is taken
from p. 56–57 in the
exhibition catalog

architecture must be aesthetically desirable; they

must display the systemic circularity in the very 4 Conclusion
aesthetics of the surface (Fig. 5).
Saferock’s GPC is based on on-site produc- Today, there is a consensus that sustainability
tion using site-specific waste products. Impor- cannot be achieved by quantitative methods
tantly, the site-specificity of the mine becomes an alone: There is a need for actionable change,
aesthetic quality of GPC surfaces; different waste innovative partnerships, and, arguably, a cogni-
products from different mines will produce dif- tive shift in regard to human beings’ modes of
ferent textures and colors. GPC is not only a thinking and patterns of behavior—all in which
functional low carbon sustainable building design is uniquely positioned to encourage. The
material based on circular principles, like the two authors of this paper come from two dis-
spolia, the material is profoundly symbolic. GPC tinctly different fields; one is from architecture
disarms and reclaims the past by “stripping history and theory and one is from the architec-
down” the endless gray desert of mining waste tural industry. By writing this paper, we have
that now covers a whole valley. In the Titania attempted to bridge history, criticism, theory, and
mine, circular principles now cannibalize mod- real-life solutions. We have attempted an inno-
ernism’s achievements, and up from the desert vative partnership aiming to change patterns of
arise a new aesthetics, the aesthetics of a deep behavior and attitudes toward waste.
circularity that considers natural resources to be In 1802, the German poet Friedrich Hölderlin
a limited supply. suggested that “where danger is, grows the sav-
In 1983, architectural critic Kenneth Frampton ing power also.”2 Perhaps he was right. If
formulated his call to counter modernism’s drive locating “dangerous” attitudes toward natural
to universalization. His theoretical concept resources in mass-extraction of natural resources
“Critical Regionalism” argues for an architectural (Fig. 7), architecture must find strategies to
resistance to modernism that is situated in the forcefully disarm and un-skin these outdated
topographic, climatological conditions of a site attitudes. Yet importantly, by drawing on
and that highlights the tectonics of architectural Frampton’s argument, we suggest that the act of
construction and the tactile sensibility of the disarming modernism’s outdated attitudes to
locality. What we see in Saferock’s GPC is a mass-extraction of resources, must be both tac-
reconfigured design resistance for our time. As tile, site-specific, and aesthetically desirable. By
described by Frampton, the visual and tactile in
GPC—the aesthetic desire—is a key design
2
Friedrich Hölderlin’s poem “Patmos” quoted in Martin
Heidegger, The Question Concerning Technology, and
component (Fig. 6).
Other Essays (New York: HarperCollins, 2013), 42.
Upcycled Regionalism: The Aesthetics of Geopolymer Concrete 9

Fig. 6 Samples of Saferock’s new geopolymer concrete (GPC) photographed in the desert of mining waste in Titania,
Sokndal. Photo OIOIOI (2021)

using modernism’s waste as spolia, we can reach

an upcycled regionalism—making systemic
change a bit more realistic.

References

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carbon design strategies for new residential buildings
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Favier A, Habert G, Roussel N, d’Espinose de Lacaillerie
J-B (2015) A multinuclear static NMR study of
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Fisher M (2009) Capitalist Realism: Is there no alterna-
tive? Zero Books
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fighting for: a radical collective manifesto, edited by
Federico Campagna and Emanuele Campiglio. Pluto
Press
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Photo OIOIOI (2021) Reaktion Books
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Halland I (ed) (2021) Ung uro: unsettling climates in stream. In: Advances in materials science and engi-
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Development and characterization of norite-based Education
cementitious binder from an ilmenite mine waste
 Post-extractive Material Practice: The
Case of Quarried Stone

Jonathan Foote, Urszula Kozminska,

and Nikola Gjorgjievski

Abstract interconnections. On the one hand, great

potential emerges in the circularity and
Humans have extracted materials from the
reversibility of stone construction, along with
earth for millennia, but only recently have our its extremely long life cycle, and on the other
extraction practices had planetary conse- we see a strong potential to recover the
quences. The scale, intensity, and violence
historical connections between architecture
of current practices are theorized as ‘extrac- and the anthropogenic landscapes of stone
tivism’, and as a number of recent publica- extraction. In the end, we position the issue of
tions and exhibitions have made clear, a
material extraction within its multifaceted
post-extractive future is urgently needed. entanglements of landscape, construction,
How and under what conditions can we socio-cultural and economic contexts.
address such an imperative? Is it possible to
aim toward a pre-modern notion of extraction Keywords
as a custodial practice of care in relation to
earth’s resources? Following recent projects

Ecological thought Extractivism

to re-introduce load-bearing stone, known

Post-extraction Quarried stone
loosely as ‘The New Stone Age’, this argu-
mentative essay explores a post-extractive
future through the case of quarried stone.
We see it as a poignant case of how we might 1 Introduction
move from extractivism to a more custodial The Earth is the very quintessence of the human
form of extraction, and show the potential to condition and earthly nature.—Hannah Arendt
reduce our need for materials such as steel, (1958)
concrete, and wood, industries that are driven
in large part by extractivist principles. Based When Hannah Arendt bound the human condi-
on Timothy Morton’s notion of ecological tion to the Earth, in her seminal book, The
thought, we argue for a new way to under- Human Condition (1958), NASA had not yet
stand stone extraction as an ecology of released the iconic image of the “Blue Marble”,
taken from the Apollo 17 mission in 1972. From
then onward, humans were no longer an earth-
bound entity, creating a classical Cartesian sep-
J. Foote (&)
U. Kozminska
N. Gjorgjievski aration between object and subject and chal-
Aarhus School of Architecture, Aarhus, Denmark lenging both Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis and
e-mail: jofo@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 11

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
12 J. Foote et al.

Næss’ concept of Deep ecology that Earth is a toward exportation; little or minimal processing
living system of which we are part, not apart at the site of extraction; maximizing economic
(Lovelock and Whitfield 1982; Naess 1973). By benefit at the expense of cultural violence, loss of
the turn of the century, thousands of satellites biodiversity, and ecological degradation. The
circling the earth defined the landscape as a direct impact of extractivism is rarely seen in the
digital field observed and controlled from afar, developed world, where we have become
disabling and reducing tactile human interaction. accustomed to “cheap architectures” (Grima
Our perspective of the earth as a finite entity 2021), as the underlying displacement logic
should encourage architects to be stewards, but purposely conceals these consequences under the
the opposite seems increasingly apparent. As guise of globalized processing and supply chains
Luke Jones points out in his essay, “The Carbon (Hutton 2020). For architects and consumers,
Tectonic”, we have multiplied our rate of material however, materials arrive from ‘somewhere else,’
extraction from the earth by more than twenty or they simply are not considered at all, what
times during the last century (Jones 2021). Most Joseph Grima recently described as the problem
buildings include elements and materials from all of “externalities” (Grima 2021).
continents, and construction activities are sus- As a number of recent publications and
tained by vast global supply chains (Wigley exhibitions have made clear, a post-extractive
2021). This hyper-industrialization of construc- future is urgently needed. How and under what
tion materials reduces our understanding of conditions can we address such an imperative?
materials’ inherent and cultural properties, their Architecture can no longer overlook the impact
whereabouts, and their connection to the envi- of where and how materials are exploited (Moe
ronment. Extraction was seen as a technical issue 2020), and the discipline must do more to pro-
that machinery could solve, and the matter pose creative alternatives to normative practices
beneath the soil turned into a disposable space at of building material extraction (Grima 2021). Is
the mercy of human demand. “Seemingly static it possible to aim toward a pre-modern notion of
buildings are actually pieces of mining equip- extraction as a custodial practice of care in rela-
ment, actively devouring the planet,” writes tion to earth’s resources? A deeper sensibility is
Mark Wigley, “as buildings rise in one place, a necessary, one that goes beyond simple solutions
deadly net of holes, gaps, cracks, collapses, and focuses on extraction as an ecology of
deficiencies, floods, and famines appear else- architectural actions and consequences (Morton
where” (Wigley 2021). 2007). This interconnectedness operates within
Humans have extracted materials from the multiple scales and various time perspectives,
earth for millennia, but only recently have our embedding a diversity of actors and tools to
extraction practices had planetary consequences. address entangled complexities of extractive
Following the establishment of colonial capital- processes and materials. The post-extractive
ism in the eighteenth century and its subsequent approach contributes to UN SDGs, especially
industrialization throughout the nineteenth cen- goal 12 “Responsible Consumption and Pro-
tury, the scale and exploitative practices have duction” by questioning the reliance of the con-
been on a one-way, accelerated expansion. The struction sector on natural resources and by
intensified reliance on large-scale, mineral and advocating for more ecological patterns of
cultural exploitation started to receive systematic architectural production, which have the poten-
critique in Latin America in the 1970s under the tial to act against climate change, biodiversity
term extractivísmo (Durante et al. 2021; Acosta loss, and pollution. Indirectly, it addresses goals
2017). More recent scholarship has identified 5, 8, 10, and 11 by protecting terrestrial ecosys-
some of the core logic of extractivism: capital tems and accounting for a broader understanding
intensive, foreign investment aimed primarily of socio-economic entanglements.
Post-extractive Material Practice: The Case of Quarried Stone 13

2 Extraction and Natural Stone stone retains its connection with the site of
extraction. Larvikite from the Lundhs company,
Exploring the ecology of extraction requires a for example, is advertised as “Natural Stone from
material test case in order to unfold these inter- Norway,” accompanied by images depicting the
connections. For this, we examine one of archi- rugged, timeless beauty of the Norwegian land-
tecture’s most exploited materials: natural stone. scape. This present-day marketing tool follows a
Today, stone is typically quarried in an export long tradition where the qualities and aesthetic
economy and used for surface applications such values of stone have been associated with the
as pavings, building facades, and interior fin- culture and geology of the extraction site. The
ishes, an ineffective use of resources that leads to architecture of the National Romantic period, for
a significant amount of generated waste. This a- example, relied heavily on the link between
tectonic use of materials seems highly inadequate geology, culture, and national identity (Ringbom
in our epoch of finite resources and multiplying 1987). This also included religious significance,
crises. However, a number of architects and as in the Inca builders, for whom sacred archi-
engineers have begun experimenting with load- tecture was only achievable through stone quar-
bearing stone, an area of research that has not ried from a specific, venerated quarry site
been seriously pursued since the late nineteenth (Ogburn 2013). Similarly, the use of the so-
century. The stone exoskeleton building at 15 called ‘Jerusalem Stone,’ a limestone quarried
Clerkenwell Close in London, by Groupwork, today primarily in the West Bank, is throughout
stands as a notable example, as do a number of the world considered a politically-charged
social housing projects built in and around Paris symbol of Jewish identity (Abusaada 2022).
in recent years (Le Dréan and Kuratli 2022). The Thus, when imagining a post-extractive future,
latest generation of practitioners often cites the the link between stone and locality seems hard-
environmental advantages of structural stone: wired into our collective memory.
nearly half the embodied energy and one-fourth The sheer difficulty of extraction and transport
the carbon footprint of reinforced concrete meant that architecture often had profound con-
elements (Webb 2022), the ability to be easily nections with the local landscape and geology. In
disassembled and reused in perpetuity (Brilliant pre-modern, lithic societies, the local geology
and Kinney 2016), and its capacity to support was a vehicle for a symbiotic relationship
biodiversity (Chartier-Dalix 2019). This shift between building culture and landscape (Abu-
toward exploiting the modular and structural Jaber et al. 2008). In the Balearic Islands, for
properties of stone, also combined with wood instance, a wide-spread geological formation in
and other materials, is what has recently been soft sandstone, known locally as marès, sup-
dubbed “The New Stone Age,” in Architectural ported the development of both monumental and
Review from April 2022 (Webb 2022). These vernacular building culture. At one time, the
developments point toward a “tectonically island of Mallorca hosted over 1500 marès
simpler architecture based on monolithic and quarries, each one supporting an infra-local
‘literal’ materials” (Jones 2021), one that economic and social community (Mata 2018).
reduces the reach of a building’s material supply The same could be observed in a more contem-
chains. porary context with the case of Lutetian lime-
The emerging potential of massive stone stone from the Paris Basin, known also as the
construction offers a poignant test case for re- ‘Paris Stone’. Its pervasive use in the monuments
imagining architecture’s relation with material and streets of Paris created a unity between the
extraction. There are several reasons for this. To colors and textures of the city, its regional
begin, more than most contemporary materials, geology, and its landscape (Barrault et al. 2018).
14 J. Foote et al.

3 Post-extraction Ecology the patchiness of the world (Tsing 2015). This

viewpoint means that design choices are
These promising trajectories connect to an eco- embedded in multi-scalar and multi-local entan-
logical agenda that considers the broader entan- glements (Ait-Touati et al. 2022). The ambiguity
glements of material use, from geology to quarry, of distances and scales in times of globalization
from quarry to stone, and the quarry again as a influences the invisibility of environmental and
landscape of healing or reuse. The alternatives to socio-economic associations embedded in mate-
extractivism are investigated through an rial substance and construction processes. Cur-
approach to architectural design inspired by rently, available advanced tools and technologies
principles of ecosystemic plurality and intercon- operate with more and more data enabling opti-
nectedness (Tsing 2015; Latour 2018; Ait-Touati mization of environmental and economic
et al. 2022) and ecological thought (Morton impacts, although this optimization still operates
2007, 2010) by positioning extractive practices within the system where resources are perceived
and design actions within the current multi-crisis as commodified entities.
and engaging with existing environmental, socio- The post-extractive approach investigates the
cultural, and economic realities indicating evo- consequences of design actions on sites of
lutionary and post-extractive material strategies. material extraction, production, supply, and
Those strategies employ five attributes of construction by asking “how can we fundamen-
hyperobjects, defined as “things that are mas- tally transform supply chains that are built on the
sively distributed in time and space relative to exploitation of cheap work and cheap nature
humans” (Morton 2013). They include viscosity, …?” (Malterre-Barthes 2021). This approach
nonlocality, temporal undulation, phasing, and necessitates multidimensional perspectives,
interobjectivity (Morton 2013), which act as transdisciplinary collaboration, diverse scales of
lenses to explore post-extractive material prac- exploration, and multifaceted architectural
tices. Viscosity and nonlocality, by questioning responses that consider ecosystemic entangle-
the perception of distance and proximity, reveal ments. The scope of analysis needs to be a multi-
the limitations of approaches that focus only on focal perspective that includes the changes in the
immediate contexts and local markets. Temporal extractive landscapes (quarry), the reservoir of
undulation argues that surrounding objects are finite resources (stone), embedded environmental
also distributed in time which shows the neces- impacts (embodied carbon), and modifications of
sity to explore different temporal frames for socio-cultural structure (local communities).
extraction and design practices. Phasing, by How to track those impacts when the materi-
stating that we are experiencing only fractions of als are extracted all over the world, shipped, and
the entities, directs us to questions of scale and constructed in distant locations? It is easy to
tools to address ungraspable material complexi- advocate for using locally extracted resources as
ties. Finally, interobjectivity leads beyond it happens, for example, with marès stone in
anthropocentric and local approaches that indi- Mallorca (Fig. 1). For years, this sandstone,
cate fundamental repositioning of extraction and which rarely if ever leaves the island, has been
reversible design processes that favor multi- extracted from adjacent quarries in standardized
species coexistence and community building. blocks with dimensions that mirror the modular
Everything known and unknown is intercon- system of architectural elements that construct
nected (Morton 2018). Thus, a post-extractive Mallorcan villages and cities (Inyesta and Sunyer
building and design approach values multiplying 1997). The case of marès shows that stone can be
viewpoints over a single vision (Latour 2018) and used effectively, avoiding unnecessary waste
employment of the art of noticing, understood as during extraction and at the end-of-life as mate-
simultaneous noticing, observing, documenting, rial durability and repetitive modularity enables
and tracing of multiple phenomena that manifest reuse (Fig. 2). Moreover, Mallorcan stone shows
Post-extractive Material Practice: The Case of Quarried Stone 15

Fig.1. The scale of extraction of marès in quarries in Mallorca: 1–2., 4 Petra, 3. Bank of marés in Petra, 5. Can
Picafort. Source U. Kozminska

Fig. 2. Diagram of post-

extractive approach in marès
staone, illustrating the main
points of transdisciplinarity,
circularity, and multi-
focal/mult-scalar perspectives.
Source N. Gjorgjievski
16 J. Foote et al.

that the scale of production limited to local embodied carbon, but it needs to address the
markets makes a positive, reciprocal impact on entire life cycle of the material, starting with sites
the local environment, landscape, and commu- of extraction, processing, production, and con-
nities (Matas 2018). struction, followed by anticipation of diverse
A contrary situation can be observed in the usage and performance patterns to plan for
quarry in Larvik, Norway, which exemplifies maintenance, repair, and reuse.
most extractive practices in stone today. Here, The post-extractive approach considers the
the local stone, known as larvikite, is extracted in changes within the landscape. In the case of
large blocks of 15–20 tons to be shipped to natural stone, this means that designers enter a
processing facilities elsewhere in Europe, where geological time perspective and are to reflect on
they are usually turned into finished elements. the life cycle of the quarry that material is
Due to the high reliance on marketable and aes- sourced from and related changes to its ecosys-
thetic standards, the waste generated during the tem. Moreover, it is not only about understanding
extraction process in Larvik constitutes approxi- the current environmental and social impacts, but
mately 50% of extracted resources. This is also foreseeing the future ones. It is about con-
actually quite low in relation to the global stan- sidering the afterlife of the quarry while
dard, which can yield up to 70% of waste (Car- extracting materials but also taking responsibility
redu 2019). Optimal carbon trajectories are less for the modified landscape and maybe extracting
obvious as Portuguese, Spanish or Italian facili- less and more efficiently. As Mark Wigley
ties score better than the ones located in Norway argues, there is a need for architecture less
due to the heavy reliance on sea transport over complicit with extractive economies, and one
truck freight. However, the apparent disconnect that: “must at least return a gift of the architect
between the extraction site and architectural and take the risk of seeing what might come after
element results in relatively inefficient use of the architecture” (Wigley 2021).
finite resource, not to mention other displaced How to return this doubtful gift? Existing
impacts. policies concerning quarry landscape regenera-
These two examples of diverse extraction and tion (Jorba and Vallejo 2010) are often limited to
use of stone not only show certain inspiring filling in the excavated territories that look the
directions, but also ambiguities embedded in same as they did before extraction. Although
current extractive practices. They bring up the quarry pits are often seen as deep scars in the
questions of the sustainable scale of extraction, landscape today (Palmer 2014), this visual
the relation between material production and approach seems to forget that terraforming is a
architectural elements, the contemporary, per- multi-species practice and that extraction trans-
haps carbon-related definition of locality within forms chemical and physical soil composition
the global contexts, and tools that can inform and embedded ecosystems that unfold around the
ecological design decisions and sustainable use zone of direct interference (Ait-Touati et al.
of natural stone. 2022). Therefore, instead of filling up closed
The discussion concerning the scale of the quarries, it might be more ecological to employ
extraction process does not end here. Ecological techniques of patching to reestablish ecosystemic
thinking makes us “realize that there are lots of continuities (Ait-Touati et al. 2022). This hap-
different temporality formats” (Morton 2018) and pened, for example, in a closed quarry in Muro,
that the consequences of our material choices are Mallorca where a thin layer of soil covering the
spread over time. Therefore, a post-extractive use pit and some orange seeds created a new natural
of resources, stone included, requires that we habitat in place of previous marés extraction.
redefine the temporal frame of an architectural Therefore, it may be crucial to look for less
project that equally cares for what is taken as anthropocentric approaches which treat extrac-
well as left behind. The discussion concerning tive ruins as new topographies and allow the
resources cannot be limited to calculating territories to create their own “feral dynamics”
Post-extractive Material Practice: The Case of Quarried Stone 17

that flourish “on infrastructures of human dis- stone construction require that we embrace its
turbance” (Bubandt and Tsing 2018). Maybe the load-bearing capacity and use elements of larger
way forward is about doing less—extracting, dimensions instead of employing the material
controlling and covering up less, and embracing only as finishings. This approach starts to appear
instabilities, including more than human per- in architecture, for example, in the aforemen-
spectives and developing over time. tioned modular stone system proposed by
Hopefully, the attitude of more mindful and Groupwork or the biodiversity wall systems by
efficient extraction would reduce the amount of Chartier-Dalix.
generated waste during material extraction and Lastly, it is crucial to explore reversible tec-
production. Current statistics concerning quarry tonics and landscape approaches in broader sys-
waste demonstrate that around 50% of extracted temic contexts investigating the environmental
material is classified as waste due to irregular and socio-cultural impacts while rethinking
shapes. Moreover, present circular approaches to existing economies, business models, and supply
reduce the amount of quarry waste include chains that construct the new building systems. It
turning it into aggregates, pebble stone, rubble, is advisable to follow the discourse of Jane
sawdust, and stone sludge for agriculture, Hutton, who advocates for more solidarity to
breakwater, and paving. Thus, due to legislation avoid colonizing practices and reciprocity to
issues and waste definitions, large, defective create mutual, inter-species obligations for land
blocks are crushed and downcycled despite the and resources (Hutton 2021).
fact that their physical–chemical and mechanical
properties are often defined as equal to raw
material (Carredu 2019). A shift toward more use 4 Conclusion
of structural stone opens the door to significantly
reducing waste even further (Webb 2022). As the practice of architecture continues to dic-
The issue of waste is not limited to quarry tate material extraction, it is prudent to question
waste. The post-extractive approach requires that the new potentials of buildings, no longer per-
we reflect on future waste streams to be gener- ceived as disconnected finalities but as catalysts
ated at the end of the life of a designed building. for change. Yet, even the staunchest opponents
Ideally, we should avoid generating it at all by of resource extraction acknowledge that a
creating long-lasting buildings that are main- moratorium on mining and quarrying would be
tained and repaired to function undisturbedly due practically unrealizable. For this reason, we need
to the suitable layered organization of their ele- to look closer at the materials we extract for
ments (Brand 1994). However, considering the architecture and take “an approach to the
fact that, on average, a building lasts around designed environment that takes complete
60 years, it is crucial to consider its future dis- responsibility for itself” (Grima 2021). Such an
assembly and reuse scenarios, where “in the most approach requires that we flatly reject our wide-
optimistic ecological scenario, architecture spread reliance on site-intensive and extractivist
would be so generous that it would disappear” development. To do so, we must look critically at
(Wigley 2021). extraction and find ways not only to reduce the
Natural stone has the potential to fulfill this demand on earth’s resources, but also to use what
ecological agenda by creating new reversible we take in the best way and to encourage
building systems that rely on circular construc- responsible approaches to the disturbed land-
tion (Guldager Jensen 2016) and design for dis- scapes that employ more plural perspectives and
assembly principles (Crowther 2001) while operate within the diversity of species, locali-
working with such reversible building actions as, ties, temporalities, scales, and disciplines. We
for example, stacking, resting, overlapping, encourage the visualization of the link between
consoling, spanning, lifting or splitting (Nielsen the building and its extracted landscape, high-
2012). However, more reversible strategies for lighting that the design challenge of the future
18 J. Foote et al.

must not solely address the spatial problem of the Chartier-Dalix (2019) Mur biodiversitaire/ChartierDalix
building, but the opened landscape as well. en partenariat avec le Museum d’Histoire Naturelle
(laboratoire CESCO) et l’école d’architecture de Paris
Although only in a nascent state, new research Malaquais (laboratoire GSA). [Link]
into natural stone offers a poignant case of how com/fr/ressources/prototypes-rue-buffon-paris-5
we might move from extractivism to a more Crowther P (2001) Developing an inclusive model for
custodial form of extraction. It shows the design for deconstruction, Deconstruction and mate-
rial reuse: technology, economic and policy, CIB
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of violence and resistance. Routledge, Abingdon
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 Towards a Nature-Inspired
Bio-digital Platform Powered
by Microbes as a Circular Economy
Infrastructure in the Practice
of the Built Environment

Rachel Armstrong

Abstract context, ultimately resulting in “Living” cities

that are based on microbial (micro)economics
This paper examines the role of microbial
and are fundamentally bioremediating.
technologies in fundamentally rethinking the
relationship between waste, energy, human Keywords
inhabitation, and microbial “life.” Based on
the Microbial Fuel Cell (an ecologically “just”

Microbes Microbial fuel cells Living

platform that provides bioelectrical energy,


bricks Circular economy Bio-digital
data, and chemical transformation from

interface Bioelectricity
human waste streams), a series of transac-
tional systems between humans and microbes
are outlined and exemplified by the Living 1 Introduction
Architecture project, the 999 years 13 m2 (the Life, when you boil it right down, is a flow of
future belongs to ghosts) installation, and the electrons. (Brahic 2014)
Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled Envi-
ronment (ALICE) prototype. These nature- The hardest part of altering our building impacts
inspired “living” infrastructures comprise a is changing our thinking, our habits, and our
combined utility system capable of forming a concepts of what a good life entails. Modernity’s
domestic circular economy based on the machinic living spaces are at odds with the
microbial commons—a regenerative, transac- increasingly urgent need for ecological lifestyles.
tional system for ecological regeneration To change how we live and work requires a
founded on microbial metabolisms—that is different technological platform that aligns with
accessed, understood, and engaged using a the natural world—and the only technology that
bio-digital interface. These simultaneously enables truly circular design is “life” itself1
“sustainable” and “smart” demonstrators sub- (de Lorenzo 2015).
stantiate the future trajectory of the wider
uptake of microbial technologies in an urban

1
The turn of the millennium saw the rise of “living”
technology, which directly engaged the characteristics of
R. Armstrong (&) life moving away from the machine as the dominant
Ku Leuven, Architecture, Ghent, Belgium metaphor for innovating new ways to perform useful
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] work.

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 21

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
22 R. Armstrong

2 Introducing the Microbial situation by restricting this access through Intel-

Commons lectual Property (IP) protections and gene
patenting. In this essay, the term microbial com-
“Microbial technologies” are a potential new life- mons is deanthropocentrized, so that rather than
based platform for circular design comprising a referring to a laboratory commodity, instead it
variety of emerging biotechnology applications refers to the global exchange of microbial
that use electrode–bacteria interactions to gener- goods in the living world and introduces micro-
ate material change including the production of bial technologies as an economic system for
electricity, wastewater treatment, bioremediation, microbial/human interactions.
and the production of valuable products (Kracke
et al. 2015). Although the average lifespan of a
bacterium is around twelve hours or so, collec- 3 Principles of Microbial Economics
tively, microbes (bacteria, archaea, fungi, viruses,
protists) have sustained the living world for bil- Over the eons, microbes have used their com-
lions of years through their critical contributions mons to invent all major forms of metabolism,
to biogeochemical functions, e.g., decomposition multicellularity, nanotechnology, organic metal-
and nutrient cycling (Fenchel et al. 2012). Most lurgy, sensory systems, locomotive apparatuses,
microbes (80% of bacteria, archaea) reside in reproductive strategies, community organization,
biofilms which are organized heterogeneous metabolism, and mineral conversion platforms,
assemblages of microbial cells that are encased creating the basis for versatile and nature-based
within a self-produced matrix—and within this microbial technologies (Margulis 1981). The
essay will be considered as microbial cities incorporation of these agents into our living
(Penesyan et al. 2021). Producing biomolecules spaces within specific contexts creates a trans-
from resources in the environments, biofilms, and actional platform for sustainable interventions,
planktonic microbes (which do not live in a bio- potentially replacing modern plumbing with
film) collectively form the “microbial commons” bioreactor systems that transform a variety of
(Dedeurwaerdere 2010) where the free and open household wastes into usable resources (Lahiji
exchange of microbial materials takes place, and Friedman 1997). Such technologically
forming a foundational biomolecular currency mediated access to the microbial commons
(metabolism) that performs critical “ecosystem operates according to mutualistic principles—if
services,” which generate ecosystem benefits at you give me your waste, then I shall give you
little, or no resource cost, within the urban and [something useful]—escaping the capitalist logic
global context (Bell et al. 2005; Balvanera et al. of resource inequality (extreme stockpiling
2006). For example, nitrification and denitrifica- leading to resource depletion and gross inequal-
tion are microbial processes that are extensively ities), as the same things are valued differently by
used in urban wastewater treatment (Bitton 2011), different actors, facilitating equitable transac-
providing food for plants, and removing toxins tions. Mutualistic relationships, however, break
respectively, with substantial “health” benefits to down in the presence of pathogens, which
the local environment. The term microbial com- account for less than one percent of all microbes,
mons originates from the biotechnology revolu- and are an exception to the principle rather than
tion where the generous exchanges of the rule—so much so, that biofilms actively
microorganisms among culture collections, labo- destroy them (Pasternak et al. 2019).2
ratories, and researchers worldwide, formed an
2
Open Source facility for research activities to The exceptional and important behavior of pathogens is
advance the scientific understanding of microbes. documented in detail in many medical papers. It is not my
aim to downplay this important aspect of microbial
Commercial pressures from biotechnology firms behavior but, rather to emphasize most of all microbes are
in the late twentieth century, however, altered this beneficial to all life and can, therefore, be engaged within
our living spaces using appropriate principles of hygiene.
Towards a Nature-Inspired Bio-digital Platform Powered … 23

Fig. 1 Environmentally regenerative “Living” cities are and energy for low-powered electronic devices in a
enabled by microbial technologies that perform building fundamentally bioremediating manner. The integration of
operations based on an ecosystem of MFC-based tech- MFCs systems into building structures enables the further
nologies—PeePower®, Living Architecture (LIAR), exploration of novel formwork, aesthetics, and user
Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled Environment experiences
(ALICE), which provide a range of ecosystem services

While a regenerative technological platform

that enables meaningful resource exchanges 4 Introducing the Microbial Fuel
between humans and microbes may sound like Cell
science fiction, the functional integration of
microbes into the built environment is feasible The microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a specific type
through the designed incorporation of biofilms of microbial technology—a kind of organic bat-
and specific types of microbial consortia3 into tery, which was first reported by Potter in 1911
bioreactors, where environmental parameters can (Potter 1911) (Fig. 2). Each cell has an anode
be adjusted to encourage the microbes to perform and cathode, separated by a proton-exchange
different kinds of work. Collectively, these membrane that divides the liquids into the two
microbial populations turn waste streams into chambers while allowing protons to pass from
low-cost, low-power energy that can be made the anode to the cathode. Organic waste flows
available to citizens across multiple social, eco- into the anode as feedstock for an anaerobic
nomic, and political divides. Forming the oper- biofilm, which excretes electrodes that are cap-
ational basis for community transactions through tured by electrodes, generating an electrical cur-
access to the microbial commons, such microbial rent sufficient to power electronic devices, while
technologies establish a platform for a circular protons pass through the membrane where they
resource economy enabling new kinds of urban combine with oxygen to produce water.
exchanges (Timmis et al. 2019). A vision out- MFCs, however, produce more than just bio-
lining the principles of transforming urban electricity as the biofilms also recover nutrients,
impacts by incorporating microbial technologies synthesize biofertilizer (in the stabilized sludge
into our buildings is shown (Fig. 1). they produce, which is a rich source of nitrogen
and phosphate), make disinfectant, treat
wastewater, and kill pathogens while they
3
excrete electrons—much like soil biofilms in
A microbial consortium or microbial community is
when two or more bacterial or microbial groups live natural ecosystems. MFCs also act as biosensors
symbiotically but have not formed a biofilm. by generating voltage, which linearly correlates
24 R. Armstrong

Fig. 2 Technical diagram

showing electrons produced
from an anaerobic biofilm that
are captured by electrodes to
produce electricity while
performing ecosystems
services (bioremediation of
wastewater)

with specific quantities of toxins like heavy conserves nutrients (especially nitrogen com-
metals (copper, chromium, and zinc), and pounds), and reduces pathogens. MFCs, how-
organic compounds (p-nitrophenol (PNP), ever, have some advantages over biodigesters as
formaldehyde, and levofloxacin) (Zhou et al. they produce electricity without combustion, act
2017). In this sense, MFCs are completely unlike as sensors, and can be used for the treatment of
batteries or other types of modern utilities, which low-concentration substrates at temperatures
are designed to process one type of resource at a below 20 °C, where anaerobic digestion gener-
time. Providing a foundational platform that can ally fails to function. This creates specific
change the impacts of human settlement across a application niches for MFCs that do not compete
range of parameters, MFCs catalyze the trans- with, but complement, anaerobic digestion tech-
formation of a range of organic wastes (e.g., nology. MFCs still face important limitations in
urine, greywater, and black water which are terms of large-scale application including
feedstock for microbes) into bioelectricity while investment costs, upscale technical issues, and
simultaneously providing environmental services the factors limiting the performance, both in
(bioremediation, detoxification, and water terms of anodic and cathodic electron transfer
purification) generating an overall net-positive (Pham et al. 2006). To date, MFCs have not been
impact on ecosystem health. used widely as they are neither competitive with
fossil fuels nor renewables as a single source of
electrical energy. Over the last two decades,
5 State of the Art MFCs have largely gained traction as a source of
bioremediating green energy owing to break-
MFCs are not the only microbial technological through advancements, which are predominantly
platform to process waste into a range of new confined to the lab. Field/pilot trials for the
resources. Anaerobic digestion in biodigesters treatment of wastewater streams such as urine,
also produces fuel (biogas), removes biochemi- greywater, and blackwater, by MFC stacks have
cal oxygen demand (BOD) from sewage, increased in number, e.g., Pee Power® urinals
Towards a Nature-Inspired Bio-digital Platform Powered … 25

(Walter et al. 2018) and Urine-tricity (Oxfam 7 Introducing the Bio-digital Realm
International 2015), but further research and
development is still needed to advance the The bio-digital interface is located at the MFC
technology’s commercial readiness (TRL) for electrodes where the organic and electronic
novel applications such as smart toilets domains meet. Making an intrinsic connection
that ultimately, will be installed in ecohomes. At between microbial metabolisms and digital sys-
scale, pilots engaging MFCs (such as in the tems (screens, LEDs, USB ports, etc.) the bio-
brewing industry) are at relatively immature digital interface mediates the direct relay of MFC
stages of development, so their potential impacts outputs (electrons, data, and chemical transfor-
are cautiously reported (Singh and Sharma mation) from an organic environmental platform
2010). (microbes) to low-power electronic devices. As
the production of electrons by the biofilm are
based on metabolic reactions, alterations in
6 Bioelectricity for Building electron transport and carbon metabolism can
Operations also influence bioelectricity production, estab-
lishing the potential for two-way electro-
Although a vast range of microbially mediated biochemical exchanges between human and
processes is of value to households and industry, microbe, which are based on an electron econ-
to date, the electrical outputs of bioreactors have omy to establish the principles of a human/
generally been too weak to drive conventional microbial trading system. The following prece-
electronic hardware (Koffi and Okabe 2020). dents offer a series of case studies based on
While MFCs cannot compete with the sheer operational MFC prototypes that are designed for
power provided by other electricity generating implementation in building systems. Each pro-
systems (renewables, fossil fuels), their (mate- totype is spatially organized in a unique con-
rial) circularity is unsurpassed, providing a cir- figuration, which operate at low-power
cular flow of resources within a household or thresholds of around 2–3 V.
building, which are metabolically constrained by
the carrying capacity of the site. Part of the
challenge for MFCs becoming a household sys- 8 Living Architecture
tem is that innovation in electrical appliances for
the last 150 years has effectively operated within The Living Architecture project is a “living”
a conceptual frame where energy is unlimited combined utility infrastructure that uses fifteen
and can be used to solve all challenges from MFC complexes consisting of four chambers4 to
refrigeration to climbing stairs, resulting in the turn liquid household waste such as urine and
voltage outputs for modern homes being stan- grey water into valuable resources (electricity,
dardized for 230 V. Despite current innovation biomass, water, reclaiming phosphate from
outputs being benchmarked against industrial washing-up liquids and removing poisonous
expectations, significant advances in biotechnol- gases from the air) that can be re-used in the
ogy, material sciences, and hardware design are household (Armstrong et al. 2017) (Fig. 3). The
creating the context for the installation of smal- performance of the biofilms is optimized using an
ler, lighter, and more efficient MFCs that are AI, that is also powered by the MFCs, which
currently being trialled in wastewater processing operates simple mechanical controls that strate-
and enabling their installation in buildings. This gically deliver feedstock within the arrays.
new generation of MFCs benefits greatly from
their compatibility with low-powered digital 4
These chambers comprise two MFCs separated by two
technologies, enabling the juxtaposition of
photobioreactors separated by ceramic plates that enable
organic and “smart” (electronic) platforms at the the different resident microbial systems to exchange
bio-digital interface. nutrients between their respective populations.
26 R. Armstrong

Fig. 3 Detail of the fully

inoculated Living
Architecture “wall” and
apparatus installed at the
University of the West of
England, Bristol, the Living
Architecture project, 2019.
Photography by Rolf Hughes
© Rolf Hughes

Enabling the smarter use of electrons, multiple consumption of resources, reducing electricity
tasks are performed within the apparatus from and utilities bills, while mitigating the amount of
generating power to providing data and enabling untreated waste discharged into the environment.
a range of metabolic transformations as the basis Interrupting modern technological silos Living
for a circular resource economy established Architecture’s living bricks are suitable for dif-
between humans and microbes. Living Architec- ferent uptake communities within different
ture’s circular economy is enabled by its inte- architectural typologies for the construction of
grated infrastructure, where people exchange ecohomes, where the contributions by all who
their waste for clean water, bioelectricity, and a carry out the work-of-life are valued through their
range of useful biomolecules, which are com- ecological transactions, turning domestic spaces
patible with everyday activities of daily living. To into sites of wealth-generation. Inhabitants now
facilitate this exchange, the MFC design was have choices to make about how they use their
optimized by creating geometries that combined ecological resources to reduce their dependency
structure and flow to generate electricity- on centralized utilities or help others.
producing building blocks, or “living bricks”
(You et al. 2019). The electrochemical charac-
teristics of three different kinds of conventional 9 999 Years 13 m2 (The Future
house bricks were tested from two source loca- Belongs to Ghosts)
tions. When fed with human urine, European
standard off-the-shelf house bricks generated a The original version of Living Architecture could
maximum power of 1.2 mW (13.5 mW/m2), not be exposed directly to the public owing to the
whereas Ugandan house air bricks5 produced a presence of genetically modified organisms, so
maximum power of 2.7 mW (32.8 mW/m2). The an alternative wild-type microbial experience
integration of MFCs into buildings activates the entitled 999 years 13 m2 (the future belongs to
microbial commons to enable a domestic econ- ghosts), was developed for the Is This Tomorrow
omy that frees the household from its obligate exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery in collab-
oration with artist Cecile B Evans (Bevan, 2019)
5
The choice of Ugandan bricks was based on using (Fig. 4). An installation was prefigured as a
building blocks from a Pee Power® field site.
Towards a Nature-Inspired Bio-digital Platform Powered … 27

Fig. 4 The installation

999 years 13 m2 (the future
belongs to ghosts) is an art
installation embodying a
posthuman apartment
comprised of a bank of MFCs
and digital screens. The
installation is by Cecile B.
Evans and Rachel Armstrong
for the Is This Tomorrow?
exhibition at the Whitechapel
Gallery, London. Photograph
by Rolf Hughes, 2019 © Rolf
Hughes

minimal housing space (13 m2) conferred with using electron flow as a real-time language
the longest possible lease (999 years) and pow- (Armstrong and Hughes 2021). Electrical activity
ered using the natural biofilms in an array of from the biofilms provided a source for both
fifteen MFC complexes from the Living Archi- power and data, generating *200 mW/L urine,
tecture project producing *200 mW/L urine. which was translated by software into animations
The only observable traces of humans were that conveyed the overall status of the biofilm in
digital manifestations of the human past, present, relatable terms. Audiences could, therefore,
and future (ghosts), powered by microbes, respond to the microbial behaviour, not by look-
highlighting the interdependencies between the ing at unpleasant “slime” (the natural “face” of
species through rituals of cleaning, feeding, and microbial colonies), but instead by interacting
care in exchange for a range of services from with appealing forms on a familiar screen-based
cleaning wastewater to generating power for the interface. This world of “Mobes,” a characterful
installation. Emphasizing how poorly modern term coined for the data-based representations of
society values the microbial realm and discards microbes, offers a simple, probiotic approach to
nutrient-rich resource streams as “waste,” the interspecies communication within the highly
installation invited audiences to adopt an ethical situated realm of microbes in a relatable manner
position in relation to resource recycling and that could even become part of our everyday
consider what kinds of transactions are accept- routines establishing new value systems that
able for activating the microbial commons. invite different kinds of (house) work, as well as
stimulating alternative domestic routines for our
living spaces (Fig. 5). Since MFCs are living,
10 Active Living Infrastructure: possessing a force and agency of their own, they
Controlled Environment (ALICE) require our appropriate care and attention if they
are to engage with us in a productive and co-
The Active Living Infrastructure: Controlled constitutive manner (Bellacasa 2017).
Environment (ALICE) prototype (2019–2021), Presently, ALICE exists as a permanent
advances the ambitions of the Living Architecture online exhibit (ALICE 2019) that can be acces-
project by establishing the first bio-digital inter- sed under the section Bio-Digital Interface by
face using its fifteen MFC complexes to establish clicking the Launch Artwork button, which leads
the foundations for collaboration with microbes to an animated set of “Mobes”. On selecting
28 R. Armstrong

Fig. 5 “Mobes,” from the

ALICE website ([Link]
[Link]) showing
dynamic, interactive, and
graphical representations of
microbes, courtesy the
ALICE consortium, 2021.
© ALICE consortium,
screenshot from the website

different options from drop-down menus, the functional but have meaning, value, and can be
environmental parameters (temperature, pH) and culturally adopted in life-promoting ways. Since
performance (power output) of a real-world these microbial systems are not based on simple
microbial community can be interrogated that substitutions for modern building systems, a set
inhabits a permanent MFC array installed in a of design principles and protocols for their
scientific laboratory. Depending on how the uptake and implementation is needed through the
visitor reads the health of the microbes, they can recognition of novel elements like bio-digital
respond to the “Mobes” by feeding them using a interfaces and an ethics of care that can assist the
remotely operated valve system, or by speeding designer/architect in developing, innovating, and
up their metabolisms by activating an LED to scaling new applications that are appropriately
warm them gently. The graphical symbols pro- situated in an increasing variety of sites. By
vide a language where factual propositions (en- incorporating life-bearing microbial technologies
vironmental parameters) are represented, and into buildings, the architect’s role is to connect
further truths can be inferred directly, or by the home with the biosphere through economic
means of a calculating system, which can be transactions at the bio-digital interface, which
overridden by human intervention. ultimately enhances the overall life-bearing
ALICE also existed as an embodied, real- potential of a site (Fig. 6).
world installation that premiered at the Digital
Design Weekend, V&A, London, UK, as part of
the London Design Festival from 24 to 26 11 Critical Reflections on Near-
September 2021 (Barto 2021) and was installed Future Developments
at the Electromagnetic Field Festival, from 2 to 5
June 2022 (Electromagnetic Field Camp 2022). The three MFC-based installations presented
Inviting meaningful human/microbial transac- provide demonstrators that each take different
tions, ALICE demonstrated the potential for steps towards the implementation of a platform
microbially powered technologies with bio- for a circular design that is made accessible via
digital interfaces to become creature-like, the installation of a bio-digital interface. As the
becoming relatable entities that do not ooze, MFC platform is further refined, living bricks
stink, or repulse, as an engaging a way of orga- will become increasingly stackable, lightweight,
nizing our daily routines differently, where the and versatile in their design; enabling new kinds
microbial/human transactions are more than of formwork and ultimately novel building
Towards a Nature-Inspired Bio-digital Platform Powered … 29

Fig. 6 The ALICE installation, a transparent orb pow- artificial intelligence with biological and technical bodies.
ered by microbes that animate LEDs and iPads was Courtesy of the ALICE consortium: Ioannis Ieropoulos,
installed during the Digital Design Week at the Victoria Julie Freeman, and Rachel Armstrong. Photograph by
and Albert Museum, September 2021, embodying the bio- Julie Freeman. © ALICE consortium
digital platform through the integration of microbial and

typologies. Currently, a 1000-unit MFC stack biomass), and creating a digitally compatible
comprises 46 modules of 5 L geometrical volume “hub” that bioremediates its surroundings in
each, which is 230 L total volume. With a 50 L ways that can be monitored (smart) and are
header tank and peripherals, this volume biologically sustainable (nature-compatible);
becomes 300 L. With smaller MFC modules, 2 ultimately establishing the building blocks for
tiers of 22 MFCs/module can be produced resource circular cities. Heralding an era of
reducing the total number of modules to 23, change microbial technologies that are cultured
which would be 115 L total volume (*190 L and grown in our homes and communities
with tanks and peripherals). The power density of alongside us comprise a paradigm shifting
MFC modules is also set to reach 1 mW/mL building technology being able to fundamentally
feedstock (Gadja et al. 2018). 1,000 MFC change the impact of the built environment on
units can be reasonably expected to oper- our living world by reaching new levels of sus-
ate at power levels of 1–2 mW/MFC, 1–2 W, tainability and resilience against climate change.
24–48 Wh for 1 day. This means that 1,000 Integrated microbial technologies provide new
MFC units can deliver 168–336 Wh per week, sources of bioenergy, sanitation, circularity for
720 Wh–1.4 kWh for 1 month, and 8.7– natural resources, increased soil and water health,
17.5 kWh for 1 year. Such a scale-up takes a thereby making significant contributions to
significant step towards resource circularity for SDGs 6, 7, 11, 4 and 17.6 Neither optional extras
human settlements, raising the possibility of nor an architectural fashion, installing microbial
12 V domestic lifestyles that go beyond survival technologies in our homes, buildings, and cities
and bioremediate our surroundings while meet-
ing—and perhaps one day surpassing—the basic 6
MFCs contribute to the following SDGs: 6 via clean
expectations of modern existence. Importantly,
water and sanitation; 7 providing affordable and clean
the bio-digital platform substantially increases energy; 11 by creating a platform for sustainable cities
the resilience of the built environment by pro- and communities; 4 enabling quality education via
viding low-power energy autonomy from waste, bioremediating digital services; 17 in creating partner-
ships for the goals by strengthening the means of
enabling material resource circularity (turning
implementation and revitalizing the global partnership
effluents to electricity, cleaned water, and for sustainable development Technology.
30 R. Armstrong

will, literally, save lives. At the time of climate introduction to the special issue on the microbial
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 Place-Based Processing: Industrial
Process Architecture for Sumptuous
Convivialities

Sarah Kantrowitz

Abstract well-positioned within standing project deliv-

ery structures to help identify and implement
Today, technologies of the emerging bioecon-
better designs for the substantial footprint this
omy present one focused opportunity to building type has in ecological relationship,
unwind and transmute industrial operations carbon emissions, material and waste flows,
into sustainable, regenerative work. Relying
worker’s rights, concentration of capital, and
on standing industrial process design methods, patterns of land use and urbanization. To
however, may tether this hope to the same invite more architects to this seat at the table,
consequences and disparities industrialization
this essay offers a very basic introduction (for
has already suffered us the last few centuries. architects) to the roles of process architecture
Instead, process design methods reconsidered and process engineering in industrial opera-
to begin from specificity of place and rever-
tions today and to how these disciplines might
ence for relationship may be a helpful balance support a deeper sustainability in the near
to methods that begin from abstract process future. With a stronger coalition of architects
operations or intended product outcomes, working in skillful partnership with the vast
alone. This essay posits that drawing archi- webs of human and non-human assemblages
tects deeper into the pragmatics of designing shaping today’s industrial landscape, perhaps
and delivering factories, refineries, waste/ together we may help re-weave some of
energy plants, or other industrial infrastructure today’s most barren and extractive industrial
might support the above re-tooling of process practices into thriving, mutually nourishing
design methods toward kind, non-modern convivialities.
practice. Process architecture is an established
professional capacity for working spatially Keywords
and relationally on plant design in collabora-
tion with process engineering, though it is

Bioeconomy Industrial bioprocessing

often practiced more by former plant operators

Process engineering Process architecture

than by architects. When included, the role of

Regenerative design Degrowth Bathing

Process Architect can also be technically

S. Kantrowitz (&)
Water, Cambridge, MA, USA
e-mail: sarah@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 33

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
34 S. Kantrowitz

1 Design Need: Let Go of Industrial SDGs. This essay is one response. Of the eight
Emissions official targets established within SDG 09, three
seem particularly salient to the built form of
Industrialization has been complex. We make a physical process design. These three targets are
lot of things we don't need, but also a lot of stated as follows:
things we do. Organizing together to work a lot Target 9.3: Increase the access of small-scale
something can be joyful for those involved and industrial and other enterprises, in particular in
generous for others relieved of the responsibility, developing countries, to financial services,
including affordable credit, and their integration
but it can also enclose commons, impose dis-
into value chains and markets
tance, concentrate power, and exploit brutally. Target 9.4: By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and
Across the world, consumption of energy and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with
goods or proximity to extraction and pollution increased resource-use efficiency and greater
adoption of clean and environmentally sound
have never been distributed evenly. Future gen-
technologies and industrial processes, with all
erations living cooperatively may want physical countries taking action in accordance with their
infrastructures for shared resource and waste respective capabilities
work, but perhaps far less or very different Target 9.5: Enhance scientific research, upgrade
the technological capabilities of industrial sectors
infrastructures than those driving climate crisis
in all countries, in particular developing countries,
today. One aspect of industrialization at least is including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and
relatively unequivocal: it has become on the substantially increasing the number of research and
whole a wildly unsustainable source of carbon development workers per 1 million people and
public and private research and development
emissions, serving a dwindlingly small popula-
spending
tion at the increasing precarity of a growing
global majority. This is much more than a design Given the scale, scope, and diversity of
problem, but within it, there are ways architects industrialization’s reach, there are many parallel
might be in greater service. To invite more and interconnected pathways to move toward
architects into the pragmatics of this work, this these targets. Today, mainstream political and
essay offers an introduction to the roles that economic activity around technologies of the
process engineering and process architecture play emerging bioeconomy present one focused,
in the physical design of industrial operations substantive design opportunity to do more with
today, and to how these disciplines might be less, plan for resilience against uncertain condi-
practiced differently with more architects tions, and embrace a regenerative industrial cul-
involved in the future. ture after modernity (Tan and Lamers 2021;
Between energy consumption and process Heinzle et al. 2007; D’Adamo et al. 2020;
reactions, industrial operations today account for Aguilar et al. 2019). Many points in this essay
roughly 30% of current carbon emission rates. may be applicable to other areas of manufactur-
Industrial processes are also the fastest-growing ing, energy, or waste management infrastructure.
source of emissions, jumping by 203% since For the sake of brevity and to share from per-
1990, according to data from the World sonal experience, I will focus here on the design
Resources Institute (Ge et al. 2020). To help and delivery of bioprocessing facilities.
focus collective attention on addressing this The bioeconomy is a new term for the broad
problem, No. 09 of the 17 United Nations Sus- portion of industry based on the processes of
tainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) states presently living biological organisms and
the objective to “Build resilient infrastructure, ecosystems, like fuel brewed from freshly grown
promote inclusive and sustainable industrializa- algae to replace petroleum’s long-deceased
tion and foster innovation”. In 2023, the UIA hydro-carbon sources. Beyond just fuel, the
World Congress of Architects asked how and International Energy Agency estimates that
where architects can better advance the UN petrochemical feedstocks account for roughly
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture for Sumptuous Convivialities 35

12% of global crude oil demand (IEA 2018) and serving the social and economic equity also
are at least partially constituent to 96% of all tasked by SDG No. 09. As with traditional fer-
products manufactured in the US and Europe. As mentation and other large-volume biotechnolo-
such, reducing the embodied emissions in a gies like farming or forestry, the regenerativity
product like petroleum-derived synthetic rubber and resiliency of bioprocessing may best be
requires reworking not just the fuel source that leveraged by operations that are adaptive,
powered the factory that made the synthetic decentralized, small or medium-sized, slow, and
rubber, but also reworking the process design site-specific. When organized accordingly, these
recipe for making the material itself, including operations can be well-suited to management by
the embodied emissions in every individual piece collectivities across a range of scales, levels of
of equipment at the factory stacked together into capitalization, irregularity, and mode of cultural
the process flow that produces the rubber. integration. Good design requires being part of
Standing physically inertial against change, these socio-political and economic organizing
every operation is a web of interdependent and processes in concert with organizing towards
interlocking, heavily capitalized design deci- physical form (Shapira et al. 2022; Bookchin
sions, all dripping in petroleum. 1971).
Bioprocessing might offer pathways to Overall, as late enlightenment re-learns how
release both petroleum and its associated input- to observe and negotiate with the genetics and
intensive, control-based manufacturing tech- population dynamics of microorganisms, fun-
nologies, and instead embrace lively, renewable guses, parts of living cells, plants, animals, and
biogenic carbon sources and biotic, partnership- microbial or other vital consortia (Bennett 2010),
based self-assembling production and decompo- many opportunities open for industry to un-learn
sition processes. The use of biological processes the distinction between producing technolo-
to serve industrial, agricultural, biomedical, gies and participating in living systems, and to
energy, waste management and environmental hold space for passing the shame and grief
remediation applications is of course nothing wound into that complex legacy of alienation.
new. Evidence of the first use of bioprocessing According to a report released by the McKinsey
goes back at least 8,000 years to the practice of Global Institute, “as much as 60 percent of the
making leavened bread. Beginning about physical inputs to the global economy could, in
5,000 years ago, medical practitioners in China principle, be produced biologically,” (Chui et al.
used moldy soybean curd to treat skin infections, 2020; Adom et al. 2014). A recent report issued
and about 4,500 years ago, Egyptians began by the United States Congressional Research
malting and fermenting barley into beer (Ladisch Service to shape federal investment in the
2002). Bioprocessing is also regularly practiced emerging bioeconomy offers that, “some experts
by a wide range of more-than-human beings, estimate the direct economic impact of bio-based
such as the leaf-cutter ants that ferment plant products, services, and processes at up to $4
matter into fungal biomass to maintain a trillion per year globally over the next 10 years”
domestic food source inside their colonies. (Gallo 2022).
Over the last few years, a range of new While dreams of self-repairing personal elec-
biotechnologies have been coming online and tronics grown from waste sludge still flicker out
dropping in cost that might help to soften the on the horizon, other novel bioprocesses are
walls between industrial and living processes. As ready to go. Basic science has demonstrated
techniques advance, we may find new old ways viability in both broad applications like bioplas-
to steward evolution in cells and consortia to give tics and biofuels as well as in niches like
rise to more of the metabolic pathways and enzymes that improve efficiency in pulp and
congenial transformations of matter and energy paper bleaching, soil microbes that reduce fer-
we desire, sans gadgetry. Bioprocessing also has tilizer use and sink greater atmospheric carbon
a history of being an enjoyable activity, suited to loads, polyurethane foams made from algae oil
36 S. Kantrowitz

waste streams in omega-3 fatty acid production, On Page 02 of a recent report to US President
and sustainable fish meal culled from methane Joe Biden entitled “Biomanufacturing to Advance
that was previously being vented to the atmo- the Bioeconomy”, the President’s Council of
sphere (Hodgson et al. 2022). Advisors on Science and Technology (2022) state
that they have “identified three key gaps that are
slowing the country’s progress and must be
2 Design Need: Professional Roles addressed if we are to realize this enormous
and Competencies potential…: insufficient manufacturing capacity,
regulatory uncertainty, and an outdated national
We have so much knowledge in sustainable strategy”. Likewise, the 2022 Schmidt Futures
practices, but dismantling unsustainable practices Report “The U.S. Bioeconomy: Charting a Course
remains a challenge. It is often speculated that for a Resilient and Competitive Future” (Hodgson
this is due more to siloed hoarding of wealth and et al. 2022) offers “building a national infrastructure
power than to any limits in our socio-technical for bioproduction scale-up capacity” as number
design capabilities, but I am enough of a mate- two of its four core investment recommendations.
rialist to feel that these things go together. Bil- Given the scale, complexity, and uncertainty
lions of dollars and as many research hours have of the design and construction task ahead in
been funneled toward prototyping and proving delivering retrofit or new bio-industrial infras-
scientific possibility across many verticals at tructure, it is beyond the scope of this paper to
benchtop volume, but the development of reli- make specific facility design recommendations.
able processes to grow complex, dynamic, and More critically, it is the concern of this paper to
highly variable living systems into appropriately make recommendations about the type of design
sized commercial operations is still its own roles and competencies that can be developed in
challenge. To quote Schmidt Futures on the gap order to have design professionals able to sup-
between research and practice in this space, “an port specification of those recommendations in-
analogy would be turning a home-based, one- situ as this need matures.
carboy beer fermenter into a [network of] full- As things currently stand, architects are not on
fledged brewer[ies] capable of producing enough the list. Taking the above mentioned 2022 Sch-
beer to stock every liquor store, bar, and restau- midt Futures Report as a litmus test of current
rant,” (Hodgson et al. 2022). Or to use a influential views in industry, government, and
fun historical example, it was 1928 when academic research, it is generally perceived that
Alexander Fleming made the incidental obser- “a further constraint on developing bioproduc-
vation that colonies of Penicillium notatum could tion capabilities… is that there is a severe
inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus culture in a shortage of bioprocess engineering talent… one
petri dish, but more than a decade passed that raises the need for education in bioprocess
before it was worked out how to produce the engineering at all levels, from community col-
volume of penicillin needed for commercial lege to graduate school (as well as) process
distribution. Finally in 1941, Mary Hunt devised development research and training programs”.
a method working at the U.S. Department of Besides bioprocess engineers, the other profes-
Agriculture to batch growth of pencillin on sionals presented in the report as necessary to
moldy cantaloupes set bobbing in submerged- design, build, and run bioproduction processes
culture tanks of corn steep liquor, a byproduct of are “automation engineers, manufacturing sci-
the cornstarch industry whose sugars were found ence and technology staff, downstream process-
to accelerate the targeted mold growth (Shuler ing staff, and commissioning, qualification, and
and Kargi 1991), and that is all before even validation engineers”.
beginning to mobilize the resources to crystallize While it may feel obvious to many that pro-
this process into a manufactory. cess engineering is the design competency in
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture for Sumptuous Convivialities 37

greatest demand to support bioprocess scaling batched or continuous flows of substance (e.g.,
and implementation, it is my sense that many of aluminum alloy, latex, cheese powder, etc.), as
process engineering’s core design precepts have opposed to the manufacturing engineers who
also gotten us into this climate pickle in the first build assembly lines for discrete products (e.g.,
place. A chemical engineer either currently cars, dental dams, boxed mac & cheese, etc.)
occupies or has previously occupied the CEO (Brodkey and Hershey 1987). As discussed
position for 3M, DuPont, Union Carbide, Tex- above, this essay takes interest in modes of bio-
aco, General Electric, Dow Chemical, and processing that are themselves biological, using
Exxon. To quote the great Audre Lorde, “the life to manage life (Lorimer 2020) and allowing
master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s complexity to self-assemble, but to get there, we
house” (Lorde 1981). are reviewing the dominant shape of industry
Based on my light preliminary experience as tools as they stand today and the history on
an (unlicensed) architect working with process which they have been built. Process engineering
engineers to plan roughly 600,000 SF of com- emerged as a branch of chemical engineer-
mercial processing operations across the sectors ing (Walker et al. 1937; Underwood 1965). Even
of medical biologics, precision fermentation, and if the source material being handled by a given
relationship-based food systems, it seems that process is biological, current modes of engage-
current dominant approaches in process devel- ment are often largely chemical and mechanical:
opment may risk recapitulating in biological running mass balances and material flows
process many of the same downsides to currently through equipment like plastic tanks, rigid metal
dominant petro-chemical activity. In their article piping, pumps, valves, disposable filters, cen-
“Building a Bottom-Up Bioeconomy”, Shapira trifuges, and automation controls to monitor and
et al. (2022) frame this challenge aptly: “rather adjust properties like phase, density, viscosity,
than trying to industrialize biology, the real task particle-size distribution, pressure, or tempera-
is biologizing industry.” Where this work tou- ture in order to optimize for throughput rate,
ches the physical design of industrial processes at process yield, and product purity.
scale, I am humbly of the view that architecture It is generally agreed upon that the first con-
might offer a set of design tools quite useful in sultant to begin calling himself a chemical
helping ‘biologize industry’. I am also of the engineer was George Davis, working in Britain
view that architects can contribute to this work in the late nineteenth century just as the manu-
more effectively by entering a standing role (like facture of a handful of chemicals were growing
process architect) on project delivery teams and to industrial proportions. Davis had studied
by working in close partnership with process chemistry and begun his career at Bealey’s
engineering. Bleach Works in Manchester, followed by roles
at several other chemical firms, culminating in
his appointment to the Alkali Inspectorate in
3 Design Methods: Process 1881 (Cohen 1996). His responsibility was to
Engineering inspect Leblanc alkali works of the Midland
regions to enforce the Alkali Act of 1863.
Process engineering is the work of designing, Industrialization of the (then) new Leblanc pro-
controlling, and operating process and instru- cess had enabled production of sodium carbonate
mentation lines to transmute raw matter into (soda ash) from salt, coal, and limestone as
desired material at industrial scale. While process demand from the growing soap, glass, and textile
engineers can work with all manner of matter in industries outpaced harvests of naturally-
all manner of industries from mining to phar- occurring soda from kelp and barilla. This pro-
maceutical production to wastewater treatment, a cess had also begun spewing dangerous quanti-
consistent material theme is that process engi- ties of gaseous hydrochloric acid into the air. One
neers tend to deal with the manipulation of of the first pollution control laws ever passed, the
38 S. Kantrowitz

Alkali Act sought to curb this unregulated dis- which could then be independently refined and
charge from the burgeoning soda industry. applied back to any other industrial chemical
As the potency of the Leblanc process culled process (Davis 1901).
together what had been a stew of craft operations This foundational concept of the newborn
working on a theoretical basis akin to witchcraft discipline of Chemical Engineering was further
(Federici 2004; Stanley 1995) and transfigured developed and given a name by Arthur D Little
them into the modern chemical industry, Davis’ around 1915, while he was helping shape the
job as an Alkali Inspector also gave him a front- chemical engineering curriculum at the Mas-
row seat to scrutinize and compare each different sachusetts Institute of Technology: Little called it
factory’s attempt at rationalizing their operations. the Unit Operation. A 1922 report he chaired for
Perhaps even more so, he became acutely con- the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’
cerned with the rapidly growing industry’s fail- Committee on Education lays out the framework
ures of rationalization. Frustrated by the clearly:
abundance of wasteful, polluting, and poorly Chemical engineering as a science, as distin-
managed plants with little understanding of their guished from the aggregate number of subjects
own operations, Davis wrote a letter to the editor comprised in courses of that name, is not a com-
of the Chemical News in June 1880 proposing posite of chemistry and mechanical and civil
engineering, but a science of itself, the basis of
the creation of a Society of Chemical Engineer- which is those unit operations which in their
ing to crystallize this new class of professional proper sequence and coordination constitute a
expertise: “Many processes can be carried on chemical process as conducted on the industrial
very successfully by chemists in the laboratory, scale. These operations, as grinding, extracting,
roasting, crystallizing, distilling, air-drying, sepa-
but few are able to make chemical processes go rating, and so on, are not the subject matter of
on the large scale, and simply because they have chemistry as such nor of mechanical engineering.
a lack of physical and mechanical knowledge Their treatment in the quantitative way with proper
combined with their chemistry… Chemists with exposition of the laws controlling them and of the
materials and equipment concerned in them is the
a thorough knowledge of physics combined with province of chemical engineering. It is this selec-
a fair knowledge of mechanics…Such men are tive emphasis on the unit operations themselves in
not very plenty we know, but they would, by their quantitative aspects that differentiates the
forming such a society, help to diffuse that chemical engineer from industrial chemistry,
which is concerned primarily with general pro-
knowledge through the next generation, if not in cesses and products (Van Antwerpen 1980)
the present.” (Flavell-While 2012).
While his petition was at the time unsuc- As with all modernist, enlightenment episte-
cessful (it would take another 40 years for the mologies, the abstraction and atomization of the
first professional society of chemical engineers to Unit Operation is both its profound potency and
be founded in 1922), he continued working to its liability. The inevitable cost of system-
spread the understanding that addressing the atic isolation and operable control is alienation
problems of a given chemical plant could be from felt sense of relational meaning or purpose
abstracted into general principals, systemized, and falling deaf to signals and feedback loops,
and compared to other plants or even to other checks and balances in the lost intimacy of
process types, as problems of engineering. While mutual knowing between a process and its role in
other industrial chemistry books written at the an environment. This abstraction of processes
time were siloed to a given type of chemical away from place and path-dependent interrela-
process like brewing or acid production, in 1887, tionships has granted process engineering
Davis gave a series of 12 lectures at the an impressive capacity to re-plumb the physical
Manchester School of Technology presenting an transformation processes of industrialization hard
approach that instead broke complex, historically and fast past any sentimentality in millennia of
entangled processes down into a relatively small accrued metabolic pathways, interwoven eco-
number of universal subset operations, each of logical assemblages, or socio-environmental
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture for Sumptuous Convivialities 39

rhythms, but we have also done just that (Tsing relational expanse of linkage and attunement
2021; Haraway 2016). Now that we find our- available through process engineering, it is
selves living in the abiotic tailing ponds of helpful to read lucidly this historically-
petrochemical industrialization’s fever dream, entrenched chemical-mechanical ideology while
will the disassociated abstraction of unit opera- here in attendance to the forces powerfully re-
tions find the wholism to build more sustainable, working the dis- or a-biotic ever on towards the
resilient, and equitable shared processing infras- biotic, with or without us. By holding under-
tructures for basic food, fuels, materials and standing of these path-dependencies neutrally
medicines, while generally also building less? and candidly alongside respect and admiration
Sustainability-minded engineers have offered for the rigor, potency and accomplishments of
that the methods of resource accounting in a process engineering, it may be possible to build
mass and energy balance can just scale from more richly integral and balanced creative part-
plant to planet, re-situating a given process nerships between engineering and architecture in
design within its finite or circular con- ecological design of industrial operations (Gibbs
text (Woinaroschy 2016; Zhang et al. 2017). In 2008).
this view, process engineering, “can/must define
its subject area as the whole socio-metabolic
system and its target as sustainability transition. 4 Design Methods: Process
Through philosophical and sociological argu- Architecture
ments, concepts of human existence, society and
social system, production/consumption, Process architecture today is generally practiced
exchange and economy, politics and policies, as a supporting or translational role between
information, science and technology are clarified process engineering and conventional architec-
with a hope that these issues can be incorporated ture in the delivery of an industrial facility.
into chemical engineering principles in the Despite the name, it is often practiced by people
future” (Horio 2019). Is this approach holistic or who are not trained in architecture. Like lab
subjugating in its reach for totality? planning for R&D environments or medical
Even in the most advanced realms of biolog- planning for hospitals, many process architects
ical engineering, working in hushed proximity enter the work through having been users or
with the most intricate details of living, breathing operators of facilities themselves, intimate with
beings, it is easy for industrial biotechnology the spaces needed to run operations via first-hand
to default to the metaphor of casting life as a experience. After a process engineer has devel-
machine to be controlled: “With biotechnology, oped diagrammatic process flows and equipment
we can direct the nanoscale machinery of living sizing for an industrial project, today’s process
cells to produce self-contained factories that architect can help to spatialize the process and to
perform on a characteristic scale of one micron… manage coordination between process require-
The challenge facing bioengineers is to redirect ments and overall facility planning. For example,
genetic and cellular machinery to make eco- if the process engineering team has specified an
nomically important molecules when the cells are equipment line with clean classification require-
placed in controlled environments. Engineers ments, process architecture might then draw up a
must design, build, and operate hardware and set of rooms sized and sequenced to organize
integrated systems that can multiply a cell’s adjacencies, separations, clearances and circula-
output by a factor of one trillion, as well as tion between equipment placement, service con-
recover and purify the products in a cost-effective nections, material flows, operator and
manner. Bioprocess engineering is the next maintenance access, and hazard management.
frontier.” (Ladisch 2004). Process architecture can coordinate with the
While this latter view may be a singularly facility MEP engineering team to layer in process
impoverished imagination of the connective, utility point-of-use sizing and placement, various
40 S. Kantrowitz

destinations for differentiated waste drainage, dense ecologies of relationship that work well
back-up power requirements, or directional air together. As things hum and life invites more
flow. Coordination with the structural engineer- life, we dip from the sustainable to the regener-
ing team can layer in accommodation for ative to the sumptuously convivial.
equipment loads, specialized overhead support Three major rock formations run beneath
requirements, or metrological isolation against Dallas, Texas. In a rainstorm, the expansive clay
vibration. Coordination with the architecture soils of the Eagle Ford shale can swell enough to
team can then layer in requirements for envelope move the foundation of a building up to one inch.
penetrations, ceiling access, emergency contain- Somewhere on the northeastern fringes of the
ment curbing, a specific thickness of epoxy floor city, the proposed design for a 300,000 SF
finish, interlocking of door control hardware for cleanroom blood protein extraction plant recoils
entry/exit airlocks gating clean flow of personnel at the possibility of this subtle external pertur-
and materials, or a comfortably sized janitor’s bation. The reams of hygienic stainless steel
closet. As in all building projects, coordination process piping with rigid validated-weld con-
with construction planning, project financing, nections are only able to tolerate one-quarter inch
regulatory compliance, and permitting can all of movement in their run from the 5,000L buffer
also feed back iteratively on the design process, tanks up overhead to the building’s steel struc-
incrementally aligning towards a resolved, built ture and over and down to the column chro-
whole. matography skids. The evolving design of the
Process architecture is by no means a part of plant reacts, injecting a few million dollars of
every industrial project team. When needed, it rebar and labor into hardening its concrete
can play a critical and central role in developing foundation slab against the surrounding earth.
a facility, but is also generally contracted onto a Executing this work sucks in more global
project long after the most core process design byproducts of the petrochemical industry and
commitments have already been made. Alterna- belches more carbon emissions out into the
tively, there are many ways that the goal of atmosphere, but succeeds in the goal of safe-
sustainable industry could be well served by guarding further isolation, fending off the
developing both a more robust professional unwelcome variability of the plant’s surround-
design competency for process architecture and ings, and exerting further control over the con-
by increasing integration of process architecture ditions of its interior. A glimpse of a brilliantly
into a broader scope and earlier stages of bio- white, smooth, and sterile chamber glistens out
process development. For example, I think this of view as the doors of three nested airlocks snap
new process architecture would be able to take shut (Fig. 1).
the lead on much needed work in better inte- Meanwhile, across the Atlantic Ocean and
grating worker rights and quality of life into the deep within the bowels of the Alps, thousands of
core of operations planning, de-intensifying open-format bioreactors come alive to the daily
process design to decarbonize and welcome moisture-wick of porous stone walls, the sea-
more ecological complexity and resiliency into sonal cycle of humidifying glacial melt, venti-
material/energy flows, or working through lating winds gifted by fissures, and the vast
affordably scaled-down mid-size facility stan- thermal mass holding cavernous cells cool but
dards that better enable decentralized operations, not frozen. Erosion from subterranean rivers of
local or cooperative ownership, degrowth, glacial melt collapse adjacent rock formations
onshoring and regional cultural integration. To and grant the cheese aging cave new real estate,
simplify, this set of design priorities for process spaces tuned to thrive on the geological upheaval
architecture might all fall together under the of the facility’s broader host environment and
mantle of a place-based or a relationship-based eager to be populated with biofilms of compan-
approach to process design. In their essence, ion microflora. As millions of kilos of cheese
sustainability and place might both be about blossom in these mountain caves, one almost
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture for Sumptuous Convivialities 41

Fig. 1 Inside an oral solid dosage and injectable pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Nagpur, India. It looks very
clean. © Kunal Kampani

gets the idea that this lively family of fermented architectural engagement. In that time, the pro-
foods co-evolved with or even emerged from the cess engineers had helped take the client’s bench-
microbially- and hydro-/geologically-entangled top volume discoveries from the laboratory
process architectures used to manufacture (roughly 0–50 L per batch), test scaling them
them (Fig. 2). through pilot volumes (roughly 50–500 L per
These two tales of bioprocess architecture batch), and prepare plans for the full commercial
present a very different relationship to place. In volume demo plant my team was then brought on
the first scenario, process design performance is to help deliver (10,500L per batch or roughly
premised on maximizing control of interior 1,500,000 L per year). Given the complexity of
conditions by maximizing isolation from the current bioprocessing facilities, path dependen-
surrounding environment. In the second scenario, cies bake so many practice ideologies and
the performance of this bioprocessing facility is embodied or operating emissions sources into
premised on interdependence with and making thousands of interlocking decisions on project
use of existing environmental conditions, culti- financing, building scale and siting, material
vating processes that are able to adapt fluidly to supply chains, building HVAC and other envi-
and benefit from the variability in these condi- ronmental controls, building and equipment
tions, precisely because of their intimacy with construction materials, maintenance, and waste.
and embodied knowledge of their place. Under typical project delivery workflows, the
While helping design the blood fractionation energy demands and dependencies of many bio-
plant in the first scenario as a member of the processing operations can also be fixed in place
cGMP process architecture team at a large cor- by early-stage process development decisions
porate architecture firm, I experienced the role of without the option to revise as full scaling impacts
process architecture more or less as it stands in or opportunities become legible to all parties. By
the industry today. The process engineering firm the time the process architecture team was
on the project had been brought on by the client involved in the above project, the vast majority of
roughly five years prior to the beginning of our these decisions were already locked in.
42 S. Kantrowitz

Fig. 2 The Cooperativa Produttori Latte e Fontina near a humidity of >90% and a temperature of around 10 °
Aosta, Italy receives fresh cheese weekly from its 200 or C year-round, further stabilized by cool streams of glacial
so member cheese makers and then manages the 2– melt plumbed through open trenches at ground level along
3 month aging process of the wheels in a cave complex the perimeters of all the aging chambers. When I asked
with a capacity for roughly 150,000 wheels at a time. Dug the operators how they handle any regulatory concerns
out into the rock, the cavernous spaces of the aging cave over the mold or algae found growing everywhere on their
were originally cleared as the access tunnel to a former cave walls, they shrugged and responded that the mold
copper mine and then later as military storage depots was there when they arrived. I took this photo visiting in
during World War II. The warehouses passively maintain July 2019

Where process engineering might be a 1997; Chertow 2008; Bezama 2016). Following
method of building industrial process design the case of the cheese aging caves, and with
down from the abstract non-location of unit humility to be lead and not reinvent the water-
operations and laboratory environments, process wheel, the Nashtifan windmills, or millennia of
architecture might become the design indigenous land stewardship practices (White-
method of growing process design up from the washed Hope 2022; Watson 2021), bioprocess-
specificity of place, working with communities ing infrastructure can begin by feeling a place
back from affordances culled out of the particular closely and learning what emerges there.
ecological assemblages, flows, and socio-cultural After conducting field research to survey a
practices of a unique geographic location dozen or so northern Italian cheese aging caves
engaged in the development of a given piece of for found process design strategies in modulating
industrial process infrastructure. Together these environmental temperature, humidity, ventila-
two approaches might meet in the middle and tion, and microbial growth, my feeling is that
iterate to align on a shared vision for a given aged cheese did indeed emerge from the affor-
facility and its associated material/energy cas- dances of its processing environment. The design
cades, circles, or industrial symbionts (Grann of the product follows from the conditions of
Place-Based Processing: Industrial Process Architecture for Sumptuous Convivialities 43

the facility rather than the the facility following Developing this more holistic professional
from the product. As the cheese ages in the cave, role for sustainable process architecture requires
losing water at a controlled rate to the moisture building a lot of relationships. Developing this
capacitance of porous lithic walls abundant in role requires listening, relearning, and growing
the processing environment, the solidifying bio- new understandings of place-based technical
tic mass becomes the vessel of its own batched expertise in how to participate generatively in
unit. The cheese rind is a self-assembling biore- biological processes, and the decolonial com-
actor whose functionality arises in concert plement of this work in unlearning current
between its living contents, the conditions of its paradigms of domination in industrial operations.
processing environment, and gentle periodic On balance, architects are generally already well
human intervention (typical practices include enough trained in many of the skills needed for a
hand pats, brushing, or brining at different time place-based approach to process architecture:
intervals depending on the type of cheese). When reading and leveraging siting, softness, sensitiv-
it is no longer needed, the rind bioreactor ity to materials, doing more with less, space and
decomposes or becomes its own snack. flow planning, core principals of passive design,
mediating between technical and somatic valen-
ces, trusting intuition, feeling, and spotting and
5 Next Steps: Growing Design cultivating nested socioecological relationships.
Community in Bioprocess It seems that young architects today also have a
Infrastructure growing appetite to plug into the substantive
physical design challenges of our time with both
In my experience, many builders, operators, and social sensitivity and technical competency. In
engineers are open to more holistic collaboration this regard, I believe the disciplinary partnership
in the development of ambitiously sustainable or proposed in this essay would both support
regenerative industrial projects. Equally, to move architects in bringing value to process design and
from idea to reality in any large, organizationally would support process design in bringing value
complex project, it is necessary for a team to all to architects.
be able to speak the same language, to have clear This essay is just preliminary work, and surely
methodologies, and to build trust. It can some- in need of further revision, exposition, and
times feel like a common reprise from architects alignment with other like efforts. If this framing
that we ought to be consulted on all manner of of the potential to grow process architecture as a
things on which we are currently not consulted. place- and relationship-based bioprocess design
This is not my proposal. I propose that architects competency strikes a chord, it may be helpful to
might enter a (more or less) standing industry next codify this proposal against more systematic
role by gaining the shared subject matter exper- case studies or to more thoroughly identify gaps
tise and understanding of existing project deliv- in literature or training resources. For myself, I
ery structures needed to add legible value to this have fallen into what little I know about process
type of project, and from there, within client design largely through experience so for now I
relationships and project teams, weave in have presented primarily first-person impressions
expanded design considerations and steward and speculations, accordingly.
design scope and phasing strategies into a more If these opportunities resonate with you, I
balanced and reciprocal collaboration with other hope we can work together to cull out more
disciplines. Industrial operations often appear practices in bioprocessing that are themselves
heavily technical today but they are not impos- biological and life affirming (Lorde 1984). By
sibly complex systems to learn about at the partnering more deeply and more skillfully with
foundational level needed to collaborate. each other and with the more-than-human world,
44 S. Kantrowitz

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Acknowledgments I am immensely grateful to the many Denmark. In: DJ Richards (ed) The industrial green
colleagues, mentors, friends, and lovers who have shared game. National Academy Press, Washington
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management, fermentation, hologenomics, process design in the chthulucene. Duke University Press, Durham
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hydrofeminist practice. Thank you. Heinzle E, Biwer A, Cooney C (2007) Development of
sustainable bioprocesses: modeling and assessment.
Wiley, Hoboken NJ
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 Towards a Bacterially-Induced
Textile Architecture

Aurélie Mosse, Daniel Suárez Zamora,

and Bastian Beyer

Abstract Keywords

Bacteria are rarely considered as belonging to Biocalcification
Textile design

the architectural realm. Yet they are part of the
built environment as they are part of our own Bacteria are rarely considered as belonging to the
bodies. In the emerging field of biodesigned architectural realm. Yet they are part of the built
architecture, bacteria are involved in the visual environment as they are part of our own bodies
expression as well as the structural perfor- (Gilbert and Stephens 2018). Meanwhile, bacte-
mance of buildings. In this visual essay, we ria became an expanding field of investigation
reflect on the results of a curriculum-based for biotechnology-driven architecture where
workshop focused on the biocalcification of bacteria interact with the visual expression as
textiles, a rigidification process informed by well as by structural performance of construction
the bacterially induced precipitation of calcite. materials. Biocalcification recently gained a lot
Building on the pioneering work of architects of attention for its potential to solidify structures.
Bastian Beyer and Daniel Suarez in this area, However, it is mainly used by engineers for the
the results point at the rich textile vocabulary consolidation and repair of sand, brick and con-
through which biocalcification can be crete structures (Esnault Filet et al. 2012; Rah-
expressed and the value of interdisciplinary man et al. 2020). In the design community,
collaborations sitting at the intersection of biocalcification is similarly mostly applied to
textile design, architecture and microbiology. sand and other granular substances (Myers 2012;
Arnadottir et al. 2021). Most recently, however,
3D printed polymer structures or knitted textiles
expanded the material scope of biocalcification
(Xin et al. 2021; Beyer et al. 2019). In this visual
A. Mosse (&)
essay, we build upon the work of Beyer et al.
Ensadlab, Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts
Décoratifs, Université Paris Sciences et Lettres, (2019) to report on the “Biocalcified Textile
Paris, France Architecture” workshop undertaken in the con-
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] text of the 1st year MA programme in Textile
D. S. Zamora Design at Ecole des Arts Décoratifs in spring
Matters of Activity, Humboldt Universität Zum 2022. The workshop aimed to explore how an
Berlin, Berlin, Germany
interdisciplinary exchange can contribute to the
B. Beyer research on biocalcified textile architecture. The
Matters of Activity, Humboldt University, Berlin,
process and results informed discourse and
Germany

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 47

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
48 A. Mosse et al.

speculation about potential applications of the 1 Discussion

materials within the architectural realm. The
achievements of the workshop are, firstly, an The general aim of this workshop was the open
expansion of the vocabulary of possible textile exploration of various textile techniques and their
structures and expressions and secondly to test a subsequent biocalcification. Informed by design
novel bioreactor setup (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, proposals such as bioreceptive structures and
9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18). flexible architectural membranes, biomimetic

Fig. 1 Close-up of a
biocalcified textile.
Biocalcification or
microbioally-induced calcite
precipitation (MICP) is a form
of biologically-induced
mineralisation relying on the
formation of calcium
carbonate which results in
solidification of the medium
in which the process occurs
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 49

Fig. 3 This piece, reminiscent of gothic architecture is

inspired by Radiolaria, a form of zooplankton producing
intricate mineral skeletons. Sample by: Jeanne Guillet and
Chloé Ménard
Fig. 2 Circular textile structure made with a crochet
technique. Sample before (top) and after biocalcification
(bottom) (diameter approx. 1 m). Crochet allowed for to more or less dense, figurative and intricated
quick iterations and upscaling while providing great
expressions. The specificity of this language lies
opportunities for structural gradients such as openings,
material accumulations as well as inlays. Sample by: in its whiteness, granularity and rigidity evoking
Violette Husson and Arnaud Mazel frozen times.
Further in-depth exploration of the structural
ornaments, urban furniture or modular shading behaviour of the materials in relation to the
elements, these experiments demonstrate the rich technique applied and optimisation of the bio-
textile vocabulary through which biocalcification treatment are still to be assessed. The novel
can be expressed. While Beyer and Suarez custom-built bioreactor proved to be working
explored in the Column (2019) an open-work very well; however, it was found that the samples
jute-based vertical knitted structure, here the in the centre of the bioreactor accumulated more
production offers variations of patterns and tex- calcite than the ones on the periphery (see
tures, not only induced by different contextures Fig. 11). For a further iteration, this distribution
and fibre’s natures, but also by the intensity of system inside the reactor could be improved to
the precipitation induced by the bacteria, leading deliver more homogeneous results.
50 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 4 Detail of Fig. 3 after

treatment: the textile scaffold
is transformed through MICP
while the intricate textile
structure remains perceivable
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 51

Fig. 5 Close-up of Fig. 3

and 4 demonstrating the
ability of MICP to sustain
textile curvature after removal
of temporary substructure
52 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 7 This sample by Juliette Clapson and Nina Dos

Santos was made by stitching jute and cotton-based
woven fabric together. The large number of plies within
one side of the fabric was intentionally designed to
explore interstitial calcification

Fig. 6 Biocalcification also allows for sustaining an open

weblike pattern like this mashrabyia-inspired module by In general, the project provided a multidisci-
Victor Manceau and Oscar Nahan. Similar to the lacing plinary learning experience for the students
technique, yarns are pre-tensed in a specific configuration; engaging with unconventional textile-based
thanks to pin-like supports which are later removed once
composites while they reflected on the implica-
the mineralisation has occurred
tions of addressing the architectural scale. Fur-
thermore, bacterially generated calcite is a
Furthermore, it could be observed that pieces biogenic material that can be found in various
incorporating more jute material such as sample ecosystems. Together with the use of natural
1 responded much better to the treatment as fibres, it forms a sustainable composite material.
delicate and dense samples (see Fig. 14) This Therefore, it provided a valuable learning expe-
points towards the importance of the permeabil- rience on how sustainable materials can be gen-
ity of the material for the treatment as well as the erated through microbiology.
necessity to balance the relationship between They were able to engage in all the steps of
fibre and calcite matrix. the process while applying their own textile
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 53

Fig. 8 Close-up detail of

Fig. 7 shows the dependency
between structure and
calcification
54 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 9 Here biocalcification is tested on woven samples flexible areas. This allows the material to hinge due to its
based on a honeycomb pattern and two distinct qualities structure. Samples by Mélanie Dhubert Riollet and Maude
of yarns. The differentiated response of the textile due to Guirault
their qualities leads to a graded material with stiff and
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 55

Fig. 10 (Top) Macroscopic

images of biocalcification on
jute-based textile yarns
showing calcite crystal
formations. (Bottom) From
fibre to yarn production.
Previous experimentation
showed that jute fibres present
a favourable substrate for the
bacteria colony to adhere to.
Three different yarn
thicknesses (5, 8 and 12 mm)
were produced by bundling
regular raw twisted jute cords
of approx. 1.5 mm with the
help of Kemafil®
(KEM) technology (Arnold
et al. 1994)
56 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 11 One of the

workshop’s goals was to
make the students familiar
with the concept of
hierarchical materials.
Normally, textiles operate at
three different levels fibre-
yarn-fabric (Eadie and Gosh
2011). Biocalcification asks
for considering the bacterial
microscopic level too
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 57

Fig. 12 Crafting textile

samples: The framework of
the workshop allowed the
students to explore various
textile structures and inform
the project with their own
textile experiences. Multiple
small-scale tests were
executed and then scaled
up. The final pieces were
crafted with the tailored yarn
58 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 13 Bioreactor: The

device allows the bacterial
solution to permeate the
textile samples in a controlled
way. A series of repeated
treatment cycles gradually
builds up bacterially induced
calcite deposition on the fibres
and ultimately solidifies the
textile substrate
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 59

Fig. 14 The biocalcification

process lies in imbuing the
textiles with the chosen
bacterial colony and a
solution of urea and calcium
carbonate. A liquid
distribution system inside the
bioreactor allows spreading of
the bacteria solution
efficiently to the textile media.
The bacterial solution is
circulated in an enclosed
envelope in which the
calcification on the textile
occurs
60 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 15 Close-up of one

sample inside the bioreactor.
The students could observe
how the biocalcification took
place through a transparent
area in the bioreactor
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 61

Fig. 16 First look inside the

opened bioreactor after 3 days
of biocalcification
62 A. Mosse et al.

Fig. 17 Close-up detail of

Fig. 9. While not all those
different fibres react well to
the treatment, however, on a
macroscopic view, it is
surprising to observe how
calcite grows in a very
organised manner on top of
the plastic monofilament
Towards a Bacterially-Induced Textile Architecture 63

Fig. 18 Participants of the

workshop. 1st MA in Textile
& Material Design students
and workshop leaders
(Aurélie Mosse, Bastian
Beyer, Daniel Suárez)

knowledge. Especially the engagement with Technical Papers, Keynote Conversations, vol 1.
microbiology bacterially-informed materials Association for Computer Aided Design in Architec-
ture, pp 300–309
delivered a new experience that is not common in Arnold R, Bartl A M, Hufnagl E (1994) Production of
the conventional textile design curriculum, criti- cord and narrow fabric products with Kemafil tech-
cally engaging with sustainable and ethical con- nology, Band und Flechtindustrie, vol 31, pp 48–52
siderations of working with living organisms. Beyer B, Suarez D, Palz N (2019). Microbiologically
activated knitted composites: reimagining a column for
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potential and the challenges of working between revolution, Porto 2019. Blucher, São Paulo, pp 541–552
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[Link]/10.1002/adma.202006946
 Synthetic Natures

Winka Dubbeldam

Abstract solely creating the problem. Architecture

needs to learn/adapt and hybridize. Rather
In the Anthropocene the distinction between
than simply applying vegetation on otherwise
what is natural and what is human-made, inert structures, buildings themselves need to
which has informed the distinction between learn from nature’s intelligence, by adopting
the ‘wild’ and the cultured for centuries, has
plant intelligence, hybridizating and initiating
become blurred. So, what is natural and what symbiotic relationships with natural systems.
is artificial in the Anthropocene? The human In the near future we can ‘grow’ new
struggle to contain systems running out of
construction materials with ever more intelli-
control, species going extinct, and catas- gent behaviors. These buildings will generate
trophic effects impacting our safety, has oxygen, absorb carbon, and are self-healing,
thrown our idea of ‘home’ into a fundamental
creating continuous biomorphic surfaces. In
crisis. According to the latest World Health the future city where building structures grow
Organization (WHO) report, 8 million people and lower the carbon footprint rather than
die every year globally because of air pollu- adding to it, the human race might have a
tion alone. However, we also find strange chance of not only surviving, but symbioti-
beauty in the Anthropocene, where unex- cally living with these synthetic natures as
pected side effects and alternate symbiotic ‘home’.
relationships in nature occur. Synthetic nat-
ures, a term used here to look at the purposeful Keywords
symbiotic merging of nature’s intelligence
with building structures, studies how these


Synthetic natures Hybrid Anthropocene

new life forms (species) can alter buildings

Climate change Architecture
and material ecologies, and drastically reduce
the buildings’ environmental impact, alto-
gether re-defining architecture as being an
instrumental part of the solution rather than 1 Synthetic Nature

“Imagine an architect looking at the subnatures

of a city: a cloud of smoke, a pool of mud, a pile
W. Dubbeldam (&) of debris. He or she might see such things as
Weitzman Architecture, University of Pennsylvania, emblematic of mismanagement, abandonment, or
Philadelphia, USA
catastrophe…..” (Gissen 2009).
e-mail: winka@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 65

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
66 W. Dubbeldam

The distinction between what is natural and hydrocarbons emitted into our air (Unknown,
what is human-made, which has informed the Vehicles, Air Pollution, and Human Health
distinction between the ‘wild’ and the cultured 2014). According to the latest World Health
for centuries, has become blurred. So, what is Organization (WHO) report, 8 million people
natural and what is artificial in the era of the globally die every year because of air pollution.
Anthropocene? In the Anthropocene, an era A shocking and devastating realization,
defined by human activity as the dominant seemingly without a positive outlook or future
influence on climate and the environment, ‘na- solution. However, David Gissen, a New York
ture’ or the wild has become increasingly scarce author and designer who works in the fields of
and the man-made has taken over. This same architecture, landscape, urbanism, and Professor
Anthropocene has an ever-increasing devastating of Architecture and Urban History at Parsons
influence on the climate and the environment. School of Design/New York University, suggests
The human struggle to contain systems running otherwise, rather than trying to “fix” the pollu-
out of control, species going extinct, and afford tion mishaps, he suggests absorbing them,
environmental catastrophic events, has thrown incorporating the dirt and discarded in our built
our idea of a safe ‘home’ into a fundamental environment. He states in “Subnatures, Archi-
crisis. tectures’ Other Environments”: “to take on the
Luis Barragan describes in his 1980 Laureate less favorable natures (subnatures) such as
his notion of beauty and the “wild”: “I suddenly weeds, smoke, mud, debris and other pollution‘:
discovered, to my astonishment, small secret and proposes that perhaps the architects consider
green valleys the shepherds call them “jewels” these strange forms of nature as a material
surrounded and enclosed by the most fantastic, endemic to architecture and cities, as opposed to
capricious rock formations wrought on soft, an aberration that must be consolidated,
melted rock by the onslaught of powerful pre- removed, or dismissed (Gissen 2009).” He goes
historic winds. The unexpected discovery of on to suggest that buildings incorporate these
these “jewels” gave me a sensation like the one subnatures, rather than only dealing with the
experienced when, having walked through a dark “proper natures” that merely produce more
and narrow tunnel of the Alhambra, I suddenly technologically orientated structures, rather than
emerged into the serene, silent and solitary “Patio the subversive more critical approach. Gissen
of the Myrtles” hidden in the entrails of that suggests an alternative view of natural processes
ancient palace. Somehow, I had the feeling that it and ecosystems and how they relate to human
enclosed what a perfect garden no matter its size society and architecture, a view that allows for
should enclose: nothing less than the entire the discarded to become productive and human
Universe”. debris to be absorbed in new material ecologies.
This kind of “sublime” and awe for these These two realities, the annihilation of the
rough rock formations holding the idyllic tufts of wild and mutuality, which on the surface appear
green, as untouched, idyllic beauty is becoming to be antithetical, will be further investigated
increasingly rare. At this time, nearly 50% of the here. It could also be said that the Anthro-
US population, an estimated 150 million, live in pocene’s environmental crises have forced and
areas that don’t meet federal air quality stan- accelerated the rate of architectural innovation.
dards. Cars and heavy-duty trucks are a major Until recently architecture’s development has
source of overall pollution, which includes been slow in its technological development, and
ozone, particulate matter, and other smog- lacking innovation. Where we know we can
forming emissions. Particulate matter is single- expect our cars to be fully AI-operated and
handedly responsible for up to 30,000 premature automated, building technology, on the other
deaths each year. In 2013, transportation con- hand, is still at a nineteenth century level. Could
tributed more than half of the carbon monoxide these subnatures somehow be informing archi-
and nitrogen oxides, and almost a quarter of the tecture, creating strange objects and synthetic
Synthetic Natures 67

hybrids, coalescing in a symbiotic, opportunistic 3 Mutants and Monsters

relationship that benefits both organic and inor-
ganic beings? However, we also find a strange beauty in the
Anthropocene, where unexpected side effects and
alternate symbiotic relationships occur. The
2 Anthropocene contamination of our soil–water–plant system
with heavy metals causes a chemical environ-
The start of the Anthropocene was estimated by mental overload, with dire consequences for
the Stratigraphy Commission of the Geological human and non-human health, and economic and
Society of London to be in 1780 when the steam ecological impact. Research in plant intelligence
engine was invented. Originally used for mining, and adaptation shows that plants are capable of
steam engines as early as 1800 were also driving phytoremediation of heavy metal contamination,
steamboats and trains instigating mass transport plants not only potentially clean the environment,
as we know it. Steam locomotives were gradually but also adapt to the “new normal” in different
superseded by electric and diesel locomotives, ways, such as their altered growth and mutation.
with railways fully converting to electric and The 2011 Earthquake in the Fukushima Pre-
diesel power beginning in the late 1930s, mark- fecture, Japan, is one of these examples where
ing the start of fossil fuel depletion, major pol- reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power
lution, and climate change. Plant melted down after the earthquake, and new
The United States was long considered the plant forms and /or mutations were found. Fields
world's biggest polluter in terms of carbon of flowers suddenly appeared to have elaborately
dioxide and other greenhouse gases, but China contorted shapes, often elongated and doubling
has moved into the top spot, according to the in shape (Fig. 1).
Global Carbon Project 2020. The consequences The reading of these phenomena varies.
of pollution and the prolonged ignoring of its Evolution generally proceeds at a slow and
consequences are astronomically expensive: steady pace, the Anthropocene however has
some economists and climate scientists have caused a total reset, as illustrated here by
calculated that climate change could cost the the radical mutants that upset the norm. The
United States the equivalent of nearly 4% of its geneticist Richard Goldschmidt sees these new
gross domestic product a year by 2100, which is forms of evolution as radical mutants, and calls
likely a conservative estimate; as it leaves out them “Hopeful Monsters”, in reference to a
consequential damages from drought, floods, and concept from evolutionary biology. These flow-
climate migration. The annual US cost of flood- ers, due to Fukushima’s raised radiation levels
ing today is over $32 billion nationwide, flood- gradually changed over time, and went through a
ing has cost US taxpayers more than $850 form of fasciation, also known as cresting. The
billion since 2000. Hurricane Sandy alone, which mutant vascular plants exhibit a relatively rare
hit New Jersey in 2012 as a potent cyclone, condition of abnormal growth in which the
caused major flooding, and caused over $60 growing tip, which normally is concentrated
billion in damage, claiming at least 125 lives in around a single point and produces approxi-
the United States and knocking out power to mately cylindrical tissue, instead becomes elon-
more than 7 million customers. New York was gated perpendicularly to the direction of growth,
off the grid for weeks. Would it not be wise for producing flattened, ribbon-like, elaborately
the human race to pay more attention, and come contorted tissue, called phyllotaxy. Fascination
up with pro-active measures rather than passively starts in the apical meristem (similar to stem cells
observing climate change and its consequences? in humans), which plays a vital function in plant
68 W. Dubbeldam

Fig. 1 Flowers mutate and

show cresting due to
environmental stress

organogenesis [regenerative attributes] and pat- and travel to the moon, and of course the nineties
tern formation. Fascination may also cause plant invention of the home computer and the internet,
parts to increase in weight and volume, espe- accelerated architecture’s change This had con-
cially the rose, legume, sunflower, dandelion, sequences. Architects today find themselves in a
snapdragons, and cactus families are sensitive to huge dilemma; the buildings designed based on
fasciation. Goldschmidt’s position is that these these techno-centric paradigms are no longer the
‘Hopeful Monsters’ might be incredibly relevant safe havens for human comfort they were inten-
in the adaptation and creation of new species, ded to be, but actually generate a large share of
and exhibit features that are perhaps more resis- global pollution, as close to 40% of human-made
tant to environmental change. Surface elongation carbon emissions come from construction and
[mutant flowers], or fractalization (coast of building materials alone. A drastic design change
England, medieval cities) has historically been a in material ecologies with embedded intelligence
method of defense. Others consider these muta- is required, with the architecture itself gaining
tions “mistakes” and advise to weed them out, agency on-, and recreating a more holistic envi-
but more interestingly, the alternative remains ronment. An urgent recalibration of natural and
closer to David Gissen’s “Subnatures” argument synthetic material properties and what they mean
we instead celebrate these flower’s strange for human and non-human occupancy and the
beauty, and see it as a lesson in resilience and surrounding city.
beauty. In this next wave of the Anthropocene where
climate change and environmental challenges
threaten our and other species’ existence, just
4 Synthetic Natures/New Hybrids building ‘green’ no longer suffices.
Green and sustainable movements have been
Going back to the initial premise that the prevalent as early as the 1970s. At that time, the
Anthropocene’s technological advances have devastating impacts of the Santa Barbara oil spill
compelled and accelerated architectural innova- had shocked the nation, resulting in the largest
tion, could the fasciation of these mutant flowers, civil movement to that day, when 20 million
and their capacity of phytoremediation be an people, 10% of the nation, rallied in the United
indicator of what future architecture holds? States to protest environmental destruction (Yeo
Could these Hopeful Monsters thus exemplify a 2020). This resulted in the first Earth Day, where
useful paradigm for architectural innovation, concerns for clean water and air initiated an
incorporating the ‘mutant’, resilient, and self- environmental movement that expressed worries
healing rather than obsessing over an “Idyllic not only locally, but also for the planet as a
Form”? History teaches us that major techno- whole. As a consequence, republicans and
logical inventions, such as the 1930s introduction democrats went together and passed 28 envi-
of the car, the sixties invention of mass media ronmental federal laws over the next 10 years to
Synthetic Natures 69

protect our nature, food supply, and endangered might as a profession arrive at a truly radical and
species. While this sounds hopeful, it was not alternative concept of the environment for the
enough. Environmental systems had to run 50 contemporary architect (Gissen, 2009).” The
more years further out of control, for humanity to Anthropocene’s sudden human & environmental
realize that it is our collective responsibility to impact has caused a total reset, sometimes
resolve what we initiated and ignored for so resulting in strange beauty where unexpected
many years. Architects and construction have an mutant side effects and alternate symbiotic rela-
important role in this as households alone are tionships occur. Here we look at an Architectural
responsible for 5.43 gigatons of carbon dioxide reset as response to the Anthropocene in the form
equivalent emissions every year. About 82.3% of of potential new hybrids, buildings as Synthetic
those emissions are produced domestically. Nature that have the capacity to transform into a
For the first two decades of our office mutually beneficial coexistence of nature and
research has been focused on designing and architecture, resulting in symbiotic performance
implementing of new more efficient build- and behavior rather than bio-aesthetic analogies.
ing systems, often in collaboration with The aim is to build clever, efficiently, minimize
advanced manufacturers. This resulted in cus- waste, and to develop new prototypes.
tom and optimized solutions creating new fa- The shapes as a result of the prototyping
cade systems, material innovations, and passive process can be described as Protobodies or
solar applications, resulting in well-insulated Thing-Shapes as described in Edmund Husserl’s
buildings with reduced energy costs. We real- text the “Origin of Geometry” from 1937, that
ized that custom prefabrication with all its ben- touch on the idea of becoming, approximating,
efits [fast, affordable, technologically advanced, and therefore, occupying a territory between idea
and clean] has replaced the standardized mass- and space, exactly where boundaries are not yet
produced production of the seventies. However, sharply differentiated or defined. This thing–
humanity is quickly coming to the realization shape is not yet decipherable by habit or felt “at
that recent climate laws and measures will not home”, which causes a sense of uncanniness (see
suffice. Rapid adaptation is needed to adjust the also “Origin of our Ideas of the Sublime and
course of environmental decline. Our research Beautiful” by Edmund Burke, published in 1958)
focus hence has been on the building’s (Burke 1958). It accepts being other, combines
future symbiotic adaptation of nature’s awe and beauty, the “almost ugly”, from which
intelligence. identity and character ensue.

5 What Does that Mean? 6 Green Lung

Architecture itself needs to learn/adapt and A recent example is our recently completed
hybridize. Rather than simply applying vegeta- masterplan for the 47 hectares Eco park for the
tion on otherwise inert structures, symbiotic Asian Games in Hangzhou China, with 7 build-
relationships with natural systems and materials ings integrated into the landscape. This 1.6 km
can be developed. This adaptation of plant long park functions as a green lung, which
intelligence then can generate mutually benefi- absorbs carbon and creates oxygen while also
cent, self-sustaining, and even self-repairing absorbing and filtering stormwater as a run off
habitats and environments. Structures that cre- from the otherwise hard surfaces of the fast-
ate positive feedback to their environment by growing city around it. With a strict government
absorbing carbon and emitting oxygen, while stipulation for an 85% park and a “sponge city”
cleaning and filtering air and water. As Gissen concept, it was quite the challenge to position the
writes: “By actively reflecting on the alienating required 185,000 m2 of buildings. Only the 2
material of the social natural environment, we stadiums could be visible, the other 5 buildings
70 W. Dubbeldam

had to be morphed into landscape formations Hangzhou after the games. This future reuse
with slivers of glass providing natural ventilation stabilizes the carbon footprint and transforms the
and daylight. A green valley with glass pavilions park into a constantly evolving active urban
functioning as a shopping artery, dips under the participant, rather than creating a static, repre-
road and river bisecting the park, reconnecting sentative object that would become a vacant
the 2 park sections in one fluid sweep, while white elephant after the 2-week Asian Games.
promoting ongoing cultural, retail and Inspired by the contorted and doubling shapes of
hospitality activities. the cresting of vascular plants as they adapt to
This originally flat site is transformed into an their changed and challenged environment, the
Eco park by implementing a “zero-earth strat- stadium’s hybrid character was developed in a
egy”, a strategy that re-distributes excavated similar manner. Its shape moved away from a
earth from the newly restored wetlands and the singular form and used into the more complex
shopping Valley to create a hilly landscape intersection of two double-curved ellipsoids; one
covering the submerged buildings. These hills clad in brass shingles, one created from a steel
not only dampen city sounds, filter, and retain and glass oversized diagrid. The resulting shape
stormwater, but also create a calm serene park —two elongated wobbly disk—are offset, creat-
landscape. Their 64,000 m2 combined green ing an optimization of adaptability, allowing for
roofs act as an agent of environmental change by the hybridity to be fully expressed. The slippage
releasing 83,408 kg of O2. And absorbing between the two solids creates overlapping
114,850 kg of CO per year. The master- spaces fluidly connecting the interior and exte-
plan, designed in collaboration with landscape rior. The inner bowl features a hybrid seating
architects! Melk, also implements a Sponge City configuration adapting the central viewing layout
model by recreating the wetlands, inserting preferred for sporting events into an asymmetric,
islands in the river to filter and oxygenate the stage-centered configuration for performances.
water, and placing porous pavement enhancing The result is a highly adaptable set of volumes
hydrology. The project achieved Green building that can seamlessly convert to an event space
evaluation 3 star, the Chinese equivalent of after the games. The mutant’s adaptability is
LEED platinum. The existing river as it snakes further expressed through the introduction of a
through the site, passes over the Village Valley self-spanning suspendome roof, which is sup-
as an aqueduct, forms a crucial part of the wet- ported on the inner bowl to cantilever out over
land system, mitigating stormwater runoff and the public lobbies. The double-curved glass dia-
offsetting the impact of adjacent newly built grid façade is then simply suspended from the
areas. Solar paneled awnings flank the Shopping suspendome’s edge, essentially rendering the
Valley, providing solar-powered electricity, and entire building column-free. Through 3D digital
shade, and their wing-shaped awnings also guide design and integration in BIM coordinated
the fresh air to the shopping below. Local veg- workflows, we were able to minimize material
etation is re-introduced in the Eco park, bringing use (saving 1130 tons in steel), shorten con-
back local birds and insects to help restore the struction time by 20%, and save significant funds
natural biome. for the client in this ambitious project. Air Travel
was drastically reduced, by performing site visits
by drone (by the local architects) and sending the
7 Mutants and Hybrids drone footage to the USA. By reviewing these
short movies details could be reviewed up close
To create a legacy for this Eco Park, the two and coordinated with the GC in Hangzhou over
stadiums are designed to function as attractors zoom (Fig. 2).
and generators of new sociocultural activities and Strange intersections and bulges occur along
hence are proposed as Hybrids; merging sports the mutant’s double-curved shapes, where brass
events with a concert hall/event space for shingled surfaces intersect with steel and glass
Synthetic Natures 71

Fig. 2 BIM coordination of the Hybrid Stadium’s integration of structures and passive climate control systems

diagrid rings. These bulges not only express the

mutant character of the building, but also add 8 Future Mutants—Materials
identity and character to this strange object,
making it recognizable that this is a neighbor- Not only is ‘synthetic natures’ a term used here
hood participatory social condenser. The double- to look at the purposeful symbiotic merging of
curved inner bowl is entirely clad in locally nature’s intelligence with building structures, but
sourced bamboo with recessed LED lighting. also how these new life forms (species) can alter
A central skylight with a light diffuser below buildings and material ecologies, drastically
creates indirect daylighting in the arena and reducing the buildings’ environmental impact
blends technologically generated forms with and altogether re-defining architecture as being
renewable materials that naturally adjust to their an instrumental part of the solution rather than
immediate environment. The building also ties solely creating the problem. Kent H. Redford and
into the surrounding nature; cooling water is William M. Adams in their book Strange Nat-
extracted from newly reconstituted wetlands, and ures, look at what is natural and what is artificial
energy is preserved by only cooling the seats of in the Anthropocene, they state:” The tools of
the viewers. The building literally ‘breaths”, as synthetic biology are changing the way we
cool air is pulled in at night, and automatically answer that question. Gene editing technology is
openable skylight and ring of windows under the already transforming the agriculture and
suspendome roof allow hot air out by day. The biotechnology industries. What happens if syn-
building is literally breathing in and out (Fig. 3). thetic biology is also used in conservation to
72 W. Dubbeldam

Fig. 3 The Hybrid’s

intersecting bulging disks
allow for hybrid use and the
building's legacy for the city

control invasive species, fight wildlife disease, or affords natural growth and air filtering while
even bring extinct species back from the dead?” being structurally sound (Fig. 4).
They postulate a ground-breaking examination of Another synthetic nature development is the
the implications of synthetic biology for biodi- recently developed algae and glass façade. In
versity conservation and the protection of natural their article on microalgae bio-reactive facades
species. (Talaei et al. 2020), researchers Maryam Talaei,
However, the focus here is not solely on the Mohammad-Javad Mahdavinejad, and Rahman
conservation of nature, but also on the creation of Azari state: “Algae convert sunlight and carbon
a synthetic nature, building symbiotic alignments dioxide into oxygen, heat, and biomass. The
between organisms and matter, where matter integration of microalgae, as a photobioreactor-
takes on organic qualities and therefore has a based source of biofuel, with buildings, has the
more significant agency on its environment and potential to transform high-performance archi-
can start to lower the large percentage of carbon tecture”. Instead of vegetation growing up the
emissions due to construction and building façade here, algae facades create natural shading
materials. and insulation, converting light into heat and
One of these synthetic materials is the mush- biomass through photosynthesis, thus producing
room ‘brick,’ where mycelium, the fibrous roots energy for the building, while lowering its carbon
of a mushroom, is combined with straw or some footprint. The Algae façade also creates ambient
other agricultural waste and allowed to grow. light, insulates the space, and shimmers in the
Typically, it grows for up to two weeks, when it dark.
is halted by either firing in an oven or treating it We also find other productive, air-cleaning
to remove the fungus to stabilize the brick. The properties in nature, the Echeverria species has,
benefit of mycelium is that it is carbon neutral through phytoremediation, huge air-cleaning
and durable, added benefits are that the material qualities. These qualities can be further mutated
can be self-repairing and self-healing; the living to accelerate their productive symbiotic aspect,
fungus can grow together to form a stable their air-cleaning capacity. Our indoor air is
structure, and if incurred damage can self-repair. typically 2–5 times more contaminated than
We, however, were more interested in a hybrid outdoor air, substances such as chemical-based
version, creating a possibility for larger structures cleaners and air fresheners, furniture coated with
and greater climate impact. A hybrid of Myce- glues, paints, and fire retardants, can pollute and
lium with precast concrete creates a bio-wall that contribute to poor health. Succulents such as the
Synthetic Natures 73

Fig. 4 The caption organic matter integrated into concrete, allowing for organic growth

Fig. 5 Echeverria are being mutated to enhance their air-cleaning properties

Echeveria can improve air quality and absorb can be accelerated through mutation, further
toxic chemicals from common household prod- increasing the air-purifying quality. A proto-
ucts in astounding amounts (Fig. 5). hyper body trained in toxic absorption. The cul-
NASA’s Clean Air Study found that Echev- tivars have such unique, highly effective traits
erria is able of removing 87% of volatile organic that Nasa is looking into creating plant-based air
compounds (VOC). They do this through pho- filtering in their spaceships.
tosynthesizing via the Crassulacean acid meta- Not only Echeveria have air phytoremediation
bolism, allowing a higher uptake of CO2. in their capabilities; other plant structures are capable of
fatty leaves. Their storage capacity is based on water remediation and remove, transfer, stabilize,
the structure of their tissue; succulents provide and/or destroy contaminants in our water and
morphological and phylogenetic diversity, which soil. It’s well-known that sunflowers are
74 W. Dubbeldam

“hyperaccumulators”, plants that are capable of not only surviving, but also symbiotically living
taking up high concentrations of toxic materials, with these mutants and synthetic natures as
removing harbor pollution and nuclear waste as ‘home’. Ultimately replacing the question of
they absorb zinc, copper, and other common what is the ‘wild’ and the cultured with a sym-
pollutants across a variety of their genome. Our biotic system; a synthetic nature, where mutant
urban wastelands can be cleaned, purified, and hybrid structures perform not unlike a wide
beautified by introducing sunflower islands in variety of intelligent plant behaviors, as they are
harbors and other polluted areas in greenhouses. implanted in our construction materials and built
Once absorbed, they must be eliminated similar environments. These Synthetic Natures and
to any toxic waste system. strange new objects grow and adapt, absorb
toxins, generate energy, filter, and retain water,
or promote biodiversity.
9 Conclusion Our research is currently focused on creating
these hybrids; where biomatter is added to con-
Our research points at the possibilities to accel- crete mixtures allowing for plant life to become
erate the development of these mutant organic an integral part of the building’s façade structure,
materials, enhancing phytoremediation aspects, allowing for the façade to generate oxygen,
as we ‘grow’ new hybrid construction materials absorb carbon, and filter pollution out of the
with ever more intelligent behaviors. In the surroundings. This embedded biomatter will also
future city, where buildings are designed to have the added benefit of further insulating the
absorb carbon, transmit oxygen, and produce interior spaces and creating maintenance-free,
energy, the human race might have a chance of self repairing buildings (Fig. 6).

Fig. 6 The caption for the hybrid embedded in the eco park for the Asian games 2023
Synthetic Natures 75

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energy performance of algae bioreactive façades: a environmental-movement-was-born
review. J Build Eng 28:101011
 Hardware Stories. DIY Practices
as More-than-Human Material
Activism

Antonio Bernacchi and Alicia Lazzaroni

Abstract Keywords

In relation to an understanding of the symbi-

DIY Material activism Diegetic prototype

otic nature of living organisms, the project

More-than-human Domestication-as-
“Hardware Stories” is presented as a coun- rewilding
ternarrative to modernist hygienist standard-
ization. It is a set of diegetic prototypes of
construction elements, with relative manufac- 1 A Counternarrative
turing and maintenance tools, and is show- to Sterilization
cased through a floor component. This work
questions how much the mechanism of pro- Almost every account of modern architecture
duction of architectural construction materials, history relates some of its origins to the so-called
with its quality control mechanisms and the “hygienist movements” in the second half of the
economic scale that its implementation nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth cen-
requires, actually prevents any form of alter- tury. On a macro-scale, infrastructures of sani-
native approaches. The project proposes to tation and sewage were built to improve the poor
consider DIY practices as a form of mundane health conditions of major cities, but on a small
resistance that can empower multiple actors as and micro-scale, the built environment has
a practice of material activism. Through the undergone a more specific process of “steriliza-
description of material sourcing, properties, tion” and systematic elimination of dust and
manufacturing processes and installation, this bacteria, in line with the modernist praise of
visual essay aims to explain how these enable cleanliness on both a metaphorical and literal
to conceive different relationships of cohabi- level.
tation that are critically framed through the A long time after the structural conditions that
concept of “domestication-as-rewilding”, originated the hygienist movement were no
introduced by anthropologist Anna Tsing. longer present, the scientific community’s posi-
tioning had substantially evolved contributing to
questioning the need and desire for cleanliness
that never really left the architectural imaginary
A. Bernacchi (&)
A. Lazzaroni
inherited from modernism, which obviously did
Aarhus School of Architecture, Aarhus, Denmark
e-mail: abe@[Link] not include any space for non-human life. Con-
sider, for instance, the acknowledgement of the
A. Lazzaroni
e-mail: al@[Link] role of symbiosis in the evolution of cells,

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 77

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
78 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

introduced by American biologist Lynn Margulis symbiotic relationships at large, within a broader
in the 1980s (Margulis 1991). framework related to the crucial importance of
The artistic project “Hardware Stories” biodiversity. Nevertheless, the disciplinary
aims to suggest a counternarrative to the imper- infrastructure of standards and protocols of
ative for pristine sterilized surfaces in the built quality control developed to enable it is still in
environment through speculative crafting, place and is geared into the industrial machinery
proposing a reflection on the value of entan- of production, ensuring a process of overall
gled cohabitation with other species, as sustained systematic sterilization.
by thinkers like Donna Haraway (Haraway This system supports the “expectation, fuelled
2016). by the insurance industry, that risk and perfor-
“Hardware Stories”, co-authored by Animali mance can be easily and rapidly quantified,
Domestici (A. Lazzaroni & A. Bernacchi), Jakob which has pushed construction further towards
Sieder-Semlitsch, and Lynn Hyun Kieffer, is the use of standardised composite building
constituted by a set of prototypes of architectural products” (Material Cultures 2022). In terms of
components together with some hacked and costs, time and manpower, the demands for a
redesigned tools of manufacturing and mainte- product to be approved within the current
nance, which are used to empower independent sophisticated systems of certification, that can be
processes of material experimentation. The floor found in Western European countries and in
prototype presented in this visual essay was North America, can be sustained, however, only
included in the exhibition “Architectures of for large-scale or mass production. This, there-
Cohabitation” held at SchauFenster gallery in fore, further increases the resulting process of
Berlin in May 2022 and curated by Arch+. standardization as “any technologies which
These artefacts were conceived within a per- deviate from this pattern are harder to contract,
spective of design fiction, intended as the “de- harder to insure and harder to justify” (Material
liberate use of diegetic prototypes to suspend Cultures 2022).
disbelief about change” (Sterling 2013). To In turn, it is becoming quite evident that “a
understand this mode of operation, Bruce Ster- culture obsessed with measurement can easily
ling explains that “design fiction doesn't tell ignore or even forget the things it finds harder to
stories—instead, it designs prototypes that imply measure. For example, carbon, cost and energy
a changed world”, therefore “a design fiction is a are all relatively easily quantified, whereas bio-
creative act that puts the viewer into a different diversity loss and quality of life for workers are
conceptual space—for a while”. harder to measure” (Material Cultures 2022).
In this sense these prototypes deal with
Dunne’s concept of para-functionality (Dunne
1999), meaning that “leveraging the seductive 3 “Hardware Stories”: DIY
language of design, design artefacts are crafted to as a Space for Alternatives
provoke people to imagine it in use and the
possible future that would manifest around it” The floor prototype is a patchwork of multiple
(Wakkary et al. 2015). tiles made of very different materials, like, for
instance, ceramic and seeds conglomerates, or
dog fur on a mycelium base block, held by a
2 Technification timber substructure of irregular geometry and
and Standardization variable heights, which ensures the flush align-
ment of the top surface of the floor aggregation.
The current relevance and influence of a The project articulates through material experi-
hygienist approach to the design of interiors are ments an inquiry into the potential and value of
put in question by a different understanding of porosity for bio-receptivity, as a vehicle to
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 79

support the cohabitation of non-human beings in 4 DIY as Material Activism

everyday architectural spaces, considering how
cavities’ properties like scale, shape and con- Within this framework “Hardware Stories” aims
nectivity might influence the effectiveness in to raise the question of whether DIY practices
creating a hosting environment. could represent a form of “mundane resistance”.
Do-It-Yourself (DIY) is defined in the Oxford Within the education and research in design,
English Dictionary as “the activity of making, there is an increasing interest in including mate-
repairing or decorating things in the home rial manipulation within the design process and
yourself, instead of paying somebody to do it”, its fields of experimental investigation, a phe-
where the usual assumption is that this activity is nomenon that resonates with the concept of
done at an amateur level, instead of engaging “Material Activism”, coined by designer Miriam
a skilled professional, who would get paid for Ribul, referring to a “low-tech approach to the
the service, which poses the accent on the dif- democratization of production” (Ribul 2014). The
ference in skillset or experience. Nevertheless, inspirations and methods that enable it could
there are various crucial distinctions between come from very different everyday practices, like
professional and DIY activities, like the relation cooking, as “common tools and ingredients are
with instructions and protocols, the alternative adapted in pursuit to create alternative aesthetics
networks of resources, the absence of systematic and processes for materials and making” (Ribul
quality control and preconceived target parame- 2014). As the term “activism” suggests, this
ters, but also, and perhaps more importantly, reclamation of material experimentation is often
the dimension of time and a very different notion aimed at pushing for a change in the conditions
of efficiency. All these factors might, in fact, be and mechanism of the production industry; nev-
much more relevant than the actual manufactur- ertheless, it is usually still conceived within the
ing expertise in determining the innovative and disciplinary domain of designers identified as
transformative potential of such practices to such. In this sense, the project “Hardware Stories”
explore alternative modes of operation, alterna- suggests a possible step further, creating the
tive spaces and materialities, and subsequently conditions and toolkits to empower non-designers
alternative attitudes to cohabitation. from different age groups and backgrounds,
Analysing various aspects of the development considering the demographics that are typically
of Hardware Stories, like resources, material involved in DIY practices, to engage in the pro-
properties, manufacturing and installation, in cess directly (Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4).
close connection to the visual documentation of Looking more in detail at the manufacturing
both process and outcome, could shed a light on of the prototype, it is important to first describe
how they have been conceived to explore and the search for alternative sources, partly related
redefine various of the core elements of distinc- to the constrained availability of materials. These
tion of DIY practices, to investigate their poten- have been mainly reused, found in fabrication
tial in first hand, and to narrate them as “storied workshops from previously discarded mock-ups
matter” (Iovino and Oppermann 2014). This and prototypes, or picked from leftover stacks in
intends to position the work within a perspective workshops or around fabrication facilities, like in
of material ecocriticism, as defined by S. Iovino the case of timber, bricks or stone tiles. Some of
and S. Oppermann, which emphasizes the crucial them have been sourced freely from public for-
role of narrative in a critical discourse on envi- ests, like timber twigs and branches, or moss, and
ronmental questions (Iovino and Oppermann others were even harvested directly from organic
2014). sources, like the poodle fur, trimmed by the
80 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 1 Floor prototype,

overall

Fig. 2 Details

authors as part of a regular grooming cycle. the formal resolution of the entire prototype
A few others of smaller volume have, instead, (Figs. 5 and 6).
been bought specifically for the project, like The specificities of the materials, in some way
paper porcelain and the relative ceramic glazing, their “specifications”, were highly related both to
or like some “ingredients” from other fields like their potential for manipulation and crafting, and
baking, where we can find edible food colour- to their targeted properties and formal features at
ings, grains, seeds and fibre mats. a “micro-scale”, especially in terms of porosity.
The different sourcing had, however, an Looking in detail into a few of the tiles, the
obvious impact on the unevenness of the mate- different natures of the base fluid material, from
rials, like in the case of chipped stone or cracked plaster to rough clay to paper clay or to finer
timber, or the natural irregularity, which has been paper porcelain, have a very different softness
accommodated through the patchwork pattern and drying time, which determines a varied
arrangement, turning into an incentive to evolve degree of manipulability and, through a diverse
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 81

Fig. 3 Details

Fig. 4 Maintenance practice

set of crafting experiments, achieved multiple eliminated towards the end of the process.
surface treatments and cavities. For instance, Cooking provided again a variety of inspirations
plaster, which can be made quite fluid for cast- and opportunities, as different grains, like quinoa
ing, allowed floating inside it a number of or chia seeds, but also wheat products, like bul-
expansion jelly beads that left a variably con- gur or couscous, present varied dimensions and
nected network of spherical voids on the top side shapes, which produced a number of different
of the plaster tile, when removed after a very effects, from unsmoothed micro-roughness to a
slow drying. spread of mixed-diameter holes. The grains were
Less malleable materials, instead, demanded also distributed differently depending on the
other types of treatments, many of which also substrate properties, some were lightly sprinkled
involved the temporary insertion of foreign and gently pressed inside, while others were
bodies within the mass of the tile to be later manually micro-punched and naturally followed
82 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 5 Exploring alternative

materialities: sources

Fig. 6 Exploring alternative

materialities: sources
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 83

Fig. 7 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties

Fig. 8 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties

a more intentional pattern, as in the case of The creation of new tools, whose blueprints, 3d
porcelain butterfly feeders (Figs. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 models and specifications are shared in open
and 12). source for collective use and development, rep-
These examples introduce some considera- resents one of the instruments to empower non-
tions on the manufacturing processes and their standard processes also for users outside of
agency. Here an important role has been played design disciplines. The production of tiles com-
by the customized adaptation and modification of posed of multiple sub-parts required the design
crafting tools through hacking and home 3d and adaptation of multiple joints and support
printing, like in the case of ceramic extruders, or elements, from dowels to 3d printed water trays,
even just in the fitting of chiselled timber sticks which all ultimately contributed to increment as
on roller handles, to adapt them for even pressure much as possible the acceptance of tolerances at
spread in the crafting of patterned ceramic tiles. a tile level, in order to reduce the non-fitting
84 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 9 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties

Fig. 10 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties

materials and potential wastage to the minimum mid-sized profiles, whose thicknesses are all
(Figs. 13, 14, 15 and 16). different, is grouped in clusters with the top layer
A similar adaptive logic informed the design that is totally adaptive to the specific positions,
of the substructure. Being a raised floor with a but also to their imperfections, requiring a
cavity, similar to an old floating parquet, it could meticulous process of individual adjustment,
accommodate very different types and shapes of which became an empathic act of careful adap-
tiles but also house complementary elements, tation, where all the micro-properties of each
like water trays, maintaining their top surface element had to be re-apprehended and observed
level more or less consistent. Made of leftover with attention (Figs. 17, 18, 19 and 20).
timber profiles of very different sizes stacked in All of the explorations carried out throughout
three layers. First, a thick layer at the bottom the development of Hardware Stories were aimed
could accommodate unevenness or protruding at supporting enjoyment and appropriation by
elements in the surface below. Then, a layer of non-human species in a number of different
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 85

Fig. 11 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties

Fig. 12 Exploring alternative

materialities: material
properties
86 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 13 Exploring alternative

craft: manufacturing
processes

ways, like providing different microclimatic Other ceramic tiles, instead, were aimed at
conditions, or embedding nutrients, for instance. creating a hosting environment for small-scale
Many of the tile experiments took inspiration cryptogams, like mosses or lichens, which
from existing mundane devices that are devel- reproduce through spores that need to find a
oped informally and often documented in blogs suitable balance of wet and humid conditions
and online videos, like butterfly feeders, which with a specific pH range to thrive. In these cases,
are usually constituted by a tray of butterfly the heterogeneity of form and the microporosity
nectar (water with approximately 10% of sugar are crucial in providing a wide range of degrees
and some fruit juice), where the liquid should be of moisture and exposure to air of small pockets
accessible, but not fully to avoid interference and wrinkles within the material. Therefore, a
from rodents or similar, while using colour to custom-made pneumatic extruder has been uti-
attract, as butterflies target red, blue and purple, lized to pour highly hydrated paper porcelain
for instance. mixed with chia seeds, giving a highly jagged
The butterfly feeders in Hardware Stories have texture and avoiding spoiling that through man-
a ceramic mass, which is an aggregate of porce- ual manipulation. The chia seeds are later burned
lain compressed spheres with a surface dotted by in the kiln firing process, leaving micro-cavities
scattered holes, sitting on top of a plastic tray 3d that enhance the natural absorption properties of
printed in shiny purple PLA and including small the material.
pieces of natural sponges in between the spheres Some tiles’ bioreceptive properties were
that carry the nectar to the top surface by capil- instead related to their chemical composition,
larity, allowing it to spill a bit in and around the and the manufacturing process and surface
surface cavities (Fig. 21 and 22). treatments allowed certain substances to be more
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 87

Fig. 14 Exploring alternative

craft: manufacturing
processes

Fig. 15 Exploring alternative

craft: manufacturing
processes
88 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 16 Exploring alternative

craft: manufacturing
processes

Fig. 17 Exploring alternative

adaptation: Installation

accessible. This is the case of travertine chipped calcium supplements; nevertheless, a honed or
leftover tiles, which were reused by slowly cut- polished stone surface does not allow to easily
ting them with diamond blades in trapezoidal access the substance, therefore the tiles were
shape. The high level of calcium carbonate in lightly brushed and sandblasted on the top sur-
sedimentary stone can be a great resource for face, giving them a more rough texture and an
snails, whose shell is mainly made of that sub- undulating surface (Fig. 23).
stance and that often need to be provided with
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 89

Fig. 18 Exploring alternative

adaptation: Installation

Fig. 19 Exploring alternative

adaptation: Installation

manifestation of a space that is conceived for a

5 Closing Paragraphs different set of relationships and hierarchies that
are less linear and straightforward than the typi-
5.1 Narrating Alternative Forms of cal notion of domestication.
Coexistence: Domestication In her text “nine provocations for the study of
as “Rewilding” domestication”, anthropologist Anna Tsing aims
to put into question the fundamental assumption
Hardware Stories proposes a reflection on dif- of a binary distinction between what pertains to
ferent forms of cohabitation with other species domestication and what doesn’t. Referring to
within the domestic environment, not by staging multiple examples of coexistence determined by
or depicting them explicitly, but by opening the mutual help, rather than coercion or captivity, as
imagination about them through the physical for “wild chickens” in the Meratus Forest in
90 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Fig. 20 Exploring alternative

adaptation: Installation

Fig. 21 Micro-environments
of cohabitation
Hardware Stories. DIY Practices as More-than-Human Material Activism 91

Fig. 22 Micro-environments
of cohabitation

Fig. 23 Micro-environments
of cohabitation
92 A. Bernacchi and A. Lazzaroni

Indonesia, where having “no fences and no instigated debates on multiple levels, directly,
prohibitions” she asks: “Is this domestication?” within the exhibition space and in an open sym-
(Tsing 2018). The reductive understanding of posium connected to it, but also indirectly
multispecies coexistence where humans are through the dissemination in publications, where
always in a position of control is also because the prototype was chosen as the cover image of
“we don’t count the many species with which we the week’s art section of the most diffused
have other kinds of intimate relations”, but there national newspaper, somehow underlining the
are not even terms for those, that “point to instrumental role of its formal qualities.
cospecies landscapes in which no species can be
said to be in charge” (Tsing 2018). She later
elaborates on how different “arrangements”, like References
“domestication-as-rewilding”, “offer hopeful
alternatives in imagining multispecies life with Dunne A (1999) Hertzian tales: electronic products,
humans as a component”, and even further flip- aesthetic experience, and critical design. MIT Press,
Cambridge, MA
ping the question in reverse, noting that “a Haraway DJ (2016) Staying with the trouble: making kin
majority of the species left on earth are here in the Chthulucene. Duke University Press, Durham,
because they have figured out a way to live with NC
humans- a domestication of humans for their Iovino S, Oppermann S (2014) Material ecocriticism.
Indiana University Press
purposes, if you will” (Tsing 2018). Margulis L, Fester R (eds) (1991) Symbiosis as a source
of evolutionary innovation: speciation and morpho-
genesis. MIT Press, London, England
5.2 Debating About Alternative Material Cultures (2022) Material cultures material
reform. Mack books
Worlds Through Material Ribul M (2014) Recipes for materials activism. https://
Activism [Link]/miriamribul/docs/miriam_ribul_recipes_
for_material_a. Accessed Oct 2022
“Hardware Stories” investigates the potential of Sterling B (2013) Patently untrue: fleshy defibrillators and
synchronised baseball are changing the Future. Wired
alternative forms of innovation and experimen- UK
tation through material activism developed from Tsing A (2018) Nine provocations for the study on
the user side, which can provide counter- domestication. In: Lien ME, Ween GB (eds) Swan-
narratives in order to promote different concep- son HA. Politics and practices of multispecies rela-
tions. Duke University Press, Domestication Gone
tions of multispecies relationships and the relative Wild, pp 231–251
frameworks that they imply, which take bio- Wakkary R, Odom W, Hauser S, Hertz G, Lin H (2015)
receptivity and more broadly a more-than-human Material speculation: actual artifacts for critical
perspective into crucial consideration. The project inquiry. Aarhus series on human centered computing,
vol 1
Localising Resource
 The Soil of New Culture Studios:
A Spring for African Architecture

Jite Brume, Alvaro Velasco Perez,

and Demas Nwoko

Abstract digging up the past and building up founda-

tions for the future are one and the same act; a
This paper reflects on the contemporary need
cycle of life and birth. We argue that ours is a
for reconsidering circularity in architecture. time of urgent reconsideration of human-soil
For this, it investigates a vernacular building interdependency; within it, ecological engage-
system rooted in the Niger Delta that supports
ment with soil signifies hope. Focusing on
an alternative form of understanding materi- Nwoko’s New Culture Studios project (Iba-
ality. Framed within current research on dan, 1967–), the article uses critical commen-
re-animating soils, the practices of Demas
tary to examine the processes placing them at
Nwoko (Nigeria, 1935)—whose work has the intersections of modernisation, post-
questioned circularity since the 60s—have colonialism and material resilience. We argue
resisted anachronism through challenges of
that this examination extracts important prin-
contemporary architecture. From a physical ciples on how appropriate technology can
material basis, his perception of ‘local’ is evolve with use of local resources. This
established by using the site’s soil applying creates a possibility of thinking design circu-
techniques originating in ancient Nok ceram- larity as an evolutionary spiral leading to the
ics. His understanding is that architecture is emergence of new sustainable cultures for
created within contemporary culture through a architectural practice.
perpetual process of collaboration. From a
temporal basis, he establishes a dynamism Keywords
where the past and the future converge—



Soil Earth construction Mud Nigerian




architecture Demas Nwoko New culture


studios Local resources

J. Brume (&)
Mappamundi Architects, London, UK 1 Introduction
e-mail: jite@[Link]
A. V. Perez I have always found something alluring and
Architectural Association School of Architecture, timeless about earth and mud. The mud cities of
London, UK
Africa were created as far back as the turn of the
D. Nwoko first millennium and were part of a typical pro-
New Culture Centre, Idumuje-Ugboko, Delta State,
cess worldwide. These cities were spread all over
Nigeria

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 95

M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
96 J. Brume et al.

Fig. 1 New culture studios

under construction
c.1970/Demas Nwoko
personal archive

the Sudan belt of West Africa. Deep in the broken and shaped, a traction that holds even
tropical forest region were kingdoms that rose now because the project is still a work in pro-
west of the river Niger, including the Benin gress. Nowadays, the Nigerian construction
Empire and the Yoruba cities of Ife, Owo, Oyo industry makes the photo look like prehistory;
and Ibadan. The mud citadels grew expansively perhaps, that is precisely the point. Today, West
and have all lasted to this day, surviving the African architecture has gained the interest of an
ravages of climate and time and averaging over international audience—we see it in museums,
500 years. Apart from the communal edifices Pritzker prizes, and alternative histories. How-
where successive kings continue to live and ever, these works often lose their historical per-
worshippers have not stopped using, this readily spective. They are pre-historical in that they do
available local material has ceased being used to not belong in historical conditions but in a sort of
build domestic buildings in these regions. At the primaeval hour.
advent of colonialism, derivatives of Portland
cement replaced the earth, even in rural build-
ings. While these changes in architectural mate- 2 Soils Today
rials gain currency, they sacrifice comfort and
sustainability due to the cost implications inher- This is particularly the case in some of the dis-
ent in imported materials. cussions I read today on soils. The shift in soil
On the other hand, nostalgia for experiences thinking came some 25 years ago, with William
of the African past could be a rich resource to Bryant Logan’s classic Dirt, The Ecstatic Skin of
learn from when situated within some contem- the Earth (1995), which encouraged us to con-
porary debates. In this paper, I would like to ceive soil as a living entity. Though parts of his
share my memories of material production and thinking were formulated almost a century ago in
life cycles of soil construction. This methodology the writings of Lady Eve Balfour (The Living
of drawing from my personal experience but Soil, 1943), both coincided in recovering ‘life’ as
situating it within the contemporary discussion a critical characteristic of soil. However, the
aims to cast light on the efforts to achieve Sus- ecological condition of the 1990s made Logan
tainable Development. Looking back at the see it as a matter of life and death. More recently,
photos of the groundworks for my New Culture authors like Tim Ingold and Maria Puig de la
Studios in Ibadan taken around 1970 (Fig. 1), Bellacasa argue that ‘life’ is not enough; we need
there is something primordial about them. The to see the ‘spirit’ of the soil (Ingold 2006, Puig
site had a tension between being simultaneously de la Bellacasa 2019). Something called
The Soil of New Culture Studios: A Spring for African Architecture 97

‘animated soils’ is emerging. It follows ‘a due to colonisation and the industrial revolution,
renewed captivation for the life in soils [that] has which created the global market that has unified
become a common leitmotif animating imagi- the world’s economy. Consequently, the same
naries of soils across the sciences, global insti- finished industrial products are consumed uni-
tutional initiatives, community groups, policy versally, irrespective of the climate and cost to
bodies, creative arts and popular media repre- individuals and the planet. With mud losing its
sentations’, as Puig de la Bellacasa argues (Puig pride of place, it has become unfeasible to build
de la Bellacasa 2019, 392). I agree that ‘animated economically and sustainably. Therefore, ade-
soils’ might introduce new forms of under- quate housing becomes problematic for most of
standing the ground, which the contemporary the world’s population to attain. There is a
ecological context needs very much. However, I pressing need to develop appropriate new
fear the risk that while trying to give a soul to the building materials to produce affordable housing
soil, we are burying the historical contexts in for people in both urban and rural environments.
which animism emerged. Isabelle Stengers One answer to the problem lies between the two
already drew our attention to the risk of the extremes of traditional and conventional materi-
current interest in animism being an appropria- als. New materials should be capable of mass
tion of Western thought and academia (Stengers production. The search for such a new material
2021). We must not illicitly appropriate animism led me to investigate the production of reconsti-
from its cultures of origin while trying to deal tuted soil in 1967.
with a planetary emergency by overpassing the
downfalls of Western thought.
For architects, thoroughly dealing with soil is 3 Local Resources
an urgent and intriguing challenge. There is a
beautiful essay by Heinrich Jennes in which he When working with earth in the 1960s, my
reflects on how European architecture has tradi- concerns differed from those that led to ‘ani-
tionally disregarded the ground. Though a mated soils’. Groundworks for the New Culture
slightly generic claim, he argues that as archi- Studios began in 1967 with a programme that
tects, we need to move beyond the idea that soil consisted of an experimental art school, includ-
‘must be dug out and disposed of elsewhere’ ing teaching, production and exhibition, along
(Jennes 2009, 133) and engage in the material with the residence for my family. Digging the
processes in which the ground is involved in a soil was not an inaugural act of removal for us
new creative way. One of these potential but a way of resourcing material for the works.
approaches is derived from the discipline of The principle that architecture should come from
archaeology, which sees soil as a deposit of onsite or local sources guided us. I was experi-
history through excavation (Jennes 2009, 135– menting with earth materials based on empirical
139). This angle resonates with Sekulic, Tomic tests on site.
and Sattler in their article for the Architectural I eventually developed a stabilised earth block
Review ‘Digging up the past: Soil as Archive’ from the reformed laterite soil, which I called
where the soil transforms to ‘an ecofact and ‘latcrete’. The latcrete is a hollow building block
artefact (…), [transcending] the divide between produced in conventional sandcrete block-
nature and culture’ (Sekulic et al. 2020). making moulds, both manual and mechanical.
In my Nigerian context, I have witnessed a It uses Portland cement mixed with the site’s
transition away from the cooperative social earth in varying ratios, depending on load-
activity of building accessible housing within a bearing requirements. Variations in the colour
building industry that has lost its mud-building and hue of the blocks could be achieved
technologies. This loss is due to the dominance depending on the soil excavation depth, giving
of industrially processed materials that emerged the contemporary facade the sense of a stratified
98 J. Brume et al.

archaeological site. The blocks were neither 4 Collaboration and Technologies

plastered nor painted, avoiding expenditure on
finishes. Beyond this initial saving is the econ- Another guiding principle I followed was that all
omy on future redecorations because the latcrete new technology invented should be familiar to
wall is permanently self-coloured. It also the local context and support techniques shaped
accommodates dust pollution aesthetically as it by the native culture, climate and environment.
has the same pigmentation. By using the same skills and equipment available
At the time, I was just a lecturer who had in indigenous construction, I could better guar-
purchased a piece of land in one of the high- antee the adoption of the technology. Encour-
density areas of Ibadan with all my savings, aged by the initial success of latcrete, I invited a
leaving very little to build with. As I cleared the local block maker and labourers to mass-produce
land, I noticed the composition of the earth and the blocks onsite. For the production of latcrete,
guessed that if I mixed cement with this type of we substituted washed sand used in conventional
soil, the result could be a type of concrete since it sandcrete blocks with the site’s soil. The block
contained sand and gravel. The resultant concrete maker heaped up the earth wherever he placed
could be stronger than the typical sandcrete his metal block mould, poured cement on the
building blocks. So I built a mould and cast a mound, mixed as usual and moulded the blocks.
sample of my mix into a block. The result con- The only machine I invented for the earth con-
firmed my expectations, as the block turned out struction at the New Culture Studios was a sim-
to be stronger than the local sandcrete blocks. ple wooden jig that enabled the local labourers to
Moreover, the material cost was just cement and lay the blocks perfectly. The training required for
nothing else, amounting to half the cost of stan- each worker could be completed in a day. During
dard blocks in 1967. Although the invention of the excavation, I discovered that the gravel earth
latcrete began as the search for a cheaper way to composition gave way to orange-coloured later-
build, its use in the New Culture Studios at that ite, decomposed quartzite, mixed sand crystals
time transcended the pure economy of means in and mica. I mixed this with cement and cast it,
several ways. Beyond the logic of material producing a colourful brick-like block of less
scarcity, my resource for the local additionally strength and great beauty. I used this to build up
integrated the political conditions of construction a pictorial mosaic with the darker-coloured top
by finding a loophole in contemporary byelaws gravel earth blocks for the walls of my studio.
that prohibited the use of mud for building. Perched atop one of Ibadan’s commanding
Ever since this experimental success, I have hills at Oremeji and glowing in the rising and
built all my architectural designs with walls of setting sun, my studios built with latcrete blocks
this material, from private houses to public attracted great attention. More satisfying was that
buildings. I met the critical structural demands of everybody who subsequently built in that vicinity
the buildings with reinforced concrete pillars and moulded their blocks the same way because the
beams and used sandcrete blocks and stone processing needed before the application was
boulders for improved foundations. In addition, I minimal in its technological demand. Following
improved the waterproof coating of pure mud the African model of traditional building, the
walls by developing a render, coating it 10 mil- latcrete technology was no secret, and I did not
limetres thick for durable wall finishes or for implement it alone. People came to the building
casting facade tiles by substituting the sand site, observed how we did it, and went ahead and
component of cement mortars with laterite mud. did the same thing. However, they did not dare to
I used this latcrete mortar to cast the traditional leave their walls fair-faced. Following contem-
fluted tiles of Edo architecture, which I used as a porary trends, they plastered and painted their
finish for the entrance wall of the Benin Cultural latcrete blocks, gaining only the initial saving on
Centre. their block production. The studio was never
The Soil of New Culture Studios: A Spring for African Architecture 99

plastered or painted, yet it still maintains its (folklorism)—that was dominating the arts in the
unique aesthetic appeal. After over five decades country—into ‘experimentation with culturally
of exposure, the fully load-bearing latcrete familiar form or aesthetic qualities’ (Okeke-Agul
blocks have not shown any sign of deterioration. 2015, 140).
The case of latcrete is not one of outright In 1964, this interest led me to research the
invention if invention means bringing forth what terracotta sculptures of Nok culture (Okeke-Agul
did not exist before. It borrowed from sandcrete 2015, 201–208, Williams 1966, 4–13). Materi-
blocks, a conventional material, and the mud ally, the clay sculptures directly connected with
bricks of earlier town buildings, the new factor the soil, the territory and the claim for a national
being the site earth mix. My intention was not to identity against a colonial power, which was
create something unique but to solve a problem interesting for the Zaria Art Society. However,
using local techniques. my focus was more than just a revival of formal
Over time, I discovered that merely substi- aesthetics. I was also interested in the technical
tuting the cement and sand mix with pure earth way in which the Nok fired their pottery. I was
did not significantly reduce the adverse conduc- trying to parallel their durability, so I had to go
tivity of the wall. That means that my latcrete beyond the firing techniques available in Nigeria
innovation needed to go further in reproducing in the 1960s. I devised a kiln where the fuel burnt
the conducive thermal comfort of pure mud in contact with the pieces, giving them strength
walls, which possess complete insulating prop- and nuanced hues. The research intended the
erties against the external elements. It becomes resurrection of local traditions; however, the
evident that the conductive element in the wall is logic was in the technique of producing the
the industrially processed material. So to achieve ceramics rather than in the aesthetic revival of a
any further improvement, Portland cement has to local language only. Constructing the New Cul-
be eliminated entirely from the constitution of the ture Studios, I incorporated these same explo-
core wall. rations of technique and interplay between
traditional and contemporary. Updating the local
to generate a modern language did not remain in
5 Nok Culture and Post-Colonial the invention of latcrete only. Entering the stu-
Culture dios, you descend the sunken entrance to find a
sudden drop of auditorium seats. A large per-
In the years prior to the New Culture Studios, I formance space, Greek in its adapting the steps to
had experimented with local techniques to the hill, but very much Igbo in the proximity
counter-colonial culture. My interest in the local between actors and audience. The stage was fully
art heritage started in the late 1950s during my operational for some years and instrumental in
student years at the Art Department of the producing some of my most relevant artworks,
Nigerian College of Art, Science and Technology like the Children of Paradise play for FES-
in Zaria. Together with my colleagues Uche TAC’77 (Nwoko 2016). The archival images
Okeke and Simon Okeke, we formed the Nige- show the void excavated during the works with
rian Art Society—better known in literature as an empty background—the onsite laterite quarry
Zaria Art Society. The society advocated for a that later became the theatre space. The half-built
national identity for contemporary art, articulated skeleton of the grid of reinforced concrete
by what Uche Okeke subsequently termed structure of the compound occupies the mid-
‘Natural Synthesis’, essentially a study of local ground (Fig. 2, left part photograph). The
traditions to formulate a type of modernism. In building is a syntax of the two languages. While
other words, our interest for the local was not a the former indicates a vernacular logic, the latter
counter to the modern, but rather an attempt to shows up-to-date construction systems, a com-
rescue the indigenous art forms moving away bination that continues in the villa attached to the
from the idea of ‘local subject matter’ complex where the project originated; a sand-cast
100 J. Brume et al.

Fig. 2 Diagram showing the

connections between the
original project for the new
culture studios and the
proposal for its future.
Illustration by the authors and
Lloyd Martin

concrete screen, a form of brise-soleil crowning explorations of African artistic expressions. In

the façade; the concrete columns holding can- the ‘70s, we initiated a publishing house, the
tilevered upper floors, carved in local motifs; or a main outcome being New Culture, A Review of
symbolic finishing for a solution that improves Contemporary African Arts. The journal contin-
ventilation in the house. ued the legacy of Ulli Beier’s pioneer review
Black Orpheus, where my work figured signifi-
cantly in the early years of the periodical (Moore
6 Strange Tongues 1961, 28)—including an article on the construc-
tion of the New Culture Studios themselves
Nigeria’s independence in 1960 initiated a (Barrett 1968, 40–41). We did not only inherit
threshold for everyone working in cultural pro- Black Orpheus’ interest in African artistic pro-
duction in the country. Despite abandoning their duction but Beier’s unusual attitude, what John
colonial past, the future did not offer a culture Thompson described as a ‘border operator’.
detached from the metropolis. This modernisa- ‘[Ulli Beier] was a border operator—on the
tion process left an unfinished project, and a border between the European and the local, the
group of artists challenged the notion that traditional. And he could cross back and forth
modernity should perpetuate colonial ways. from one border to another and find things that
Creating a ‘New Culture’ was necessary, and I they had in common. (…) Ulli was able to go
attempted it through a series of practices we back like a smuggler (…) from avant garde
developed during the post-independence years. European art (…) to modern and traditional
The studios were only a first step aimed at African art and literature’ (John Thompson, in an
complementing academic art education with interview at the Rockefeller Foundation, July 29,
The Soil of New Culture Studios: A Spring for African Architecture 101

1980, as quoted in Benson 1983, 431). Our with which to translate Western modernism to
journal published articles on contemporary African dialects. It was partly how the locals
African art production with reviews of current ‘learnt to speak in strange tongues’. I proposed
and historical Nigerian architecture, a section an alternative, a marriage between the native and
dedicated to the American scene and another to the modern that works in the opposite direction.
the European scene, and even a monthly segment We departed from the local in order to argue the
specifically for children. However, from incep- possibility of a new narrative, a different form of
tion, our ‘smuggler’ position was not about cul- modernism to replace the top-down approach
tural imports. My quest for a new culture was a being applied that suffused the education system
question of language. In the editorial statement of and the development of the environment post-
the first issue that outlined the project ambitions, independence. With members of the Zaria Art
I wrote, Society, we attempted to integrate expressions of
This is another point in the planned development local culture in the creative process, pioneering
of the New Culture Studios organisation. (…) It is innovations of new tools and materials that could
my considered belief that only one art stylistic be made locally. Ours was a methodology that
idiom is valid to the African and the Blacks of could be applied across the creative disciplines as
African descent the world over, its origin being the
too well-known form of traditional African arts; a well as some technical forms of production. As
form that was created and nurtured to maturity by art historian Chika Okeke-Agulu argues, the
the African peoples themselves, with a history that ‘Natural Synthesis’ that emerged from the Zaria
dates beyond two thousand years. (…) To this Art Society ‘is a form of postcolonial modernism
basic idiom… can be added new forms. The idiom
is their language, and artists have to speak this that defeats the idea that the modernism in Africa
stylistic language in order to make themselves was a mimicry of Western modernism’ (Okeke-
understood by their kind. (Nwoko 1978, 1) Agul 2015, 2).
Writing this I remember the recent tragedy of
I proposed that an African form of modernism
Bruno Latour’s passing. In the latter part of his
could be articulated, unearthing its ruins to the
career, the French philosopher argued that an
language of African arts. However, the trouble I
urgent call for solving the environmental crisis
found—and what the journal aimed to remedy—
was to be able to depart from the local. His logic
was that ‘most contemporary African artists have
was that, in the last 30 years, the discourse of
found themselves strangers among their own
global warming, climate change and the
people, because they have learnt to speak in
destruction of environments was built up in the
strange tongues, articulating foreign cultural
scientific realms. However, Latour argued, the
values and aesthetics which they little compre-
political spheres had not been able to commu-
hend. These artists are the casualties of time’
nicate the due urgency to their corresponding
(Nwoko 1978, 1). I tried to offer another
polities. This, he ascertained, was because of the
approach to modernity in Africa, diverging from
environmental science’s epistemological point of
the established ‘tropical modernism’. Since
view—observing the world from without. I was
independence, Maxwell Fry’s ‘Tropical Modern’
glad to see that Latour advocated for a shift,
was presented as a valid adaptation to the local
trying to provide solutions to the global crisis
postcolonial climate. However, this was arguably
departing from the local. What we need, he titled
another question of language. Fry’s was a
his book, was bringing the environmental crisis
translation exercise of the narrative of mod-
‘down to earth’ (Latour 2018). Taking the
ernism into the vernacular language. But in his
metaphor literally, I believe architects dealing
case the narrative was generated in the metro-
creatively with local soils should have the
polis and adjusted in the Commonwealth. Trop-
political will and audacity to offer renewed
ical Architecture (Fry 1956) was more a kind of
possibilities of action within the environmental
manual for Western architects working in the
crisis.
colonies (Godson 2019, 111), or the dictionary
102 J. Brume et al.

7 Conclusion: A New Culture and artisans can learn, explore ideas and develop
Philosophy a collective body of knowledge generated from
the best practices of traditional African arts and
To conclude, at this time of urgent reconsidera- architecture. It will interpret the idioms of ver-
tion of human-earth interdependency, New Cul- nacular logic and design to the contemporary
ture Studios and its underlying philosophy offer a scene, drawing on elements that include physical
template for the cultural rebirth of African forms for localised identity, cultural demands of
architecture and global environmental con- the people, and locally available materials and
sciousness through local engagement. Using soil technology.
as a building material is the departure point for Whether we bring the environmental crisis
arguing the case for adopting an intrinsically down to earth through active participation in a
local logic. Multiple possibilities of the soil grounding politics, or take a more literal
emerge, encompassing the past, the present and approach by working creatively with local soils
the future, and going beyond nature and culture. to address the emergency, there is great potential
The reflections I developed while writing this for actors in the industry to provide renewed
paper gave me several insights towards achieving possibilities in achieving Sustainable Develop-
the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Firstly, ment Goals. We need a multi-faceted approach,
working with soil is vital to a specialist's con- working on aspects that converge through edu-
tribution to Climate Action and Sustainability in cation, collaboration and culture. I hope that the
Architecture [SDGs 11 and 13]. The carbon New Culture's emergent new grammar, forming
footprint of working with earth, and its avail- part of a new language, will enable the industry
ability as a local resource, is more promising than to mature along appropriate lines by generating
that of Portland cement and has the potential to new sustainable cultures for architectural
play a significant part in ensuring Responsible practice.
Consumption and Production [SDG 12]. How-
ever, I find particular value in the knock-on effect
of working with soil as a contribution to Social References
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extremes of traditional and conventional materi- Literat 14(4):431–473
Denyer S (1978) African traditional architecture. Heine-
als are needed for sustainable industrialisation to mann Educational Books, London
occur [SDG 9]. The New Culture philosophy Dmochowski ZR (1990) An introduction to Nigerian
localises responsibility for architectural devel- traditional architecture. Ethnographica, London;
opment, creating regional variations that conform National Commission for Museums and Monuments,
Lagos
to culture and geography. This approach ques- Fry M, Drew J (1956) Tropical architecture in the humid
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opposite direction, departing from the local to thought. Ethnos (routledge) 7(1):9–20
argue the possibility of a new narrative. The Jenner HF (2009) Soil, subsoil, priming and architectural
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Latour B (2018) Down to earth: politics in the new Okeke-Agulu C (2006) Nationalism and the rhetoric of
climatic regime. Polity Press, Cambridge, MA modernism in Nigeria: the art of Uche Okeke and
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Nigeria Mag 88:4–13
 From Traditional (Vernacular)
to Contemporary (New) Architecture:
A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria

Dorcas Oluwaseyi Adeoye, Babajide Agboluaje,

Olubukola Abosede Akindele,
and Samuel Bolaji Oladimeji

Abstract needs of an area should be given adequate

priority when contemporary architecture is the
Every cultural group in the globe has its own
choice in order to create an eco-friendly envi-
peculiarity of its own traditional architecture, ronment to meet the needs of man.
though the approach may differ from places to
places. This paper looks at the vernacular Keywords
architecture of the Southwestern Nigeria as
practices by the indigenous Yorubas who have

Traditional architecture Southwest Nigeria

a peculiar climatic and socio-cultural and reli-


Contemporary Building Environment
gious practice. The approach to architecture by
this ethnic group was looked into with the
intention of finding positive values in the
traditional way which can be applied to the 1 Introduction
contemporary one. It was deduced that local
building materials are cheap, easily to come by Traditional architecture is not a blind repetition
and are able to meet housing needs without of the past but increases the possibilities for
having negative effects on the local climate and artistic expression making it as relevant as con-
the natural environment. It was recommended temporary architecture. Le-Corbusier, the pioneer
that more emphasis should be given to the use of of modern architecture, quoted that ‘the past was
locally sourced building materials in the building his only teacher’. Sadly, little or fewer measures
industry. The paper concluded that traditional had been done in the documentation of tradi-
values which apply to the cultural and climatic tional architecture by African Architects. There is
a need to retain the settlements patterns, forms
and techniques of the traditional architecture of
Africa and incorporate useful characteristic into
D. O. Adeoye (&)
Department of Architecture, Ladoke Akintola contemporary architecture. Adeyemi (2008, 8)
University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria describes traditional architecture by citing Pro-
e-mail: odadeoye@[Link] fessor Zibgniew Dmochowski, a great scholar,
B. Agboluaje
S. B. Oladimeji visionary and a researcher, to have perceived it as
Department of Architecture, University of Ilorin, ‘technical activity by poets’. Poetry according to
Ilorin, Nigeria
him is an attribute of a true architecture pattern-
O. A. Akindele ing to a culture must grow out of its own root and
Department of Architecture, Caleb University,
analyses in its own language, if not, it loses in
Lagos, Nigeria

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 105
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
106 D. O. Adeoye et al.

worth and significance. Vernacular architecture is et al. (2007, 98) asserted that African architecture
an expression of the people’s life and traditional construction approach not scientifically docu-
values (culture). mented does not mean it fails to please situation
According to Elleh (1997, 19), the word tra- such as usage, suitability and luxury. Hence, the
ditional architecture evolves several images to traditional building cannot be under rate to be
different professionals regardless of their nation- short of architecture, it has culturally evolved to
ality as mere huts made of mud and roof with fulfill aesthetics, comfort and sustainability. The
grass but there is more to it, because it reaches vernacular architecture of Nigeria can be given a
back to the monumental building of ancient times description of the building material, forms and
and construction activities of the earlier time, techniques leading to traditional forms of archi-
similarly, Umar (2008, 72) stated that African tecture especially with respect to the architecture
traditional architecture is an ingenuity method of of the three major ethic groups. The vast ethnic
construction that dates back to earlier times. An groups in Nigeria include southwest zone (Yor-
architecture that has survived through knowledge uba), northern zone (Hausa) and the eastern zone
passed down from generation to generation refers (Igbo). Therefore, architectural forms within this
to as the world’s oldest and richest tradition. context are tied to different ethnic cultural
Similarly, Amole (2000, 17–18) termed vernac- practices.
ular or post-traditional architecture as a style that Over the years, many occurrences have led to
evolves gradually from selective borrowing from the changes in the traditional structures of
external source embraced by the community, regions in Nigeria. These include: British colo-
resulting in changes in the traditional forms, nization and the return of repatriated slaves from
morphology and material but the pre-cursor tra- Brazil and North America (Afro-Brazilian/
ditional dwellings are sustained. Vernacular Brazilian architecture) in the southwest regions,
architecture, according to Osasona and Ewemade Islamic influence in the northern region (the
(2009), is a mixture of traditional architecture and mosque, palaces and city gates, ornamentation
external influences that emanate from the political and house form) and colonialization or western-
and economic forces. Although there is no evi- ers which abolished the existing traditional
dence of trained professional or apprentice but beliefs and establishing principle of individual-
there still exist usage of local materials and tra- ism in the eastern region. Today, indigenous
ditional design. However, it is rather hard to Nigeria’s traditional architecture is becoming
discuss the diversity of African architecture due outdated; Non-Africans that have produced
to conflicting publications, African traditional measures of its revival are mostly from non-
architecture is a collective idea or techniques architectural perspectives, their background
defined by social status and religions and has made it agitated for them to capture the socio-
been passed down through oral instructions, cultural and socio-spatial importance of African
perfected over many generations to suit the need built-form. The need for a revival of traditional
of an individual or group, and as a result, no architectural value to be blend with contempo-
trained builder or architect is evidence in the rary architecture is crucial and of great impor-
building process and feast is the only remunera- tance, according to William Morris (1889), that
tion for the assistant renders by the community. historic building represents the true concept of
Traditional houses don’t only house its owner history and that ‘our past is part of our present’.
but express the stage and status. It is a direct This paper is focussed at understanding the
invocation of the physical environment and rationale behind the traditional dwellings and
conforms to his or her societal needs, accom- significant motives behind the construction of the
modates different traditions orientations and cli- ‘Yoruba’ southwest traditional architecture, in
matic conditions. In the same way, Opaluwa order to explore the possibility of incorporating
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 107

useful traditional architecture characteristics in is characterized by hot, dry climate and extremes
the contemporary architecture. The aim is to of temperature between day and night. Rainfall is
examine and analyse distinct characteristic fea- minimal and often less than 500 m per year. The
tures and factors (physical, environmental and vegetation is made up of mangrove swamp forest
cultural aspects) adopted in the formation of in the Niger Delta and Sahel grassland in the north
geometric forms of traditional Yoruba architec- resulted from the varying climatic condition. The
ture in southwest, Nigeria. In that sense, this three major ethnic groups in the country are
research will help to reduce substitution of Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo.
Nigeria’s creative traditions and heritage cultures Meanwhile, Nigeria is the most populous
with external styles and explores the possibility country in Africa and the tenth in the world. The
of incorporating its characteristics into the con- 2006 Population and Housing Census puts
temporary architecture to evolve new construc- Nigeria’s population at 140,431,790, with a
tion techniques that does not neglect various national growth rate estimated at 3.28% per
considerations on culture, climate, security, pri- annum. With this the current population of
vacy and communal living. Nigeria is estimated to be over 200,000,000
million people. Nigeria is a multi-religious
country made up of two predominant religions,
2 Study Area i.e. Christianity and Islam, while the population
is divided roughly in half between these two
2.1 Nigeria major religions.

Nigeria lies between Latitudes 4° 16′ and 13° 53′

north of the Equator and Longitudes 2° 40′ and 2.2 The Southwest Zone, Nigeria
14° 41′ east of the Greenwich Meridian Line. It is
bordered by Niger Republic in the north, Chad in The Yoruba occupies the southwestern part of
the northeast, Cameroon in the east, Benin Nigeria comprising of six states, namely, Ekiti,
Republic in the west and to the south; it is bor- Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo. They prac-
dered by approximately 850 km of the Atlantic ticed Islam, Christianity and traditional wor-
Ocean, stretching from Badagry in the west to the ship. According to Dmochowski (1990, 1–5),
Rio del Rey in the east. Its total land area is demographically, Yoruba lies within the tropics
923,768 km2. Nigeria is the fourteenth largest with high temperature and humidity and remains
country in Africa. The country came into exis- the second largest ethnic groups in Nigeria. They
tence as a nation-state in 1914 through the are subsistence farmers as similar to the Hausas,
amalgamation of the Northern and Southern they cultivate the land only for family con-
protectorates. Nigeria became fully independent sumption and the need for more hands-on farm
in October 1960. It is made up of 36 adminis- lead to them having many wives to have more
trative states and a Federal Capital Territory children, as farming to them is considered a way
(FCT) (Fig. 1). of life and not a means of earning (Fig. 2).
The country is entirely in the tropics. The cli-
mate is semi-arid in the north, gradually becoming
humid in the south. Overall relief is gentle, but 2.3 Describing Tradition Architecture
there is a gradual loss of height from the north to in Nigeria
the coast. The climate of Nigeria is classified into
two. These are the Southern part of the country, 2.3.1 Nigerian Traditional Architecture
where the Igbos and Yorubas are found is mostly The history and development of traditional
hot and humid and has a high annual rainfall of architecture have been opined as a way of life
between 1500 and 2000 mm a year. The Northern that has given way to the introduction of new
part of the country, where the Hausa predominate, building techniques and expressions through
108 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Fig. 1 The three major zones of Nigeria. Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

Fig. 2 Southwest Nigeria within the national contest. Adeoye (2018)

From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 109

adaptation and rigorous study of the environ- 3 Methodology

ment. Nigerian traditional architecture is similar
in many ways, reflecting the different culture and The aim of carrying out a research is to add to the
traditions of the people, as well as the climatic existing body of knowledge in a particular area
factors. This diversity ranges from Hausa tradi- of research. This can be achieved through the
tional earth architecture of wattle and daub walls processes of identifying problems, defining them
in the North, to the thatch roof houses of the and refining it, develop hypothesis and theories
South, as well as the eighteenth-century royal formulation. By these, new approaches are
houses or palace in the eastern parts of Nigeria. developed and possible solutions are suggested.
However, the process can involve the use of
2.3.2 Yoruba Settlement Patterns strategic and systematic methods to arrive at a
The factors influencing the construction of logical solution and develop a problem-solving
dwellings of Yoruba include socio-cultural fac- problem (Rajasekar et al. 2006).
tors, spatial characteristic of the building, This study adopted the exploratory research
extended family, materials and previous laid method to collect data from existing publications
down construction methods. In the year 1990, on the research from journal articles, books of
Ralph assumed the Yoruba Town as a ‘wheel or related topics, reports, personal observations and
circular in shape. He observed that the Yoruba case studies. The case study was carried out by
Town radiated from the Oba’s palace. This could focussing on the selected traditional dwellings in
be found in the Palace of Oyo located at the cities of Ogbomosho, Ile-Ife and Ibadan among
centre or hub (core) of the town and links other other towns located in Southwest zone of Nige-
parts (see Fig. 3). ria. Hence, a lot of site appraisals and descriptive

Fig. 3 Typical circular plan of Yoruba City settlement pattern. Source Ojo (1996)
110 D. O. Adeoye et al.

survey were done to select houses within the Commers compound is the genesis of others
study area. In this case, qualitative analysis was and is usually headed by ‘Baale’ (compound
used, in which sketches of the floor plan and head). While quarter for the chief is of the same
elevation were produced with a means to pattern as those of the ordinary extended families
describe the built-forms cutting across the phys- with fairly large courtyard depending on the
ical and cultural attributes of the selected build- chief’s rank in the traditional government. ‘Afin’,
ings. The fieldwork focuses on traditional traditional palace, is the most complex among the
compound houses and Afro-Brazilian/Brazilian. three classes. It is usually designed to conform to
This was considered in order to study the values the status of Oba (King) of a town as the arch-
of traditional architecture and gives the influence priest of the living members of the society. He
of Afro-Brazilian/Brazilian style on the contem- needs an utmost security as he is regarded as
porary architecture of Southwest Nigeria with a unseen, unheard and untouched except on few
view to integrated into the proposed design occasions when he performs his spiritual and
concepts. political duties.
In line with the above ‘Afin’ design has to
take into consideration enhancement of cultural
4 Case Studies values, norms and effective social interaction
among the members of the lineage. In support of
4.1 Yoruba House Form—Creating these, Afolabi Ojo wrote in one of his books that
Factors traditional Yoruba ‘Afin’ housing unit is a
compound type (akodi), the architecture of which
Yoruba house form can be classified into three fully takes into consideration of circumstances of
(3) categories on the basis of the complexity, life. ‘Afin’ is also influenced by the role of Oba
namely, commoners compound, Quarters for the as the social head and his spiritual leadership
Chief and Afin (traditional palace) (Plates 1 and functions. On the other hand, physical factor is
2). classified to be the secondary form generating

Plate 1 A commoner’s
compound. Source www.
[Link]
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 111

Plate 2 Quarters for the

Chief. Source [Link].
com

forces to which the house responds through the space to be cool and dark all day, while the
use of certain materials, building structure and its choice of roofing depends on the hardness,
orientation (Plates 3 and 4). durability and high-resistance insects. The
materials used in traditional Yoruba house and its
properties are listed as follows:
4.2 Materials for Construction 1. Earth: This is the most popular traditional
in Yoruba House Form building material used in walls and some-
of Southwest Nigeria times in roofs, as stated by Srinivas (2007),
earth has great values and regards as the most
Yoruba houses in southwest Nigeria are con- sustainable and ecologically balanced mate-
structed using the limited available resources of rials. Its greater advantages is the completely
the environment at their disposals; the soil, forest recycled properties that don't leave any
trees and the grasses of the savannah are used; environmental footprint in comparison to
the adoption of these materials is postulated by other construction materials.
their traditions, religious activities, durability and
location. Generally, materials selection is char- Likewise, Dobson (2000, 3) earth has a good
acteristic with belief and norms attributed by thermal, sound insulating and fire-resistant
religious and lineage taboos, some materials are properties, this property necessitates its use in
considered unwise to use due to believed that it the tropics. They moderate between the interior
brings bad luck to any household that uses them. and the exterior humidity and temperature and
Yoruba traditional architecture is constructed have been regarded as having the ability to
locally using sourced materials in abundant, this breath. Table 1 summarizes the attribute of earth
material includes adobe or clays of laterite soil materials (Plate 5).
used in walls and floors, wood used in making The common example or method of the usage
doors, windows and support, juice extract from in walls includes adobe blocks (mud bricks),
locus beans used for wall plaster, thatch is use on rammed earth, pressed bricks and cob. Definition
roof and mud plastered with lattice palms are of each method listed above is explained below.
used as ceiling materials to prevent fire. The local i. Adobe Blocks:: It’s also known as mud
materials for roofing consist of wooden poles of bricks, an air-dried brick made from foot
varying sizes, commonly used as girders, beams, kneaded earth mix formed in a mould; its
rafters and joists. constituent includes clay and silt and
Furthermore, the choice of mud is due to the sometimes contains stabilizer and straw.
high resistance to erosion, weathering process, ii. Rammed Earth: It’s made from damp or
climatic effect of mud that makes the interior moist soil, with or without stabilizer that is
112 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Plate 3 Yoruba architecture

with Islamic Arches (Afin,
Oyo, Nigeria). Source www.
[Link]

Plate 4 The Palace of Ooni

of Ife, Nigeria. Source www.
[Link]
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 113

Table 1 Attribute of earth Attributes of earth Evaluation

materials
Authenticity Traditional
Compressive strength Good
Heat retention Good
Water resistance Poor
Torsional strength Poor
Cost High
Design flexibility Good
Insulation Poor
Acoustic separation Good
Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

Plate 5 Bricks made with

earth materials. Source www.
[Link]

kneaded using temporary movable form- similar thermal properties with adobe and
work, it has good thermal properties as rammed earth bricks. The processing
compared to other examples. involves mixing the subsoil with clay and
iii. Pressed Earth Bricks: It’s an earth brick straw or other fibrous materials to stiffing
formed using a machine-operated or hand- the mud formed into small loaves. This is
operated mechanics. thrown to the builder during construction
iv. Cob: It’s an ancient technique used in the and mashed together to form a monolithic
erection of monolithic walls, this involves wall that is built on a solid foundation of
using of moist earth mix with straw and has either stone or concrete, each layer during
114 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Plate 6 The example of thatch materials used in roofing.

Source [Link]/thatchroofingand- Plate 7 A thatched roof building. Source [Link].
more uk/blogs/africahaveyoursay

construction is left to be sun-dried before their stems. This characteristic gives a building
the successive layer is laid. the insulating ability needed to insulate a build-
2. Thatch: According to Kennedy (2008), ing in both warm and cold weather. It’s a ver-
hatch is a generic name for vegetative satile and flexible material and an organic
material, including straw, palms leaves, grass material and this makes it to get decomposed and
and reeds, used in roofing. It’s an environ- attacked by rodents.
mentally friendly material and can be breath;
this reduces its susceptibility to rotting. As Wood: Wood is a strong, easily processed and
seen in Plates 6 and 7, respectively. beautiful building material. It has been regarded
as a non-maintainable material in its purest state
Normally, an accurately constructed thatch unless on few cases when treated. Timber is bio-
roof can withstand up to 60 years. Thatch roofs degradable and by no means harmful to the
are weather resistant if well maintained doesn’t environment, it is an elastic material and
absorb a large amount of water; it is a natural incredibly strong while bending and flexible
insulator with pocket of air on grasses found on under load.
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 115

4.3 Procedures for Construction and set on fire to burn for a couple of days, this is
of Yoruba House done for increasing the strength and
compactness.
As stated by Osasona (2009, 11–13) construction Furthermore, the bricks are later laid in course
of Yoruba dwellings is mostly a community and joined with mortar until the desired height is
issue, the best season selected for construction is achieved. The roofing and thatching materials to
November to March of each year. Ojo (1996, be used are readily available due to the period of
147) indicated that during this period the rains the construction when the trees are adequately
began to cease and coincide with when there is vegetated. The common materials used for
reduced farm work resulting into more hands roofing includes the coconut or fan palms or
available for construction of shelter than food. other termite-resistant trees are used as a rafter,
The water needed for the construction are gotten purlin and cross beams. The roofing is completed
from streams and puddles and the continuous mostly within the intervals of 2 or 3 days. Ojo
prospect of sunshine helps the mud bricks to be (2005, 147) stated the most important part of
used for construction in this period to dry easily their building is the wide verandah, supported
as they are piled up on each other. The con- with carved post spaced at intervals to each other
struction of shelter begins by the clearing of the used for numerous form of activities and shaded
proposed site and digging of huge amount of by the cantilevered eaves from the sun. It is
laterite from a deep pit located close to the site. devised for activities such as sleeping and access
The first approach to construction regarded as to rooms, privacy and storage of goods this
slow is explained by Osasona (2009, 11–13) that afforded by the saddled back construction easing
after an adequate quantity of laterite earth has the use of ceiling as storage. The saddle-back
been excavated, further processing is puddling roof in most rectangular compounds of the
done by adding pressure using the underfoot as Yoruba’s house which helps to connect or collect
water is added simultaneously, this done until a rain water into the courtyard that is collected in
malleable and homogenous state of soil is jars and surplus water is drained out through a
achieved. After puddling, the processed earth is hole beneath the hallway of the entrance door.
covered with leaves and left to cure for few days,
before additional water is added and massaged
once more, the next stage is the construction of 4.4 Building Types
the shelter, creepers and vines, branches are used
for the setting out and building configuration is The building types found in different geograph-
marked out, the walls are built in about seven ical regions in Nigeria are caused by factors such
layers of swish-mud, each layer is roughly one as regional difference, culture, owners’ status,
foot and one-foot thick as found mostly in tra- ethnic diversity, socio-cultural activities, western
ditional Yoruba houses. The earlier layers are left influence, and indigenous traditional beliefs and
to dry before the successive course is added in a newly introduced one, such as Islam and Chris-
means for it to be adequately hardened to bear tianity. However, the beginning of technology,
the weight of the next layer due to wet earth not slave trade by the British colonials, the estab-
able to support its own weight. The window and lishment of Islam and Christianity beliefs and
door positioning are reserved as the construction improved skills of workmanship lead to more
is done. diverse building types found in geographical
The second approach is messaging the laterite locations in Nigeria. Examples of indigenous
earth with foot after excavation and it’s moulded traditional house found among the Yoruba are
into bricks using rectangular moulds and con- Farmhouses, compound house and rooming
sistently left to sun-dried for 2 weeks. The sun- house, custom built due to their polygamous
dried bricks are stacked together to form a kiln nature and large family.
116 D. O. Adeoye et al.

4.5 Compound House night story tales area for children and ease of
extension for newly married men (see Fig. 6).
This can also be referred to as traditional court-
yard house characterized with one or multiple 4.5.1 Farm and Tent House
courtyards that defer on the ethnic built-form This is a temporary house form found among
approach, the building knowledge is passed various ethnic groups in Nigeria, the nomadic
down from generations and practiced due to the Hausa-Fulani device the tent house made with
need to accommodate large family and multi- shrubs or grass and tree trenches, while Yoruba
habitation. This building type is devoid of orna- made theirs with mud and roof with shrubs, as
mentation except few pattern found on timber shown in Fig. 7 and Plate 8.
window and doors, evidence of materials used
includes mud bricks, thatch and corrugated iron 4.5.2 Brazilian House
sheets. An example of the compound house is This can also be referred to as the rooming
shown in Figs. 4 and 5. house, it is an influence that dominates southwest
part of Nigeria, shaping the construction tech-
The Use of Courtyard
nique and high ornate features of building in
This is an important aspect of regional traditional Lagos Island and some parts in Ogbomoso
architecture in Nigeria and exists among the three Township at the turn of the twentieth century.
ethnic groups. Major changes occur after the repatriation of
The courtyard has been devised culturally by African slave from Bahia in Brazil, Cuba and
traditional pre-cursor for unity, communal living, other Latin American countries.
security, socio-cultural activities, privacy, seclu- According to Osasona and Ewemade (2009,
sion and a means to curb crimes and insecurity. 60–61), the two groups of repatriated slaves that
Furthermore, Adedokun (2014, 42) stated that settled in Lagos Island are the Agudas (slaves
the courtyard to the Yoruba is (Agbala) an open repatriated from Brazil and other Latin America)
space within the compound, devised for enter- and the Saros (returnees from England who first
taining visitors, rearing of domestic animals, settled in Freetown, Sierra Leone and later
cooking and collection of rainwater, sleeping, moved to Lagos Island). The Agudas were

Fig. 4 A typical Yoruba compound house layout. Source Author’s compilation (2021)
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 117

Fig. 5 A model of a traditional compound house type. Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

Fig. 6 A typical Yoruba compound house showing the courtyard location. Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

trained craftsmen who designed specialized balustrade and dormer windows. They also fea-
Hispano-Portuguese style of building, commonly ture elaborate forms and large space verandahs
referred to as Brazilian Architecture, character- covered by projected roofing supported with the
ized with a complex roof, and highly ornate aid of timber post placed at a respective distance
craftsmanship portraits on the column, staircase, apart. While the ‘Saros’ were smart businessmen
118 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Fig. 7 A typical Yoruba farm house plan. Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

that popularized the construction of two-storey

building archetype, their adopted style is the
British Colonial building practice, distinguished
by the use of timber framed and boarded houses
frequently with en-framing verandah with fea-
tures like, carved fascia, attics, dormer windows
and broad timber framework at the eaves
(Plate 9).
This building style was favoured and widely
accepted because of its embellish decoration
which has common characteristics with art that
was primarily practiced by the Yoruba builders.
Another reason for its acceptance is the non-
imposing lifestyle and the introduction of a
central hallway in the middle that can be likened
to a compressed courtyard with the possibility
of using local materials for its construction.
Studies into resemblances in mythical repre-
sentation between the Yoruba and Brazilians
showed that Yoruba language is spoken in some
part of Cuba and Brazil. Marafatto (1983)
describes five examples of Brazilian House.
Plate 8 A typical Yoruba farm house. Source Osasona These include
(2007)
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 119

Plate 9 Brazilian house.

Source [Link]

The Detached House or Bungalow: This idea is routine for sleeping and relaxing at night (see
copied from early Portuguese bungalow house. Plate 11).
The space arrangement is often rooms planned
2. The Modified Upper-Floored House : The
along with a central hallway (see Fig. 8 and
significant qualities of this type are the lavish
Plate 10).
ornamentation and decorations done on its
1. The Upper-Floored House: They are mostly exterior, the external positioning of the stair-
two floors or more and the staircase made of case and inclusion of galleries further differ-
timber is placed at the end of the central entiate it. This house type portico is always
hallway as mostly found in Brazilian houses. levelled with the road (see Plate 12).
The spaces on the ground floor are sometimes
3. The Typical Upper-Floored House: The
used for commercial and residential use,
ground floor plan and the first floor have typical
while the rooms on the upper floor spaces are
floor plans and this is leading to the presence of

Fig. 8 A typical Yoruba

rooming house (typical of
Portuguese house) layout.
Source Authors’ compilation
(2021)
120 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Plate 10 An Afro-Brazilian (rooming) house at Ipetumodu, Nigeria. Source Authors’ compilation (2021)

Plate 11 A Brazilian upper-floored house in Osogbo, Nigeria. Source [Link]

From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 121

Plate 12 A modified upper-

floored house, Nigeria.
Source [Link]

external balconies above, the staircase is complex and the use of rich ornate on win-
located at the hallway end close to the back dows and ribbed pillars and stuccoes are found
door of the building as seen in Plate 13. under this example, as shown in Plate 14.
4. The Complex Upper-Floored House: This 5. Afro-Brazilian House: Osasona (2007, 61)
technique is recent of all and mostly linked to described Afro-Brazilian house as a progres-
the eighteenth and nineteenth-century Brazil- sive form of Brazilian style or a technique
ian house, the internal space organization is derived from the marriage of cultural heritage

Plate 13 A typical upper-

floored house, Nigeria.
Source [Link]
122 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Plate 14 A complex upper-

floored house in Ogbomoso,
Nigeria. Source Authors’
compilation (2021)

with Brazilian style. It is less expensive and 4.5.3 The House of Adebisi Giwa
easily replicated due to fewer ornamentation of Idikan, in Ibadan Nigeria
and simplicity of model similar to the pre- The mansion of Adebisi has been portrayed in
cursor buildings. The style becomes a notice- the Ibadan worldview as a structure like the
able building typology in Lagos Island and Mapo Hall in grandeur, elegance and splendour
progressively to the hinterland of other towns. (Adeoye et al. 2018). The prevalent belief at the
time the structure was built was that materials for
According to Vlach (1984, 12), the major fore- the construction of the building could only have
most builders of the Afro-Brazilian House are poor come from Europe. The building demonstrates
relatives of rich repatriated ‘Saro’ that have become the importance attached to the brilliance of
wealthy from trading in Brazil (see Plate 15). human creativity (Plate 16). The building

Plate 15 An Afro-Brazilian
house, Nigeria. Source www.
[Link]
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 123

Plate 16 The Approach

View of the house of Adebisi
Giwa of Idikan, Ibadan,
Nigeria. Adeoye et al. (2018)

symbolizes the wealth of Adebisi as cultural 4.6 Transformation in Yoruba House

metaphor and a significant historical connotation Form
for the Oyo Yoruba groups in Southwest Nige-
ria. The building takes on a dual role of resi- There are a lot of transformation that had existed
dence and court in the manner that contest over the years due to intervention of colonialism,
with the loftiest abodes of Ibadan royals (Figs. 9 technology improvement, new means of trans-
and 10). portation, the evolution of new styles by immi-
The annotations as shown in Figs. 9 and 10 grants, new materials and a boost in money
are: a. Entrance façade; b. Living area 1; c. economy leading to changes in the social status
Living area 2; d. Main Building; e. Living area 3; of individuals and taste in the choice of house
f. Kitchen; g. Store; h. Cemetery/mausoleum. form. These listed factors contribute hostile result
on the Yoruba kinship and family authority.

Fig. 9 Site layout of Sanusi

Adebisi house. Source
Adeoye et al. (2018)
124 D. O. Adeoye et al.

Fig. 10 Ground floor plans of Sanusi Adebisi house. Source Adeoye et al. (2018)

1. Influence and Effect of Colonialism: This many individuals and initiated the sprinkling of
comprises missionaries, colonial administration new (foreign) designs and use of new materials.
and repatriated slaves from Brazil and Latin The indigenous materials are termed inferior
America. The Yoruba house form has been while the new incomes give rise to distinctive
weakened as a result of socio-economic contact taste among members of the lineage willing to
with the western world. This includes usage of improve their portion of the compounds to taste.
imported building material, new architectural This contributes unpleasantly result on the kin-
styles and religion as it collectively weakens the ship and family pedigree.
socio-cultural factors. The Christianity idea of
3. The Invention of New Building Materials:
one man and one wife suggested the building of
According to Mabogunje (1969, 118), the Amer-
a new individual house in distance to the
ican Baptist missionary replaced the mud wall
lineage compounds. Other factors include west-
with baked clay. The use of cement to plaster was
ern education, intra-ethnic war and migration
used on walls and floors. The mid-nineteenth
that emerges by new means of transportation.
century witnessed the introduction of corrugated
2. Boost in Money Economy: In the year 1990, iron sheets used for roofing. The introduction of
Nigeria experienced a boost in economy due to these new materials although weakened the cul-
the exportation of cocoa, palm oil and palm tural values but assisted the buildings to withstand
kernel, this created good incomes to farmers and tropical climate and making it more durable.
From Traditional (Vernacular) to Contemporary (New) Architecture: A Lesson from Southwest Nigeria 125

5 Conclusion Adeyemi EA (2008) Meaning and relevance in Nigerian

traditional architecture: the dialectics of growth and
change. Covenant Univ Publ Lect Ser 1(21):9–20
Traditional (vernacular) architecture has under- Adeoye DO, Akande A, Oladiti AA (2018) Heritage
gone numerous changes over the years as a result architecture in Ibadan, Nigeria: THE HOUSe of
of modernity which has led to the emergence of Adebisi Giwa of Idikan. J Art Archit Stud (JAAS) 7
(1):11–20
contemporary approaches to building construc-
Amole SA (2000) Yoruba vernacular architecture as an
tion in Nigeria. However, the values of vernac- open system. Legacy 2(2):17–18
ular nowadays are still very relevant to our Culture of Nigeria—history, people, clothing, traditions,
contemporary buildings. The advantages of ver- women, beliefs, food, customs, family (2017)
[Link]. [Link]
nacular architecture are numerous and are not
Ni/[Link]. Accessed 3 Jan 2017
limited to the use of eco-friendly material to Dmochowski ZR (1990) An introduction to nigerian
accommodate local climatic conditions. The use architecture—South-West Nigeria. Ethnographical
of adobe as a traditional building material char- Ltd. London 1:1–5
Dobson S (2000) Continuity of traditional: new earth
acterized with its natural thermal regulating building. Terra, University of Technology, Sydney,
qualifies and no detrimental environmental Earth research Forum, p 3
effects is a good example here. Most of the Elleh N (1997) African architecture; evolution and
modern building materials are not eco-friendly transformation. The McGraw Hill Companies, New
York, pp 19–22
compared with the local building materials Justine MC (1983) The art and aesthetics of the Yoruba:
causing a lot of threats to the natural environment African arts. UCLA James S. Coleman African
especially with the issue of climate change and Studies Center, vol 16(2), pp 56–59+93–94+100.
global warning. Thus, there is need to revise the [Link] Accessed: 29
Nov 2016
use of our locally available building materials. Kennedy JF (2016) An overview of natural building
These materials could be improved upon and techniques. [Link] Accessed
made to be functioning in the same capacity just Nov 2016
as the modern building materials and with no Mabogunje AL (1969) Urbanization in Nigeria. Univ, Of
London Press, London
harm to the environment. Creative means of Marafatto M (1983) Nigerian Brazilian houses. Istituto
expressing culture needs to be encouraged since Italiano Cultura, Lagos
cultural practices and values define the practices Ojo GJA (1996) Yoruba culture: a geographical analysis,
of traditional architecture in Nigeria which is the university of Ife and University of London Press
Ltd, pp 147–149
absent in the contemporary architecture. The use Opaluwa E, Obi P, Osasona OC (2007) Sustainability in
of yet attractive traditional wall finishes, for traditional African architecture: a springboard for
instance, can be applied in the contemporary sustainable urban cities, sustainable futures. Archit
buildings rather than the expensive ones with no Urban Glob South Kampala, Uganda 201:27–30
Osasona CO, Ewemade FO (2009) Upgrading Ile-Ife’s
cultural expression being used. The introduction vernacular architecture heritage. WIT Trans Built
of courtyard system helps to resolve ventilation Environ 109:60–62 © 2009 WIT Press. www.
problem in buildings. Preserving these forms and [Link]. ISSN 1743-3509
styles will promote cultural heritage as well as be Rajasekar S, Philominathan P, Chinnathambi V (2006)
Research methodology,Ar XIV Physics. Retrieved
an economical way of saving cost of building from the web 14th March 2012, from [Link]
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Srinivas N (2007) Most dependable building material.
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Umar KG (2008) Transformation in Hausa traditional
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Adedokun A (2014) Environmental and adaptation in thesis, architecture, ABU. Zaria
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540393
 India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem
Towards Circular Construction

Deepika Raghu and Catherine De Wolf

Abstract method helped to understand the informal

material reclamation processes in India. Find-
As countries continue to develop, the amount
ings show that although a robust informal
of construction and demolition waste gener- material reuse ecosystem exists across India,
ated is exponentially increasing. There is an organisation and governmental policies are
urgent need to move from linear, take-make-
needed for effective contribution towards
waste systems to more circular systems that sustainable development goals and a circular
extend materials lifespans. India is known for economy.
its material reuse and recycling businesses.
Currently, most of these businesses are run Keywords
locally and do not involve any government
registration but they significantly contribute to

Circular economy Informal ecosystem

the economic growth of the country. Despite

Material reuse Resource consumption
the importance of this informal sector, there is
still not enough understanding of how they
operate. This paper examines the processes
and people involved in reusing construction 1 Introduction
elements in Mumbai and Bangalore, and their
current models of resource procurement and A circular economy (as opposed to a linear one)
trade. Field visits and interviews were con- has no net impact on the environment and avoids
ducted to understand through whom materials the generation of waste in the production process.
are transferred in the informal ecosystem, Its descriptive meaning relates to the concept of a
what types of materials and quantities can be cycle: the biogeochemical cycle and the idea of
currently procured in informal supply chains, recycling products (Ellen McArthur Foundation
what the storage practices are, and how 2010). Although the terminology may be rela-
reusable construction elements are retrieved tively recent, the phenomenon of a circular
and processed. A qualitative content analysis economy has roots in ancient history. Romans
sorted trash in Pompeii (Alberge 2020), glass
was recycled in the Byzantine times in the city of
Sagalassos, Turkey (Degryse et al. 2006) and
D. Raghu (&)
C. De Wolf copper, bronze, and iron tools were refashioned
Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic from broken ceramics in the Persian Gulf
Engineering, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
(Hoffman 2014). For millennia, a robust reuse
e-mail: draghu@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 127
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
128 D. Raghu and C. De Wolf

culture has also existed in India. Juggad, the digitalization, India’s digital boom also needs to
Indian practice of using limited resources with be leveraged to address issues such as the
ingenuity, brings forth creative innovations in an absence of technology adoption by the informal
economy of scarcity. This can be seen in local material reuse economy.
markets, where old cotton saris are upcycled into The circular economy is a holistic concept,
handbags; in food establishments where items with its practices extending far beyond material
are only delivered in reusable plastic cartons, or use, and its impacts extending beyond the envi-
even in repair cafés, where busted appliances, ronment (SDG Knowledge Hub 2022). This
worn-out clothes, damaged jewellery, run-down paper examines the processes and people
garden equipment or broken furniture are given a involved in the reuse of construction elements in
new life. two Indian cities, Mumbai and Bangalore, and
In the context of the built environment, cir- their current models of resource procurement and
cular methods of construction have long been trade. It explains through whom materials are
prevalent. Despite this historical phenomenon, transferred in the informal ecosystem, material
documentation of reuse in South Asia remains types and quantities that can be currently pro-
limited (Patel 2009). Salvaged materials today cured in informal supply chains, what the storage
include doors and windows, glass panels, parti- practices are, and how reusable construction
tions, furniture, bathroom fixtures, pipes, electric elements are retrieved and processed. The con-
equipment, and wires. These reuse and recycling tribution of the informal reuse economy towards
businesses are run locally by the informal sector the SDGs is also outlined. This could aid in
and do not involve any government registration policy-making and research towards sustainable
or legal authorization.1 Such small- and mid-size cities, where informal material reuse economy
enterprises (SMEs) significantly contribute to entrepreneurs are at the forefront.
India’s economic growth (Bagale et al. 2021), yet
there is still insufficient information on how they
operate and their potential impact on India’s 2 Background
overarching circular economy goals. The infor-
mal workers effectively contribute to the reali- In recent years, India has become a pivotal voice
sation of the Sustainable Development Goals for positive climate change negotiations. The
(SDGs) (UN 2016). Yet, policy-makers have Indian Government ratified the Paris Agreement
ignored the knowledge and capacities of informal in 2015 to ensure resource efficiency and a cir-
workers. The value of their work is often over- cular economy (Ratha 2020). Other initiatives
looked because informality challenges main- such as Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, a cam-
stream assumptions of what work should look paign to lower dependence on imports and foster
like. A redistribution of resources and power is local production, also promote efficient resource
necessary to address social and environmental management (“Aatmanirbharbharat”, 2020).
inequities. As SMEs quickly adapt to More recently, India’s Prime Minister, Narendra
Modi also launched “Mission Circular Economy
1
According to the International Labour Organization 2022–23” which recognises that both develop-
(ILO 1993, 2003, 2013), workers are considered part of mental and environmental goals need to be
the informal sector if they are (a) self-employed people in aligned and cannot be dealt with exclusively
business activities that are not registered with any national
(Modi 2022). India’s first construction and
authority and maintain only partial or no accounting
records; (b) employees whose employer does not make demolition waste management regulation was
social insurance contributions for them or provide them passed in 2016 (Central Pollution Control Board
access to paid annual leave and paid sick leave; or 2017), which outlined measures to be taken by
(c) contributing family workers: people who work without
contractors, recycling facilities, waste generators,
pay in a business or farm owned by a family member or
have informal jobs by default due to the nature of their and state governments. It does not, however,
employment.
India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem Towards Circular Construction 129

mention the informal sector—a key agent two Indian cities, Mumbai and Bangalore, are
responsible for managing waste. selected to carry out field studies and interviews.
With the advancement in digitalisation, these Both Mumbai and Bangalore are metropolitan
standards are evolving. The Digital India initia- cities. Mumbai is 603 square kilometres with a
tive (Government of India 2015) has enabled population of 2.8 crores (28 million), while
Internet access to over five hundred million Bangalore is 709 square kilometres with a pop-
Indians. Over the last decade, increased avail- ulation of 1.23 crores (12.3 million). These cities
ability of bandwidth, cheap data plans, and were selected due to their existing large-scale
increased awareness have caused massive growth reuse and recycling informal infrastructure.
in Internet users, especially among lower-income Across the Mithi River in Mumbai, the scrap
communities. A proposed revision to the statis- market of Dharavi employs over 250,000 people
tical standards on informality may be imple- in the reuse and recycling industry, who work in
mented in 2023 to understand the ways in which about 15,000 single-room factories. Further
informal workers can adopt digitalisation and e- south, in the city of Bangalore, the reuse industry
formalisation (OECD 2021). employs about 11,000 people (Biyani and
The construction industry in most developing Anantharaman 2017), a much smaller proportion
countries comprises a regulated formal part and compared to Mumbai.
an unregulated informal part (Mlinga and Wells For identifying the relevant stakeholders to
2002). In India, numerous links between the interview, a list of stakeholders was identified in
formal and informal sectors exist. These links are collaboration with a local NGO. Three stake-
based on politics, economics, and technology. holders for each category were contacted. Each
Since the informal sector operates outside the respondent was individually interviewed in a
legal system, the political link reflects how the face-to-face interview. All interviews were
informal sector is accepted by the formal sector. recorded and transcribed with the permission of
Economic links involve direct transactions the participants. The interviews were conducted
between the formal and informal sectors, such as in April 2022 and ranged from 20 to 90 min.
when the informal sector provides construction Data for this exploratory study was first collected
materials and components to the formal sector or through semi-structured interviews (Bryman
if the formal sector employs the informal sector 2016). This was followed by a qualitative content
through subcontracting. Technological links analysis (Bengtsson 2016) using both deductive
involve the transfer of technology and skills and inductive coding techniques (Drisko and
between the sectors during movement of skilled Maschi 2016). The codes were then organised
workers or subcontracting. into categories and enumerated through
Most construction waste management systems presence/absence criteria.
for developing countries are based on models
developed by the West, which do not include the
informal sector (Hande 2019). The following 4 Findings
section explores a qualitative content analysis
method to understand the informal material 4.1 Activities Carried Out in Informal
reclamation processes in India. Reuse Ecosystems

Once a building is marked for demolition,

3 Methods demolition/dismantling experts inspect buildings
to see what materials can be reclaimed. Gener-
Resources belong to a complex geo-located ally, doors, windows, glass, furniture, and bath-
marketplace. The assessment of the circular room fixtures are retrieved. Once a building is
economy in informal construction requires demolished, the experts even collect steel rebar,
context-specific interpretations. For this study, wires, pipes, and other viable materials from the
130 D. Raghu and C. De Wolf

demolition site. On the other hand, waste pickers After the materials are processed, the materi-
collect components from landfills or other dump als are sold to larger bulk aggregators (Fig. 3) on
sites. They collect about 60–90 kg of waste per a weekly or biweekly basis. These aggregators
day while working for about 8–10 h. Both the are either remanufacturers or reuse material
demolition experts and waste pickers do not have suppliers who can store larger volumes of
sophisticated transportation of their own. The materials than the kabadiwalas. The reuse
demolition experts hire a van for large quantities material suppliers have greater specialisation in
of materials. For smaller quantities, bullock carts terms of segregation and/or processing. They
are used. Waste pickers generally use push carts prefer to set up their units close to industries or
or sacks on their backs to transport the materials on the periphery of the city.
(Fig. 1). These mobile devices help them cover Clients buy reclaimed materials from these
large distances to find waste materials. suppliers for usage in new construction projects.
Since these actors don’t have storage facilities The materials that are not sold or those of low
of their own, reclaimed materials are transported quality are sent to local carpenters, who reman-
to small scrap aggregators, colloquially known as ufacture them for further use (Fig. 4). The com-
kabadiwalas. Here, materials are collected, pletely unusable wastes generated by the
stored, and minimally processed. Kabadiwalas carpenters are put through a powder sander. The
are generally located in residential areas, near sawdust is combined with water to create a nat-
industries or landfills, to ensure a constant supply ural mixture that is used to patch blemishes on
of post-use materials. Waste segregators sort all the products made by the carpenters.
the materials into reusables, recyclables, and The industry structure of the reuse businesses
non-recyclables. The items are also sorted by is often vertically disintegrated and highly spe-
colour and quality. Waste processors are then cialised. The chain of production is broken up
employed to clean the items and remove con- into pieces. The proximity between the different
nective hardware or any other artefacts from the units allows them to collaborate and contributes
reclaimed materials (Fig. 2). to the productivity of the place, as transport costs

Fig. 1 Transport of metal

panels using bullock cart
(left); Reclaimed wood panels
secured to pushcart (right)

Fig. 2 Connective hardware

to be removed from reclaimed
materials
India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem Towards Circular Construction 131

Fig. 3 Reclaimed materials stored by local suppliers

Fig. 4 Carpenter warehouse (left); Secondary goods made from wood waste (right)

needed for the production chain are minimised. 4.2 Interactions Between Formal
In this way, a complete informal decentralised and Informal Reuse Sectors
ecosystem is run in the cities of Bangalore and
Mumbai, thereby ensuring a circular economy The construction industry supply chain is extre-
(Fig. 5). However, this ecosystem is not limited mely complex and competitive. Hence, large
to the cities studied. Respondents mentioned that tensions exist between the informal sector and
material waste was received from across India, formal sector, especially in terms of procurement
such as from the cities of Hyderabad, Pune, and pricing. Negative connotations are often
Chennai, and Delhi. Depending on the quantity attached to working with informal reuse actors,
of waste to be processed, different locations were which can hinder their profits. Increased com-
chosen for selling the reclaimed materials. Gen- munity engagement can increase their efficiency
erally, the waste was processed and treated and establish transparent and stable pricing.
locally if in small volumes, but higher volumes Smaller aggregator respondents are open to some
are sent to Mumbai as they have the largest and sort of organisational changes but lack of
most robust system for reuse. knowledge and competencies necessary to
132 D. Raghu and C. De Wolf

Fig. 5 Informal reuse ecosystem

complete registrations. Respondents also the people to support themselves. Yet, due to the
emphasised the lack of trust in formal enter- stigmatisation of these businesses, their products
prises. Larger aggregator respondents mentioned and services are considered low value leading to
the difficulties in storing materials when volumes low income and limited opportunities. While the
are more than their storage capacity. Sometimes wages and living conditions of different strata of
items are kept on the footpath in front of their informal waste workers differ greatly, most of
establishments due to lack of space. Larger them (especially, waste pickers) work and live in
aggregators are more receptive to formalisation hazardous conditions. Respondents from local
and new models of trade and procurement to authorities and governmental units mentioned
increase their sales. that waste pickers are not covered under any
labour legislation. As a result, they do not benefit
from social security and medical insurance
4.3 Social and Economic Challenges schemes. Thus, there is a dire need to initiate
policy action for their social and economic
The networked reuse organisations are heavily upliftment.
reliant on strong social ties. The geographic
concentration of reuse activities allows for a
minimisation of costs, and maximisation of pos- 4.4 Health and Safety
itive externalities, such as the sharing of exper- for the Informal Workers
tise, innovation, and machinery. The income of
demolition experts or waste pickers varies Several respondents who are waste pickers
according to the region in which they are located, mentioned physical injuries while procuring
as a higher-income areas have higher quality materials. The injuries were primarily because of
materials. On average, the respondents without lacerations caused by shards of glass, followed
vehicles earned Rs. 500 per day, while the ones by muscle sprains. Frequent incidences of severe
with push carts earned Rs. 1500 per day. The injuries on demolition sites by demolition/
kabadiwalas take the material from the waste dismantling experts were also stated. Similarly,
pickers and after initial cleaning and processing waste segregators, processors, and carpenters
sell the materials to the larger dealers (Table 2). said exposure to various hazardous fumes results
The informal reuse ecosystem comprises a com- in respiratory problems. On the field, it was seen
munity that runs on the entrepreneurial spirit of that protective clothing such as gumboots,
India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem Towards Circular Construction 133

Table 1 List of relevant stakeholders in informal reuse ecosystem

A. Stakeholders who Stakeholders actively A.1. Waste picker
affect local reuse participating in reuse A.2. Demolition expert
ecosystems ecosystem
A.3. Waste transporter
A.4. Waste segregator
A.5. Waste processor
A.6. Reused material supplier
A.7. Remanufacturer
A.8. Contractor
A.9. Client
A.10. Developer
A.11. Planning and design team
Stakeholders involved in A.12. Local authority: Department of Planning;
determining the context and Department of Labour
policies A.13. Regional government departments: Solid Waste
Management Department, Municipal corporation,
Ministry of Social Justice and Special Assistance
A.14. Non-departmental public bodies:
Housing corporations
B. Stakeholders who are affected by local reuse B.1. Users of building
ecosystems B.2. Local community groups and associations
C. Potentially interested entities C.1. Non-governmental organisations
C.2. Researchers/Academics

Table 2 Selling price of reclaimed construction materials

Material Price (Rs/kg)
Kabadiwalas (small aggregators) buy material from waste Large aggregators buy material from
pickers kabadiwalas
Wood 3 7
PVC 3 20
pipes
Glass 1.5 5
Iron rods 15 18

gloves, and masks were not used by any of the accessible and address the needs of the most
respondents, which increased their vulnerabilities vulnerable. In the era of accelerated online con-
and health risks. sumerism, digitalization is no longer an option
but a necessity for businesses to thrive. For many
small-scale businesses, digitalization is about
4.5 Technology Integration building resiliency, collaboration, and reaching a
broad spectrum of consumers (URBZ 2021).
Inclusive digital transformation can ensure that However, for many informal reuse actors, this
digital technologies are universally available, exacerbated digital divide is making it difficult
134 D. Raghu and C. De Wolf

for them to survive. Respondents between the sorting; access to personal protective equipment
ages of 30 and 40 mentioned that they have non- to minimise occupational hazards; right to basic
smart mobile phones, so their awareness and necessities like water, sanitation, and facilities for
knowledge of using digital applications are still clean living; and health insurance.
limited. However, they all mentioned that the
next generation that would take over their busi-
nesses was keen to integrate digital technologies. 4.7 Discussion
Younger respondents between the ages of 20 and
30 communicated that they were smartphone Decision-makers play an important role today:
users with an interest to digitalise aspects of their the way governments, employers, and workers
work. Technologies can strengthen social capital jointly decide to implement circular strategies
and de-centralise production networks by fos- will shape the future of people and the planet.
tering a transparent, collaborative economy. The following section highlights important
Digital technology integration can decrease the aspects to be considered by policy-makers and
exploitation of the informal reuse workers and sustainability researchers to aid informal reuse
ensure the correct flow of credit. Digital plat- ecosystems.
forms and marketplaces for the informal econ-
omy can provide these businesses with an online
presence which not only makes them competitive 4.8 Contribution to Sustainable
but also empowers them to professionally con- Development Goals (SDGs)
nect and share their skills. Such applications can
empower the workers in not only structural, If organised and supported by public policies,
psychological, and resource dimensions but can informal reuse ecosystems can effectively con-
also help achieve political, social, and economic tribute to the SDGs (Table 3). At the global level,
inclusion. reusing is one of the cheapest methods to reduce
GHG emissions (Singh 2021). Using the WARM
model developed by the USEPA, it is estimated
4.6 Policies that the informal recycling sector in Delhi avoi-
ded 962,133 tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions
In Mumbai, respondents from local and regional annually, thereby referring to waste pickers as
government units mentioned that the Govern- ‘cooling agents’ (Municipal Solid Waste
ment of Maharashtra has shown slight recep- Knowledge Platform 2009). The informal reuse
tiveness towards the informal sector. In 1999, the sector’s logistics and processes emit significantly
state government issued an order to municipali- less GHG than formal sector practices (Vergara
ties to provide identity cards to all waste pickers. et al. 2016). Exact calculations of the informal
Another order followed in 2002, directing sector’s emission reductions citywide remain
municipalities to register cooperatives that collect elusive due to poor data collection by municipal
waste from homes, shops, marketplaces, and and national authorities. To capture the full car-
other organisations. However, most respondents bon benefits that the informal reuse ecosystem
in both Mumbai and Bangalore were unaware of provides, the Government of India must develop
any laws and policies that protect their rights. It material-specific emissions factors customised to
is of paramount importance to implement infor- the Indian context and methodological tools for
mal worker welfare laws that recognise and life cycle analyses of emissions from waste.
integrate informality into the waste management However, the informal reuse ecosystem also
supply chain. The law must include basic pro- negatively influences SDGs in some respects.
visions for waste collection, segregation, and The workers do not have adequate working
India’s Informal Reuse Ecosystem Towards Circular Construction 135

Table 3 Contribution of informal reuse ecosystem to SDGs and a circular economy

SDG Contribution from SDG Contribution from

informal reuse informal reuse
ecosystem ecosystem

Informal reuse A majority of the

workers are given workforce in the
the opportunity to informal reuse sector
generate an income comes from
disadvantaged
communities

Informal workers
recover organic Cooperatives promote
material waste social inclusion, de-
which is used as stigmatization and
compost or animal community building
feed

Reusing materials Raw material extraction

limits carbon and depletion is
emissions generated reduced by reuse
from landfill
incineration

A majority of waste Reusing materials

pickers are women; reduces GHG
thus, they are given emissions by reducing
equal opportunities energy consumption
to participate and material extraction

Management of The informal reuse

waste materials sector’s contribution
avoids disposal of helps avoid waste being
construction waste dumped in our oceans
in water bodies,
thereby reducing
water pollution

Informal workers Land degradation and

recover organic release of hazardous
material waste to chemicals due to waste
produce biogas for is being avoided by
energy usage informal sector’s
interventions

The revaluation of
waste into resources
boosts the economy
136 D. Raghu and C. De Wolf

conditions, they are exposed to hazardous mate- 5 Conclusion

rials and are compelled to carry out manual
labour. The uncertain legal status of the informal To tackle climate change, we must move beyond
sector can also negatively impact communities ‘carbon tunnel vision’ (Konietzko 2021), and not
that do not receive taxes from businesses that are only analyse carbon emissions but also equally
not registered entities. examine the environmental, economic, and social
burdens that it presents. Informal reuse workers
in India and developing countries across the
4.9 Legal Protection and Financial globe are climate entrepreneurs who contribute
Inclusion real and measurable reductions in greenhouse gas
emissions. The informal workers who are greatly
Informal workers need to be provided identifi- contributing to the fight against climate change
cation cards that can legalise their services. need to be identified, assisted, and rewarded for
Formalisation can also help individual informal their work. Due to a lack of compensation and
suppliers against undue harassment from public widespread resistance, they risk missing out on
officers and town residents. Their inclusion in important opportunities that could create long-
social welfare organisations and schemes should term value, not only for themselves and their
be mandatory. Member-based organisations community but the planet at large. Engaging with
(MBOs) should also be endorsed. MBOs allow the informal sector can help transition towards a
informal workers to advocate for their rights and circular economy as well as contribute to digni-
create political traction as a collective agency. fied livelihoods for those in need. Furthermore,
MBOs can help in securing jobs and incomes, technologies should be used when they draw
facilitating access to basic services and social from practices that are compatible with local
protection. The government also needs to pro- cultures and contexts, or they run the risk of
vide the workers access to pension and health- failure. Across levels of government, policy-
care schemes. The informal workers could be makers should seize opportunities for ad hoc
compensated for their reuse and recycling ser- negotiations and specific action plans must be
vices through the provisions of adequate work- developed in collaboration with grassroots
ing spaces and machinery. organisations. As informal waste workers are key
allies in the climate transition, such supportive
4.9.1 Training and Awareness regulatory environments are the need of the hour.
The work carried out by the informal sector
involves occupational as well as health hazards. Acknowledgements This work was supported by the
To ensure the health and safety of the workers, ETH for Development (ETH4D) Research-to-Action
Grant and the Swiss National Science Foundation under
government or NGO training is required on how grant 200021E\_215311.
to use protective equipment and why safe work
practices are important. Municipalities should
also ensure that the workers have access to References
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 Making a Beam Social—In Search
of a Localised Production Paradigm

Xan Browne, Olga Popovic Larsen,

and Will Bradley

Abstract resources. • Grading individual timber ele-

ments using established indicating properties
Making a Beam Social investigates how
as a means to predict material performance. •
communities can gather heterogenous wood Fabricating the beam parts whilst retaining as
waste streams and steer them into load bearing much as possible their elemental identities.
building components. In response to the
The physical outcome is a loadbearing mem-
current wasteful wood practice being single ber developed through interlacing the social
use in the construction sector, there is a need and the technical. As an architectural element,
to reconsider discarded wood’s potential. This
it works towards a culture of local production.
research project seeks an alternative to relying
on uniform traits and economies of scale, Keywords
proposing novel, high value applications for
waste wood. A full-scale loadbearing beam is

Timber construction Wood cascading

constructed as an exemplar of alternative

Local production Upcycling
interactions between human and non-human
agency, forming new social relations between
locally salvaged timber artefacts, and commu-
nity. Through a hands-on workshop, the 1 Introduction
project considers three aspects of facilitating
local production with waste wood resources: • Timber construction is gaining momentum as a
Archiving the existing traits of found timber future alternative to more energy intensive
pieces by utilising drawing as a means to materials such as steel and concrete; a notion that
represent the information of found materials. is prompted by a need for the building sector to
This situates the salvaged timber as evolving re-evaluate its carbon impact. However, the via-
independent artefacts, and not only material bility of transitioning to increasingly biobased
construction must also consider the pressure this
may impose on the future availability of timber,
X. Browne (&)
O. P. Larsen and as such motivate studies into the efficient use
Royal Danish Academy: Architecture, Design, of wood in construction. This is coupled with
Conservation, Institute of Architecture and uncertainties regarding future forest health, as a
Technology, Copenhagen, Denmark
consequence of a changing climate (Seidl et al.
e-mail: xbro@[Link]
2017).
W. Bradley
Independent, London, UK

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 139
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
140 X. Browne et al.

Currently, timber utilisation in Europe is and infrastructure. These latter aspects are high-
wasteful, with enormous quantities meeting lighted by Bezama as fundamentals for imple-
energy recovery after first use (Vis et al. 2016). menting biomass cascading1 (Bezama 2016).
Circumstances where timber is utilised for more One example that focuses more specifically on
than one application is limited to homogenising local material availability and production is the
timber, such as in the production of particle- Stavne Block, developed in Trondheim as a
based products like OSB (Oriented Strand loadbearing block system assembled by lami-
Board) and MDF (Medium Density Fibre nating short lengths of salvaged timber (Nordby
Board). These two applications are a common et al.). As individual components, they success-
practice in countries such as Finland, who have a fully assimilate an inconsistent supply of timber,
well-established timber product industry (Hus- later functioning as a modular building system of
gafvel et al. 2018). Timber cascading offers a blocks slotting into one another. As well as this,
framework for extending the lifetime of wood by the Stavne Block investigates upcycling of tim-
keeping it as high in the value chain as possible, ber for structural use as a local, social initiative,
and for multiple applications (Vis et al. 2016). involving members of the community in the
Often, material is immediately downcycled after development, production, and use of the system.
its first use into fibre-based products, chemicals The need to rethink modes of production and
and eventually energy, due to limited strategies industrialisation is highlighted by the United
for reusing timber in its solid form (Hughes et al. Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, that
2021). aim to define 17 explicit courses of action to
During the recent period of timber’s devel- work towards a more sustainable future (United
opment as a building material, numerous engi- Nations). Particularly relevant to this study are
neered wood products (EWPs) have evolved, goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure,
enabling the large-scale production of structural and goal 12: Responsible Consumption and
building components. Typically, these rely on Production. Indicators for meeting sub targets
highly reliable timber feedstock in standard within these goals include reduced CO2 emis-
dimensions with consistent performance. These sions, reduced domestic material consumption,
requirements have minimised the diversity of and improved national recycling rates (United
timber species and formats that are used in con- Nations). Each of these, although not quantified
struction, as well as forming large scale, cen- in this study at a national scale, are a part of the
tralised component production facilities (Ramage investigation’s context and motivation.
et al. 2017). Some studies, investigating the This study seeks to challenge current modes
potential of reclaimed timber as feedstock for of production, by avoiding dependency on the
building components meet incompatibility standardised lumber expected by current indus-
between the demands of current industry and try. Instead, it proposes a dialogue with waste
material qualities. This includes short material streams, the unintended consequences of local
lengths, lack of favourable legislation, and decision making. As salvaged timber is charac-
heterogeneous and inconsistent material supplies terised by unpredictability and heterogeneity, the
(Sakaguchi et al. 2016; Jarre et al. 2020). course of action entails a negotiation process
Research into utilising reclaimed timber for between the previous and new functions of tim-
common EWP production has for the most part ber artefacts. In turn, this strives to expose the
involved re-standardising waste streams to uni- ingrained relationship between social lives and
form cross sections, relying on significant pro- timber, which overall aims to work towards a
cessing, and subsequently reduced material
yields (Rose et al. 2018; Risse et al. 2019). These
endeavours place significant focus on material 1
Biomass cascading is a framework that aims to extend
properties and processes, as opposed to incor- the availability of biobased material over a series of
porating spatial dimensions such as regionality applications.
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 141

culture of effective and long-term utilisation of 2.1 Beam Concept

wood in construction.
Making a beam social investigates hyperlocal Making a beam social retains reclaimed wood in
production of structural building components, its solid form for extending the material lifespan,
utilising discarded timber elements as feedstock. as opposed to homogenising it for later cascaded
Recognising the cultural value of waste streams, uses. This approach capitalises on timber’s
the project investigates a continued correspon- strength as a strong fibrous material, a property
dence with found timber artefacts, with an aim to that is lost after crushing for use in man-made
maintain their enrolment in the social lives of fibre composites, such as MDF.
human beings. The project departed from the idea of a beam,
an archetypal structural building component,
with specific functional demands. Beams conjure
2 Concept and Method images of rectilinear, recognisable components,
that are immediately part of our existing pan-
Making a beam social was investigated through a cultural architectural fabric. A concept was
student workshop at Central Saint Martins in developed (Fig. 3) as an alternative approach to
London during August 2022. The local material applying discarded timber to existing common-
sourcing and production premise was explored place EPWs. The design is inspired by the
through a reconstellation of typical EWP structural system patented by Hilding Brosenius,
requirements. As such, local reclaimed timber which was used to create large span timber
was gathered, archived, processed, and finally components in the middle of the twentieth cen-
assembled into a beam (Fig. 1). tury (Brosenius 1990). Recent research has

Fig. 1 Completed beam made during the workshop

142 X. Browne et al.

demonstrated its potential for utilising waste accumulations of timber elements as ambiguous
wood, as a large portion of the beam can make formless material lumps. A scenario affecting
use of short, unplaned lengths common charac- how we value wood, as well as pointing to one of
teristics of salvaged timber (Browne et al. 2022). the main cited barriers previously mentioned for
The system is an I-beam, comprising of two main applying waste timber as construction material
parts, the flanges which form the top and bottom feedstock, its unpredictable heterogeneity.
cords of the beam, and the web, a series of Therefore, as a point of departure, this project
arrayed elements at 45°. In contrast to a glulam looks at how gathered heterogeneous timber
which requires elements to be processed to the elements can both be appropriately described, as
same standard cross section, the 45° elements can well as inform the outcome of a structural
vary in cross-sectional geometry. This challenges building component.
the low yield experienced when applying The anthropologist Tim Ingold explores the
reclaimed wood to existing EWP technologies. relational states of materials, objects, and arte-
Furthermore, the concept retains the elemental facts. In his view, whether a timber waste stream
identities of the individual salvaged elements, is a lump of material or pile of objects is a
which is expanded on further in later sections. question of perspective, as the energy industry
The advantage of applying an alternative material may align with the former, and a craftsperson
stream to the structural principles of an existing with the latter. Is it then simply a case of
technology is that the in-use performance is acknowledging waste timber as material that has
precedented, and in this case across a number of been formed?
demanding building typologies (Brosenius Ingold writes:
1990). We are accustomed to thinking of making as a
project. This is to start with an idea in mind, of
what we want to achieve, and with a supply of the
3 Gathering Artefacts: In Theory raw material needed to achieve it. And it is to
finish at the moment when the material has taken
and Practice on the intended form. At this point, we say, we
have produced an artefact (Ingold 2012).
Vernacular architectures are for the most part
steered by the local accessibility of natural mat- Or is the waste timber element, no longer the
ter, entwining communities with the resources ‘intended form’, returned to the status of mate-
used in their construction. Whilst today’s spatial rial? If artefacts embody a combination of
scale of extracting resources is incomparable, material and idea, it would be difficult to suggest
streams of material that we regard as waste have that a discarded timber element has entirely
high context specificity, despite potentially dis- removed itself of the latter.
tant provenance. Species of wood that might not Our distinction between matter and form can
grow locally, may occur in abundance in post- be traced back to Aristotle’s hylomorphism, that
consumer form, as part of a waste stream in sees the combination of these two entities, matter
highly urbanised forestless contexts. and form, as defining the foundation of all things.
At present in Europe, the data available to This notion has been criticised for viewing matter
describe timber waste is limited to weight, with as inert, and without any form giving capacity of
little information relating to species, geometry, its own. The artist and philosopher Manuel de
treatment, or previous function. Knowing a Landa refers to the morphological, and even
quantity of timber by weight provides a rough computational capacity of materials (De Landa
estimate of its fuel value, the most common 2000). This challenges the notion that objects are
second, and end of life application for timber in in fact finite and resolved, suggesting that they
much of Europe today (Husgafvel et al. 2018). can take on future forms in continued response to
This mode of representation sees heterogeneous varying environmental conditions.
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 143

Recent scholars, including Ingold, have pro- 4 Archiving

posed an alternative to the hylomorphic model,
where instead of imposing form upon materials, During the workshop, drawing was explored as a
practitioners seek instead for a correspondence method for archiving the found timber feedstock,
between entities (Ingold 2012). Marcin Wojcik, a as well as documenting the overall yield from
researcher into alternative timber construction timber elements to beam. Wood is a heterogenous
applies this notion from a design perspective as a material at a scale perceivable by humans (Din-
dance of agency (between designer and material), woodie 2000). This heterogeneity is typically not
in which favouring the demands of one or the represented at a lumber yard, and material
other would invalidate the (design) process descriptions are limited to cross section, length, as
(Wójcik 2015). well as strength and or appearance grade. These
In the context of this project, the distinction explicit descriptions, such as the timber grade
between matter and form, or material and form C24, categorise a group of material traits into a
giver is a little less clear. The prerequisite for common language across professions.
attending Making a Beam Social, is to salvage a In its simplest form, the drawing collects basic
timber element from the local context, with a geometric descriptions of the found elements, as
minimum length of 600 mm, and ideally a rect- well as cut web members, offcuts, and feedstock
angular cross section. All these objects, in one cross sections. The drawing asks, what and how
way or another, evidence other lives. As found much information is necessary? Aside from the
things, they speak of a context they were once in, basic geometric information, it continues as an
an integral part of a building, a temporary func- analogue tool for collecting quantitative and
tion, or merely an offcut from the fabrication of qualitative data, and thus it is open to workshop
something else. participants to represent many layers of infor-
What we are inheriting then is in a way a mation in 2D. The drawing may be utilised to
hybrid, a post-object, that’s formed by a record and represent many of the broader con-
combination of a previous application, and sequences of gathering artefacts, such as prove-
wood’s capacity to morph in response to its nance and previous function, contributing to a
environment. This morphing leads to common nuanced spatial narrative around the representa-
‘defects’ present in wood, such as cupping tion of gathered materials. Today, more
and bowing. These are geometric alternations advanced methods for registering material traits
that are a consequence of an element’s once exist that enable the accurate representation of
desired form, the rectilinear cross section, complex geometries and heterogeneous materi-
responding to fluctuating humidity over time. als. This study is contextualised with these
Adopting the form of found timber artefacts methods in the discussion section of the paper.
intends to contribute to effective utilisation Two artistic works that are relevant to include
increased lifetimes of timber, a core aim of wood in context of this project’s material archiving
cascading. strategy. The first is ‘How to lay out a croissant’,
If today’s industrialised production of build- a how to guide conceived by architects (Miralles
ing components can be defined as enabling a and Prats 2006). The guide offers instructive
broad diversity of outcomes (forms), from a advice on steps for measuring the geometry of a
minimal inventory of parts (standardised ele- croissant, a familiarly complex form, that is not
ments). This project explores the opposite- how a typically regarded as necessary to record. This
diverse inventory can be assimilated into stan- questions the resolution and formats by which we
dardised elements, whilst retaining an indication need to measure objects, after all, as mentioned
of what the material has been, what it is now, and in the guide, croissants are merely ‘meant to
offering anticipation of what it might become. be eaten’.
144 X. Browne et al.

Fig. 2 Snapshot of the archive drawing during production

The other work that relates to how simple members of the public during design develop-
instructions can conceive context-specific ment, where more traditional drawing methods
descriptions of objects is that of the American inhibited the participation of community mem-
abstract artist Sol Lewitt. Lewitt outlines simple bers. In this project, the drawing’s authorship
instructions for creating large wall drawings that extends to the found timber elements, and sub-
can be completed in his absence (Lewitt 1970). sequently also their previous engagement in
Some of these can be executed similarly in each social lives. This challenges traditional methods
context they are drawn, whereas others are for representing wood that typically neglect ori-
formed in relation to existing elements in the gin and provenance (Fig. 2).
wall. For example, Wall Drawing #51 connects
all perceivable points on a wall with one another,
corners of door frames, light switches, fire exit 5 Grading
signs, air vents, etc. Thus, a rule-based drawing
emerges in correspondence with its context, as As our arboreal ancestors would swing from
well as being a means to represent a specific tree to tree, they would assess the elasticity of
contextual condition. In the same way that Wall branches before risking their lives on their
Drawing #51 will differ each time it is executed, strength (Ennos 2020). In more recent times,
in the same way the drawing used in the work- obtaining societal trust in building materials has
shop will differ depending on the waste stream fallen into the hands of craftspeople, and today it
and design application. is limited to established standards and norms.
Furthermore, the archiving methodology is Strength grading has emerged as a common
inspired by the situated drawing method, a rep- method for authenticating trust in timber’s per-
resentational tool for engaging multiple actors as formance across professions. Wood is a fibrous,
authors within a given scenario (Lang 2018). It natural material that exhibits varying properties
was developed as a means to involve non-expert depending on species, age, growing conditions,
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 145

Fig. 3 Drawing of the beam concept. Note that each of the web elements is only connected to the flange, and not to one
another

and part of the tree (Dinwoodie 2000). It is thus The topic of the structural strength of
challenging to predict the strength performance reclaimed timber is of high importance in studies
of timber non-destructively, compared to more for timber reuse. The beam concept, at the
homogeneous materials such as steel and con- component scale, has design advantages over
crete. Grading timber typically relies on indicat- more common, glued EWPs. A virtue of the
ing properties (IP) to predict the performance notched connection between the web and flange
of timber, enabling it to be taxonomized and is that each of the web elements performs as
subsequently applied appropriately to building individuals. This enables beam components to be
applications (Dinwoodie 2000). designed with redundancy, as a new load path is
Timber’s density varies significantly, also secured upon the failure of one, or more web
within the same species. This variation correlates elements (Fig. 3).
broadly with its strength performance and can be
utilised as an appropriate IP for grading (Din-
woodie 2000). During the workshop, the density 6 Fabrication
of individual web elements is recorded for
assigning grading values. These can be utilised to Fabricating EWPs, such as glulam, typically takes
inform the arrangement of elements within the place in large production facilities that rely on
beam, in response to the given functional high capital investment and economies of scale, a
requirements/load case. It should be mentioned mode of production typically requiring uniform
that density is not a suitable metric alone for material feedstock of accurate standard dimen-
predicting all performance parameters in timber sions. Consequently, this leads to timber requir-
and should be combined with other IPs, such as ing significant processing, large transportation
young’s modulus in future studies (Ridley-ellis distances, as well as significantly lower yields
2020). compared to some examples of vernacular timber
construction.
146 X. Browne et al.

Fig. 4 Image of the routing

jig positioned at 10°

For making a beam social, a fabrication need to sit on a planar surface within the beam.
method was developed to enable heterogeneous For the beam design, the jig was positioned to
elements to be a part of a single beam system, mill each element with a repeatable notch of 10°
whilst retaining as much of the original geometry of the same depth, regardless of the element’s
as possible. In practice, this requires fabrication cross-sectional dimension.
techniques that are agnostic to a variety of forms
and properties, as opposed to being limited to a
single cross-sectional dimension, species, or 7 Assembly
sensitive to hazards such as fastenings or paints.
Non-standard elements were semi- With two prepared flanges, cut with a profile of
standardised to each have the same length and 10°, the beam elements can be assembled as a kit
notch geometry. This ensured that the parts could of parts. The oblique 10° angle in both the web
properly interface with one another, but only in elements and flanges omits the need for fasten-
specific places, and as necessary. Furthermore, ings in each of the individual elements. As such,
the fabrication allowed for common defects in the entire beam could be assembled using few
wood, such as twist, cupping, and bowing, to fastenings to keep the two flanges from separat-
remain present in individual elements, avoiding ing. It is possible that each web element will
processing procedures such as planing. In a sense have unique geometry; however, their interfacing
this is a process of negotiation, between wood’s relationship to one another and the flange is
resistance to standardisation, and our current always standard. The advantages of this specific
building culture of standardised parts. relation between standard and heterogeneity, and
The routing jig (Fig. 4), used in the beam how it is contextualised amongst more contem-
fabrication, was designed to accommodate a porary assembly methods are explored further in
maximum cross section of 200  60 mm, but the discussion section.
could also be configured to work with larger Allocating material with varying properties is
dimensions. The jig also functioned as a flat a well-precedented approach in research con-
reference plane, as the potentially non-planar texts. Often, this is investigated by strategising
(due to twist and cupping) found elements will performance parameters, such as strength and
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 147

Fig. 5 Workshop
participants assembling the
beam

stiffness to areas of high or low demand in a participants are formalised by the arrangement of
design case. Nadir et al. make interesting links web elements within the beam. The process of
between optimisation and reconfigurability by negotiation, as introduced earlier, is further tested
arranging uniform length web members of dif- through contrasting desires. It can be argued that
ferent sections based on a specific truss load case the entangled relations of material choices and
(Nadir et al. 2004). This can also be viewed as a how they are arranged to make buildings have
discrete approach that has similarities to the traditionally been more socially informed, whilst
balance between variation and uniformity in this still recognising the constraints of contextual
study’s beam concept. availability (Love 2013). This notion is closer to
Other studies take this notion further, deriving vernacular methods that saw people significantly
direct links between material properties and involved with materials and building. A greater
morphology. The ‘Form Follows Availability’ human involvement may enable the stark varia-
investigation by Bruttning et al. parametrically tion of qualities in waste streams to be processed
designs a series of trusses based on a constrained and evaluated, constructing refined preferences
stock of reused steel (Brütting et al. 2019). from an unquantifiable array of values. This
Returning to wood, investigations by Svilans works towards production that engages inhabi-
et al. utilise high resolution CT scans of timber as tants as participants, rather than only spectators
design data for complex spatial outcomes (Svi- of architecture (Groba 2022) (Fig. 5).
lans et al.).
However other aspects that relate to the
applied context of the beam are just as relevant, 8 Results
such as the aesthetic expression and relationship
to other building functions. Timber’s diversity is Figure 6 depicts the core components of Making
expressed visually, through different tones, tex- a Beam Social’s methodology and outcome, with
tures, and patterns, all of which can be curated to the beam situated in the context it has emerged
form the overall expression of the beam. During from. The waste wood elements, seen here as the
the workshop, the aesthetic preferences of web in the beam, are also represented by the
148 X. Browne et al.

Fig. 6 Photograph of the archive drawing, fabrication jigs, and assembled beam

archive drawing above. The means for process- unique identifiers (representation of the timber’s
ing them are shown as the two routing jigs on the geometry) of each individual element, and how it
left side of the image. has transformed from waste stream to beam
part. Including multiple layers of information on
Timber Artefacts and Process
the same drawing kept relationships between
During the workshop, participants developed a different geometries intact. Over time, the draw-
drawing (Fig. 7) measuring 2.5  1.1 m. As the ing evolved to represent at 1:1 a simplified form
pile of reclaimed elements depleted, the drawing of previous artefacts, and a part of an artefact
became populated with information about the they are about to become. This drawing’s rep-
waste stream and beam parts. The five key pieces resentation of the timber elements enabled a low-
of information recorded at full scale are the resolution digital twin to be developed for further
original outline, the cut element outline, the off- analysis.
cuts outline, the section outline, and the weight in
grammes of the cut elements. Furthermore, other
information layers relating to timber were added, 9 Material Yield
such as the density of growth rings and surface
representations using wax rubbing. At a first Figure 8 shows the standardised timber lengths
glance, the drawing appears chaotic depicting the mapped onto the waste stock, as well as the range
heterogeneity of the waste stream. Upon closer of timber widths. In this study, two ways for
inspection, one can pick out singular outlines calculating the material yield from waste stock to
with alarming accuracy. This combination of the beam web elements were used. The first is by
chaos and precision documents both the hetero- area, and the second is by volume. In the former,
geneity of the overall waste stream, as well as the material stock represented a total area of 2.2
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 149

Fig. 7 Archiving drawing: chaotic at first glance, yet at closer inspection—a representation at high precision

Fig. 8 Timber elements

mapped onto timber
feedstock, all dimensions in
mm. One stock element was
too short for the required web
element length
150 X. Browne et al.

Fig. 9 Elements in order or thickness, dimensions in mm

m2, with the elements consuming 1.6 m2 of the the beam concept design, and the fact that the
stock area, concluding a material yield of 72%. notch only engages a part of the element.
In general, shortening the required lengths of the Therefore, longitudinal shear would be expected
web elements would lead to higher material in the individual web elements, both in tension
yields, although coupled with increased material and compression (Fig. 10). The added benefit of
processing. This could be seen as a process of material not directly engaged with the notch
quantising the discrete web element lengths connection requires further verification and
according to the available lengths of waste wood would ultimately be an important parameter
stock to determine an optimum negotiation when arranging the elements based on their
between available material and beam design. strength performance.
Naturally, this will also impact the I-beam depth Figure 10 shows a section of the I-beam,
and its structural performance. vertically loaded, resulting with one web member
By volume, the yield was 63%. Measuring the in tension, and the other in compression. The
yield by volume is more arbitrary, in terms of coloured areas show the parts of the web that are
how effectively the beam concept can assimilate
the waste stock. This is due to the depth and
width of the elements having no relation to the
length. However, volume is an important metric
for calculating utilisation, and therefore the
potential longevity of wood in its solid form. The
reduced yield value by volume indicates that on
average, thicker elements produced fewer ele-
ments per overall stock length. This factor is
outside of the parameters of the beam concept
currently, as the purpose is to remain agnostic to
varying thickness.
The thickness of the elements ranged from 11
to 45 mm (Fig. 9). Note that the element lengths
appear different in the figure due to the varying
width and 45° angle cut in each end. Arguably,
some of the elements are too thin to perform Fig. 10 Drawing describing areas of compression and
optimally in the beam concept, whilst others are tension in the web elements, and subsequent longitudinal
unnecessarily over dimensioned. This relates to shear
Making a Beam Social—In Search of a Localised Production Paradigm 151

directly engaged with the flange, whereas the varied resources with a minimum complexity of
non-coloured areas are not optimally loaded, as data.
the stresses are transferred laterally in longitudi- Furthermore, the methodology explored in
nal shear. One could argue that as these non- this study is not alienated from current approa-
coloured areas contribute less to the structural ches to automated assembly. The interchange-
performance, they are unnecessary. However, ability of the elements within the system, despite
their inclusion in the beam enables an extended their variability, presents some advantages. The
material life, therefore offering optimised effec- system can be seen as ‘discrete’ as defined by the
tive material utilisation. architectural researcher Gille Retsin in the pub-
lication ‘Robotic Building’ (Retsin et al. 2019).
His combination of speculative and built works
10 Discussion investigate the necessity of repeated elements to
work towards more ‘programmable’, ‘reconfig-
Making a beam social exercised an alternative urable’ and ‘modular’ building systems, subse-
assembly of social entities, both human and non- quently making them more favourable for
human, to investigate a new form of structural automated assembly (Retsin 2020). In future
component production. By demonstrating version of this study with an alternative focus,
hyperlocal material sourcing, the varying identi- the beam concept and fabrication approach could
ties of timber elements can be examined and be readily transferred to automated assembly
assimilated as part of a beam system. This processes. However, this may challenge the
engages not only with the aspects relating to authorship of individuals in the development of
timber’s technical concerns, but also relational new production paradigms.
factors of working with the inherited, such as the The gathering of offcut information is
social lives embodied by found timber artefacts. important for situating the production of timber
The project succeeded in collecting data building components amongst the other sectors
points to accurately describe some aspects of that utilise wood. The trade-offs of removing
heterogeneous material in varied forms, as well wood from energy production and into another
as documenting significantly improved yield in sector are important considerations, as well as the
comparison to other studies applying reclaimed reduced demand for virgin wood for building
timber to EWPs. The dimensions of the beam when applying waste streams. Furthermore, the
exemplified here were determined prior to the geometry information of offcuts is also available
workshop, otherwise, future versions could for assessing the cascading use of the material.
investigate calibrating a beam design, or even This data may enable offcut material to be uti-
multiple beams based on an available material lised for applications other than fuel, contributing
stock. further to extended material lifetimes.
Other, more advanced techniques are evolving Assimilating material in the form it is found
for obtaining material descriptions. For example, leads to latent applications of timber material.
LiDAR scanning provides surface descriptions, This makes an interesting scenario regarding
and CT (computed tomography) scanning pro- optimisation criteria, as some timber elements
vides volumetric descriptions. Both these have may be overstructured for the required function,
recently demonstrated potential in designing but nevertheless contributes to overall material
specific relations between material traits and longevity. Material longevity of timber returns to
design (Svilans et al. 2019; Svilans et al. 2020). the background of this project, in working
However, their workflows remain dependent on towards effective cascading use of wood through
costly infrastructure and specialised knowledge high utilisation over many applications. Fur-
for the management and strategisation of data thermore, recognising that timber is a subtractive
sets (Svilans et al. 2019). In this study, the focus material in production requires us to think of
is to demonstrate that one can work with highly ‘latent applications of material’ as ‘effectively
152 X. Browne et al.

stored material’, which have positive implica- Acknowledgements The research leading to these
tions regarding longevity and carbon storage, results received funding from Innovation Fund Denmark,
Realdania, and Lendager as part of an industrial Ph.D.
respectively. project by the first author under Grant Agreement
No. 0153-00111B. The authors would also like to express
their gratitude to the Spatial Practices Programme at
11 Conclusions Central Saint Martins of University of the Arts London,
lead by Andreas Lang as well as workshop technicians
Savvas Papasavva and Billy [Link] par-
Working with the inherited form of timber arte- ticipants: Connie Beauchamp, Mike Parish, Will Hayter,
facts not only entwines the previous social exis- Flynn Williams, and Jack Sweet.
tences of timber applications, but also contributes
to higher utilisation of timber during reuse.
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ence. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astro- toniemi M, Vacchiano G, Wild J, Ascoli D, Petr M,
nautics, Albany, New York Honkaniemi J, Lexer MJ, Trotsiuk V, Mairota P,
Nordby AS, Wigum KS, Berge B, Developing the Stavne Svoboda M, Fabrika M, Nagel TA, Reyer CPO (2017)
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timber in existing buildings
 Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced
Natural Rubber Biocomposite
for Fabrication and Use in Remote
Locations

German Nieva

Abstract lows broadly the trends highlighted in previous

studies on natural rubber composites, with the
The work concentrates on how the largely
addition of fibre increasing the stiffness of the
disposed of by-products from the babassu natural rubber material and its tensile strength
palm tree industry and the liquid natural rubber at lower elongations. The 7.5 pph sample
latex extracted from the rubber trees can help
shows a more significant increase in strength
produce local construction material on by 40% (at a 600% elongation) than
demand. Natural rubber and babassu natural non-reinforced rubber. However, the overall
occurrences overlap in Mapia and several other
performance of the biocomposite is well under
regions in Brazil; therefore, a locally fabricated the expected and observed in previous studies.
biocomposite using these natural resources Even though in the early stages and with much
could be replicable in several regions across
refining required, the outcome of this work is
Brazil, establishing a regional collaboration promising. It allows foreseeing strategies for
between communities. Four samples with maximising the babassu–natural rubber bio-
different babassu-natural rubber loading were composite mechanical performance to respond
produced following the steps commonly used to more specific applications in building
in the production of biocomposites: fibre projects.
extraction, chopping of the fibres, mixing and
post-processing. The mechanical properties of Keywords
specimens cut out from samples with 0, 5, 7.5
and 10 pph fibre content were tested to ASTM


Babassu Biowaste Natural rubber

standards. The material testing outcome fol-

Biocomposite Low-tech Material

Tropisms – [Link]

G. Nieva (&)
University College London, London, UK
e-mail: german@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 155
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
156 G. Nieva

1 Introduction

One of the most difficult questions brought by the within the framework of socio-economic projects
Anthropocene is: how to deal with the global in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development
inequality? (Lewis and Maslin 2020)
Goals and explicitly concerning deforestation
and social justice (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5). Access
The most significant direct driver of terrestrial
to rural communities can be problematic, the
biodiversity loss is land-use change (WWF
transport of materials and skilled builders is
2020). In the Brazilian Amazonas rainforest, the
costly and often not viable, traditional architec-
expansion of largely illegal logging, cattle
ture is rarely suitable for specialist infrastructure
ranching and agriculture is the leading cause of
and the alternative materials available are often
deforestation. These often-illegal practices limit
limited to uncertified timber, cement, polycar-
access to land and natural resources by indige-
bonate and steel sheets. Hence, this work focuses
nous and traditional people who live off the
on identifying local and regional opportunities to
extraction of non-timber forest products (Vad-
develop and produce in situ sustainable con-
junec et al. 2009).
struction materials on demand. This decentralised
The traditional Amazonian agroecological
strategy, opposite to the traditional industrial
knowledge has the potential to contribute to
process, could pave the way for a new approach
sustainable agricultural development at the time
to construction in rural and remote locations,
when the modern market economy is increas-
minimising transportation, enhancing interre-
ingly and actively looking for new crops and
gional cooperation and adding socio-
products, acknowledging the need for more
environmental value to the products.
biodiversity-friendly production practices as
This study concentrates on developing a
identified by the WWF (World Wide Fund for
babassu palm tree coconut fibre-reinforced nat-
Nature) (Clement 2016; Abramovay 2019; Uni-
ural rubber composite for remote locations.
ted Nations 2019; WWF 2020).
Babassu oil extraction generates a large amount
In recent years, I have been involved in the
of lignocellulosic waste, hence the interest in
design and construction of building facilities
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 157

considering the current rates of deforestation

within the Cerrado biosphere in the north and
north-east of Brazil (Gehring et al. 2011; Car-
razza et al. 2012).
The use of natural rubber is linked to a project
in Mapia, a community located within the State
of Amazonas and close to the State of Acre,
known for producing natural rubber latex from
the Seringueira trees (Hevea Brasiliensis). Natu-
ral rubber is a versatile polymer, locally available
within Mapia, inexpensive, does not create health
or environmental hazards and is a natural,
renewable and sustainable product (Masłowski
et al. 2017).
Natural rubber tappers (seringueiros) and the
quebradeiras rely on the extraction of non-timber
forest products (NTFPs), and it is within their
Fig. 1 Location of built projects and at the design stage interest to protect the rainforest against defor-
within Brazil. a Boa Vista, Marahnao & Installation at the
estation. Therefore, adding value to the natural
XII International Architecture Biennale in Sao Paulo.
b Serra, Maranhao. Babassu mesocarp flour production rubber and babassu by-products can help these
facility. c Jaguanum Island, Rio. Beach kiosk and boat communities continue to have dignified life sta-
refuge. d Mapia, Amazonas. Building module for rural bility in their communities and positively impact
constructions (Design stage) the protection of the forests (Peres and Pastore
2019).
developing a material that can integrate this. Rubber and babassu natural occurrences
Furthermore, the ruderal babassu palm plays a overlap in Mapia and several other regions in
central socio-economical role within the tradi- Brazil, especially in the transition areas between
tional and indigenous populations, and its eco- the tropical rainforest and the Cerrado (Figs. 6
logical importance is bound to increase and 7). The Brazilian Institute of Geography and

Fig. 2 Quebradeiras in Boa

Vista. Documenting their
workday for the installation at
the Architecture Biennale in
Sao Paulo
158 G. Nieva

Fig. 3 Babassu mesocarp

flour production.
Polycarbonate sheets (a).
Concrete and steel (b)

Fig. 4 Beach kiosk and

fishermen boat refuge.
Polycarbonate roofing (a).
Concrete and PVC

Statistics (IBGE) identifies the babassu and nat- extrativist communities (Fig. 8). Therefore, a
ural rubber as one of the most collected and locally fabricated biocomposite using natural
profitable non-timber vegetable products behind rubber as polymer and babassu as reinforcement
the better-known acai fruit (Fig. 8). In addition to has the potential to be replicable in several
this, the collection’s economic value does not regions across Brazil, establishing a regional
concentrate on a few producers but benefits many collaboration between communities.
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 159

Fig. 5 Mapia’s building

prototype. Polystyrene mesh
screens (b)

Fig. 6 Occurrence of
babassu palm and natural
rubber in Brazil (Adapted
from Lorenzi, 2010 & Silva
de Souza, 2018). a Attalea
phalerata (Babassu palm tree).
b Athalea speciosa (Babassu
palm tree). c Hevea
brasiliensis (Natural Rubber).
d Built projects (see Fig. 1).
e Mapia, State of Amazonas
160 G. Nieva

Fig. 7 States with production

(Coconut and

(Coconut and
(Liquid and

(Liquid and
Coagulum)
of both Babassu and Natural

Coagulum)
Kernel) (t)
Babassu

Babassu
Natural

Natural
Rubber

Rubber
Kernel)
Rubber: Collection (left).

State
Number of producers (right).

(t)
IBGE—Censo Agropecuário
1 2433 Acre 11 1275
(2006)
2 267 Amazonas 9 534

6142 5691 Bahia 100 885

313665 165 Maranhão 62097 7

171 4013 Minas Gerais 122 76

167 1131 Pará 119 102

28 279 Rondônia 83 135

4469 303 Tocantins 542 9

Fig. 8 Non-timber vegetable Quantity collected Acai Babassu coco Babassu kernel Natural Rubber*
products extracted in Brazil (Tons)
(Excludes timber related sub- 267499 170235 163420 17986
products). *Natural Rubber
includes liquid and coagulated
latex. IBGE Censo Value of Acai Babassu kernel Babassu coco Natural Rubber*
Agropecuário (2006) collection
($R x 1000) 176380 109060 65200 25696

Value of sells Acai Babassu kernel Natural Rubber* Babassu coco

($R x 1000)
133792 98609 25589 14368

Number of Babassu kernel Acai Babassu coco Natural Rubber*

producers
68741 41479 5356 3062

the coconut’s almonds (kernels) and, to a lesser

2 Background degree, to produce flour from the coconut
mesocarp layer (Figs. 10 and 11).
2.1 Babassu Approximately 70% of the coconut shell,
composed of the epicarp, mesocarp and endocarp
The babassu (Attalea speciosa Mart.) is a palm (Fig. 12), is disposed of or used to make charcoal
tree that occurs naturally within the Cerrado with minimal added value (Ferrari and Soler
biome in Brazil (Fig. 9). Often, it is the primary 2015; Amaral et al. 2019). This lignocellulose-
source of income and nutrition in this region, rich by-product is increasingly seen as an alter-
with more than 60 different known uses for its native energy source (Paula et al. 2014), water
trunk, leaves and fruit: human and animal food, pollutant adsorbent material (Gomes et al. 2016)
handicraft objects, biofuel, construction material, and as biopolymers films (Alves Lopes et al.
cosmetics and medicines (Carrazza et al. 2012; 2020), among other applications. The epicarp
Almeida Campos et al. 2015). However, the and endocarp fibres and particles have been tes-
babassu is mainly used to extract lauric oil from ted as reinforcement and filling in particleboards
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 161

Fig. 9 Babassu palm trees in

Boa Vista

(Lima et al. 2006; Machado et al. 2017); ther- (Nunes et al. 2019); and non-specified grain sizes
moset composites (Fonteles et al. 2016); green (Beber et al. 2018; Hoffmann et al. 2019; Reul
thermoplastic biocomposites (Beber et al. 2018; et al. 2019). The particle–matrix ratio when used
dos Santos Silva et al. 2020); and in biocom- as filling varied from 1 to 30% max. Fewer
posites produced with polypropylene via extru- studies have looked at the use of epicarp and
sion and mould injection (de Lemos et al. 2017). endocarp fibres as reinforcement in composites
However, there is currently minimal research on with particle sizes ranging from approx. 0,8 to
using babassu fibres as reinforcement in bio- 4 mm (Lima et al. 2006; Machado et al. 2017);
composite materials for construction. and the size of particles used with Polypropylene
Most of the research on biocomposites using (PP) ranging between 0.5 and 0.045 mm having
babassu as filling have relied on micronised a more significant proportion of the fibres
mesocarp powder with particle sizes of approx. between 0.5 and 0.25 mm (de Lemos et al.
0,074 mm (Teixeira et al. 2018; dos Santos Silva 2017). The load in these tests varied between
et al. 2020); between 0,044 and 0,149 mm 85% of fibre (particleboard) and 40% of fibre
162 G. Nieva

Fig. 10 Breaking coconuts

Fig. 11 Break of the coconut

to obtain the kernel (left) and
mesocarp (right)

(when tested with PP) (Fig. 13). Figure 14 2.2 Natural Rubber Composites
compares the lignin, hemicellulose and cellulose
content (%) between babassu fibres; more com- Natural rubber is a renewable, inexpensive and
monly used natural fibres in the fabrication of environmentally friendly natural polymer
composites, such as wood, sugarcane, flax and obtained from the Amazonas rainforest-native
bamboo and other natural fibres already used and rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) in the form of
tested as reinforcement in natural rubber field latex. Field latex is composed of rubber
composites. particles (33%), water (60%), proteins, fatty
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 163

Fig. 12 Babassu coconut

shell (top) and Babassu
coconut transversal and
longitudinal sections (bottom)
and yield of fractions (%): A.
Epicarp (11%); B. Mesocarp
(23%); C. Endocarp (59%);
D. Kernel (7%). Adapted
from Teixeira et al. (2018)

acids, sugars, ash, trace elements and other addition of reinforcing fillers such as natural
impurities (Fig. 15a). This raw latex can be fibres (Nair and Joseph 2014; Masłowski et al.
chemically, physically or biologically treated to 2017).
produce natural rubber (NR) (Nair and Joseph Several studies have looked at physically
2014; Peres and Pastore 2019). improving the mechanical properties of natural
NR—long-chain polymer—is one of the most rubber, particularly its strength, by incorporating
versatile elastomers, with high strength, elastic- natural fibres. Variables that affect a fibre-
ity, flexibility, resilience and abrasion resistance, reinforced natural rubber composite perfor-
characteristics conferred by its high molecular mance are fibre length and aspect; fibre concen-
mass (>106 daltons) and its stereoregular tration; dispersion and orientation of the fibres;
microstructure formed almost entirely (approxi- void content; and rubber matrix–fibre adhesion
mately 94%) by cis-1,4 polyisoprene (Fig. 15b) (de Lemos et al. 2017).
(Sreekumar et al. 2013; Peres and Pastore 2019). The need to improve the compatibility
NR does, however, have poor resistance to crack between the hydrophobic rubber matrix and
initiation, ozone and oils, overcome partially hydrophilic cellulose fibres has been identified,
with methods such as vulcanisation, a chemical by the majority of the precedents considered in
process that can improve its elasticity, tensile this work, as a critical parameter in the
strength, hardness and weather resistance, prop- enhancement of the mechanical properties of the
erties that can be further enhanced by the NR composites (Geethamma et al. 2004;
164 G. Nieva

Reinforceme

Type / Use
Material
Authors

Filler /

Matrix

Load
Year

nt
2002 Almeida et al., 2002 Mesocarp, epicarp and Portland cement 1:2.75 of babassu to cement Cement-bonded Particleboard
endocarp ratio

2006 Lima, Ademi Moraes et al., Epicarp fibres. Hammer milled Urea formaldehyde 10%, 20%, 30% Particleboard
2006 with mesh of 12mm followed
by a mesh of 4,37 mm.

2016 Lemos et al., 2016 Particles of babassu (not Homopolymer Polypropylene 40% babassu Polypropylene (PP) composite
specific shell layer - Sizes 354 hPP
um)

2017 Machado et al., 2017 Endocarp / Epicarp Particles of Oleo de mamona - resin 12% External & 15% Internal Particleboard
0,8 > 4,0 mm & > 4 mm layers.

2018 Nunes, Mário A.B.S et al., Micronised powder mesocarp Poly(butylene adipate-co- 17% Mesocarp PBAT/TPS/Babassu Mesocarp
2018 (particle size ranging between terephthalate) & biocomposite.
44 - 149 um) Thermoplastic starch
(PBAT/TPS Blend)
2018 Reul, Lizzia T. A et al., 2019 Micronised mesocarp, Fibrous Poly (e-caprolactone) PCL 10%, 20%, 30% PLC Compounds
epicarp

2018 Beber, Vinicius C et al., 2018 Micronised powder mesocarp. PBAT / PHB (two polymers) 20% Mesocarp PBAT / PHB Biodegradable
blends

2019 Hoffmann, R et al., 2019 Micronised babassu mesocarp Poly(butylene adipate-co- 1% - 3% PBAT / PHB Films
terephthalate) & poly(3-
hydroxybutyrate) (PBAT/PHB
Blend)
2020 dos Santos Silva, I. D. et al., Mesocarp (sieved through a Polylactic Acid (PLA) 1, 3 & 5% PLA Composites
2020 0.074 mm mesh) Biopolymer 3251

Fig. 13 Previous research on biocomposites made with babassu by-products

Hemicellulos

Cellulose (%)
Lignin (%)
Authors

e (%)
Fibre
Year

2016 De Lemos, Mauss and Babassu Shell 14.73 22.21 38.65

Santana, 2016
Wood 15.23 23.1 40.95
Sugarcane 14.82 28.67 39.69
2017 Machado et al., 2017 Babssu Epicarp 35.64 20.82 32.28
Babassu Endocarp 36.57 25.72 29.8

2007 Lovely and Rani, 2007 Isora 23 74.8

2015 Mohammed et al., 2015 Coir 40-45 0.15-0.25 32-43
Flax 2.2 18.6-20.6 71
Bamboo 21-31 30 26-43
2017 Maslowski, Miedzianowska Barley 24.9 ±4.08 39.1 ±4.34
and Strzelec, 2017
Corn 25.2 ±3.49 42.2 ±2.69
Wheat 23.1 ±4.29 31.2 ±4.63
2017 Kanoth et al., 2017 Coir 40-45 0.15-0.25 32-43

Fig. 14 Babassu fibre compared to other natural fibres

Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 165

(a)

hydrocarbon

Moisture
Acetone
Protein
Rubber

Extract

Ash
93% 3% 2.9% 0.6% 0.4%

(b)

Ash Content
Fatty Acids

(dirt, sand)
Impurities
Elements
(Cu, Mn)
Protein
Rubber

Sugars
Water

Trace
33% 60% 2-3% 1-3% 1% 1% 2-3 ppm 8-10 ppm

Fig. 15 a Field Latex Composition (Adapted from Nair and Joseph 2014). b Natural Rubber Composition (Adapted
from Sreekumar et al. 2013)

Lopattananon et al. 2006; Masłowski et al. 2017; achieved the best mechanical performance at a
Stelescu et al. 2017; Hoffmann et al. 2019). 20% fibre content (Masłowski et al. 2017). Other
A better fibre–matrix adhesion can be achieved precedents tested loadings ranging from 2.5 to
by modifying the polymer or the surface of the 40% though the most effective load varied con-
fibre. Even though several methods exist to siderably between the different composites. The
modify the surface of the fibres most of the table in Fig. 38 only includes the loadings with
precedents studied rely on mercerisation the best performance in each study.
(Sreekumar et al. 2013). Fibre length, orientation and distribution are
Mercerisation is an alkali treatment process also variables that can significantly affect the
that modifies the fibre’s surface by partially performance of the natural rubber composite.
removing cemented materials like hemicellulose The extent of stress transfer depends on the fibre
and lignin, and other impurities. The effective- length; therefore, it is vital to prevent the fibres
ness of mercerisation depends on the concentra- from breaking excessively during the composite
tion of sodium hydroxyl (NaOH) in the solution, fabrication. A study with isora fibre testing
the temperature and the time used to treat the lengths of 6, 10 and 14 mm, found that the
fibres. Alkali-treated fibre composites exhibit ‘critical’ fibre length (this is when the transmit-
higher elongation at break; however, NaOH in tance of stress from the matrix to the fibre is at a
concentrations lower than 5% does not show maximum) was 10 mm. Hence, the samples
tensile strength improvements (Lopattananon showed the maximum value for tensile and tear
et al. 2006). Figure 38 shows the percentage of strength for fibres having an original length of
NaOH, temperature and time different types of 10 mm before mixing (Mathew and Joseph
fibres have been treated in the previous studies. 2007). The critical fibre length varies depending
Geethamma et al. (2004), De et al. (2006), on the loading, type of fibre and treatment of the
Lopattananon et al. (2006), Parambath Kanoth fibre (Fig. 38); therefore, the most efficient
et al. (2019). length for the babassu fibre-reinforced natural
Generally, the increase in fibre reinforcement rubber composite will need to be tested.
reduces its tensile and tear strength properties One key challenge in preparing rubber com-
though it improves the hardness and toughness of posites is to achieve a uniform dispersion of the
the composite (Sreekumar et al. 2013). The fibre in the matrix. A low-tech method success-
maximum loading tested within the precedents fully tested in NR composites is the hand lay-up
studied was 50% fibre though the composite technique alternating latex and fibres layers up to
166 G. Nieva

Elongation at
break (%)

Hardness
(Shore A)

Strength
Load (N)
strength

strength

Flexural

Flexural
Tensile

(MPa)

(MPa)

(MPa)
Tear
Market / Natural Rubber Sheets
Delta Rubber 17 500 60
Black Natural rubber 60° Shore A
Delta Rubber 18 600 40
Black Natural rubber 40° Shore A
Silex Silicones LTD 10 22 (N/mm) 400 60
Silicone Rubber Sheeting

Market / Synthetic Roof Sheets

Jieli Roof (1 mm thick) 30 800 72
Polypropylene Roof Tile
CorraPOL (2 mm thick) 65 93
PVC Sheet

Fig. 16 Market products with potential similar uses to the natural rubber composite. Source products data sheets from
manufacturers

the thickness required (Parambath Kanoth et al. Hydrogen Peroxide solution 3% 10 Vols (H2O2)
2019). brand Care+, UK. Deionised water.
This work aims to enhance the strength of the Low ammonia, pre-vulcanised natural rubber
natural rubber using babassu fibres obtained from latex (60% dry rubber content) was purchased
the epicarp and endocarp (by-products) as rein- from Liquid Latex Direct, UK.
forcement (Fig. 17). Potential uses of the com-
posite can then be assessed based on the
mechanical properties at different fibre loading, 3.2 Methods
comparing its performance to natural rubber
biocomposite precedents and market products The composite fabrication followed the steps
used locally that it could replace (Figs. 16 and commonly used in the production of biocom-
38). The author foresees the new biocomposite in posites: fibre extraction, chopping of the fibres,
the form of sheets or tiles providing an alterna- mixing and post-processing (Fig. 18). The
tive to the polycarbonate currently use on roofs. mechanical properties of specimens cut out from
four samples with 0, 5, 7.5 and 10 pph fibre
content were tested to ASTM. The cutting of the
3 Babassu Fibre-Reinforced Natural samples and testing took place at the Biocom-
Rubber Composite posite Centre—Bangor University in Wales.
Fibres extraction and alkali treatment
3.1 Materials
The fibres were extracted via a chemical retting
The babassu coconut shells composed of epicarp, process. The babassu coconut shells (Fig. 19)
mesocarp and endocarp were obtained from the were first washed in water to remove dirt and
Associação de Emprendedores Rurais de Boa then immersed in a 5% w/v NaOH solution at
Vista, Alto Alegre Pindare, Maranhao, Brazil. room temperature for 12 hs to loosen the fibres
A total of 1.16 kg of shells were delivered to and partially remove lignin and hemicellulose
London. from the surface of the fibres (Fig. 20a). The
For the extraction and treatment of the fibres: loosened fibres were separated manually off the
sodium hydroxide Pearl 99% (NaOH) was pur- shells (Fig. 20b) and washed free of alkali with
chased from Source Chemicals Ltd, UK, and water (Fig. 20c). Mostly fibres from the shell’s
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 167

Fig. 17 Babassu by-products

(top) and Quebradeira
breaking coconuts in Boa
Vista (bottom)

Fig. 18 Diagram showing

the key stages of the
composite preparation

outer layer—epicarp—were possible to extract the mesocarp were possible to extract from the
following the first alkali treatment. endocarp.
The endocarp layer was immersed for a sec- Both the epicarp and endocarp fibres were
ond time in a 5% w/v NaOH solution for an washed with water and immersed in a 3%
additional 72 h until the fibres were sufficiently hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) solution for 8 hs
loosened to partially isolate them from the shell. (Fig. 20d). Following the H2O2 treatment, the
Only the fibres within the layer immediate below fibres were washed with deionised water
168 G. Nieva

Fig. 19 Babassu coconut

shells

(Fig. 20e), chopped (Fig. 21a) and dried in an air Four samples were prepared with the follow-
oven at 45 °C for 6.5 hs until the weight loss ing fibre content expressed in parts per hundred
stabilised to eliminate any moisture (Fig. 21b). It rubber (pph): sample A (0 pph): sample B
was not possible to isolate chopped fibres with (5 pph); sample C (7.5 pph); and sample D
the same length; these varied between 2 and (10 pph). The formulation of the mixes and the
12 mm approximately. The total weight of the number of specimens are given in Fig. 23.
chopped and dried fibres obtained was 39.7 g. The steps followed for the preparation of the
Microscopic photos of five random fibres biocomposite are described below:
were taken to document the physical properties
and condition of fibre’s surface after the NaOH 1. Liquid natural rubber was poured into a
and H2O2 treatment (Fig. 22). The fibres’ diam- rectangular plastic tray of 138  193 mm to
eter varies significantly from about 350 lm to form a thin layer of coagulated latex. There
1300 lm—this may be linked to the layer (en- were 5 layers of 16 g of liquid natural rubber
docarp or epicarp) where they were extracted. totalling 80 g of matrix per sample. The trays
The photos also show residual matrix material were placed on a levelled surface to avoid a
still attached to the fibres, indicating that more different thickness throughout the composite
chemical treatment is needed. (Fig. 24a).
2. The fibres were spread evenly by hand, with
Composites preparation
the help of a sieve, over the first layer of
The fabrication method broadly follows the natural rubber and gentle pressure was
preparation of macrofibre composites as descri- applied to flatten the fibres against the latex
bed by Parambath Kanoth et al. (2019). As (Fig. 24b).
already mentioned, a key challenge in preparing 3. A second layer of 16 g was poured over the
rubber composites is to achieve a uniform dis- fibres and coagulated (Fig. 24c).
persion of the fibre in the matrix; therefore, the 4. Alternative layers of fibre (total of 4) and
low-tech hand layering approach has been seen natural rubber (total of 5) were built up to an
as a possible way to avoid undesired concentra- approximate 2 mm thickness as required
tions of the fibre fibres. under the ASTM standards for testing of
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 169

Fig. 20 a Alkali treatment.

b Fibre extraction. c Washing
of the fibres. d N2O2
treatment. e Wash in
deionised water

mechanical properties of composite materials show fibre concentration in many areas. An

and elastomers (Fig. 25) accurately homogenous dispersion of the fibres is
5. After the coagulation of the final layer, the not envisaged to be possible with the lay-up
sheets were removed from the mould and left technique, but it may be appropriate if specific
to air dry at room temperature for at least 72 material regions require more or less reinforce-
hs (Figs. 26 and 27). ment. Air bubbles trapped between the fibres
were also observed, in particular within the 10
Even though care was taken during the pph sample. Low-tech options for the preparation
preparation of the composites to guarantee a of the composite need to be explored further.
uniform spread of fibres, the resulting samples From previous papers (Lopattananon et al. 2006)
170 G. Nieva

Fig. 21 a Chopping. b Dried

fibres
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 171

Fig. 22 Microscopic photos

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Fig. 23 Formulation of the

rubber–fibre composites A B C D
Samples
pph g pph g pph g pph g

Natural
100 80 100 80 100 80 100 80
Rubber

Fibre 0 0 5 4 7.5 6 10 8

and relying on local machinery already used in

the manufacture of rubber sheets, an alternative 5 Results and Discussions
could be mixing the latex with the fibres into a
dough so it can pass through rollers. This method None of the specimens fractured during the ten-
could help achieve a better distribution of the sile testing due to the limitation of the Instron
fibres, eliminate air bubbles and excess water and 3345 machine to extend the specimens beyond a
provide a more uniform orientation of the fibres strain of 600%. Hence, the results obtained from
if required. the tensile testing show a partial outcome without
being able to identify max strain at break or max
strength at break. Smaller samples or a different
4 Testing machine will be required in future testing.
Figure 32 shows the data measured during the
Tensile tests were carried out to the ASTM testing. Tensile stress–strain max/min curves for
D638-14 ‘Standard Test Method for Tensile samples A, B, C and D are shown in Fig. 33.
Properties of Plastics’ and reinforced plastics. Sample A (without fibres) exhibit a curve, up to
Tear tests were carried out to the ASTM D624- 600% strain, similar to the ones observed in the
00 ‘Standard Test Method for Tear Strength of previous research papers and noted as the point
Conventional Vulcanised Rubber and Thermo- where stress-induced crystallisation start to
plastic Elastomers’. Due to the non-rigid nature manifest (Parambath Kanoth et al. 2019). The
of the material, flexural properties were not max and min curves obtained for sample A vary
tested. significantly compared to the other samples. This
Three dumbbell specimens for tensile testing could be linked to a potential variation of thick-
were cut out from each sample with a CEAST ness between specimens.
Specimen Preparation Punching Machine The fibre-reinforced samples show an increase
(Fig. 29). Only two specimens for tear testing in the stress required to achieve a 600% tensile
were possible to hand-cut with the aid of a template strain compared to sample A. This is consistent
from each of the samples. The size and shape of the with previous research in fibre-reinforced rubber
specimens are shown in Fig. 28. Tensile and tear composites, where even though the ultimate
tests of the composites were done at the Biocom- strength and strain tend to decrease in compar-
posite Centre—Bangor University, utilising an ison with non-reinforced natural rubber, the
Instron 3345 universal material testing machine impact of the fibres does improve the stress–
(Fig. 30) and associated software Bluehill strain behaviour in the first section of the curve
Universal. The tensile speed of testing was up to approximately 400–600% strain (Lopat-
20 mm/ min, and for the tear testing, 500 mm/min. tananon et al. 2006; Parambath Kanoth et al.
Figure 31 shows all the specimens post-testing. 2019) (Fig. 34).
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 173

Fig. 24 a First layer of liquid

latex and coagulation. b First
layer of fibres. c Final layer
174 G. Nieva

Fig. 25 Layering up
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 175

Fig. 26 Dried samples. Fibre

content a 0 pph. b 5 pph. c 7.5
pph. d 10 pph
176 G. Nieva

Fig. 27 Dried biocomposites

Unlike previous research on natural rubber pph) having a large number of areas not covered
composites, following a sharp increase of by fibres, and in sample D (at 10 pph) agglom-
strength up to an approx. 30% strain, the stress– eration of fibres, generating fibre-to-fibre only
strain curve of the composites then follows an areas and air bubbles between the fibres that were
almost parallel curve to sample A. From 450 to not filled in with rubber compromising the fibre–
550%, the composites start to show a second matrix interface (Fig. 36).
increase in strength compared to the non- The efficiency of the fibre-matrix ratio, in this
reinforced sample. This performance could be case, is closely linked to the method used to
linked to the distribution of the fibres in the manufacture the composite, but it could also be a
composite, leaving areas free of fibre that behave result of poor matrix–fibre adhesion (Fig. 39c).
as the non-reinforced sample. These clusters The pouring of the liquid latex and layering of
were observed and documented during the tests the fibres is very challenging at a ratio over the
(Fig. 35a–b). The incipient second increase of 7.5 pph and start to require more substantial
tensile strength may be due to the more pressure to guarantee the matrix covers all the
homogenous distribution of the fibres and rubber fibres.
once the sample is stretched further. It is noticeable the low strength (at 600%
Across the composites, sample C with fibre at elongation) and modulus (at 300% elongation)
7.5 pph shows the maximum tensile strength at achieved by all the samples in comparison to
600% strain, an increase of about 40% over previous studies. The max tensile strength of
sample A. This may be due to sample B (at 5 non-reinforced sample A was 1.09 MPa, well
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 177

Fig. 28 Specimens for

tensile (a) and tear testing
(b) and Cut-out specimens

Fig. 29 CEAST Punching

Machine
178 G. Nieva

Fig. 30 Instron 3345—

Universal Material Testing
Machine

below the approx. 3 and 12 MPa measured in increase of tear strength with an increase of fibre
previous papers for natural rubber-only speci- content as shown in identified in the previous
mens (Fig. 34 and 36). The same applies to the studies (Parambath Kanoth et al. 2019) (Figs. 40
module, where the 0.217 MPa achieved by and 41). Since the dispersion of the fibre was not
sample A represents only 9% of what has been uniform, this outcome may be due to the nick in
noted in previous studies (Mathew and Joseph the specimen having cut areas with more or less
2007) (Figs. 37 and 38). This may be due to the fibre density or air bubbles that could impact the
type of liquid natural rubber used or post- overall thickness of the specimen at the cross
processing of the samples following coagulation. section.

5.1 Tear Strength 6 Conclusions and Next Steps

The effect of fibre content on tear strength could This study demonstrates that babassu, a vital
not be concluded. The data collected shown in socio-economic, natural resource, already widely
Fig. 39 can be used as a precedent for future consumed by traditional and indigenous com-
testing, though there is a need for additional munities across the rainforest and the Brazilian
specimens and the use of a different testing savanna, can provide an alternative to the less
machine/smaller specimens to determine a trend. sustainable materials regularly used in the region
It is also critical to also use a standard die cutter for non-traditional constructions. Research on the
rather than hand-cut the samples. babassu by-products, rich in lignocellulose, is
Only one specimen cut-out from sample B very minimal for its use in building materials;
and two specimens from sample C fractured therefore, this research represents a departure
during the tear testing (Fig. 42). Even though the point to explore innovative ways to use this low-
tear strength at approx. 800% strain (max cost renewable resource. Furthermore, this work
achieved by the machine) tends to increase with also explores new uses in the construction field
the addition of fibre, there is not a progressive for natural rubber. It proposes a new approach to
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 179

Fig. 31 Specimens post-

testing and its relation to the
die cut template a–d Tensile.
e–f Tear
180 G. Nieva

Samples Maximum Load Tensile Extension Nominal Strain of Strain at Max Strain at Max Tensile Stress at Young's Modulus
(N) at Maximum Load Fracture (%) Extension Extension (%) Max Extension (stress at 300%
(mm) (MPa) elongation) (MPa)
A (0 pph) 21.91433 400.11136 1600.44543 5.16 515.56 1.0957 0.217

B (5 pph) 26.95452 400.23016 1600.920637 5.16 515.74 1.3477 0.255

C (7.5 pph) 31.13435 400.08882 1600.355307 5.16 515.52 1.5567 0.300

D (10 pph) 27.88163 400.08904 1600.35618 5.16 515.52 1.3941 0.273

Fig. 32 Tensile testing data

Fig. 33 Stress–strain curves for the max/min values per sample’s specimens
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 181

Fig. 34 Stress–strain curves for Pineapple leaf fibre– from Lopattananon et al.( 2006), Parambath Kanoth et al.
natural rubber composite (1a = 0 pph and 1b = 10 pph (2019), respectively, compared to the results obtained for
fibre samples) and coir macro-fibre–natural rubber com- the babassu fibre-reinforced natural rubber composite (A
posite (2a = 0pph & 2b = 10 pph fibre samples), adapted (max) = 0 pph and D (max) = 10 pph)

manufacturing low-cost materials locally/ before or during the retting process will likely be
regionally and on demand, benefiting the extrac- required. The endocarp fibres seem to be stronger
tivist communities directly and moving away than the endocarp fibre and harder to extract.
from an industrialised and centralised model. A more detailed analysis of the fibres is needed
The outcome of the material testing does to understand the effect of chemical treatments
follow broadly the trends highlighted in previous on their surface and identify what processes
studies on natural rubber biocomposites. Gener- enhance their adhesion to rubber.
ally, the addition of fibre increased the stiffness The low-tech hand lay-up technique adopted
of the material and tensile strength at lower for this study does not provide a uniform distri-
elongations; the 7.5 pph sample shows a more bution of the fibres as anticipated. It was chal-
significant increase of strength of about 40% at a lenging to eliminate air bubbles and avoid fibre
600% elongation compared to the non-reinforced agglomerations beyond a fibre content of 7.5
sample. Nevertheless, the overall performance pph. Microfibres may work better with this
was well under the expected, and the observed in method for higher fibre loadings, as identified by
the previous studies. Parambath Kanoth et al. (2019). Other methods,
It is possible to extract the fibres out of the perhaps the already used during the processing of
shells with a relatively low-tech approach, the liquid field latex into vulcanised rubber
though, machinery to crush and break the shells sheets, may be more appropriate to guarantee a
182 G. Nieva

Fig. 35 a Initial state of the

sample. b Halfway the testing
of the sample and visible
clusters with no
reinforcement. c Fibre seems
not to be fully adhered to the
rubber
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 183

Fig. 36 Tensile stress—

Fibre content. Tensile strength
reaches a maximum at 7.5
pph. An increase of about
40% over the non-reinforced
sample (X = Mean values)

Fig. 37 Tensile modulus—

fibre content
184 G. Nieva

(300% elongation

Hardness (Shore
Fibre Treatment

Tensile strength
Modulus at 10%

Modulus at 20%
(Type x Time)

Tear strength

Elongation at
Natural Fibre

strain (MPa)

strain (MPa)
Orientation
Fibre Size

break (%)
Modulus
Authors

Sample

(MPa)

(MPa)
MPa)
Load
Year

A)
1995 Geethamma, Coir Gum 0% L 0.31 0.42 17.95 35.05 1119
Reethamma and Sabu,
1995
Tensile Strength ASTM T 0.31 0.44 20.06 37.93 1141
D412-68
Tear Strength ASTM
Untreated 10 mm 35% L 1.88 1.69 6.69 30.07 777
D624-54
Fibre

T 0.55 0.7 4.35 20.2 708

Treated 5% NaOH x 10 mm 35% L 6.28 6.98 54.38

Fibre 48 h

T 1.97 3.98 42.43

2006 Lopattananon et al., Pineapple Gum 0% L 22.71 755

2006 Leaf Fibre
Tensile Strength ASTM
D638-96 T 21.28 733
Thermal Aging ASTM
D573-81
Untreated 75 ±20 um 20% L 7.2 43.75
Fibre

T 5.54 321.43

Treated 5% NaOH x 75 ±20 um 20% L 10.02 105

Fibre 18 h

2007 Lovely and Rani, 2007 Isora Gum 0% L 2.3 25.9 35.1 1045
Tensile Strength ASTM
D412-68
Tear Strength ASTM T 2.3 25 34.5 1045
D624-54
Compression test ASTM
Untreated 10mm 30% L 3..2 9.8 46.8 437 69
D395-86 (B)
Hardness ASTM 2240- Fibre
81
T 2.2 6.8 43.9 480

Treated 5% NaOH x 10mm 30% L 3.8 10.7 47.9 400 73

Fibre 4h

T 2.8 8.2 44.2 412

2017 Maslowski, Corn Gum 0% 11.5 ±0.5 701 ±6

Miedzianowska and
Strzelec, 2017 I SO 37
Fibre 20% 16.4 ±0.8 632 ±10

2019 Parambath Kanoth et Coir Gum 0% 25 45 1100

al., 2019
Tensile ASTM D412
Treated 5% NaOH 6 mm 10% 14 50 800
Fibre

400-550um 10% 30 80 950

2021 Babassu Coconut Fibre Babassu Gum 0.217 1.0957 28.09 515.56 (no
reinfroced Natural Coconut break)
Rubber Composite Fibre
Treated 5% NaOH x 2-12 mm 5% N/A 0.255 1.3477 37.98 515.74 (no
Fibre 72 hs & 3% (approx) break)
H2O2 x 8 hs
7.5% N/A 0.3 1.5567 33.45 515.12 (no
break)

10% N/A 0.273 1.3941 43.06 515.52 (no

break)

Fig. 38 Results from the testing in context with previous research on natural rubber biocomposites

Specimen Label Maximum Load Tensile Extension Nominal Strain of Tear Strength Strain at Max Strain at Max
(N) at Maximum Load Fracture (%) (N/mm) Extension Extension (%)
(mm)
A (0 pph) 56.19492 402.73316 1610.932645 28.09746 7.94963 794.96258

B (5 pph) 75.96239 384.02508 1536.10033 37.98120 7.53389 753.38907

C (7.5 pph) 66.91211 350.83342 1403.333665 33.45605 6.79630 679.62981

D (10 pph) 86.09293 402.98329 1611.933175 43.04646 7.95518 795.51842

Fig. 39 Tear testing data

Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 185

Fig. 40 Tear strength–strain

curves for both specimens
tested per sample

Fig. 41 Tear strength—fibre

content. (X = Mean
value/–– = indicates fracture)

homogenous distribution of the fibres, plus it envelope (Fig. 43). Though in early stages and
would rely upon existing craft skills. Different with much refining required, the outcome of the
fabrication methods and post-treatment of the material testing is promising and allows to start
composite should be tested and compared. thinking about how the sheet material could be
It is envisaged this material, in the form of shaped or manipulated to maximise its mechan-
sheets or tiles, could replace the polycarbonate ical performance to respond to more specific
sheets currently used as part of the building applications for upcoming design projects.
186 G. Nieva

Fig. 42 Photos from the tear

testing indicating the location
of the nick (top) and fractured
sample
Babassu Coconut Fibre-Reinforced Natural Rubber Biocomposite … 187

Fig. 43 Potential application

—Concept

Acknowledgements The author gratefully acknowl- de Lemos AL, Pires PGP, de Albuquerque ML et al
edges Dr Graham Ormondroyd and Dr Simon Curling (2017) Biocomposites reinforced with natural fibers:
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University and Brenda Parker from Bio-ID at the tion. Rev Mater. [Link]
University College London. 707620170002.0173
de Paula PT, Trugilho PF, da Silva César AA et al (2014)
Babassu nut residues: potential for bioenergy use in
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 The Scope of Egg Waste Use
in the Built-Up Environment: A Study
on the Viability of Eggshell Waste
as an Organic Building Material

Esther Kiruba Jebakumar Clifford

Abstract viability of using egg waste in architecture by

studying and recording the amount of egg
USA, India, and China are the three largest
waste generated and the logistics involved to
producers of eggs and annually India produces help procure and use eggshells and white
an average of 83 billion eggs. The egg waste waste. This study will take an example of an
generated from this massive production is sent
Indian district to help demonstrate the viabil-
to either landfills or incinerators. The EPA ity of the practical usage of egg waste in the
declared eggs as the 15th largest waste built-up environment.
causing pollution. Companies pay up to
$100,000 to dispose of egg waste in the form Keywords
of landfills and this is an unsustainable and
expensive way of disposing of waste. Egg

Eggshell waste Rethinking egg waste

waste in the form of shells and whites can be Eggshell in construction
rather used as a building material that is
cost-efficient and energy-efficient. Eggs have
been used as a building material in the past
millennia throughout Asia, Africa and parts of 1 Introduction
Europe. In the local vernacular architecture of
India, its properties have been known to help The management of large amounts of waste in
in cooling the built-up environment and also the form of eggshells is a tough challenge for
provide a smooth finish to walls. In modern both developing and developed countries. An
usage, eggshells have been used as an additive efficient way of repurposing this waste can be
in concrete and have proven to add strength to converting it into valuable and useful resources
the concrete admixture. Rethinking the way such as converting it for the built environment as
egg waste is repurposed can help in creating a building material or use in a building con-
resilience through building materials. This struction technique/method. This will help
paper will help understand the scope and improve both the sustainable development of the
particular area and contribute toward becoming
an adequate waste management strategy.
In 2020, the production volume of eggs
E. K. J. Clifford (&) worldwide exceeded 86.67 million metric tons.
Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, This is up from 74.14 million metric tons in
Architecture, Chennai, India
2016. Since 1990, the global egg production
e-mail: archiesther@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 189
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
190 E. K. J. Clifford

volume has increased by over 100% (OECD- 2 Methodology

FAO 2022). This increases the scope to work
with eggshell waste as a building material or See Fig. 1.
used in building techniques.
This study on repurposing waste focuses
on the usage of the organic waste of eggshells in 2.1 Collection of Eggshell Data
the built-up environment. Historically speak-
ing egg has been used for the past centuries Eggshell Waste Sources
from Europe to Africa to Europe (Gubba and
Eggshell waste needs to be sourced from the
Sasikala 2022). There have been studies sur-
most common producers of egg waste. During
rounding the use of eggshells in construc-
the study on the district of Kanyakumari, dis-
tion (Gubba 2019), mainly around the use of
cussions brought forward the fact that one of the
them as a fine aggregate for concrete (Raji and
main sources of eggshell waste is from the aca-
Tomi Aina 2015). This paper helps weigh the
demic sector. This is not as surprising since the
viability and sourcing of eggshell waste and then
district has the highest in the state and among all
connect the same to various possible end prod-
the other states as well. In 1956, then Chief
ucts such as concrete, cement, wall plaster, and
Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Kamaraj introduced
paint.
the Mid-Day Meals Scheme in a move to
The inquiry into the scope of eggshell waste
encourage children from villages and rural areas
used as a building material is important because
to attend schools and get proper education
it caters to the following aspects:
instead of going into the fields and working with
(1) The fact that there is an acute shortage of
their families. This has been one of the most
resources in the construction industry.
successful schemes to enhance education and
(2) There is an urgent need to understand and
literacy rate. The scheme has been renamed the
rectify the way certain wastes are being
Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman and has
disposed of and the reduction of landfills.
been successfully implemented in most of the
(3) The research would help in getting in line to
states. This scheme is instrumental in the distri-
help achieve Sustainable Development Goal
bution of eggs as part of lunch at least 3 days a
11 (make cities and human settlements
week. This particular region has up to 74,241
inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable),
enrolments per day to take advantage of the
Sustainable Development Goal 12 (ensure
scheme. This accounts to up to 44,500 eggs
sustainable consumption and production
being consumed (Ministry of Human Resource
patterns), and Sustainable Development
Development 2022) (Figs. 2 and 3).
Goal 13 (take urgent action to combat cli-
There are around 200 retail commercial bak-
mate change and its impacts).
eries and home bakers in the region producing on
average around eggshell waste from 80,000 eggs
This research will help understand the via-
per day and 7000 eggs waste from local food
bility of using egg waste in architecture by
stalls (Google Maps 2022).
studying and recording the amount of egg waste
In India, the average egg eater eats around 45
generated and the logistics involved to help in
eggs per year according to surveys and polls
procuring and using eggshell waste. One other
(Lokniti 2017). 48.5% of the population eats at
aspect will be the way that eggshell waste is used
least one egg per week (Sharma 2021). With
in different sectors and how it will help in the
these statistical data, it can be inferred that the
reduction of energy usage in terms of carbon
biggest source of eggshell waste comes from the
footprint, waste disposal, and procurement of
260,000 egg eaters in the district. It is interesting
new building material resources.
The Scope of Egg Waste Use in the Built-Up Environment … 191

Fig. 1 Research methodology

Fig. 2 Primary school children getting ready for lunch with eggs in the Kuruntankode sector school under Pradhan
Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman

to note that every person in the district has access wedding businesses and event planners), an
to at least six eggs per day. average of 50,000 eggs generates egg waste at
India is known for its lavish weddings and the venues and kitchens. 53,800 eggs are pro-
grand feasts. On average 30,000 weddings take duced on poultry farms in the district. Hatcheries
place every day. Taking the context of the in the district produce around 53,800
Kanyakumari District and the population (Kan- eggs (Animal Husbandry Department 2022)
niyakumari District Administration 2022), along which leads to the waste from eggs that are
with the wedding seasons and weddings serving damaged and broken which ranges from 6 to 8%
non-vegetarian means (survey taken with local of the total (Table 1).
192 E. K. J. Clifford

Fig. 3 Unsegregated and segregated eggshell waste in food stalls and commercial retail bakeries in Kanyakumari
District

Table 1 Eggshell waste data which will help in connecting the eggshell source with prospective building sector as per
the weight and the source
Source Average no. of eggs/Day Average weight (Kg) Current disposal method
Schools 44,500 333.75 Natural
fertilizer/incineration/landfills
Bakeries 80,000 600 Incineration/landfills
Road side stalls 7000 52.5 Incineration/landfills
Wedding caterers 50,000 375.0 Incineration/landfills
Human 260,000 1950.0 Natural
consumption fertilizer/incineration/landfills
Hatchery waste 4000 30.0 Composting/rendering

2.2 Eggshell Morphology

3 Current Scenario for Waste
Eggshells make up about 9.0–12.0% of the entire Disposal
egg weight and considering the chemical con-
stitution of an eggshell, 98% of eggshell com- The management of the large amounts of egg-
prises dry matter and 2% is composed of water. shell waste daily produced in the district is
The dry matter is constituted of mostly ash problematic because this is only disposed of in
(93.0%) and crude protein (5.0%). Eggshell landfills and incinerators. Landfills having egg
weight on average is 10% of the entire weight of waste cause the issue of odor production and
the egg which in turn is around 70.0 to 80.0 gms microbial growth and incinerators are major air
(Van Immerseel et al. 2016). This means the pollution contributors (Mignardi et al. 2020).
average weight of eggs shell waste from one egg Eggshells are collected along with other
would be 7.5 gms (Waheed et al. 2020). organic wastes and taken to municipal solid
The Scope of Egg Waste Use in the Built-Up Environment … 193

Fig. 4 Waste eggshell in a

landfill (Shiferaw et al. 2019)

waste incinerators. The main advantage of this powdered eggshell is scattered around the
method is that it saves the eggshell from being potential landscaped site and this protects it from
sent to landfills which would cause accumulation harmful slugs, snails, and cutworms that affect the
and piling up of waste in mass and volume since plants, without using harmful pesticides. Another
eggshells cannot break down easily in the soil or way is by using the biodegradable eggshell halves
allow themselves to compost. It is also one of the as an organic plant pot which is filled with potting
effective methods for destroying potentially soil to which seeds are added to each shell to start
infectious agents while eliminating the threat of seedlings. This is an organic and simple way to
disease. But the reduction is only 7.5% of the propagate a seedling in shells. Once the seedlings
original volume of the eggshell waste that is are large enough to be transplanted to the outside,
disposed of. One of the biggest disadvantages is the shells are broken from the bottom of the
the air pollution caused by the burning of the eggshell and reared seedlings are planted (Fig. 4).
material. The air emission and the disposal of
solid residue need to be strictly controlled in
proper conditions (Singh et al. 2018). It also 4 Connecting the Study
needs expensive fuel and supervision and is thus to the Relevant Sustainable
an expensive method. Development Goals
Landfills: Most of the eggshell waste pro-
duced in the district are sent to landfills. Even 4.1 Sustainable Development Goal
with the segregation of waste and cleaning at the 11
source and after collection, the other wastes
attached to the egg cause them to rot quickly, One of the targets is by 2030 to, “Reduce the
causing a smelly by-product and toxic bacterium. adverse per capita environmental impact of cities,
Studies indicate that landfills are the least sus- including by paying special attention to air
tainable and least efficient way of disposing of quality and municipal and other waste manage-
eggshell waste (Shearman 2016). ment” (11.6). Another way is by “Supporting
Natural fertilizer: This maybe the only sus- least developed countries, including through
tainable and beneficial way of disposing of the financial and technical assistance, in building
eggshell waste by recycling it. Eggshells can be sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local
used to enhance soil fertility as it quickly materials” (11.C).
decomposes. This adds nutrients like calcium and Cement production accounts to 5% of the
other minerals to the soil. A crushed and carbon emissions in the world (Barcelo et al.
194 E. K. J. Clifford

2013) which is around 900 kg of carbon dioxide 4.3 Sustainable Development Goal
(CO2) gas that is emitted into the environment for 13
every ton of cement produced (Benhelal et al.
2013). The substitution of eggshell waste in One of the goals is to “Improve education,
place of cement has been experimented with and awareness-raising and human and institutional
up to 20% replacement (Tan et al. 2018) in capacity on climate change mitigation, adapta-
mixtures such as concrete is possible which will tion, impact reduction and early warning” (13.3).
eventually help in reducing the otherwise pro- Eggshell waste disposal can be a messy pro-
duced high carbon emissions. This is also cess and when sent to landfills can produce
achieved through the reduction of clinker in harmful toxins and odor in the environment when
cement production (Shiferaw et al. 2019) which the residual dirt and matter are not cleaned or
is the main contributor to the high emission. removed from the whole egg. This study helps in
The environmental impact due to the eggshell increasing awareness of the negative environ-
waste is high risk. The US Environmental Pro- mental impact of eggshell waste while helping
tection Agency declared waste as the 15th largest the community understand and hopefully partic-
food industry-produced pollutant (MA and RK ipate in alternative solutions.
2003). The district selected for study is located in
one of the largest egg-producing states (Tamil
Nadu) of India. India itself despite being a 4.4 Eggshell Waste Usage
developing country is the second largest egg
producer in the world. The use of eggshell waste See Fig. 5.
at every level of the community will help in Examples of eggshell being used in building
creating resilient environments. construction include but are not limited to:
Lime-Based Mortar
4.2 Sustainable Development Goal 5–20% of the mixture with eggshell with 5%
12 being the best mixture helps in creating good
quality lime mortar mix (Pliya and Cree 2015).
This SDG works toward, “Achieving the sus-
Fly-Ash Blended Concrete
tainable management and efficient use of natural
resources” (12.2), “Substantially reducing waste The strength and permeability properties of
generation through prevention, reduction, recy- concrete significantly jump up to 30% of cement
cling and reuse” (12.5), “Ensuring that people substitution with 5% eggshell powder (Mahen-
everywhere have the relevant information and dran 2014).
awareness for sustainable development and life- Fine Aggregate in Concrete
styles in harmony with nature” (12.8).
Waste management is an issue that countries 100% of fine aggregate substitution helps in
like India have been facing in recent times, bringing about a stronger, lightweight type of
owing to the ever-growing population. 97.4% of concrete (Raji and Tomi Aina 2015).
the population in Tamil Nadu eats eggs and this Filler in Concrete
itself leads to an exponentially increasing pile of
eggshell waste not being utilized or properly Concrete with the eggshell powder addition of
disposed of. This method of using waste can help 10% as a filler in concrete showed the highest
in reducing waste generated as well as creating compressive strength. The inclusion of eggshell
awareness in places like public schools where powder as filler into concrete also improved the
eggs are distributed as a part of the Mid-Day flexural behavior of concrete by up to 22.9%
Meal Scheme. compared to the controlled concrete (Doh 2014).
The Scope of Egg Waste Use in the Built-Up Environment … 195

Fig. 5 Eggshell and powder

(Tanyildizi et al. 2022)

The base for Road Construction that the higher the eggshell content, the faster the
rate of setting would be (Ujin et al. 2016).
8% eggshell usage in the road base mixture
helped in stabilizing the Laterite soil processes Plaster for Walls
by helping in bringing it to the closest optimum
After having the inner film of eggshells peeled
moisture content and maximum dry density
off in this experiment, the eggshells were
properties (Okonkwo et al. 2012) (Fig. 6).
cleaned, sterilized, crushed, and ground into
Reducing the Setting Time of Concrete powder. Then water was added along with gyp-
sum and the mixture was then kneaded into a
Research shows that Cement-eggshells ash
plaster-like texture. In this process, eggshell
(CESA) paste when constituted using 2.5% of
powder was the main ingredient with 70% of the
ESA by weight of cement can help in manipu-
volume of the plaster mixture (Thomas 2005).
lating the setting time of concrete. A setting time
test was conducted on the paste that has the Replacement of Portland Cement in Concrete
eggshell waste. Results showed that the addition
While using eggshell powder in quantities of 5–
of eggshell waste powder to the ordinary Port-
20% by volume to Portland cement (Tan et al.
land cement decreased the setting time of the
2018), the results show that water-cured eggshell
cement. The conclusions drawn were that the
concrete greatly improves the compressive and
eggshell waste in the paste acted as an accelerator
flexural strength of concrete. This went up to
and further experiments were projected to prove
57.8% while also helping in the rate of water

Fig. 6 Eggshell concrete

brick (Raji and Tomi Aina
2015)
196 E. K. J. Clifford

Table 2 Eggshell usage ratios, properties, and improvement

Type of use Ratio Fire/water resistance Improvement
Lime-based mortar 5–20% F. R. properties Improved strength and
durability
Fly-ash blended concrete 6% by weight Permeability increase Increase in strength
of cement
Fine aggregate in concrete 100% NA Reduction in
weight/improvement in
strength
Filler in concrete 10% by volume Reduction in water absorption and Flexural strength by 22.9%
water penetration
Base for road construction 8% by volume Improved W.R Reduction in cost
Setting time of concrete 2.5% by weight – Reduction in setting time
Plaster for walls 70% by volume Repels moisture Decrease in temperature
Replacement of Portland 5–20% by W.R. Increased by 50% Compressive and flexural
cement in concrete volume strength

absorption of eggshell concrete by reducing The penultimate stakeholder is the distributor

approximately 50%, as eggshell powder filled up who has to connect the eggshell waste collected
the existing empty spots, making it an imper- to the end user.
meable material (Table 2). The end user is the main stakeholder of the
process since they will pay or barter for the
eggshell waste which they use in the construction
5 Results sector.
Connecting to the end user: The best way to
Stakeholders: To understand how to practically explain the source to end user flow of the eggshell
bring about this research, the stakeholders must waste will be to understand Fig. 7 explaining the
be discussed. Since the source is from where the process along with the stakeholders and the
process starts, the first stakeholders include the activities involved.
local business owners of the food stalls, bakeries,
and eateries using eggs in their daily routines.
Mid-Day Meals distributors and egg consumers 6 Discussions
at the home and local levels are also part of this
stakeholder group. The final research when taken to the practical
The next level of stakeholder is the collector stage of connecting all the stakeholders will have
of eggshell waste whose job might include the an output that is beneficial for the construction
jobs go segregation and cleaning of the eggshell industry in terms of sourcing readily available
waste as well. Collectors can be directly the eggshell waste for usage as a building material or
source workers or workers at the collection in building construction/finishing techniques.
points where the first stakeholders can come and While used as a resource, the scope of eggshell
give the eggshell waste they have accumulated. waste would also help in the reduction of land-
Transporting Personnel, Cleaning, and Stor- fills and the use of incinerators. In addition, the
age Parties have the important job of making sure conversion of eggshell waste into usable material
the eggshell waste reached the end user without will help in achieving the UN Agenda by directly
any problem (such as rot, bacteria, breakage, and and indirectly helping in attaining the Sustain-
waste through transit). able Development Goals (United Nations 2022).
The Scope of Egg Waste Use in the Built-Up Environment … 197

Fig. 7 Flowchart showing

source-to-end use of eggshell
waste

Cleaning and storage may prove a challenge sources to produce at least 3341.25 Kgs (around
since eggshells, while well preserved and 3.5 tons) of eggshell waste through various
cleaned, can only last 3–4 months. The storage methods of production. It’s interesting to note
space might prove a problem when space is tight that this can be substituted in terms of percentage
in our cities. weight for different uses in the building con-
With just the data collected for the research struction sector from 5% up to 100% of the
conducted on eggshell waste, and Kanyakumari entirety of the building construction technique/
as the main district of study has shown the building material.
198 E. K. J. Clifford

7 Conclusion building material: usage in modern and historic

context. Compr Adv Specif Summ Stud-For Arch
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Heritage to High-Tech
 Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing
the Fundamental Misalignment
Between Environmentalism
and Patronage-Based Practice

Scott Shall

Abstract think less like engineers, and more like

bricolers. To investigate this premise, this
Architects are pre-inclined, in identity, train-
writing will study three community-based
ing, and legislation, toward patronage-based projects, each of which was recently realized
practices. This bias has had a significant using a distinct, bricoler-inspired approach.
impact upon the architect’s pursuit of sustain-
From globalized crowdsourcing to hyper-
ability, causing the professional to emphasize local, peer-to-peer production, ad hoc con-
environmental approaches rooted upon linear struction to digital simulation, and design-
and hierarchical processes and specifiable
build to viral propagation, each of the offered
material palettes. Although not without reason studies will lend readers a unique perspective
or benefit, this prejudice toward predictability into new, more sustainable forms of practice.
causes the architect to struggle when attempt-
And, hopefully, incite a radical re-imagination
ing to realize environmental gain through the of each.
use of unconventional means, reclaimed mate-
rials, or localized processes. To realize more Keywords
profoundly sustainable work demands a shift
in practice. Specifically, architects must


Bricolage Environmentalism Sustainability

replace top-down patterns of engagement for Community-based projects
those that incorporate local wisdom. They
must question their allegiance to specifiable
material palettes and embrace the potential
held by reclaimed or idiosyncratic means. And 1 Bricolage: From Metaphor
they must challenge the notion that the to Concept
needs associated with the construction of the
project at hand are inherently more important Claude Lévi-Strauss’ concept of the bricoler,
than those associated with its inevitable originally described within his 1962 publication
de-construction. In short, they must begin to The Savage Mind (La Pensée Sauvage), operates
as a metaphor, used to describe the generation
and composition of mythical thought. To support
his use of the term in this manner, Lévi-Strauss
S. Shall (&) traces the concept of bricolage back to the
College of Architecture and Design, Lawrence fourteenth-century French verb “bricoler,” which
Technological University, Southfield, USA
was utilized to describe unanticipated reactions
e-mail: sshall@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 203
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
204 S. Shall

to fixed, and seemingly known, settings, as independently offering guidance using whatever
would sometimes occur in activities like billiards finite resources were at hand. Thus, these inno-
(a ball rebounding oddly off the bumper) or rid- vations are, arguably, better identified as acts of
ing (a horse diverging from the given path). He bricolage than products of intelligent design or
then posits that the “bricoler,” who he charac- rational planning (Longo 2009).
terizes as a “devious craftsman,” works in a From this, it is clear that bricolage is now
similar manner, generating unanticipated out- commonly viewed as a universal concept, to be
comes using a pre-constrained set of resources used to describe activities and products that share
(Lévi-Strauss 1968). Having thus defined the four core attributes. First, as all acts of bricolage
concept, Lévi-Strauss’ applies his definition to are constructed from a finite palette of second-
mythical thought, arguing that this type of belief hand parts, the bricoler must be skilled at using
system always expresses itself through a hetero- idiosyncratic, heterogenous, and unforeseen
geneous repertoire, constructed from a pre- components in order to produce new work.1 This
existing set of component beliefs. is the first, and foundational, attribute. Second, as
Since that time, Lévi-Strauss’ idea has tran- the bricoler only produces work from previously
scended its etymological and metaphorical roots collected componentry, all acts of bricolage will
to become a much more universal concept, be combinatorial in nature—a reality places great
deployed to describe similarly inclined approa- importance upon not only the number of
ches in a range of fields including science; art; resources gathered, but the potential embedded in
and, more recently, technology (Johnson 2012). each one. Although understanding the former
In the sciences, the term bricolage was initially concern is a simple matter of accounting,
used within the field of evolutionary biology, to addressing the latter concern requires the bricoler
support an argument that evolution is not the to engage in direct experimentation with their
product of intelligent design, but a series of store of resources. The purpose of these experi-
makeshift adaptations. It is interesting to note that ments is to expand or even subvert the original
François Jacob, a colleague of Lévi-Strauss at the purpose of the gathered means. This is why Lévi-
Collège de France, was the first to employ the Strauss (1968) refers to the bricoler as a “devious
term in this manner (Jacob 1977). Decades before craftsman.” The devious or subversive nature of
this, the art world had been embracing the con- the bricoler’s experiments provides the third and
cept of bricolage to describe the work of artists fourth attributes of bricolage: the foundational
associated with surrealism, dada, and even cub- nature of hands-on experimentation and the need
ism. However, it was not until the rise of the for these experiments to create new intention
Italian arte povera movement in the 1960s that within means designed for other purposes
bricolage was put forward with specific critical (Johnson 2012). Through this, the bricoler is
intent. Specifically, the arte povera movement, able to not only realize new promise within each
which was critical of contemporary arts’ com- gathered resources, but also to establish useful
mercial bias, promoted work that was constructed dialogues between these component parts.
with whatever rubbish was at hand, in order to
devalue the art object (Dezeuze 2008). Many 1
“The set of the ‘bricoler’s’ means cannot therefore be
contemporary artists continue to embrace this defined in terms of a project (which would presuppose
mindset, most of whom explicitly acknowledge besides, that, as in the case of the engineer, there were, at
least in theory, as many sets of tools and materials or
their approach as an act of bricolage (Fig. 1). In a
‘instrumental sets’, as there are different kinds of
similar vein, bricolage has been used to describe projects). It is to be defined only by its potential use
technology, as various authors have argued that (…) because the elements are collected or retained on the
software, biotech, and even the Internet are not principle that ‘they may always come in handy’ (ça peut
toujours servir). Such elements are specialized up to a
produced through an orchestrated design effort,
point (à demi particularisés) (…) but not enough for each
but are the result of unanticipated contributions of them to have only one definite and determinate use”
from millions of people, each of whom was (Lévi-Strauss 1968, 17–18).
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 205

Fig. 1 Artist Andy Goldsworthy uses the techniques of Constructed of carefully arranged leaves, this piece was
bricolage to generate his work. Shown here is a 2013 made on-site, in direct dialogue with the resource and
installation made for the Berrymore Foundation. context (Funderburg 2016)

When viewed in this manner, the work of the instances, the ability of the bricoler to quickly
bricoler offers an epistemological challenge for all uncover and deploy the potential offered by
those who design and construct our built envi- reclaimed materials, occupied sites, and other
ronments (Longo 2009). The fact that this idiosyncratic resources is a remarkable counter-
approach has been used with some success by the point to the time and cost associated with these
residents of extra-legal settlements—communities operations when operating within the conven-
that feature incredibly unforgiving and challeng- tional design-then-build-then-occupy creative
ing built environments—only serves to under- process.
score this challenge (Shall 2018). In each of these
206 S. Shall

2 Patterns of Practice accomplish, which helped to forge an alliance

between the architect and those actors who could
To fully understand the nature of this epistemo- best afford this scale of work (Cuff 1998).
logical challenge, and any potential reformula- Eventually, a symbiotic relationship between the
tion that might result, one must first establish the field of architecture and those who wanted to
current patterns of practice, and how they came leverage the prestige of the architectural product
to be. For architecture, these routines arguably to establish their taste, reaffirm their rarified
find their root in the fifteenth century, with the position, and extend their influence was estab-
construction of the Brunelleschi-designed dome lished. The work of the architect thus became a
over Santa Maria del Fiore—a work which luxury item, buttressed by ideological claims,
concretized a shift of architecture from a and isolated from material, economic, or other
mechanical to a liberal art, and the architect from technical concerns over which the field had very
a master-craftsperson to an independent profes- little control (Hollein 1962). In identity, training,
sional (Fig. 2) (Ettlinger 1977). As the profes- and legislation, the field of architecture, like
sion of architecture evolved over the next few engineering and planning, became a patronage-
centuries, the distance between the architect and based practice—a bias that predisposes the pro-
the trades would become more pronounced, as fessional toward patterns of engagement that are
aesthetics, not technical competency or superior hard-wired to serve their small, but powerful,
building, became the root of the field’s identity— client base (Stevens 1998).
a transition that would compel the architect to This predisposition has had a significant
trade the experimental, hands-on, and improvi- impact upon the manner by which architects
sational tactics previously used for the more engage in environmental concerns, privileging
theoretically motivated and detached concerns of approaches that can be realized using patronage-
the artist. (Crawford 1991). This attached the based palettes and practices. In terms of palettes,
value of architecture to the field’s ability realize architecture, like engineering, is generally con-
larger, more complex work than the trades could structed from a predictable and specifiable

Fig. 2 The Brunelleschi-designed dome over Santa Maria del Fiore concretized a shift of design from a mechanical to a
liberal art, and the architect from a master-craftsperson to a professional (Herb 2020)
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 207

inventory of materials. This allows the architect These limitations pose particular difficulties
to guarantee a certain level of performance whenever the architect attempts to deploy par-
within the offered work—a critical asset when ticipatory models or offer socially sustainable
authoring the large, complex projects favored by projects. In these instances, the distance between
the field’s patrons. It also causes the architect to localized knowledge and the technocratic
struggle when attempting to incorporate the approach favored by the professional creates what
environmental promise found within already researchers Theime and Kovaks term “malevolent
inhabited sites, unconventional means, or urbanism,” Thieme and Kovacs (2015, 1). Within
reclaimed materials. The idiosyncratic nature of such an arrangement, the architect cannot possi-
such elements prevents simple engagements bly create the type of resilient and sustainable
when operating within the remote, linear, and settlements advocated for by the United Nation’s
highly choreographed practices favored by the 11th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG).
field, as described below, resulting in the addi- The costs of these professional limitations are
tion of time and cost to the effort. This reality significant to everyone involved. The members
encourages the architect to embrace the envi- of under-served communities, most of whom
ronmental benefit of heavily processed materials could benefit greatly from the professional’s
or open sites, both of which are easily incorpo- insight, are forced to live within extremely
rated into traditional patterns, instead of pursuing unhealthy and unsustainable environments. As
the more substantial environmental gains offered these settlements represent one of the fastest
by reclaimed materials or occupied sites—a growing urban or peri-urban conditions on the
professional bias that subverts the ability of these planet, the impact of this shortcoming is not only
professionals to create more sustainable con- quite substantial, but is becoming more so with
sumption and production patterns, as advocated each passing year (UN-HABITAT 2003,
by the United Nation’s 12th Sustainable Devel- rev. 2010). The architect, who could enlarge
opment Goal (SDG). their environmental and societal impact if they
In terms of practice, architects and engineers were able to better incorporate idiosyncratic
are trained to operate within a carefully chore- conditions, is able to produce only marginally
ographed, linear, and hierarchical design process. sustainable work. And the planet, which bears
The actors involved are identified well in advance the cost of the massive environmental footprint
and their insight offered at clearly defined of both legal and extra-legal settlements, con-
moments within the effort. If the insight of others tinues to deteriorate. Perhaps by questioning the
is included, it is either because the patron stipu- field’s historic bias toward certain ways of
lated that the architect creates a more inclusive working, the architect might move from
process or the architect determined it necessary exploitative, consumer-based patterns of resource
and was willing to add uncompensated time to management to approaches that more restorative,
their effort. Yet, even then, the insight offered by regenerative, and circular—a crucial evolution if
the non-patron remains secondary to that of the the architect is to embrace resource guardianship
patron. This arrangement, although useful in and equity as fundamental to practice and to
establishing the primacy of the patron in the generate truly sustainable work. Perhaps by
process, prevents the professional from fully embracing the tenants of bricolage—a well-
understanding or appreciating local concerns or established approach to working with idiosyn-
vernaculars. It also makes it difficult to produce cratic means, materials, and contexts—the
anchored and effective work when operating in architect might expand practice, embrace the
contexts unlike their own, as is generally the case promise of new resources, and help to create a
when working within extra-legal settlements. healthier planet for everyone (Shall 2021).
208 S. Shall

3 Bricolage Architecture: Three works was analyzed using four metrics: (1) the
Case Studies deployment of localized practices, (2) the use of
found or reclaimed materials, (3) the ease with
Selection To investigate this premise, this writ- which the work can be deconstructed and amen-
ing will analyze three community-based pro- ded, and (4) the ability of the work to propagate its
jects which the author helped to co-create with core tenants or innovations. This final concern—
local citizens using, a distinct, bricoler-inspired the propagation of the offered insight—is argu-
approach. So that the offered study might permit ably the most critical. This is because the cost of
a fair comparison, the author established three design practice renders professional services
criteria for the selection of works. First, and most unobtainable for most people. Thus, if architects
obviously, each project in the study had to be and engineers are interested in increasing their
realized using the techniques of the bricoler, as impact upon our shared environment, then they
earlier defined. Second, each project had to be must find ways to better propagate their insight, at
designed and constructed using only modest little cost. Viral propagation is thus included as a
resources. Although this is undoubtedly a relative final metric within this analysis.
parameter, for the purposes of this study a cap of
$5,000 USD (2022 valuation) was established.
And third, each of the selected works had to be 3.1 Control: Mansarovar Park
designed and constructed in using primarily Development (2018)
idiosyncratic means and localized practices.
Methodology Once the works were selected, a To establish a useful baseline for this study, this
comparative analysis, using the collective case writing will first analyze a series of design pro-
study methodology defined by R. E. Stake, could posals created in 2018, when a massive fire
be performed (Stake 1995). So as to ensure a destroyed an extra-legal community in eastern
consistent and relevant assessment, each of the New Delhi (Fig. 3). Immediately following this

Fig. 3 After a massive fire destroyed an extra-legal community in New Delhi, local designers volunteered their talents
to help the residents reconstruct their community in a smarter, more sustainable fashion (Malhotra 2018)
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 209

event, a handful of local designers volunteered 3.2 Case Study: Demountable

their time to help the residents reconstruct their Schools for Mumbai Mobile
community in a smarter, more sustainable fash- Creches (2008)
ion. Working within a traditional approach, these
designers offered some very clever projects, each The first case study is centered on a series of
of which utilized locally available, cost-effective, temporary communities that are built within the
and non-flammable materials to not only rebuild construction sites of India. Designed to house
the community, but to allow the residents to those who are building the project, these settle-
easily move their homes whenever they were ments are typically built along the edges of the
forced to relocate. site with whatever construction debris is avail-
Analysis Surprisingly, very few of these ideas able—a situation that can be less than ideal for
were ever implemented. From interviews, it the children living there. To help address this, an
appears that the offered designs were not rejected Indian-based non-profit organization, Mumbai
due to their lack of efficacy, but because their Mobile Creches (MMC), made a proposal to
utility was measured using absolute terms, not several local developers: if they would provide
those valued locally. For example, although the the physical infrastructure for a school, then
ideas were shared as quickly as normative design MMC would provide the teachers and materials
processes would permit, the pace of work was needed to run it. The idea took root, leading to
still too slow to keep up with that commonly the formation of schools on construction sites
used in the settlement. Thus, by the time the around Mumbai. It also led to an interesting
ideas were presented, the residents had already dilemma regarding the design of these schools:
purchased materials or even begun rebuilding. how to establish a trustworthy and secure
Similarly, although the proposed material palette resource that was overtly temporary and built
was inexpensive by the standards of the profes- using only borrowed resources. To help answer
sion, they were measurably more expensive than this question, the author worked with a US-based
the resources typically used within the settle- non-profit and MMC to rethink the design of all
ment. This is likely because the designers, who educational structures that define a school, from
were somewhat removed from the context of the the building itself to the furnishings and equip-
work, did not fully appreciate the inventory of ment (Figs. 4 and 5). From this rethinking, a
materials gathered by the community and thus number of projects emerged, including a $2
based their work on an assumed palette. Finally, water filter, a portable earth wall, and a foldable
the offered designs were rejected because the play mat that allowed the children to easily, and
residents feared that they would cause the independently, restructure their learning envi-
authorities to view the community as permanent, ronment (IDC 2021).
which could prompt its removal. This was a Analysis In assessing this work, it is clear that
particularly ironic shortcoming, as the offered localized practices were heavily used, as every
works were intentionally designed to be decon- project was developed in partnership with local
structed, and removed. However, because their officials and realized using only local resources.
transportability was not expressed clearly within For example, the $2 water filter was fabricated
the design, this intention was unclear. In the end, using reclaimed tarps and a clear plastic storage
the only ideas implemented, such as moving bag, joined together using the sealer borrowed
cooking fires outside the home and widening the from a local spice merchant and gromets pro-
lanes between structures, were those that could vided by a local tailor. Similarly, the foldable
be realized without upsetting the core values of playmat was designed in coordination with a
the community. All other ideas, no matter how local autorickshaw upholsterer, who was excited
efficacious, were rejected (Malhotra 2018). to partner with MCC in this work, because he
210 S. Shall

Wisdom of Crowds (Surowiecki 2005). This is

likely why the designers working with MCC
were able to offer work that was so locally
rooted—their insight was supported by the
unpolluted insight of hundreds of others with
intimate knowledge of the situation.
Yet, despite these successes, none of the
offered works were ever replicated by the host
community. This is likely for two reasons. First,
although the resources used were objectively
modest, they were not free. The resulting price
point presented a hurdle too high for MMC to
either purchase additional copies of the work or
to convince the developers to do so. Second, all
of the offered projects were designed as a well-
crafted solution to a given problem, instead of an
open-ended approach to the issue which could be
easily evolved. The resulting designs were
unable to be amended or evolved by MMC, as is
necessary when confronting unanticipated sites
or concerns. These shortcomings likely pre-
vented the work from propagating and compro-
mising its impact upon MCC’s situation.

3.3 Case Study: An Outdoor

Classroom and Community
Garden in Philadelphia
(2011)

The second case study focuses on a small project

at Bodine High School in North Philadelphia.
Completed in 2011, the stated intent of this
project was to develop an outdoor garden and
classroom space for the school. Additionally, the
project was intended to strengthen the relation-
Fig. 4 To generate the work in India, the design team first ship between the school and those living in the
documented how the local population built their shelters— surrounding neighborhood—a relationship that
approaches that prioritized the practices of the bricoler. had become quite fraught over the years, mani-
Shown here are some of the materials and details that were
analyzed as a part of this investigation (IDC 2021)
festing in the erection of a large, secure fence
around the perimeter of the property. Inspired by
a desire to address the message of distrust con-
viewed it as a promising business opportunity. In veyed by this fence, the large number of aban-
fact, almost all of the works were crowdsourced doned lots in the surrounding neighborhood, and
in this manner, inviting those impacted by the the modest budget for the project, the author, in
potential school to contribute their wisdom coordination with local partners, endeavored to
independently in a manner very much like author construct a response to this call from components
James Surowiecki describes in his book, The common to an abandoned lot (Fig. 6). To do this,
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 211

Fig. 5 Mumbai Mobile Creches (MMC) provides school structures that define a school, generating projects like
services to kids living on construction sites around this foldable play mat through which the children might
Mumbai. To help this effort, a US-based non-profit easily restructure their learning environment (IDC 2021)
worked with MMC to rethink the design of all educational

this team had to first gather a massive inventory of whom volunteered to provide scraps of wood
of these materials. They then had to experiment or other assets to the project—to ask if they
with these resources to find new uses in order to might help to maintain the new gardens or use
meet the demands of the given program and site. the space. In this way, the project shifted the
Through these efforts, the design team discov- prevailing message of the fence typology from
ered that by challenging the orthogonal geometry one of protectionism to one of welcome. It also
of the fence typology, common fence posts and offered a compelling testimony to the potential of
90° elbows could be utilized to create the struc- reclaimed materials common to Philadelphia’s
ture for all of the programmed elements, abandoned lots (IDC 2021).
including benches, retaining walls, raised garden Analysis From the various accounts of the
beds, and a large overhanging canopy. The process and work, it is clear that the project
complex geometry thereby generated caused a successfully adopted many strategies of the bri-
provoking distortion of the other elements used, coler, including the gathering of resources “just
including standard, chainlink fencing, and in case,” the open-ended experimentation with
reclaimed wood (Fig. 7). The resulting work these reclaimed resources and the devious
offered a playful, inviting space to both the craftsmanship that these activities are intended to
school and the surrounding neighborhood, inspire (Fig. 8). In each stage of the work, the
prompting those living around the school—many design team appears to have made a conscious
212 S. Shall

Fig. 6 The design team responsible for the project in uncover new potential. Shown here is a local vendor
North Philadelphia began their effort by creating an donating construction debris to the effort—materials that
exhaustive inventory of materials that could be found or would prove instrumental to the design response (IDC
reclaimed and then experimenting with these assets to 2021)

decision to minimize their reliance upon highly programmatically. Yet, like the project in India,
predictable material palettes and embrace the this project also failed to provide obvious means
potential held by local, reclaimed, and idiosyn- or incentive to possess and evolve the work. As a
cratic means.2 This stance permitted the design- result, the project remains a compelling one-off,
ers to minimize the budget and environmental despite the fact that it featured many innovative
footprint of the work—achievements that are strategies to build with common, local, and
well-aligned with the intention of many acts of inexpensive means. The reasons for this are
bricolage. The project’s resulting emphasis upon twofold. First, although the project utilized the
local, reclaimed materials seems to have been components of an abandoned lot, gathering the
complemented by a commensurate emphasis massive amount of materials required for the
upon local practices and tools, rooting the project work was not a small task. To accomplish this, a
to its context materially, tectonically, and small team of designers had to scour the local
area for weeks, organizing, at key moments,
2
several larger scale volunteer efforts to find,
This is a central tenant of bricolage. As stated by Levi-
Strauss: “For the bricoler, the design and construction of receive, and organize the rubble, earth, con-
any work comes from whatever is at hand; for the struction debris, and other reclaimed resources.
engineer, what is at hand is specified by the professional The scale of this effort, although necessary for
to meet the largely quantifiable demands of the project, the project, created a hurdle for those who might
and their patrons” (Levi-Strauss 1968).
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 213

Fig. 7 ChainlinkGREEN uses components common to strengthen the relationship between the school and the
an abandoned lot in order to provide outdoor classroom surrounding community (IDC 2021)
spaces for a North Philadelphia High School, and to

wish to develop a related work. Second, and spanning two continents and involving two uni-
perhaps more importantly, the skill needed to versities, two non-profits and a host of volunteers,
fabricate this project was not nearly as accessible the now-completed Port Elizabeth Makerspace
as the tools or materials used. To point, although offers community members a physical and
a common, accessible material (reclaimed wood) inspirational base of operations to support the use
was used to fabricate the surfaces for all of the of reclaimed materials in construction. Physi-
benches, the complex geometry of the project cally, the makerspace offers the community a
required that these resources be cut at precise place to store tools, organize, and refine scav-
lengths and angles, a skill not possessed by most enged materials and construct work. As a prece-
amateur builders. Thus, although the community dent, the makerspace provides a compelling
embraced the work as an artifact and expressed a proof-of-concept, clearly demonstrating the
desire to build similar versions around their value and potential of creatively reusing found
neighborhood, they have, to date, been unable to objects in construction (Figs. 9 and 10). The fact
do so. that the makerspace was completed by a team of
11 in only 10 days—3 days scavenging materials
and designing and 7 days constructing—and with
3.4 Case Study: A Community Event a budget of only $1500 makes this potential res-
and Makerspace in South onate. For the citizens of Port Elizabeth, many of
Africa (2019) whom live and work within post-Apartheid
communities of great need, this frugality is not
The third, and final, case study analyzes a com- a nicety, but an essential attribute. By embracing
munity event and makerspace recently completed this restriction, the designers endeavored to shift
in South Africa. Supported by a partnership the work from a tantalizing one-off to a blueprint
214 S. Shall

Fig. 8 To design and construct the Port Elizabeth critical to the design response, providing the structure for
Makerspace the design team had to leverage the potential both floors and walls as well as all of the wood used to
within a variety of reclaimed materials, including the fabricate the glue-laminated members that supported the
packaging for automobile engines, shown here. Donated roof (from IDC 2021)
by a local Isuzu assembly plant, these metal panels proved

through which the community might realize new seems that such propagation remains rare, as
project for years to come (IDC 2021). there is no evidence to point to their widespread
Analysis Yet, did the project achieve this use by others. Although the reasons for this
lofty goal? The answer is mixed. There is clear deficiency are difficult to establish definitively, it
evidence to suggest that the tactics used to create seems logical to assert that the cause is not
the makerspace have been subsequently related to the means or materials used, as all of
deployed in the community. For example, a local the resources deployed by the work remain quite
architect who was involved in the initial work accessible. After all, a designer involved in the
has since used the strategies developed through initial work has had no trouble using these
this project to design and construct several new resources to serve other clients and develop other
works, including a home for a local citizen living projects within communities of great need. Nor
within a neighboring township. In this structure, can it be attributed to the scale of the effort, as the
many of the materials and approaches used in the projects that were developed from this precedent
initial work are clearly evident, including the were constructed using smaller teams and no
prolific use of many of the same reclaimed heavy equipment. Instead, it seems that the rea-
materials and even the specific manner by which son for this lack of propagation is related to how
these assets were refined (Fig. 8). In so doing, the difficult it is to fully understand the offered
architect was able to create a work that was much insight. This would explain why someone who
more efficient, sustainable, and economical than was directly involved in the initial work had no
could have been otherwise achieved. Yet, it problem using its tactics to improve the financial
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 215

Fig. 9 The Port Elizabeth Makerspace offers community Completed by a team of 11 in only 10 days and with a
members a physical and inspirational base of operations to budget of only $1500, this project has resonated through
support the use of reclaimed materials in construction. the local community (from IDC 2021)

Fig. 10 Since its completion, the 2019 Makerspace has and built by a South African architect, who leveraged
reverberated through the community, as local citizens many of the approaches developed through the 2019
leverage its unique material approach to realize new project to reduce its environmental and financial footprint
clinics, homes, and schools. This residence was designed (photo courtesy of Kevin Kimwelle)
216 S. Shall

and environmental footprint of several other unconventional resources, and to create more
unrelated projects. And why there is no evidence radically sustainable work. Regrettably, it is
of anyone else doing so. equally clear that these tactics will remain largely
Addressing this flaw is likely complex, as a isolated to a single project, unless more robust
designer can only directly involve so many patterns for vestment and education are estab-
individuals in the construction of a project of this lished—a supposition that is currently under
scale without adding undue complexity to the review in the township where the house based
effort. And having three or four individuals with upon the Port Elizabeth Makerspace was devel-
such exposure is only a marginal improvement oped. If these works are successful, the argument
from one. Thus, if the goal is widespread prop- for a much more radical reimaging of practice
agation, then a different model of engagement is will likely become warranted.
likely required. This could, theoretically, assume Yet, even if these experimental works
many forms, from a series of dedicated work- demonstrate some measure of success, wide-
shops wherein local citizens are invited to build scale implementation of their approach remains a
under the guidance of someone who has more difficult proposition, given the historic biases of
intimate knowledge of the work to a system the field, and the well-established academic and
encouraging more exponential propagation, professional systems that have been created to
whereby those involved in the first work each support them. To challenge this professional
take on a second project, inviting two others to inertia requires that those working within the
partner with them, who then take on a third field establish alternative support systems,
project, and so on. If these processes are repeated including, but not limited to, the creation of new
enough, then the number of people with direct academic structures, alternative resource banks,
knowledge of the offered innovations will and revised measures for professional success.
increase exponentially, theoretically creating The architect must complement academic pur-
enough knowledge and interest to promote large- suits that privilege theoretical mandates—exer-
scale propagation. cises that will often assume unfettered access to
an immense inventory of predictable resources—
with those that are anchored upon limited means
4 Conclusion and idiosyncratic materials. They must commit to
the prioritization of local, reclaimed, and scav-
This hypothetical will be tested quite soon, as I enged resources within their work, so that the
have recently been invited to return to South entities providing these assets and services might
Africa in order to design and construct a school be better supported, and thrive. And award pro-
in a low-income community outside Port Eliza- grams and publishing houses must shift resources
beth. This work will provide me an opportunity from the promotion of theoretically rigorous,
to offer even more accessible versions of brico- complex, and large-scale projects to those that
lage practice, where they will be tested once herald work anchored upon the innovative use of
more by the rigors of their context. localized assets, idiosyncratic resources, and
And, judging from the projects highlighted alternative practices. They must also celebrate
above, it seems that such tests could be impor- acts of de-and re-construction with as much
tant. From the case studies, it seems evident that energy as they do new construction. In short,
the tactics of the bricoler can be leveraged by the architects, and the structures that support them,
architect to more effectively incorporate must embrace the tenants and works of bricolage
idiosyncratic, reclaimed material into their with as much fervor as they do the products of
efforts. From these works, it is also clear that the current, patronage-based practices. Although
direct, experimental nature of the bricoler’s undoubtedly a challenging endeavor, expanding
approach can be successfully used by the archi- practice in this manner seems warranted. After
tect to unlock unanticipated potential within all, as evidenced by the works analyzed
Bricolage Sustainability: Addressing the Fundamental Misalignment … 217

previously, there exists ample proof that by Johnson C (2012) bricoler and bricolage: from metaphor
thinking less like engineers, and more like bri- to universal concept. Paragraph 35(3):355–372.
[Link]
colers, the architect can offer much more radi- Levi-Strauss C (1968) The savage mind. The University
cally sustainable work—to the benefit of both the of Chicago Press, Chicago
field and all those served by it. Longo G (2009) The epistemological turn: technology,
bricolage and design. [Link]
theepistemological-turn-technology-bricolage-and-
design/. Accessed 1 Sept 2022
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 Leaving No Maker Behind:
Cultures of Tile Vault Making
for Situated Design

Wesam Al Asali

Abstract current research on manufacturing and prefab-

ricating replicable low-carbon building com-
Although recent calls in digital fabrication
ponents. These threefolds can be translated to
acknowledge local construction methods, the methods to engage socially and environmen-
“local” in this framework is either a passive tally with local materials and knowledge.
recipient of technological tools or a passive
“Leaving no maker behind” acknowledges
source of inspiration. The difference between the overlooked human dimension of local
high- and low-tech is much more than switch- construction: working directly with makers.
ing from robots to hand-making, as the two
domains represent equal (but almost contra- Keywords
dictory) modes of imagination, planning and
decision-making This paper aims to reflect on


Building crafts Tile vaulting Vernacular
the possible contribution of architectural prac-

architecture Low-carbon construction

tice and technologies to support vernacular Experimental pavilions
building crafts. It reflects on four experimental
case studies of tile vaults made in collaboration
between the master vault makers and an 1 Introduction: On Withoutcisim
architect to push the technique towards new in Architectural Praxis
applications and approaches to resourceful
construction. The paper shows that the link Construction is one of the most environmentally
between architectural practice and local build- extractive activities. It accounts for 40% of glo-
ing crafts is a threefold dialogue. First, bal energy consumption, 38% of greenhouse gas
designers should engage with the complexity emissions, and 40% of waste generation (UNEP
of craft by illustrating its processes, not 2021). The increasing requestioning of ‘how we
products. Second, designers should work with build resourcefully under climate emergency’ has
local building crafts communities beyond fuelled two strands of critique. The first seeks to
formal institutional channels. Third, designers introduce digital tools, smart applications and
should include vernacular knowledge in the data-driven planning into design and construc-
tion (Agustí-Juan and Habert 2017; Beorkrem
2017). The second emphasises the role of ver-
nacular knowledge, sometimes called ‘indige-
W. Al Asali (&) nous’, ‘situated’ or ‘traditional’, that relies on
IE University, Madrid, Spain
local materials and building skills (Sayigh 2019;
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 219
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
220 W. Al Asali

Watson 2019). However, relatively little has complexified and regulated through institutional
been said about the relationship between the two. channels. This twofold problem has led to limit-
This paper aims to reflect on the shared terrain ing the creation of building components to a list
between these two domains: the vernacular and of studied, tested and verified elements. It,
the technological. We explore experimental and therefore, pushed for an architecture that, due to
collaborative projects of tile vaults—a craft that its strict systematisation, excludes forms of
incorporates design and engineering to make building that are more open to adopting local
structural building elements (Collins 1968). The conditions, materials and knowledge.
article starts by introducing tile vaulting as a This is changing now. With the urgency to
vernacular technique that both outlived and co- rethink how architecture can rethink its resour-
lived with industrial construction for its effi- ces, emerging environmental approaches call for
ciency and resourcefulness. These features are engaging with indigenous and vernacular archi-
then examined in four case studies of collabora- tecture which are tied with the notion of local
tion between an architect and a vault master. materials and techniques. However, with the
After reflecting on these case studies, the article excitement to link the high-tech and low-tech in
concludes with a methodological framework on construction cultures, there is a lot to examine on
‘how to work with local crafts?’ through three how such bridging culturally, socially and eco-
sets of activities: (1) modelling existing pro- nomically impacts both design and craft com-
cesses of vernacular making, (2) collaborating munities. Therefore, the question of ‘how can we
with the crafts community within and outside learn from indigenous or local knowledge of
formal and institutional structures and (3) work- making?’ is not enough because it treats such
ing with artisans to develop replicable building knowledge as static sources for a one-way
components. understanding of learning. It limits the
Since the establishment of architectural design exchange to extrapolating modes from craft to
as a modern profession, its relationship with other architecture and deprives architects and local
forms of making outside its recognised circles has makers of a fruitful discussion on the future of
been a space of tension and ambiguity. Between both professions. The question, therefore, is how
dismissing or patronising how non-architects can we work with indigenous or local knowl-
build, studies of architectural theory and history edge of making?
understood architecture by the presence or
absence of the centralised design agent—with or
without architects (Rudofsky 1964). Under this 2 Methodology: Building
self-centred framework, design studies coined in Conversation
multiple terms such as adhocism (Jencks and
Silver 2013), design-in-use, unintentional or Tile vaulting, also called Catalan, Timbrel and
unselfconscious design (Alexander 1964) for Guastavino vaulting, is a Mediterranean tech-
describing the alteration or creation of the built nique of laminated vaults (Fig. 1). This method
environment beyond the formal architectural uses lightweight terracotta tiles and fast-setting
profession (Kuijer et al. 2017). This withoutcisim mortar such as plaster of Paris or rapid cement
to define the vernacular and indigenous built (Collins 1968; Huerta 2003). After finishing one
environment represents a twofold problem in layer of tiles with the fast-setting mortar, it serves
architecture praxis. The first is limiting design as the formwork for subsequent layers, infill or
thinking to a ‘single mode of processes’, where lime concrete, or ribs that converts the thin shells
steps and procedures of illustrating the building to into floor systems for multistorey building
its finest details precede its construction. The (Ochsendorf 2014).
second is limiting design operations to a ‘single Tile vaulting is associated with resourceful
mode of agency’ where such illustrations are building techniques. First, by being a vault, it
conditioned with verification procedures that are relies on geometry, not materials, to gain its
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 221

Fig. 1 Three types of vaults

—clockwise, from top left:
conventional stone, tiled
dome and tiled vault. Luis
Moya Blanco 1947

strength. This method leads to minimum use of site before construction. It can be stated then that
steel and concrete, especially when constructing what was lost was not tile vaulting technique but
floor systems in multistorey buildings where a its relationship with structural and architectural
concrete slab has the highest carbon footprint design. To restore this relationship with the
among other building elements (Jayasinghe et al. recent attention to this resourceful technique, the
2022). Second, tile vaulting uses minimum role of these tile stairs master builders was cru-
formwork and relies on a builder’s skill guided cial in training others to build tile vaults, con-
with light structures known as guidework. As an tributing to new vaulted projects, and building
architectural element, it interlaces many aspects. several expressive structures in architectural
It strongly connects with tacit knowledge, exhibitions.
inherited from being a craft first and foremost, A snippet of these roles will be shown in the
and structural design governed by rules of following four collaborative projects of tile
gravity. Approaching tile vaulting for contem- vaulting. We will examine how to work with
porary application engages with both craft and local craft by reflecting on design-build examples
structural design (Davis and Block 2012; Ram- and architectural projects developed as part of a
age et al. 2019; López et al. 2019). 5-year collaboration between an architect
The traditional knowledge of tile vaults could researcher and a master builder of tile vaulting.
survive standardised construction. With the wide The experiments have been developed through
use of standardised reinforced concrete con- small-scale commissions or self-funded initia-
struction, formal architectural practice pro- tives. Each experiment had to respond to specific
nounced tile vaulting nearly dead in the 1950s questions about the role of structural craft in
(Truñoi Rusiñol et al. 2004, p. 4). However, this contemporary construction, which includes vault
vernacular technique was kept alive thanks to the prefabrication, developing tools for in situ form-
masters who specialised in building vaulted stairs finding, co-designing of shells and using acces-
(Al Asali 2016). Because they are faster to build sible modelling technologies with vaulting craft.
than reinforced concrete stairs, vaulted stairs The analysis forms the experiment was based on
were, and are still, favoured in Spain in multi- notes, records of discussions and noting the
storey housing buildings. development of the designed element in the
Tile vaulted stairs have never been studied experiment. Co-making as a methodological
within building regulations. It is approved by approach proved very useful in researching
empirical load testing after it is built. Further, architecture and building crafts. Given the lim-
while architects draw stairs in their layouts, their ited scale and scope of the experiment, they do
drawings are more figurative and approximative not necessarily represent the complexity and
for building masters to rearrange the design on intricacy usually found in the practice of
222 W. Al Asali

architecture. However, learnings from them can systems of shallow slabs to a full-height
be extrapolated into actionable strategies that can expressive vault (Fig. 2).
hopefully be explored in future research. Expo regulations permit 2 weeks for trans-
portation of materials, onsite construction, and
preparation for the exhibition. This period did not
3 Results: Four Case Studies of Tile allow for the designed 7.5 m walk-through
Vault Experiments structure to be built. The challenge prompted a
new experiment in tile vaulting, in which vaults
3.1 Fabricarte: Altering Sequences were constructed in a workshop, sliced, trans-
for Shells Manufacturing ferred to the site, and reassembled for the exhi-
bition. Repetition and modularity were central to
In 2018, we were invited to design a pavilion for the design, where two moulds only of quarters of
a project during the annual Expo of Spanish the vaults can generate the entire pavilion. The
Ceramics (Cevisama), coordinated by the Insti- slices in each quarter were made to avoid linear
tuto de Tecnologia Ceramica (ITC) and curated horizontal cuts and maintain interlocking joints
by the Asociación Española de Fabricantes de between the pieces (Fig. 3). The calculations of
Azulejos y Pavimentos Cerámicos (ASCER). We the cuts were studied based on the height and
proposed to make a walk-through pavilion that weight of parts to keep the manufacturing pro-
celebrates the craft of structural tile vaulting in cess manageable without machinery, each piece
Spain, inspired by late-gothic vaulting in was calculated to be held by two workers on the
Valencia’s 13-fifteenth centuries. The pavilion ground (maximum of 120 kg) or one person on a
FabricArte’s is based on a groin vault composi- scaffold (maximum of 50 kg). The structural
tion resulting in a shell that changes from flat analysis of the vault was made using graphic

Fig. 2 Fabricarte design and

construction concept
(inverted)
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 223

Fig. 3 Construction and

manufacturing strategy,
calculating the weights of
pieces. Mould design and
assembly

statics with a particle-spring system for form- (CNC) for screw-less easy assembly and disas-
finding, verification and maximum loads (Fig. 4). sembly without drawings.
The vault was made of three layers of tiles with a In a workshop, the moulds were assembled
maximum thickness of 100 mm. While the first and one layer of tile vaults with plaster was built;
and last symmetrical vaults were calculated by only side arches had a second layer to add sta-
graphic statics for parallel sections, the forces in bility to the pieces during onsite assembly. After
the middle transitional vault were studied in both the completion of a quarter, it was sliced by
directions to ensure that the modular construction radial saws using the suggestive pattern as a
of the vault would not result in discrepancies guide. The pieces were transported on a mid-
between thrust lines and the geometry of the sized truck, and the moulds supported the shells’
vault. Moulds were designed for modular quar- reassembly. The building team completed all
ters and cut using computer numerical control loading and unloading; the mould/formwork

Fig. 4 Structural design and

analysis using graphic statics
224 W. Al Asali

Fig. 5 Construction process

of fabricarte

installation took 1 day and the vault assembly and the joints between the tiles were filled with
took 5 days. The assembly of the shell was made cement mortar (Figs. 6 and 7). The pavilion’s
with plaster glueing its parts again. The tiles were flooring reflected the cutting lines of the vaults as
hollow and the plaster at the cut edge did not a diagram of the process of manufacturing.
need to be thick, making only minimal changes FabricArte examined the possibility of tile-
in the original geometry. Strips of fibreglass vault manufacturing. It showed a system of pre-
textile with plaster were added under the primary fabrication that does not rely on the high-precision
diagonal edge connections (Fig. 5). Once the fabrication of building components for rapid
pieces were joined in the three vaults, two layers onsite construction. Instead, precision is inherent
of tiles were added at the top and bottom of the in the cutting of the shells. Tile vaulting remained
vault. The lower layer was made with plaster, the primary technique used in the building.

Fig. 6 FabricArte exterior

views
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 225

Fig. 7 FabricArte interior

view 1

3.2 Bending Parabolas at a given span-to-height ratio. The process

resulted in a strip with a maximum thickness in
Inspired by the recent advances in the research its first and third quarters and a minimum
on controlled bending, we wanted to explore thickness in the middle (Fig. 8).
bending-active structures for regenerative form-
work or guidework for load-bearing shells y ¼ a  bx2 ð1Þ
(Tamke et al. 2013; Lienhard et al. 2013;
2=3
Alexandrou and Phocas 2017). Traditionally, 1 þ ð2bxÞ2
vernacular tile vaults’ construction incorporates Rð x Þ ¼ ð2Þ
2b
bent elements of reed or steel bars wedged
between the vault’s corners to mark the curva- The tool in hand, now called the bending para-
tures for sail or cross vaults. However, this bola, can be used to devise an elastic guidework
method is only useable when the bending is for a parabolic arch as it closes and opens,
minimal, where the parabolic, catenary and resulting in a valid shape as guidework for vault
elastic curves are very similar. When bending builders (Fig. 9).
with more acute angles, the elastic and parabolic The structural and design property vaults
curves begin to diverge significantly, and the become inherent in the tool. Both can be made
bent steel bar is no longer valid as a reference for without designing a geometry-specific structural
vaulting (Fig. 8). Our approach is to control the analysis. Therefore, the strip offers the possibility
bending by changing the stiffness of the material for an autonomous in situ form-finding of
along the strut by adding and subtracting material structures that can be built with unskilled or
at a given location. novice labour (Fig. 10). Based on the bending
Two main equations were used to find the parabola tool, we created three vaults using
stiffness variation, the buckling equation and the engineered bamboo strips with varied lamina-
parabola equation. The material variation can be tions. The method successfully described the
solved and approximated when the two are equal geometry and served as a learning tool for the
226 W. Al Asali

Fig. 8 Top: Elastica and Parabola behaviours. Middle: Results from approximation by changing stiffness concerning
the height of the parabolic arch. Down: The resulting average bending parabola tool (right) compared to a typical strip

Fig. 9 Physical testing of bending parabola. Top left and right: Using laser cutting. Down left: Adding laminas of
rectangular strips

builder to build an unconventional vault structures. In this system, the changing stiffness
(Fig. 10). of each component in the structure not only
However, this project was more intriguing drives the bending but also allows for a sagging
because it moved into new design territories. The effect of the flexible formwork to make the
focus on the tools pushed for a departure from stiffening ribs. Following the pattern of the
bending linear elements to combine networks of internal stresses inside a sail vault, the voids were
bending-active systems with flexible formwork reconfigured to align to the force’s direction and
for concrete slabs or lightweight flat-packed enhanced by changing the number of layers of
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 227

Fig. 10 In situ, vaults

prototype by bamboo strips as
guidework 2016

textile to control the sagging depth (Fig. 11). can be reused or left as a stay-in-place formwork;
Two 1/100 prototypes were made with wood be an offsite manufacturing industry or made on
plate and spandex and showed a possibility for the move (Fig. 11).
developing this approach towards making con- While the core of this project was about tile
crete floor system from flatpack formwork. vaulting, the technique itself was secondary, and
Because it is a pattern, the system can be trans- the focus shifted to a study on describing the
lated into an object by various techniques, load-bearing shell by bending. Hence, what was
ranging from advanced computer-aided fabrica- examined was the tool to build and not the
tion to a saw in the hands of a skilled carpenter. It building. This project aimed to make a
228 W. Al Asali

Fig. 11 Floor system from

flatpack sheets from drawing
to casting

‘generative’ guidework whose inherent proper- the initial ideation of the pavilion’s geometry was
ties can find many shells. Although some limi- proposed by the master builder with a shell rep-
tations were encountered in the curved bending resenting an olive leaf, a cherished tree in the
strips, such as the limited range of parabolic Spanish Levantine food culture. His design was
curves a strip can make, they expand the possi- developed through a sketch model (Fig. 12).
bility of a formwork beyond solving one shell Moving onwards, we wanted to develop this idea
only. structurally and architecturally to host a space for
a dining table for ten people. The builder
developed the initial model but this time using
3.3 La Hoja: Swapping Roles small representative tiles, which inferred both a
level of abstraction of the geometry and an
In 2021, we got a commission to design an approximation to a load-bearing shell structure.
outdoor pavilion in a chef’s house. However, After the conceptual design, we started a
unlike the traditional architectural design path, structural form-finding to make a pavilion from

Fig. 12 Design development

of the Leaf. Top: Early
models by the vault maker.
Down: Modelling developed
by the architect
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 229

three edge arches where the variation of the Participants of builders, architects and structural
height of each arch results in a leaf representa- engineers worked together under the supervision
tion. This was achieved by extruding one pillar of the master builder. The pavilion’s construction
of the pavilion above ground level so that the started with the installation of formwork for the
catenary arches resulted in asymmetrical curves. edge arches, which was reduced to the minimum
The height of the arches also responded to the through bending metal strips of 5 by 500 mm
orientation of the pavilion to shelter from the sections supported by extendable scaffolding
afternoon sun but let the late evening sun enter. props with changing height to govern the
The play of the different heights gave an geometry of the edge arch (Fig. 14). An addi-
abstracted leaf-shaped shell seen from a specific tional strip was installed inside the vault to pro-
angle facing the entrance of the chef’s property. vide a visual guide for the trainees.
The resulting thrusts from the pavilion were During the workshop, the vault’s construction
calculated using graphic statics, with three sec- started spirally from the edge arches towards the
tions in the edge arches and a section in the centre of the vault. After the workshop, the
centre of the vault (Fig. 13). The horizontal master builder will add two more layers of tiles,
thrusts were contained in reinforced limecrete one exterior and one interior. For the interior
foundations of 200 by 200 mm with rebars of coursing, we will use fast-setting plaster of Paris
12 mm diameter. Three vertical pillars were to add the tiles and then refill the grouts with the
extruded to receive and anchor the edge arches. waterproofing lime-based mortar. The extra- and
The thickness of the pavilion was determined by intrados layers will need carefully executed
the maximum thrust, resulting in a maximum coursing which is hard to achieve in a workshop
thickness of 120 mm and a minimum thickness with novice builders and trainees (Fig. 14).
of 100 mm, which translated into three layers of The design and construction of the leaf
tiles with different mortar thicknesses. pavilion show that while the building site is one
The construction of the pavilion was facili- of the most probable spaces of interaction and
tated through a tile vaulting workshop. decision-making in tile vaulting, other dynamics

Fig. 13 Structural design

and analysis of the Leaf using
graphic statics
230 W. Al Asali

Fig. 14 The leaf after the

workshop

happen outside the site too. Alteration in the 3.4 Las Cuevas: Digital Modelling
hierarchy of design decision-making occurs at for Site Uncertainty
different stages and the design prompt for the
project was initiated by the master builder, not Digital technology can offer a much-enhanced
the architect. However, through co-working with environment for designing and construction.
small-scale conceptual design models, the initial However, this does not always have to result in
and literal configuration of the Leaf was devel- offsite complex operations or onsite machinery.
oped into an architecturally useable pavilion, Technological tools such as digital modelling,
governed by its function and structural con- VR and 3D Scanning can push traditional con-
straints as an unreinforced load-bearing shell struction systems to new possibilities without
generated through a series of catenary arches. radically changing their processes. In the fol-
This process suggests a shift from the usual lowing example, we used photogrammetry to
design flow depicted by the institutional profes- understand the existing conditions of our inter-
sion, to more open-ended design processes where vention and base our design decisions on a more
architects can supplement and support builders informed study. The project is located in the
with their design knowledge. mountains of Xixona in Spain, where our vault
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 231

design is intended to rehabilitate a cave dwelling. it was essential to avoid heavy excavations dur-
The cave-dwelling typology is ubiquitous in ing the construction. To respond to all these
mountainous Spain from Malaga to Valencia; challenges, we started by making a three-
their sizes and complexities depend on the dimensional model of the caves using pho-
mountains’ geology and the site’s typography. togrammetry. We used Meshroom software to
The caves in our site were excavated in the 1940s compound the images into a model and simplify
out of a small fold in the mountain formation. it to an overall surface and a series of sections
The mountains belong to the Iberian Subbaetic (AliceVision 2018). The 3D scanned model
System, most of which is a mix of soil, marl and became the envelope of the design inside which
marly limestone. Therefore, after the caves were we studied, with the client and master builder,
abandoned for a long time without any mainte- iterations of vaulting solutions (Fig. 16). The
nance, they suffered local collapses of lumps of iterations were guided by the existing geological
soil and marl (Fig. 15). The two caves were features of the site to respect the current section
originally purposed as barns for animals and of the two caves, avoid heavy excavation and
space for food stock. Each had an average of 10 heavy infill operations between the cave and
by 4 m in which two tile vaults were needed, shells. The developed design comprised a dom-
firstly as a structural support of the inside the ical vault geometry in the first cave with three
caves to prevent any further collapses and sec- arches at the entrance to elevate its height to the
ondly to provide a usable space as a multipurpose maximum. In the second cave, we proposed a
hall. parabolic undulating barrel vault. The two caves
The existing conditions of the caves and their were connected using an existing door that was
natural formation resulted in many challenges. also vaulted (Fig. 17).
First, it was hard to get an accurate survey, but The structural design was developed using
we had a schematic drawing only. Second, while graphic statics of sections in the cave. The result
the master builder can build the curved parabolic from the study had details, plans, sections of the
vaults without much guidework, a detailed study shells and zones of their different layers to vary
was needed to plan how this section varies to their thickness according to the calculated weight
accommodate the changing height of the cave. of soil applied to them. The vaults had between
Finally, because of the cave’s delicate situation, three or four layers of tiles of 40 mm with around

Fig. 15 Caves interior before

the rehabilitation, screenshots
are taken from a
photogrammetry model
232 W. Al Asali

Fig. 16 Design iterations in

dialogue with the client and
cave geology

Fig. 17 Design of the two

caves. Top: the guidework in
caves, down: geometry and
layers of the proposed vaults

10 mm of mortar. The infill between the cave construction waste and infill, and the minimal
and the tiles was made with construction waste of reliance on falsework have all resulted in a near-
the tiles and plaster. Ribs above the tiles were zero waste construction of structural shells as a
also made in locations where the cavity between rehabilitation project of the caves. The vaults
the shell and the caves was superior to 400 mm. were eventually plastered with earth rendering
The construction started with implementing a and finished with white lime wash, floors of the
detailed plan of the foundations of the vaults, caves were paved using compacted mud flooring
where the builders excavated a 250 mm deep (Fig. 19).
canal and filled it with lime concrete. Because of The cave project of Alicante presents an
the constant parabolic section of the vaults, a example of the potential support to vernacular
series of span and height ratios were sufficient to construction through utilising tools from digital
describe the geometry, which the skilled master technology. While photogrammetry is accessible
builder could describe with light fibreglass with photos, its instant use paved for more
guidework he occasionally used to mark the informed decision-making that gave both archi-
section of the vault (Fig. 18). For a formwork, tects and builders the power to accommodate and
the same walls of the caves were used to make implement the design of the shells. The digital
the first arches. The use of local materials, space created using this technology became the
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 233

Fig. 18 Vaults under

construction

canvas for sketching and commenting on how to reduced to a floor plan and a diagram showing
make a minimal but innovative intervention that the zones of three or four layers in the vaults and
lessens the use of material and reduces building supplemented by bent rods to describe the
operations. With demystifying the cave’s com- changing section of the vault.
plexity, the design development output was
234 W. Al Asali

Fig. 19 Vaults after plaster

rendering

the focus was on one aspect of ‘craft’. In Fabri-

4 Discussion: From Withoutcisim cArte pavilion, the primary concern of the
to the Architecture Relational investigation was the ‘time’ of construction,
Agency which pushed for an unusual fabrication method
in tile vaulting. In Bending Parabola, the scheme
In this essay, we examined four cases of tile- was to devise a ‘tool’ that helps builders visualise
vault experiments to illustrate several possibili- complex vault shapes. In la Hoja, the goal was to
ties of working with crafts communities and local decentralise the architects’ design process and
making methods (Table 1). In each experiment, adopt a ‘design’ initiated by the builder. In the
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design 235

Table 1 Summary tile vaulting experiments

Project Aim Challenge Method Output
Fabricatre Craft-based Accelerate construction Designing cutting Manufactured floor
vaults time pattern system
prefabrication
In situ Regenerative Tools for onsite form- Controlled bending as Bending-active
formwork finding a regenerative tool formwork for floor
system
La Hoja Co-design Develop design ideas Design through Curriculum of tile
from Artisan’s input models vaults training
Cuevas Design for Drafting instructions The use of 3D Working in digital
uncertain without plans and photogrammetry spheres
scenarios sections

Caves of Xixona, the aim was to support the beyond documenting to ‘save the past’ but to
traditional system of tile vaults with the ‘tech- open crafts to change and mutate in line with
nology’ of 3d photogrammetry in cases where the transition to green building strategies.
conventional methods of designing are complex. Architects can expand ethnographic studies
Time, tools, design and technology are the main on crafts to physical and digital modelling
challenges that face vernacular building crafts in drawings of steps of making and computa-
today’s highly industrialised construction. Yet, tional coding of craft grammars and typolo-
they are also the very same features that render gies. National and international institutions
building crafts resourceful in their use of local can contribute to establishing this common
materials and low-carbon processing methods. language by encouraging designers to work
Studies of architectural theory and history on encyclopaedic and digital databases. The
understood architecture by the presence or outcome of this methodology can enhance the
absence of the centralised design agent, with or understanding of policymakers and designers
without architects, resulting in dismissing or about the potential future role of the existing
patronising how non-architects build. In contrast, network of makers as small enterprises and
the overall learning from these experiments holders of cultural significance. Such under-
shows that it is possible to move beyond this standing is crucial in the transition to a
withoutcisim to an explorative domain between greener construction to secure decent work
crafts and architectural design through a consis- and growth of these enterprises.
tent, long-term and objective-oriented collabora- 2. Aligning oneself in joint actions: Designers
tion. This collaboration is conditioned with a should include crafts communities and ver-
relational, not hierarchical, agency. In psychol- nacular knowledge in the current research on
ogy and education studies, the relational agency the manufacture and prefabrication of repli-
is ‘the capacity to offer support and ask for cable low-carbon building components such
support from others, which expands the resources as floor and façade systems. This includes
available to actions on objects’ (Edwards 2005). shifting the focus from a site or project-
This methodological framework of collaboration specific collaboration to endeavour building
between disciplines consists of establishing three systems through iterative prototyping.
main action points: Craftspeople can contribute with more than
1. Establish a common language: Designers their handwork making; they can expose
should engage with the complexity of crafts nuances of how existing digital and industrial
by illustrating their processes, not products. fabrication methods can be applied in differ-
A new wave of such documentation is needed ent ranges of technologies. Therefore,
236 W. Al Asali

working with craft does not mean relin- is a lot yet to be done on participatory con-
quishing the essential tools of architectural struction, where local actors can also be part of
modelling and engineering testing but being shaping cities built environment. The work along
preparade for a recalibration of these tools as these three points could link the thinking of the
the design grows. With such inclusion, future architecture of resourcefulness with the
research institutions in public and private societal and economic conditions of today’s
domains can include low-tech and small-scale building practices. Future research is needed to
factories currently facing post-pandemic understand and develop how to implement the
challenges. These small-scale factories can three points at national and policy-making levels.
be an active part of developing sustainable Similarly, future research on different crafts and
cities and communities. cultures of making is required in order to expand
3. Work beyond formal institutional chan- and build on the findings of this essay.
nels: To move to more amble and environ-
mental matters, architects should engage with Acknowledgements The author would like to thank the
master vault maker Salvador Gomis Avińo for his col-
practices embedded in many forms of habi- laboration during the research. Fabricate was developed in
tation ranging from cities’ historical centres to collaboration and support of Light Earth Design. In Situ
informal settlements and from urban-to-rural was supported by funds from the Department of Archi-
settings. There is a need to expand the defi- tecture, University of Cambridge and Clare Hall, the
University of Cambridge.
nition of building crafts beyond the heritage
institutions’ approach that only grants them
value because of their cultural-historical sig-
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 Re-use in Danish Vernacular
Architecture: Examples and Their
Future Versatility

Birgitte T. Eybye

Abstract paper discusses the extent to which the

vernacular approaches to re-use have the
With climate change, there is an urgent need
potential to contribute to future sustainable
to reduce CO2 emissions, for instance, the building and the possible challenges.
ones related to the building sector. Contem-
porary building has developed into having a Keywords
larger climate impact in the construction phase
than in the operational phase which highlights

Re-use Vernacular architecture Resource

the necessity to rethink resources. At the same

management Architectural heritage

time, research into connections between sus-

Sustainable building Denmark
tainability and Danish preindustrial vernacular
architecture shows a widespread re-use of
building materials and components. As a 1 Introduction
logical consequence, this paper investigates
vernacular approaches to resource manage- For many years, Danish buildings focused on
ment in the form of re-use with a view to energy consumption in the operational phase for
discuss the versatility of such in future which reason demands on energy performance
building. The first part of the paper explores have been tightened several times in the building
examples of re-use in preindustrial vernacular regulations. Hence, contemporary buildings
architecture. To achieve this objective, the developed into having a larger climate impact in
paper initiates the methodic and analytical the construction phase than in the operational
framework. Next, a literature review is pre- phase (usually based on a study reference period
sented to provide general information on of 50–60 years) because of the extraction, pro-
re-use in architectural heritage and to focus duction and transportation of building materials
on the two case studies. Through the case (Andersen 2020). Concurrently, a larger number
studies, examples of re-use and recycling are of buildings are demolished every year, thus
identified and outlined. The second part of the generating enormous amounts of waste that
usually downcycle to filling material as the base
in road construction (Andersen 2014).
With the growing focus on climate change
B. T. Eybye (&) and subsequently, the urgent need to reduce CO2
Aarhus School of Architecture, Research Lab emissions, the Danish government has enacted
1/Transformation, Aarhus C, Denmark
legal requirements on CO2 emissions targeting
e-mail: bte@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 239
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
240 B. T. Eybye

buildings. These requirements concern manda- in the heritage buildings, particularly preindus-
tory life cycle assessments (LCA) of new con- trial vernacular architecture, for the purpose of
structions and stepwise reductions of the investigating whether such knowledge may
emission limits from 2023 to 2029. Moreover, contribute to sustainable solutions in future
refurbishments and demolitions should become buildings. In doing so, this paper addresses the
more sustainable, yet no precise demands have UN Sustainable Development Goals number 12
been defined. Finally, the agreement requires a (Responsible Consumption) and number 13
survey with a view to clarify why buildings of (Climate Action) (UNDP 2022).
technical quality are demolished (Valdimarsson
and Kristensen 2021).
The above highlight the need for solutions 2 Materials and Methods
that reduce the climate impact of building. One
focus area concerns the construction phase, e.g. 2.1 Objective and Methods
by application of materials with a small climate
impact such as renewable or re-used materials as The objective of this paper is to investigate her-
illustrated in the so-called ‘pyramid of materials’ itage, especially preindustrial vernacular,
(materialepyramiden) (Beim et al. 2019). Such an approaches to resource management in the form
approach will be in line with researcher Michael of re-used building materials in order to explore
Lauring that predicts building materials will and discuss their potential in future building.
become scarce and expensive in future (Lauring Consequently, the primary research question of
2014, p. 185) and the Waste Framework Direc- this paper is as follows:
tive of the European Union (European Union n. How does re-use of building materials and
d.), since the building sector produces 25–30% of components manifest itself in preindustrial ver-
all waste in the EU (Beim et al. 2019, p. 17). nacular buildings?
Relatedly, UN projections expect the global With a view to discuss the versatility of the
population to be around 8.5 billion in 2030 and possible findings of the primary research ques-
around 9.7 billion in 2050 (United Nations 2022, tion, a secondary research question is posed:
p. i) which underlines the environmental as well How can such approaches to re-use inform
as ethical needs for the rethinking of resources. future building and what are the challenges?
In parallel to this, a research project has The paper is structured around answering
investigated connections between sustainability these two questions. The first part of the paper
and Danish preindustrial vernacular architecture. takes its point of departure in research question
Apparently, sustainability in such dwellings one and examines how the re-use of building
manifests itself in the form of resource savings materials and components occur in heritage
and prolonging the lifespan. The surveyed find- building, particularly preindustrial vernacular
ings are of different kinds and, e.g. concern cli- architecture, since this knowledge is essential to
mate responsive design, passive energy any discussion on the potential application of
strategies, knowledge of materials and their preindustrial resource management in future
specific qualities in regard to durability, design building. First, the paper presents a literature
for disassembly and building materials with a review with a view to explore accounts of re-use
low carbon footprint such as renewable or re- in heritage buildings. This review aims to pro-
used materials (Eybye 2016). vide general information on re-use as well as to
This knowledge of a widespread re-use of focus on the case studies. For the purpose of
materials in preindustrial vernacular architecture investigating the primary sources of re-use, the
contrasts the current throwaway culture that also paper performs two case studies of preindustrial
includes buildings. With the need to rethink vernacular dwellings, an agricultural worker’s
resources and reduce climate impacts, it seems dwelling situated in Tåstrup, South Zealand and
logical to examine the management of resources a farm situated south of Hvide Sande at the West
Re-use in Danish Vernacular Architecture: Examples and Their Future Versatility 241

Coast. Finally, this section elaborates on the Regarding appraisal, authors recognized for their
identified examples of re-use in preindustrial research and/or experience from conservation
vernacular architecture. Consequently, the first practice is chosen. Finally, the synthesis is nar-
part of the paper makes up the chapter on rative (Grant and Booth 2009). Findings of the
materials and methods and, the first section of the literature review may be applied as data trian-
results. The second part of the paper aims to gulation in relation to the case studies. The
answer research question two. In doing so, the choice of case study research is reflected in this
paper discusses the potential application of methodology as being well qualified to provide
preindustrial approaches to re-use in regard to in-depth information on a phenomenon (re-use of
future sustainable building. building materials and components) through the
Regarding the delimitation, this study mainly investigation of a small number of dense case
focuses on buildings designed for habitation, studies (preindustrial vernacular dwellings)
since a large number of such buildings are pre- (Flyvbjerg 2006; Yin 2014). Furthermore, the
served from the late medieval times and thus, case selection strategy is based on what
provides an adequate study material for the first researcher Bent Flyvbjerg calls ‘information-
part of the paper. Furthermore, the study delimits oriented selection’ since the aim of such strat-
‘preindustrial’ building as constructed before egy is ‘To maximize the utility of information
1850 and 1880 in the case of rural building. After from small samples and single cases. Cases are
1880, socio-economic factors had influenced selected on the basis of their information con-
rural building, such as the co-operative move- tent’ (Flyvbjerg 2006, p. 230). Additionally, the
ment that made farming more lucrative and the two cases are selected with a large variation
railroads that facilitated easy transport of build- among them in order to survey diverse examples
ing materials (Eybye and Vestergaard 2017, of re-use.
p. 591). The choice of the two selected cases is based
The main sources utilized comprise of on the following criteria: (A) each case must be
author’s PhD thesis for which the PhD degree an exemplar of preindustrial vernacular archi-
was obtained. This paper is partly based on a tecture (see Sect. 2.2), (B) each of the two cases
cultivation and elaboration of particular findings must be unique compared to the other in regard
described in chapters four and six which were not typology and geography in the aim of securing a
unfolded and developed in the thesis and, two thematic dispersion and subsequently, diverse
case studies. Neither the thesis nor these partic- findings, (C) each case must be well preserved,
ular findings have been subject to publication since examples of preindustrial re-use should be
before. Moreover, it is important to note that recognizable and (D) each case must be well
there are no directly translated paragraphs of the documented for temporal reasons. The chosen
thesis in this paper. Additionally, literature on cases are Trines Hus (prospectively Trine’s
architectural theory and history, architectural House) and Abelines Gård (prospectively Abe-
heritage, architectural conservation, sustainabil- line’s Farm) that both meet these criteria, as they
ity and sustainable architecture, research are (A) exemplars of preindustrial vernacular
methodologies as well as other relevant material architecture, (B) differ in regard to typology and
have been used. Regarding the case studies, geography, (C) listed and hence, well preserved
sources include literature, drawings, photos and and finally, (D) well documented.
empirical studies in the buildings. Lastly, re-use is addressed with a view to
Applied methods include literature review and inform the discussion. Oxford Learner’s Dic-
case study research. The aim of the literature tionaries defines re-use as ‘to use something
review is to look into re-use in architectural again’ in its current state and describes recycle as
heritage, to focus and delimit the empiricism of ‘to treat things that have already been used so
the case studies. Methodologically, the search is that they can be used again’ (Oxford University
not comprehensive for temporal reasons. Press). For the purpose of promoting transition
242 B. T. Eybye

Fig. 1 The Waste Hierarchy. To the left, the Waste buildings by Inge Vestergaard (Vestergaard 2022). Draw-
Hierarchy as introduced by the EU (European Union n. ing by Birgitte Eybye
d.). To the right, the Waste Hierarchy elaborated onto

into a Circular Economy (CE) by preventing and According to the review, re-use occurred in all
reducing waste and, improving resource effi- sorts of residences and dwellings. In posh
ciency, the EU Waste Framework Directive has buildings, structures were re-used, such as
introduced the so-called ‘Waste Hierarchy’, see townhouses and manors built on medieval base-
Fig. 1. This top-down triangle comprises of five ments. Moreover, in such buildings, it seems that
categories or steps ranging from ‘prevention’ to re-use of high-quality materials was preferred
‘preparing for re-use’, ‘recycling’, ‘recover’ and (Romanesque ashlars, baked bricks, sometimes
‘disposal’, in which the first is a non-waste pro- timber) and re-use was likely ‘hidden’ (e.g. the
duct and the latter four categories are waste basements) (Stilling 1999; Vadstrup 2004; Slots-
(European Union n.d.). Researcher Inge Vester- og Kulturstyrelsen 2015).
gaard has elaborated the EU Waste Hierarchy Regarding vernacular architecture, several
into building resources and, prevention means sources describe re-use as prevalent. Looking
‘that buildings should be utilized in its full con- into the smallholding called Stine’s House (Sti-
sequence’ (Vestergaard 2022, p. 2). Below cat- nes Hus), re-use includes timber, doors, windows
egories are referred to as ‘secondary resources’ and joinery (Sebro and Realdania By & Byg
comprising re-use, recycle, recover and disposal 2020). This account of extensive re-use in ver-
(Ibid). The discussion draws on the Waste nacular architecture is in keeping with other
Hierarchy as elaborated by Vestergaard, and in sources. For instance, researcher Bjarne Stoklund
this connection, the paper applies ‘re-use’ of the studied the vernacular architecture of 1700–1850
Waste Hierarchy as materials and components and expresses that ‘… only in exceptional cases,
taken from one building and re-used in another a farm was constructed of exclusively new
with no changes nor substantial processing, materials’ (Stoklund 1969, p. 22).1 Similarly,
whereas ‘recycling’ is a processing of a waste researcher Erland Porsmose states that ‘People
product. Prospectively, the term ‘re-use’ is economised in most parts of the county and re-
applied in the description of general dealings use was absolutely necessary’ (Porsmose 2008,
with materials and components that have been p. 77).2 Finally, contemporary sources written
used in more buildings. around 1789–90 also mention re-use in farm
buildings (Lerche 1987).
Based on the above review, it is presumed that
2.2 Literature Review: Focusing the most and diverse examples of re-use will be
the Empiricism found in vernacular architecture. For this reason,
the following case studies are chosen among
The aim of the literature review is to focus the such buildings.
empiricism by looking into different types of
heritage buildings designed for habitation and 1
Translated by the author.
explore to what extent re-use took place. 2
Translated by the author.
Re-use in Danish Vernacular Architecture: Examples and Their Future Versatility 243

Fig. 2 Collage of Trine’s House. 1. Trine’s House seen timber with different joints between post and tiebeam
from the south. 2. Re-used, leaded window. 3. Re-used (left: halved joint, right: pierced beam). 6. Collar beam
door between the chamber and living room. 4. Timber with traces of former use. All photos are taken by Birgitte
number VI (six) though it is bay number four. 5. Re-used Eybye

2.3 Case Study I: Trine’s House re-used pinewood, as the posts and correspond-
(Stevns, Sydsjælland) ing beams are joined using more principles
(pierced beams and halved joints). Examinations
Trine House is an archetypical agricultural of the roof construction also show re-used timber
worker’s dwelling situated in the village of due to traces of holes for tenons and staves.
Tåstrup, see Fig. 2. The building was most likely It is possible that the small leaded window by
constructed between the years 1809–13 or the front door and (parts of) the window in the
shortly after, since it is situated on a farm plot west gable are relicts of the original windows that
which became vacant after the relocation of four highly likely were re-used from one of the relo-
Tåstrup farms in the context of the agrarian cated village farms.4 Moreover, the windows of
reforms. the larders and the stable are probably also re-
Originally, this half-timbered building com- used.
prised of six bays made of oak timber that was In the interior, more doors such as the door
re-used (probably from one of the relocated between the living room and the chamber
farms). The timber has traces of the former joints strongly indicate re-use due to its historic design
and the timber numbers3 feature in a non- and profiles. The other doors are in most cases
numerical order. Around 1850, the building batten doors. It is difficult to determine possible
was extended with another three bays made of re-use for more reasons, e.g. the mix of old and
newer fittings such as hinges and locks. Finally,
usable parts of worn-down components have
been used for repairs, e.g. repairs to the bottom
3
In historic timbered constructions such as half- of the doors or the wooden divider in the stables
timbering and roof constructions, all timber pieces (Varmings Tegnestue 1988; Jensen 1990; Eybye
belonging to a particular bay would be marked with a 2016, pp. 180–189).
number. Dimensions of the timber pieces were heteroge-
nous, as wooden resources were used in a rational
manner. Thus, a specific piece of timber would fit into a
specific part of the construction and, the timber numbers 4
In Denmark, so-called ‘English windows’ with wooden
prevented disorder. In the case of re-use, original timber bars gained forward from the early eighteenth century,
numbers were usually ignored. thus replacing leaded windows (Kulturstyrelsen 2012).
244 B. T. Eybye

2.4 Case Study II: Abeline’s Farm and their servants would go). In the latter rooms,
(Hvide Sande, Jylland) a large number of homogenous doors exist that
point to re-use, many of them most likely from
Abeline’s Farm is a four-winged farm situated in the former farmhouse, since their design, profiles
the dunes between the West Coast and Ring- and fittings such as hinges highly indicate man-
købing Fjord, see Fig. 3. The farm was built in ufacturing much earlier than 1871. Finally, wood
stages from 1854 to 1871 and, it follows the was re-used for different purposes, e.g. window
traditional layout of such farms. This farm casings and fittings (Jensen 1975; Alsted 1985;
replaced the old buildings situated just south of Andersen 2000; Eybye 2016, pp. 144–157).
the current farm site.
The buildings are built of baked bricks and
adobes, as the latter are used in less exposed 3 Results
building parts. The timber of the roof construc-
tion comes in more types such as roundwood and This chapter comprises the findings of the case
blocks and with traces of re-use such as holes for studies and of the discussion. Section 3.1 elab-
tenons and staves. It is likely that some timber orates on re-use of materials and building com-
and wood are re-used from shipwrecks, as this ponents in preindustrial vernacular buildings.
was common practice in the area due to the lack Section 3.2 concerns the versatility of the
of forests. examples of preindustrial vernacular re-use in
In the outbuildings, windows and doors are future building.
heterogenous, which indicates re-use. Addition-
ally, the outer door between the dwelling and the
courtyard is re-used. It has distinct traces of 3.1 Findings of the Case Studies:
being one part of a former double door and most Re-use in Preindustrial
probably originates from one of the front doors Vernacular Buildings
of the south façade.
In the interior, the farmhouse can be divided The two case studies showed examples of re-use
into the distinguished rooms (where guests in both agricultural workers’ dwellings and
would be) and practical rooms (where the family farmers’ buildings, respectively, in the east and

Fig. 3 Collage of Abeline’s Farm. 1. Abeline’s Farm farmhouse. 4. Re-used roundwood. 5. Re-used timber. 6.
seen from the southwest. 2. Exterior door re-used from a Window casing made of re-used wood, maybe from
former front door. 3. Re-used door from the former shipwrecks. All photos are taken by Birgitte Eybye
Re-use in Danish Vernacular Architecture: Examples and Their Future Versatility 245

the west of Denmark and in half-timbered as well 3.2 Findings of the Discussion:
as brick buildings. Based on a cross-case gener- Future Versatility
alization, re-use was common in preindustrial of Preindustrial Vernacular
vernacular dwellings which is consistent with the Re-use
sources of the literature review.
Examples of re-use manifest themselves in the The evaluation of the findings based on the
following ways; (A) general re-use of materials, Waste Hierarchy indicated strong resource man-
(B) separability of building materials and agement in preindustrial vernacular architecture,
(C) design of building components for the pur- since the examples are categorized as re-use and
pose of possible re-use. recycling. More building materials were
Re item A, a number of particular conditions biodegradable such as wood and thatching
influenced possible re-use. Generally, it goes for materials, thus reducing waste. Earth used for
preindustrial building that it primarily applied wattle and daub could recirculate into the soil.
‘raw’ materials instead of ‘compounded’ mate- Concerning the future versatility of the
rials. Moreover, the investigated buildings are preindustrial vernacular resource management,
characterized by being constructed of a small the discussion calls for a new approach to
number of different building materials.5 Both resources, i.e. extensive re-use of buildings,
conditions made re-use easier and, as the pro- materials and components (resource banks and
curement of building materials and manufactur- long lifetimes). Additionally, demands on a
ing of components involved hard work by hand, reduced number of types of materials for the ease
re-use was rational. Thus, worn-down buildings of re-use and separability should be made. The
equaled ‘resource banks’. In relation to this, discussion also outlined challenges regarding re-
building materials and components appear to use of legislative, technical, toxicological and
have ‘degraded’ slowly, e.g. doors and windows socio-economical art.
were re-used in buildings or rooms of lower
status or, usable parts of worn-down materials
and components were applied for repairs, thus 4 Discussion and Conclusion
corresponding to what we may call a ‘hierarchy
of resources’ and prolonging the lifetime of such. 4.1 Discussion
Re item B, the joints between different materials
were mostly ‘weak’, meaning that, e.g. timber The discussion opens with reflections on the
and wattle and daub easily could be separated applied methods. First, the literature review
from each other. Similarly, doors and windows looked into re-use in heritage buildings and
could be taken out without damage and then be focused on the case selection accordingly. This
re-used. Re item C, timber joints in half- type of review was chosen for temporal reasons
timbering and roof constructions made it possi- and, though it was not exhaustive on the subject,
ble to disassemble and reassemble the timber the sources showed vernacular architecture as
multiple times (elaboration of Eybye 2016, most relevant in regard to explore re-use in her-
pp. 102–103). itage. Concerning the sources on vernacular
architecture, these converged and were both
contemporary and modern. A more comprehen-
sive review would probably have provided more
5
Researcher Søren Vadstrup has explored building information on re-use in different types of her-
materials in a preindustrial farm situated in Viby, Fyn. itage, yet it is unlikely that the conclusion and
He makes a list of 22 different materials including several thus, the choice of cases had changed.
types of different wood species used in the original farm
In relation to the case studies, the selection
of 1736 (Vadstrup 2004, p. 14) which confirms the small
number of different building materials in preindustrial was information-oriented with a view to maxi-
vernacular architecture. mize variation among the two cases. It seems,
246 B. T. Eybye

however, that the identified examples in the two evaluation of the findings in regard to Waste
cases tend to be somewhat homogenous, leading Hierarchy indicates strong resource manage-
to the cross-case generalization that re-use was ments in preindustrial vernacular architecture.
extensive in preindustrial vernacular architecture. Moreover, some of the material properties and
Such conclusion is supported by the literature approaches resemble the biological circles of CE.
review. This discussion now proceeds to the sec-
The case studies were based on literature, ondary research question concerning the future
drawings, photos and empirical studies in the versatility of preindustrial, vernacular approaches
buildings for the purpose of data triangulation. to re-use. First, the discussion looks into re-use in
The empirical studies comprised of non- contemporary (Danish) architecture. Companies
destructive observations, and none of the writ- such as Genbyg trade re-used building materials
ten sources gave accounts of the construction of and, Gamle Mursten is specialized in re-used
the specific buildings at the time of their con- bricks. Such bricks are, for instance, applied in
struction. Consequently, there may be an unre- Frederiksbjerg Skole (2016), Aarhus and the
ported number, as examples may be hidden in the multi-storey car park (2016), Billund. Yet, the
construction or overlooked. Elements of doubt bricks are used as mere facing and thus, illustrate
were left out. There is also a small possibility that sustainability as a ‘valued achievement’ (Eybye
materials and components have been misjudged 2016). Pilot projects like Upcycle House (2014),
as re-used due to an appearance of historic design Resource Rows (2020) and The Swan (2022) by
and detailing. Dendrochronology or carbon dat- Studio Lendager concern extensive re-use. Fur-
ing could have provided exact dating and thus, thermore, re-use is common in architectural
verified or falsified possible cases of re-use. The conservation for aesthetic and authentic reasons.
economic aspects of such approach were, how- From the European context, the Delftse Poort is a
ever, not possible. Conclusively, the surveyed remarkable example of an almost 100% circular
examples of re-use are considered to be reliable office interior renovation (van den Heuvel 2022).
since cases of doubt are left out and, the findings Conclusively, the present-day re-use concerns
are consistent with the data of the reviewed prestige or idealism and, these examples consti-
literature. tute a minority, since the building sector pro-
The findings of the case studies comprise duces 25–30% of all waste in the EU as already
timber, doors, windows and usable materials mentioned (Beim et al. 2019, p. 17). This topic
taken from worn-down components such as was also highlighted by the exhibition ‘Die
wood and fittings. Compared to the ‘Waste Schweiz: Ein Abriss’ in 2022, as the construction
Hierarchy’ (see Sect. 2.1), timber for the con- sector produces 84% of Swiss waste (Lundberg
structions, doors, windows and fittings are con- 2022). Consequently, there is a major difference
sidered as re-use, since these materials and between the resource management in vernacular
components were taken from one building and versus current buildings. Moreover, many
re-used in another. It appears that such re-use preindustrial building materials were biodegrad-
was performed with no processing of the element able, which also reduced waste.
(there might have been minor adjustments to, e.g. Based on the above, it is relevant to discuss
the timber). Furthermore, usable parts of building what possibly prevents extensive re-use. First,
materials and components are considered as the present-day building has changed substan-
recycled in the Waste Hierarchy, as they were tially from preindustrial times. Building is now
sorted from waste and then processed to a new subject to a large number of legislations, e.g.
function. It is not possible to draw any certain regarding design, technology and, materials.
conclusions on the waste, yet materials degraded Moreover, construction has become profession-
very slowly (the hierarchy of resources) and, alized compared to preindustrial vernacular
more were biodegradable such as wood and owner- or community building, the number of
materials for thatching, i.e. no waste. Hence, the applied building materials and components has
Re-use in Danish Vernacular Architecture: Examples and Their Future Versatility 247

increased and become more complex with many transformation of existing buildings such as the
compounds and, materials origin from all over transformation of Hochbergerstrasse 158, Basel
the planet. (a 1965 concrete structure), in which the staircase
Initially, the main learnings for future building had to meet new criteria for earthquake protec-
are the perception of discarded buildings as tion (Lundberg 2022).
resource banks and subsequently, slow degrada- More challenges of technical and toxicologi-
tion and long lifetimes of materials and compo- cal art concern the existing building stock and
nents. Re-use, recycling and repair will become thus, re-use etcetera. In the Danish context, this
easier if the number of different building mate- goes especially for the buildings constructed after
rials and components, including compounds is 1950–60. Around this time, many new materials
reduced as was the case in preindustrial building. were introduced in construction (Vadstrup 2019,
Solutions with increased use of biodegradable, p. 69). Some materials are difficult to re-use,
untreated materials will decrease amounts of recycle or recover for reasons of tectonics, e.g.
waste in accordance with CE. Moreover, the concrete panels or masonry with cement mortar,
building sector must improve its handling of used others are toxic and, both conditions challenge
building materials and components. The reduced possible re-use. Chemical compounds such as
separability of current constructions calls for PCB evaporates into the surroundings and con-
changes to enable re-use. Today, design for dis- stitutes a global problem in building (Melymuk
assembly and other mechanical joints are easily et al. 2022). Before any re-use is achievable,
made with robot tools and, should be mandatory possible toxins must be identified.
in construction. Challenges of legislative, tech- Economically, it is not yet cost-effective to
nical, toxicological and socio-economical kind dismantle buildings for re-use and recycling in
concern these proposals. most Danish cases. For the purpose of illustra-
Following the EU Waste Hierarchy and tion, re-used bricks of Gamle Mursten are much
Vestergaard, demolitions should be prevented to more expensive than new ones. Similarly, the
reduce waste in building (Vestergaard 2022). Delftse Poort interior renovation was not cheaper
Concrete buildings in particular calls for reten- than standard solutions (van den Heuvel 2022,
tion (equaling principles of slow degradation and p. 473).
long lifetime), yet this approach contrasts the In summary, there is both a large wish and
current politically motivated demolitions in areas need for extensive re-use in future building as in
appointed ghettos (Ibid.) and the enacted survey preindustrial resource management. Yet, such re-
clarifying why buildings of technical quality are use calls for new structural approaches to build-
demolished, see Chap. 1. Thus, socio-economic ing, including economy, legislation, technology
factors may promote demolitions as in the much and materials. The example of Delftse Poort
talked-about example of Robin Hood Gardens. shows that non-critical interior parts as well as
Regarding legislations, all building materials exterior parts is a point of departure for extensive
and components, re-used/recycled or not must re-use.
meet the requirements of the Danish building
regulations. Moreover, CE certification is very
important with regard to the responsibility of the 4.2 Conclusion
client consultants, the contractors and building
owners. Despite the political intentions of The primary objective of this paper was to
reducing waste of demolished buildings, there is investigate re-use in architectural heritage, par-
a gap between the certification and building ticularly preindustrial vernacular architecture. To
regulations (Oberender 2017). For instance, the achieve this objective, the paper has presented a
certification of Gamle Mursten was called a literature review and two case studies. In doing
‘breakthrough in re-use’ (Andersen 2018). New so, the paper identified and discussed a number
or tightened demands may also challenge the of examples of re-use and recycling of building
248 B. T. Eybye

materials and components that rated well in the Andersen U (2020) Danmark sakker bagud: vi ignorerer
Waste Hierarchy assessment. The secondary nybyggeriets største klimabelastning. Ingeniøren
8.1.2020. [Link]
objective was to explore how these examples riets-storste-klimabelastning-231059. Accessed 4 Oct
could inform future building as part of the dis- 2022
cussion. Suggestions for increased re-use and Beim A, Ejstrup H, Frederiksen LK, Hildebrand L,
recycling in future building were posed, most Madsen US, Munch-Petersen P, Sköld SR (2019)
Circular construction: materials, architecture, tectonics
importantly were probably the long lifetime (Cirkulært byggeri: materiale, arkitektur, tektonik).
through slow degradation, a reduced number of Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, København
building materials and the perception of dis- European Union (n.d.) Waste prevention and manage-
carded buildings as resource banks. The discus- ment. [Link]
waste-prevention-and-management/index_en.htm.
sion also highlighted major challenges of Accessed 6 Oct 2022
legislative, technical, toxicological and socio- Eybye BT (2016) Bæredygtighed i Danmarks førindus-
economic kinds which complicate or even pre- trielle bygningskultur og dens aktuelle relevans: belyst
vent the increased application of re-used mate- gennem studier af seks boliger. Dissertation, Aarhus
School of Architecture
rials and components. Eybye BT, Vestergaard I (2017) A survey of Danish
During the study, it became clear that inves- earthen heritage for sustainable building. In: Mileto C,
tigating re-use as a solitary element in prein- Vegas López-Manzanares F, García-Soriano L, Cris-
dustrial vernacular architecture is difficult. The tini V (eds) Vernacular and earthen architecture.
Taylor & Francis Group, London, pp 587–592
re-use is connected to, e.g. maintenance (and Flyvbjerg B (2006) Five misunderstandings about case-
likely also other factors) among which the long study research. [Link]
lifetime of building materials and components 0405284363
Grant MJ, Booth A (2009) A typology of reviews: an
are achieved. More research into this topic seems
analysis of 14 review types and associated method-
highly relevant, both for the purpose of under- ologies. [Link]
standing architectural heritage and informing 00848.x
future sustainable building. van den Heuvel M (2022) Delftse Poort. In: Baumeister R,
Petermann S (eds) (with additional contributors) Back
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Architecture. pp 468–477
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 (Re)making the Haubarg—Towards
Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded
Earth

Nicolai Bo Andersen
and Victor Boye Julebæk

Abstract analysed with regard to technical properties,

cultural-historical qualities, and experiential
In contemporary architecture, there is a
effects. An experimental timber structure
renewed focus on resource production, con- has been built by students at the Royal
sumption and use. Wood may be considered a Danish Academy, and the results have been
renewable resource, potentially abundant, car-
described and analysed seen through a
bon neutral and recyclable. However, the phenomenological-hermeneutic lens. It is
environmental benefits of using timber are pointed out that technical properties,
not straightforward. Also, it seems as if the
cultural-historical qualities and experiential
architectural implications of designing with effects as found in crafts tradition and local
wood have not been fully articulated. As such, vernacular may inform a contemporary design
it seems necessary to rethink the potential of
practice. It is argued that questions concerning
wood in contemporary architectural design sustainability should be seen in a holistic
practice. The aim of this paper is to investigate perspective and the building as situated within
the topic of Rethinking Resources with a a larger material, environmental and social
specific focus on the qualitative potential of (eco)system. In this perspective, traditional
wood as informed by traditional building building culture may supplement and qualify
culture. It is asked how knowledge embodied contemporary design strategies and may con-
in crafts tradition and local vernacular may tribute to inspiring future (more) sustainable
inform a contemporary architectural design building culture(s).
practice and inspire the development of
(more) sustainable building culture(s). A tradi- Keywords
tional farmhouse has been investigated and



Materials Tectonics Architecture



Aesthetics Sustainability

N. B. Andersen (&)
Royal Danish Academy—Architecture,
Copenhagen, Denmark
e-mail: nande@[Link]
V. B. Julebæk
Centre for Sustainable Building Culture, Royal
Danish Academy—Architecture, Copenhagen,
Denmark
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 251
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
252 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

1 Introduction 1.2 Research Question

1.1 Background This paper understands sustainable building

culture as the meaningful synthesis of technical
Architecture may be understood as a material properties, cultural-historical qualities and expe-
practice where resources extracted from nature riential effects—in careful consideration of the
are deployed in a building system and cultivated planetary boundaries. Through the (re)making of
to make a dwelling. However, on a bounded the Haubarg at the Danish Open Air Museum,
planet, material resources are limited (Daly 2007) this paper aims at investigating the topic of
and the safe operating space of numerous plan- Rethinking Resources, supplementing and qual-
etary boundaries are long exceeded (Rockström ifying the qualitative potential of wood as a
et al. 2009; Steffen et al. 2015; Raworth 2012, sustainable building material as informed by
2018). Accounting for 36% of European CO2 traditional building culture—seen in a holistic
emissions and 40% of the total European energy perspective. It is asked how knowledge embod-
consumption (European Commission 2021), the ied in crafts tradition and local vernacular (with
construction industry constitutes a major part of specific focus on timber construction) may
the problem and in consequence—if any hope of inform a contemporary design practice and
meeting the Paris Agreement (UN FCCC 2015) inspire the development of (more) sustainable
should be kept alive—architectural design pro- building culture(s). The (re)making of the Hau-
cesses must be fundamentally revised. Wood has barg—understood in and of itself as a production
been used as building material in vernacular of authentic architectural knowledge—is con-
architecture around the world for thousands of sidered an empirical finding that is described and
years. The material may be considered a renew- analysed seen through a phenomenological-
able resource and potentially abundant, carbon hermeneutic lens. The significance of the
neutral and recyclable and as such the only results is discussed in relation to the overall
widely used building material that is sustainable question of sustainable building culture(s). It is
when coming from truly sustainable forestry. As argued that technical properties, cultural-
such, enhancing carbon uptake and storage historical qualities as well as experiential effects
through bio-based building materials in con- must be taken into consideration when building
struction may be one effective mitigation strategy with wood. Conveying architectural meaning as
(IPCC 2022). However, the environmental ben- dwelling, the (re)making of the Haubarg may
efits of using timber are not straightforward thus inspire renewed sustainable building culture
(Ramage et al. 2017; Dooley et al. 2018) just as (s) in careful consideration of the biophysically
traditional knowledge of how to design with bounded Earth.
wood seems inadequate in contemporary archi-
tectural design. It seems as if contemporary
sustainable design strategies are less concerned 2 Materials and Methods
with the qualitative potential of wood, just as it
seems as if the work of architecture is regarded a The research method in this paper is a combined
conceptual exercise, detached from tectonic, strategy (Groat and Wang 2013), involving a
cultural-historic or contextual considerations. As qualitative, in-depth analysis of an existing
such, it seems necessary to rethink the qualitative building and the design and construction of an
potential of wood in contemporary architectural experimental timber structure. The analysis of the
design practice aiming at (more) sustainable existing building is seen from the perspectives of
building culture(s). technical properties, cultural-historical qualities
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 253

and experiential effects, all following a use of wood in an architectural design practice—
phenomenological-hermeneutic approach aiming all seen in a holistic perspective. As such, the aim
to identify architectural motifs that may point is not to exclude, but rather to supplement and
towards new architectural interventions. qualify contemporary discussions on the climate
The phenomenological method (Andersen crises, including the question of carbon footprint.
2018) comprises five stages: (1) experiencing an The design of the experimental timber struc-
architectural phenomenon; (2) investigating the ture is considered a “reflective practice” (Schön
architectural phenomenon; (3) hermeneutical 1986, 2001) involving the continuous analysis
reflection; (4) describing the architectural phe- and action performed in working with a complex
nomenon and (5) architectural phenomenological and/or unique problem—in this case, the design
representation. The phenomenological descrip- of an experimental timber structure as informed
tions developed in the article build on the by an existing building. It concerns the archi-
framework detailed by the phenomenological tect’s experience, the understanding of the
method. The method is used as a way of thinking specific situation and a reflection on the pre-
the world through experience, aiming at articu- sumed outcome. A “reflective practice” com-
lating, structuring, operationalizing and present- prises “knowing-in-action”, the general, practical
ing experienced architectural phenomena in text knowledge we exhibit in our intelligent, physical
and drawing. The method is based on the performance; “reflection-in-action” in which
phenomenological-hermeneutic philosophy as experience, knowledge and intuition work in
developed by Edmund Husserl, Martin Heideg- exchange with the action itself and “reflection on
ger and Maurice Merleau-Ponty and the phe- reflection-in-action”, which is the retrospective
nomenology of practice as described by Max van analysis, which again indirectly may influence a
Manen in combination with the concept of future action (Schön 1986, 2001).
embodied communication as developed in the First, characteristic motives from the historic
new phenomenology by Schmitz (2014, 2016, Ejdersted Farmhouse, originally called Rothelau
2019). and today located at the Danish Open Air
It is important to underline that a purely Museum, have been identified, described and
qualitative approach does not in itself lead to a organised (Figs. 1 and 2). Aiming to get a better
tangible and measurable sustainable building understanding of a given architectural phe-
culture. As pointed out by ICOMOS (2019), nomenon, the motives relate to technical prop-
however, climate science can tell us that adap- erties, cultural-historical qualities and
tation and mitigation are necessary, but it cannot experiential effects. Second, selected motives
tell us what adaptation options are most workable have informed an architectural design (Figs. 3, 4,
within any given human system. Balancing and 5), constituting a contemporary re-
economic, social and environmental concerns, interpretation of the traditional marsh farm-
the UN Rio Conference on Environment and house. Through a “reflective dialogue with the
Development highlights the need for qualitative situation” in a larger “network of choice”, this
perspectives in a future sustainable development “reflective practice” investigates the different so-
as does the UN Sustainable Development Goals called “Normative/Descriptive Design Domains”
(SDGs). In this perspective, cultural heritage (Schön 2001), in this case, related to technical
may, according to ICOMOS, be considered “[…] properties, cultural-historical qualities and expe-
a source of creativity and inspiration for adap- riential effects. The aim of the architectural
tation and mitigation actions that are responses to design has been to make a new architectural
the findings of climate science” (ICOMOS 2019, entity, clearly relating to the motifs identified in
p. 14). In continuation, this paper aims at the historic building, yet unmistakably
inspiring future sustainable building culture(s) autonomous.
based on the findings of climate science, in this Third, the experimental timber structure has
case through pointing at the need to rethink the been built by students at the Royal Danish
254 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

Fig. 1 Rothelau Farmhouse,

1651. Photo The Authors

Academy—Cultural Heritage, Transformation, findings that have been described and analysed as
and Conservation as part of the master pro- a “reflection on reflection-in-action” (Schön
gramme curriculum (Fig. 6). The Haubarg has 1986, 2001). Finally, the significance of the
been described and documented photographi- results of the (re)making of the Haubarg is dis-
cally (Figs. 3 and 4) and the material—which in cussed in relation to the overall research question
itself may be understood as authentic architec- regarding the development of (more) sustainable
tural knowledge—is considered empirical building culture(s) and a conclusion is made.
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 255

Fig. 2 Rothelau Farmhouse, 1651. Photo The Authors

population that was divided into four social

3 Results and Analysis groups: the large landowners, the smaller milk
farmers, the workers and the artisans (Pedersen
3.1 Cultural-Historical Qualities 2004, p. 27). Being the largest contributors to
establishing and maintaining dikes, the largest
The historic Rothelau Farmhouse was originally landowners had control of the administration of
located in the tidal marshland of the Ejdersted the landscape. As such, it is impossible to
Province on a reclaimed area protected from the imagine the Rothelau Farmhouse without both its
sea by dikes. The landscape was structured by a geographic and administrative landscape (Ped-
large patchwork of dams, divided by drainage ersen 2004). The Rothelau Farmhouse thus
canals, sluices and ponds. To further protect the conveys the historically created material, politi-
buildings against floods and potential breaches of cal and economic values, just as dikes, canals and
the dike, the Farmhouse itself was built on a buildings may be understood as scenes of cul-
warf, a large, human-made dwelling mound. tural meaning (Pedersen 2004, p. 82).
Built in 1651, the Rothelau Farmhouse was one According to Tim Ingold, landscape may be
of the oldest in Ejdersted (Pedersen 2004, p. 44). understood as a temporal process that is contin-
The building is characterised by a single large uously transformed by activities, i.e. “perpetually
roof supported by four tall wooden posts, called under construction”, always “work in progress”
the vierkant, surrounded by the living quarters, (Ingold 1993, p. 162). Landscape not only
stables and threshing floor. Being used for stor- comprises related elements and features, but
ing hay during the winter, the central square gave likewise related activities or “tasks” that are
name to the building typology haubarg [German understood as constitutive acts of “dwelling”
Heu zu bargen]. (Ingold 1993, p. 158). To Ingold, “landscape” is
The typology presumably came to Ejdersted “continuously going on”, in the sense that hills,
from Holland in the sixteenth century and the valleys, paths, tracks, trees, crops, buildings and
building typology gradually became considered people are understood as engaged in mutual
the culturally significant way to build (Pedersen “resonant” relations. As such, the materials,
2004, p. 43). The owners of the Rothelau practices as well as the presence and character of
Farmhouse belonged to the elite of the Ejdersted landscape may be understood in a “dwelling
256 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

perspective”, suggesting agency of the elements one side, the alcoves are sombre with a clear
that constitute “landscape” through rhythmic structural layering. On the other side, they are
interrelations (Ingold 1993, pp. 160–164). more elaborate, finished in planed timber with
As with the relationship between the Rothelau painted sliding doors that are articulated by del-
Farmhouse and its geographic and administrative icate profiles that catch the light.
landscape, this perspective entails moving From a distance, the (re)made Haubarg is
beyond a division of “inner and outer worlds”, characterised by a steep hipped timber roof that
“mind and matter”, “meaning and substance” extends to just above the ground, elevated on a
(Ingold 1993, p. 154). Dwelling is, according to dwelling mound. The roof is made of overlap-
Ingold, “with us, not against us” as “landscape” ping planed wood boards that produce folds and
is understood as the lived involvement in a tucks with distinct shadows, adding depth to the
temporal world (Ingold 1993, p. 154). In this sharp figure. Entering through a low opening,
perspective, forms of buildings, landscapes and that protrudes outward above the terrain, the
relations do not arise from nowhere, but “grow interior space is warm, and one feels how the
from the mutual involvement of people and structure lightly gives way under one’s feet. As
materials” in an interweaving that may soften a one’s eyes adjust to the flickering light coming
distinction between “artefacts and living things” through the loose-fit cladding, an unexpected tall
(Ingold 2000, pp. 339, 347). With functional, space, articulated by a single pointed aperture at
cultural and historic significance and considered the ridge of the roof, is revealed. The space is
as a physical manifestation of lived involvement made up from a clearly layered load-bearing
in a temporal world as dwelling, the (re)making structure of rough sawn squared timbers. The
of the Haubarg may thus be understood as a upright, steady structure supports an inclined
means of communication through which cultural- roof structure, in between which the entrance, the
historic values and meanings are conveyed. aperture and an alcove are located. Sitting down
in the alcove, the delicate planed timber of the
wooden lining feels soft to the touch, providing
3.2 Experiential Effects pause from the wealth of structural elements.
As the above phenomenological descriptions
From a distance, the Rothelau Farmhouse is point out, the seemingly contradictory “ways of
characterised by a large, hipped roof that sits on working” (Leatherbarrow 2009) at play in the
low, heavy set masonry walls elevated on a Rothelau Farmhouse—the settled and closed
dwelling mound. The thatched roof expresses a character of the building in relation to the open
softness in character, while also producing march landscape, the stability and upright artic-
articulated edges with defined shadows at the ulation of the timber structure against the
footings. Entering through a low opening under enveloping drape of the roof, the opposition of
the eaves, the interior space is dark, and one feels ceiling heights, material finishes, sheen, mat-
the uneven brick floor underneath one’s feet. As tness, softness and sharpness of light—all con-
one’s eyes adjust to the dim raking light, an tribute to the production of distinct bodily felt
unexpected tall space lit only by a single opening experiences which are re-interpreted in the
at the ridge of the roof is revealed. Entering this Haubarg. To Hermann Schmitz, the body is
central space, a large load-bearing structure of conceived as the basis for human experience and
squared timber posts becomes visible. The philosophy defined as one’s contemplation of
structure is experienced as an upright, steady how one finds oneself in one’s surroundings
support to the tent-like drape of the roof and (Schmitz 2014, p. 9). To Schmitz, dwelling is
produces an enclosure around which the walls understood as the cultivation of emotions in an
are both permeable and closed. Towards the enclosed space, that may take place through the
living quarters, a double wall containing alcoves articulation of suggestions of movement and
separates the residential spaces from the barn. On synesthetic characters, which may be sensed on
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 257

Fig. 3 Haubarg, 2022. Photo

Lars Rolfsted Mortensen

both one’s own felt body and perceived in fig- always, bear the names of specific sensory
ures, whether static or in motion (Schmitz 2016). qualities” (Schmitz 2016, p. 5), such as “the
Suggestions of movement are signs of immi- sharp, bright, gentle, pointed, hard, soft, warm,
nent movement, without actual movement, or cold, heavy, compact, delicate, dense, smooth,
gestures that go beyond the limit of movement, the roughness of colours, sounds, smells, sound
such as “the gait of a person” (Schmitz 2016, and silence, bouncing and trailing gait, joy, zeal,
p. 5); “the space spanned by the rhythmic and melancholy, freshness, and fatigue” (Schmitz
tonal movement suggestions of the sound, such 2014, p. 31).
as piercing noise, diminishing echo, rising and In an architectural perspective, embodied
falling, pressing and circling” (Schmitz 2016, communication may lead to “the formation of
p. 3) or the broadening and narrowing of space. atmospheres of emotion” and to the “tuning of
Synesthetic characters are qualities “which run the occupants and/or visitors into these atmo-
through all specific senses and often, but not spheres” (Schmitz 2016, p. 15). As such, things,
258 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

Fig. 4 Haubarg, 2022. Photo The Authors

materials and spaces may become bearers of The timber was provided by Bondeskovgaard, a
atmospheres of emotion so “that the person can third-generation sawmill established in 1900
attune to them in harmony with his corporeal which is located about 50 km from the building
mood” (Schmitz 2016, p. 14). This includes the site. The sawmill combines inherited knowledge
experienced material qualities of the walls, the of timber with the use of modern machinery,
ceiling and the floor as well as the furnishing and securing a recourse-efficient use of the entire
control of incoming light, temperature and trunk. The timber was grown in Danish forests
sounds. In this perspective, the Haubarg may be and sawed to specified dimensions as either
understood as a new interpretation of a bodily rough or planed (PAR and PSE) lumber. In the
experienced spatial sequence enacted between building, the main structure comprises three
the closed and open, dark and light, matte and modules of eight 5  5” timber posts in total,
sharp, that may be considered a mean of stabilised by diagonal bracing and leaving a
embodied communication as atmospheres rectangular 4  8 metre large floorplan. The 4 
through which experienced architectural meaning 5” roof rafters, supported by the timber frame
as dwelling may be conveyed. and fitted with battens, are clad with overlapping
planed wooden boards that serve as a contem-
porary reference to the historic building's dis-
3.3 Technical Properties tinctive thatched roof. The entrance, alcove and
skylight, constituting re-interpretations of three
In the traditional Haubarg post-and-beam typol- spatial situations identified in the historic Farm-
ogy, the timber structure comprises four, some- house, are made using 1” planed wooden boards,
times six or even eight posts, that are connected supported by a slender exterior structure.
by longitudinal and transverse beams, stabilised Wood has been used as building material
by diagonal bracing, and joined with traditional around the world for thousands of years and the
wooden joints. Independent from the outer brick technical properties of wood in historic buildings
walls, the timber frame is resistant to the forces are well described. Not only is the molecular and
of nature, especially storm surges, just as it is cellular structure of wood fundamental to its use
protected from the weathering effects of the as a material well suited for building construction
environment. The (re)making of the Haubarg is (Ramage et al. 2017), also the selection, pro-
executed entirely in locally sourced Douglas fir. cessing and treatment may be of critical
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 259

Fig. 5 Haubarg, 2022.

Illustration The Authors

importance as a way of craftsmanship to improve “[…] tectonic statement: the noble gesture which
the properties of the material (Glarbo 1959; makes visible a play of forces, of load and sup-
Vadstrup 2021). As a building material, wood port in column and entablature, calling forth our
has some very specific properties that are com- own empathetic participation in the experience”
pletely different from, for example, concrete or (Sekler 1965, p. 93).
bricks. Thus, the opposition between the tectonic Because unprotected structural timber is likely
culture of the filigree light to the stereotomic to be exposed to elevated levels of moisture,
culture of the heavy (Semper 1989) is clearly making it susceptible to fungal degradation,
articulated in the Rothelau Farmhouse as well as wood protection by design details such as raising
in the Haubarg. In addition to the structural the timber structure above ground level and
effect, the timber structure—including diagonal providing overhanging roofs that limit the
bracing, battens and cladding—makes visible the exposure to wetting and direct sunlight may
260 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

ensure that timber components can last, poten- 3.4 (Re)making the Haubarg
tially for centuries (Ramage et al. 2017, p. 351;
Vestergaard 2000). In addition to the geometrical As described and analysed above, the (re)making
configuration that limits exposure to wetting and of the Haubarg has been extensively informed by
shows water off, the clear tectonic articulation crafts tradition and local vernacular as mani-
and layering—i.e. visually separating the struc- fested in the historic Rothelau Farmhouse, both
tural timber frame, the secondary members and in terms of cultural-historical qualities, experi-
the cladding—may allow the visitor an intuitive ential effects and technical properties. All three
understanding of how the building is built as well aspects are characterised by communicating
as of the structural hierarchy and varying tem- something, both regarding the relation to the
porality of its “shearing layers” (Brand 1995). As landscape, the spatial character as well as the
such, the structural configuration of the Haubarg physical material, inviting visitors to reflect on
may lead to an engaging capacity (Verbeek and how they dwell. All in all, the Haubarg may be
Kockelkoren 1998) that may support easy understood as the re-making of technical,
maintenance, selective replacement and intuitive cultural-historical and experiential characteristics
repairs to the building over time. of the Rothelau Farmhouse conveying values,
Condensation of water around materials with qualities and meanings as dwelling.
high thermal conductivity—i.e. metal fastenings,
nails and bolts—may be considered “poisonous”
to timber structures and counteractive to material 4 Discussion and Conclusion
longevity (Vadstrup 2021). Accordingly, the
Haubarg is joined together without the use of In light of the accelerating ecological crisis
modern steel fastenings, just as all nails used for including sea level rise, extreme weather events
cladding are intended made entirely out of wood. and loss of biodiversity, all leading to higher
Only the ground screws are made of galvanised mortality (Kemp et al. 2022) the question is how
metal, reducing the carbon dioxide emission the cultural-historical qualities, experiential
regarding the foundation (according to the man- effects and technical properties of a historic
ufacturer) by 89% compared to a contemporary building, as described above, may become reac-
concrete solution. In a detail perspective, the tualised as part of the development of (more)
joints themselves may be understood as a mini- sustainable building culture(s).
mal unit in the process of signification, as “[…] The concept of sustainability was used for the
the ‘construction’ and the ‘construing’ of archi- first time in 1713 by Hans Carl von Carlowitz
tecture are both in the detail” (Frascari 1983, advocating the balancing of growth and harvest
p. 325). As such, the wooden joints have the through the principles of rationalisation, substi-
double effect of connecting the individual struc- tution and limitation as a reaction to the acute
tural members using durable wood-on-wood scarcity of timber caused by the heavy exploita-
details as well as being the place where archi- tion of forests by the mining industry. Even
tectural meaning is created. The physical prop- though contested, the most widely used defini-
erties of the material itself, the processing and tion of the concept of sustainability today is the
treatment, including the significant joint, the one offered by the Brundtland Commission
tectonic articulation and the static principle may Report, defining sustainable development as
thus be understood as a means of communication “development that meets the needs of the present
through which material and technological quali- without compromising the ability of future gen-
ties and meanings are conveyed. erations to meet their own needs” (UN 1987). In
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 261

continuation, the sustainable development goals, As a crucial part of the carbon cycle, wood
SDGs “provides a shared blueprint for peace and accumulates and stores carbon dioxide while
prosperity for people and the planet, now and growing and acts as a carbon storage as long as it
into the future” (UN SDGS 2022). The (re)- maintains its chemical form. When rotting or
making of the Haubarg supports primarily SDG burned, carbon dioxide is released into the
11 (sustainable cities and communities), SDG 12 atmosphere again (Riebeek 2011). As such,
(responsible consumption and production) and wood may be considered a renewable resource
SDG 15 (life on land). More specifically, the and potentially abundant, carbon neutral and
following targets may be identified: 11.4, recyclable. With recommended rotations for
strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the forestry harvests ranging from 35 to 70 years
world’s cultural heritage; 11.c, building sustain- depending on species and location, wood—
able and resilient buildings utilising local mate- compared to mineral resources like rocks, ores
rials; 12.2, sustainably managing and efficiently and soils—has a very short geological timescale
using of natural resources; 12.5, substantially and may as such be considered the only widely
reducing waste generation through prevention, used building material that is truly sustainable
reduction, recycling and reuse and 15.2 sustain- (Ramage et al. 2017, p. 340). However—with an
ably managing of all types of forests and the halt alternative response to climate mitigation and
of deforestation. As the project aims at inspiring adaptation—the Climate Land Ambitions and
future sustainable building cultures, SDG 3 Rights Alliance (Dooley et al. 2018) argues in
(good health and well-being) may also be con- favour of approaches that safeguard food security
sidered relevant. Similarly, SDG 4 (quality edu- and food sovereignty, land rights and biodiver-
cation) and SDG 13 (climate action) may be sity. According to this, major shifts in today’s
considered pertinent, as the project is part of a land use and land management are required—
master programme curriculum (UN SDGS 2022). including end of deforestation, forest ecosystem
It is, however, important to underline that even if restoration, natural forest expansion, agro-
individual goals have been identified, the SDGs forestry, improved management of forests for
should be considered in a holistic perspective timber and reduction in wood production (Doo-
since optimization at sector level will most likely ley et al. 2018).
fail as the individual sectors may compete with Understanding the building as a physical
each other at the expense of the whole. manifestation of lived involvement in a temporal
It has been argued that the SDGs prioritise world as dwelling, the historic Rothelau Farm-
economic growth over ecological integrity as house as well as the experimental timber struc-
they fail to monitor absolute trends in resource ture have been informed by a large number of
use (Eisenmenger et al. 2020). On a bounded parameters, including material, political and
planet, material resources are limited (Daly 2007) economic values that may hold a number of
and the safe operating space of numerous plan- potential sustainable potentials. The position of
etary boundaries are long exceeded (Rockström the building—protected from the sea by dikes
et al. 2009; Steffen et al. 2015; Raworth 2012, and placed on top of a human-made dwelling
2018). In the construction industry, the concept mound—may in itself become reactualised as a
of absolute environmental sustainability requires necessary strategy in a near future with sea level
actions to respect the planetary boundaries and rise and extreme weather events. The small size
to stay within the safe operating space (Haus- of the building may potentially inspire living on
child et al. 2020). In this perspective, sustainable fewer square metres. In the building scale, tra-
building culture(s) must prioritise the balancing ditional timber framing may be considered sig-
between the just demand for welfare among the nificantly more economical than the
living creatures and the bounded biophysical contemporary massive CLT construction,
capital seen in a planetary perspective. regarding the amount of wood used. With the
recommendation that wood be employed in
262 N. B. Andersen and V. B. Julebæk

products with a design lifespan that (at least) one feels is characterised by attunement
matches timber rotation periods (Ramage et al. [Befindlichkeit]. According to Heidegger, “[i]n
2017, p. 351), wood utilisation should move to attunement lies existentially a disclosive sub-
longer lived products (Dooley et al. 2018) and mission to world out of which things that matter
building longevity. In this perspective, the sig- to us can be encountered” (Heidegger 1996,
nificant joint, the tectonic articulation and the pp. 129–130). As such, attunement makes it
static principle as means of empathic participa- possible to direct oneself towards something, to
tion and conveyor of meaning have an engaging be touched and have a sense for something. The
capacity, that may potentially invite mainte- making as disclosure of landscape characteristics,
nance, reuse, refurbishment and recycling, material qualities and static principles experi-
according to the principles of a circular economy enced through embodied communication through
(Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2022). which architectural meaning as dwelling is con-
One study investigating the value of building veyed may thus potentially invite “[…] staying
heritage concludes that, in Denmark, listed with things for a longer while” (Andersen 2022,
buildings have a higher economic value than p. 335). In this perspective, it may be argued that
comparable not-listed buildings (Incentive 2015) longevity seen from both a technical, cultural-
suggesting that architectural and cultural- historical and experiential perspective is depen-
historical qualities may have a positive influ- dent on “[…] maintaining and reinforcing the
ence on building lifespan. According to the meanings in an object” (Muñoz Viñas 2005) that
European Environment Agency EEA, the eco- may potentially contribute to a resource-saving
logical crisis is closely linked to economic strategy and sustainable development by ensur-
growth, including increase in production, con- ing maximum meaning for present and future
sumption and resource use. It is pointed out that generations.
100% circularity is impossible, just as full In continuation of the above, it is recom-
decoupling of economic growth from environ- mended that sustainable design strategies include
mental pressures and resource consumption is material parameters that may enhance the
not possible. As such, a sustainable future engaging capacity, such as the selection, pro-
requires change of qualitative aspects, such as cessing and treatment, wood-on-wood joints,
consumption and social practices, not only a wood protection by design, separation of tem-
change of technology. As pointed out by EEA, poral layers, clear tectonic articulation and
“[w]hile the planet is finite in its biophysical structural configuration; environmental parame-
sense, on a biophysically finite planet, infinite ters that may enhance the sense of interrelation,
growth in human existential values, such as such as administration, geography, topography,
beauty, love, and kindness, as well as in ethics, ground, vegetation, weather and climate condi-
may be possible” (Strand et al. 2021). In a tions; and spatial parameters that may enhance
cultural-historic perspective, vernacular building emotional attachment such as bodily experienced
culture manifests an embodiment of both mate- spatial sequence enacted between the closed and
rial and landscape conditions, cultivated by using open, dark and light, matte and sharp. All
the ability of a given society. This involvement parameters are conveying meaning through
in the temporal world may be described as a communication and may as such highlight the
meaningful material practice where resources lived involvement and the capacity for mainte-
extracted from nature are deployed in a building nance and care that may support building
system and cultivated to make dwelling. longevity.
From a phenomenological perspective, the It may be concluded that technical properties,
fundamental existential structure indicating how cultural-historical qualities and experiential
(Re)making the Haubarg—Towards Sustainable Dwelling on a Bounded Earth 263

Fig. 6 Haubarg construction process, 2022. Photo The Authors

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2022
 High-Tech Meets Low-Tech

Andrea Veglia and Francesca Thiébat

Abstract architects in understanding the production

chain of the building, activating dynamics of
The quest toward a sustainable architecture
circular economy. The walls of the ground
from the early 70s onward highlights two floor exploit the combination of two local
seemingly non-compatible streams: the believ- crafts: lime and hemp, a century-old cultiva-
ers in the salvific potential of high technology
tion typical of the area that is now being
and the partisans of low-tech, artisanal tech- reintroduced contributing to biodiversity. By
niques. Those approaches were clear in the placing the sleeping quarters in a lightweight,
pages of Architectural Design, which pub-
kit of parts enclosure designed for deconstruc-
lished a melting pot of projects pushing for tion on top of massive living areas, the design
precision engineering and off-site fabrication looks for creative ways to reduce operational
along with experiments of constructions in
energy while at the same time minimizing
garbage and salvaged materials. Designers in embodied carbon.
the first batch gave birth to the high-tech of
the 80s, while those who dirtied their hands Keywords
with mud looked naïve dreamers. Are these
two approaches irreconcilable, or through a


Sustainable design Low-tech High-tech

fusion of low-tech and high-tech, can we find

Natural resources Circular design
a way to solve some of our struggles? This is
the question we faced when we set to design a
farmhouse. Life cycle thinking informs the
process and gives life to an approach where 1 High-Tech Meets Low-Tech
the building is seen as an active system of
material, energy, and social transformation, an By the end of the 60s, it was clear that our
act that requires the involvement of the spaceship earth has a finite amount of resources
and cannot be resupplied (Fig. 1). The cry for
help resonated through the architectural press
(Figs. 2 and 3). An overview of the quest toward
A. Veglia (&) a more sustainable architecture from the early
PAT. architetti associati, Torino, Italy 70s onward can highlight two major streams,
e-mail: andrea@[Link]
seemingly non-compatible in philosophy and
F. Thiébat aesthetically at odds: the believers in the salvific
Department of Architecture and Design, Politecnico
potential of high technology, innovative
di Torino, Torino, Italy

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 265
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
266 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 2 The cry for help resonated through the architec-

tural press. Cover of Domus 487, June 1970

footsteps of visionary technocrats such as

Buckminster Fuller and apologists of technology
such as Reyner Banham and Cedric Price. They
would give birth to the high-tech of the 80s
(Banham 1982) that went on to become the eco-
tech of the 90s (Slessor 1997), through the ever-
evolving incorporation of elements of bioclimatic
Fig. 1 By the end of the 60s, it was clear that our design and passive solar control who came to
spaceship earth has a finite amount of resources and
define the aesthetics of buildings much in the
cannot be resupplied. R. Buckminster Fuller, Operating
Manual For Spaceship Earth, 1969 same way as exposed pipes or finely crafted
joints had done in the previous two decades.
In the meanwhile, those who dirtied their
materials, and new mechanical systems and the hands with mud and straw bales would often
partisans of low-tech, almost forgotten, artisanal result looking like just a bunch of outdated hip-
techniques on the verge of extinction. pies, dropouts, or—at best—naïve dreamers,
Those approaches were clear in the pages of producing small buildings that looked more apt
Architectural Design (Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8), to the world of Peter Rabbit than to the twenty-
which published a melting pot of projects push- first century. And yet, their poor, locally sourced
ing for precision engineering and off-site fabri- materials are now the stuff of dreams in a world
cation along with experiments of constructions in that has finally digested the concept of circular
garbage and salvaged materials. Designers in the economy and has moved on to fight public
first batch, radical yet pragmatic, followed in the enemy number one: embodied carbon. Are really
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 267

Fig. 3 Call on Architectural

Design, March 1972, p. 141

Fig. 4 High-tech versus low-

tech: radical magazines such
as Architectural Design
published an exhilarating
melting pot of projects from
the likes of Foster, Hopkins,
Piano, and Rogers—all
pushing for precision
engineering and off-site
manufacturing of components
in metal, plastics, and glass to
be dry assembled on site and
sealed through the help of
kilometers of neoprene
gaskets—along with
experiments of constructions
in mud, garbage, and salvaged
materials. Cover,
Architectural Design, July
1972
268 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 5 Architectural Design, November 1970, pages 545–546

these two approaches irreconcilable, or through a they represent around 23% of the housing stock,
fusion of low-tech and industrial techniques, can but one which has received significant attentions
we find a way to solve some of our present by the politics over the last 15 years, with laws
struggles? such as “Piano Casa”—also dubbed “Piano
Villetta” (Small House Plan) since it targeted
relatively small detached or semi-detached
2 Bricolla: A Case Study dwellings—granting incentives to extend or to
demolish and rebuild with an increased vol-
Bricolla is a country house project located on the umetry. On top of this, since the COVID out-
hills of Northwestern Italy (Briaglia, Cuneo) break in early 2020, demand for such kind of
(Fig. 9). Let’s address here the first issue: does it dwellings, isolated and with access to a garden,
make sense to dedicate time to the problem of increased by 70%. If detached single family
detached single houses, as densification seems a homes still are an in-demand typology in a
mandatory prerequisite of sustainable dwelling comparatively dense country like Italy, counting
models? The answer is: YES. 200 inhabitants per square kilometer, this is even
Let’s look at the data (Eurostat 2022): more so in France, the biggest EU country by
detached single family houses in the US were area and one of the less dense with 118 inhabi-
81.5 millions in 2015 and are expected to reach tants per square kilometer. Here they represent
85 millions in 2023. 57% of total homes and their number increase at
In Europe, 35% of the population lives in a rate of 130.000 units per year. The reality—as
detached houses (Fig. 10). If we look at Italy noted in the introduction to Le Tour de France
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 269

Fig. 6 Architectural Design, March 1970, pages 146–147

Fig. 7 Architectural Design, January 1972, pages 41–42

270 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 8 Architectural Design, July 1972, pages 433–434

des Maisons Ecologiques (Rager et al. 2020)—is aimed to promote decarbonization by employing
that “the single family house still occupies a local/natural techniques and materials and com-
dominating place in the construction industry”. bining them with off-site fabrication.
For this reason, it is still important to reckon At Bricolla two ways of living and building
with this typology and its implication on the merge, coming from two different cultures: the
whole building sector. All the more so if we local Monregalese farm as a pedestal, half-
think that single family houses, or even villas, sunken in the slope with massive heat-
has been a testing ground for innovations in performing walls made of lime and hemp, and
processes and technologies that have been sub- a light shelter atop of it, made of an exposed steel
sequently appropriated by the market at large. structure and enclosed by wooden panels
Much like Formula 1 cars, some individual (Figs. 11 and 12).
houses—given their limited size and scope—can Life cycle thinking (Thiébat 2019) informs the
benefit of a special attention providing they can process and gives life to an approach where the
count on the rare mix of a passionate, adventur- building is seen not as an object, but as an active
ous client and a design team willing to go the system of material, energy, and social transfor-
extra mile to tap into new instruments, be they mation, an act that requires the active involve-
technologies or processes, hardware or software, ment of the architects in understanding and
in order to push for an evolution of the species. governing the production chain of the building.
Building on those premises, Bricolla turned from Because of its ecological virtues and the
being a single family housing commission to appeal of building with a material readily avail-
being a complete research project, starting from able on site, rammed earth was the first choice for
the quest for non-conventional building solutions the massive walls of the ground floor (Fig. 13).
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 271

Fig. 9 High-tech meets low-

tech? Bricolla is a country
house project located on the
hills of Northwestern Italy
(Briaglia, Cuneo). The
architectural intent was that of
deeply integrating the ground
floor into the hillside, setting a
compact, linear volume
parallel to the level curves of
the slope and the southwest
facing vineyards below. On
top, a long, thin roof above is
the organizing element of the
house. Beyond the vines, the
city of Mondovì and then the
Alps, on subsequent parallel
planes. Model view and
landscape of Bricolla © PAT.

Although pisé was a once popular technique in an option made available by the combination of
the area of Alessandria, 100 km to the northeast, two local crafts: lime and hemp, a century-old
it has been neglected since the construction boom cultivation typical of the area that had fallen out
of the second half of the twentieth century, of use and is now being reintroduced contribut-
leaving no artisans behind. Although now back ing to biodiversity. The Carmagnola area, only
into fashion in architectural circles, trying to use 40 km away from Briaglia, has been known for
stabilized earth in a place which has no tradition centuries for the cultivation of hemp (Fig. 14),
for it can quickly prove impractical and expen- used to produce fabrics and manufacturing ropes
sive, thus turning a philosophically noble idea in and rigging. After 60 years of neglect, Asso-
an architectural whim that only wealthy clients canapa—established in 1998 in Carmagnola—
can afford. has worked for the reconstruction of the once
For the massive walls of the ground floor, an thriving production chain. Limestone from
alternative emerged in the possibility to exploit nearby quarries has been transformed into lime in
272 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 10 Does it make sense

to dedicate time to the
problem of detached single
houses? In Europe, 35% of
the population lives in
detached houses. The reality
—as noted in the introduction
to Le Tour de France des
Maisons Ecologiques (Rager
et al. 2020)—is that “the
single family house still
occupies a dominating place
in the construction industry”.
Housing typology comparison
by flat type, from Eurostat.
Distribution of population by
degree of urbanisation,
dwelling type and income
group—EU-SILC survey
ILC_LVHO01 (2022)

Piasco (CN) for over 150 years. This made the nineteenth century the slabs of many local houses
right milieu for appropriating a relatively recent and farms were done combining iron I beams and
technology (Fig. 15). Hempcrete—or hemplime bricks or flat tiles of local production. And
—has been used in France since the early 80s, although there are strong arguments for wood
originally to add insulation to historical build- construction, in a life cycle perspective steel is
ings. Combining life cycle assessment with life still a viable choice in the long run. If construc-
cycle costs analysis of possible building com- tion wood is mostly incinerated at the end of its
ponents and bringing it down to site visits of life, steel can be re-used over and over again and
local production sites has allowed to focus in the end results being as green as the energy
choices (Figs. 16 and 17). used to transform it. Understanding and control
Given the amount of effort put in selecting of the supply chain on the part of architects is
low carbon, locally sourced materials, the choice also in this case crucial, and still not common.
of steel for the framing of the lightweight upper Generally speaking, the architect delivers his
floor might seem weird. Nevertheless, since concept to the structural engineers, which
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 273

Fig. 11 By placing the sleeping quarters in a lightweight, to reduce operational energy while at the same time
kit of parts enclosure designed for deconstruction on top minimizing the embodied carbon of the building.
of massive living areas, the design looks for creative ways Exploded axonometric scheme of Bricolla © PAT.

calculates, optimizes, and sends the specification energy. In the case of Bricolla, steel beams will
to a detailer, who then sends them to a fabricator arrive from Pallanzeno (250 km), where a lami-
that requires the product to a service center who nated steel plant is operated using a certified
buys the steel from the mill. In current practice, quantity of post-consumer recycled content of at
the architect has no idea of where the steel comes least 92% (Fig. 18). The same company is now
from. Tracking down the supply chain, making building a new construction plant totally pow-
sure of where the steel comes from and what is ered by wind. If we think that most of the supply
the recycled content and energy mix that was of structural wood in Italy comes from abroad,
used to transform the steel from scrap to beams is using a local product made by transforming scrap
the way forward, especially if we think that in the makes sense, and we can have the benefit of the
long run still mills will be powered with green reduced section of a steel frame.
274 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 12 The massive ground floor allows the living areas upper floor is easier to cool off at night during the summer
to be warm in the winter and cool in the summer, while season through cross ventilation. View of Bricolla ©
the well-insulated, carefully shaded, and less massive PAT.

3 Context, Impact, and Perspective

“Architecture will only survive in something

better than its present forms and practices by
radically engaging in its most basic working
procedures and disciplinary acts”, states Kiel
Moe in Unless (2020).
Bricolla will be the heart of a family-run small
farm producing hazelnuts, honey, and wine. It
might not be a coincidence that Bra, the small
town where the Slow Food movement originated,
is a mere 40 km away. The ethos of going to the
origin of products and understanding their supply
chain permeates the culture of this corner of
Piedmont. The jump from understanding the
food supply chain to the construction supply
chain is rather easy in this context (Fig. 19), and
is further facilitated by a culture of work and
doing business where circularity was a necessity
even before it became a fashionable statement to
boast. Bringing this ethos to the realm of archi-
tecture leads us back to the initial argument of
Unless: “Describing the non-abstract terrestrial
activity of architecture permits architects to
finally address the ecological and political basis
of architecture’s formation as a central project.
Fig. 13 Rammed earth was the first choice as a material to (…) Arguably, deep descriptions of—and
build a ground floor seamlessly emerging from his setting, enchantment with—architecture’s formation is
much as the calcareous soils left bare by the fractures in the
land that abruptly cut the rolling hillside in this area of the
far more ambitious as a theoretical and practical
Langhe. Elevation details of Bricolla © 2022 PAT.
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 275

Fig. 14 “Life cycle design not only satisfies the user’s to produce fabrics and manufacturing ropes and rigging.
complex requirements, but also promotes sustainable Hemp ropes have a greater durability than ropes in
development vis-à-vis three important fields: the econ- synthetic fibers and resist well to humidity, as proven by
omy, the environment and society” (Thiébat 2019). Forty their traditional use on boats. Harvesting hemp near
kilometers away from Briaglia, the Carmagnola area has Carmagnola. © Alice Belcredi
been known for centuries for the cultivation of hemp, used

Fig. 15 The core of an

hemplime wall is made of
hemp shives mineralized with
lime, thus making them
resistant to fungi. Hemp
shives guarantees high
insulation values. The hemp
shives and lime mix is then
finished by hemplime
thermoplaster, made by
adding small hemp fibers to
the traditional, breathable
lime wall protection that has
been used for centuries before
being reduced to a small
segment of the market by
cement-based plaster, less
virtuous but quicker and
easier to apply by unskilled
labor. Mock-up for hemplime
insulated walls, Piasco (CN).
© Andrea Veglia/PAT.
276 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

Fig. 16 After evaluating costs and Embodied Car- (wall_op_02). The table shows the materials data and
bon (€CO tool, Thiébat 2019), business as usual practice the Embodied Carbon (EC) for the three alternative
such as bricks and alternative options such as rammed stratigraphies
earth have been opted out in favor of hemplime

Fig. 17 Environmental
impact assessment results
related to the three alternative
options. Embodied carbon
values are expresses in kg
CO2 per square meter of the
wall
High-Tech Meets Low-Tech 277

Fig. 18 Given its endless recyclability steel is a perfect quantity of post-consumer recycled content of at least
material for circular economy. In the case of Bricolla, 92%. Scrap metal junkyard. © Donald Trung Wikimedia
steel beams will arrive from Pallanzeno (250 km), where Commons
a laminated steel plant is operated using a certified

Fig. 19 Designing the construction process of Bricolla be (re)activated, with hemp, lime, steel components being
has been a research on the reduction of the embedded processed no farther than 60 km, and with the possibility
energy of the whole process, so that its ecological to reuse materials such as the wood boards for floors from
footprint could be lowered while at the same time a formerly dismissed buildings, thus activating multiple
whole network of local knowledge and productions could dynamics of circular economy around a single project
278 A. Veglia and F. Thiébat

project than the purview of autonomy and 1972). Which sounds very close to the impera-
autarky of recent architecture”. tive of the piedmontese of old: “Non sprecare”
In the end, Bricolla is an attempt to go beyond (Do not waste).
all low-tech and high-tech narrations, discover-
ing the possible synergies between different
architectural cultures that used to co-exist since References
the very beginning of the 70 s radical era, to
finally operate a synthesis in a perspective of Banham R (1982) Art and necessity. Architectural
operating sustainability. Review, Dec 1982
Eurostat (2022) Distribution of population by degree of
We need to bring building decarbonization urbanisation, dwelling type and income group—EU-
and building craftsmanship from the realm of SILC survey ILC_LVHO01. [Link]
eco-luxury market to a possibly replicable Accessed 11 Oct 2022
everyday of construction, where the building Farrell B (1972) R. Buckminster Fuller. A candid con-
versation with the visionary architect/inventor/
supply chain is not something mysterious and philosopher. Playboy 2/72:59
removed from the control of the architect. Moe K (2020) Unless. Actar, Barcelona, pp 42, 44
And as much as the jargon has evolved over Rager M, Stern E, Walther R (2020) Le Tour de France
the years, it all sums up to a phrase in which des maisons écologiques. Gallimard, Paris, p 13
Slessor C (1997) Eco-tech. Sustainable architecture and
Buckminster Fuller summarized his philosophy: high technology. Thames & Hudson, London
“If we do more with less, our resources are Thiébat F (2019) Life cycle design. An experimental tool
adequate to take care of everybody” (Farrell for designers. Springer, Cham, p XI
 Learning from Vernacular
Architecture: The Essence of Remakri
Area in Bangladesh

Anindita Laz Banti

Abstract ining the community. As technology advances

rapidly, traditional structures still provide
For thousands of years, vernacular architec-
valuable lessons in terms of their creation
ture has been experiencing limitations that are and ethnicity. By working at multiple scales,
emotionally associated with its aesthetic vari- this paper explores and integrates contempo-
ety, self-regulating construction, invention,
rary strategies that will not only increase the
and adaptation to its surroundings. Vernacu- quality of life in the community, but also
lar’s authenticity describes the shared culture greatly enhance the cultural values in the
of people in a specific geographic region,
global platform.
including their language, heritage, religion,
and customs to show the importance of its Keywords
identity and existence in historical context.
Even though vernacular architecture faces

Vernacular architecture Contemporary

limitations, its adaptability and open-ended



Region Tradition Culture Community
approach inspire modern designers to embrace
traditional structures, which are highly sus-
tainable and energy efficient. Approximately,
how many vernacular buildings have been lost 1 Introduction
from a community? Furthermore, how does
vernacular architecture respond to specific “Awareness of the past is essential to the main-
conditions in this contemporary era that affect tenance of purpose in life. Without it we would
people and places all over the world? This lack all sense of continuity, all apprehension of
paper examines the current condition of causality, all knowledge of our own identity.
vernacular buildings in Remakri area inside What previous groups identifies and sanctify as
Thanchi Upazilla at Bandarban District in their pasts become historical evidence about
Bangladesh, their existing role in society, and themselves”—D. W. Meinig (Meinig and John
studies the theories and practices of contem- 1979).
porary vernacular that are shaping and exam- The importance of local influences on the
lifestyle of people of a region and its past his-
torical culture significantly express the existence
of that region’s identity. The adaptation of cul-
A. Laz Banti (&) tural and natural arrangement is expressively
Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA
distinct and directly relates to a region’s
e-mail: lazbana@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 279
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
280 A. Laz Banti

environment, people, local context, and local environmental and cultural contexts concerns the
technology. Living in a culture that has its own ability for the preservation of the architectural
deeply rooted heritage, there is always a sense of fabric of a place, of a region.
belonging to the community and society from the
past, present, and future; it gives the society
values, meanings, customs, and beliefs, which 2 Methodology
shapes the thinking process of an individual.
Preserving cultural identity supports individuals Through analyzing the current models of ver-
and communities in a balanced, unchanging, nacular buildings in Bangladesh as a standard
persistent frame of reference and meaning. form, reviewing scholarly works of architects,
To cherish something old or venerable, the theorists, and critics, and observing current
most common way of protecting and preserving building conditions and the architect’s role in
culture is by discontinuing deterioration and local communities, suggests that is why a vig-
extending the culture’s life span as long as pos- orous respect for vernacular architecture is nee-
sible. However, cultural preservation does not ded. Moreover, in rural/local regions the local
always support cultural longevity and often level of particular vernacular conditions is being
coincides and conflicts with esthetic, environ- threatened. A consideration of critical regional-
mental or practical values. Fundamentally, cul- ism through the work of Alexander Tzonis and
tural preservation relates to history and societal Liane Lefaivre (“Why Critical Regionalism
values of a specific region, which is influenced Today?”) (Tzonis and Lefaivre 2003), Kingston
by the physical appearance, ancestral origin in a Wm. Heath (“Vernacular Architecture and
society, and demonstrates shared identities Regional Design: Cultural Process and Environ-
among communities. Diverse cultural experi- mental Response”) (Heath 2009), and the archi-
ences bring together multiple cultural identities tectural precedents such as the present crisis of
among communities that integrate with a site identity in Indian architecture (Panicker and
context and natural landscape consistent with Ostwald 2002) is considered to best understand
social changes. The distinct cultural experiences the experience of the current local building
correspond with regionalism; that strives to sus- practices in Bangladesh. To consider contempo-
tain and refine successful design strategies; that rary ways of design and construction that learns
are culturally embedded within a region; that from vernacular and honors the traditions of local
emanate from the landscape; and that speak to communities, project such as Umubanu primary
the values, customs, and needs of its inhabitants school in Rwanda is discussed. To understand
(Heath 2009). Additionally, the preservation of a the global phenomena of vernacular architecture
community’s cultural experiences is reflected in and why the need for the contemporary archi-
the architectural fabric of a region. In the current tecture to learn from the vernacular is needed,
era of globalization, can vernacular architecture this study surveys comprehensively Bangladeshi
inform and impact the specific shifting of social heritage studies and its regional vernacular
and environmental conditions if local regions are practices.
affected by specific cultural building fabric that is
defined vernacular to a place? As the prime case
study, this paper discusses vernacular architec- 3 Vernacular and Critical
ture in Bangladesh as a way to consider the Regionalism
importance of cultural and architectural heritage.
Furthermore, in an increasingly interconnected, The term “Vernacular” means native or unique to
yet independent world, the focus on a vernacular a specific place, produced without the need for
building’s life cycle that responds to imported components and processes (Brown and
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 281

Maudlin 2012). According to Paul Oliver, tradi- traditional values based on local design attitudes,
tional vernacular buildings are a rich cultural customs, and methods. Every country, every area
resource: highly complex objects that can has a unique culture and taste, and architecture
express multiple meanings through form and cannot be separated from its context. Architects
decoration, enclose inhabitable space, and frame and professionals should be concerned about the
human ritual and the performances of daily life vernacular, local culture, and their influence on
(Brown and Maudlin 2012). Vernacular results contemporary architecture instead of other
from the locality of a specific region with a dis- countries’ language to design projects. The way
tinct regional identity. This specific locality is the critical regionalism formulates architecture
reflection of its history, culture, tradition, cli- within its universal integrated skills, at the same
mate, geography, topography, and lifestyle. It is time responding to socio-cultural context of the
the simplest form of addressing human needs by region, there will be always a need to construct
embracing regionalism that engages its particular social settings differently without forgetting the
geographical and cultural circumstances in effect of it. For example, participation of the local
deliberate, subtle, and vaguely politicized ways constellation of ideas could emphasize the con-
(Eggener 2002). Vernacular architecture addres- struction processes that relate social activity to
ses the issues of design and materials, at the same ecological conditions. Therefore, the approach
time it follows the common form of building in a could be to regenerate through integrated pro-
given place and time. Therefore, it must duction and reproduction of independent and
encompass easily available materials both hand- life-enhancing practices. Finally, it is clear that
made and industrially produced, depending on vernacular architecture and its language speak
the particular circumstances in this contemporary about a set of objects that describes the common
world. buildings of a given place and time, a collection
On the other hand, regionalism is concerned of buildings or vernacular landscapes, which are
with differences between rural and urban set- the products of a particular community, and last
tings, cosmopolitan progressivism, and sophisti- but not the least, an approach to studying
cation versus rural tradition and conservatism. It buildings as cultural manifestations (Carter and
also provides a method that attempts to under- Cromley 2008). These concepts significantly
stand buildings using the contextual forces which offer a useful way in the world of ordinary
surround their production. According to King- buildings and continuously reappear as analysis
ston Wm. Heath, critical regionalism designates a begins and interpretations evolve (Fig. 1).
form of architectural practice that embraces
modern/contemporary architecture critically for
its universal unifying qualities while simultane- 4 Topography and Climatic Context
ously responding to social, cultural, and climatic in Bangladesh
contexts of the region in which it is built (Heath
2009). In addition, critical regionalism is con- Bangladesh has a wide variety of vernacular
cerned with how a set of problems are dealt with, architecture based on the topography and cli-
which tend to be more about design attitude matic conditions of the region. Here, vernacular
rather than location; critical regionalism concerns buildings follow traditional practices and patterns
fragmentation and alienation versus community; in indigenous styles that are constructed from
mobility versus stability; and technology and locally available materials related to the native
industry over and against traditional approach, context. Although Bangladesh is a small country,
where new/contemporary design is not neces- it has significant topographic diversity, which
sarily a good idea to work with (Curtis 1986). includes three distinctive features: (a) a broad
Sometimes professional designers or architects muddy plain land that concern to frequent
disregard vernacular buildings and ignore the flooding, (b) a slightly elevated terrace land, and
social structures which are constructed on (c) a small hilly and upland area drained by
282 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 1 Paul Oliver’s conceptual illustrations of vernacular architecture (left); conceptual maps of critical regionalism
viewed by scholars (right), produced by author

flashy rivers (Fatemi and Islam 2011). Bangla- Settlement and Amorphous/Irregular Settlement.
desh has about 80% flat land, 12% hilly areas, They are both constructed on elevated platforms
and 8% terrace land. The southern part has a or ground that is higher above the annual flood
highly irregular coastline of about 600 km that is level. The elongated linear settlement is usually
ruptured by rivers and canals flowing into the constructed on high land alongside river or water
Bay of Bengal. The hilly areas of the southeast- channels. Such settlement patterns are actually
ern region of Chittagong, the northeastern hills of determined by the location of rivers or waterfalls.
Sylhet, and highlands in north and northwest are In contrast, the amorphous settlement is spread
of low elevations. The settlement pattern near the throughout the plot and has a clustered or scat-
river side is linear, which is also found in the tered pattern on a raised platform to prevent
spring lines of the Chittagong Hill Tracts. annual floods. When high land is not accessible,
Whereas the remainder of the country shows the soil from digging ponds or channels is raised into
clustered or scattered settlements. Climatic con- a mound that is 2–3 m or more above the water
text in Bangladesh is different throughout the level nearby, on which a farmhouse or BARI is
year. It has a subtropical monsoon climate fea- built (Fatemi and Islam 2011). This type of
tured by wide seasonal variations in rainfall, homestead, or BARI, starts out as a single
moderately warm temperatures, and high household and later grows into a settlement of
humidity. Due to the warm humid climate, it is multiple dwellings and additional multi-
important to have thermal comfort in the built generational homes, or GHORS. As the settle-
environment and protection from rain in the ment grows, more and more earth is put to the
design. This paper attempts to investigate the mound to extend it. As a result, settlements are
conditions of vernacular buildings in Bangla- built on growing mounds, which act as an island
desh; analyzes the typologies of traditional during the rainy season.
building forms in different areas in terms of
geography and topography; and observes their
traditional vernacular housing technology, local 5 Typologies in House Form:
perceptions of environmental behavior, and Bangladesh
economic aspects of building construction in
Bangladesh in terms of eco-adaptation and sus- Under a system of geographic controls, housing
tainability (Fatemi and Islam 2011) (Figs. 2 and in a specific area develops in accordance with
3). local resident needs, which evolves together with
In Bangladesh, the floodplains comprise over their requirements at various phases of socioe-
76% of the country’s rural settlement. These conomic and cultural development. A key con-
settlements are two types of Elongated Linear sideration when choosing a house location is the
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 283

Fig. 2 Bangladesh Broad Physiography (pattern of topographical features or landforms). Source Banglapedia

Fig. 3 Rural settlement and built form in Bangladesh. Source Drawn by author

landform. Due to the nearly flat and deltaic ter- during the monsoon (Fatemi and Islam 2011). In
rain that makes up the majority of Bangladesh, terms of physiography, Bangladesh can be divi-
dwellings must be built on higher ground or on ded into three separate regions: (a) floodplains,
land that has been purposely raised, as is the case (b) terraces, and (c) hills, each of which has
in “haor regions,” to avoid floods and inundation distinctive qualities of its own. There are several
284 A. Laz Banti

house types that have been seen in those regions 5.1.1 Analysis
including houses on terrace land, houses in hilly The topography of this area shows that the
and upland areas, and buildings in plain land landform is relatively at a lower elevation that is
classified as floodplain. shallowly flooded. Most of the ridges and all the
basins of this floodplain region are flooded more
than 0.91 m deep for about 4 months (mid-June
5.1 Plain Land to mid-October) during the monsoon (Fatemi and
Islam 2011). The houses in this region are made
Houses that are located on plain land are more of bamboo matting and mud, which are attached
affected by flooding. Moreover, the floodplain to plinths as they have lower elevation and have
means comparatively flat lands adjacent to that proximity to flood level. The houses are arranged
formed by alleviating rivers which are subject to in scattered ways to allow free movement of air
overflow. In this type of land, houses are built in through buildings and through spaces between
an open planning pattern in response to the warm buildings. Moreover, the outdoor spaces are used
humid climate. This type of houses can be found for different activities that take place out-of-
at some parts of Dhaka, Gazipur, Narayanganj, doors. The shape and form of the building is
Tangail, Joydevpur, Sunamganj, Mymensingh, rectangular, which is elongated along east–west
Kushtia, Jessore, and Cox’s Bazar. The house direction. The north–south orientation of the
has a separated rectangular form of living zones building creates an opportunity to get natural
that extended to east–west direction and the ventilation. Additionally, the shaded verandas
layout is rectangular, with an open courtyard. and the shaded outdoor spaces are constructed
This type of house has two types of roofs: for climatic reasons. Steep roofs are planned to
Chouchala that means the roof has four roofs protect against high rainfall, which is a regular
together and Dochala that means there are two phenomenon of this region. The warm, humid
roofs in total. The building is planned in a scat- climate is the reason for the dispersed housing
tered way with large, free spaces between them arrangements for various functions into diverse
to allow air circulation that also provides venti- structures. Materials are environmentally friendly
lation for cooling. Buildings are built on a raised and can adapt to the surroundings; for instance,
earth plinth, which is common in Bangladesh and perforated bamboo matting walls can operate as a
is a characteristic feature of indigenous breathing wall and provide passive ventilation
architecture. (Figs. 4 and 5).

Fig. 4 Climatic condition showing free movement of air through buildings (left); pattern of house forms: building
forms and shapes, plain land. Source Re-drawn by author
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 285

Fig. 5 Housing unit and higher plinth at plain land. Source Md. Nawrose Fatemi and Nabanita Islam

5.2 Terrace Land 5.2.1 Analysis

Terrace land is comparably at a higher elevation
Houses on terrace land are found in parts of than the nearby floodplains, according to the
greater Dinajpur, Bogra, Pabna, Joypurhat geography. Nearly 47% of this region is high-
Rangpur, Rajshahi, and Naogaon Districts of land, while nearly 41% is medium highland. Two
Rajshahi Division. The planning pattern of terrace levels exist: one is at a height of 4 m,
buildings in this region is compact, which is while the other is between 1.98 and 2.29 m
appropriate for the hot dry climate of the region. (Fatemi and Islam 2011). As a result, the sur-
The houses are rectangular in shape that is usu- rounding land does not flood when the flood-
ally elongated along east–west direction and they plains are submerged during the rainy season.
orient in north–south direction. These houses Due to the lateritic component of the soil and the
also have courtyards around their perimeter, higher elevation, which is above the average
which partially shields them from the wind’s full flood level, mud is utilized in this area to build
force and the effects of the outside air. Buildings walls and dwellings. The houses are usually
are also packed and introverted in nature, with compact and joined together, which gives them a
enclosed areas between them. Additionally, the certain character. The basic structure is laid out
placement of structures and their orientation in so that a central courtyard is encircled by walls,
space influence the microclimate at each location partially shielding it from the effects of the out-
(Fig. 6). side air. Each site has a unique microclimate

Fig. 6 Housing unit at terrace land. Source Doza, S. B. and Razzaque, M. Z. I., 2008
286 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 7 Settlement pattern: topography showing lower plinth (left); pattern of house forms and shapes (right), terrace
land. Source Re-drawn by author

created by the layout, orientation, and design of those compartments is occasionally used for
the structures. Terrace land follows a consistent storage or housing domestic animals (Fatemi and
geometry that is primarily squarish for building Islam 2011).
form and shape. All of the functions are arranged
around a central courtyard, on which the house’s 5.3.1 Analysis
design is specifically focused. Additionally, due The hilly area’s topography denotes sharply ris-
to climatic factors, the houses are small and ing mountain ranges that resemble hogback rid-
introverted in style. As a result, the created form ges. In regions where the hill ranges have an
is shielded from the effects of the hot air from the average elevation of more than 300 m, the river
outside. The walls function as a thermal mass valleys and the hill ranges are typically longitu-
when it is heated outside (Fig. 7). dinally aligned. In this region, houses are raised
above the ground on stilts to provide security,
protection from dangerous animals, and protec-
5.3 Hilly Area tion from flooding during the rainy season. Since
there is a shortage of drinking water, the position
Houses on hilly areas are found in Chittagong, of JHIRI or waterbody essentially controls the
Chittagong Hill Tracks, Mainamoti Hill Tracts, settlement pattern in this area (Figs. 8 and 9).
and Parts of Sylhet Division. To allow for The dwellings are arranged beside the JHIRI
unrestricted airflow around the building, build- direction in an irregular pattern (Fatemi and
ings in this area are spread out far enough from Islam 2011). The building forms in hilly areas are
one another. Adversely, a distinctive feature of generally in square shape. Sometimes the
rural housing in plain areas, the courtyard, is extended portion of the house is also followed by
absent from this house. The houses are arranged the existing squares, whereas the other spatial
in a tight planning pattern on elevated buildings, divisions that they made by dividing the main
allowing cross ventilation that is a suitable house or any part are not square. In contrast to
response to the temperature and geography of the rural living in the plain lands, PAHARI or tribal
mountainous location. Buildings are extrovert in communities don’t have courtyards in their
nature and essentially lifted off the ground, cre- houses. With each built form, a raised platform
ating an elevated platform known as MACHANG known as MACHANG is produced at the front of
to facilitate cross ventilation beneath the spaces. the house and serves as a courtyard. These are
They built high platforms to prevent flooding and present in houses on plain or terraced land.
get rid of wild animals. The lower portion of Furthermore, the living areas of these houses are
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 287

Fig. 8 Climatic condition showing location of Jhiri / waterbody determines the settlement pattern in hilly area (plan).
Source Re-drawn by author

Fig. 9 Topography showing house with bamboo slit in hilly area (left). Source Re-drawn by author; housing unit at
hilly area (right). Source Md. Nawrose Fatemi and Nabanita Islam

also too small because of the lack of available natural, organic, renewable, and biodegradable
space, they are extrovert in nature which are (Fernandes et al. 2014). Mud, rammed earth,
constructed on stilts (Fatemi and Islam 2011). bamboo, thatch/straw, and wood are the most
prevalent native materials in Bangladesh since
they are made from resources that are readily
6 Materials and Transportation available there. In the plain area, people use mud
as foundation and bamboo, bamboo mats for
In vernacular architecture, structures are created walls, which are then tied and connected to
using regionally specific and easily accessible building frames. The roof is covered by bamboo
materials as a necessary response to the local and thatch and then processed by the locals.
geology, climate, and customs. Due to their Locals employ their own local building methods
energy efficiency and consideration for the local and knowledge, which was passed down from
eco-systems, these structures are also environ- their ancestors over time.
mentally friendly. Local materials also have less In order to encourage the development of
energy-intensive production processes and don’t sustainable communities, the ecological building
require any transportation costs, which results in sector needs to locate its production facilities
lower embodied energy and CO2 emissions. close to where its products will be consumed,
Additionally, local materials have a low mainte- make use of locally available renewable resour-
nance environmental effect because they are ces, and prioritize low-energy and low-pollution
288 A. Laz Banti

processes. Supporting sustainable local develop- neighborhood community called Kabeza (Mutuli
ment means also preserving a cultural heritage of 2016). They worked with local people, used local
construction knowledge inherent to regions. materials, and adapted their techniques (Figs. 10
Therefore, in order to accomplish sustainability, and 11).
architecture should find a way to combine The school provides seven buildings and nine
ancient and modern methods by utilizing both classrooms on a significantly sloped site; this
techniques for environmental improvement school serves quality education for over 300
employing technology and materials that would vulnerable children. The unique settings for
benefit regional social and economic advance- education have been designed within a mix of
ments (Fernandes et al. 2014). interior rooms, exterior teaching areas, some of
these spaces are covered by sloping roofs, and
terraces are designed for the play area of the
7 Case Study: Umubano Primary children. Local materials such as brick and
School, Rawanda bamboo are composed into walls with built-in
shading screens. These local materials, shading,
Umubanu primary school, Kigali, Rwanda is and natural ventilation are relied upon to reduce
designed by MASS design group (Construction: energy consumption. Inside the classrooms, there
March 2009–July 2011); the firm’s main goal is are clerestory windows that help to bring light
to create an architecture that requires the form to into the classroom. The design of Umubano
improve the lives among the school and com- Primary School merges with the hilly landscape
munity. The architects focused on the site context in which it is gracefully falling and rising with
with an aim of designing a school that fits in its the contours. In the hilly landscape of Kabeza
context to inspire, merge, and integrate the neighborhood, people travel across terraced

Fig. 10 View of the buildings on the sloped site. Photo Iwan Baan
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 289

Fig. 11 View of the library, a papyrus-reed dropped ceiling provides natural ventilation and diffused light (left) and
classroom, handmade brick coursing also helps move air through the space (right). Photo Iwan Baan

Fig. 12 Site section, the ramped network of the complex was informed by the stepped agricultural landscape. Source
MASS Design Group

agricultural land to complete their journey. The and retaining walls that give the school a unique
school mirrors this kind of living, with outdoor aesthetic as the school is a landmark in the
classrooms providing the children with a school Kabeza community.
that is embedded in their daily lives. The main The MASS Design group works with the
concern of this design was to create a school that community, understands them, and determines
would totally relate to the community (Menocal the needs and desires of their clients. They
2013) (Figs. 12 and 13). involve the local people in their design and
The materials used in this project are brick construction phases, listen to the community’s
and papyrus reeds that are found within the ideas and design accordingly, and build struc-
neighborhood and help to cut down the trans- tures that are thoughtfully considered by
portation cost. Moreover, the construction addressing the site and use of material. Everyone
improved the regions’ economy by encouraging in the community appreciates the level of com-
construction professionals and residents to mitment MASS Design group has to the com-
embrace the local market. Some local expertise is munity through their engagement. Moreover, the
also included in this project that inspires natural structures and materials implemented in this
ventilation strategies comprising thatched doors project have a unique integration of surroundings
and brick jail, basically holes in the brick wall to reflect the cultural and vernacular context of
patterns across the structures. Furthermore, the the Kigali region.
limestone blocks are used to design the terracing
290 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 13 Umubano Primary School building diagram. Source MASS Design Group

7.1 Site Location Peak. River Sangu, also known as Sangpo or

Shankha, is another prominent feature of the
Bandarban District is located in the southeastern district and the only river to originate in Ban-
part of Bangladesh and a part of the Chittagong gladesh (Bandarban District 2021). This district
division and Chittagong Hill Tracts, which has is also one of the most exotic tourist attractions
an area of 4479.03 km2. Geographically, Ban- and best hiking spots in Bangladesh.
darban is surrounded by the Rangamati District
on the north, the Arakan (Myanmar) on the
south, the Chin Province (Myanmar) and 7.2 Thanchi
Rangamati District on the east, and the Chit-
tagong and Cox’s Bazaar District on the west. Thanchi Upazila is inside Bandarban District and
The population is around 298,120. This upazila has an area of 1020.82 km2. Thanchi is bordered
is home to indigenous tribes such as the Marma, on the north by Ruma Upazila, on the south by
Chakma, Bawm, Murong, Tripura, Khyang, Arakan State of Myanmar, on the east by
Khumee, and Lushei (Bandarban District 2021) Belaichhari Upazila, and on the west by Alika-
(Fig. 14). dam and Lama Upazilas. It has a total of 16,992
Bandarban District is home to Raikhiang population in which male population is 9438 and
Lake, the country’s highest lake, as well as female population is 7554 (Fig. 15).
Bangladesh’s three tallest peaks, Tahjindong This upazila is home to indigenous popula-
(1280 m), Mowdok Mual (1052 m), and Keok- tions such the Marma, Murong, Tripura, and
radong (1230 m). The district’s other two well- Khyang (Thanchi Upazila 2021). Thanchi Bazar
known landmarks are Boga Lake and Chimbuk is a prominent bazaar and fair in this region.
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 291

Fig. 14 Map showing Bandarban District. Source Created by author

Fig. 15 Thanchi area photos showing boat stoppage spot, different building structures, and bazar. Source Author

Additionally, it has some well-known hospitals 7.3 Remakri

and educational institutes where people from
many villages and para travel for better services. The site is situated in Remakri area, inside
(Source Bangladesh Population Census 2001, Thanchi Upazilla, which is at Bandarban District,
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics; Cultural survey Chittagong Division, in Bangladesh. It is also
report of Thanchi Upazila 2007.) near to Myanmar boarder at east and west side of
292 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 16 Entry and circulation, showing Bandarban-Thanchi road. Source Created by author

the site. The only mode of transit from the Furthermore, the Sangu River plays a significant
Thanchi area to the site Remakri is by boat, role in the lives of the major ethnic communities
which takes approximately 2 hours along the of Marma, Murong, Tripura, Bawm, Tanchanga,
Sangu River. The Sangu, a cross-border river, Chakma, Chak, Khyang, Khumi, Lushei, and the
rises on the Indo-Burma border (North Arakan Pankho (Bandarban District Statistics 2013)
Hills of Myanmar: at 21°13′N 92°37′) and flows (Fig. 18).
through Chittagong before entering Burma to the Thanchi upazila and Bandarban Districts are
north. It is one of the challenging watercourses linked by the Bandarban-Thanchi road, which
with occasionally a river, a torrent, and mostly a also links to Chittangong Division. In Thanchi,
stream (Hossen et al. 2019) (Figs. 16 and 17). there are many secondary roads that connect with
Despite not being a river of the Himalayas, different services and programs. In the Thanchi
this river depends on rainfall, and conveniently, Region, there is also a “ghat,” or boat stoppage
its watershed is located in an area with substan- place near the Sangu River, where traditional
tial annual rainfall (Adnan 2019). The Sangu boats transport both people and things to the
River has year-round flow due to the water desired location. With so many linkages and ties
sources and the trees that assist in retaining the between people and their rivers in river-based
water in the soil. The river has a total length of livelihoods, the Sangu River serves as the back-
294 km, of which 173 km are in Bangladesh. bone of the entire region (Figs. 19 and 20).
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 293

Fig. 17 Site access. Source Created by author

Fig. 18 Remakri area photos showing boat stoppage zone/ghat, buddhist temple, and bazar and gathering space.
Source Author

7.4 Site Analysis tourists, temporary structures for bazar both at

the bottom and in the uphill, around 30-year-old
According to the building usage of the study area Buddhist temple, BGB camp, and helipad. In
in Remakri most of the housing settlements are terms of materials and construction methods, all
1–2 storied. The area has some guest house for building structures share a number of similarities.
294 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 19 Site surrounding photos showing different significant spots and existing structures in Remakri. Source Author

Fig. 20 Remakri Waterfall, bazar, and boat stoppage area near the Sangu River. Source Author

The flood plains are basically near to the edge of 7.5 Existing Building Form Study
the river, which rises up to 10–15 feet during
rainy season. The average water level of the river The settlement pattern in the Remakri area is
is around 3–5 feet. This area is regularly affected determined by the existing building forms, par-
by floods because of heavy rainfall, landslides, ticularly in hilly areas that follow waterways/
and riverbank erosion (Adnan 2019). Since the rivers or contour landscapes. Since there is a
river controls the settlement patterns in hilly shortage of drinking water, the placement of the
areas, circulation or movement mostly developed JHIRI or waterbody basically controls the set-
from rivers. The intersection point where the tlement layout. The dwellings are arranged
Sangu River divides into three directions serves beside the JHIRI direction in an irregular man-
as a junction for the local population of that ner. The hilly region’s topography refers to
region as well as for people from the surrounding mountain ranges that rise abruptly, where the
Arakan State of Myanmar, which acts as a major river basins and hill ranges are longitudinally
factor (Figs. 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, and 26). aligned, and the hill ranges have an average
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 295

Fig. 21 Building usage at Remakri. Source Created by author

Fig. 22 Flood plains at Remakri. Source Created by author

296 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 23 Circulation/movement at Remakri. Source Created by author

Fig. 24 Vegetation at Remakri. Source Created by author

Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 297

Fig. 25 Long section of the site. Source Created by author

elevation of more than 300 m. The building thermal storage capacity and design structures in
forms are generally in square shape, built on such a way as to effectively cross-ventilate. Ideal
stilts, extrovert in nature, and living zones are too bamboo structures meet these criteria, which
small to live in because of the limited space. In explains why they have long been adopted as
addition, houses are also constructed on a raised housing in hot, humid settings (Humanity
platform known as a MACHANG, which serves Development Library 2.0, no date). Some bam-
as the home’s front courtyard. The elevated boo species’ culms can be split apart and flat-
platform is also used to control flooding, get rid tened to create floors. For houses on stilts,
of wild animals, and as a storage area or gath- this particular kind of bamboo floor is elevated
ering place. The materials that are used for the (1.5–2 m) above the ground to allow for the
building are bamboo, wood, thatch, corrugated storage of equipment or animals beneath. Thin-
sheet, etc. (Figs. 27, 28, and 29). ner culms are flattened for the floor, thicker
Bamboo has been essential to the growth of culms are utilized as column supports, and
businesses, building construction, and the diver- woven mats are used as floor covering (Fig. 31).
sification of the agricultural environment in the This form of bamboo craftsmanship requires
Remakri region. Since bamboo is frequently uti- specialized skills, yet these have historically been
lized for a variety of purposes, it will only remain available in most bamboo-growing locations.
2–3 years underground if it isn’t preserved. Certain patterns, styles, forms, and shapes used
Houses on stilts are supported by bamboo posts. in this traditional technique are exclusively pro-
The strongest culms are those with tightly spaced duced by locals, who depend on them for their
joints and the biggest diameter. They are joined livelihood. Moreover, these techniques are very
into columns if there are only smaller shafts hard to translate to the modern context. In order
available. In addition, the roof’s frame is made of to improve their lives, many governmental and
bamboo. The roof is covered with a variety of private organizations have promoted skilled
materials, including corrugated sheet, and culms craftsmen to manufacture goods for the market.
cut in half to create bamboo tiles (Fig. 30). As a result, locals are gaining benefits and are
Due to the typical warm and humid climate in adopted new tools to increase their productivity.
Remakri, where bamboo is produced, it is nec- Undoubtedly, bamboo is growing in popu-
essary to utilize building materials with low larity among contemporary designers as a
298 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 26 Closeup section and aerial view at Remakri. Source Created by author

sustainable material and for its aesthetic appeal, bamboo, natural materials, and recycled materi-
cultural significance, and environmental advan- als to construct much of the framework. It con-
tages. Therefore, when working with local car- tains a spacious living/communal space in the
penters globally, it’s important to learn about front with a MACHANG space which acts as a
their skill set in order to design for them and courtyard/ terrace, private rooms, and a kitchen
produce construction documents that they can and eating area with a backside Machang in the
understand (Fig. 32). back. A split-roof and operable shutters allow
There are three types of houses found in the natural ventilation to flow through the house,
Remakri area. Type 1 building form uses a while the angled and overhanging roof litigate
combination of sustainably grown timber, solar heat gain (Figs. 33, 34, and 35).
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 299

Fig. 27 Existing buildings at Remakri showing different shapes and forms, roads and pathways, and roofs. Source
Author

Fig. 28 Existing building on stilts at Remakri (left); bamboo construction details (right). Source Created by author

Fig. 29 Beam and post

details (left); roofing details
(right). Source Created by
author
300 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 30 Wall construction details (left); panels of woven bamboo mats/strips tied to the bamboo frame (right). Source
Created by author

Fig. 31 Split and flattened culms of bamboo (left); bamboo floor (middle); bamboo for foundation (right). Source
Created by author

Fig. 32 Handwoven bamboo

wall (left); vertical halved
bamboo culms (middle);
whole bamboo culms (right).
Source Created by author

Type 2 building form is typically two-storied accommodations. A spacious living area that can
and square or rectangular in shape. It has a occupy a large family or guests is located on the
foundation base at ground level that is con- upper floor (Figs. 36 and 37).
structed of concrete, a durable material. On the Type 3 is a new structure that uses new
ground floor, they typically construct a shop, and materials. The structure is designed at the center
next to it, there is a space that serves a variety of of the community, which acts as a marketplace or
functions, including storage and guest community space. New materials such as brick,
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 301

Fig. 33 Floor plan: building type 1; Drawn by author

concrete, steel, and corrugated sheets are used. In replacement through its own functional processes
order to reduce the risk of flooding and promote of the energy and materials used in its operation
natural ventilation, the construction is elevated (Moore 1993). Moreover, it brings the force of
above precast concrete pillars and designed for the idea of fostering, converging human agree-
resilience (Fig. 38). ment through cultural identity that prefers a
creation of critical and historically instructive
places. In addition, regenerative regionalism
8 Inclusive of Politics gives importance to local labors and their par-
ticipation in the building process while relying
Working with local government is the key to upon technologies of everyday life through
supporting local communities. The creation of democratic means that reveal the manner of their
community infrastructure depends upon the local making to magnify local labor knowledge and
government, who is in a way responsible for local ecological conditions (Moore 1993). The
society’s growth and value. Moreover, working idea of participation is emphasized in the case
together with local people and local government study—Umubano Primary School, Rawanda that
will construct social settings in an integrated is designed by Mass Design Group, where the
way. This also underscores the aspect of regen- architects not only worked with locals but also
erative regionalism that helps to participate in adapted their skills, knowledge, and techniques
local constellations of ideas, which describes the and incorporated it into the design. Therefore, the
tectonic history of a place through the construc- whole design reflects Kaigali region’s vernacular,
tion of integrated cultural and ecological their own identity, and cultural pattern that
processes. Basically, by definition regenerative significantly justify their belongings of that
system/regionalism means to provide continuous place.
302 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 34 Materials used in building type 1; Drawn by author.

Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 303

Fig. 35 Floor plan: building type 2; Drawn by author

Fig. 36 Exploded axon: building type 2; Drawn by author

304 A. Laz Banti

Fig. 37 Floor plan: building type 3; Drawn by author

Fig. 38 Exploded axon: building type 3; Drawn by author

the design process, it helps the community

9 Conclusion develop its own language and offers them a
chance to celebrate their identity. Furthermore,
The case study emphasizes an important element each of these aspects can be integrated into
that should be considered not only in vernacular design that not only helps to create cultural
architecture but also those elements needed to identity of a region but also learn from it. In
learn from the vernacular itself. By emphasizing Bangladesh, different regions have their own
the site context and including the community in cultural identity, although they are all together
Learning from Vernacular Architecture: The Essence of Remakri Area in Bangladesh 305

Bangladeshi culture. To understand this culture, Fernandes JEP, Mateus R, Bragança L (2014) The
tradition, their effect, and the result of global- potential of vernacular materials to the sustainable
building design, pp 623–629
ization over the regional vernacular practices, a Heath KW (2009) Vernacular architecture and regional
structure or design specific to Bangladeshi design: cultural process and environmental response.
region’s community should be introduced. Per- Routledge, UK
haps, the introduction should focus on over- Hossen MS, Hossain MS, Rahman MM (2019) Sangu
River’s contribution to the livelihood of local people.
coming generalizations about the region, its ResearchGate. In: River: a living being, 4th interna-
vernacular building, and most importantly the tional water conference 2019. [Link]
need for the contemporary to learn from ver- [Link]/profile/Mohammad-Hossain-144/
nacular itself and work with each other. More- publication/331715237_Sangu_River%27s_Contribu-
tion_to_the_Livelihood_of_local_People/links/5c890
over, a language should be developed through d22299bf14e7e799f01/Sangu-Rivers-Contribution-to-
the professionals’ and architects’ firsthand [Link]. Accessed 12 Jan
experience with the community by recognizing 2023
their wants and needs. Based on the community’s Humanity Development Library 2.0 (no date) Appropriate
building materials: examples of wall materials: bam-
need, a design solution could be proposed to help boo walls. Humanity Development Library 2.0 for
the struggling community to create an identity sustainable development and basic human needs.
fitting to their existing predicament. [Link]
off-0hdl–00-0——0-10-0—0—0direct-10—
4—————0-1l–11-en-50—20-help—00-0-1-00-0-
0-11-1-0utfZz-8-00&cl=CL1.1&d=HASH70c81f638
References 6a2600bdfdd3f.8.7&x=1. Accessed 14 Jan 2023
Meinig DW, Jackson JB (1979) The interpretation of
Adnan S (2019) LULC of Bandarban. [Link]. ordinary landscapes: geographical essays. Oxford
[Link] University Press, New York
BANDARBAN. Accessed 12 Jan 2023 Menocal CG (2013) MASS Design Group: Umubano
Bandarban District (2021) ‘Banglapedia: National Ency- Primary School, Kigali, Rwanda, 08 May. https://
clopedia of Bangladesh, 18 June. [Link] [Link]/architecture/mass-design-
[Link]/[Link]/Bandarban_District. group-umubano-primary-school-kigali-rwanda/.
Accessed 19 Aug 2022 Accessed 25 Mar 2020
Bandarban District Statistics 2011 (2013) Bangladesh Moore SA (1993) Technology, place, and nonmodern
Bureau of Statistic (BBS). Ministry of Planning, regionalism. In: Architectural regionalism: collected
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Dhaka Canizaro, pp 433–442
Brown R, Maudlin D (2012) Concepts of vernacular Mutuli I (2016) Umubano Primary School: a project after
architecture. In: The SAGE handbook of architectural its own context in Kigali by Mass Design Group, 10
theory, pp 340–355 July. [Link]
Carter T, Cromley EC (2008) Invitation to vernacular school-project-context-kigali-mass-design-group/.
architecture: a guide to the study of ordinary buildings Accessed 25 Mar 2020
and landscapes. University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville Panicker SK, Ostwald MJ (2002) Underlying ethos in
Curtis WJ (1986) Towards an authentic regionalism. Indian architecture: critical regionalism in the age of
Mimar19:24–31 globalization
Eggener KL (2002) Placing resistance: a critique of Thanchi Upazila (2021) Banglapedia: National Encyclo-
critical regionalism. J Arch Educ 55(4):228–237. pedia of Bangladesh, 18 June. [Link]
[Link] org/[Link]/Thanchi_Upazila. Accessed 20 Aug
Fatemi NM, Islam N (2011) Sustainability and eco- 2022
adaptability in vernacular housing in Bangladesh. In: Tzonis A, Lefaivre L (2003) Critical regionalism: archi-
International conference on society, technology & tecture and identity in a globalized world (architecture
sustainable development. Kochi, India in focus). Prestel
 Ancestral Earthen Construction
Techniques Updated to the Needs
of the People in the Central Andes
of Peru, an Experience of Research
and Training of Architecture
Students Based on Community
Service

Vladimir Simon Montoya Torres

Abstract the territory of the Mantaro Valley located at

3200 m above sea level. Finally, as a result of
The objective of the research was to study and this academic and social process, local accep-
update ancestral construction techniques using tance for the use of raw land as a constructive
raw earth as a fundamental material, these alternative will increase, it is within these
techniques were taken as a reference to communities that the most abundant resource
different pre-Inca cultures that used this is used and consequently construction costs
material as an alternative to construction are reduced and greater access is achieved.
needs, as is the case of the Chan Chan city Houses by the neighbors were formed in this
1200 to 1465 AD belonging to the Chimú process of investigation and technological
culture and the architectural remains of the extension, finally these years of work
Huaca Puccllana 200 to 700 AD of the Lima achieved the development of several investi-
culture. These cultures left us a legacy of gations related to the construction on land that
construction techniques that serve to develop a helped the students to graduate as architects.
learning and teaching methodology dedicated
to architecture students from the city of
Huancayo who, in the experimental earth Keywords
construction laboratory, replicate these tech-
niques applied in the towns of the Central

Earth construction Ancestral techniques

Andes. From Peru. Peru, through participation

Sustainable communities High Andean cities
based on community service, promoting SDG
11 based on sustainable cities and communi-
ties, as a result of the methodology being
based on learning, practicing, and teaching 1 Introduction
these construction techniques to the commu-
nities of Palian and Cochas that they belong to For centuries the Peruvian territory housed dif-
ferent archaeological remains that in their con-
struction process used the earth as the
predominant material, depending on the geo-
V. S. M. Torres (&) graphical context and climate, some constructions
Universidad Continental, Colegio de Arquitectos were located on the Peruvian coast and others in
Junín, Junin, Huancayo, Peru
e-mail: vmontoya@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 307
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
308 V. S. M. Torres

the Andes, however no record was found in the foundation, this temple belonged to the Inca
Peruvian Amazon, we consider that it is logical culture and was developed during the period of
that in a rainy climate with high levels of Inca expansion under the governments of the
humidity, it would be difficult to maintain earth- Incas Huiracocha, Pachacútec, and Túpac
based constructions, this relationship between Yupanqui during the years of 1450 to 1532 A.D.
material and geographical context also has a direct All this historical context represents the theo-
relationship with the predominant construction retical and motivational basis to involve young
system in the Inca culture in which many of its students in research and constructive experimen-
most representative constructions are built with tation based on land, visiting these archaeological
carved stone, Machupichu located at 2430 m.a.s. remains centers and visualizing their magnitude
l. and the city of Choquequirao at 3033 m.a.s.l. and their perseverance over time are guidelines
both located in the high jungle allow us to that drive and motivate students. Students to get
understand that a citadel built in stone is more involved in this research, the material resources for
suitable in tropical rainy contexts where the land the construction of earth-based temples and sanc-
would be vulnerable to climatic conditions. tuaries are the same as we now have, they are
On the other hand, the construction records mostly the use of raw earth, this means that the
built on land give us a totally different approach construction material is accessible, low cost and
when located on the Peruvian coast, as is the case can be replicated, the conditions of use changed
of the Pachacamac temple belonging to “the like the current times, however, the needs of roof
Lima culture that emerged in 100 B.C. and and home by vulnerable groups still continues to
remains until 600 A.D.” (Bouso 2012) this site is be a problem in my country, that is why several
located south of the capital city of Lima and generations of architecture students joined this
within a climate in which there are no rainy experimental workshop on land “The recovery of
precipitations, this temple that belonged to the ancestral knowledge guarantees its transcendence
Lima culture and subsequent Wari expansion is and can affect the development of sustainable
tangible evidence that the criteria Ancestral housing” (Guerrero 2018) and managed to get
constructions still endure and are sustained over involved with the proposal of construction alter-
time, the construction technique is that of natives inspired by ancestral techniques of han-
stacking earthen adobes with clay plastering in dling raw earth for construction purposes, all
the ceremonial temples, the rest of the architec- based on an education methodology for service, in
tural complex uses adobe without plastering, a which students collaborate in the construction
similar development was generated in “the processes together with the residents and high
Moche culture in which constructions were made Andean communities.
on the land of temples and pyramids that
implemented polychromatic friezes and plasters,
building a doctrine” (Morales 2007) this culture 2 Materials and Methods
was located north of the city of Lima.
It is also important to compare that in the high For the development of this research, the
Andean territories earth-based constructions were methodology based on education for service was
developed, as is the case of the Raqchi temple selected, this was determined by the content of
located in the department of Cuzco at 3550 m.a. the subjects in which conventional construction
s.l. this temple shows us a very different context processes were put into practice, this was
from the coastal cities, this as a result of the fact achieved thanks to the fact that the academic
that in the high Andean mountains there are rainy curriculum in the architecture school proposed an
seasons and the particular case of the Raqchi experimental workshop under construction in
temple is that it boasts of being the tallest con- raw earth that initiated the first academic impact
struction on earth reaching 20 m in height, built on architecture students, the subject was elective,
with crossed adobes and on a stone wall as a however, a complete section was enrolled and
Ancestral Earthen Construction Techniques Updated to the Needs … 309

Photograph 1 Community
work with the students of the
construction course in the
community of Cochas, district
of El Tamb

with this generation in 2016 the first intervention main difficulty was identified because many of
began within of geographical contexts in the the inhabitants end up demolishing their old
Andean mountain range, two interventions were houses built on raw earth to build new buildings
carried out within the Mantaro Valley, it is built with brick, reinforced concrete, this seri-
important to point out that this methodology ously affected to the landscape context, as a
“Allows to verify the effects produced in differ- result of these actions the inhabitants disfigure
ent dimensions related to personal-student and the urban image of their context with the inser-
social competences: interest, autonomy, self- tion of industrialized materials, which break the
evaluation, connection theory–practice, reflec- constructive harmony that was identified in the
tion and satisfaction of students” (Mayor 2018) place, additionally these new constructions have
(Photograph 1). a deficient behavior with respect to thermal
The first was carried out in the district of San conditioning in relation to the climate and geo-
Agustín de Cajas in the Hatun Cajas neighbor- graphical context (Photograph 2).
hood and the second intervention was carried out This first contact with the population of the
in the district of Rio Molinos, province of Jauja, community determined a great learning for the
in the first intervention called “Pachacútec 1.0 students who became involved in a reality very
Workshop: Tradition, culture and landscape in different from that of the city, these peasant
Hatun Cajas (Montoya 2017). A socio-academic communities are vulnerable, because their econ-
intervention was developed in collaboration with omy is still based on agricultural production and
the population of the Hatun Cajas neighborhood, some artisan activities Talking with the users and
this peasant community is a fragment of archi- understanding their real habitability and shelter
tectural and cultural nuances, on the one hand it needs was surely one of the best lessons learned.
is located on the slopes of the hills of the sierra The recognition of raw earth as a predominant,
where pre-Columbian archaeological remains ecological and economic construction material
called “El Obraje” are found, additionally it has a was a first step to understand this material in
constructive miscegenation, since most of the relation to the training of young students of
houses are built with earth-based materials but in architecture, whose reasoning changed when
a central patio design, a heritage of Spanish interacting with the inhabitants of these com-
vernacular architecture adapted to the conditions munities, finally this first work was based on the
of the central Andes, in this context the students fulfillment of SDG 11 of sustainable cities and
developed a set of proposals based on the spatial communities, because in community work-
and constructive needs of the inhabitants, the family groups were prioritized in the situation
310 V. S. M. Torres

Photograph 2 Hatun Cajas community where the first community meeting and service-based learning developed by
architecture students took place

of vulnerability due to the precariousness of their avoid thermal leakage, this task represents an
spaces has bitables. arduous work in collecting of recycled bottles for
The second intervention was developed the construction of the panel, in a second
within the framework of the academic work moment the transfer and installation of these
developed in the subject of environmental con- panels in the houses identified within the inter-
ditioning, this intervention was carried out in the vention zone, this task is in conjunction with the
communities of Río Molino, District of residents of the community.
Pomacancha, the provinces of Jauja, this inter- This joint work proposal of students and res-
vention based on service and learning had as its idents of the community of Rio Molinos
objective the to analyze the thermal comfort of achieved the result that was defined in “two well-
high Andean dwellings in one of the districts defined stages: The current stage, whose objec-
where, due to its location and height above sea tive is to develop and implement a thermal
level, temperatures drop rapidly in the autumn insulation system that increases by 5 or 6 °C the
months, taking into account that in the southern temperature inside the high Andean dwellings
hemisphere autumn is a sunny month and with- and the second stage, which consists of massi-
out the presence of rain, but due to the geo- fying the system by bringing “THERMAL
graphical conditions of the place, low COMFORT” to a regional scale, where the aim is
temperatures are reached at night due to the to replicate what has been learned in other
presence of frosty nights that decrease the tem- communities, intervening as much as possible of
perature below −10 °C, the problem in this households” (Moncloa 2017) (Graphic 1).
context is that the house built with raw earth After the two interventions described, the
based on adobes, it does not have insulation school of architecture focuses its efforts on
systems and they have too many empty spaces reinforcing this methodology based on education
that they generate thermal leakage, for which the for service and promotes practical activity in
students led by their teacher generate a proposal revaluing ancestral techniques for construction
for large panels built from empty PET plastic based on raw earth, this decision is supported by
bottles which will be attached to the ceilings to the criterion of using the most abundant
Ancestral Earthen Construction Techniques Updated to the Needs … 311

Graphic 1 Summary of the

thermal gain at 3.3 °C in the
time interval of 3 AM graphic
from the publication Thermal
Comfort: An insulation
system for Alto Andina
housing made with recycled
materials (Moncloa 2017)

resources in the high Andean communities and that provides us with general guidelines, but that
avoid the consumption of sources of heat, elec- students need to experiment with, is thanks to the
tricity, and artisanal or industrial combustion for academic study of the school of architecture that
the manufacture of materials, this in relation to an agreement is reached with brick manufactur-
the location of the construction contexts and the ers to access their workshops and develop there
costs that in most cases, the communities do not our practices of earth molding in small adobe
have enough money to spend on energy resour- formats, which are more suitable for the light
ces, for which construction techniques based on construction process (Photograph 3).
the use of raw land are put into practice. These
techniques were classified as follows.
4 Construction with Packed Earth

3 Construction of Molded Earth The construction of circular structures in which

Bricks packed earth modules were used allowed us to
experiment with a different technique in which we
The use of clay soil in the community of Cho- use easily accessible materials and supplies, such as
chas was an alternative to curb the growing the case of polymer bags that, after being packed
activity of clay exploitation for the informal and arranged in their alignment, are compacted.
manufacture of baked bricks, which generates Conserving a slight level of humidity that allows its
environmental pollution by burning harmful molding and compacting, we put this technique into
products such as the use of tires for cooking. the practice in the rural community of Palian as it is a
bricks for more than a week of firing, this merited place in which clay soil abounds and the labor link
that we visit this community and that we use the between the students and the neighbors of the
natural resource of earth, clay, and natural fibers community was generated. peasant community
to put into practice the construction of small who collaborated with the extraction of the land
adobe bricks such as those used in the con- from the same construction site, this agreement was
struction of the Huaca Puccllana in the technique strengthened by finishing these structures and
of booksellers (Mendoza 2015), for our context handing them over to the residents to be used as
we refer to the current technical standards such as seed storage spaces, by guaranteeing dry spaces
the case of the E-080 standard for construction during the rainy months. The work of building the
on Earth of the National Construction Regula- packaged earth modules required a transfer of more
tions of the Ministry of Construction, Housing, circular, small entrances and a coating that allows
and Sanitation (RNC 2016), a technical standard insulation in the rainy months (Photograph 4).
312 V. S. M. Torres

Photograph 3 Adobe manufacturing process after a process of treading and molding we share the experience of the
community members with the students

Photograph 4 Construction process of circular modules based on packed earth developed in the peasant community
of Palian—Huancayo

that it is not viable, one of the reasons goals of the

5 Earth Walls on Wooden experimental workshop on land was to test the
Structures feasibility and construction of these walls to sub-
ject them to impermeability and resistance tests.
The mixed earth walls on wooden structures are a Resistance to rainy climates in real conditions.
technique that was used in the Spanish colony in Additionally, the architecture students proposed
other contexts it is known as Quincha, or that the walls could have texture and color as a
Bahareque, in Peru there is a record of this tech- reagent to measure the level of erosion by rain or
nique only applied on the Peruvian coast, there are wind, for which the students proposed to build
no historical records of this technique replicated in full-scale modules and rehearse in the designs
the mountains or in high Andean cities, this based on the iconography of pre-Inca cultures and
absence of constructive practice is attributed to the that have historical representation, as shown in the
fact that in the Andes there are rainy seasons photographs (Photograph 5).
during the summer, we have to remember that in
the southern hemisphere, the seasons have a dif-
ferent behavior and in the summer season the high 6 Compacted Earth Walls
Andean climates present their greatest rainy pres-
ence between the months of December to March, it Another technique was the use of compacted raw
is one of the reasons why there is no evidence of earth in a mold and this construction process
this technique in our context, this does not mean allowed experimenting with constructive and
Ancestral Earthen Construction Techniques Updated to the Needs … 313

Photograph 5 Earthen walls on wooden structures covered with earth plus polychromatic designs on earth in
reference to pre-Columbian iconography

design possibilities, for which different colors of pigmentation, and the result was a block of
natural earth were applied, which when com- compressed and pigmented earth, this technique
bined allowed the result of natural skins built It is proposed as an alternative to the use of
with earth. raw, this formal possibility was the coatings on earthen walls. In many communities,
product of a process of trials and errors that were after completing the walls, they have to be
developed within the experimental laboratory on plastered with plaster or cement and sand mortar.
land, this was taken in reference to vernacular These final finishes are expensive due to the use
construction techniques on land that used com- of materials that are difficult to access in high
pacted earth inside mobile and tamped wooden Andean areas. From Peru, additionally these
boxes with a mallet that compacted the earth by plastering materials affect the earthen walls
impact in a semi-humid state, it was a very because by sealing and covering the pores of the
innovative contribution that students can propose adobe walls they accumulate humidity and pre-
color designs by combining the different possi- vent the breathing and drying of these walls in
bilities of natural color of the earth, in some cases months when the environmental humidity
it was combined with ferrous oxides to improve increases (Photographs 6 and 7).

Photograph 6 Compacted and pigmented earth tests inside modules of 15 cm on each side
314 V. S. M. Torres

Photograph 7 Student-developed full-size and conventionally proportioned tests for rammed-earth wall construction

construction of houses in areas of sloping land,

7 Discussion and Conclusions something very common in the Andes due to the
hills of the mountain ranges, for which the author
Finally, the last 6 years allowed us to achieve a developed an investigation entitled “The blocks of
repository of research and finished products compressed earth (BTC) and its influence on the
based on experimentation in the construction cost of construction of social housing in develop-
process based on land. The results of these ment areas on the slopes of the city of Huancayo—
interventions were reflected in seven high 2018” (Montes Galarza 2018), in this research the
Andean communities that now know the value of student proposes to provide the constructive tech-
architecture based on community service, in ten nical possibilities for these houses in conditions of
thesis investigations presented during these 6 land on slopes and specifically analyzes how much
years of work and finally in more than one the construction cost is when using this material,
hundred and eighty students who participated in which benefits users by using a cheaper material,
these workshops and continue to apply their this is directly related to SDG 11 on Sustainable
knowledge in real contexts within Peru and Cities and Communities.
outside the country. Another investigation was also developed in
The investigations carried out allowed us to which the issue of color in earth constructions is
have a better context on the needs of the com- addressed, for which the author analyzed the
munities, and being precarious populations, the constructive possibilities based on compacted
research proposals focused on those needs, as is earth and from her previous experiences in the
the case of the need for housing, in the case of the experimental laboratory on earth, she developed
investigation entitled “BTC impermeability in the following investigation entitled “Use of fer-
rainy climates in the Cochas Grande annex” rous oxides as a pigment in exposed mud walls
developed by a graduate of the architecture school and its influence on the cost of work for the
who presents us with this research proposal in the construction of rural houses in the Cotay Annex,
places where the workshops were held before district of Huancavelica 2017” (Ventosilla Cruz
(Mallma Espinal 2017), her research brings us 2018), its proposal is developed in a community.
closer to the use of local land for the construction It is far from the Mantaro Valley because her city
of compressed earth block as a masonry unit, of origin is located in the department of Huan-
reducing construction costs, but more importantly cavelica, and it is the reason why she replicates
the possibility that these respond to rainy weather the techniques learned and takes them to another
conditions without being eroded. context of high Andean cities, as in previous
Complementarily, another graduate of the cases a total of a dozen investigations related to
school developed an investigation related to the vulnerable contexts and the use of up-to-date
Ancestral Earthen Construction Techniques Updated to the Needs … 315

techniques in earthen construction, that it was the Mayor D (2018) Aprendizaje-Servicio: una práctica
most ambitious goal to apply this methodology educativa innovadora que promueve el desarrollo de
competencias del estudiantado universitario. Rev
based on community service. Students from then Electrónica “Actualidades Investig Educ” 18(1):1–22
to now architects already have a human, social, Mendoza A (2015) La puesta en valor de la Huaca
and environmental approach to the architecture Pucllana y su. Facultad de Ciencias de la Comuni-
they propose, they have the capacity and cación, Turismo y Psicología Universidad de San
Martin de Porres, Lima
knowledge to replicate these techniques in the Moncloa C (2017) Confort Térmico: Un sistema aislante
geographical contexts of whoever they have to para la vivienda alto andina fabricado con materiales
work, it is our greatest achievement to have been reciclados. MODULO Arquit CUC 18(1):73–90
able to share these experiences with the residents Montes Galarza JA (2018) Los bloques de tierra com-
primida (BTC) y su influencia en el costo de
who now have a different way of seeing an construcción de viviendas sociales en zonas de
architect and his field of work. habilitación en laderas de la ciudad de Huancayo –
2018. Universidad Continental, Huancayo
Montoya V (2017) Taller Pachacútec 1.0: Tradición,
cultura y paisaje en Hatun Cajas. MODULO
References Arquit CUC 18(1):147–162
Morales R (2007) Arquitectura prehispánica de tierra:
Bouso JL (2012) La Construcción en el Antiguo Perú: Un conservación y uso social en las Huacas de Moche,
país enigmático aún sin descubrir, Primera edn. Perú. Apuntes 20(2)
Editorial Académica Española, Lima RNC (2016) Norma E.080 diseño y construcción con
Guerrero LF (2018) Arquitectura de tierra en América tierra reforzada. Ministerio de Construccion y Sanea-
Latina, Una obra colectiva. Arquitectura en Tierra: miento, Lima
Tecnologia sostenible y reutilizacion patrimonial, Ventosilla Cruz NK (2018) Uso de óxidos ferrosos como
XIV CIATTI 2017. Congr Int Arquit Tierra, Tradic pigmento en muros de tapial expuesto y su influencia
Innovación (1):35–44 en el costo de obra para la construcción de viviendas
Mallma Espinal PJ (2017) Impermeabilidad del BTC en rurales del Anexo de Cotay, distrito de Huancavelica
climas lluviosos en el anexo de Cochas Grande. 2018. Universidad Continental, Huancayo
Universidad Continental, Huancayo
 Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive
Loop-Based Material Systems

Daniel Suárez and Natalija Miodragović

Abstract by the ability of knitting to produce the form

with almost no waste. Moreover, this material
This research investigates contemporary tex-
assembly method of rigid loops allows for
tile techniques and plant-based “active” yarns re-assembly. As a result, the material would
to describe a new material system and fabri- recover energy as part of the biomass produc-
cate lightweight structural prototypes. We
tion chain.
define “active yarns” as bio-based structural
yarns, filaments that store elastic energy, and Keywords
flexible stems from short rotation cop-pice
(SRC) plantation species. SRCs are woody

Renewable resources Short rotation coppice

fast-growing tree species often cultivated to


Circular economy Willow Structural
produce high biomass yields in a short period.

textiles Spatial warp-knitting
This research fo-cuses on Willow (Salix spp.),
the most spread SRC in Europe. Due to their
fil-ament structure, SRC plantations produce 1 Introduction
rod-like flexible stems with finite lengths. To
overcome length limitations, we industrially Textile techniques involve immense knowledge
produced a cord-like yarn with bundled fila- implemented through centuries. An alternative
ments and materials with different properties. route to reach the architectural scale with textile
Wood-bending techniques can shape these materials is to upscale their structures (Beyer
active yarns into warp-knit loops and later be et al. 2019; Sauer 2019). The research aims to
assembled into larger structures. This light- systematically look into contemporary textile
weight construction method lev-erages sus- techniques, yarns, and biological structures to
tainability thanks to the combination of a fast develop active structural textile prototypes. This
renewable source of material like SRCs with research emerged from interdisciplinary work
efficient use of raw material resources granted from the architecture and textile design (Singer
2020) fields and through the dialogue with
microbiologists and material scientists. It started
in 2020 with the development of the Active
Curtain Project exhibited at HU Lab. It evolved
D. Suárez
N. Miodragović (&) in 2021 for the exhibition Stretching Materialities
“Matters of Activity” Image Space Material, at Tieranatomisches Theater, both in Berlin.
Humboldt Universität Zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 317
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
318 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Using willow filaments is gaining momentum high planting density, sustained vegetative
in architectural production. Previous research has growth, resilience to pests and diseases, and
also promoted its use as a sustainable alternative excellent wound healing after biomass harvesting
material. In particular, researchers at TU Kassel are some of SRC's most notable characteristics.
have developed a method to produce a solid Furthermore, long-term usage of SRC also helps
endless wood filament made from willow twigs conserve groundwater, minimise soil erosion, and
suitable for use within a robotic fabrication improve soil quality and biodiversity. Besides
framework (Eversmann et al. 2021). Further- that, short rotation willow coppice (SRWC) can be
more, in the Inter Twig project (2022), students established in soils unsuitable for agricultural
and researchers from the Karlsruhe Institute of exploitation (Castaño-Díaz et al. 2018).
Technology have recently explored the potential Regarding sustainability, SRCs plantation
of a weaving technique to inform a digital man- removes CO2 from the atmosphere in growth
ufacturing process using willow sticks. cycles of 4–6 years before being used as bio-
We see its application on the architectural mass. Due to this short and closed cycle, biomass
scale as a stance in the circular economy. Regular from SRC is renewable and helps to protect our
uses of Short-Rotation Coppices (SRCs) are as climate. However, this energy source is not
biomass, its plantation as a regeneration driver to entirely “CO2-neutral” because of fossil energy
remediate soil (e.g. from former coal mining sources used for harvest or transport (Dimitriou
lands) (Castaño-Díaz et al. 2018), also an emer- and Rutz 2015). Therefore, its use as an archi-
gent use in a wide array of practical applications tectural material would improve the CO2 foot-
to restore damaged ecosystems (Kuzovkina and print before being combusted as biomass.
Quigley 2005) or willow's bark uses in medicine. Due to their filament structure, willow twigs
Willow shows the capacity for guided growth, and rattan liana are rod-like flexible stems, rare,
and we can envision the pre-formation on the bendable and conformable materials (Szczepa-
plantation or construction site. In this sense, the nowska 2018). Moreover, willows are fast-
standardisation of forest rest is an answer to growing and more malleable than timber wood.
growing concerns for the future of our planet and The material thickness determines the bending
human-made rest in a post-waste society. radius, which can be reduced with wetting. The
SRCs are fast-growing plantations in high obtained loop is stabilised by drying on pre-
density (willow and poplar). They show required forming boards. The loop diameter (bending
mechanical and thermal properties for application radius) is related to yarn thickness. The bending
in reinforcement, are biodegradable and low-cost radius is reduced through wetting, and the fila-
(Oktaee et al. 2017). High-yield biomass produc- ment “remembers” the form when dried. Hence,
tion, high height growth through short rotation and the wood is plasticised.
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 319

Fig. 1 Beyond the regular uses of SRCs as biomass, we properties, can be obtained by expanding the use of
see an application for this biodegradable material system SRC from just biomass to design. Since willow is very
on the architectural scale as a stance in the “circular suitable for guided growth, the pre-formed twigs could be
economy”. While the willow bark is used for some grown using moulds, like in the Full Grown project
applications, the peeled twigs can be used as alternative ([Link] The research aims to contribute
“yarns”. By starting research (and production) from the to the certification of wood filaments for construction and,
plantation, the project has the potential to obtain holistic thus, toward the post-waste society © Autors Plektonik
knowledge about all phases of the material life cycle. Miodragovic, Singer, Suarez
Different growth information, such as mechanical
320 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 2 (top) SRC plantation, willow (Salix spp.) fields in Lignovis_GmbH) and (bottom) bare white willow twigs
Cañamera, Cuenca, Spain (© Mimbres Corredor), (mid- harvested ready for use (authors)
dle) Harvesting a 4-year old willow plantation (©
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 321

Fig. 3 In the exhibition After Nature at Humboldt Forum exhibits; however, its construction grew organically from
in Berlin, the Active Curtain project ([Link] the hands of experienced crafters. Oversized knitting
[Link]/en/research/laboratories/49/ loops form tubular paths. As in previous contemporary
humboldt-lab) showcases research in bacterial cellulose. It research (Harding et al. 2015), our method combines
explores material activity between construction and innovative materials, crafting knowledge, physical testing
emergence. We present a series of interdependent struc- and digital design tools to generate a novel form of
tures, similar to other case studies introduced in previous architectural structure. As in the case of the Active
research practice in textile material systems (Ramsgaard Curtain project, it renders a geometry that becomes a
Thomsen et al. 2012). In these interconnected systems, fibrous scaffold to display ongoing research and experi-
each part of the structure is intrinsically weak, and the mentation. Architectural/Design Team: Prof. Christiane
structural whole is only stiffened and strengthened by the Sauer, Natalija Miodragovic, Bastian Beyer PhD, Iva
specified system of assembly and interlocking loops. The Resetar, Nelli Singer and Daniel Suarez. Science Team:
curtain model is digitally informed about overseeing Prof. Dr. Regine Hengge, Skander Hathroubi PhD ©
dimensions and distributing voids where to display M. Mantel MoA
322 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 4 Active Curtain project design and crafting aesthetic appeal and structural stability. Furthermore, the
process. This social knitting mimics biofilm formation research is not only interdisciplinary but combines
and collective filamentation of bacterial population (top different knowledge cultures. It combines the tacit
left) ( Reproduced from Serra et al. 2013). From a drafted knowledge of material growth with wood-bending crafts
1:1 model to the construction in place. (top right, middle, such as basket or canoe making
bottom) The final curtain design is a balance between
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 323

Fig. 5 Tubular warp assembly with two 2 mm rattan strands. Sample height approx. 400 mm
324 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 6 The project aims to develop wooden-based interesting structures are suitable for innovative light-
textile-informed semi-finished products for architecture weight structural applications. Depending on the density
and construction. We introduced a new material system and the type of filament chosen, the resulting structure
based on textile assembly methods with wooden threads. offers a diverse range of compressive strength. (top) The
The material system can replicate complex textile struc- inner layer made with flat willow stripes presents a better
tures such as spacer fabrics, hence providing higher cushioning effect, whereas 4 mm willow withies (bottom)
strength and stability. Spacer fabrics are sandwich-like make the structure able to support small compressive
structures formed by two slabs of fabric and a third layer loads
that connects them vertically (Bruer 2005). These
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 325

Fig. 7 (top left) In the warp knitting technique, loops are between open (top right) and closed lap (middle right)
interlocked vertically. ([Link], Kyosev 2019). (Reproduced from Spencer 2001). (bottom) We translated
Attending to the loop topology, we can differentiate the open lap to work with resilient fibres, rattan and willow
326 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 8 Knitting instructions of open-lap single bar warp project, many different types and board sizes have been
knitted fabrics: b 1 and 1 open-lap; c 2 and 1 open-lap; e 4 developed. The looping in textile techniques is a nego-
and 1 open-lap.(Reproduced from Kurbak 2019) (top). tiation between material elasticity and the technique itself.
The previous instructions were translated into our notation This filament property provides specific stability to the
system for pre-forming boards developed as a graphic textile itself (bottom)
script in Grasshopper for Rhino3D (middle). In this
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 327

Fig. 9 The project translates the industrial warp-knitting the loops can be varied to determine the strength and
techniques with resilient wood-based filaments for appli- stability of the structure © Lara Ladik MoA
cation in construction and design. The size and spacing of
328 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 10 The rattan is pre-formed in a wetted state, in density, hence stiffer, no. 1, occupied the higher part, then
different “frequencies”. Knit density defines the branching density decreased gradually to medium, no. 3, and finally
tree-like structure. A graded density of loops is distributed the no. 5 on the lower part, in a total height of five meters
along the height of the curtain. Fabrics with the highest
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 329

Fig. 11 Wood and non-wood warp-knit structures lend with its neighbour, i.e. from above or underneath, the loop
themselves well to doubly-curved forms. The surfaces will hinge in one order, leading to a convex or concave
positive or negative curvature is achieved through a surface. That can be efficiently coded using a binary code,
simple hand gesture when making the textile structure. therefore programming the surface into a particular form.
Depending on the direction in which one loop interlocks 3D modelled with Grasshopper for Rhino3D
330 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 12 Different self-supporting fabric geometries are instructions. Textile patterns offer an exciting perspective
achieved by alternating loops, like tubular or bi- on how architectural representation can function differ-
directional surfaces (left). The interlocking (i.e. knitting) ently from traditional geometric measurement while
of the discrete loops creates lightweight and stiff struc- illustrating the logic of assembly and the structural
tures that are shaped into complex curved forms and can integrity of the resulting fabric (Ramsgaard Thomsen
be assembled easily using only modular components et al. 2012)
without needing specialised equipment. (right) Assembly
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 331

Fig. 13 Bending drier wood with the help of heat and steaming and bending thin wooden rods-section. We
water is centuries old (Wright et al. 2013). Steamed wood achieved bends with the tightest thickness/radius ratio of
is less rigid since adding moisture and heat to wood almost 1:2 without a compression strap, however, the
results in plasticisation. During our explorations, we most frequently used ratio was 1:4
designed a collection of apparatus to aid in wetting,
332 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 14 The finite wood fibre filament is extended through the vertical interlock of multiple pre-formed filaments. This
process defines a new crafting glue-less construction technique where the loop is observed as a building block
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 333

Fig. 15 Willow wood threads consist of individual sheath yarn structures bundled with Kemafil® (KEM) tech-
sections cut tangentially from shrub willows, joined at nology to overcome this limitation. Six threads are
the front. Their cross-sections in the millimetre range are bundled with the help of a horizontal KEM machine
adjusted differently through width and thickness process- at Saxon Textile Research Institute e.V. STFI (Arnold
ing. Willow twigs have finite lengths. We work with core- et al. 1994)
334 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 16 The hierarchical structures from nature can be yarn, the coding complexity expands from geometrical to
translated with textile techniques. In particular, cross more complex behaviours and applications. As Vincent
sections of both plant and wood fibre filaments informed a noted, there is a considerable potential to obtain new or
manufacturing method for continuous wooden-based unusual combinations of material functions/properties by
yarns using Kemafil® (KEM) technology. KEM yarns structuring a given material rather than changing its
are core-sheath cord-like structures, hybrid yarns engi- chemical composition’ (Vincent 2008). In fact, textile
neered to fulfil different performance and functional fibre assemblies can readily provide an ideal test bed for
requirements (Gong 2011). Hence by programming the this concept
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 335

Fig. 17 Work in progress for a first attempt to characterize fast growing wooden material as active yarn. © Jens
Mählmann, Sächsisches Textilforschungsinstitut e.V., Chemnitz
336 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

Fig. 18 (top) Tubular structure of a 4  6 warp mesh. minimal bending radius of 8 hybrid yarns. Defining the
Loop width is approx.. 20 cm and total height 60 cm. minimal bending radius of produced dry and wetted
Yarn is made out of 4–6 willow twigs. Sheath uses a hybrid active yarns and the adjustable pre-forming board
1 mm flax thread. (bottom) Experimental results for
Plektonik—Active Yarns for Adaptive Loop-Based Material Systems 337

Fig. 19 Stretching Materialities, interactive installation at Tieranatomisches Theater, Berlin, 2021 © Landesman MoA
338 D. Suárez and N. Miodragović

2 Results and Discussion such as non-load bearing secondary components

in the building shell (façade, roof, sun protection),
Although the focus is on willow, the research also for inner scaffolds for cement-like matrices.
originated from the work with cellulose fibre Future work will continue exploring the
yarn. Initially, using rattan calamus (plant fibre) opportunities for novel fast growing wooden
threads and later willow twigs (wood fibre) filament active yarns by tackling mechanical
(Madsen and Gamstedt 2013). Rattan material is adjustments and conversion measures on the
a much softer filament and less resistant than knitting machinery, developing the loop forma-
willow. Also, rattan does not come from local tion process and structural design and developing
production, being an imported material. Since test methods for monitoring the process and
one of the research aims was to adhere as much quality. Besides, computational mechanics
as possible to local resources, using willow methods are also being developed. To use them
material seemed to be the right decision. to investigate the role of structure and material
Nevertheless, warp knitting with rattan also properties in determining the deformation beha-
showed some benefits. On the one hand, rattan viour of knitted materials to provide quantitative
lianas are much longer than willow twigs. That feedback to design and manufacturing.
eventually rendered longer chains of loops and
consequently made it easier to achieve longer Acknowledgements The research is conducted with
Textile Designer Nelli Singer, awarded for her wood-
geometries (e.g. tubular constructions). More- based textile research Living Beings, Master Thesis,
over, the thread's cross-section remains constant weißensee kunsthoschschule berlin (Berlin 2020). Col-
along the length of the rattan thread. In contrast, laboration and mentoring Prof. Christiane Sauer,
the willow twigs gradually decrease, creating weißensee school of art and design berlin. The authors
acknowledge the support of the Cluster of Excellence
some unbalance structures. However, this last »Matters of Activity. Image Space Material« funded by
issue led us to the decision to overcome the the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German
limitation of engineering our wood yarn. That, in Research Foundation) under Germany's Excellence
the end, presents a promising potential as thread Strategy—EXC 2025—390648296. In addition, the
authors want to thank the photo studio weißensee school
material for larger-scale architectural prototypes. of art and design berlin Dr. Michaela Eder, Max Planck
From a socioeconomic and cultural perspec- Institute Potsdam—Golm and the support received at
tive, the interest of the material system we pro- Sächsisches Textilforschungsinstitut e.V. (STFI) in
posed is in using SRCs as an innovative Chemnitz.
regeneration driver for the land and the people
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Fabrication Futures
 Structural Performance-Based 3D
Concrete Printing for an Efficient
Concrete Beam

Hao Wu, Yu Li, Xingjie Xie, Xiaofan Gao,

and Philip F. Yuan

Abstract shift that is taking place in 3DCP. The general

workflow of Structural Performance-Based 3D
This paper presents the design and fabrication
Concrete Printing is summarized, and future
of an efficient steel–concrete composite beam research topics are discussed. The study in this
prototype using structural optimization meth- paper demonstrates the valuable outlook of the
ods and innovative 3D concrete printing
combination of structural performance-based
(3DCP). In traditional building industry, con- design and precise material deposition meth-
crete objects like slabs or beams are cast by ods, which could contribute to the UN Sus-
using low-cost standardized formwork, result-
tainable Development Goals.
ing in their high material usage and large
carbon footprints. Although the development
of large-scale 3DCP offers a formwork-free Keywords
and rapid construction method, the elements
created are like those created by standardized

3D Concrete printing Structural
formwork. To achieve formwork-free con-

Performance-based Steel–Concrete
struction of efficient concrete structures, this

composite beam Topology optimization

paper proposes the method of structural Non-horizontal 3D printing
performance-based 3DCP. The work in this
paper uses multi-material BESO technique and 1 Printing Better with Less
non-horizontal 3D printing to fabricate an
efficient steel–concrete composite beam pro- Portland cement, the main strength-giving com-
totype with a span of 4 m. According to rough ponent in concrete, has been widely used in the
calculations, the optimized structure saves field of building construction, creating many
approximately 60% of concrete and 50% of shelters for mankind, since its invention in 1824
steel compared to a conventional concrete (Hall 1976). Most of the carbon dioxide emission
beam. Combined with previous studies, this from the concrete industry is from the production
paper summarizes and proposes an important of Portland cement (Adesina 2020). It is esti-
mated that approximately 7% of global carbon
emissions originate from cement production (UN
Environment Programme 2020). In addition,
H. Wu
Y. Li
X. Xie
X. Gao
P. F. Yuan (&)
emissions from the manufacture of concrete
College of Architecture AND Urban Planning,
Tongji University, Shanghai, China formwork can’t be negligible. Therefore, it is
e-mail: philipyuan007@[Link] imperative to reduce the amount of cement and

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 343
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
344 H. Wu et al.

formwork used in construction for developing a patented. Traditional 3D printing techniques (2.5D
sustainable construction production pattern. process) were used in this prototype. There is no
Some exciting progress has been made in built case study available ([Link]). These
reducing the consumption of formwork in con- cases rely on digital design and precise spatial
crete construction. 3D concrete printing (3DCP) deposition of concrete, providing a new paradigm
technique, which is first proposed as Contour for performance-based design and construction.
Crafting (CC), provides a formwork-free solution This paper presents the design and fabrication
for concrete construction (Khoshnevis 2004). of a kind of innovative, efficient concrete beam
The past ten years have witnessed the develop- structure using robotic 3D concrete printing, which
ment of this rule-changing technology from lab- is considered the next phase in the field of archi-
oratory experiments to actual house fabrication tectural 3DCP research. An innovative steel–con-
([Link] 2016; Mediaoffi[Link] 2016; crete composite 3DCP beam with a span of 3.6 m
[Link] 2016), thanks to the develop- was constructed, demonstrating the multi-material
ment of digital design technique and large-scale topology optimization process and toolpath gen-
automated truss equipment. eration. And a design-segmentation-printing-
In traditional building construction, low-cost assembly workflow is proposed. The resulting
standardized formwork is used for casting non- prototype shows high structural efficiency, saving
optimized slab concrete structures with a high approximately 60% of concrete and 50% of steel
material usage and large carbon footprints, which compared to a conventional concrete beam with
is always widely criticized (Hawkins et al. 2016). the same load-bearing capacity. Combined with
However, the current construction application previous research, this paper summarizes and
using 3DCP has also created non-optimized box- presents a new paradigm—structural performance-
shaped structures that are similar to casting con- based 3D concrete printing, discusses the advan-
crete. Many large-scale truss printing equipment tages and challenges of this new fabrication
designed for fabrication of large-scale house, with approach, and future research outlook.
only three degrees of freedom, can only deposit
concrete vertically to form non-optimized struc-
tures or deployable curved-surface structures, 2 Non-Horizontal 3D Concrete
which is a 2.5D manufacturing process essen- Printing
tially. From a structural perspective, these non-
optimized concrete structures consume a lot of Non-horizontal 3D concrete printing refers to the
excess material, and it should be questioned printing method in which the nozzles are not kept
whether this way of building is worth promoting. vertical during the printing process, and it is the
In another fabrication idea, researchers use key to fabricate efficient 3DCP structures. Pre-
additive manufacturing (AM) technology to pro- vious studies prove that for concrete printed
duce innovative, material-efficient, lightweight structures, they are more stress tolerant in the
formwork for concrete structures, thereby reducing direction perpendicular to the printed layers than
the amount of cement in the structure. Inevitably, in the direction parallel to the printed layers, i.e.,
the use of AM to produce formwork generates they maintain anisotropic in terms of forces
additional formwork consumption. Fortunately, (Rehman and Kim 2021). Non-horizontal 3DCP
some designers and scholars begin to explore precisely controls the deposition of material
direct 3D printing of performance-optimized con- during the manufacturing process, allowing the
crete structures. Bhooshan et al. built a concrete concrete to build up to the proper location for its
pedestrian bridge (2022) and Wu et al. fabricated a stress condition in the structure.
concrete spatial structure (2022), both applied 3D Nowadays popular 3DCP technology was
graphic statics in design process. A new type of developed from the Contour Crafting (CC) tech-
prefabricated reinforced concrete beam using nology first introduced in 2004 (Khoshnevis
3DCP, called minimass, has been invented and 2004), where objects are obtained by depositing
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam 345

material layer by layer. These layers obtained by 3 Material and Robotic 3DCP
intersecting with the object to be printed are hor- System
izontal, and the nozzles are always vertical during
the printing process. Some scholars introduced the Non-planar 3DCP technique relies on precise
tangential continuity method in which the angle of management of nozzle speed and layer height to
the nozzle is continuously rotated according to the control the deposition of cementitious material,
geometry (Gosselin et al. 2016). The deposition thus achieving the desired geometry. Buildability
angle of the concrete material depends on the is an important factor in the 3DCP process. High
nozzle orientation, which requires 3D printing buildability relies on low layer deformation rate.
system with at least 6 degrees of freedom. Unlike In other words, there should be a quick shear
the 3-axis truss system in which material can only stress gain after the extrusion process to mini-
be deposited in the horizontal direction, the 6-axis mize the deformation effect (Reiter et al. 2018;
robotic arm-based 3DCP system can control the Kruger et al. 2019).
deposition of material in the non-parallel layers to A set-on-demand 3D printing mortar is
match the force flow of the printed object in the designed by referring to the study of (Reiter et al.
structural system. 2020). The primary printing material is a kind of
Accurate control of the material deposition fiber-reinforced high-strength cementitious mortar,
rate is the key to achieving non-horizontal and an alkali-free accelerator is added to control
printing of an object, which requires considera- the set time. The major components of the mortar
tion of system parameters such as material are listed in Table 1. By applying the proper
pumping rate, nozzle angle, and nozzle speed. dosage of the accelerator, the object can be printed
Due to the uncertain pressure variations in the with relatively low deformation and a short layer
material delivery tube of 3DCP system, it is not time gap. The fast build-up and low deformation of
feasible to control the nozzle discharge volume set-on-demand material are beneficial to maintain
by changing the speed of the pumping motor. the geometry of non-planar 3DCP.
Keeping the pumping motor speed constant and The robotic 3DCP system setup in this
varying the robot speed is another method of experiment is shown in Fig. 1. The material
changing the material deposition rate, which has preparation for printing starts with mixing pow-
proven to be feasible (Yuan et al. 2022). In der mixes encapsulated by material suppliers
previous research, variable width printing was (including cement, sand, silica fume, and super-
achieved by changing the robot speed (Zhan plasticizer), water, and fiber in a planetary mixer
et al. 2021). While in this study, a similar (up to 120L of slurry). Then the slurry is poured
approach is applied to achieve multi-angle into storage hopper which is combined with
printing with variable layer heights. The robotic slurry pump and the planetary mixer as a mobile
trajectory and the nozzle speed for printing is mix-to-pump machine. Then the slurry and the
defined with the toolpath generation method that accelerator are pumped respectively via slurry
is described in Sect. 4. pump and accelerator pump at a specific ratio

Table 1 Material and Material Quantity (kg/m3)

Mixture design
Ordinary portland cement (P. O. 42.5) 835
Silver sand (0-2 mm) 850
Silica fume 85
Water 250
Superplasticizer 0.65%
Alkali-free accelerator 2%
PVA fiber (12 mm) 2.5
346 H. Wu et al.

Fig. 1 The robotic 3DCP

system setup

into the mixing chamber, where the material is which includes solid isotropic material with
mixed at high speed before deposition through penalization (SIMP) method (Rietz 2001), level
the nozzle. The nozzle is mounted on a KUKA set method (van Dijk et al. 2013), the bi-
KR90 R3700 robotic arm established on a directional evolutionary structural optimization
750 mm-high base. The lifting of the base allows (BESO) method (Yang et al. 1999), etc. How-
the robotic arm to achieve more complex spatial ever, most of the traditional topology optimiza-
motion without joint limitation during 3DCP tion techniques are based on a single material,
process, which is beneficial to the non-planar 3D and in the design of steel–concrete composite
printing of complex geometries. beam in this research, there are both tensile and
During each printing process, this setup pro- compressive parts in the structure. In contrast, the
duces 120L cementitious slurry in a single mix- multi-material BESO technique recently pro-
ing in 6 min. When the material in the storage posed by Li and Xie (2021a, b) is able to separate
hopper is about to run out, the next mixing is the tensile and compressive parts of the structure,
performed, and the slurry is replenished to the enabling the topology optimization of materials
storage hopper in time to guarantee continuous with extinct different tensile and compressive
printing. The set-on-demand concrete is depos- properties, such as concrete. Based on this
ited with 90–230 mm/s robotic printing speed method, it is possible to design innovative and
with an extrusion rate of 2 L/min. After printing, structurally efficient steel–concrete composite
the elements are covered with plastic film and structures (Li et al. 2022).
cured in 80% relative humidity for the first In the multi-material BESO method, the first
3 days, and then in 40% relative humidity for an invariant of stress tensors I1 is used as the cri-
additional 20 days without plastic film covering. terion for judging the FEA element in tension or
compression and achieved excellent results. For a
3D element, the first invariant of the i-th element
4 Digital Design of Beam Structure can be calculated as
and Toolpath
I 1;i ¼ r11;i þ r22;i þ r33;i (i ¼ 1; 2; :::; NÞ
4.1 Multi-Material Topology
Optimization where r11,i, r22,i, r33,i are the maximum prin-
cipal stress, second principal stress, and mini-
Topology optimization is an effective means to mum principal stress, respectively. N is the total
achieve structural performance-based design, number of elements in the FEA mesh. For a 2D
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam 347

Fig. 2 Performance-based
design of the beam via multi-
material topology
optimization. a design domain
and load conditions,
b optimized result

problem, only the maximum principal stress and indicates the tensile region and blue indicates the
the minimum principal stress are needed. compressive region.
As shown in Fig. 2a, a steel–concrete com-
posite beam with a span of 4 m is used as the
prototype for this study, and the deck region is 4.2 Post-Design Process
set as the non-design domain with a uniform load
on it. There is a hinge and a roller at the left and Based on the 2D result of the multi-material BESO
right ends of the bridge. Based on this design method, certain post-design processes are artifi-
model, multi-material topology optimization is cially performed to finally obtain a steel–concrete
performed, using material utilization as an indi- composite beam. The constructability of the
cator for material elimination and addition. experimental prototype, the design of the steel–
During the topology optimization process, concrete nodes, and the executability of the
concrete is distributed only in the compressive assembly are all considered in the post-design
part of the structure, thus ensuring that the process. Fig. 3 shows the digital model after the
printed concrete parts in the final structure are post-design. The cross-sectional dimensions of the
only in compression. The mesh for topology concrete structure were adjusted due to the 3DCP
optimization is set as 400  50 elements and the constraints, such as four legs of the beam being
target volume of the final structure is 0.4, which appropriately enlarged. The tension part is made
means the total volume of the final structure is of 12 mm diameter steel cables, and the steel–
40% of the original design domain. The final concrete connecting nodes are specially designed.
topology optimization results obtained for the Each end of the beam has a casting concrete
dual material are shown in Fig. 2b, where red member to anchor 3DCP objects and steel cables.

Fig. 3 Demonstrator model

after post-design
348 H. Wu et al.

4.3 Variable-Layer-Height 3DCP To fabricate any element of this prototype

Toolpath using 3DCP, the conventional horizontal layering
method could not satisfy the principle that
Since the compressive strength of 3DCP struc- printing layers should be perpendicular to stress
tures remains anisotropic in different directions, line. What’s worse, traditional 3DCP strategy
the principle of toolpath planning is to keep the could cause Step Effects on the contact surface of
printing layers as perpendicular to the direction the element. However, by using 3DCP with non-
of the structural stress line as possible. The Finite horizontal and variable-height layers, it is possi-
Element (FE) analysis is conducted using the ble to deposit concrete in the direction of stress
Millipede plugin for Rhino3D/Grasshopper. The flow and to obtain a flat contact surface. Figure 5
load case is defined with an evenly distributed illustrates the toolpath diagram of one leg using
area load of 10kN/m, the estimated dead load, two 3DCP layering methods. Undoubtedly, this
and 6 fixed supports, one in 4 legs and 2 ends of innovative path planning approach poses chal-
the beam. According to the resulting stress line lenges for accuracy layering of the element and
pattern, the segmentation of the beam prototype precise control of robot speed.
is established. Printing layers are also generated In previous studies (Zhan et al. 2021), for
for each element, which are oriented as perpen- filaments extruded from a circular nozzle, the
dicular to the stress lines as possible. The pro- instantaneous cross-sectional shape can be
totype is divided into 9 units, four of which are shown below in Figure X. For a solid extrusion
legs, the other five of which form the top surface without an inner cavity, the functional relation-
of the beam. Figure 4a shows the stress line ship between nozzle speed and filament height
pattern and Fig. 4b shows the segmentation of can be described as
the prototype.

Fig. 4 Result of FEA and the

segmentation of the
prototype. a Stress line
pattern, b Segmentation and
toolpath of the prototype

Fig. 5 The toolpath diagram

of one leg using two 3DCP
layering methods. Left:
Variable-layer-height 3DCP
toolpath, Right: traditional
3DCP toolpath
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam 349

Q components took 3 days to complete. Each print

v ¼ f ðwÞ ¼
p  2 process contains two parts, printing of the base
4  1 h þ wh
and printing of the element. During each element
In this formula, v is the nozzle velocity, Q is the printing, a pause is set after base printing, at
material flowrate, w is the filament width, h is the which time a plastic film is placed on the base to
filament height. In this experiment, the material separate it from the element above, so that they
flowrate Q is controlled to be constant by con- can be separated later.
trolling the speed of the pumping motor and the Second, 8 to 10 h after printing, each element
filament width w is set to be 25 mm. Thus, the reaches its early strength and can be carried at
relationship between the filament height h and this time. They are moved to the curing area,
the nozzle velocity v is established. Real-time covered with plastic film, and cured at 80% rel-
relation between robot speed and layer height is ative humidity for 3 days. The plastic film is then
achieved to accomplish precise concrete removed and cured at 40% relative humidity for
deposition. another 20 days to finally reach full design
strength. Its compressive strength can reach the
level of C40, and it’s suitable for general house
5 Fabrication of the Prototype construction, according to Chinese concrete
industry standard.
The steel–concrete composite beam is fabricated Third, the preparation work before assembly
in four major steps: printing the concrete ele- includes casting the concrete anchors at the end
ments, curing the concrete, preparation work for of the beam, establishing scaffolding, and
assembly, and assembly of the beam (Fig. 6). installation the steel–concrete nodes for each leg.
First, 9 segmental elements were printed one Two concrete anchors were obtained by casting
by one on 4 print beds for a total of 5 h (ex- concrete in customized timber formwork and
cluding intervals). It took 15 min for the smallest located in 500-cm-high base made of bricks. The
elements printing and 80 min for the largest bricks are not cement-bonded, which proves the
element. Although the printing process was fast beam structure has no horizontal force on the
for each element, only 4 components could be ground. Two linear holes of 20 mm diameter
printed in a day because it took 8 to 10 h for were left in each concrete anchor to facilitate
element to get enough strength to be moved after subsequent crossing of the steel cables. Then a
printing. Eventually, the printing of the 9 steel scaffold system that matches the button
form of the beam was established, ensuring that

Fig. 6 Fabrication steps: a printing concrete elements, b curing concrete, c casting concrete to install metal-concrete
joints, d assembly and tensioning
350 H. Wu et al.

Table 2 Time and Labor Steps Time Labor

consumption
3D Printing of 9 elements 3 Days 2
High humidity curing 3 Days 1
Low humidity curing & Assembly preparation 20 Days 1
Assembly 5h 3

each concrete element can be perfectly located 3DCP ensured the geometry of the prototype,
before tensioning the steel cables. Rubber was and the loading experiment verified the load-
applied in the middle of each steel tube to avoid bearing capacity of this structure.
direct collision between the 3DCP elements and This prototype was designed for a total load of
the tubes. Concrete was poured into the four 10t. And it was fabricated using 0.21m3 of 3D
3DCP legs to connect the previously customized printed concrete material (9 hollow elements)
metal-concrete joints, and the curing time of the and 2.9e−3m3 of steel (5.6 m * 12 mm diameter
casting concrete overlapped with that of the steel cable * 2 & 4 metal-concrete joints).
3DCP elements. According to the Chinese code for reinforced
Fourth, the gantry was used to position the concrete beam, a conventional reinforced con-
elements sequentially from one side of the beam crete beam structure was designed with a total
to another. Before locating, rubber strips are design load of 10t. This beam has a span of 4 m,
pasted on the elements to provide a cushioning a section size of 200 * 600 mm, 4 m * 22 mm
effect. During the installation, a laser level was diameter cable * 4, and the concrete grade is
used for positioning, and each element is adjus- C40. 0.48m3 of concrete and 6.1e-3m3 of steel
ted to the proper position before cable installa- are required to construct this conventional beam.
tion. Then two 12 mm diameter steel cables are It indicates that this innovative structure saves
passed through the two concrete anchors and four approximately 60% of concrete and 50% of steel
legs one by one. Metal latched were installed on compared to a conventional beam under the same
the metal-concrete joints of each leg to keep the load-bearing capacity. And about 175.35 kg
cable fixed. Finally, the two cables were joined cement is used in this prototype while 245.76 kg
into a loop in the end and tension was performed in traditional beam (512 kg cement is needed per
using a customized jack on each side. cubic meter of C40 concrete). Therefore, this
Thanks to the digital design and additive new structure is conducive to reducing carbon
manufacturing technology, a rapid and low labor emissions. And it can be applied to the efficient
cost construction of the experimental prototype construction of small bridges and beams in house
was achieved. The time spent in each step and (Figs. 7 and 8).
the labor invested are shown in Table 2 (each
labor work 8 h per day).
6.2 Challenges in Practical
Applications
6 Discussion and Future Work
The successful construction of the experimental
6.1 Result prototype has demonstrated the soundness of this
steel–concrete composite beam and the feasibil-
Several analytical methods were employed for ity of the fabrication strategy, but there are still
this new steel–concrete composite structure, lots of challenges to be faced if it's applied in
including 3D scanning to verify its geometric building industry. For the detailed design of the
fidelity, and loading experiments of 1t. The result structure, connection between concrete (in com-
of 3D scanning showed that the non-horizontal pression) and cables (in tension) is a key concern.
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam 351

Fig. 7 The finished beam

prototype. a Overall
perspective, b–c Details
closeups

Fig. 8 Interior scene of

building with this new
prototype

The clamps between metal-concrete joints and 4 m in length. The span is supposed to be
steel cables need to be improved, to avoid stress extended to 6–8 m in practical applications. Even
concentrations and their slipping on the steel for the 4 m span, the height of the experimental
cables. For the application of pre-stress, although beam reached 50 cm due to the segmenting angle
the construction is completed by jacks, more of the geometry and the limitations of non-
reliable and regular tensioning methods need to horizontal 3D concrete printing. In the current
be used in practice, such as tensioning measures printing, objects with a tilt angle of up to 70
applied in construction of traditional pre-stressed degrees can be fabricated with high quality,
beam structure. beyond which it would be difficult to print,
In addition, the impact of this structure on the meaning that as the span increases, so does the
architectural space and its safety are also worth height of the beam, which may reach 70 cm for a
being discussed. Due to the limitations of the beam with 6–8 m span. The increased height of
research funding and the experimental site, the the beam means that a larger floor height is
prototype beam fabricated in this study is only required; however, the bottom form of this new
352 H. Wu et al.

kind of structure can be considered aesthetically modeling methods and digital fabrication tech-
as a unique interior feature. It is also important to niques are involved. Recently, several projects
ensure the strength and safety of the steel cables with structural performance-based 3D concrete
to avoid them being cut by someone or burnt by printing have been constructed, proving that this
fire, which also poses challenges for building shift is taking place and valued by designers
maintenance. (Bhooshan et al. 2022; Wu et al. 2022). These
emerging practices signal a shift in 3DCP from
an emphasis on formwork-free, rapid construc-
6.3 A Shift in 3DCP tion to an emphasis on less material usage and
sustainability. These innovative practices create a
In the field of concrete engineering, scholars smart approach to concrete deposition, with goals
have long criticized the drawbacks of standard- consistent with flexible molds, showing a new
ized formwork as they result in structures with paradigm for sustainable design.
high material usage. Various kinds of flexible
molds have been developed to manufacture effi-
cient concrete structures with less material 6.4 Workflow
(Hawkins et al. 2016). Nowadays, in the context
of large-scale 3D concrete printing, similar Combined with previous studies (Wu et al. 2022)
attempts to pursue efficient structures are taking (Fig. 9), a workflow applicable to structural
place. This is an optimization process for both performance-based 3DCP is summarized, and it
design and construction, in which digital is divided into the following steps.

Fig. 9 The previous spatial

concrete pavilion using 3D
Graphic Statics design
methods. a Overall
perspective, b-c Details
closeups
Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam 353

• The structural design should be based on the 7 Conclusion

mechanical properties of concrete to reduce
the use of redundant materials. Common This paper presents a novel design-to-fabrication
optimization methods include 3D graphic method based on 3DCP for producing an efficient
statics, which can be used to generate concrete beam with low material usage. The
compress-only spatial structure, and topolog- resulting prototype is an innovative combination
ical optimization, which eliminates redundant of steel cable and 3D-printed concrete that shows
materials. great potential for saving materials and embodied
• Post-design needs to be done to establish the carbon emissions. A workflow combining mor-
final structural form. phology design, robotic toolpath planning, and
• Segmentation is performed according to the non-horizontal 3D printing could be achieved
range of the printing system and the direction with more stability and applicability. In the era of
of stress flow within the concrete structure. additive manufacturing (AM), a new paradigm
Connecting joints between segmentations are for the efficient use of concrete, the most wide-
also taken into consideration. spread building material, is being established.
• The toolpath for each element needs to be This novel 3DCP strategy defines the optimal
precisely planned, and then elements are built locations where concrete is deposited and creates
using a robotic 3D printing system. The pro- new aesthetic forms as well as innovative fabri-
cessing of the connecting joints can be carried cation modes. Structural performance-based 3D
out simultaneously with concrete curing. printing, combined with more consideration of
• With the support of scaffolding, the position- the use of in situ materials, could provide a
ing of elements and the assembly of the lighter and less impactful material practice for
overall structure is completed, relevant struc- future sustainable construction.
tural tests can be employed if required.
Acknowledgements This research was supported by
National Key R&D Program of China (Grant
No.2018YFB1306903), National Natural Science Foun-
dation of China (Grant No. U1913603), and Shanghai
6.5 More In-Situ Material to Explore Science and Technology Committee (Grant
No. 21DZ1204501).
Structural performance-based 3D concrete print-
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 Integrated Design Models
for Materially Differentiated Knitted
Textile Membranes as the Means
to Sustainable Material Culture
Within Membrane Architecture

Yuliya Sinke, Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen,

and Martin Tamke

Abstract complex material behaviour prediction and

additive manufacturing nature, there is cur-
Material design and production must be
rently no ready-to-use software to address
rethought in light of limited resources, con- these challenges. In order to improve the
tributing to UN Sustainable Development quality of taken design decisions, better reflect
Goals, promoting sustainable industrialization
knitted FGMs characteristics and pave the
and fostering innovation. Currently, building way for more sustainable production using
practices rely on composite materials to meet FGMs, it is essential to create integrated
a variety of performance demands, by bonding
design models, considering material hetero-
different materials together. This results in geneity, structural performance and fabrica-
problems of reuse and recycling at the end of tion constraints of such materials. In this
life, as they are hard to separate. As an
research, we examine how CNC-knitted mem-
alternative, functionally graded materials branes, having versatile material structures,
(FGMs), such as CNC-knitted membranes, can be designed with heterogeneous compo-
allow the steered intensification of a single sition. It is done through the development of
material in order to meet multiple performance custom digital tools that reflect their differen-
requirements and ease their further reuse. tiated structure, analyse tensile performance
Current architectural design practice concep- and perform materially oriented simulation,
tualises matter as homogeneous, while novel while taking into account fabrication con-
FGMs, and knitted architectural materials in straints (figure below). We describe a novel
particular, require radically different methods approach to inform the differentiation of
and tools for their design and digital repre- knitted membranes by structural analysis and
sentation. Given their extreme heterogeneity, a method for calibrating heterogeneous mem-
brane simulations. By utilising computational
tools for structural performance evaluation,
Y. Sinke (&)
M. Ramsgaard Thomsen
M. Tamke Graded Knitted Ceiling panels demonstrate
Royal Danish Academy, Institute of Building
how custom-made bespoke membranes can be
Technologies, CITA - Center for IT and
Architecture, Copenhagen, Denmark materially differentiated and how such designs
e-mail: ybar@[Link] can then be simulated and calibrated based on
M. Ramsgaard Thomsen the physical results.
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]
M. Tamke
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 355
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
356 Y. Sinke et al.

Graphical Abstract

A digital integrated model for

graded knitted membranes
incorporating aspects of
material heterogeneity, digital
simulation and fabrication
constraints

Keywords techniques, supported by computational tech-

nologies, has enabled a differentiated distribution


Integrated design models Simulation of of resources for making novel high-performance


functionally graded materials CNC-knitted materials. Despite these advances, design cul-


architectural materials Textile architecture ture often remains disconnected from truly
exploring the material understanding and oppor-
tunities for variation and mass-customisation
1 Introduction digital fabrication enables.

1.1 The Scarcity of Resources Incites

the Rethinking of Material- 1.2 The Contemporary Architectural
Making Culture Material Culture
of Composites
Resources scarcity forces us to rethink how
materials are designed and made in contemporary Architectural material culture can be described
design and building culture. This challenge is through the implementation of technological
inciting research into new material practices that innovation in the architectural design pro-
optimise resource allocation and reduced waste cesses and applications. Today architectural
(Ramsgaard Thomsen et al. 2019a), contributing materials and elements are mainly designed and
to the UN Sustainable Goals. Following of these made as composites, where several homogeneous
goals ensures responsible production and good matters are fused to achieve multi-functional
use of resources, promoting inclusive and sus- properties. Despite their benefits for diverse
tainable industrialisation and foster innovation applications, the composite nature of fused
as described in detail in Sustainable Development homogeneous materials reduces their circular
Goals 12 and 9 (United Nations, Department of economic value, as they cannot be separated for
Economic and Social Affairs 2015). By moving further recycling.
from the paradigms of standardisation and In lightweight membrane architecture com-
mass production, these new practices position the posites are generally comprised of homogeneous
making of hyper-specified and functionally woven substrates with a waterproof coating to
graded materials for site- or use specific applica- provide strength and protection from sun and
tions as central means of building smarter with rain. The membrane property variation is
less (Fig. 1). The advent of advanced fabrication achieved by sewing together multiple patches of
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 357

Fig. 1 Functionally graded

CNC-knitted membranes use
single yarn and are varied in
their stretch properties

varying material properties, such as stiffness, of integrating multiple properties and varying
fibre direction, transparency or permeability. The densities by grading the application of the same
practice of pattern cutting and sewing leads to matter. In contrast to composites, FGMs allow
increased resource consumption as well as more the material properties to change continuously
waste during production. Furthermore, cut-out throughout the object, eliminating the problem of
patches of conventional membranes can be residual internal stresses and easing their further
hardly reused due to their composite structure reuse. With the introduction of material hetero-
and overspecified shape. Finally, seams produce geneities in the design domain, various material
undesired accumulations of internal material advantages can be explored, while material
stresses, thereby reducing structural performance incompatibilities can be alleviated with a gradual
and creating a risk of material failure. material variation (Kou and Tan 2007).

1.3 Future Architectural Material 1.4 Knit as a Case of FGMs Within

Culture of Functionally Structural Knitted
Graded Materials Membranes

The functionally graded materials (FGMs) are an Within this research, CNC-knitted membranes
alternative to composites. They have been the are presented as examples of functionally graded
subject of research in material science, chemistry materials in membrane architecture. By devel-
and computer graphics for many decades oping methods for utilising their heterogeneous
(Beukers and van Hinte 1998) and today are used compositional nature, they represent the practice
in aerospace, nuclear energy, biology, electro- of steered performance and reduced material use.
magnetism, optics, energy and other fields (Li The additive fabrication process of knit manu-
and Han 2018). The emergence of additive facturing offers opportunities to control mem-
manufacturing, supported by computational brane composition by strategic allocation of
interfaces, led to new fabrication processes of various stitches. Here, the membranes achieve
digitally controlled material deposition, enabling their required three-dimensionality through
the production of FGMs of higher grading material expansion, allowing geometrical defor-
complexity (Richards and Amos 2014; Grigori- mation with reduced material use and less fab-
adis 2015). FGMs, therefore, have the advantage rication complexity in comparison to, e.g. 3D
358 Y. Sinke et al.

knitted textiles. Additionally, the homogeneous This paper contributes to the development of
resource composition of continuous single yarn an integrated design model for materially differ-
intertwined into various fibre configurations entiated knitted textile membranes. This is able
makes it suitable for recycling as no other addi- to incorporate required demands of structural
tives are present and yarn can be simply unrav- performance, the scale of application, and the
elled back to the spool. This technology allows fabrication limitations through the stages of
for scaling up and erect architectural structures, conceptual design, structural and geometric
made with knit. analysis, materially informed simulation, and a
Tensile structures made with knit introduce a direct link to digital manufacturing on industrial
novel class of materially optimised structural knitting machines. Using the methods and pro-
membranes, expressing alternative to conventional cesses discovered in the presented research, we
woven membranes aesthetics. It has been demon- rethink the design of structural knitted mem-
strated by experimental research projects on large- branes at the stitch level and propose new ways
scale textile structures, where the membrane is for working with heterogeneous custom-made
employed structurally and materially graded materials in order to develop sustainable material
(Deleuran et al. 2015; Ramsgaard Thomsen et al. cultures for membrane architecture and spatial
2019a; Sinke et al. 2022a, b) (Fig. 2). design in general (Fig. 3).
FGMs can radically expand the material per- Further a novel approach on how to inform
formances, as demonstrated in Isoropia, where the differentiation of knitted membranes by
more expandable stitch types are introduced in the structural analysis and a method for heteroge-
areas where the membrane is required to stretch neous membrane simulation calibration are pre-
more. However, the heterogeneous nature of these sented. Mentioned findings are described, using a
membranes possess an unsolved challenge of case study of Graded Knitted Ceiling—medium-
predicting material behavior, which means that scale installations, each made of 6 CNC-knitted
tools for a finer control of design and perfor- differentiated panels. They were designed, fab-
mance prediction of materially differentiated ricated and installed during the workshop for
CNC-knitted membranes is necessary. Existing students of CiA Computation in Architecture
tools for design and manufacture of knitted mate- Master Studio at Royal Danish Academy as a
rials are geared towards the garment industry, part of design workflow assessment and further
while architecture applications present another set development and evaluation of material grading
of design, modelling and tolerance demands. and simulation prediction tools.

Fig. 2 Large-scale structures, employing CNC-knitted CITA—Center for IT and Architecture, Royal Danish
textile as a structural membrane. Left to right: Hybrid Academy, Copenhagen, Denmark
Tower 2016, Isoropia 2018, Zoirotia 2021. Authored by
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 359

Fig. 3 Close-up of the rich

surface modulation of the
CNC-knitted membranes
through the variation of stitch
composition

where the tension force of one segment is defined

2 Textile Simulation Practices as a linear elastic force.
and Modelling of FGMs This method found its wide application within
the structural engineering discipline being inte-
2.1 Simulation in Membrane grated into commercially available computer-
Design—FEM and aided engineering (CAE) software like Sofistik
Engineering Software ([Link]fi[Link]), [Link] (Ströbel and
Singer 2005), CADISI (TechNet GmbH), For-
In conventional membrane architecture the mfinder and WinTess (Sastre 1992), where each
canopy shape determines its structural perfor- is a stand-alone program with a focus on form-
mance. The simulations allow engineers to finding and simulation of woven-based structural
accurately assess how the membrane shape needs membranes. In spite of their overall benefits over
to be adjusted in order to achieve a stable three- manual calculations, these software require
dimensional membrane structure, that is able to engineering skills, thus reducing their accessi-
accommodate different external forces, such as bility to architects, who are trained to work in
wind, snow and seismic loads. This enables CAD-based (computer-aided design) programs
engineers to design safer and more efficient like Rhino, VectorWorks, Sketchup or 3DMax.
membrane structures.
The membrane behaviour is described using
partial differential equations in order to handle 2.2 Homogeneous Boundary Models
large-scale membrane geometries with differen- Versus Material
tiated loading setups. Due to the fact that there is Heterogeneous Models
no exact analytical solution to solve these equa-
tions (Chen and Hearle 2009), FEM (finite- In current design practice multiple modeling
element method) was developed. In FEM, the environments are employed and several models
investigated surface is discretised into smaller are constructed. These include CAD (computer-
elements (mesh segments), with a known finite aided design) models for design, CAE
size, where the node intersections are solved (computer-aided engineering) models for struc-
analytically (Kyosev 2012). As the nodes are turl evaluation and CAM (computer aided man-
shared between the elements, solving the equa- ufacturing) models for fabrication. Architectural
tion is easier since the result should be the same design practice is bound to its means of repre-
for all linear elements meeting at the same node. sentation. Today the dominant way to represent
A linear element is regarded as a mass spring, and model architecture is today digital, using
360 Y. Sinke et al.

homogeneous boundary models in conventional practices in architectural design. In order to

CAD-modelling enviroments. Here, the focus is improve the quality of taken design decisions,
on the geometrical representation of the designed and better reflect knitted membranes hetero-
object, described by the boundaries in available geneities. It is essential to create integrated
CAD software. When considering the variety of design models. This would pave the way for
CAD software, architects and designers have at more sustainable manufacturing and more effi-
their disposal, there is a hierarchical distinction cient design processes.
between boundaries and properties, shapes and
composition (Tsamis 2013). Most of past and
present CAD systems are based on the premise of 2.4 Digital Design Chain Paradigm
material homogeneities. Designed objects are for Knits—Integrated
represented as uniform matter, defined by Digital Design, Analysis,
boundaries, modelled in 3D-Euclidean space Simulation and Fabrication
(Requicha 1980). These lack the integration of
material composition and structural performance. The design of FGMs involves interdisciplinary
As a result, they fail to accurately represent knowledge and therefore integrated CAX-based
material complexity of graded materials and (computer-aided technologies, CAD + CAE +
hinder exploration of material possibilities for CAM) design is envisaged as one of the
variation and mass‐customization that digital promising directions for the future (Nayak and
fabrication can enable. Engineering softwares Armani 2022). A way to create a workflow
simulate object performance and propose its between multiple codependent models of a
composition, however are rarely useful for designed object is presented in the paradigm of
design as aimed for structural evaluation rather the digital design chain (Dohmen and Rüdenauer
than morphological exploration. 2007). In this paradigm, several models coexist
in the same or tightly interconnected environ-
ments, all cross impacting one another. This
2.3 Challenges of Using guarantees minimal or even no data loss when
Homogeneous Models transferring from model to model. Here mor-
When Designing phological design, structural evaluation through
Heterogeneous Materials simulation, material grading and planning for
digital fabrication happens simultaneously.
Knitted structural membranes occupy a new Analysis of structural performance and man-
branch within membrane architecture as they ufacturing specification integration in the design
represent radically different capacities if com- environment empowers collaboration between
pared to conventional homogeneous membranes. professionals and eliminates the possibility of
The capacity of controlled stretch of graded mistakes (Bechthold 2008). It helps to bridge
CNC-knitted membranes defines their behaviour each separate field, enhance interoperability and
and shall be taken into account early on during facilitate design tool integration into the entire
the design process. process from idea to making.
The separation of design process into several As a final evaluation of a mature design, the
disconnected environments leads to the decou- simulation is commonly performed at the end of
pling of design from material properties and the design chain to complete the necessary
fabrication constraints, thereby reducing the structural documentation. Backward design
quality of design solutions, as each iteration and changes are avoided and made only in cases of
adjustment is cumbersome, slow to make and severe problems. By incorporating material
therefore avoided. Such approach demotivates heterogeneity through materially oriented simu-
design production improvements and hinders the lation, it becomes active in the design explorative
opportunity to create sustainable material journey. Here the simulation is a part of extensive
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 361

design tuning for improved performances. For tasks. A physics-based Kangaroo plug-in (Piker
materially differentiated designs, simulation plays 2013) for Grasshopper makes it possible to
an essential role in evaluating material capacities simulate real-world materials and objects,
and performances, which in turn is tightly con- engaging an intuitive sense of the material world,
nected to their manufacturing. When integrated and allowing designers and architects to con-
into a design environment and used iteratively, struct materially oriented simulations (Deuss
simulation allows to introduce material hetero- et al. 2015; Tamke et al. 2014; Zwierzycki et al.
geneities, test of complex material behaviour 2017).
exposed to different conditions and skim through Similar to FEM software, in Kangaroo, the
the design options. Here, the simulation plays a membrane structures are modelled through cable
crucial role in creating a property representational net mesh-based geometries, informed by material
model, where it contributes to the exploration and properties of rest length and stiffness, assigned to
creation of design possibilities (Ramsgaard each mesh segment. The discretised nature of
Thomsen 2016). This can be especially relevant mesh-based membrane representation, supported
for CNC knits, where the material grading defines by the parametric capacities of Grasshopper,
their behavior and shall be taken into account allows us to automate and steer the allocation of
early on in the design process. these properties across large membrane bodies.
Given the novelty of CNC-knitted membranes Once the approximate desired shape is form-
as architectural materials, reflected in their found, a trusted FEM analysis that would output
extreme heterogeneity, dynamic shape, scaling the stresses and deformations should be con-
challenges during fabrication, complex material ducted. Until recently this was done in the
behaviour prediction and additive manufacturing, mentioned above external engineering software
there is currently no ready-to-use software to for FEM analysis (Fig. 4).
address these challenges. To solve this problem, Several plug-ins integrate structural analysis in
researchers investigate the development of dedi- the digital design environment. They can be
cated models that would cover the entire design classified into two distinct groups based on how
chain for knitted structural membrane design, the membrane is represented—(1) discretised and
from conceptual design to structural analysis and (2) iso-geometric, where the first uses meshes,
material simulation, as well as the preparation of while the second—NURB-continuum surfaces.
manufacturing files. Examples of the plug-ins that operate on mesh-
based representations are Karamba (Preisinger
and Heimrath 2014), SmartForm ([Link].
2.5 Environments for Differentiated [Link]), FunnelWeb (Kimm 2018),
Simulation of Graded Knits Rhino Membrane (Philipp et al. 2015) and
K2Engineering (Brandt 2016). The NURBs-
The achievements of state-of-art digital simula- based membrane design has found its imple-
tions of materially graded knitted structures have mentation in the Kiwi3D plug-in (Philipp et al.
been boosted by the concurrent development of 2016; Bauer et al. 2018). The choice of either
design and modelling environments, supple- representational method, and hence the tools,
mented with parametric tools, allowing architects should be done based on the accuracy and
and designers to construct heterogeneous mate- capacity of each method to represent the mate-
rial models. The software Rhinoceros (Robert rial's varying properties. The iso-geometric
McNeel & Associates 1980) with its embedded method uses a smaller number of external con-
platform for parametric modelling Grasshopper trol points in order to describe the geometry
(David Rutten 2007) has gained enormous through B-spline formula, involving the degree,
popularity and created a wide community, control points and knots (Piegl and Wayne 1997).
actively contributing to custom open source However, considered more lightweight, it is not
plug-in development, oriented towards particular able to incorporate varied material properties into
362 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 4 Isoropia form-finding

represented through quad-
based mesh discretisations

the used NURBs surface. The discrete mesh- dimensions and its strength of achieving the
based representation uses a larger number of target dimension. As a result, a differentiated
geometry subdivisions, allowing very fine chan- mesh contraction is achieved during form-finding
ges in geometry properties to be constructed. This by varying these values using Kangaroo Solver
method is considered to be more applicable for (Mcknelly 2015; Baranovskaya et al. 2016;
modelling heterogeneous knitted membranes as it Karmon et al. 2018; Quinn et al. 2016; Hörteborn
allows a detailed allocation of varied stretch and Zboinska 2021). The results yield topologi-
properties, linked to mesh fine segments. cally similar geometries to physical outcomes as
well as simulate the different degrees of mesh
contraction for representing the different stiff-
2.6 Properties Assignment Within nesses of the membrane. Form-finding simula-
Knit Simulations tions generated from these studies cannot be
guaranteed to be geometrically accurate, since no
Understanding property allocation mechanisms quantitative comparison with physical models is
enables precise and accurate form-finding and made.
simulation of differentiated membranes. A cer- Alternatively, the use of K2Engineering cable
tain level of tolerance and imprecision is accep- goals allows to operate with the E-modulus
ted within membrane simulations for stiffness value (Young Modulus2) in order to
representational and manufacturing purposes. describe the material properties of the membrane,
Nevertheless, for some topological design solu- thereby departing from arbitrary stiffness value,
tions, a higher degree of geometric precision is used in the Kangaroo Cable goal. This allows for
required in order to avoid excessive membrane a more precise membrane material simulation,
surface areas with reduced tension and the linked to the existing engineering standards of
misalignment of compound elements due to representing material properties through Young’s
surpassing of tolerances. modulus. However, the determination of the right
Before the emergence of plug-ins that allow Young’s modulus value for the differentiated
for structural evaluation of membrane designs, knitted membrane is a challenging task due to
mesh properties were assigned through an arbi- resolution misalignments and lack of studies. The
trary cable stiffness value, which is comprised of
rest length target values, calculated by Kangaroo
Goal1 as a percental reduction of the cable

2
The modulus of elasticity in tension or compression is a
1
A component in the Kangaroo, K2Eng and Karamba mechanical property that measures the tensile or com-
plug-ins, that operates with the certain formula in order pressive stiffness of a material when the force is applied
to describe the behaviour of the simulated object. lengthwise.
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 363

differences occurring between sparsely discre- 3.1 Graded Knitted Ceiling—Design

tised digital cablenet mesh geometry, which Case for Testing Digital
represents a much denser physical differentiated Tools
knitted membrane require the invention of res-
olution translation concepts. These are not pre- Panels are three-dimensional, where the curva-
sent for heterogeneous knitted structural ture is achieved by grading the programmed
membranes in the available literature but are membrane pattern, based on the loading condi-
essential for building closer links between sim- tions of the membranes in the digital space
ulated and physically produced knitted (Figs. 5 and 6). The design intent drives the
membranes. definition of the weight value in kg and their
distribution across the membrane surface. Larger
weight values produce deeper membrane geom-
3 Extension of Design Models etry with a larger curvature, while the discon-
for Materially Differentiated tinuous edge clamping rearranges the tension
Textile Membranes distribution, where both directly reflect in the
material grading patterns (Fig. 7). In order to
The workflow presented here is based on the achieve differentiatited stretch property two
comprehensive design-to-production for knitted stitch types are combined—double jacquard
architectural membranes, developed over the past stitch and unravelled version of it, where the
years by the authors (Deleuran et al. 2015; stitch gets 3 times larger. We can control which
Ramsgaard Thomsen et al. 2019a, b; Sinke stitches remain compact, and which get unrav-
Baranovskaya et al 2020; Sinke et al. 2022a, b). elled, achieving the controlled expansion of the
This paper shows recent advancements especially fabric. Then panels are digitally produced with
the development of a method for material dif- Serafil high tenacity polyester yarn on the
ferentiation informed by structural analysis and industrial knitting machine STOLL 822 ki, using
a method for heterogeneous membrane simula- 12.8 N value for takedown and 9.8 N stitch
tion calibration, incorporating the data from length values. After that, panels are installed in
structurally informed material differentiation space by clamping to the ceiling support struc-
and the values, derived from a physical experi- ture (each frame 1.2  1.2 m), and loading with
ment with homogeneous membranes of various the weights in order to stretch the fabrics. In
densities. Both methods are closely intercon- comparison to the digital environment, where the
nected as they inform each other, which is differentiated weights are used to trigger material
demonstrated in the example of design case study differentiation, physical panels are loaded with
of Graded Knitted Ceiling panels. the weights of same value. This is for activating

Fig. 5 Materially
differentiated membranes,
where the shape is informed
by material differentiation,
activated by the loading with
weights and edge clamping
conditions
364 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 6 Digital conceptual model of the textile ceiling panels with the increased surface depth transition. The arbitrary
stiffness value used is 30 MPa in both U and V mesh directions

Fig. 7 Difference between displacement-based geometrical analysis (left) and tension-based structural analysis (right)

material differentiation, which is rather the result simulation, A and B. Simulation A is homoge-
of membrane graded properties, rather than of neous in its set up and used to form‐find a pre-
differentiated loads. liminary shape of a membrane in order to
determine a plausible topology and conduct the
structural analysis. The second—Simulation B –
3.2 Workflow Extension is materially informed differentiated simula-
by Introducing Two-Stage tion with distinct stiffness values per mesh area.
Simulation It is built up on the results of structural analysis
from Simulation A. The calibration of this model
In order to determine the shape and grading is done against the set of relevant knitted
within each membrane, we introduce a two-stage samples.
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 365

4 Finding 1. Structurally Informed value in MPa (Fig. 8A). Next, the axial stress
Material Differentiation values are interpolated into an average value per
for Digital Manufacturing mesh face, allowing to cluster of the mesh per
mesh face, rather than per mesh cable (Fig. 8B).
4.1 Simulation A—a Homogeneous This introduces the concept of treating the knit-
Form-Finding ted membrane in simulation as a shell with dis-
with K2Engineering Goal tinct areal material properties, as opposed to a
cable net made of single strands. This approach
As mentioned above, one of the findings makes it possible to link the dense knitted
described in this paper is an invention of a novel physical surface to the sparsely subdivided mesh
method for CNC-knitted membranes material setup and introduces the concept of scalar
differentiation informed by structural analysis. translations between the low-resolution mesh and
Its development is connected to the use the high-resolution knitted fabric. As a result,
K2Engineering goals already at the stage of meshes are clustered into zones, described by
preliminary form-finding during Simulation A. colour, where each colour is a result of a distri-
The membrane for Simulation A is constructed bution of threshold tension data, present in the
from a homogeneous mesh-based cable net with surface. Based on the resulting clustering
an arbitrary Young Modulus value, assigned arrangements, further material differentiation for
evenly to each mesh cable segment. An arbitrary digital manufacturing and for heterogeneous
value is derived from standard handbook simulation can be performed on the mesh.
knowledge, as there is yet no information on
membrane specification and its behaviour at this
stage of the design process. Naturally, the 4.3 Knit Material Differentiation,
designer operates with the parameters of mem- Informed by Structural
brane shape, clamping and prestress conditions, Evaluation
which in our case is the loading of membranes by
weights, distributed across the surfaces and its For further digital manufacturing of knitted
attachment to the frame structure of the ceiling. membranes, the transition of differentiated
material properties from the analysis is con-
ducted through the dithering3 graphic technique,
4.2 Structural Evaluation due to the binary nature of knit. This permits the
maintenance of the smooth variegation of mate-
After the preliminary form-finding (Simulation rial property for stretch while using only two
A) is converged, the structural analysis is con- stitch types for material differentiation—double
ducted to extract the forces and the axial stress jacquard (solid) and unravel double jacquard
distribution across the resulting form-found (loose). The dithering pattern is controlled
mesh. It is a novel approach of membrane per- through the percental density of double jacquard
formance evaluation complementary to the ear- stitch type. This allows to correlate the tension-
lier developed method of geometrical analysis, based clustering of the surface with the material
that calculates the surface displacement during density, where the areas of larger tension values
the form-finding (Sinke et al. 2022a, b). The receive the lowest material density, through
diagram in Fig. 7 compares these two analysis the increased intensity of unravelling stitches,
methods applied to the same geometry under the
equal loading conditions. 3
– is an intentionally applied form of noise used to
In the current finding, the structural analysis is randomise quantization error, preventing large-scale
calculated with the aid of the BarOutput com- patterns such as colour banding in images. A common
use of dither is converting a grayscale image to black and
ponent of K2Engineering plug-in, where each white, such that the density of black dots in the new image
mesh segment is associated with the axial stress approximates the average gray level in the original.
366 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 8 Axial stress distribution in mesh cables and the translation of mesh cable tension value mapping per bar (mesh
segment) to per mesh face

while the areas that experience less tension, density. As the result, cluster colour maps are
remain dense, as they do not need to expand that generated for each design, that are then translated
much in order to achieve desired three- to knitting machine-readable bitmaps (Fig. 9)
dimensionality.
This is counter-intuitive from the perspective
of material performance for strength, as tradi- 5 Finding 2. Structurally Informed
tionally more dense textiles are perceived as Material Differentiation
more strong and expected to be in the areas of for Heterogeneous Simulation—
higher tensile forces. However, with the use of Calibration Through Physical
high-performance yarns, the integrity of the fil- Prototyping with Homogeneous
ament is guaranteed, which maintains the surface Membranes
knitted strength despite stitch density. Here, the
larger loops lock into their final locking position With the membrane structural analysis, the
with the same strength properties as the smaller cluster colour map is not only used for material
loops. Placement of larger loops in the areas of differentiation for digital manufacturing, but also
required larger deformation is very efficient in for materially informed simulation, incorporating
achieving material expansion and reaching these structurally derived surface gradings for
required three-dimensionality with the fewer more accurate digital representations of hetero-
resources through the steering of material geneous CNC-knitted membranes. Here each
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 367

Fig. 9 Grading of the knitted heterogeneous membranes linked to the stress distribution in the surface and driven by
the percental reduction of material density

colour zone of the mesh receives a specific only visible once fabricated. The results from
stiffness value in relation to the corresponding such calibration also highly depend on many
material density of the knit. factors such as design topology and stitch types
The assignment of stiffness value for each used, which are highly unlikely to be success-
area is not a trivial task, since no definitive fully transferrable so easily to other design
understanding has been developed on how to topologies using alternative stitch types.
transfer from an arbitrary stiffness value used in We find it important to develop a method that
Simulation A, nor how to correlate material would aid the understanding of digital material
density in the form of stitches with a specific properties of graded membranes early in the
Young’s modulus value. design process, without excessive 1:1 scale pro-
Until now, the method of extensive physical totyping or the production of the final design.
prototyping has been used in order to tune the The aim is to find a way how to calibrate a
graded simulation. A 3D-scan data from the computational system in a more generic way, that
equivalent 1:1 physical prototype (Fig. 11), with would improve the digital representation of
corresponding graded areas as in the digital materially graded CNC-knitted membranes. In
simulation, is compared to the digital simulation this chapter, we present a proposal, on how to
and in the event of deviation, the stiffness values correlate the material density with the digitally
are adjusted in order to fit the physical mem- assigned stiffness value with the aid of a sup-
brane. This can be done manually, by tuning the porting physical experiment.
numbers incrementally, which is a tedious task,
or with the use of evolutionary optimisation
algorithms in order to find the right numeric 5.1 Correlation of Material Density
values for stiffnesses (Sinke Baranovskaya et al. with the Stiffness Values
2020; Oghazian et al. 2022). It is a valid method
to gain more precise simulations. However, the The differentiated knitted material has a certain
need to produce the entire design first and only limit of stretch and therefore a limit in stiffness.
then be able to tune the simulation is not giving In order to understand the range of stiffness
many benefits, as is expensive at first and does values possible to achieve with a certain material
not inform the design, as structural deviations are density, a few homogeneous panels representing
368 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 10 Three installations of

Graded Knitted Ceiling
project, each with different
loading conditions, reflected
in variegated material
differentiation of
membranes (Fig. 10).
Design C is used for
further simulation
calibration

the maximum, the minimum and the medium for this experiment are the same as in the design
material densities are fabricated and loaded with that is intended for calibration.
the arbitrary weight of 2.9 kg. The exact loading
value is not important here as it is important that
it remains the same across all the membranes. All 5.2 Stiffness Values Discoveries
three membranes are produced with the same
knitting machine settings, however with varied The results of the calibration of the homogeneous
material density, reflected in the percental pres- model through Simulation B are documented in
ence of unravel stitch—0%, 50% and 100% the diagram in Fig. 12, where the digitally
accordingly. The pattern density defines the scanned physical samples are compared to the
textile's capacity for expansion under the load digital simulation B. With the aim to reduce the
(Fig. 11). The dimensions and the material used deviation between the scanned and the digital
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 369

Fig. 11 Three homogeneous

samples with various material
densities loaded with the same
weight

Fig. 12 Diagram showing

the calibration of the model
through the set of
homogeneous samples, each
of different material
density—ranging from 0%
unravel stitch reduction to
100% unravel stitch
reduction. TDev—tip
deviation, ODev—overall
deviation
370 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 13 The curve graph

showing a non-linear relation
between the material density
vs material stiffness property

Fig. 14 Panels C design,

used for the digital calibration
of the model

mesh, the values of stiffness values are found for through how the fabrication file is constructed,
each corresponding membrane material density where each point from the dithering map, that is
for 0%−2 MPa, 50%−3.25 MPa, 100% used to calculate the material density, is later
−800 MPa. The stiffness values discovered assigned more pixels around it for technical
through this exercise demonstrate the non-linear reasons of executing the pattern on the machine.
relations between the material stiffness value and This results in an accumulated density of the
its material density (Fig. 13). Additionally, a unravelled stitch types. Despite that, the same
more steep stiffness variation is expected principle is used to define the material densities
between the 0% and 50% material density, while in the ceiling panels intended for calibration,
between the 50 and 100% the stiffness shows which guarantees the consistency of the experi-
almost a flat curve. This can be explained ment and the method (Fig. 14)
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 371

5.3 Calibration of the Heterogeneous 6 Conclusion

Model
This paper describes a contribution on two
The graph of stiffness values, discovered during aspects to design and fabrication of materially
the homogeneous model calibration allows to differentiated CNC-knitted membranes: (1) the
estimate the stiffness values for other material material differentiation based on structural anal-
percental densities (97%, 88%, 64%, 19%, 5%), ysis and (2) the improved simulation of materi-
present in the design intended for calibration ally differentiated membranes by means of
(Fig. 15). The reapplication of corresponding material probes.
intermediate stiffness values demonstrates a The first contribution presented in this paper is
much more tuned digital simulation with visibly the newly developed approach for material dif-
reduced deviation from the scanned data of the ferentiation by using structural analysis. It allows
physical installation (Figs. 16 and 17), however, for the introduction of free angles for membrane
some deviation remains. Figure 16 demonstrates stretch, thereby reducing the unutilised areas of
how resulted calibrated mesh of Simulation B the membranes that would otherwise appear as
correlates to the scanned data in comparison to sagging surfaces if another method for material
same overlay of Simulation A with the scanned differentiation is used (e.g. surface displacement
data. There it is visible that the calibrated mesh strategy) (Fig. 18). Analysis-driven emerging
reaches much closer to the physical prototype in patterns correspond to increased mesh geomet-
terms of depth, however, the curvature of the rical complexity, while also providing pattern
mesh is not entirely followed. This can be solutions that are not possible to predict manu-
explained with the quad-based setup of the mesh, ally or analytically. This leads to increased
which lacks the springs in order to control the freedom in CNC-knitted membrane design, pro-
vertical displacement more precisely. Addition- viding a more sustainable alternative to already
ally, the method of Simulation B uses the dis- employed woven textiles in membrane
covered values on mesh bars, while there should architecture.
be a backward method on how to translate values Another contribution presented in this paper is
from mesh face to mesh bars as the latter ones are a method for calibrating the simulation of
used for assigning the properties. heterogeneous membranes. This calibration

Fig. 15 Graph of correlated

stiffness values related to the
material density and linked
with the material expansion
capacity (new values for
calibration are in orange)
372 Y. Sinke et al.

Fig. 16 Simulation A,
Scanned data and calibrated
Simulation B, applying
discovered stiffness values,
informed by the
homogeneous membranes
experiment

Fig. 17 Comparison of
Simulation A and B to the
physical prototype with the
overlay of scanned data

process involves manufacturing homogeneous Moreover, this method can be replicated with
membranes with extreme densities, serving as other design cases of alternative pattern combi-
reference points to determine the intermediate nations or employed yarns.
stiffness values required in the calibrated design. The found stiffness values are then used in the
These extreme values provide reference points to calibrated digital simulation to achieve more
understand how the material stiffness varies in geometrically accurate outcomes. Certain devia-
relation to the density distribution within the tions are observed between the calibrated mesh
membrane. With this knowledge, the calibration and the scanned data, which can be explained by
process can interpolate and determine the the lack of prestress in the basic homogeneous
appropriate stiffness values for the intermediate samples, that were used to derive the extreme
zones of the heterogeneous membrane. stiffness values. In other words, the
Integrated Design Models for Materially Differentiated Knitted Textile Membranes … 373

Fig. 18 The CNC-knitted

textile panels design with
angles loading directions
demonstrates the benefits of
using tensioned-based
material differentiation
strategy

homogeneous samples should have been loaded material properties in order to tune simulations of
with the larger weight to provide sufficient pre- FGMs. The presented method for simulation
stress. As 2.9 kg used in the experiment might tuning uses only a few physical samples, which
have been not enough to stretch the membranes reduces the volume of physical prototyping and
to their maximum capacity, and therefore proves a better understanding of digital and
resulting three-dimensional geometry might be physical material correlations of various material
misleading from the start of the calibration densities. The data from preliminary prototyping
process. feedback into the construction of full represen-
In general, this approach allows us to reduce tational models aid the implementation of these
excessive prototyping by avoiding creating the novel heterogeneous materials for real applica-
entire final design before we know the stiffness tions with the reduced risk of material failure.
values that we can use to calibrate the simulation. Our hybrid approach makes use of worldwide
Instead, it is sufficient to construct only three available digital fabrication technology and can
supporting samples to understand what stiffness in this way be used in a general way. An
range is possible with the given knitting setup improvement and generalisation of the
and designed material density. To tune and calibration of FGM simulation is part of future
confirm the values, additional 2-axis material work.
tests of the smaller material samples of the cor-
responding densities can be conducted.
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 A Method for Designing
with Deadwood for Architectural
Acoustics

Isak Foged

Abstract image-analysis methods. This research and its

findings are argued to open novel pathways
This paper presents the investigation and for material practices as an approach that
proposition of how to analyse and design engage with biogenic material agency, which
with deadwood as a material resource, and in turn empowers architecture to address
how it can be applied as advanced acoustic urgent questions of material scarcity and
design in architecture. The study is focused on material-climatic relations driven by the built
Poplar wood in progressed decay, where environment.
visual, structural and sound characteristics
are analysed and discovered through material
studies, prototype studies, computational stud- Keywords
ies and measurement studies. The research
findings have environmental, technical and

Rethinking biogenic resources Architectural
aesthetical consequences for how we under-


acoustics Digital design method Deadwood
stand and rethink material resources, their
structural state and how we can understand
biogenic material transformations as part of
the design process. Processes lead to a better 1 Introduction
understanding of using the regenerative mate-
rials we have available on the planet. The The current trajectory of using materials in the
specific research contributions are increased built environment does not align with the avail-
knowledge of poplar density variances from able materials. This is seen even in countries with
natural decay and how density variance a highly developed built environment, such as in
impacts sound absorption properties of the Denmark, where the planetary limits of societal
material and spaces. Furthermore, a new material use are reached by March (Lin 2021).
method for descriptive and prescriptive acous- Hence, even in well-informed countries with
tic design processes is presented, based on resources to transition to a sustainable society,
we spend four times the resources for a balanced
annual cycle. In a global context, each person on
the planet spent on average 33 kg every day,
I. Foged (&) with a projected increase to 45 kg every day by
Institute of Architecture and Design, The Royal 2060 (OECD 2019). The material usage growth
Danish Academy, Copenhagen, Denmark is coupled with another problem, which is that
e-mail: iwf@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 377
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
378 I. Foged

the increase will be non-metallic mineral mate- health and an important element for sustainable
rials constituting the vast majority of the devel- ecologies.
opment (ibid). These materials, such as Yet, deadwood from forests emits 115% of
concrete, have a high environmental footprint in the global fossil fuel emissions (Seibold et al.
its making, transport and recycling processes. 2021). Rethinking deadwood as a material
Current discussion in Western countries encircle resource presents two technical and practical
the argument for a de-materialisation and potentials, namely, a utilisation of materials that
reduction as general processes for transforming is readily available now and at the same time an
to a sustainable situation (ibid). This will be a immediate blocking of releasing the sequestered
necessary strategy for countries that already CO2 into the atmosphere.
spend too much, but in contrast, BRIC countries
(Brazil, Russia, India, China), including the
dominant part of the world population and pop- 2 Material Characterisation
ulation growth, the expansion of the built envi-
ronment is driven by mechanisms which enable The study and application of deadwood in the
people to have the same living standards that built environment may offer additional potentials
others have enjoyed for decades (OECD 2019). than a mere technical resource rethinking through
Thus, while local reductions must take place, a quantity-based substitution of materials. As
global dematerialization appear less realistic until deadwood enters a process of material decay, it
global equality in built environment quality is transforms its physical characteristics. This is
constructed. seen in the change of colour, the material
Environmental responsible materials and porosity, brittleness and density. Expressive
viable quantities of materials through better use qualities can be deciphered by visual observation
are therefore necessary. In this effort, research and tactile registrations, and which are traceable
and industry efforts accelerate biogenic material by the observer back to the transformation pro-
investigations and applications, with construction cess induced by local environmental forces. The
timber being at the strategic foreground. In expressed causality between the emerging mate-
contrast, concurrently, forests around the world rial, its transformation and environmental forces
are decreasing in scale (Brack 2018; Eurostat drives the characteristics of both technical and
2016) removing the basis for wood-based mate- aesthetical definition, such as a tree's positive and
rial growth of raw materials. At the current level, negative growth structures (Fig. 1). When con-
global forests are producing 3912 million m3 sidering an architectural form’s articulation as a
(2020) of raw timber (United Nations 2019), process of a materials response to a force, it is
which means a large gap to the current and aligned with the theoretical notions of tectonics
projected demand for construction and transfor- in architecture (Christiansen 2019; Foged &
mation of existing structures. Hvejsel 2018; Frampton 1995; Hartoonian, 1994;
Forests consist, however, of more than raw Sekler 1965; Semper 1989). The advancement
material for certified construction timber. Dead- from common tectonic descriptions focusing on
wood, that is both lying and standing wood in the articulation of gravitational forces is here
decay, is a significant part of global forests, based on environmental forces of wind, moisture,
amounting to 20% of the forest material (Russell temperature and fungal growth processes. Hence,
et al. 2015). Deadwood has important roles in in material transformation processes, such as
maintaining the forest ecology, as it decays and organic decay in the natural environment, a
rematerialises the forest bed, providing nutrients material and its form relation are at the same time
and homes for insects, plants and animals structurally transformed and revealed. As an
(Seibold et al. 2021). Hence, a significant dead- example, in the gradual decay of a tree, we can
wood capacity is a direct indicator of forest observe material distribution paths through
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 379

Fig. 1 Tree trunk in natural

decay process revealing its
inner structure and fibre
composition

reversed growth processes combined with local invisible, the perception of sound is formed by
environmental forces at play. materials, when the pressure wave is either
In this example, perceived material and form reflected, absorbed or transmitted by the material.
expression is the result of additive and subtrac- Architectural theorist Steen-Eiler Rasmussen
tive formation forces. The material-environment states:
processes undertake on-going articulations of Can architecture be heard? Most people would
structures beyond their initial state, where they probably say that as architecture does not produce
become revealed through local, dynamic and sound, it cannot be heard. But neither does it
complex force interactions. In such cases, a radiate light and yet it can be seen. We see the light
it reflects and thereby gain an impression of form
rethinking of materials as resources is based on a and material. In the same way we hear the sounds
continuous understanding created by a temporal it reflects and they, too, give us an impression of
revealing of the relations between a material, a form and material. (Rasmussen, 1964).
form and environmental forces (Foged 2015).
Maybe less obvious than the visual, struc-
turally expressed material-form convergence in a
common tectonics discourse, material qualities
3 Material and Medium and form definitions are captured and revealed by
the sheer presence of a human, with sound being
Extending the position of environmental forces omnipresent, enveloping and partaking in defin-
as drivers for new material practices in archi- ing the reading of a context.
tecture, and as strategy for rethinking material
resources, a force acts not only on the material,
but also on the human. In the case of sound, an 4 Investigation
intimate and direct relation persists between the
source of sound energy, a material form and the This study investigates how we can rethink
sound energy recipient. Sound is an environ- resources by understanding, designing and
mental force manifested by pressure waves applying naturally transformed wood by decay,
through air as the transfer medium (Cox & both technically and aesthetically. This responds
D’Antonio 2016; Long 2014). And while not only to a revealing of a material articulation,
380 I. Foged

but also to a practical extension of wood’s CO2 room acoustic measurements are conducted in a
cycle. Instead of organic material passing testing space to understand the impact from
through a decomposing process, the uptake of experiential and aesthetic perspectives. The
CO2 during its growth process, material and its material-form and acoustic force findings are
embedded bonding of CO2 is maintained as part then presented, followed by a discussion and
of a carbon sink in the built environment. With conclusion.
the use of wood materials, which has entered a
decay process, an explicit process of sustaining
material for use, and CO2 sequestering, resolves 5 Methods and Materials
into a sustainable material discourse.
Specifically, the investigation explores and Studies are conducted through a mix-method
uncovers how a material in a decayed state, today approach with qualitative and quantitative
considered non-usable, can be articulated with investigations, including visual/tactile registra-
and for architectural acoustics, responding tions of material samples, measurement of
directly to the SDGs (11) sustainable cities and material properties, experimental prototype
communities and (12) responsible consumption investigations, computational image-analysis
and production. with numerical filtering/mapping, absorption
The paper presents experimental material- coefficient measurements, and room acoustic
geometric studies using poplar wood in a pro- measurements and data analysis. As each sub-
gressed decay state. Through examination of the study includes specific methods and successive
visually expressive material high density vari- findings for progressive, experimental studies,
ance is discovered. This inhomogeneity is map- some results are presented as a basis for fol-
ped and further investigated through acoustic lowing studies/methods description within this
impedance measurements to determine specific section.
sound absorption coefficients. The knowledge
derived from these studies are integrated into a
computational design analysis model based on 6 Material Studies
image-analysis techniques enabling the comput-
ing of highly specific acoustic properties when The qualitative study of wood in a state of decay
correlated with other findings in the literature and offers a direct decoding of the material condition.
the impedance measurements, presenting a new By opening the trunk by planar cuts along the
method and model for material sound absorption grain, visual observation illustrates the process of
estimation. Following the development of a full- fungal influence leading to spalting characterised
scale cross-layered poplar prototype structure, by the noticeable black lines (Fig. 2). Spalting

Fig. 2 Piece of poplar with

clear spalting patterns
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 381

occurs under specific environmental conditions, The study identifies a significant difference in
where fungi growth are provided by oxygen, material density within the samples, from the same
moisture and temperatures between 20 and 40 plank of wood, ranging from 292 kg/m3 to
degrees Celsius (Stange & Wagenführ, 2022). 521 kg/m3. The common density description of
The pattern of fungi attack leaves the black Poplar is 350 kg/m3 (Zhang et al., 2022). The
colouring. The remaining wood is coloured in deviation to the density norm and particularly
tones of yellow, brown, orange, green, white and between the samples studied indicates a material
light grey. Texture and patterns are particularly that is substantially transformed by the
detectable close to the spalting, encircled by the environment-driven decomposing and fungal
dark lines. By touch, planned surface has varied decay process, when considering both its visual
smoothness, with brown and orange colour expressive character of colour, texture and pattern,
smoother and light yellow and dark-white-light and its physical properties of hardness and density.
grey with more rough surfaces. By pressing into
the wood with a small blunt object, performing a
sense-based Janka test of material hardness, 7 Material Acoustic Studies
brown-orange regions are significantly harder
than the rest. A direct relation between hardness To further examine the material properties of the
and smoothness appears to be correlated with varied density of decay poplar wood, material
visual decoding by colour of the material. acoustic measurements are conducted through
A quantitative study determining material density Impedance Tube testing. The used instrument is a
characteristics is done by cutting smaller pieces Brüel & Kjær Type 4206-T, with B&K LabShop
from the plank, in dimensions 20  30  50 mm signal generator, analysis and post-processing
(Fig. 3). software, following the ISO 10534–2 testing
The volume dimensions are found by ana- standard. The impedance tube testing method is
lysing the wood for areas with consistent based on a specific instrument, using two dif-
coloration/pattern, to create colour-based repre- ferent two-microphone procedures with small
sentative samples. 23 samples are made, which and large samples, Ø29 and Ø100 mm respec-
all are measured to 0.01 mm precision and tively (Fig. 4). Each measurement setup is based
weight with 0.001 g precision, Table 1. Densi- on calibrated microphones, noise-to-signal anal-
ties, kg/m3, for each sample is then calculated. ysis and phase calibration through FFT analysis.

Fig. 3 Set of material

samples that are examined for
density variance, with lowest
density in top left corner and
highest density in lower right
corner
382 I. Foged

Table 1 Material test Sample x y z gr mm3 kg/m3

sample measurements,
weights and calculated 1 29,49 19,82 49,97 9,917 29,207,05,525 339,5,412,484
densities 2 29,2 21,78 49,95 10,872 31,767,0012 342,2,419,363
3 29,31 21,83 50,79 9,504 32,497,33,647 292,4,547,373
4 29,09 19,28 50,06 13,621 28,076,41,131 485,1,403,496
5 29,14 19,53 49,94 14,259 28,421,06,375 501,7,053,593
6 29,17 19,73 50,14 11,1 28,856,77,837 384,6,583,238
7 29,48 21,74 49,78 9,684 31,903,76,306 303,5,378,611
8 29,15 19,42 49,99 13,602 28,298,98,907 480,6,532,123
9 29,42 21,87 50,15 15,883 32,267,28,231 492,2,323,438
10 29,13 21,64 49,97 11,404 31,499,7488 362,0,346,331
11 29,22 21,76 49,98 16,044 31,778,64,346 504,8,673,655
12 28,97 21,43 50,24 15,616 31,190,3535 500,6,676,182
13 29,4 19,75 50,16 11,921 29,125,404 409,2,990,435
14 29,18 21,55 50,49 16,572 31,749,57,621 521,9,597,229
15 29,21 19,23 50,37 10,528 28,293,24,707 372,1,029,253
16 29,24 19,89 50,12 10,813 29,148,97,003 370,9,565,034
17 29,2 21,79 50,27 13,539 31,985,19,236 423,2,896,225
18 29,46 19,52 50,18 14,77 28,856,47,066 511,8,436,061
19 29,48 19,82 49,86 12,208 29,132,8789 419,0,454,381
20 28,97 21,84 49,95 13,55 31,603,60,476 428,748,559
21 29,19 21,71 50,13 12,97 31,768,12,794 408,2,708,312
22 29,27 21,77 49,86 12,572 31,771,18,589 395,7,044,613
23 28,8 21,74 49,9 14,195 31,242,9888 454,3,419,354

Fig. 4 Impedance Tubes testing instrument used for frequency analysis), signal generator and specific
material acoustic analysis, including both large wide tube computer/software for analysis, post-processing and
(low frequency analysis), small tube (middle and high export of results
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 383

Fig. 5 Material samples (29 mm) prepared for Impedance Tube testing, including Poplar, Paulownia, Oak and Douglas
fir wood species

Material samples are positioned in a measure- characteristics of the highly inhomogeneous

ment chamber, which is coupled with the signal material. Adding absorption coefficient data from
generator tube housing the loudspeaker for the the above study provides a dataset correlating
analysis signal produced. Measurements from 50 colour analysis, material density and material
to 1600 Hz uses Ø100 mm samples/large tube acoustic absorption properties.
setup, and analysis between 200 and 6400 Hz Image analysis has a wide variety and use in
uses Ø29 mm samples/small tube setup. Given scientific investigations and applications, from
the large inhomogeneity identified in the density engineering (Liu et al. 2021), psychology
material study above, 9 different poplar samples (Fleming, 2014; Frantz, 2003), computer science
are tested from 50 to 6400 Hz. For comparative (Tanaka & Horiuchi, 2015) and architecture
analysis additional wood species are analysed, (Fragkia et al. 2021) among others. Image anal-
including Oak, Paulownia and Douglas samples. ysis provides the possibility for qualitative
All samples have a depth of 40 mm (Fig. 5). investigations by the observer, such as through
direct pattern registrations and by indirect anal-
ysis of digital analysed images using false colour
8 Computational Studies and brightness analysis methods, and as training
data for artificial intelligence and machine
With the discovered correlation between material learning methods. From the same image, quan-
colour and material density of the poplar wood titative investigations by computational analysis
samples, image-based material analysis can be are possible, such as analysis of individual pixel
used to capture, analyse and map material properties. With each digital image pixel hosting
384 I. Foged

four numerical values such as Red, Green, Blue 9 Prototype Experiments

and Alpha (transparency), a single image cap-
tures and holds a large number of material data. To expand the studies from material probe
This study uses RhinoGrasshopper software for investigation to full-scale prototype with room
image analysis, image mapping, geometric acoustic impact studies, a large acoustic surface
modelling and sound absorption estimation based of wood requires assembly. Experiments with
on the developed material dataset. The integrated cross-layer joining of poplar planks and boards
image-analysis module (Image Sampler) is are done by a three-directional fibre (wood grain)
restricted to analysis of 40.000 pixel at a time. orientation approach. By this method, large, deep
This results in analysis of 160.000 data points poplar planks can be positioned vertically, while
(RGB, alpha values) for each image-analysis front and back board elements, relative to the
processing pass. centre placed planks, can be angled freely to
With an image paired with the material dataset increase cross-weaving of the wood grain
developed, correlating material colour and (Figs. 8 and 9). In the first full-scale prototype
material density, a direct calculation and map- (Fig. 8) crossing is done with 45-degrees, with
ping of estimated density and absorption char- the front cross based on a 70 mm board height,
acteristics is made. The colour to absorption extruding 60 mm from the plank surface. This
calculation uses data from the literature, estab- technique increases stiffness and stability of the
lishing a relation between density and absorption assembly, and more importantly introduces a
coefficient from other studies (Nandanwar et al. varied deep structure that scatters sound energy
2017; Smardzewski et al., 2013, 2014) and the in relation to frequency (Cox & D’Antonio,
absorption coefficient measurements conducted 2016; Cox et al. 2006). The back board element
above. A method for fast material analysis, cross is 20 mm high, extruding 10 mm from the
material characterisation and material sound plank surfaces. Both crosses are recessed 10 mm
absorption properties estimation are then estab- into a milled track of the vertical planks that are
lished to evaluate the highly complex material 40 mm thick, 2000 mm high and 300 mm wide.
and compute material sound absorption relations The poplar planks are almost planar in the first
by use of images (Figs. 6 and 7). prototype experiment, yet much of the poplar

Fig. 6 Method for translating

material visual character to
material acoustic properties
based on empirical studies of
decay poplar wood
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 385

Fig. 7 Image analysis process showing the data resolu- bottom left, zoomed in, resolution and pattern is visible,
tion with a data point for each mm2. Top left, zoomed in but data points not visible, bottom right, pattern is clearly
analysis (6  7 mm sample size), top right, zoomed in, visible, data points not visible
pattern starts to be visible (15  16 mm sample size),
386 I. Foged

Fig. 8 First full-scale cross-

layer prototype with 45-
degree crossing over two
planks

wood has significant warping due to the moisture difference in local height differences between the
release process during drying of the anisotropic planks. Using a deep front board element, as in
and highly inhomogeneous decayed material. the first prototype, the joining depth and struc-
The second full-scale prototype experiments with tural overlay of the assembly elements are driven
the assembly of three large planks (2000  400 by the warping geometry’s intersection with the
 400 mm) which warps more than 20 mm crossing board. The same applies for the back
across the length of the plank (Fig. 9). The same crossing, albeit with the board being much lower
three-directional fibre crossing method is applied, in its protrusion height, relative to the plank
but with 60-degree angles to adapt to the large surface.
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 387

Fig. 9 Second full-scale

cross-layer prototype with 60-
degree crossing over three
planks

Three planar hardwood doors are placed in the

10 Room Acoustic Measurement room. The temperature is measured at 26 degrees
Studies Celsius and relative humidity is 55% during
measurements. Prior to installing the prototypes
The raw poplar planks and full-scale experi- for testing are ‘clean’ space test measurements
mental prototypes of cross-structured poplar conducted for comparison. Measurements are
assemblies, with identified inhomogeneous conducted with 6 measurement positions (aver-
material densities, are tested for material and aged over 3 measurements at each position) and
room acoustic properties. The room used for 1 source position, making a total of 18 mea-
measurements is a shoebox geometry, with surements for each study (Figs. 10 and 11).
dimensions 7.6 5.6x2.8 m. Ceiling and walls Equipment used for measurements includes a
are in plaster and painted. Floor is hard linoleum. calibrated Behringer 8000 measurement micro-
One wall is constructed from large glass panes. phone and a Yamaha MSP5 active loudspeaker
388 I. Foged

Fig. 10 Room acoustic

measurements with free
standing poplar planks

Fig. 11 One of two positions

of the prototypes placed in the
measurement space

with a sound dispersion profile similar to human complies to ISO3382-2 standard (ISO 2008). For
sound emitting patterns. Sound sweeping for analysis and results evaluation of the impulse
impulse response is used with a 2 s period, and response measurements, RT60 (T20 domain)
analysed from 125 Hz to 8 kHz, using Røde and FTT Waterfall plots are produced and
Fuzzmeasure software. The measurement setup analysed.
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 389

11 Results (Poplar 1, Poplar 2, Poplar 3, Poplar 4, Poplar

6, Poplar 7, Poplar 9) as seen in the graph
The findings from the investigations of rethink- including all samples. Another group, based on
ing resources using decay poplar wood for the higher material homogeneity (Oak, Dou-
acoustic design propositions are outlined in cat- glas, Poplar 5, Poplar 8) as seen in the graph
egories of investigation. with the four selected materials. As is docu-
Specifically mented, the Poplar 8 sample (200 kg/m3) has
significant higher absorption coefficient than
• Material and density Poplar 5 sample (528 kg/m3).
Based on qualitative and quantitative inves-
• Material and Room Acoustics
tigations, the study finds that poplar in the
decay state has significant density variance, Based on quantitative investigations, the
ranging from 292–521 kg/m3 in the specific study finds that the poplar material and pro-
study (Table 1). totype assemblies have a significant impact
on room acoustic properties and therefore the
• Material and sound absorption human perception of the material impact on
experiential phenomena, with sound energy
By quantitative investigations, the study finds
absorbed predominantly in the mid frequen-
that there is a direct, albeit complex material
cies 250–1000Hz, and secondarily in the high
density relation with sound absorption quali-
frequencies 2000–8000Hz, dropping 0.5 and
ties of the poplar wood studied (Fig. 12). In the
0.3s in RT60, respectively (Fig. 13). This
graph including all material samples exam-
aligns with the material acoustic sample
ined, two groups are identified. One group,
findings above.
based on higher material inhomogeneity

Fig. 12 Absorption coefficient results from impedance highlighted samples to the right showing the relation
measurements. All samples to the left showing the between density and absorption properties
absorption variance within the same material, and
390 I. Foged

Fig. 13 Reverberation Time measurements with a ‘clean space’ (black line), prototypes against the wall (red line) and
prototypes placed at an angle to one of the walls (blue line)

• Material and Design Analysis Method

As the density of a fibrous material has a
direct correlation with sound absorption
properties documented, and in alignment with
the literature, the study presents a computa-
tional design and analysis method for acoustic
properties based on image-analysis tech-
niques. The presented method is scalable in
resolution in direct relation to the resolution
of the sample photo of the material and the
specific analyser used. The method can be
used to analyse and inform the assembly logic
of material complex bespoke elements, guid-
ing design decision for a holistic intended
sound absorption profile of a combined
structure. While the detection of density and
related absorption characteristics is identified,
method estimation inaccuracy can be found
when the material surface colour/texture does
not continue through the depth of the mate-
rial, leading to a ‘uneven depth density’,
resulting in a less accurate estimation of
absorption behaviour from surface analysis.

• Material and the Rethinking of Articulated

Resources
Through material, form, assembly and
acoustic studies, synergetic relations between
these aspects have been studied. The forma-
tive forces acting towards perceived visual
and sound phenomena are driven by natural Fig. 14 Top: Poplar prototypes showing scale, back and
front crossing. Centre: Detail of fibre crossing and gap
occurring and design-driven articulated
between vertical planks. Bottom: Three-directions cross-
material-environmental agencies. While structuring allowing highly warping elements to be joint
structural integrity, assembly logic and through varied track/insertion depth
A Method for Designing with Deadwood for Architectural Acoustics 391

joining precision remain important, it is the specifically in relation to acoustic design as

revealing of material and form relations findings in this study demonstrate.
through visual-acoustic interactions that play
the dominant part in the rethinking of Acknowledgements Will be added after final
evaluation/acceptance.
resources, addressing environmental, techni-
cal and aesthetical aspects together. Rather
than rejecting materials from structural inho-
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 Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication
Future for a Material-Efficient
Historic Ceiling System

Saqib Aziz, Emil Brechenmacher,

Brad Alexander, Jamila Loutfi,
and Christoph Gengnagel

Abstract masonry caps offer an operational solution

that embodies less than half as much carbon as
Ceilings are key to more sustainable and
a conventional concrete ceiling. In addition,
climate-friendly construction. Slab systems
clear circularity properties can be demon-
comprise the most embodied carbon in pro-
strated for the masonry cap ceilings. Circular
portion to all component groups. The shortage
economy principles are applied at both mate-
of materials after World War II brought a brief
rial and construction levels. The geometric
renaissance for vaulted masonry ceiling sys-
precondition of cap ceilings with repetitive
tems. The simplicity and effectiveness of the
construction sequences lends itself to digital
purely compression-loaded caps enabled rapid
fabrication methods. This process enables
reconstruction with the available material and
further development of the historic form
rubble. These characteristics require the sys-
through multifunctional optimization. Hence,
tem to be re-examined in light of today’s
a 3D-printed acoustic brick was developed
debates on resource scarcity and circularity.
which enables the raw ceiling to meet a broad
The research presents a LCA-Analysis, com-
range of requirements. Our digital fabrication
paring six different ceiling systems under a
experiments show a unique combination in the
uniform usage scenario. While a conventional
joining of newly generated performative
concrete flat slab has a GWP of 136
bricks and recycled material.
kgCO2e/m2, the vaulted slab achieves a value
of 64 kgCO2e/m2, representing a savings
potential of 53%. Under the same conditions, Keywords

Robotic fabrication Additive manufacturing

S. Aziz (&)
E. Brechenmacher

Structural design Acoustic optimization

Department of Architecture, University of Arts

LCA Sustainable design
Berlin, Structural Design (Ket), Berlin, Germany
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]
B. Alexander
TU Berlin, Berlin, Germany
J. Loutfi
Bollinger+Grohmann Ingenieure, Frankfurt Am
Main, Germany
C. Gengnagel
Udk Berlin, Berlin, Germany

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 393
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
394 S. Aziz et al.

1 Introduction A return to the great constructive diversity

predating the widespread use of reinforced con-
1.1 Rethinking Geometry crete offers an opportunity to deal with the global
and Function of Structural material and resource problem. Many of the
Elements historical building forms can be easily repaired,
converted, and deconstructed. We demonstrate
As resources become scarcer, our construction this principle using the cap ceiling as an example.
methods must not only answer the pressing
question of less grey energy, but they must also
be more efficient in their use of available mate- 1.3 A Look Ahead: Digital
rials. The historic building type of masonry cap Transformations
ceilings (German “Kappendecken”) presents of a Traditional Form
itself as a solution for a material-conscious con-
struction approach. Due to its arched geometry, it For a long time, masonry cap ceilings were the
combines two essential strategies: (i) material only issue in the repair and renovation of existing
efficiency is increased due to the intelligence of buildings. However, our investigations and
the arched geometry. (ii) building materials with practical experiments show that, with novel
a poor life cycle assessment—such as concrete or technical transformations, the construction
steel—are substituted or reduced to the greatest method could once again gain relevance in storey
possible extent. construction catering toward a more sustainable
This research project investigates whether the building practice. As part of a university research
historical system of masonry cap ceilings can be study, the historical cap ceiling was investigated
of significance again today. Ceiling components and experimentally transformed.
are a big-ticket item, which is currently respon- First, a new type of wood-masonry hybrid
sible for a large part of the embodied carbon in system was developed. Historically, cap ceilings
buildings due to the lack of good alternatives to were built between parallel steel girders. How-
reinforced concrete. ever, medieval models also show vaults on
wooden beams. To translate this technique into
today, a construction system deploying glulam or
1.2 A Look Back: Constructive Beech-LVL was developed. We see masonry cap
Diversity ceilings between modern timber construction
products as a further building block for con-
The global scarcity of resources requires more structive diversification.
constructive diversity. A look back into the past The second transformation relates to the
provides insightful approaches for this. With the actual manufacturing process. One reason why
advancing industrialization of construction in the vaulted constructions are rarely utilized nowa-
nineteenth century, storey ceilings began to be days is the high cost of labor and the need for
constructed as flat-vaulted caps made of masonry skilled craftsmen. However, the elemental
between steel girders. The system is character- structure of cap ceilings opens a high prefabri-
ized by its simplicity, resistance to environmental cation potential. The linear extruded form with
influences, and high load-bearing capacity. its repetitive building blocks also lends itself to
However, the development of reinforced con- automated production using digital tools. We
crete soon began its triumphant march among the have therefore tested the prototypical and semi-
ceiling systems and quickly superseded a large automated production of cap ceilings exploring
variety of different construction methods. To this robot fabrication.
day, solid reinforced-concrete ceilings are pre- The third transformation refers to a multi-
dominant in contemporary building construction. functional enrichment of the ceiling system. The
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 395

aim was to integrate acoustic absorption proper- However, embodied emissions are for the most
ties into the raw ceiling. This requires answering part already emitted at the beginning of a build-
the question of how an initially sound-reflecting ing’s life cycle. Reducing embodied carbon in
surface can be transformed into a sound- the built environment therefore represents a
absorbing surface. With the help of an interac- major lever for achieving immediate decar-
tive computer-aided process, we have developed bonization success. Accumulated embodied car-
special acoustic bricks for different frequency bon emissions will account for more than half of
ranges. These can be produced using mineral 3D- all emissions from the building sector from now
printing processes and integrated into the digital until 2050 (World Green Building Council
fabrication process of the cap elements. 2019). Thus, by 2030, embodied carbon emis-
The notion to digitally transform this historic sions from all building activities will need to be
construction type was tested on 1:1 demonstra- reduced by 40%, according to recent calculations
tors and was presented to the public at a German (World Business Council for Sustainable Devel-
festival on the future of construction in summer opment 2021). This will only be achieved with
2022. drastic changes in the way buildings and struc-
tures are designed and built.

2 Background
2.2 Current Research Environmental
2.1 Embodied Carbon in Context Impact of Masonry Ceilings

According to current figures, the building sector There is one publication, which mainly deals
is responsible for 40% of global energy- and with embodied energy in masonry vaults. De
process-related CO2 emissions. 28% of this is Wolf et al. (2016) examined three case studies in
accounted for by the operation of buildings, 11% different locations around the world, find up to
by embodied carbon, i.e., all emissions that are ten times lower global warming potential in this
embodied in the materials and construction of construction method compared to data from 260
buildings (United Nations 2020). Cement pro- conventional ceiling and roof structures. They
duction alone accounts for 8% of all global highlight the importance of ceiling and roof
emissions (Arup 2019). Thus, although decar- structures in reducing embodied carbon emis-
bonization of the buildings sector is critical to sions and discuss various strategies for doing so.
success in meeting the 1.5 °C Paris target, The results from the analysis suggest investigat-
emissions associated with the sector reached an ing whether the large potential found can be
all-time high of 10 GtCO2 in 2019 (United replicated in the accounting of the floor ceiling
Nations 2020). 60% of the structures and 25% of system of the masonry cap ceiling (De Wolf et al.
the infrastructure that will exist on Earth in 2050 2016).
have yet to be built. For a long time, decar- A closer examination of the historical building
bonization efforts have focused on reducing type was the results of an architectural design
emissions in building operations. Especially with thesis, in which the use of the construction form
the increasing availability of emission-free ener- was analyzed and assessed for its ecological
gies, the operational efficiency of buildings can effects. The use of cap ceilings as floor slabs for a
be improved over their life cycle and reduced high-rise building with a height of more than
through various measures. In the case of very 60 m was validated. In a simplified life cycle
efficient new buildings, embodied carbon emis- assessment, the investigated construction showed
sions can already account for more than 50% of comparable good life cycle values as a timber
all emissions occurring in the life cycle. hybrid ceiling (Apellániz et al. 2022) (Fig. 1).
396 S. Aziz et al.

Fig. 1 High-rise using cap ceilings, design proposition

industrialization of the iron and brick industry,

3 Methodology they came to be used for entire buildings, espe-
cially in non-residential construction, as they
3.1 Brief History and Constructive already brought many of the advantages of
Features of the Cap Ceiling today’s solid ceilings in terms of fire protection
and resistance to biological influences (Fischer
Barrel vaults have been a common form of 2008).
roofing since antiquity. The flatter the vault, the Cap ceilings were initially supported on brick
greater the horizontal load component at the belt arches. With the increasing availability of
support. The particularly flat forms of barrel iron, the rowed bearing on T-beams developed,
vaults are also called cap vaults and have a which made it possible to cover large spans with
common stab height between 1/8 and 1/12 of few support points. The greatest design challenge
their span. The designation “Prussian caps,” of the system to this day is the absorption of the
which is common in Germany, should not horizontal thrust in the edge spans (Breymann
obscure the fact that such structures were also et al. 1902). Similarly loaded adjacent bays
used in other parts of the world. cancel out the respective horizontal thrust of the
Cap ceilings are considered the first solid other bay. In the edge bays, however, the hori-
ceiling system made of inorganic building zontal load component must be absorbed
materials (Marwede 2016). With the increasing differently.
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 397

3.2 Macro-Level: A Circular Baseline separation of the building materials by type at the
Design Concept end of their life cycle (Block et al. 2020).
for a Modern Cap Ceiling

Based on the historical construction rules, a 3.3 Comparative LCA-Study

novel cap ceiling system was conceptualized for Ceiling Systems
incorporating digital transformations (Fig. 2). On
the construction level, we aimed to make the best To substantiate initial results from a design pro-
possible use of the construction’s potential for ject (see 2.2), more detailed LCA analyses were
circularity. conducted. Six ceiling systems for non-
Beyond the masonry, the cap ceiling is in residential use were pre-dimensioned in a uni-
principle free of composite materials in its con- formly defined comparison benchmark. The
struction. The load-bearing effect is essentially systems compared are a reinforced-concrete flat
uniaxial. The load is initially taken up by the slab, a prestressed concrete hollow core, a
masonry vault caps and transferred to the beams timber-concrete composite system, a timber
purely via compressive forces. The steel (or hybrid system, and two forms of cap ceiling. An
timber) girders absorb the vertical load compo- overarching life cycle analysis was validated, all
nent from the vaults and in turn transfer it to the built on the same axial grid and uniform span
main load-bearing structure of the building. length of 8.10 m. The analysis results are shown
Where necessary, the horizontal load component in Fig. 3. While the conventional concrete flat
is short-circuited into the ceiling system by tie ceiling has a global warming potential of 136
rods. Each component has only one task and can kgCO2e/m2, the cap ceiling achieves a value of
be optimally materialized accordingly. This clear only 64 kgCO2e/m2. It thus has a savings
distribution of tasks improves above all the potential of approx. 53%. The examined cap
recyclability of the ceiling system. Easy acces- ceilings are on a par with the timber systems or
sibility to the different components enables better are even slightly better. Under the same general
maintenance and interchangeability, as well as conditions, masonry cap ceilings are thus a

Fig. 2 Conceptual cap

ceiling design with a span of
1.35 m
398 S. Aziz et al.

Fig. 3 LCA Comparison of six ceiling types

system that embodies less than half as much grey stress distribution for this cross section occurs. As
emissions as a conventional reinforced counter- soon as the line of thrust does not pass along the
part. Where there are still open questions center line, an additional moment occurs due to
regarding the end-of-life scenario of timber the thrust’s eccentricity. This results in a linear
construction, clear circularity characteristics can stress distribution in the cross section. To achieve
be demonstrated for cap ceilings. Circular econ- structural stability and no tensile stresses in the
omy principles are applied at both the material cross section, Rankine proposed in 1858 (Rank-
and construction levels. ine 1858) that the shear line should not run out-
With these results, the question arises as to side the boundary lines of the middle third. These
why this type of construction is hardly ever boundary lines are defined with a distance e = d/6
deployed in developed economies. The answer to each side of the arch center line as shown in
clearly lies in the great need for manual labor, Fig. 4 (Curtin et al. 2008). 1.35 m was chosen as
i.e., high labor costs and the need for skilled the common span (L) for the vault, following
craftsmen. established axial dimension in design practice.
For the design of demonstrators, a height
f = L/10 = 0.135 m regarding the common
3.4 Component-Level: Structural heights for Prussian caps was assumed (Ahnert
Analysis and Grider Design and Krause 1988). Figure 4 shows one of the
determined lines of thrust visualizing how the line
Vaulted masonry ceilings have the characteristic of thrust is derived using graphical methods. Here
feature to carry downward loads by pure com- the line of thrust shown in dark green stays
pression without bending moments or shear for- between the borderlines illustrated with light
ces. To achieve this structural behavior, the flow green. It is also shown that the resultant value of P
of forces due to downward loads is studied. The depends on the magnitude of the horizontal reac-
loading creates compression thrusts within the tion H.
arch span which is described by the line of thrust. The vaulted masonry ceiling thrust is pushed
If the thrust has no eccentricity regarding the against single span girder that carries the loads
center line of the arch, a uniform compressive primarily by bending moments. The horizontal
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 399

Fig. 4 Calculation of line of thrust—form diagram (left) and force diagram (right)

component evens out for the twin beams,

whereas the edge beams need to absorb it. Hor-
izontal steel bracings are designed in the edge
vaults to counteract. For the sake of stability
during transportation, every prefabricated vault
possesses bracings. After the construction of the
vaulted masonry ceiling at the building site,
bracings of the inner vaults can be dismantled.
This is achieved by the purely screwed connec-
tion of the inner tie rods to the beams. In the case
of the steel variant, this is done by means of steel
angles, in the case of the timber geometry, this is
done by means of a milled attachment for the tie
rods as shown in Fig. 5.
Due to the positioning of the tie rods in the
height of the vault, torsion can occur in the girder
so that the girders rotate slightly outwards due to
the thrust load of the vault. However, this only
occurs in the non-finally assembled phase and in
the end fields. As soon as the girders in the inner
panel are loaded from two sides, this torsion is
canceled out. In the edge spans, this phenomenon
must be considered by designing suitable Fig. 5 Illustration of the reversible connection of tie rod
supports. and beam on the prototype

During the design process, three beam designs

were analyzed and compared. the steel profile is encased in concrete while the
timber cross section needs to have a combustion
Option 1: Steel profile.
height. The difference between the two options in
Option 2: Glued Laminated Timber GL32h. timber (2 & 3) lies mainly in their respective
strength. The Glulam GL32h is characterized by
Option 3: Beech Laminated Veneer Lumber
its wider availability and easier workability,
GL75h.
while the beech LVL is a high-performance
The structural analysis was followed by product with increased strength, but lower
Eurocode 3, Eurocode 5, and the assessment availability and more complex processing.
manual for GL75h from the manufacturer Poll- The calculation results showed that spans of
meier (Blaß and Streib 2016). For fire protection, 8.10, 6.75, and 5.40 m for design options 1, 2,
400 S. Aziz et al.

The oscillations of the air mass within the necks

result in an energy transfer from sound into heat,
as the rapid air movements cause friction along
the material boundary. This has two positive
outcomes: (i) The reflected sound energy has a
lower sound pressure due to the absorption, and
(ii) The internal damping of the structure due to
Fig. 6 Constructive section cap ceiling between specially
the dissipation results in a lower sound trans-
milled timber cross sections
mission across the structure into the next room.
To achieve the above-described effects, a
and 3, respectively, can be realized. The steel numerical simulation of four different bricks with
option stands out with its advantage to bridge four resonators per brick was set up, and gener-
wide distances due to its high resistance capacity. atively optimized to be effective in four fre-
Furthermore, smaller dimensions of its cross quency bands from 100 to 2000 Hz. Using the
section can be chosen. However, the LVL can be finite element method within COMSOL Multi-
considered as a competitor over steel for smaller physics including a general optimization study
distances than 8.10 m. Timber provides diverse step, the neck lengths and radii, as well as the
possibilities of three-dimensional shaping. This cavity depths and widths were adjusted until
made it possible to design the shape of the timber maximum absorption was achieved for the pre-
cross sections as shown in Fig. 6. In addition, scribed frequency range, by simulating the
timber as a building material with its lighter structures within a virtual impedance tube test
density compared to steel makes it easier to setup (Aziz et al. 2022). The results of the sim-
fabricate. ulations and optimizations produced four bricks
which are able to absorb between 40 and 60% of
incident sound energy. In a second step, the
3.5 Component-Level: Acoustic bricks were simulated for their sound insulation
Bricks properties using FEM as well. Compared to a
brick of equal mass, the acoustically pro-
To enrich the ceiling with additional multi- grammed brick is able to provide 5 dB more
performative acoustic properties, the aim was to airborne sound insulation, thanks to the internal
design bricks with integrated absorbers. damping of the resonators (Fig. 7).
Programming the brick with acoustic proper-
ties was done according to three sometimes
opposing objectives. The brick was to be 3.6 Process-Level: Additive
designed with as small a mass as possible, while Manufacturing
providing sufficient sound insulation, and act as a
sound-absorbing surface. Conventionally a brick The additive manufacturing process for the
is considered to be sound hard. 3D-printing acoustically optimized bricks was controlled with
techniques, however, allow this limitation to be a custom process utilizing grasshopper3D
overcome by manufacturing the brick with a (Davidson 2022). To produce the acoustical
more articulated geometry enabling it to absorb optimized bricks, a print width of 10 mm and a
sound via resonant cavities within the outer readymade clay mixture were deployed. Due to
corpus. The resonant cavities act as sound the print width, small-scale structure of the
absorbers, specifically Helmholtz resonators, bricks, and the selected print-path geometry, the
which convert sound energy into heat as sound cylindrical Helmholtz cavities were transformed
waves within various frequency bands accelerate into cubic volumes, hereby keeping their volu-
a small air mass in the neck of the resonator metric attributes for a more streamlined and
against the upper cavity, which acts as a spring. controllable fabrication process (see Fig. 8a).
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 401

Fig. 7 Multifunctional bricks with integrated Helmholtz Resonators

A meandering print path was conceptualized The usefulness of the additive manufacturing
creating adjacent print lanes, layer upon layer. process to produce the bricks is questionable
The optimized brick geometry with integrated against the background of the high quantities. In
acoustical absorber cavities where first sliced parallel, more traditional production methods for
vertically to accommodate the used print height manufacturing them are being explored (i.e.,
of 3 mm. The custom g-code algorithm can casting). However, it is important to emphasize
assign, besides the relevant coordinate, also the that the development of this complex geometry
speed and material inflow rate for each individual would not have been possible without the pro-
segment. With this strategy brick geometries totyping possibilities of mineral 3D printing. The
comprising the unique cavities could be option to create complex internal recesses that
produced. this process opens up got the research going in
On the production site, a few trial-and-error the first place (Fig. 8).
approaches had to be cycled through to create an
optimal output. With the used technical system
each brick would have needed approximately 2 h 4 Case-Study: Demonstrators
to be finalized (see Fig. 8c). Due to the time for Pop-Up Campus
constraint, it was not possible for the research
team to produce all the bricks in time and an As part of the Zukunft Bau Pop-up-campus on
alternative solution for the construction of the future of construction in Aachen, the project
Demonstrator #1 had to be conceptualized. was promoted to carry out tactile experiments on

Fig. 8 Additive manufacturing process

402 S. Aziz et al.

a 1:1 scale for the first time. The various trans- utilized, and a customized metal clamp attach-
formation strategies could be tried out using ment was designed and produced.
different demonstrators. In addition to designing
and testing a digital manufacturing environment
for masonry cap ceilings, traditional craft tech- 5 Design and Prototyping
niques were also explored with a skilled master of the Physical Environment—
mason in a student workshop. Demonstrator #1

To program and probe the robotic process first a

4.1 Robotic Fabrication digital production unit had to be designed, pro-
totyped, and physically installed. For the single
One of the goals of this work was to evaluate the span girder, two 135 cm long IPE 220 steel
efficiency and feasibility of applying robotic beams were used and cast with a custom molded
fabrication (AF) for the construction and concrete covering. The concrete geometry was
assembly of cap ceiling structures. As men- designed with chamfering side surfaces allowing
tioned, the construction requires the experience to optimally dock or place the edge bricks on
of skilled labor and with the scarcity of special- them.
ized craftsmanship also the rich knowledge of Due to the constraints of the max. reachabil-
construction methods for specific building com- ity, a solution had to be implemented enabling to
ponent are diminishing. Prior to the digital ini- sequence the assembly by building up to 6 rows
tialization the research group therefore in one process (one completion cycle) and then to
investigated various brickwork patterns of the move the sub-construction and continue the
cap ceiling (e.g., Stack-, Runner-, Herringbone- assembly. To this end, the edge beams were
Bond). Further studies were carried out on how mounted on a set of uniaxial metal railway fix-
they used to be constructed by trained workers tures with roller bearings (a-b) allowing to move
on-site or produced as prefabricated systems the sub-construction manually or automatically
applying automation processes nowadays (Bruun after each sub-set completion cycle. A wooden
et al. 2021). formwork cladding was designed as a fixture
First the brickwork patterns were digitized as with the ability to mechanically raise or lower
algorithmic 3D models using the visual scripting itself. The mechanism was powered through
editor Grasshopper3D inside the Rhinoceros pneumatic cylinders and a simple valve switch-
CAD framework (McNeel 2022). This made it ing system. This was important to ensure that
possible to design, set the base-case design sce- after each completion cycle the formwork could
nario, and establish a benchmark to probe the be lowered to be moved alongside the sub-
robotic assembly process. Using Grasshopper3D construction and the currently built cap structure
and the Robots plug-in (Visose 2022) an inter- to set/sink into its final form.
active, dynamic, and algorithmic environment In this stationary proposal, the formwork
could be used to control and program the robotic always remains in the same place and the slab
fabrication at an academic facility in Berlin. The element continues to move on rails. This is a
deployed robot arm was a Universal Robot 5. process for prefabrication. Further research is
The maximum recommended reach of the robot needed to make the process available on-site. The
is around 170 cm ⌀ and the maximum load- movement of the formwork could be an obstacle,
bearing capacity is set at 5 kg making these but the beam geometry as a rail for the robot
preconditions (reachability and load-bearing could hold great potential for controlled work
capability) the main design restrictions for the environment on the construction site.
further development for the programming. To The robotic arm was mounted on to a custom
pick and place the bricks a pneumatic gripper build wooden table. The height of the table
tool, Schunk OA-UR3510-PGN-plus-P 80–1 was enabled the sub-construction and the formwork
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 403

Fig. 9 Components of the digital manufacturing environment

to easily move beneath it. Alongside the robotic This generated an extruded surface for the
arm two wooden tiled bracket trays were instal- placing and distribution of the bricks. The first
led. These functioned as the picking stations or digital process enabled to arrange the various
inlay trays for the active feed bricks. On the one acoustically optimized and reused bricks on to
side reused and on the other side the additive the structure. Each of the two main brick types
manufactured (AM) bricks would be positioned. would have its own feeding tray station. A stan-
A secondary table was installed to host the dard brick size (NF) for both types was set with
extruder unit that would extrude the fresh mortar the dimensions: length: 24 cm, width 11.5 cm,
on to the bricks, powered manually or automat- height: 7.1, and standard physical weight of 3 kg.
ically with an electric drill tool (Fig. 9). The second sequence created a network set of
three-dimensional planes for the brick layout in
the longitudinal and transverse direction. For
6 Robotic Programming each direction also the joint/gap width could be
and Experimental assigned separately. The standardized brick was
Implementation then algorithmically oriented onto the network of
planes, hereby creating and visualizing the
The base-case geometry for the generation of the selected cap ceiling brickwork pattern. The
various brickwork patterns for the cap ceiling acoustic bricks would be distributed along the
was generated on a single spanning vault extru- wings of the vault and the reused bricks should
sion. After initial testing of the various brickwork be placed in the mid-section of the cap ceiling.
patterns, regarding easiness of assembly and This strategy was conceptualized together with
aesthetic considerations the team decided to the acousticians as more mass would be available
select the Runner-Bond for the further evalua- above the wingspans, allowing further sound
tion. The base geometry of the demonstrator was absorption qualities. A crucial addition to the
set with the following properties (Fig. 10). program was the order of sequence each brick
Cap-span length and width: 135 cm. would be placed per row. First the both side
Rise height: f = L/10 = 13.5 cm. wings would be subsequently assembled,
404 S. Aziz et al.

Fig. 10 Parametric modeling of the cap ceiling

followed by the keystones in the mid-section to robotic motion had to revolve around it for the
optimally activate the load-bearing attributes of extruded mortar to be placed on two surface
this construction type. sides of the individual brick. The movement
The sequence of the robotic pathway planning of the brick was programmed in a meandering
can be comprised of three main steps: motion to ensure an optimal placement of the
mortar.
• Feed-station (FS): From an initial home • Assembly-station (AS): After the mortar was
position of the robot, the kinetic motion was applied/bonded to two sides of the brick the
set to identify the current needed brick type robot would then move toward the sub-
and then moved toward the associated feeding construction and place the brick accordingly
tray to grab and pick up the relevant input on to the formwork. Depending on the location
brick. The gripper was attached to a com- of the placed brick certain conventions had to
pressor in order to manage the pneumatic be established for an ideal placement. For
motion and was controlled (open, close) using instance, the side bricks that would be attached
a custom line of g-code, e.g., close ((set_- to the reinforced-concrete side beams would
tool_digital_out(0, False), (sleep(0.015)) and have to be moved in diagonally to avoid col-
open ((set_tool_digital_out(1, False), (sleep lision with the beam, whereas all other bricks
(0.015)). To ensure a robust picking process would be placed from above parallel to the
the robot would first align itself with the designated plane position. Due to the small
selected brick, slide in with the Tool-Center- gap sizes, a lot of trial-and-error efforts had to
Point (TCP) at the exact center of the brick, be tested to ensure a seamless bounding of the
grab the brick, and then slide the brick out placed ricks. Once placed the gripper would
toward the top out of the feeder station. open and move back to the home position for
• Mortar-station (MS): The brick would then be the next placement sequence (Fig. 11).
moved toward the mortar station, consisting
of a metal receptacle unit with a spindle screw After these prerequisites were adequately set
mechanism that would be manually or auto- the production of the demonstrator could be
matically set to motion applying a simple finalized within 2–3 h by two of the research
drilling machine once the brick would be in a members. Each individual brick placing
certain position. Mortar had to be mixed and sequence (Feed-, Mortar-, Assembly-Station)
filled into the receptacle prior to each took about 35 s to complete, so the construction
deployment in a manual process. The outlet of sequence could be much faster. The issues in this
the receptacle was stationary, meaning that the first test were allocated to the manual labor
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 405

Fig. 11 Robotic sequence a Feed-station b Mortar-station c Assembly-station

needed to for instance supply the fresh mortar for possibility of responding individually to each
the extrusion unit and to manually move the sub- stone are difficult to replicate through digital
construction and potentially recalibrate it for the processes.
next completion cycle to start. Apart from that In addition to learning the craft techniques,
the digital fabrication process seemed to work a special focus was placed on the material
surprisingly efficient and robust, proving that science of mortar. Unslaked lime mortar was
further improvement can lead to a reliable and used, which was pumped in and processed
fast assembly process. on-site. Direct bricklaying as so-called hot
The development of a robotic workflow may lime mortar (Heisskalkmörtel) was also tried
seem inefficient for this small-scale task. After out. In this way, parts of the vault could even be
all, the creation of finished arch elements in the built without formwork. The demonstrator in
appropriate span is also possible. However, since Aachen was built between specially made timber
one of the main goals of the project was the use cross sections, which illustrate the newly devel-
of reclaimed material such as recycled bricks and oped timber masonry hybrid system (3.2)
not the development of a completely new arch (Fig. 13).
element, the small-scale nature of the setup is
necessary (Fig. 12).
7 Conclusion & Discussion

6.1 Demonstrator #2—Classic The construction of the two demonstrators has

Fabrication confirmed the underlying hypotheses. Thus, the
specification of a masonry cap ceiling system
In addition to exploring robotic manufacturing between modern, specially milled timber beams
methods, learning about historical craft tech- is a valid and operational option. Compared to
niques was the focus of a student work- the classic version, it even has advantages in
shop. Guided by an experienced master mason, a terms of structural fire protection and the general
second demonstrator for an exhibition was real- installation procedure. Due to the pre-processing
ized with a small group of students. Only recy- of the beams, numerous finishing and connection
cled historical field bricks from the region were details can already be integrated into the beam
used. geometry.
The workshop made it clear how much The comparison of the two production meth-
embodied knowledge there is in the craft tech- ods, robotic-digital and traditional craftsmanship,
nique. The seemingly simple process of setting has provided a great deal of knowledge. Only
the stones together unfolds a great complexity in when the great precision and flexibility of man-
its details. The use of different tools and the ual production is understood can the digital
406 S. Aziz et al.

Fig. 12 Robotic setup

process be modeled accordingly. This always historical technique, and on the other hand from
raises the question of the extent to which an the pressing realization that we lack practical
imitation of manual activities by robots is a answers to the question of how we can build in a
target-oriented approach at all. The possibility of more low-emission and circular way. While the
individually carving and manually adjusting each debate on sustainable building often focuses on
stone is not possible with the current robotic an ephemeral whole, the present approach
setup. However, even with simple technical deliberately tries to limit itself to a single build-
means, the digital production setup comes very ing component. A focus on the real major
close to the artisanal model. With minimal post- emission drivers in the building sector is
processing effort, a demonstrator could be pro- necessary to achieve the rapid reduction of
duced that clearly shows the enormous potential grey energy and associated emissions that is the
of digital means of production in the construction crucial task of the coming years. Ceiling
industry. systems offer great potential to drastically reduce
The research project and the practical experi- the common practice of large-volume use of
ments were intended to investigate, whether the reinforced concrete. With the revival of masonry
historical system of masonry cap ceilings can be cap ceilings, we want to contribute to this
of significance again today. This question arose (Fig. 14).
on the one hand from a design interest in the
Cap Ceilings Revisited: A Fabrication Future for a Material-Efficient Historic Ceiling System 407

Fig. 13 Manual fabrication workshop

Fig. 14 Two demonstrators a Robotic fabrication on steel griders b Manual fabrication on timber griders
408 S. Aziz et al.

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designers’ manual. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester
Davidson (2022) Grasshopper. [Link].
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 RE:Thinking Timber Architecture.
Enhancing Design and Construction
Circularity Through Material Digital
Twin

Anja Kunic , Roberto Cognoli ,

and Roberto Naboni

Abstract to verify and document the relevance of the

accessible database in supporting the automa-
Wood is a fundamental resource for building tion of reusable timber construction.
the future environment and meeting CO2
reduction goals. However, wood is truly
sustainable only if it can be preserved for a Keywords
long time and reused throughout several
construction cycles. Previous research by the

Rethinking resources Rethinking timber
authors shows that algorithmic design and


architecture Material digital twin Material
automation technologies are introducing novel


circularity Data circularity Reconfigurable
possibilities for reconfigurable architecture, wood architecture
which is conceived to allow easy assembly
and reassembly of wood components into 1 Introduction
different structures. In this context, dynamic
and accessible material data is vital to enhance 1.1 Motivation
circular construction effectively. This paper
introduces the concept of Material Digital Circularity and renewable construction materials
Twin, an online material database directly are necessary rather than a choice to address the
connected to computational models and is climate emergency. Considering its carbon stor-
used for real-time exchange of design, simu- age capacity, wood is seen as a natural asset for
lation, assembly and construction information. the future of sustainable construction. However,
The outlined approach is applied to the as the demand for a shift toward timber con-
realization of a laboratory-scale prototype struction rises, the pressure on the forestal sour-
structure, which is used as a testbed platform ces has increased as well. A new design
paradigm that enhances circularity and reuse is
urgently needed to balance the demand and
A. Kunic
R. Naboni (&) supply of construction timber. In this context,
CREATE - University of Southern Denmark, computational tools and data-intensive Con-
Campusvej 55 5230 Odense, Denmark struction 4.0 challenge current building practices
e-mail: ron@[Link]
and ‘end-of-life’ concepts by enabling materials-
R. Cognoli and-data circularity through information-driven
University of Camerino - School of Architecture and
Design, Viale della Rimembranza, 63100 Ascoli
design and construction processes.
Piceno, Italy

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 409
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
410 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 1 Interaction with the ReconWood Proto 02 in Mixed Reality—an experimental prototype for reconfigurable
wood construction from the ReconWood series

The introduction of design-for-renewable, system based on a construction kit of discrete

-reusable, -reconfigurable architecture unlocks wood elements used to build multi-resolution
novel properties and aesthetics at different framing structures that are 100% reversible,
building levels. The CREATE Group at the structurally optimized for reusability, and usable
University of Southern Denmark has been to fulfil the needs of a wide range of architectural
experimenting with combinatorial and reversible and structural typologies that can evolve over
design (Naboni and Kunic 2019) and robotic time (Fig. 1). Here, ReconBlocks are envisioned
reassembly (Kunic et al. 2021a, b; Naboni et al. as materials that can ‘travel’ from one structure
2021) approaches to extend the life cycle of to another while carrying their associated data-
wood-based materials, components and systems sets which allow them to be tracked, traced and
rendering them natively conceived for automated reused in a data-informed fashion. Data-driven
reconfiguration. Data-driven reconfigurability reconfigurability and reuse of building compo-
extends beyond a pure concept of circularity, nents can be effectively achieved only when
suggesting higher design flexibility and shape material information is linked and accessible
transformability driven by the material’s inher- along with the material stock and shared flaw-
ited performance throughout various life cycles. lessly between different building phases.
As part of this investigation, the ReconWood
open project was initiated to study a series of
methods and related architectural prototypes 1.2 Background
exploring the potential of circular construction
through automation, particularly focusing on In recent years, research and practice-based
cyber-physical design, assembly and disassembly studies aimed at reframing the construction
of reconfigurable structures. ReconWood is a value chain with the introduction of circularity
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 411

principles. Existing buildings are now considered driven reconfigurability and reuse. Data circu-
material banks, possessing a valuable material larity is as important as material circularity to
stock that can be mined for future construction enable reconfiguration as a design and con-
up/recycles (Heisel and Rau-Oberhuber 2020; struction process. In this sense, linking material
Honic et al. 2021). As part of the circular para- data to a material stock is fundamental. To fulfil
digm, a Material Passport (MP) was introduced to such requirements, this research introduces the
provide digital data sets containing information concept of Material Digital Twin (MDT), a data-
about the origin and construction history of the driven holistic approach to support the automa-
materials, products, and buildings and make them tion of reconfigurable wood structures. In com-
available for future construction uses (Heinrich parison to the existing concept of MP, the MDT
and Lang 2019). Such material datasets are typi- is characterized by the following features:
cally implemented at the end-of-life phase of a
(1) It is established as a dynamic material
building, during the pre-demolition and demoli-
database rather than a static one-shot
tion phases. Recent experimental work is instead
descriptive material sheet. The database is
looking into implementing MPs in the planning
constantly updated and incrementally loa-
phase of a building, using BIM tools (Atta et al
ded with new data throughout different
2021; Copeland and Bilec 2020; Jayasinghe and
building phases.
Waldmann 2020). On the other hand, a significant
(2) It permanently links material data to a
stream of research looks into reclaiming and
specific building material/component using
reusing existing building materials by acquiring
QR (quick response code) codes.
data from existing buildings (Wibranek and
(3) It is bi-directionally linked to a computational
Tessmann 2023), inspecting their maintenance
environment, from where the use-cycles are
conditions (Spotr 2022), and detecting healthy
planned (design, simulation) and actuated
and reusable materials (Raghu et al. 2022; Àkànbí
(fabrication, assembly, disassembly).
et al. 2020), and building online databases
(4) It is easily accessible by both human and
(Material Marktplats 2022; RotorDc 2015). All
machine users through an internet connection.
these approaches have, however, a common
drawback: the information is statically loaded to
Based on the MDT, a construction workflow
the MP through an archive file format, perma-
is applied and tested in a laboratory setup on the
nently detaching the material information from its
design and construction of ReconWood Proto 02,
physical twin and design models. To enable
an experimental prototype of reconfigurable
higher levels of material circularity, more
wood construction where the embedded infor-
advanced data management and smoother inter-
mation from individual material blocks is used to
operability between phases is auspicable, sup-
assemble structurally performative aggregations.
ported by MPs that are ‘alive’ platforms,
Considering the vision for these structures to be
constantly accessed, tracked and updated with
reused, re-configured, and evolve in time, it is
emerging material data (Li et al. 2020).
critical to create a watertight information loop
with a shared database between different con-
struction phases and actors.
1.3 Research Aim

Working within the premises of Industry 4.0 2 Methodology

(I4.0), such as interconnectivity, online data
exchange, and smart automation, this research 2.1 Material Digital Twin
engages with a cyber-physical environment for
design and construction to extend the life cycle The MTD is an online dynamic material database
of wood building components through data- with a permanent link that enables cyber-physical
412 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 2 Schematic representation of the data exchange and communication between different construction phases and
MDT

interoperability and collaboration. It is used as a links associated with each block. QR code iden-
middleware to bridge the virtual and physical tifiers imprinted on the physical blocks enable the
environments and thus foster the automation of connection between physical material and its
material reuse. The MDT is linked to a para- digital twin in the Speckle server. Throughout
metric computational model, which exchanges different design-construction phases, relevant
data from/to the following life-cycle phases: datasets for circularity purposes—discussed later
computational design, robotic fabrication, robotic —are stored in the MDT to align material and
assembly, use/operation and robotic disassembly data circularity within a cyber-physical loop
(Fig. 2). accessible to different users, including designers,
In this research, the MDT is implemented builders using Mixed Reality devices, fabrication
using Speckle, an interoperability application and assembly robots which can seamlessly com-
used here to extract, exchange and visualize data municate and collaborate (Table 1).
in real-time (2020). A stream URL link is created From the computational design phase, six
and accessed through a dedicated Grasshopper datasets are extracted and loaded into the MDT.
3D connector. The computational design model is Identity/design shows data for each block derived
developed in Grasshopper using dataset structures from the algorithmic design choices and material
that refer to different construction phases, i.e. stock information; Structural Performance data
design and structural analysis, robotic fabrication, obtained from the structural simulation is used to
robotic assembly, use and operation, and robotic distribute the blocks, assuring to maximize their
disassembly. These data are sent to the MDT and reusability; Circularity data contains predictions
received back to Grasshopper as individual on the material expected performance for fol-
Speckle Branches, characterized by unique URL lowing cycles, combining simulation and
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 413

Table 1 Six relevant datasets for circularity purposes sent to MDT

observations on material imprecisions/decay. seating areas. Here, Mixed Reality (MR) is used
Datasets regarding the Robotic Fabrication, to start the design process with human inputs to
Robotic Assembly and Use/operation phases are the form-finding process (Kunic and Naboni
fed to MDT during the corresponding project 2022). Subsequently, a multi-resolution frame
stages, providing a rich database to inform the structure is generated from a three-level vox-
subsequent reconfiguration process. The Robotic elization layout, resulting in a 12-block con-
Disassembly phase is not discussed here, as it is struction kit. In parallel, a structural optimization
out of the scope of this paper. However, the data algorithm is run to evaluate the structural uti-
required for its integration and closing of the lization of individual timber blocks and suggest a
ReconWood circular loop is considered and can reconfiguration to maximize their reusability.
be derived from the precedent phases. The optimization process is developed by
establishing a bi-directional link between the
Grasshopper computational design environment
2.2 Computational Design and SOFiSTiK-based numerical analysis. Speci-
and Circularity fic material and joinery characteristic values,
such as stiffness and strength derived from
The ReconWood construction system is based on mechanical testing and loading boundary condi-
discrete wood blocks designed to be robotically tions, are fed to the linear FEA calculation. As a
assembled and (re)assembled. These blocks are result, structural utilization values for all the
computationally aggregated into multi-resolution blocks and activated joints are extracted. Since
frame structures of variable size, shape, density the goal of the design process is that each block
and strength. Computationally, multi-resolution can be reused in the future, a Circularity Limit
layouts are obtained from a voxel-based dis- State (CLS) is defined and used as a critical
cretization process, providing a targeted form. design optimization parameter. The available
Resolution gradients are used globally to closely material stock consisting of white pine, pressure-
approximate the volumetric characteristics of impregnated spruce and LVL wood was assigned
input forms and locally as a means of structural to the blocks considering the stress distribution.
strengthening through densification. In the first design iteration of ReconWood Proto
The ReconWood Proto 02 is designed as a 02, 11.2% of the structure exceeded the CLS (1),
prototype structure integrating sheltering and with a 204% maximum utilization value (2.04
414 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 3 Linear FEA outcomes of the ReconWood Proto 02 before (left) and after (right) the optimization

Table 2 Detailed overview of the three MDT datasets derived from the Design and Structural Simulation

CLS). After the optimization process, the struc- material stock sheets, while specific structural
tural density of the over-stressed area was characteristics within the structure, such as
increased to fit within the CLS, achieving a 12% compressive, tensile and flexural stress, are
utilization (0.12 CLS) (Fig. 3). gained from simulation. On the other hand, cir-
Through a unique identification tag, each cularity data are interpreted and predicted based
block inherits estimated stress values for future on existing datasets. For instance, the Reusability
evaluations of fatigue and the structural strength Rate (RR) is calculated as an inverse ratio
in following construction cycles (e.g. V1B4.7, between the number of life cycles (NLC) and the
where V1 identifies the voxel level 1, B4 defines CLS (1/(NLC*CL)). An individual block’s life
the block typology 4 and 7 is a specific count expectancy can be estimated based on simulated
identifier). To each identified block, related data stresses across the various use cycles as a com-
are attached and fed to the MDT through orga- bination of fatigue and decay, which are stored
nized datasets (Table 2). within the MDT and made available for further
Material information such as species, grade, elaboration.
density, weight and volume is received from the
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 415

2.3 Robotic Fabrication and Material accessible for future re-fabrication purposes
Identification (Table 3).
During the fabrication process, the produced
The ReconWood construction kit is robotically blocks were given an identity through a unique
fabricated with a mass-customization approach QR imprint, which links to their datasets in the
(Fig. 4) from three different wood types, namely, MDT. The QR code was selected over the other
LVL spruce, white pine and pressure- tracking systems (barcode, NFC, RFID) due to
impregnated spruce wood to simulate real-life the easy readability from different devices
conditions where the ReconWood blocks could (smartphones, tablets, MR headsets, robots
be sourced from the disassembly of different equipped with vision systems, etc.) and thus its
constructions. The fabrication process involved predisposition for automation workflows. After
using three different end tools with their corre- comparing different techniques with hands-on
sponding toolpaths. The machining settings were tests, 35  35 mm QR codes were applied with
adjusted depending on the wood type to ensure laser-cut stencil and black spray paint (Fig. 5).
qualitative cuts and finishing. These parameters Numerous scanning tests confirmed that applied
have been optimized through iterative milling QR codes are easily readable by both smart-
tests and finally loaded to the MDT as Recon- phones and MR HoloLens 2 devices. Even
Wood blocks fabrication datasets and made though this method is relatively time-consuming,

Fig. 4 Robotic fabrication of

a ReconWood block

Table 3 Detailed overview of the MDT datasets derived from the robotic fabrication
416 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 5 ReconWood block with the applied QR code and the laser-cut stencil

it provides a cost-effective and permanent trans- circumstances and (iii) assist the robots by
fer of QR codes to wooden blocks, which can be facilitating construction tasks that would require
easily automated in an industrial context. high-complexity and time-consuming program-
ming and facilities.
Cyber-physical Setup—The ReconWood
2.4 MR-Aided Human–Robot
assembly setup consists of three main areas
Assembly
(Fig. 6). The Assembly area is shared between an
MR-aided builder and two robots. It contains an
The readability of the QR code imprints by dif-
assembly table with auxiliary materials and tools
ferent digital devices allows various machines to
such as a bolts holder, picking/placing reference
access the MDT datasets. This supports the
holders and a hand screwdriver. Holographic
automation of assembly and disassembly pro-
construction data and instructions are projected
cesses and contributes to a more data-fluid cyber-
in different spots to enable smooth interactivity
physical construction environment. A previously
and assistance to the builder. The Material sta-
established robotic setup for cyber-physical re-
tion contains ReconWood blocks sorted by type,
assembly of reconfigurable wood structures
material and holographic identifier tags. Since
(Kunic et al. 2021a, b) is here enriched by MR-
the station is mobile, an ArUco marker enables
aided human assistance to provide (i) an instant
its tracking and referencing in space. Finally, a
QR reading and identification of the ReconWood
PC station connected to Wi-Fi consists of two
blocks, (ii) critical decision-making and cogni-
PCs, one running Windows with Grasshopper
tive skills during unexpected construction
computational model and the other running
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 417

Linux operating system with ROS. The through ROS bridge connection (Kunic et al.
Grasshopper computational model is the primary 2021a, b) and to the builder through a custom-
node that communicates bi-directionally with made MR User Interface (UI) (Kunic and Naboni
(1) Hololens 2 headset, (2) ROS on the PC2 and 2022). The same information is loaded to the
(3) MDT in Speckle. MDT as the assembly data tree (Table 4).
Upon receiving the assembly sequence infor-
Assembly process—The assembly instructions,
mation, the builder picks the required block from
such as block sequence and coordinates, and
the Material station. In the first-time assembly,
bolts and nuts locations, are communicated to the
the sequence of the blocks in the computational
robots from the computational design model

Fig. 6 Cyber-physical human–robot collaborative setup for the robotic assembly/disassembly of ReconWood structures

Table 4 Detailed overview of the MDT datasets derived from the human–robot collaborative assembly
418 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 7 Human–robot collaborative process of embedding nuts

model is simply incremental (e.g. the first block After this, robot 1 passes the block to robot 2
type V2B4 that is met has the identification (Fig. 8), which completes the assembly process
number 1). Once the builder selects a specific following a sequence of operations (block
block (e.g. V2B4 in LVL), they scan the QR placement, holes detection and coordinates cor-
code and read the specific identification tag. This rection, screwing) described in Kunic et al.
information is then sent to the computational (2021a, b).
model and MDT to update the related design and
Use and Operation—Once assembled, the
assembly data. This operation is significant for
structure was installed upon a wooden base and
three reasons: (1) each physical block inherits its
exposed to the outdoor environment (Fig. 9).
performance data from the simulation consider-
Additionally, the structure was spray-coated with
ing its position in the structure (e.g. CLS struc-
1–5% citric acid fire retardant and oil-based
tural data), (2) during the disassembly phase, the
water/fungus protective paint. The used sub-
robots will be ‘aware’ of the structural perfor-
stances are recorded through an MR device to the
mance of each block and will be able to sort them
MDT operation data.
accordingly and (3) in the second-time assembly,
the sequence will be defined more precisely,
based on the inherited performance data from the
3 Results
first use of the blocks. In the following assembly
step, the builder and robot 1 collaborate on the
block preparation, embedding steel insert nuts Design and Construction—The ReconWood
into specific holes (Fig. 7). While robot 1 holds Proto 02 comprises 250 ReconWood blocks with
the block, the builder visualizes the nuts loca- a 125 m wood length of three different types and
tions holographically and performs the operation. 612 reversible steel connectors. 23.2% of the
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 419

Fig. 8 Multi-robot assembly of the ReconWood Proto 02

Fig. 9 ReconWood Proto 02 installed outside of the CREATE Laboratory at the University of Southern Denmark

structure is covered in white pine, 52.8% in aspects, embedded through QR code imprints
impregnated spruce and 24% in LVL. Besides and stored in the MDT (Fig. 10). All the blocks
meeting the structural requirements for reuse, the have been used for the first time in this prototype,
variety of species provides a colour-rich gradient and they are ready for full reusability in future
throughout the structure and introduces a new use cycles.
level of aesthetic detail. The prototype was suc-
cessfully designed and constructed in a cyber- MDT—The ReconWood Proto 02 MDT database
physical environment with human–robot collab- holds the structured data trees regarding each
oration, aided by MR. Each physical block car- building element in the form of a Speckle online
ries data regarding its origin, structural link (SPeckle Stream). These are nested into 12
performance, construction and circularity Speckle Branches (block type) and 250 sub-
420 A. Kunic et al.

Fig. 10 Close-up of the ReconWood Proto 02 showing applied QR codes on the blocks

branches (unique identifier), each with six addi- producer. Secondly, the designer and structural
tional data layers (data categories). To facilitate engineers collaborated on the computational
the interaction with the MDT of the blocks, the design, mechanical testing and structural opti-
six data layers are translated into visual boards in mization algorithms, where rich datasets were
Grasshopper and sent to corresponding Speckle generated and sent to MDT. From the digital
Branches (Fig. 11). These data can be visualized fabrication point on, the MDT could be accessed
and navigated by scanning QR codes on the by the ‘machine users’ since a scannable QR
physical blocks. Furthermore, iFrames of the code has been applied to the physical Recon-
selected Speckle branches (one per block typol- Wood blocks. During the robotic assembly phase,
ogy with six categories) are integrated into the MDT received several assembly data updates on
official projects’ website page to provide easy the actual sequence of the blocks from the MR-
access and interactivity with the MDT datasets to aided human operator and the updated blocks
a larger audience. Even though Speckle was and holes coordinates through the parametric
initially conceived as a tool that enables inter- design model, which controlled the real-time
operability and collaboration between different adaptive assembly operations of robot 2. Subse-
users and software, it provided a solid base for quently, during the final installation of the pro-
this prototype exploration of MDT and its totype, material data was updated again with
functionalities. specifics about the fire retardant and
water/fungus protective coating. Finally, lab
Accessibility—The MDT was accessed and
users and visitors had easy access to the MDT
updated several times throughout the design-to-
data by scanning individual QR codes on their
construction workflow. Firstly, it received the
smartphones, tablets or MR headset devices.
basic material stock data coming from the
RE:Thinking Timber Architecture. Enhancing Design and Construction … 421

Fig. 11 Example of the MDT datasets and data visualization in Speckle regarding the Identity/Design, Structural
Performance and Circularity information of the block V1_B3

data sharing with a more accessible user interface

4 Conclusions for data visualization and interaction.

Accessible, real-time information updates

throughout the material’s life cycle(s) are crucial 5 Project Links
to inform data-driven processes of circular con-
struction. The presented prototype of MDT Speckle link: [Link]
shows initial working functionalities that effec- 9b4b.
tively support a circularity practice through the Website link: [Link]
automation of design, fabrication and re- projects/reconwood02.
construction phases. From a longer-term per-
spective, the MDT will be developed as an online Acknowledgements The research was conducted at the
platform that combines features—currently CREATE Lab at the University of Southern Denmark. The
authors wish to thank Angelina Garipova for her help in the
developed in Speckle—for collaboration and fabrication and construction of the ReconWood Proto 02.
422 A. Kunic et al.

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 Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter
as Printed. Leveraging
Computational Design Tools
for a More Virtuous Material
Extraction and End-of-Life

Nadja Gaudillière-Jami, Max Benjamin Eschenbach,

and Oliver Tessmann

Abstract materials in the most relevant place within the

shape that is to be constructed. The fourth step
You’re outside. You want to build. There’s
is to model connectors linking these pieces
earth. There’s twigs and logs. There’s stones. together. The fifth step is to print the connec-
There’s all you need. Our research proposes to tors by using the recipe devised in the first
leverage 3D-printing and computational
step. To print the pieces, a low-cost 3D-printer
design strategies to use matter as met, i.e., is to be used on site, in order to remain as
matter as found on site in building processes. local as possible. As the connectors are to be
Combined into a design method enabling
only components of the structure, they are of
disassembly and reassembly, this approach small scale and the 3D-printer can thus have a
enables less transformation of the materials relatively small printing area as well. The final
used and thus less energy consumption. It also
step is to assemble the structure by bringing
renders possible the use of resources without a together connectors and materials. A prototype
brutal extraction process, as well as a focus on serves as a case study to demonstrate each of
materials that are locally available. We pro- the steps within the paper, using raw stones
pose a design and fabrication workflow in and clay connectors.
answer to these requirements. This workflow
starts with testing raw earth available on the
site in order to devise a recipe for the raw Keywords
earth to be 3D-printed. The second step is the
collection, sorting, and 3D-scanning of other

Scan-print-assemble Life-cycle visualization
types of materials available on site, such as


Clay 3D-printing Raw materials
logs and stones. The third step is the resort to
a computational design process placing these

N. Gaudillière-Jami (&)
M. B. Eschenbach

O. Tessmann
Digital Design Unit (DDU), Technische Universität
Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany
e-mail: gaudilliere@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 423
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
424 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

1 Introduction Wood, Sand, Clay,

Stone
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging Computational … 425

Our traditional building materials are what In fact, scaling down and staying local by
can be called matter as met—matter as found on resorting to matter as met in such fashion holds
site. The term, coming from the French “matériau major potentialities for lowering the impact of
de rencontre” and sometimes also translated as building activities—it would enable acting on
“materials encountered by chance” (Bréchet manufacturing and transport phases and reduce
2015), has been coined by material scientist Yves their footprint significantly. This is what we aim
Bréchet. Bréchet describes matter as met in at exploring within the Printsugi project. Our
opposition to what he calls architectured mate- research proposes to leverage 3D-printing and
rials: tailored materials designed by humans to computational design strategies to use matter as
meet their needs. In his courses and publications, met in building processes.
he gives many examples showing how various
existing materials can be combined into new
ones and how geometry at the nanoscale can be 2 Background. Strategies
refined to obtain materials that perform extre- for Lowering the Impact
mely well in one very particular use. This how- of Construction
ever requires a large amount of energy as many
processing and shaping steps are required in One does not need to stress again the urgency of
order to obtain the desired material structure. In finding ways of rendering construction more
contrast to these architectured materials, he sustainable. While full assessments of the impact
explains, matter as met are materials that we of buildings fortunately are on the rise, with more
initially simply found on the ground, before and more architecture offices integrating an LCA
gradually developing methods to extract initially division to watch over the planning phases, tools
out of reach materials further and further (Bré- to leverage individually by unspecialized archi-
chet 2015). tects are also on the rise. These are key aspects
By now, matter as met is harvested in specific for rendering our practices more sustainable.
locations and in large quantities for our industrial They range from applying basic principles on
use of it. In the construction industry, we seek to some processes and materials (glass is recyclable,
harvest vast quantities of wood, of bauxite, of aluminum very costly environmentally, wood
lime, of sand, or of stones to provide for the rapid captures carbon, and so on) to integrating data
increase in size of the built environment. These relative to the impact directly in digital models
materials are then transformed in building com- from early design phases on, with tools such as
ponents and shipped to building sites all over the One-Click-LCA (Apellániz et al. 2021) or
world. But they are also present raw and in RhinoCircular (Heisel et al. 2021).
smaller quantities at many of the building sites In order to evaluate the environmental impact
we choose before construction starts. What if we of construction, the life-cycle of a building is
could use these resources directly in the building structured in six phases, each with its specific
used, right there, right then? What if everything steps and their consequences: extraction, pro-
was already there on site? We could harvest duction, transportation, construction, exploita-
rocks and logs directly there, devise construction tion, and end of life (ISO 14040-14044) (Abd
processes that enable using them in buildings Rashid and Yusoff 2015). As architects, we can
structures and envelopes raw, without any major act to reduce the overall impact by relying on
transformations, and therefore significantly lower three strategies, corresponding each to part of
energy consumption. We could harvest earth, that life-cycle, as is summed up in Fig. 1.
extract the clay, and resort to traditional recipes The first strategy is to act over the production
for turning that clay into building materials process of the building, which covers the
directly on site, as is still done in many places extraction, production, transportation, and con-
around the world (Fabbri et al. 2022). struction phases. During these, we can aim at
426 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

Fig. 1 Building life-cycle

and acting strategies

diminishing the amount of material used. Multi- building (Umbrellium 2015). As long as the
objective optimization methods have for example building has a positive or neutral energy con-
been developed by the MIT-based Digital sumption level, the cat can be fed and played
Structures Group in order to balance structural with. However, if the building consumes too
requirements and others with minimizing the much energy, the cat withers and refuses to
amount of material (Brown and Mueller 2015; interact. The project Natural Fuse, by the same
Brown et al. 2015). During these phases, we can team, also aims at raising awareness, but this
also aim at minimizing the distances over which time in adults (Haque and Fuller 2010). Inhabi-
the materials travel. As an example, the large- tants of a neighborhood are provided each with a
scale research project Earth of the Greater Paris lamp and a plant. The amount of energy available
(Terres du Grand Paris) brings together a large to light the lamps depends on the carbon captured
number of players of the French construction by the plants. However the energy reserves are
industry and from associated academic fields shared by all inhabitants, meaning that each of
(Loiret 2021). The aim is to make use of the vast them has to be careful in their use to not deprive
amount of raw earth excavated as part of the others of light. It thus focuses well on the crucial
many new construction projects launched for the role of communication between inhabitants
Olympics 2024 hosted by the city of Paris. regarding how to handle this step of the life-
Instead of throwing away the excavated materi- cycle.
als, they are stored, cleaned, sorted, and used in The third strategy is to develop more virtuous
local raw earth construction projects. ends of life for the buildings, focusing on recir-
The second strategy is to better the perfor- culation by designing for deconstruction or for
mance of the building during its exploitation, reuse. This is what the Circular Construction Lab
prolonging its lifespan and reducing its con- of Cornell University has been working toward,
sumption. For example, the project Cinder by documenting available resources within con-
Umbrellium aims at raising awareness among struction of Ithaca, the city the lab is located in.
students by associating the energy consumption The team has then developed time-saving
of their community college building with a vir- deconstruction methods in order for it to be
tual cat appearing on screens throughout the economically viable (Heisel 2022). A number of
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging Computational … 427

computational design processes are also being scanning materials to be used in construction.
developed to enable reuse with the least reshap- The resort to a computational design process then
ing, as research on trusses by Corentin Fivet and enables placing these materials in the most rele-
his team shows (Brütting et al. 2019; Fivet and vant place within the shape that is to be con-
Brütting 2020). Daniel Marshall’s research structed. Connectors are then modeled to link
Computational Arrangement of Demolition these pieces together and printed, and the struc-
Debris (Marshall et al. 2020) shows an alterna- ture is assembled by bringing together connec-
tive approach to these, while leveraging as well tors and materials relying on Augmented Reality
reused materials—although in a poorer state. tools. The project Digital Rubble has resulted in
This has also already been implemented in multiple prototypes with polymer square-shaped
existing architecture projects, such as those cre- connectors binding rocks into arches (Wibranek
ated by PimpYourWaste (2022), or by the well- and Tessmann 2019). The project Net-
known Rotor architecture office (Chudoba et al. Connectors resorted to tree branches binded
2020). Finally, the origin of the reused materials with polymer connectors, exploring different
here again matters. The Precast Concrete Com- geometrical requirements as the shape of bran-
ponents 2.0 Project developed by the Digital ches requests an adaptation of the Digital Rubble
Design Unit aims at reusing parts of discarded process (Gehron et al. 2019). Both therefore
concrete building structures, enabling a renewed leverage matter as met as their base material and
building materials supply within cities (Eschen- explore the resort to 3D-printed bespoke
bach et al. 2023; Tessmann 2022). Another geometries to avoid transforming the rocks and
example is the 2022 Basel pavilion Slicing Time branches.
by Sterling Presser, only built with reused Our Scan-Print-Assemble workflow however
materials sourced from within the city itself raises many questions regarding its environ-
(Sterling Presser 2022). This is in line with the mental impact. As is summed up in Fig. 2—first
recently passed bill for the city of Basel, which of the life-cycle visualizations in this research,
demands that new buildings are constructed first each life-cycle phase has its associated issues,
and foremost from reused materials. Regulation relating among others to the novel resort to 3D-
are in fact crucial in order to enable such strategy printing in construction that has unfolded in the
to be implemented. A great amount of research is past decade. Some are questions relative to
therefore aimed at framing the type of informa- transport distances. Given the type of machines
tion needed to enable this, the most adequate used for 3D-printing, one can choose to imple-
format to transmit those information and the most ment printing on site or prefabrication and
adequate methods to obtain them (Heisel et al. transportation, a choice that will depend on the
2022; De Laforce 2020). Finally, a more general type of printer resorted to. The French company
framework of design based on envisioning a XtreeE has for example chosen to print near to
more virtuous end of life has also been addressed the construction site instead of printing in their
(Crowther 2018; Gorgolewski 2008; Addis own facility in the Viliaprint project (Marais
2006). 2022). They thus leave materials and printers to
travel from another part of France to the printing
site but diminishing the distance traveled by the
3 Method Part 1. Leveraging Life- printed components, thus reducing the overall
Cycle Visualization for a More volume of matter moved. Some are questions
Virtuous Design Process relative to the production phases of the life-cycle.
Depending on whether the building combines
Our team from the Digital Design Unit has been 3D-printing with other construction processes
developing a workflow we believe can help act and on how much materials have to be trans-
by leveraging these strategies together. Scan- formed before being printed or becoming build-
Print-Assemble starts with collecting and 3D- ing components, the footprint may vary greatly.
428 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

Fig. 2 Building life-cycle and issues relating to 3D-printing (based on Gaudillière-Jami 2022)

The choice of 3D-printing system may play a key But in the Printsugi project, Scan-Print-
role in the impact of the project: as research as Assemble meets Matter as Met, enabling us to
shown, the weight of the printing system in the rethink parts of the workflow to improve its
overall impact varies greatly, from insignificant environmental performance. The analysis of the
(Agustí-Juan et al. 2017) to significant, in par- Scan-Print-Assemble life-cycle through its gra-
ticular regarding metal depletion (Kuzmenko phic visualization, and the study of existing
et al. 2020). Some are questions relative to the intervention strategies highlighted above, has
exploitation phase, as the assessment of struc- allowed us to determine leads to improve three
tural and thermal performances of 3D-printed indicators of environmental performance: energy
structures is still ongoing research, but has strong use, metal depletion, and climate change. In
influence on its energetic performance during order to keep the matter processing as low as
exploitation as well as on the longevity of the possible, and therefore to keep a low energy
building. Finally, some are questions relative to consumption, we have chosen to keep working
the end of life phase, as 3D-printed structures with matter as met. But we choose to modify the
have as open an end of life as other materials, connector material, choosing clay, a material
with some design strategies being based on dis- with low carbon emissions (ref), which also
assembly and reuse, some printing materials allows us to work with small-scale printers,
producing objects that can be recycled or that therefore ensuring low metal depletion. This
must be discarded. enables us to explore a material-system
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging Computational … 429

configuration that allows for using the geometric aspect still visible. The connecting logic can vary
versatility of 3D-printing while attempting to and largely contributes to underlying the peculiar
diminish its environmental impact. Finally, aim- aesthetic of the Printsugi project design strate-
ing for a mix solely composed of clay and water gies, as is shown in Fig. 3.
allows us for an easy recycling through reprint- Several computational design processes asso-
ing of the material. While not being a full life- ciated with placing raw materials already exist,
cycle assessment, the visualization of the differ- such as the one implemented for the Woodchip
ent life-cycle parts of the Scan-Print-Assemble Barn project at Hooke Park by the AA team,
workflow has therefore enabled us a critical placing raw logs in the most adequate place of a
overlook and has guided our decisions in roof structure to be able to minimize the manu-
updating this workflow. Issues to tackle in the facturing (Self et al. 2017). Since this project,
Printsugi project have been identified through work with raw wood has continuously been
this visualization, which enables us to reflect developed (Larsen and Aagaard 2019; Gehron
upon the different stages and how they can be et al. 2019; Vestartas and Weinand 2020). Sim-
improved without having to resort to a full ilar processes have been implemented for stones
assessment. as well, as is shown in The Cannibal’s Cookbook
(Clifford 2021) and in the ETHZ project Auton-
omous Dry Stone (Johns et al. 2020). The
4 Method Part 2. The Printsugi automation of raw materials placing strategies in
Matter as Met Fabrication Process Printsugi draws inspiration from these works and
is based on previous research from the authors
The fabrication process at large implemented in (Eschenbach et al. 2023).
the Printsugi project relies on the same six steps The fourth step is the preparation of printing
as the Scan-Print-Assemble process. However material. The connectors are printed with clay
some of these steps are carried out in ways extracted from ground harvested directly on site.
specific to Printsugi. The first step is still to Successive finer and finer sieving with a set of
collect matter as met, but this time directly on the sieves up to 0.002 meshes extracts clay, sepa-
building site. The second step is still scanning, rating it from sand, dirt, and soil and giving
through a photogrammetry process. The third access to printable material. Once the clay is
step, designing the prototypes and the connectors extracted, however, the issue of defining the
within, is specific to the Printsugi project. It exact material recipe that will render that par-
draws its name from the combination of the ticular clay printable remains. As is already well
words 3D-print and kintsugi. While 3D-print covered in the literature, many different types of
obviously refers to the additive manufacturing clay indeed exist and require different amounts of
fabrication method developed since the 1980s, water and different kinds and amounts of addi-
kintsugi is a Japanese word and concept of tives in order to achieve a rheology suitable for
mending using pure gold to fix a snag or to put printing (Fabbri et al. 2022; Perrot et al. 2018).
together again broken pieces. The use of pure A key particularity of the Printsugi Scan-Print-
gold is intended to confer renewed value to the Assemble workflow is the set of material tests
objects and praise the extension of life of objects performed in order to determine this recipe. This
that such reparation results in. Strategies of is done building on tests traditionally performed
design for the prototypes and connectors rely on to assess clay, in particular on the Atterberg
similar aesthetic approaches in order to promote limits test (Fabbri et al. 2022) as well as on
the same idea. This can either be done by preliminary research performed by the IFSTTAR
mending the materials in order to recreate a institute on how to adapt the plunger test to
previously existing volume, literally following printable rheologies (Tourtelot et al. 2021). The
the kintsugi logic, or by associating the materials Printsugi project indeed aims at developing
within a new volume, but with their initial, raw material tests and material recipes that enable
430 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

Fig. 3 Connector Design Variations. Black parts are 3d-printed while the white perimeters describe the matter as met.
(Images by Zahra Babadi, Dominik Binzel, Mirko Dutschke)

printing any clay extracted that way, tailoring the (Wibranek and Tessmann 2019). Always in the
ingredients of the recipe to the particular com- spirit of remaining easy to appropriate, for
position of the ground, adjusting water amount Printsugi the assembly was done without this
and the potential additives to it. However, a help, simply by hand.
particular condition in the Printsugi material Printsugi not only aims at making the best out
recipe development is the aim to radically of available resources, but also at being easy to
restrain the resort to additives, to keep the recipes share and implement. Each part of the workflow
both as easy to implement and as clean as has been implemented with guidelines and tools
possible. that make them simple to grasp. Scan, Print,
Step five, printing, is performed with an off- Assemble: our construction process relies on
the-shelf clay printer, robust enough to handle three core steps. Thanks to existing tools, here a
the variety of recipes we have been experiment- basic camera and the Autodesk ReCap Photo
ing with, but also small enough to be easy to software, photogrammetry is almost completely
transport on site. Instead of transporting materi- automated. The off-the-shelf printer makes 3D-
als, we thus can transport the printer only, printing straightforward as well if the material is
bringing it to the site to produce the necessary well calibrated. The assembly is performed
pieces. The final step, assembly, had previously without resorting to Augmented Reality, relying
been made with the help of augmented reality on the interlocking provided by the peculiar
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging Computational … 431

shapes in our rocks and connectors, guiding the 5 Results and Discussion. The Rock
user in putting them together. Material tests are Tower Prototype: Less Transport,
inspired from easily performed ones, necessitat- Less Manufacturing, Less Carbon
ing only a cup, a ruler, and a wood block. To
acquire the gesture, a few hours of training are Once the Scan-Print-Assemble workflow adapted
needed but nothing more. Atterberg limits tested to Printsugi has been set, the research method in
as part of the Rock Tower fabrication success- order to work with it is that of research by
fully provided data on the gathered clay. Here, design, producing prototypes to test the work-
working with clay and water only keep the mix flow and assess its performance. The prototype,
simple to make once the Atterberg shrinked the Rock Tower, presented here is the first.
limits enable you to define the right water Figure 4 highlights its different steps of fabrica-
amount for a printable mix. The workflow is thus tion according to the Printsugi Scan-Print-
currently indeed easy to use, enabling us to fol- Assemble workflow.
low up at every step on our logic of an easy to The Rock Tower prototype shows promising
share and easy to implement process. results for the Printsugi project. As a reminder,

Fig. 4 Rock tower prototype fabrication steps

432 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

the evaluation criteria retained to assess the Cannibals Cookbook, or the Autonomous Dry
results are the following: Stone project (Marshall et al. 2020; Clifford
2021; Johns et al. 2020). In the same line,
• material testing and used recipe; Printsugi shows raw materials and their vari-
• mechanical and geometric characteristics of ability, brought together in a pleasing way and
the prototype; playing with the materials and texture contrasts
• updates in the life-cycle and resulting envi- between print and stone. In provoking by
ronmental impact; showing unusual things, we contribute to making
• ease of implementation of the process; them become usual visions little by little and thus
• aesthetics promoting the use of matter as met. deconstruct prejudiced views on the use of waste
or raw materials (Rigobello and Gaudillière-Jami
Regarding the physical characteristics of the 2021).
prototype, considering the choice of material for
the connectors and its generally low perfor-
mance, the subject of structural capacity is sub- 6 Conclusion. Sustainable, Easy,
ject to future work. However, the tower is self- Beautiful… Radical
supporting. In fact, the stones and connectors
enabled this particularly well given the pecu- In this paper, we show how to leverage life-cycle
liarities of their geometries and the interlocking visualization as a starting point to steer research
of their shapes, which, while not being planned methods, workflow, and design and production
as an interlocking system per se, did provide of prototypes. This method is applied to the
more stability and resistance. The precision of existing Scan-Print-Assemble workflow, adapted
the scanning is entirely adequate, and the preci- to serve the Printsugi project and its recourse to
sion of the prints is satisfying as well. However, the untransformed matter as met. The collecting,
further experimentation on the nozzle, layer size, designing, and preparing printing material steps
and layer orientation might enhance the precision of the workflow are updated into a more virtuous
of the latter. approach. A prototype demonstrates the viability
Regarding the environmental impact, when of the renewed workflow, building further upon
looking closer at the life-cycle of our updated existing research in the domain of raw material
workflow, we observe reductions of the impact in use in architecture. Two of the UN sustainable
several phases, as well as promising venues for development goals have been addressed in par-
further research in others. By using matter as ticular: n◦11—sustainable cities and communi-
met, we drastically reduce the manufacturing ties—through the ease of appropriation of the
phase that building products require. By har- method and through working toward a more
vesting materials and 3D-printing on site, we virtuous production of the built environment; and
shrink transportation to the lowest possible. By n◦12—responsible consumption and production
using only clay and water in the printing recipe, —through the material choice and the raise of
it becomes less pollutant and completely recy- awareness that our venture in new aesthetics can
clable. By combining connectors and matter as bring.
met, we obtain an enhanced disassembling and Further work envisioned includes scaling up
recycling potential. These aspects are summed up and enhancing the structural performance of the
in Fig. 6. connectors, or focusing on the geometries to
Our proposal also challenges aesthetic habits compensate for the low performance of clay, as
and performance expectations, opening up well as gathering more results on the material
changes in thinking habits, toward more sus- testing in order to define a shrinked interval of
tainable practices. Previously cited projects also water amount, based on the Atterberg limits but
have contributed to this, such as the Computa- specific to 3D-printing. A new prototype with
tional Arrangement of Demolition Debris, the waste rather than with matter as met would
Printsugi: Matter as Met, Matter as Printed. Leveraging Computational … 433

Fig. 6 Building life-cycle and enhancements brought in the Printsugi project

enable to explore further other design possibili- acceptance of the existing” (Meyer-Grohbrügge
ties discovered within the design phase of the 2022). This not only concerns existing built
Printsugi project. A detailed LCA for both ver- structures, as she demonstrates in her own prac-
sions would then confirm findings regarding the tice, but more generally our entire environment.
footprint of the workflow. While the visualiza- It has now become necessary to use what is
tion method provides leads, proper quantification already there as much as possible, to make do
through LCA needs to validate the different with it, and to get used to such an approach.
choices made. In particular, whether resorting to Within Printsugi, the Rock Tower is just a first
a low-impact and harvested on site material such step toward a more radical positioning on
as clay would truly compensate for the impact of building and on practicing architecture.
a high-tech system such as 3D-printing, even
with a small printer, still needs to be evaluated. Acknowledgements Contribution to this research has
been made thanks to funding from the Architecture of
However the visualization provides directions for Order Research Cluster and the Hessian State Ministry of
preliminary designs and for the definition of Higher Education, Research and the Arts: State Offensive
frameworks for LCA studies. for the Development of Scientific and Economic Excel-
Finally, Printsugi represents a venture into a lence (LOEWE).Contribution to this research has been
made thanks to funding of the research project Precast
new, different thinking process for architects and Concrete Components 2.0 (Fertigteil 2.0) from the Federal
designers. As put by German architect and pro- Ministry of Education and Research Germany (BMBF)
fessor Johanna Meyer Grohbrügge, it is now through the funding measure Resource-efficient circular
necessary to start projects based on a “radical economy—Building and mineral cycles (ReMin).We
thank the students that have participated in courses related
434 N. Gaudillière-Jami et al.

to the research topic introduced in this paper: Zahra Crowther P (2018) A taxonomy of construction material
Babadi, Dominik Binzel, Mirko Dutschke, Jiangpeng reuse and recycling: designing for future disassembly.
Chen, and Yijun Wang. Eur J Sustain Dev 7(3):355–363
Eschenbach MB, Wagner A-K, Ledderose L, Böhret T,
Wohlfeld D, Gille-Sepehri M, Kuhn C, Kloft H,
Tessmann O (2023) Matter as met: towards a compu-
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 Computationally Enabled Material
Management—Learning from Three
Robotically Fabricated
Demonstrators

Jens Pedersen and Dagmar Reinhardt

Abstract parts, simple joinery; (2) Similar parts, com-

plex joinery; and lastly, (3) similar parts,
Addressing the 12th Sustainable Development
simple joinery. The analysis indicates the
Goal (SDG) is important and has become material consequences of using different tim-
financially necessary over the last few years. ber joinery strategies. Furthermore, the
The covid-19 pandemic and the consequences
research suggests a process to handle
of war have led to material scarcity, making off-cuts through labeling and databases, which
the global market respond with increased can lead to new sources of revenue for an
prices and longer delivery times. Conse-
industry-leading fabricator.
quently, this has inverted the cost relationship
between construction material and labor cost,
making construction material a more signifi- Keywords
cant expense than labor. To better understand
this challenge, this research developed a

Robotic fabrication Material planning

computational strategy for linear timber ele-

Timber construction Timber joints
ments focused on minimizing material use
through preplanned cutting sequences that
indicate waste and off-cut data. Thus, the
paper analyses the material use of three 1 Introduction
robotically fabricated timber case studies to
demonstrate the process. Each case study is The 12th SGD—responsible consumption and
morphologically different, representing the production (UNDP 2023), is an essential chal-
following construction concepts (1) Different lenge for the construction industry due to high
CO2 emissions related to using specific con-
struction materials. It is widely known that con-
crete emits much CO2, where recent innovations
J. Pedersen (&) in engineered timber and engineering calcula-
Odico Construction Robotics, Odense, Denmark tions for timber construction have made it an
e-mail: jenspedersen88@[Link]
alternative to concrete specifically in taller
The Aarhus School of Architecture, Aarhus, buildings (Dangel 2016). However, other
Denmark
research indicates that replacing merely 25 pct of
D. Reinhardt current concrete consumption with wood would
The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006,
require a new forest one and a half times the size
Australia

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 437
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
438 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

of India to be planted every year (Zeitung 2023). This paper limits its scope to focus on the
In addition, history documents that construction discrete timber structure for three robotically
material can suddenly be scarce for multiple fabricated timber demonstrators. Each demon-
reasons; today, we see it because of a global strator’s geometry is analyzed and used to eval-
pandemic or as a consequence of war (Govern- uate a computational method that describes a cut
ment of Canada, Statistics Canada 2022; NYT: sequence and labeling and can handle waste
Byggeomkostninger … 2022); previously it was produced by the system. Additionally, each
decrees from kings that could ration material use demonstrator encompasses different fabrication
(Benzon 1984; Jensen 1933; Vejlby 1991). This and assembly concepts; (1) Different parts, sim-
further cements that changes to how we consume ple joinery; (2) Similar parts, complex joinery;
material need to change while developing a and lastly, (3) similar parts, simple joinery. The
sensibility about how we use resources. Coinci- analysis of each concept gives an indicator of
dentally we are in a time where meeting SGD material use related to the complexity of geom-
12th comes with a financial incentive since the etry, which will be the subject of the discussion
cost relationship between labor and material has in Sect. 4.
been inverted, making construction materials The research presented in this paper is part of
more expensive than associated labor costs an ongoing industrial Ph.D. project at Odico
(NYT: Byggeomkostninger … 2022). In an ini- Construction Robotics with the Aarhus School of
tial attempt to address this challenge, this Architecture. The research aims to offer a soft-
research focuses on timber construction, where ware solution for a transportable robot unit
the timber value chain offers potential solutions (Odico Construction Robotics 2023) developed
to material handling. Subsequently, this research with the industry partner to aid on-site timber
learns from sawmills, where the implementation construction. This robotic framework will be
of digital and automation technologies has detailed in a future publication. This paper aims to
allowed fewer sawmills to achieve higher yields present an initial answer to the naïve question;
than more sawmills did in years passed (Fre- “what is the benefit of having robotic fabrication
driksson 2015). Here high-speed CT scanners are facilities on the construction site?”. The initial
used to convert timber logs into construction response is efficiency and less strenuous work for
lumber by using the CT data to predict grading craftspeople, but this research identifies that it can
and compute-optimized cutting sequences to aid in managing the resources used on the con-
maximize the yield from a log (Svilans et al. struction site. Thus, the research unfolds through
2022a). Complex scanning technologies are the following sections: Sect. 2 describes robotic
required due to the many material unknowns, timber fabrication’s state of the art, emphasizing
which greatly affect the final product. However, material management. Section 3 describes the
developing a method to maximize material yield different demonstrators and presents their fabri-
through computational techniques and automa- cation data. Lastly, Sects. 4 and 5 discuss the
tion technologies presents great potential. proposed research and conclude and define the
Achieving this requires shifting the current future work related to the submitted research.
3d-modeling paradigm from representation to
fabrication, moving from modeling volumes with
holes for windows or doors to modeling the 2 State of the Art
discrete geometric elements that make up our
designs. In doing so, information can be pro- Robotic timber fabrication using linear timber
cessed through algorithmic strategies that pre- elements has been a growing field since the late
cisely control the fabrication sequence, labeling, 2000s (The Stacked Pavilion, Wettswil am Albis,
and amount of waste generated from the system. Switzerland 2009; Helm et al. 2016), resulting in
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning from Three … 439

a ongoing research trajectory at ETH, Zürich. • Off-cuts should be placed in a database and
Parts of this trajectory were concluded with the physically marked.
completion of the sequential roof (Apolinarska • Off-cuts could become a resource for other
et al. 2016a; b) in 2016. The sequential roof fabrication scenarios.
consists of multiple timber slats with varying • Material estimates should be accurate and part
cross sections resulting from a structural analysis of the design work.
(Apolinarska et al. 2016a). Although this could
indicate a minimized material use, the structure is
described as redundant, where elements can be
removed without loss of structural capacity 2.1 Method and Computational
(Apolinarska et al. 2016b). However, the notion Framework
of structural optimization as a means of mini-
mizing material use is interesting. Still, this The paper presents a comparative study of three
research will focus on optimizing material use for different computational methods; First Fit Bin
already designed structures. This position stems Packing (FFBP) (Johnson 1973), Best Fit Bin
from the research aiming to be part of an on-site Packing (BFBP) (Johnson 1973), and OpenNest
robotic framework, where carpenters will use it (ON) (Food4Rhino 2018). The ON method has
to fabricate a given project. At the Center for been developed by Petras Vestartas and is com-
Information Technology and Architecture in monly used to optimize the layout of elements on
Copenhagen, researchers have taken a different sheet material—a task which performs well. This
approach centered around a material stock that is research also tests how it organizes linear data
digitized through 3d-scanning, cataloged, and and tests it against two different bin-packing
used when needed (Svilans et al. 2022a; b). algorithms developed in c#.net (BillWagner
Complex scanning technologies such as CT or 2023). The logic of these algorithms is described
MRI scans are performed during this process to in Fig. 1, where “bin” refers to stock material,
better utilize the wooden material properties at and “element” is the piece fabricated from the
specific positions within a designed structure. stock material. The FFBP organizes elements
Their research aims to optimize material perfor- sequentially into “bins”, and when an “element”
mance instead of material use, but the notion of doesn’t fit into the current “bin”, a new one is
cataloging material is of great inspiration. Other opened (Fig. 1, top). The BFBP method is sim-
researchers have developed a technique titled ilar, but previous “bins” are rechecked before
“Projectables” to maximize the reuse of dis- new “bins” are opened (Fig. 1, bottom). This
carded sheet material. Their system scans dis- produces nonsequential cutting sequences that
carded sheet material and identifies areas that can can be hard to predict and are only possible if a
be used for future fabrication (Rasmussen 2017). discrete 3d model of a designed structure exists.
Unfortunately, if only discarded sheets are used, When construction material is cut on-site, it is
a challenge emerges; pieces will progressively believed to begin sequentially, like the FFBP
become smaller and smaller. Additionally, scan- method, and when new pieces are needed, pre-
ning elements before fabrication will be time- vious off-cuts are remeasured to see if new pieces
consuming and complex if used in on-site fab- can be made from them. If true, this would be a
rication processes. But it does bring up an time-consuming process, but this requires further
interesting question, how do we handle off-cuts, research, as described in Sect. 5.1.
and what do we consider waste? The research will use the FFBP method as a
Following these references, this research control measurement, serving as a benchmark for
proposes a strategy to manage the use of con- the two other methods. All elements will be
struction materials through the evaluation criteria presorted from long to short before being pre-
stated below: sented as data input for each method.
440 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

Fig. 1 A visual representation of the logic described above, where the BFBP method can produce better fabrication
sequences than the FFBP method

analysis is the CAD model representing the

3 Three Timber Demonstrators physical structure in Fig. 2 (right), which resides
in the CAD software Rhinocerous3d (BillWag-
The focal point of this paper is the analysis of ner 2022) (rhino). The parametric modeling
material use in three robotically fabricated extension in rhino McNeel (2022), Grasshop-
demonstrators shown in Fig. 2. The basis for the per3d (grasshopper), becomes a prototypical

Fig. 2 Images to the left show the analyses projects once finished. The images on the right show the structures
analyzed in this paper
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning from Three … 441

canvas for the material management experiment. and the project were made using either 195- and
Preceding the material analysis are three short 145-mm widths. Previous research has identified
sections describing the fabrication system, the that conventional construction lumber will have
used timber material, and outlines how this imperfections along the length (Pedersen et al.
research views material use, i.e. what is “waste” 2023). Project 3.5 used an engineered wood,
and “off-cuts”. Following this are sections where smaller un-knotted pieces are finger jointed
describing each project and which material and glued together, resulting in form-stable tim-
management strategy yielded better results. ber elements of 120 by 67 by 6000 mm.

3.1 The Robotic Fabrication Setup 3.3 What is Waste?

The three demonstrators were made with differ- Within the field of digital fabrication for archi-
ent fabrication setups, where lessons learned led tectural applications, there is a prevailing opinion
to the development a new timber processing unit that fabricating unique pieces comes at a small
with the industry partner, which address the 9th added processing cost compared to manufactur-
SGD—Industry Innovation (UNDP 2023). This ing multiple of the same piece (Iwamoto 2009;
paper will not describe the unit and its design Kolarevic 2004; Mitchell 2001). There can be
process in detail since it is the focal point of a some truth to this statement. Still, it is relative to
future publication. Still, it is an essential part of the associated programming and machining time
the thinking presented within this paper and is for a specific fabrication task—the cost of
the framework for future demonstrators. It con- machining can be related to how much material
sists of an industrial robot ABB IRB 6700 is removed with a particular type of tool, which
equipped with a spindle using either a circular can easily be calculated. However, returning to
saw or a routing bit. Next to the robot is a linear the initial statement, an essential factor to
axis with an automatic labeling setup. The fab- remember is the cost of material, where similar
rication setups for projects 3.4 and 3.6 were pieces often give a higher yield than different
fabricated with a circular saw mounted on a pieces would. Thus, presenting two aims for this
spindle, and project 3.5 was made with a twenty- research, (1) to see if the analysis indicates if
and ten-mm routing tool in a spindle. The robotic unique pieces use more material, and (2) to
actions for the presented and future projects are define when something is considered waste, an
developed within grasshopper, in a bespoke off-cut that can be used in future projects, or a
plugin developed with the industry partner. The cut-out (waste) due to a design choice (Fig. 3).
presented research has become a toolkit for pre- What categorizes a “useful” off-cut (Fig. 3, dark
fabrication and cost estimates, since it gives green) will be correctly determined through
accurate material estimates and produces an future research, but at this moment, off-cuts lar-
optimized cutting sequence with label informa- ger than 300 mm are seen as potentially useful in
tion for the fabrication setup. other processes with the industry partner. Off-
cuts less than 300 mm are considered waste since
these can be dangerous to pass through other
3.2 Timber Material manual machining processes. Cut-outs, such as
the pink areas, can be made with a circular saw
The base material used for the three demonstra- but are considered waste due to their odd sizes,
tors is 1-dimensional wooden material, where which are hard to implement in other processes.
projects 3.4 and 3.6 have used “off-the-shelf” In contrast, removing the light green (Fig. 3,
construction C24 lumber (Træ 2022). This type of bottom) requires a routing tool that converts the
wood can be bought in uniform lengths from the material to dust. Reintroducing dust into the
interval 3.6–7.2 m, has a thickness of 45 mm, value chain requires collaborations across
442 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

Fig. 3 A simple diagram

indicating the multiple
complexities that emerge
when analyzing 2D material
stock (left). More importantly,
it describes a ledger that
explains what is considered
waste or an off-cut

industries, which is why it is considered waste circular saw comes with certain constraints, but it
for now. Within the produced data, two terms are can remove much material in fever movements
used, “material use” and “material yield”, and compared to milling, thus requiring less fabrica-
therefore essential to clarify: tion time.
The roof structure was challenging to solve
• “Material use”; refers to the percentage of since the building was circular. But we managed
material used from a given stock material and to develop a structure comprised of standard
is best visualized in Fig. 3, top. components (central box, Fig. 4, right) and
• “Material yield”; refers to the percentage of unique elements to meet the edge and posts.
material used that becomes the finished piece These bespoke roof elements have a notch cor-
after robotic processing—see the middle and responding to a given post geometry, ensuring
bottom part in Fig. 3 (pink + light green the correct positioning and orientation of indi-
color). This number indicates the machining vidual components. The project was cut from
time associated with making a given element. conventional 5.4-m C24 timber (stock).
The shed’s structure is simple and consists of
These terms categorize the use of 1- three different components, made in either 195—
dimensional material for each demonstrator. or 145 mm construction lumber. The material
Future research will dive into the complexities of analysis results are highlighted in Fig. 5. For this
2d or 3d stock material (Fig. 3), where lessons project, the ON method performed well due to
learned from this research will be used to the geometry of the custom roof elements could
extrapolate new methods to meet other material be reoriented and nested very tight, whereas the
layouts in the future—sheets or blocks. BFBP method positions elements one after
another—leading to more waste (Fig. 4, bottom).
However, the absolute difference in needed
3.4 Bicycle Shed material is only 5.9%, where the BFBP and the
ON method use a total of 17 vs. 16 pieces of
The bicycle shed was a job for a private client timber—half is 195 mm wide, and the rest is
that wished to have a shed in the shape of a super 145 mm wide. The FFBP performs poorly and
ellipse (Weisstein 2022) with a flat roof rotated uses a total of 20 members, which is 20 and 15
around two axes (Fig. 4). It was fabricated using pct more material than the ON or BFBP methods.
a circular saw mounted on a robot since the Interestingly, the difference in produced off-cuts
geometry of joinery allowed for it. Using a by the ON and BFBP methods are comparable,
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning from Three … 443

Fig. 4 Left image is a picture of the finished structure before being filled with the remaining structure. The image to the
right shows a central box comprising standard elements with custom roof elements attached

especially if the 145 mm members are viewed; joinery. Besides dictating the fabrication tool,
here, the BFBP method outperforms the ON this construction required the timber to be
method by a small margin. But the ability to nest straight and planned to certain dimensions, a
geometry tighter with the ON method produces quality found in engineered lumber. The acquired
better results for the 195 members, albeit lumber was long and straight, making it possible
requiring some parameter tuning to achieve these to use continuous instead of discrete elements, as
results. Regarding the 195 members, it is inter- one would generally see in the half-timbered
esting to see how the yield varies a lot, resulting construction system. Unfortunately, this made
from the large number of cut-outs produced, assembly more difficult.
which becomes waste due to their odd shape and Each 99-timber element has a low material
size. Ultimately, the three methods document that yield since each element has many joinery
if an optimized cutting sequence is followed, you details, which, when milled out, becomes dust
would average material use of >85% if outliers and waste (see Fig. 6).
such as the last member are culled (Fig. 5). For this project, the BFBP method outperforms
the ON method, but only by eight pct or 0.4 m less
generated waste or off-cut. The FFBP only uses 18
3.5 Greenery pct additional material compared to the other
methods. However, the main interest is the variance
The greenery was a project for the same client as in the amount of removed material compared to the
the bicycle shed. The project was required to be shed; within this project, we see upwards of 20% of
designed and fabricated with inspiration from the the material being removed before resulting in
half-timbered construction system found in finished pieces. This, indicates a high machining
Jutland/Funen in Denmark (Benzon 1984; Jensen time and higher machining cost compared to the
1933; Vejlby 1991), which, unlike the shed, type of joinery shown in the shed project. Each
could not be cut with a circular saw. Instead, it piece within this project had a milling time of
had to be fabricated using two different diameter between 30 and 90 min per piece relative to 15 min
routing tools due to the complexity of the for the most complex pieces in the shed.
444 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

Fig. 5 Comparative data derived from the Shed structure. The horizontal axis in the graphs indicates which “member”
the vertical axis data represents

3.6 Olaf Ryes Gade 6 The analysis of this project revealed a similar
trend as the previous projects where the ON and
This project was for a different client than the BFBP methods had near identical performances.
previous two projects and was fabricated using a Unlike the greenery project, these joint details
mixture of milling and a circular saw, which is were minimal, so less than five pct of material
described in previously published research (Fig. 9) needed to be removed compared to 20
alongside fabrication performance numbers pct within the greenery project (Fig. 7). This is
(Kolarevic 2004). The project was a 50 m2 two- important to note since both projects use a ver-
story building made from conventional 195—and sion of timber joinery but with greatly varying
145 mm 5.4-m C24 lumber (stock) and consisted production time and, thus, cost are vastly differ-
of multiple individual pieces. This project aimed ent. Off course, there are other qualities (aes-
to develop a construction system where a mini- thetics or tectonic) in joinery used in the
mal percentage of material was removed from greenery, namely that it could quickly be taken
each component to have minimal fabrication apart and reassembled elsewhere.
times and still conveyed positional information The system made it possible to utilize an
(Fig. 8, right). average higher than >91% after culling outlies of
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning from Three … 445

Fig. 6 The finished timber structure for the Greenery is in the left image and the diagram to the right shows the
bounded volume of two finished elements—to document that between 10 to 20% of material is removed

Fig. 7 Graphs describing the gathered data for the greenery project. The horizontal axis in the graphs indicates which
“member” the vertical axis data represents
446 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

Fig. 8 Images to the left are from the finished structure. At the same time, the image to the right shows the system’s
simplicity, where simple notches are used to specify positions

Fig. 9 Graphs depicting material use information about the Olaf Ryes Gade project. The horizontal axis in the graphs
indicates which “member” the vertical axis data represents
Computationally Enabled Material Management—Learning from Three … 447

less than 40% material used. Off-cuts generated fabrication tasks are simple and quick (primarily
from the system had a length domain between 1 used a circular saw), it doesn’t increase the
and 2338 mm, which brings up two separate additional cost. The same can be said about the
questions to address in Sect. 4, should off-cuts be bicycle shed since it used a similar fabrication
cut to specific lengths? And what should it be method to the Olaf Ryes Gade project. Still, it
used for? does have a pourer material use percentage in
comparison—85% versus 93%. The same cannot
be said about the greenery project, which consists
4 Discussion of 108 pieces with only 12 unique elements. But
each element needs to be removed between 5 and
The research presented three methods to analyze 30 pct material, meaning little variance comes at
timber structures to develop an optimized cut a much higher cost, not due to increased material
sequence. As described in Sect. 2.1, FFBP was a use but the more significant difference in
control method to see the effects of a sequential machining time and programming. By compar-
cutting sequence, similar to what is believed to ison, the Olaf Ryesgade only needed to have a
be common construction site practice (a claim maximum of 5.5% removed from some elements.
that needs documentation—sees Sect. 5.1). It Therefore, the cost of variation depends on the
was outperformed by the other methods, where fabrication task at hand. Still, this research indi-
both produced cutting sequences with similar cates that variance, as we saw in project 3.4,
performance data, with variations at approxi- comes with a higher material cost since it is hard
mately five pct. Therefore, which method is to optimize cutting patterns, as shown in Sects.
better boils down to preference, the ON method 3.5 and 3.6.
required parameter tuning, whereas the BFBP Common for all three projects is a known off-
method produced its result in one shot. Despite cut, which could be cut to a given modulus,
outperforming the FFBP method, both methods marked by the fabrication system, or saved to a
come with a drawback; namely the sequence may database, but the question remains—what for?
not give the piece you need at a given instance. Similarly to the argument presented in the state-
A feature that will need addressing to allow for of-the-art, regarding the “Projectables” project
just-in-time fabrication. Despite slight underper- (BillWagner 2023), off-cuts can only produce
formance, the BFBP method will be the preferred smaller elements than the initial stock material.
method for linear material analysis in the future However, if contractors, builders, or fabricators
since it will be simpler to implement in other could reuse the material in other processes, the
software situations. material could re-enter the construction value
In contrast, the ON method relies on rhino and chain. One could imagine that the off-cuts could
grasshopper in its current configuration. Thus, be sold to a CLT fabricator or be glued together
the research indicates that preplanned cutting to form “blanks” for making molds for concrete.
sequences can minimize material use within If the off-cuts were stored in a database, they
digital fabrication pipelines. Future research could become a resource for people doing small-
could test if it minimized material and time spent scale interior renovations. Essentially it has the
on a construction site by construction workers potential to open new business revenues for a
compared to their conventional practice. From fabricator. However, for this to be established,
the data presented within this paper, different or some common elements need to be agreed upon:
similar parts can be fabricated at a similar pace
and with minimal material use. However, this is – Modulus for off-cuts
only true if pieces are identical to elements from – What is the minimum length of off-cuts
the Olaf Ryes Gade project, it consisted of 195 – Are off-cuts of a given length reintroduced to
elements, of which 57 are unique. But since the fabrication process.
448 J. Pedersen and D. Reinhardt

If these three elements are understood and and their transportable robot unit. This could
introduced, they can be implemented immedi- revolve around forming industrial partnerships
ately, granted there is storage for the off-cuts. with engineered wood fabricators, where off-
cuts of a given size could be introduced into
their fabrication process.
5 Conclusion • Develop a machining matrix to better utilize
this data for early-stage cost predictions.
The paper has successfully demonstrated a • Identify a new strategy that can allow for
method whereby it is possible to evaluate dis- optimized and just in time fabrication.
crete timber structures on the fly, enabling to
accurately predict the amount of material needed
for a given project. Additionally, since the
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13249-0_27
 Comparative Experiment
on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud
Partition Walls: Integrating the DfD
Concept into Building Component
Design

Harrison Huang, Lu Li, Nan Xia,

and Mengdi Zhao

Abstract
quality control as well as modification flexi-
Resource consumption and waste generation bility during adaptation. These results have
during the construction, renovation and demo- shown the feasibility of integrating the DfD
lition of buildings are global problems. There- concept into building component design and
fore, architects are required to consider the validated its related potential under experi-
feasibility of the future deconstruction of mental conditions. This work also provides
buildings in the design phase, that is, design useful information for architects, engineers
for disassembly (DfD). This paper presents a and other architecture, engineering and con-
comparative experiment on the assembly and struction practitioners in designing
adaptation of a wood stud partition wall, for resource-efficient buildings using innovative
which the wall component was designed via techniques of (dis)assembly in the future.
conventional construction and the DfD con-
cept. Upon comparing the results, it was found
that the experimental group with DfD inte- Keywords
gration consumed less raw material but

Design for disassembly (DfD) Wood stud
required more time during the assembly

partition wall Comparative experiment

process. However, the novel design of the

Assembly Adaptation
wall demonstrated obvious advantages with
regard to labour savings, waste generation and
1 Introduction

H. Huang (&)
L. Li Due to function, aesthetic or natural depreciation

Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China factors, as well as the impact of constantly
e-mail: harrison@[Link]
changing market demands on the effectiveness of a
H. Huang building, owners or operators must decide whether
Center for Balance Architecture, Zhejiang
University, Hangzhou, China
the building should be completely reconstructed
or adaptively reused (Gaspar and Santos 2015;
L. Li
N. Xia
Architectural Design and Research Institute of
Bullen and Love 2010). The demolition of build-
Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China ings and the construction of new ones generate
M. Zhao
considerable waste but also consume large
CCTN Architectural Design Co., Ltd., Hangzhou, amounts of building materials and energy (Huang
China

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 451
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
452 H. Huang et al.

et al. 2013). In comparison, retrofitting buildings research has been conducted on steel connections
for adaptive reuse produces relatively less waste used in timber components and the disassembled
and uses fewer resources (Itard and Klunder design of timber junctions. Examples include
2007). Therefore, adaptive reuse has increasingly prefabricated bolts and swallowtail connections
been accepted by academics and practitioners as a (Grmela 2020). Much of the research into these
responsive strategy to suit changing user needs disassembled joints has focussed on whether they
(Wilkinson et al. 2009). meet mechanical requirements or have the
However, there are significant technical potential for improvement during construction
implementation barriers in the adaptive reuse and deconstruction.
process, including damage to components during Although several studies by structural experts
deconstruction, unavailable building information, have proven that the nodes designed based on the
and architectural design challenges (Rakhshan DfD principle can meet the structural require-
et al. 2020; Huang and Li 2022). There are a ments, architects recognised that buildings need
large number of buildings that do not have to change during their lifecycle (Cruz Rios et al.
detailed information to effectively support 2021). In this context, DfD makes it easier for
deconstruction, and there are no guidelines to buildings to accommodate the adaptive needs
help practitioners design operational strategies arising from changes in building function, offers
before deconstruction (Rakhshan et al. 2020). greater possibilities for the recycling of building
The introduction of the design for disassembly materials and contributes significantly to sus-
(DfD) method is regarded as an effective solution tainability. This has also been confirmed by other
to these problems to optimise deconstruction studies. Arrigoni et al. (2018) assessed the
operations for the reuse of building components environmental sustainability of a temporary
(Kissi et al. 2019). exhibition building through LCA and found that
the ecological impact on the building's life cycle
could be reduced by 30% through DfD. In
2 Literature Review addition, another study assessed the environ-
mental benefits of modular buildings designed
DfD refers to the design principles that facilitate for disassembly. After comparison with buildings
and ensure deconstruction to allow for the reuse using the contemporary construction approach, it
and recycling of building components at the end was found that designing and constructing reu-
of the building's life (Jaillon and Poon 2014). sable components could offset 88% of green-
Within the research field on DfD, many scholars house gas emissions while also benefiting several
have focussed on the design of structural con- other tested environmental indicators (Minunno
nections in buildings. For example, Lin (2013) et al. 2020).
designed a prefabricated concrete beam-column However, few buildings in the world are
connection based on the DfD concept. After designed for disassembly at present (Cruz-Rios
structural analysis and experimentation, it was and Grau 2020) because there are many barriers
concluded that this type of connection is com- to the application. Particularly for architects,
patible with the application requirements of a limitations in the use of DfD are inevitable: the
typical high-rise residential building in Singa- design process itself is considered difficult
pore. Studies have also developed a new system because of the need to think about the end-of-life
of dismantled bolt-assembled prefabricated con- phase of the building and the reuse of materials
crete panels for the design of low-rise buildings and components (Salama 2017); neither interna-
in earthquake-prone areas (Cai et al. 2019). tionally recognised guidelines for DfD design
Subsequent studies have also been carried out on nor empirically based research can help archi-
their seismic performance and damage modes tects understand the state of the art of DfD in
(Xiong et al. 2022). In addition to DfD studies of current design practice (Kanters 2018; Cruz-Rios
joints in prefabricated concrete components, and Grau 2020); the additional design costs, the
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud Partition … 453

uncertainty of the economic and environmental

benefits of applying DfD and the lack of con-
sideration of reused building components in the
current building codes are also unignorable bar-
riers (Jaillon and Poon 2014; Salama 2017).
Therefore, to obtain a deeper understanding of
the potential barriers to the practical application
of DfD, an experiment is designed to simulate a
hypothetical scenario that needs the adaptive
reuse of building components. Two adjacent
rooms are separated by a wood stud partition
wall. For a certain reason, i.e. a functional
change, it is required that a window opening be
made in the wall connecting two rooms. In
accordance with this scenario, the wood stud
partition wall is adaptively reassembled.
The objective of this experiment is to explore
the changes that DfD guidelines bring to the
conventional techniques of wood stud walls.
Comparisons are made for the construction and
adaptation processes, material and labour con-
sumption, waste generation and project quality.
Fig. 1 Iron frame
Through this redesign of the wood stud wall and
our experimental transformation of the design
into practice, we hope that more academics and 3.2 Materials
architects will consider and explore the integra-
tion of the DfD process into building practices in The materials used for the experiments were
the future. mainly oriented strand boards (OSB), construc-
tion pine lumbers, gun nails and self-tapping
screws. The tools used were a table saw, hand-
3 Methods held circular saw, nail gun, air pump, hammer,
pocket ruler and chalk line marker. Details of the
3.1 Experimental Setup materials and tools used are shown in Table 1.

This experiment was implemented in the car-

pentry working shop of Zhejiang University to 3.3 Experiments
imitate an indoor environment under stable con-
ditions. To support the wood stud wall, we cus- The experiments were divided into two groups to
tomised, in advance, an iron frame that was present comparative results. Both groups shared
welded together with steel bars in the same the objective of inserting a window opening into
profile (Fig. 1). Thus, a rectangular wall up to a a whole wood stud partition wall. The opening
size of 2456  2100 mm can be installed into was designed to a size of 1080 (width)  1120
this iron frame. (height) mm and was 640 mm above the ground
to duplicate a real building interior environment.
454 H. Huang et al.

Table 1 Materials and Material properties

tools used in the
experiment Material Dimension (mm)
OSB (oriented strand board) 1220  2440  15
(Width  Height  Thickness)
Construction pine lumber 40  90  3000
(Width  Height  Length)
Steel nail 38 mm
Self-tapping screw 50 mm
Tool specification
Tool Model
Table saw SawStop PCS31230-CH
Hand-held circular saw LEISHI Z1E-LS-110
Cordless screwdriver Deli DL600012
Nail gun Dong Cheng FF-T50
Air compressor OUTSTANDING 980W-30L
Hammer –
Pocket ruler DOSH 3 m/10FT
Chalk line marker –

3.3.1 Group A—Conventional with a table saw in the carpentry working

Construction shop. According to the design, each standard-
According to our field investigations on timber sized OSB could be cut down to a
frame construction sites, working efficiency plays 1220  2100 mm panel. For each stud
an important role in constructing wood stud (2020 mm long) and for each top and bottom
partition walls. Using given standard materials, plate (2440 mm long), lumber with a standard
including oriented strand boards (OSBs) and length of 3000 mm was consumed. In addition, 2
lumber, the construction process can be facili- standard lumber pieces were sufficient for the
tated, with or without fewer additional process- preparation of a window header and a window
ing steps. Moreover, less time is required to use sill (1160 mm long) and 2 trimmers (1120 mm
nails than to use screws when fixing studs and long). The cutting scheme for the panels and
panels. Furthermore, within the constraints of the lumber pieces is shown in Fig. 2.
iron frame described above, the dimensions of After the materials were prepared, the wood
the wall for the experiment were set at stud partition wall in Group A was installed and
2440  2100 (length x height) mm. Taking into then adapted in the following order (Fig. 3):
account the standard size of OSB panels:
Step 1: The 2440 mm long top and bottom plates
1220  2440 mm, a module of wall panel of
were fixed to the iron frame with self-tapping
1220  2100 mm was defined. Studs with a
screws, and the 2020 mm long studs on the two
length of 2020 mm and an axial distance of
sides were attached to the top and bottom plates;
600 mm and top and bottom plates with a length
of 2440 mm were designed to be as close to the Step 2: The three middle studs were secured in
original size as possible. In addition, nails were sequence with a nail gun so that they were
used for attaching the OSB panels to studs. positioned at a distance of 600 mm along the axis
Before the experiment began, the OSBs and from each other. Three steel nails are used for
construction lumber pieces were pre-processed each joint;
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud Partition … 455

Fig. 2 Cutting scheme for Group A

Fig. 3 Steps of wall assembly and adaptation in Group A

456 H. Huang et al.

Fig. 4 Adaptation
possibilities

Step 3: A chalk line marker was used to mark the parts by horizontal noggings. OSBs with dimen-
locations on the OSB panels where the nails were sions of 1220  2100 mm were divided into
to be driven in, and the panels were attached to smaller modules according to the new skeleton
the frame using nails according to the markings. design. All nail connections were replaced with
Nails should be evenly distributed at the edges self-tapping screws for easier decomposition. All
and in the middle of the panels. At this point, the of these redesigns are for the consideration of the
wall was successfully assembled; various possibilities for adaptation of the wall,
such as adding a window opening at the top or in
Step 4: A 1200  1200 mm rectangular outline
the middle of the wall or adding a door opening
was marked in the middle of the wall and
(Fig. 4).
600 mm above the ground. The panels are then
The top and bottom plates were connected to
cut out along the outline by using a hand-held
the studs in the same way as in Group A; that is,
circular saw and eventually broken through;
they were screwed together using 2 self-tapping
Step 5: The exposed middle stud was cut with a screws in each joint. The noggings were secured
circular saw and then removed from the wall; with self-tapping screws on both the top and
bottom studs. Two screws were attached to the
Step 6: Self-tapping screws were used to fix the
upper stud on each side, and only one screw was
window header, window sill and trimmers, which
attached to the lower stud. Each OSB was fixed to
were 40  90 mm in cross section and measured
the timber frame using self-tapping screws. The
1160, 1160, and 1120 mm in length, respectively.
axis spacing between each stud was 600 mm.
Based on the redesign of DfD construction,
3.3.2 Group B—DfD Construction
four different sizes of wall panels were needed:
Kissi et al. (2019) analysed research studies highly
300  1220 mm, 620  1200 mm, 600 
relevant to the DfD concept over the period 2000–
1220 mm and 600  1200 mm. Each of these
2018, and three DfD principles were most recog-
sizes required 4 pieces. After calculation and
nised as follows: documentation of materials and
arrangement, it was found that at least 4 standard
methods, standardisation of components, and use
OSBs (1220  2440 mm) were required for
of mechanical joints instead of chemicals. Based
cutting all the panels out. For the 2440 mm top
on these three principles, especially the last two,
and bottom plate and the two 2360 mm nog-
we redesigned the installation process for a wood
gings, 4 standard lumber pieces were used. For
stud wall. The most significant changes were in the
the remaining studs with lengths of 1160, 540
substructure made of studs and noggings, the size
and 240 mm, it was possible to cut the parts from
of the OSBs and the connections between ele-
two lumber pieces with a sensible arrangement.
ments. A full-length stud was divided into three
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud Partition … 457

Fig. 5 Cutting scheme for Group B

In addition, the window header, sill and trimmers sizes of 600  1200, 620  1200 and
needed a total of two lumber pieces. The window 300  1200 mm to fit into different positions.
header and sill had a cross-sectional dimension
Step 4: The two 600  1200 mm middle panels
of 20  90 mm and a length of 1160 mm, and
were removed by pulling out the self-tapping
the trimmer had a cross-sectional dimension of
screws on the four edges;
40  90 mm and a length of 1120 mm. The
cutting scheme for the panels and lumber pieces Step 5: The exposed middle stud was removed
is shown in Fig. 5. by using a cordless screwdriver for the self-
After the materials were prepared, the wood tapping screws. At that point, all four edges of
stud partition wall in Group B was installed in the opening had a 20 mm exposure made of
the following order (Fig. 6): studs and noggings;
Step 1: The 2440 mm long top and bottom plates Step 6: The window header, sill and trimmers
were fixed to the iron frame with self-tapping were fastened with self-tapping screws. The
screws, and 2020 mm long studs were attached window header and sill had a cross section of
on the two sides to the top and bottom plates. 20  90 mm and a length of 1160 mm; the
This step is the same as that in Group A; trimmer had a cross section of 40  90 mm and
a length of 1120 mm. At this point, the window
Step 2: Self-tapping screws were used to fix the
frame had the same width as that in Group A.
upper and lower noggings as well as the bottom,
top and middle studs. The studs were 240, 1160
and 540 mm long from top to bottom and had a
4 Results and Analysis
horizontal axis distance of 600 mm between each
other;
4.1 Comparison of the Process
Step 3: The OSB panels were installed in Complexity
sequence from the bottom to the top using self-
tapping screws evenly distributed on the four The procedure for both experimental groups can
edges of each panel. The panels have three be divided into three phases: timber frame
458 H. Huang et al.

Fig. 6 Steps of wall assembly and adaptation in Group B

installation, OSB installation and adaptive thickness as the panels. In contrast, the smaller
reassembly. The processes are listed in Table 2. size of the OSB panels in Group B allows one
By comparing the process of installing the person to simply complete all steps with a
timber frame with OSBs, notably, the assembly cordless screwdriver.
process in Group B was more complicated than Moreover, the circular saw in Group A gen-
that in Group A because the wall studs in erates much noise, and the flying wood chips can
Group B were all cut into three short parts. There harm the eyes and respiratory tract of workers.
were also two extra noggings and 6 more pieces Thus, there is a need to introduce additional
of OSB. In contrast, the adaptation process of vacuuming equipment and protection methods to
Group B was simpler than that of Group A. In protect workers from health injuries. Compara-
Group A, additional work had to be conducted to tively, these issues did not occur in Group B, in
mark the window opening outline on the surface which the fixing and removal of the elements by
of the panels and to cut them down. However, using self-tapping and a cordless screwdriver
the panel could be removed by simply loosening created a noiseless working environment.
the screws in Group B.
Furthermore, the experimental process in
Group A required more complex tools to com- 4.2 Comparison of Material
plete than that in Group B. The chalk line marker Consumption and Waste
was used to assist in marking where to punch the Generation
nails. Additionally, an electric hand-held saw
was applied to remove the panels. To avoid Based on the statistics (Table 3, Figs. 2 and 5),
damage to the studs behind the panel, the saw during the preparation of materials for the wall
blade also had to be adjusted to the same installation, both Group A and B consumed 4
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud Partition … 459

Table 2 Comparison of the installation and adaptation process

Group A Group B
Timber frame installation
(1) Top and bottom plates (1) Top and bottom plates
(2) Right and left studs (2) Right and left studs
(3) Three middle studs (3) Lower nogging
(4) Three bottom studs
(5) Upper nogging
(6) Three top studs
(7) Three middle studs

(1) (2) (3) (1)(2) (3)(4) (5)(6) (7)

OSB installation (both sides)
(1) Nail position marks (1) Bottom panels
(2) OSB panels (2) Middle panels
(3) Top panels

(1) (2) (1) (2) (3)

Adaptation with a window opening insertion
(1) Window opening outline mark (1) Middle panels removal
(2) Panel cut and removal (2) Middle stud removal
(3) Middle stud cut and removal (3) Window header, sill and trimmers
(4) Window header, sill and trimmers

(1) (2) (3) (4)

(1)(2) (3)

standard OSBs (1220  2440  15 mm) for a is, 53.928 dm3 relative to 55.512 dm3. Conse-
total volume of 178.608 dm3, of which 153.72 quently, more than 21 dm3 remained in Group A
dm3 was used for the wall installation (step 1–3) but only approximately 9 dm3 in Group B. This
and 24.888 dm3 was left after cutting the required was due to the smaller dimensions of individual
panels. During these steps, 7 lumber pieces total- parts required for the stud-nogging-framework in
ling 75.6 dm3 were consumed in Group A, which Group B (Fig. 5), which led to efficient utilisation
was one lumber piece more than that in Group B. of each lumber piece.
However, the net consumption of lumber pieces in During the adaptation process (steps 4–6),
Group A was even fewer than that in Group B, that both groups consumed 2 lumber pieces of 21.2
460 H. Huang et al.

Table 3 Material Step Group A Group B

consumption and waste
generation (dm3) OSB Lumber OSB Lumber
Gross consumption 1–3 178.608 75.6 178.608 64.8
Nett consumption (Installation) 153.72 53.928 153.72 55.512
Remains 24.888 21.672 24.888 9.288
Gross consumption 4–6 0 21.2 0 21.2
Nett consumption (Adaptation) 0 16.416 0 12.24
Remains 0 4.784 0 8.96
Waste generation 43.2 4.32 0 0
Total consumption 1–6 178.608 96.8 178.608 86

dm3 for the window frame, but Group A had a practically complete, and their condition was,
slightly higher consumption than Group B, that thanks to the use of screws, similar to when they
is, 16.416 dm3 relative to 12.24 dm3. This was were originally installed (Fig. 7). According to
because the cross-sectional dimensions of the their great potential for reuse, these materials
window header and sill in Group B were were not categorised as waste. In other words,
20  90 mm, in comparison with those of there was no waste generation in Group B.
40  90 mm in Group A. As a result, Group B
provided slightly more leftover materials for
processing the window frames than Group A. 4.3 Comparison of Project Quality
Because the remaining segments of OSBs and
lumber pieces, including those after installation The edges of the window openings in Group A
and adaptation, were mechanically processed are rough, but those in Group B are very uniform
with a table saw in the carpentry workshop, they (Fig. 8). This is because the window openings in
were unpolluted and therefore retained the Group A were cut using a hand-held circular
potential for reuse and recycling. saw, and the corners could not be cut consistently
Furthermore, the removed panels with a vol- due to the round shape of the saw's blade.
ume of 43.2 dm3 and the studs with a volume of However, all the panels in Group B were
4.32 dm3 in Group A could not be directly reused machined by a table saw to the design dimen-
due to the damage caused by the hand-held cir- sions before installation so that the edges of the
cular saw and were classified as waste. In con- window openings were unbroken when the
trast, the removed parts in Group B were middle panels were removed.

Fig. 7 States of the removed

panels
Comparative Experiment on Adaptive Reuse of Wood Stud Partition … 461

Fig. 8 Comparison of the edge cuttings of openings

Fig. 9 Comparison of stud exposures

After removing the OSBs, 20 mm of the stud

was exposed on each side of the opening. In 5 Discussion
Group A, the left stud was exposed by 31 mm, and
the right stud was exposed by 19 mm. In Group B, The final purpose for wall reconstruction was
the left side stud was exposed by 24 mm, and the known in advance, which guided us somewhat
right stud was exposed by 18 mm (Fig. 9). The towards drawing support from the DfD concept
impreciseness of the exposures resulted mainly in the redesign of the wall. However, the
from the inaccuracy of the stud installation. potential of this redesigned construction is not
Although there were more studs and installation limited to adding window openings in the centre
steps in Group B, the stud exposures were even of the wall. This wall is also subject to other
closer to the theoretical values. This is likely modifications, such as new windows at the edge
because all studs were installed carefully to ensure or top, new door openings and an entire decon-
that each OSB was in the predesigned position. struction or relocation. The flexibility of wall
This also resulted in the adaptation process, where modifications increases the possibility of chang-
the distance was kept within 4 mm. ing the spatial relationship between two rooms,
462 H. Huang et al.

which leads to an improvement in the building's additional window into a whole wood stud par-
resilience against functional changes. tition wall. As shown in the results of the
In this experiment, a wood stud partition wall experiment, the DfD integrated wall construction
was installed, in which the wall component was was less labour- and material-consuming, more
designed via conventional construction and the flexible for changes, higher quality and with less
DfD concept. Compared with the conventional waste generated after adaptation. It is hoped that
method, installation utilising DfD guidelines this experiment will provide useful information
involves more steps. This means that much more for architects, engineers and other architecture,
time can be expended when applying DfD con- engineering and construction practitioners who
struction in a much larger project. These addi- are willing to integrate the DfD concept into their
tional costs for DfD application should be a large work. If it is difficult to apply this theory to an
obstacle in designing buildings with decon- entire building, then the design of simple build-
struction capacities. There is uncertainty as to ing components can be performed first, as was
whether these initial construction costs are carried out in this study. We firmly believe that
counterbalanced by the potential environmental such experimental attempts that translate theory
benefits and possible future savings. into practice can make a solid contribution to
Our findings showed that the DfD wall con- building a sustainable future.
struction in Group B was more complex for the
installation than the conventionally constructed Acknowledgements This research was funded by the
Start-up Foundation for Hundred-Talent Program, Zhe-
wall in Group A, which coincide with the jiang University and the Centre for Balance Architecture
research conclusions by Eckelman et al. (2018), of Zhejiang University.
who used life cycle assessment (LCA) to evalu-
ate the environmental benefits of a novel DfD
flooring system. Their results showed that References
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 Research on 3D Printing Craft
for Flexible Mass Customization: The
Case of Chengdu Agricultural Expo
Center

Tianyi Gao, Sijia Gu, Liming Zhang,

and Philip F. Yuan

Abstract the site for assembly. It proves that 3D

printing can meet the demand for the efficient
Mass customization of prefabricated architec- construction of large-scale and
ture is becoming increasingly crucial for high-dimensional geometric roofs. This paper
developing the architectural industry. With introduces the integrated design-to-fabrication
the continuous iterative development of digital process and robotic construction method of
design tools and construction methods, para- the large-scale prefabricated roof, taking the
digm innovation liberates social productivity Chengdu Agricultural Expo Center as an
significantly. This thinking of architecture example.
allows architects to accomplish profound
design concepts and intentions with sustain-
able production strategies. At the same time, Keywords
digital design tools and architectural robotics
also powerfully awaken the relevance of

3D printing Mass customization Digital

tradition and local culture, addressing the

fabrication Sustainable production Labor

issue of the declining productivity of tradi- cost
tional construction methods. In the engineer-
ing practice of the Chengdu Agricultural Expo
Center, robotic timber fabrication and plastic 1 Introduction
3D printing craft efficiently completed the
construction of complex structural elements. In recent years, the rapid development of tools,
The 3D-printed roof covers an area of about including computers and robotics, has driven the
3,000 square meters. All the roof panels are digital transformation of the construction indus-
prefabricated in the factory and transported to try. Additive manufacturing, represented by 3D
printing, is a notably developing advanced man-
ufacturing technology in the last 30 years, with
the advantage of free manufacturing of three-
T. Gao
Shanghai Research Institute for Intelligent
dimensional structures and material saving,
Autonomous Systems, Tongji University, Shanghai, which has been widely used in innovative product
China exploitation and small-scale manufacturing. 3D
S. Gu
L. Zhang
P. F. Yuan (&) printing, as an emerging digital technology, uses
College of Architecture and Urban Planning, Tongji materials with different properties as the basis and
University, Shanghai, China printing processes as the material reconfiguration
e-mail: philipyuan007@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 465
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
466 T. Gao et al.

method. The technical advantages are based on mutually constrained. 3D printing technology can
precise positioning and efficient construction. It is achieve flexible mass customization. It can use
increasingly applied in agriculture, healthcare, the same production logic and process for dif-
automotive, locomotive, and aerospace industries ferent components, which is consistent with the
since the amplitude of robot arm motion and demand for mass customization in the architec-
material nozzle diameter can be controlled in ture industry. This paper discusses architecture
conditions for different manufacturing dimen- robotics 3D printing modified plastics technology
sions. With the widespread use of 3D printing application for mass customization based on
technology, the manufacturing industry may no large-scale roof construction of Chengdu Agri-
longer depend on traditional factories, which cultural Expo Center (Fig. 1).
centralize production factors such as labor, capi-
tal, and equipment on a large scale, but rather shift
to a more flexible production method based on 2 Background and Overview
industrial robotics that requires less investment.
Especially from the architectural perspective, 3D As an additive manufacturing (AM) technology,
printing has the advantages of fast construction, 3D printing is used to create various structures
fabricating beautiful forms, and material repur- and complex geometries from three-dimensional
posing. Combined with the digital construction (3D) model data. The process consists of printing
method of human–machine collaboration, 3D successive layers of materials that are formed on
printing has significant potential for large-scale top of each other (Ngo et al. 2018, p. 1). With the
manufacturing scenarios. rise of digital fabrication in the construction
After World War II, European countries, industry in recent years, 3D printing as an
Japan, and other countries with severe housing emerging construction technology is gradually
problems demanded a practical solution urgently. entering the construction industry, creating new
The debate on rapidly building practical, reliable, possibilities for architectural design and con-
and cheap housing boosted the development of struction. Since Joseph Pegna proposed the sys-
prefabricated buildings. Prefabricated buildings tem of quick hardening concrete layers (García-
were promoted in large numbers, resulting in Alvarado et al. 2021), 3D-printed construction
many studies and practices in the 1860s. Gener- (3DPC) technology has shown rapid develop-
ally, most attempts in the post-war scenario ment through extensive research and practice. In
focused on cheap and rapidly replicable assembly 2003, Contouring Crafting (CC) technology was
strategies. It increased the production efficiency proposed as a new Layered Manufacturing
of the architecture industry remarkably, mitigat- (LM) process by Hwang and Khoshnevis (2005).
ing the pressure of post-war housing problems. In 2008, a free-form construction method was
However, current housing problems are not only created by Loughborough University by using
limited to the scenarios above but transformed to the layering technique and powdered sintering
the demand for better quality, low carbon emis- technique. One of the practices of the method is a
sions, and complex geometry. Thus, the contra- 3D-printed bench, which is a highly customiz-
diction between the need for customized design able building component (Lim et al. 2011). Many
and industrial standardization in developing pre- other related types of research also have been
fabricated buildings has been revealed. Specifi- conducted. At the same time, the concept of
cally, the conventional production process of sustainability has become of interest to many
prefabricated elements can provide minimal disciplines, including architecture. The goal of
combinations and often has low applicability. sustainability in architecture is to minimize the
Sometimes to achieve universal promotion, number of resources consumed during the con-
additional costs could be added to projects. The struction and operation process and to reduce the
relationship between customization and stan- environmental harm caused by emissions, pol-
dardization is still critically antagonistic and lution, and waste (Beyhan et al. 2018). In this
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 467

Fig. 1 A photograph of the completed project of Chengdu Agricultural Expo Center

Fig. 2 3D printed
components for the canopy
(Griffiths 2013, News)

regard, as two concepts of interest to architecture London using 3D metal printing (Fig. 2). As the
in this century, how digital technology in archi- primary material of the component, steel and
tecture can be applied to sustainable develop- aluminum can be recycled at a rate of 100%
ment is a question worth thinking about. In the (Munn and Soebarto 2004, p. 162). This recy-
field of 3D-printed construction (3DPC), many cling resulted in a 72% reduction in energy
pioneers have made efforts on this issue for consumption for steel material and 95% for alu-
different materials. In 2013, British architect minum material (Beyhan et al. 2018, p. 261),
Adrian Priestman printed components for a thus contributing to the development of sustain-
canopy on the roof of an office building in able buildings.
468 T. Gao et al.

Fig. 3 3D printed canal

house (Van der Veen 2014)

Fig. 4 3D clay printed

acoustic column

Conceived by Dutch DUS Architects, the 3D technology. As a malleable and reusable mate-
Printed Canal House research project was per- rial, the combination of clay and 3D printing
formed in Amsterdam in 2014 (Fig. 3). The goal techniques shows excellent potential for sus-
of the project is to print a three-story high, full- tainable development. Robotic 3D clay printing
sized house on the canal side using a 3D printer is also suitable for the prefabrication of archi-
called ‘KamerMaker’. The printer uses a bio- tectural components and skin panels due to its
plastic mixture of plastic fibers and 80% veg- high accuracy, which has a relatively broad
etable oil to produce wall components. The wall development prospect in manufacturing archi-
components were then interlocked together and tectural components.
filled with bio-concrete to provide structural The Digital Design Research Center (DDRC)
strength (Van der Veen 2014). All materials used team at Tongji University has extensively
in the project are recyclable (Beyhan et al. 2018, researched the use of modified plastic 3D printing
p. 263), which means less environmental harm. in architectural scenarios. Moreover, they com-
Also, this approach will reduce construction pleted a project at the east gate of the Nanjing
waste and minimize transportation costs (Hager Happy Valley theme park in 2020 (Philip et al.
et al. 2016). 2021). The project used modified plastic materials
In 2015, Phillip F. YUAN's team at Tongji with a highly weather-resistant formulation,
University carried out a 3D clay printed acoustic allowing the prefabricated 3D-printed panels to
column project to aid spatial acoustic design be used in outdoor environments for extended
through sound visualization studies (Fig. 4). The periods. Prefabricated assembly and remote
device was fabricated with a digital technique positioning were also used to ensure construction
using robotic clay laminated contouring crafting efficiency during COVID-19 (see Fig. 5).
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 469

Fig. 5 The modified plastic 3D printed installation in Nanjing Happy Valley theme park

In addition to materials such as metal, plastic, (3) 3D printers can manufacture a variety
and terracotta, there are cases such as the 3D of different material types, available in dif-
printed house completed by WinSun Decoration ferent states (powder, filament, pellet,
Design Engineering Co in 2014 using a concrete- granule, resin.), including a variety of
like material and the castle printed in a garden by recyclable materials such as glass, plastics,
Andy Rudenko using Contour Crafting (CC) thermoplastic polymers (ABS), metals
technology. and ceramics (Beyhan et al. 2018, p. 258).
The above studies show that the 3D printing (4) It reduces labor costs and safety risks for
technique can significantly contribute to sus- on-site construction.
tainable development in the construction industry
with the innovative development and application In summary, 3D printing has great potential to
of materials and techniques. The contribution of contribute to the sustainability of construction.
the 3D printing technique to sustainable archi- Features of the 3D printing process, such as
tectural construction can be summarized as higher construction efficiency, better fabrication
follows: accuracy, lower labor costs, less construction
(1) It enables prefabricated assemblies in the resource requirements, and lower CO2 emissions
factory, reducing construction time. throughout the architectural lifecycle (Gebler
(2) It gives architects different perspectives on et al. 2014), can provide revolutionary progress
building materials and chances for reducing in the development of sustainability (Beyhan
material losses and construction waste. et al. 2018, p. 253).
470 T. Gao et al.

3 Large-Scale Mass Customization platform allow designers to anticipate possible

3D Printing Methodology problems in manufacturing environments before
formal production. The rule of 6-Axis robotic
3.1 Design-to-Fabrication Workflow arms operation is the tool head coordinates move
Based on FUROBOT at spatial points, derived from the spatial trans-
Platform lation of the 3D model in Rhino. The following
three main steps are path simulation and start-
The software platform is one of the core parts of stop point optimization after generating the 3D
mass customization production based on 3D model.
printing craft. For architects, the design-to-
Step 1: Select Breps in Rhino for Grasshopper to
fabrication workflow and collaboration between
set 3D models.
humans and new industrial robotics establish a
new partnership. Architects are not limited to the Step 2: Use FUROBOT core to simulate the
characteristic of the designer just but also the printing range for the sliced contour lines pre-
fabrication logic of the parameterization in this pared in the parametric program.
partnership. Thus, the software platform con- Step 3: Collison and singularity check.
tributing to the architect's design-to-fabrication
interface is one of the most significant sessions of
the entire design workflow. It plays a decisive 3.2 Robotic 3D Printing Hardware
role in whether the architect's concepts and System and Material
schemes can be built correctly and remarkably.
FUROBOT is a promising robot program- The hardware system for 3D printing can be
ming software platform based on Grasshopper separated into three main parts: the material
for designers in different fields to program preparation system, the robotic extrusion system,
industrial robots intuitively. Different from the and the post-processing system. The material
conventional dialog interface of the robotic preparation system consists mainly of the dosing,
control system, it is a node-based programming drying, and feeding of the printing material. The
software inheriting Grasshopper's parametric prepared material is crushed in a screw extruder
control mode (Fig. 6). Most of its parameter and extruded through a toolhead with customized
information is conveyed in the form of node geometry and dimensions. Before actual pro-
input and output instead of the traditional dialog duction, a five-layer base is pre-printed to com-
box input mode, enhancing the efficiency of plete the automatic leveling operation based on
parametric programming for architects (Fig. 7). previous project experience. The printing process
Due to this friendly interface, the robot path is transferred to the robot according through an
planning for fabrication becomes simple for users offline program with a programmed number.
without a holistic knowledge base. In addition, it After printing, the printed components need to be
accommodates multiple types of robots and cut and polished to meet the applicable standards
combines various techniques (Fig. 8). Different for the engineering project. The detailed robotic
robotics allows accuracy and stability in many 3D printing hardware system and workflow can
degrees of freedom of the robotic arm. The path be shown in Fig. 9.
simulation and optimization in FUROBOT's

Fig. 6 Node-based programming software

Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 471

Fig. 7 FUROBOT parametric operation interface

Fig. 8 Multiple types of

robots integrated in
FUROBOT

As a relatively low-cost and highly malleable to explore the long-term use of modified plastics
raw material, plastics have significant advantages as the essential part of the building. This hybrid
in constructing complex shaped components. material has two main advantages. On the one
Due to the varying levels of performance of hand, it effectively promotes stress relief during
plastics at this stage, their application in engi- the melt processing of polymer materials. On the
neering projects is still limited to small-scale other hand, it significantly improves material
architecture. In this project, fiber-reinforced rigidity and thus inhibits deformation. The
polymer-based composite material is introduced composite modification technology with ABS
472 T. Gao et al.

Fig. 9 Detailed robotic 3D printing hardware system and workflow

material can effectively enhance the rigidity of Based on the data in the table, this composite
the composite material, inhibit the occurrence of material's tensile and bending strength increased
warpage during the printing process, and substantially after the glass fiber reinforcement
improve the creep resistance. (10 wt.%). The modification in material stiffness
For a more systematic study of fiber- facilitates the resistance to the warpage caused by
reinforced plastic, the material performance is internal material stress during the printing pro-
tested to get stiffness and linear expansion coef- cess. At the same time, the linear expansion
ficient. Specific experimental results are shown coefficient decreases significantly after glass fiber
in the following Table (see Fig. 10). reinforcement (10 wt.%). It decreases the linear
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 473

Fig. 10 Material
performance of ABS and
fiber-reinforced ABS

expansion coefficient, which can help to reduce production workflow, robot motion simulation,
deformation and thermal shrinkage. From the automated print component pickup and pro-
results, the glass fiber-reinforced ABS material is gramming are two necessary steps. In FUR-
better than the non-reinforced ABS in terms of OBOT, an automatic program is built which can
dimensional stability and is suitable for building generate all the printing files one by one every
roof cladding. 30 s and check collision and singularity simul-
On the other hand, the material was modified taneously (Fig. 12). Based on this effective
with UV and oxidation resistance for the exterior digital-to-fabrication toolkit, all 4000 printing
scenarios by adding 2% UV absorber UV-P and files are successfully prepared in 5 days before
2% UV770. In the weathering experiments, the production.
specimens in the experimental group were treated Since the entire roof panels are prefabricated
with 1828 h of UV irradiation, simulating 10- in the factory, the cost and carbon footprint in
year UV irradiation. The experimental results transportation need immediate concern. The
showed that the test specimens’ tensile strength project improves the closed profile path of the
and flexural strength decreased by 7.8% and traditional 3D model of double-layer printed
9.5%, which were within 10% and met the panels with a lightly shaped single-layer printed
structural safety requirements. Therefore, this version for rapid construction. Intuitively, the
material modification is practical and applicable layer change point of a two-layer printed element
to the exterior roof of the Chengdu Agricultural is to split the closed curve of each layer and then
Expo Center. connect the adjacent curves, while the path of a
single-layer component is an open, one-way
round-trip curve (Fig. 13). In contrast, the single-
3.3 Fabrication Optimization of More layer printing process not only encourages
Than 4000 Single-Layer designers to innovate with more complimentary
Panels geometry design but also significantly reduces
the carbon footprint of the entire building life
One of the most prominent challenges for large- cycle. At the same time, detailed improvements
scale engineering projects is the mass generation at the joints allow for fabrication tolerances on
of offline programs for robotics compared to the the top after the printing is complete. Thus, the
current small-scale 3D printing projects. single-layer printing process is a more straight-
Although robotics can work 24/7, offline pro- forward and efficient production method for mass
gramming often takes a lot of time and labor customization scenarios.
costs. In this project, there are more than 4,000 However, additional optimization for print
roof components with different geometries feasibility is still necessary in producing single-
(Fig. 11). The previous manual programming layer panels. Typically, each printed panel needs
workflow can hardly meet the project deadline. to couple the spatial plane of the printed bottom
To overcome this challenge and ensure a logical edge to the fabrication base plane in the factory.
474 T. Gao et al.

Fig. 11 Over 4,000 roof panels with different geometries

Fig. 12 Automatic printing file generation module

Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 475

Fig. 13 Printing path of a single-layer panel

Fig. 14 Additional tilted support

In this project, the curvature of some roof panels

is too large, causing the model to be placed on 4 Construction Practices
the fabrication base plane over-tilted. Experience
has shown that when its angle to the base plane is 4.1 Flexible Construction System
below 45°, the quality degrades significantly or of Prefabricated 3D Printed
even fails to print. Therefore, to ensure the Roof
passing rate and reduce losses during trans-
portation, a parametric program in Grasshopper Although 3D printing can liberate some of the
is constructed to automatically add tilted supports limitations of the design, its varying forms also
(Fig. 14), which is used to ensure all the tilt angle cause an essential challenge for installation and
of each printed panel is kept below 45°. construction, especially the accurate spatial
476 T. Gao et al.

Fig. 15 Slotted lap joints

Fig. 16 Tile type installation concept

positioning of each component. In this project,
we started to consider the construction process's
tolerances from the early design phase. Pre- the positioning steps and improve construction
dictably, suppose the traditional roof construc- efficiency. At the same time, the control param-
tion positioning method is used. In that case, eters of each detail can be adjusted based on
cumulative tolerance will occur during succes- different conditions. This parametric design
sive installations, which may result in the even- method also facilitates the architect to have more
tual failure to close the head and tail panels. direct control over the project.
Thus, a single layer of slotted lap joints is used Regarding the roof structure, Chengdu Agri-
(Fig. 15). Specifically, one upper and side sur- cultural Expo Center adopts a layer-by-layer
face of each panel are partially overlapped with tolerance elimination strategy. As shown in the
its adjacent panels so that each printed compo- structural details (Fig. 17), the entire roof system
nent can be adjusted within 1 cm. Considering consists of the central timber reciprocal structure,
the construction logic of single-layer panels, oriented strand board (OSB), SPF wood keel,
different slotted lap joints were designed and will adjustable metal joints, and 3D printed panels to
be installed based on the traditional tile type eliminate the tolerance generated at different
installation concept (Fig. 16), which can simplify stages of construction. The installation and

Fig. 17 Roof structural

details
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 477

positioning of this flexible system can be divided panel into two pieces and added folded edges at
into three steps. First, after the main timber the joints to ensure the stability of the screw
structure is constructed, a through-length SPF fixing. According to the model statistics, a total
keel is installed based on Real-time kinematic of 800 boards needed similar treatment. After
positioning (RTK) of the head and tail endpoints. determining the size of each panel, we divided
Next, a set of L-shaped metal connections are them into five types according to the installation
fixed to the keel according to the distance from sequence (Fig. 19): regular panels, ridge panels,
the digital model to accommodate the non- slit panels, cornice panels, and collision panels
standardized distance between the panel and (Fig. 20). These panels differ in their joint con-
SPF keel. Each metal connection can eliminate figuration due to their different properties. For
about 8 cm of construction tolerance combined example, compared to the joints of the regular
with the width of the SPF keel. Finally, the slab, the ridge slab does not have a groove on its
printed panels are installed in a zoned manner side because it is at the top of the roof. To outline
sequentially according to the position of the the smooth geometry of the whole roof, the side
connections, with each panel secured by six edges of the cornice panel have an extra folded
screws at the edges. And it can also be used for edge. Slit panels are defined as the last to be
mutual positioning reference based on the joint installed after remeasurement to ensure that the
detail. Thanks to this method, the installation of construction will distribute the error evenly over
3D printed panels can be finished more each area. Collision panels are distributed around
smoothly, ensuring space for adjustment skylights and patios, all of which have com-
according to the specific site conditions. It pletely different dimensions and shapes due to
effectively avoids the problem of cumulative their collision with the structure. Each of the four
tolerance to a great extent. panels above has a joint deepening program and
a production component information sheet. In the

4.2 Panel Division System

and Construction Process

Despite many advantages of 3D printing tech-

nology in producing complex building compo-
nents, it still has certain limitations. One of the
most important is that the robotic arm span
determines the maximum range of parts that can
be printed. The 3D printing machine used in this
project is KUKA R2700-210, which means the
length and height of each panel are limited to
2 m. However, the significant variation of the
entire roof form at the widest and narrowest
points made the problem unavoidable (Fig. 18).
To address this issue, a panel division system is
developed to handle panels of all different sizes
and scales.
First, to maximize the success and efficiency
of printing, the height of 80 percent of the panels
was limited to 1.8 m. This step was accom-
plished by adjusting the range of UV subdivision
lines on the surface. Secondly, for the unavoid-
able oversize panels, we subdivided each printed Fig. 18 Widest and narrowest part of roof
478 T. Gao et al.

Fig. 19 Construction process

Fig. 20 Different types of

panels

end, according to the parametric model, more Agricultural Expo Center project. In particular, it
than 4,000 different panels with unique label has considerable potential to contribute to the
form the whole continuous and complex roof sustainable development of prefabricated archi-
system (Fig. 21). tecture. The series of digital tools and fabrication
platforms utilized in the project have enabled an
efficient design-to-fabrication integrated system
5 Discussion at the levels of form generation, single-layer
panel division, robotic 3D printing, and on-site
5.1 The Feasibility of Large-Scale construction. Thanks to the single-layer panels,
Mass Customization 3D the reduced printing time, lower transportation
Printing Craft costs, and efficient and fast installation methods
also significantly reduce the carbon footprint of
The complete 3D printing workflow and digital the entire building cycle. The project was pre-
construction technologies presented in the paper fabricated by ten industrial 3D printing robotics
have been fully validated in the Chengdu in a digital factory, producing a total of over
Research on 3D Printing Craft for Flexible Mass … 479

Fig. 21 Roof panels with

labels

4,000 printed panels of various shapes and sizes 5.2 The Limitation
in 3 months.
From a technical point of view, after the basic However, there are some limitations to the
shell form has been generated in the architectural workflow above. For instance, it asks architects
scheme phase, the roof panels are also generated to fully understand the craft and fabrication,
through parameters based on the actual con- which raises the level of the profession of
struction conditions. The model of each roof architects. In addition, since FUROBOT has
panel is then imported into FUROBOT to opti- already been integrated into Grasshopper, many
mize the bottom support structure and special manual programming operations are still needed
construction requirements. With the FUROBOT for a specific project, which also requires other
core module, the architect can program the 3D skills for traditional architects. This also gives a
printing and independently complete the offline new direction to the future development of
program for the robot control. The offline pro- FUROBOT: completing more intuitive and
gram is transferred from the person responsible graphical-based toolkits based on different 3D
for production to the robot in the digital factory. printing crafts. By writing each manual step as a
In the factory, each worker can be responsible for module inside, the design and fabrication effi-
the control and operation of 2 or 3 robotics. ciency will be significantly improved.
Compared to the traditional manual construction On top of that, the inconsistent human–ma-
method, the robotic arm can continuously work chine collaboration approach leads to additional
24 h a day. The result is a process in which the material waste during the digital fabrication
interface between design and construction is process. And ways to reuse these defective
intuitive and seamless. Designers can receive products are in the process of being developed.
feedback on production quality at any time to According to the specific statistics on the project,
optimize subsequent designs. This efficient pre- about 15% of the panels need to be printed by
fabricated approach supports mass customization adding a tilting base to ensure the quality of the
scenarios and ensures that projects are completed print. Also, some errors that could be more
on schedule. Therefore, there is great potential intuitive in Rhino viewport, such as the discon-
and scope for exploring the feasibility of 3D tinuous tool path, cause additional material waste
printing in practical engineering. and reduce the finished product rate. This
480 T. Gao et al.

problem will be remarkably alleviated if the creation, not only to form more personalized
maximum intelligent and automated application expression but also to allow architects to
can be achieved in the future. accomplish better design concepts and intentions,
such as performance, efficiency, collaboration
mode, or green low-carbon goals. This is one of
6 Conclusion the most significant technological innovations for
social development.
In conclusion, this paper demonstrated a holistic
large-scale mass customization 3D printing
methodology in FUROBOT platform, industrial References
6-axis robotics, and fiber-reinforced plastic.
According to these software and hardware plat- Beyhan F, Arslan Selçuk S (2018) 3D printing in
forms, this paper continued to introduce a 3D architecture: one step closer to a sustainable built
environment. In: Proceedings of 3rd international
printing construction practice based on the
sustainable buildings symposium, vol 1(3). Springer
Chengdu Agricultural Expo Center project. In the International Publishing, pp 253–268
whole workflow, the basic form was generated García-Alvarado R, Moroni-Orellana G, Banda-Pérez P
and optimized in Rhino and Grasshopper. The (2021) Architectural evaluation of 3D-printed build-
ings. Buildings 11(6):254
initial geometry is calculated based on specific Gebler M, Uiterkamp AJS, Visser C (2014) A global
environmental conditions. Then, the roof is sep- sustainability perspective on 3D printing technologies.
arated into different main areas according to the Energy Policy 74:158–167
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Marks roof [Photograph]. Dezeen. [Link]
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the model information into the robot path for 3D building-components/
printing. Finally, all the panels with different Hager I, Golonka A, Putanowicz R (2016) 3D printing of
details are assembled following a specific buildings and building components as the future of
sustainable construction. Procedia Eng 151:292–299
sequence through a flexible structural system. In Hwang D, Khoshnevis B (2005) An innovative construc-
this project, the proposed workflow ensures a tion process-contour crafting (CC). In: Proceedings of
coherent design-to-fabrication methodology the 22nd international symposium on automation and
based on 3D printing craft and can contribute to robotics in construction. [Link]
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sustainable production practices. Lim S, Buswell R, Le T, Wackrow R, Austin SA, Gibb A,
Future research could focus on developing a Thorpe T (2011) Development of a viable concrete
complete plastic printing toolkit based on all the printing process
parameters and data we have already accumulated Munn S, Soebarto V (2004) The issues of using recycled
materials in architecture. In: The 38th international
to prospect more diversity of projects in better conference of architectural science association
quality. Some predictable research directions can ANZAScA “Contexts of architecture”, Launceston,
be summarized as exploring more reusable and Tasmania
extrudable material, online robot programming Ngo TD, Kashani A, Imbalzano G, Nguyen KT, Hui D
(2018) Additive manufacturing (3D printing): a review
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the technology above has created new possibili- Philip FY, Liming Z, Tianyi G (2021) The future of
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ronment, and production process of architecture
Restarting from Renewables
 Prototyping Thatched Facades—
Global Scaling of Local Knowledge

Henriette Ejstrup and Anne Beim

Abstract slower than standard thatch construction

therefore processes must be developed and
The paper presents the results from a tested further. An unanswered question is how
cross-disciplinary research project investigat- the reed will respond to humidity, when
ing clay as a fire retardant in vertically thatched to a solid base of plywood without
thatched facades, and it elaborates on its ventilation. Furthermore, questions about the
consequences on aesthetics and buildability by ceramic curing of clay when burned with
prototyping. The prototypes take point of downfall as a result are unanswered.
departure in three different typologies: thatch-
ing on construction sites, thatched prefabri-
cated façade elements, and thatched masonry. Keywords
Initially, a mock-up of a reed-thatched façade
sprayed with clay and with clay boards as fire


Thatched facades Clay Low emission
stop every 100 cm was subjected to a Single

constructions Radical tectonics Fire

Burn Item test (SBI test). The result showed a

retardant Cross-disciplinary
FIGRA at 25 W/s, which is positive. This
raised the question on how these findings
could form radical tectonic solution as a 1 Introduction
respond to the need for CO2 neutral construc-
tions. The prototyping of prefabricated Through centuries reed has been globally known
clay-impregnated thatched façade elements as a building material. In a Danish context, the
seems to have multiple possibilities regarding vernacular architecture was traditionally thatched
time optimization, transportation, and (dis) with reed. This technique was mostly used for
assembly. Whereas thatching and impregnat- roofing, but also facades have been thatched.
ing on the construction site is possible, but Reed on facades was used both as an inhibitor of
weathering of the load-bearing construction, and
as a provisory cladding when other materials
H. Ejstrup (&)
were not at hand or extra ventilation was needed
Royal Danish Academy, Institute of Architecture and (Zangenberg and Ingemann 1982; Kirk 1979).
Technology, Copenhagen, Denmark During the twentieth century the use of reed has
e-mail: hejs@[Link] diminished. This was due to the fear of fire
A. Beim hazards, novel industrial materials, and decrease
Cinark/Institute of Architecture and Technology,
The Royal Danish Academy, Copenhagen, Denmark

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 483
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
484 H. Ejstrup and A. Beim

of the wetlands where reed was grown (Bak- gables ending in a small eave in the middle of the
Andersen 2020). New research points to that reed gable (Realdania 2021).
have multiple benefits. Locally grown reed has a Only few traces were found in the historic
positive impact on biodiversity, as well as it building culture and literature regarding knowl-
contributes to absorb CO2 and NOx (Andersen edge about reed and clay as a fire retardant.
et al. 2021; Schipull 2013). Globally reed has A building permit from 1889 issued in Hader-
been used as building material. This makes the slev, Southern Denmark states: “The thatched
material a clear candidate as a mediator between roof … (must be) sewn with galvanized iron wire,
local building traditions, detailing and scaling, and above all 4… exit doors of the house, the
and generic technologies, and global infrastruc- roof must be … underlined with clay”.2 Although
ture and building systems. This article takes point it is not specifically mentioned to be due to fire
of departure in a cross-disciplinary research hazards, the context makes it plausible that the
project that focuses on thatched facades and clay clay treatment is for fire safety measures. Fur-
as a fire retardant. The project is funded by the thermore, the construction manual, Byggebogen
Danish Environmental, Technology, Develop- (“The Building Book”), from 1949 describes a
ment and Demonstration Program (MUDP), and historic fire retarding technique in roofs from
is a collaboration between DBI—The Danish Southern Schleswig, Germany. The technique
Institute of Fire and Security Technology, Strå- consists of a mixture of clay and ammonia which
tagets Kontor (Joint Secretariate of the Danish was applied to the reed bundles before thatching
Thatchers Guild), and a couple of thatchers, a (Kjærgaard 1949).
clay mason, and a group of architectural On the basis of the historic research, the pro-
researchers. cedural and anecdotal knowledge of the thatchers,
Historic investigations of thatched facades and the fire and building technical knowledge of
point to a previous tradition of façade thatching the engineers and architects, 14 small test mock-
in Denmark, although it most likely was a pro- ups were constructed. The mock-ups were
visional measure. Most known is the “Dutch designed as 90-degree angles in calcium silicate
mills”, which originally had thatched facades as plates measuring 235  15 mm at one side,
the material was economically affordable and 220  20 mm at the other side, and 600 mm in
within reach (Andersen 2011). In the Danish height. The mock-ups were held together by
vernacular architecture, bundles of reed or straw metal brackets. The reed was dipped, sprayed,
have been fastened with battens to the facade.1 and painted with different mixtures of limewash,
This was done to protect the limewashed waddle moraine clay, clay adhesive and ammonia, and
and daub constructions from wind and rain pro- mounted with metal straps on the inward side of
longing the material lifespan and reducing the the angles (thickness of max. 50 mm). After
frequency of maintenance. This tradition still drying, the weight of the mock-ups was noted,
exists as a stylized architectural feature in the before they were subjected to a Mini SBI test
small costal village of Hesnæs on the Danish (Single Burn Item test) (Figs. 1 and 2).
island Falster (Christensen 1984). Another ver- The best performing adhesive (sprayed mor-
nacular tradition from Falster is thatched gables, aine clay) was applied to two full-scale SBI tests.
where the thatched roof was prolonged to the The mock-ups were designed as a façade section
of 1200 mm width  2400 mm height. The
thatched layer of 220–250 mm reed was fastened

1
As an example, in the 1920s the Danish architect and
museum director, Halvor Zangenberg, documented ver-
nacular farmhouses in photos and descriptions. His works
contain multiple pictures of buildings with reed cladded 2
From a building permit from the address, Ørby 20,
facades. Danish National Museum, [Link] retrieved from the municipal archive of Haderslev with
[Link]/. thanks to architects Nik and Sigmundur Hyllestad.
Prototyping Thatched Facades—Global Scaling of Local Knowledge 485

Fig. 1 Sketch of the angel

model for the initial test burns
(mini SBI)

Fig. 2 Thatching the mock-

up

with metal screws and wires on a fireproof MDF was cancelled for safety reasons. Although the
board mounted on a wooden frame raised test was incomplete the charring and pockets of
400 mm above ground level. The mock-ups were unburned clay inside the reed construction sug-
closed on the sides and at the bottom with MDF gested that the clay had a positive fire preventing
boards. Test #1 (sprayed moraine clay) was effect. The FIGRA of the incomplete test was
incomplete as the prototype was not mounted measured at 140 W/s. Mock-up #2 (sprayed
properly onto the rig in the test chamber. The moraine clay and clay boards as fire stop) was
failure occurred, as the backside of the rig was mounted correctly onto the rig in the test cham-
not covered properly according to regular stan- ber and was successfully burned showing a
dards hence allowing a chimney effect on the FIGRA-value of 25 W/s (Fig. 3).
backside of the mock-up. After 22 min the test
486 H. Ejstrup and A. Beim

Fig. 3 The three SBI test

mock-ups. Left.:
unimpregnated reed. Middle,
mock-up 1: impregnated reed.
Right, mock-up 2:
impregnated reed and fire
stops with clay boards in
recesses

which was intended to function both as wind

2 Prototyping at the Construction breaker and the underlying construction layer for
Site the thatch. The thatching was mounted horizon-
tally in sections of 100 cm divided by a fire
The design of the mock-ups showed the poten- stopper (clay board). Between each layer of the
tials of different architectural expressions, reed it was sprayed with moraine clay.
building techniques, and building processes. To The prototype pointed to several problems of
elaborate on the consequences of the reduction- the clay impregnation technique. The most grave
istic results, it was decided to do a full-scale was the interruption of the usual “workflow” of
construction, where problems and possibilities of the thatcher as the clay mason had to intervein to
the buildability and aesthetics could be investi- apply the clay. An alternative workflow occur-
gated further. A prototype of a building corner red, as the compressor that gave air to the mortar
with the dimensions of an average one-storey sprayer used for applying the clay was under-
building was constructed. The corner represented dimensioned (ca. 24 l./1,500 W). This gave nat-
multiple critical joints regarding the transition ural breaks when the compressor had to recharge.
between the thatched layer and the load-bearing These breaks were utilized by the thatchers to
construction, as well as the scale made it relat- mount the next section. The assessment of the
able to the standard housing recognizable to the process was that it came with a high labor cost,
general public. The prototype only implied the as the waiting time for either the thatcher or the
roof construction and did not include the foun- mason made the process slow compared to
dation of the construction. standardized building methods. On the other
The first building corner prototype was con- hand, time was saved since the standard glass
structed for the 70% less CO2 exhibition at The fiber fabric did not have to be mounted.
Royal Danish Academy in the fall/winter of When the exhibition closed in March 2022, a
2021/2022. For the load-bearing structure, mod- reduced part of the prototype was placed outside
ular elements of wooden frames filled with to be exposed to weathering and human tear. In
compressed straws (Ecococon) were used. The June 2022, it was transported by truck to Aalborg
walls were plastered with clay sprayed upon a to an open-air exhibition facilitated by the 5th
hemp mesh. On the external side, the elements International Association of Structures and
were clad with wood fiber boards (Agapan), Architecture (ICSA). The prototype was
Prototyping Thatched Facades—Global Scaling of Local Knowledge 487

deconstructed in mid-July. Visual inspections had to be done in layers, from the outside in,
during the period from March to July showed which made sectionized deconstruction difficult.
that the clay did not wash out and tear as This generated a great amount of material waste
expected. Initially, it was perceived that the air- that could have been reused directly as thatch
dried clay would wash off or crumble within material. Instead, it was down-cycled to animal
weeks, when exposed to rain and human tear. bedding and waste. The Ecococon elements were
When the prototype was deconstructed, the clay held together by wooden frames and screws, and
was still sticking on to both facades. The recesses they were easily disassembled and harvested for
and eaves had acted as a constructional protec- reuse. Metal scrap like screws, straps, and wires
tion and underneath eaves the clay visually were collected and recycled as metal waste
seemed unaffected by weathering. This indicates (Fig. 4).
that constructional protection like deeper eaves
or recesses can hinder the weathering of the clay
impregnation significantly. In addition, a 3 Prefabricated Façade Elements
hypothesis is that the mortar sprayer is central to
the fastening of the clay, as it is driving the clay A second version of the project was accepted for
into the reed buts thereby securing a deeper the Architecture Triennale in Lisbon in Septem-
binding. ber 2022, where new ideas for sustainable con-
The disassembly of the prototype was diffi- struction methods were called for. Due to
cult, as there was no structured system of re- transportation and costs it was important that the
harvesting of the reed in place. Furthermore, it elements could be flat-packed and assembled on-
site with only handheld tools. Furthermore, the
economy and tools provided by the institution of
the exhibition pointed to a manual approach for
assembling the prototype. Therefore lifting,
mounting, etc. of the elements should be man-
ageable by two persons with handheld tools.
Again, it was decided to use Ecococon elements
for the load-bearing structure, as they could be
flat-packed together with Agapan boards. The
thatched façade was transformed into a modular
cladding system. This consisted of cassettes
made by the wooden boards, in which the
thatching was mounted. Altogether 14 cassettes
were constructed assembled by a thatcher and an
assistant in 4 weeks in a workshop. The cassettes
were mounted on the load-bearing construction
by angle cut battens. The thatched layer was
mounted with the same workflow as in the first
prototype with clay boards as fire stops every
100 cm, and sprayed moraine clay on each
thatched section. On each side of the cassette, the
reed was angled outward to cover up the joints
between the cassettes. This was both to suggest a
thesis on how water could be handled technically
in the construction in relation to the joints
Fig. 4 The first thatched construction at the exhibition between the thatched prefabricated cassettes, and
70% less CO2 exhibition to gain an aesthetically unison expression. After
488 H. Ejstrup and A. Beim

4 Sketching Thatched Masonry

With reference to the building technologies

related to thatch from The Netherlands, an
architectural proposal was sent to the Virserum
Biennale in Sweden in April 2022. The paper
project suggested a thatched and clay-
impregnated isolating masonry construction
(Porotherm clay blocks) for a one-storey building
(single-family house). The thatching is fixed
directly onto the masonry wall with no ventilated
cavity.
In collaboration with RØNNOW, Leth and
Gori Architects, the construction concept has
been accepted for further development as part of
the Danish competition: “From Four to One
Planet” launched by the funding bodies of
Realdania and the Villum Foundation in the
autumn of 2022. The overall idea is to propose a
four-storey apartment building in homogenous
insulating block masonry with thatched facades.
Fig. 5 The second thatched construction with prefabri- The project is still under development, so no real-
cated cassettes mounted on the Ecococon element time constructional experience has yet been
harvested.
testing the system on the load-bearing structure The expectation is that the experiment with
in the workshop, the prototype was disassembled the prefabricated cassettes can be further devel-
and flat-packed for transportation to Lisbon. oped in the “From Four to One Planet” project.
Although it was technically difficult it was Again, the question about humidity is raised in
possible to thatch within the confined space of regard of the overall function of the thatched
the cassettes. The assembling on-site was also layer on a construction type that by proxy maybe
manageable for two persons, and the clay more relevant to cover with plaster or brick tiles.
impregnation did not seem to suffer any partic- Nevertheless, the pavilion will be exhibited in
ular damage during the transportation. One of the open air during the summer of 2023 enabling the
unsolved questions is, how the joining details of team to make further observations on the dete-
the prefabricated element will perform in open rioration of the clay and the moisture in the reed.
air, as the prototype only is exhibited in an
indoor area. Furthermore, questions concerning
the reed and how it responds to humidity both 5 Conclusions
within the confined space of the cassettes and
with the treatment of the clay remains unan- The practice-oriented research collaboration
swered. The construction has yet to be disas- between craftsmen, fire engineers, and architec-
sembled, but as it is mainly fastened by screws, tural researchers has been central to the devel-
we believe it is more successful and easier to opment of the three construction prototypes.
harvest the construction materials than its pre- Although the results of the SBI tests were con-
decessor (Fig. 5). fined to the fire-retardant effect of clay on reed,
Prototyping Thatched Facades—Global Scaling of Local Knowledge 489

the elaboration of the results into full-scale that the building techniques and methods can be
building constructions has informed discussions further developed and trained thereby improving
regarding future scenarios. If this method can be the buildability. However, thatching and
translated into plausible (accepted) building impregnation of prefabricated cassettes is asses-
techniques and how it can be handled or pro- sed as being more approachable for a broader
cessed at today’s construction sites. Furthermore, market, as it can be produced off-site, easily
the prototyping pointed to how elements could transported and mounted at the construction site
be prefabricated in workshops manually or even thereby fitting into existing efficient processes in
further developed to a semi-automated or fully the construction industry.
automated industrial level.
Questions about how mechanical tear and
weathering of the clay and reed have been raised 6 Perspectives
as a discussion in regard of all the prototypes.
Secondly, questions about how the reed would The SBI fire test prototypes have generated a
react in regard of the hygroscopic properties of series of full-scale construction prototypes that
the clay over time. Another sub-question was takes craftmanship and modern processes of
how the overall biogenic construction would fabrication into consideration. The cross-
perform if exposed to fire? In this context it is disciplinary approach had the outcome that the
mentionable, that in Denmark anecdotal stories scientific results promptly could be discussed and
exist suggesting that reed thatched directly on assessed both from a technological perspective as
wooden boards without a ventilated cavity does well as a cultural point of view. This has resulted
not burn easily and has no increased tendency for in various prototypes and full-scale construc-
rot. The Danish stories are backed by experiences tions, which tests the theses about buildability
from the Netherlands. Here fire prevention in and aesthetical expressions. It would be benefi-
new constructions is based on the method of cial as part of further development, if the different
thatching directly on a solid layer of plywood construction prototypes could be submitted to an
without any ventilated cavity (Janse 2010). SBI fire test thereby instigating a second iteration
Generally, Dutch literature does not mention any of the prototypes. Furthermore, an investigation
increased damage of the reed due to humidity, into different placements of the clay impregna-
although this is contested in a Danish context by tion and its effect might again have an influence
concerns about moisture in reed, if not ventilated on the buildability and expression.
on the backside. This points to that further doc- If clay as impregnation for reed can be a
umentation based on experimental testing is secure alternative to traditional fire retardants
needed. Furthermore, a question on how the (glass fiber fabric) a new realm of biogenic
overall construction of the load-bearing structure construction could emerge. This path will require
with the thatched clay-impregnated façade would more research and probably result in a more
perform in a fire test is unanswered as well as it radical tectonic approach than offered by modern
suggests another practice of assessing, as todays constructions, also new on-site processes have to
tests are done by the layer and not by the overall be developed. Furthermore, cross-disciplinary
construction. work in the early stages of research is essential
On basis of the protype constructions it is to act both fast, with flexibility, and with as much
assessed to be possible to do the thatching and relevant knowledge up front to secure the most
clay impregnation on a regular construction site informed and sustainable development.
although the processes are slowed down due to Upscaling and variations of the prototypes
the layering of the materials in the construction. have pointed to other questions present in the
At its present state, it is only relevant for processes of the construction industry. As an
demonstration projects or financially exclusive example, the production of prefabricated ele-
construction project. The overall assessment is ments could be inspired by established industries
490 H. Ejstrup and A. Beim

such as assembly-line fabrication. Although the Acknowledgements This project is funded by the
production probably could be automated, a semi- Environmental Technology Development and Demon-
stration Program (MUDP) under the Danish Eco-
automated version where cassettes are mechani- innovation Program administered by the Ministry of
cally made but thatched by hand have other Environment of Denmark. It is a cross-disciplinary project
potentials. Fx. the production could also be involving The Danish Institute of Fire and Security
decentralized where thatchers could bid into Technology (DBI), Straatagets Kontor by Jørgen Kaarup
og Sven Jon Jonsen, Tækkemanden Horneby by Thomas
central tendered tasks (e.g., elements conveyed by Gerner, Hemmed Tækkefirma by Ruud Conijn, Egen
drawings from central database). This would have Vinding & Datter by Lasse Koefoed Nielsen and Martins
the benefits when the weather does not allow to Ozols, and Center for Industrialised Architecture
work on site, the thatcher could produce prefab- (CINARK).
ricated elements in their shop thereby having the
full benefit of their working hours.
In relation to this, a more widespread pro- References
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Kristjansen MP, Lauridsen TL, Trøjelsgaard K, Per-
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reed and clay are known building materials Kjærgaard P (ed) (1949) Byggebogen 348.91 Stråtag—
Marts 1949. København: Nyt Nordisk Forlag. http://
across the globe, the technological innovations
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 InterTwig—Willow and Earth
Composites for Digital Circular
Construction

Erik Zanetti, Eszter Olah, Tamara Haußer,

Gianluca Casalnuovo, Riccardo La Magna,
and Moritz Dörstelmann

Abstract short rotation coppice, that allow the plant to

regenerate in rapid cycles. To use willow for
The construction sector has high resource
construction, geometry and textile techniques
demands and generates a significant amount were implemented to create stable structures.
of waste, a consequence of its linear approach. In combination with earth, a finite but abun-
A shift towards renewable and local material
dant and infinitely recyclable material, it
sources and the implementation of closed creates a sustainable and circular composite
material cycles represent a significant oppor- that exploits the structural characteristics of
tunity for the construction industry to curtail
each constituent material. Digital design
the depletion of raw materials. To address methods enabled the exploration of different
these challenges, this paper presents a strategy geometrical variations and ensured an
for a novel circular construction method that
increased degree of control over their com-
combines willow, a rapidly renewable mate- plexity at different scales. The research results
rial, with earth and is enabled by digital were tested in a full-scale prototype, demon-
fabrication, which can sustain their industrial- strating the principles of the envisioned con-
isation through tailored processes. Emerging struction systems.
from a materiality perspective, the research
revisited vernacular building techniques that
used plant- and earth-based composites, exem- 1 Introduction
plified by the vernacular wattle and daub, to
understand how these can be enhanced The construction sector has high resource
through digital design and digital fabrication. demands and generates a significant amount of
Willow (Salix) is a woody plant native to waste, a consequence of its linear model, in
Europe whose stems can be harvested yearly, which resources are extracted, used and lastly
thanks to specific forestry practices, namely disposed of as waste (Çetin et al. 2021). It is
responsible for more than a third of global
resource consumption (Klep 2015) and accounts
E. Zanetti (&)
E. Olah
M. Dörstelmann for about 50% of all extracted material (European
Digital Design and Fabrication (DDF), Karlsruhe Commission 2020). In the EU, it accounts for
Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany over 35% of all waste generated (Eurostat 2022).
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]
A shift towards alternative, local means of
T. Haußer
G. Casalnuovo
R. La Magna sourcing and use of materials, as well as imple-
Design of Structures (dos), Karlsruhe Institute of
menting concepts for assembly and disassembly,
Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 491
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
492 E. Zanetti et al.

opens new possibilities for the construction 2022), wood and concrete (Dias et al. 2018),
industry to reduce the depletion of raw materials bamboo and earth (MAS Dfab ETH 2022) or
and implement circular material cycles. wood and earth (Trummer et al. 2022).
Material flows in a circular economy can be This paper aims to investigate a novel circular
divided into biological and technical cycles construction method that combines willow, a
(Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2022). Technical rapidly renewable material, and earth. In partic-
cycles focus on extending the life of secondary ular, it aims to understand how this building
raw materials through reuse or recycling. Bio- composite, already present in the vernacular
logical cycles rely on renewable resources or language, can be enabled and enhanced through
biodegradable materials that are used, regener- digital design and digital fabrication. Starting
ated and finally returned to the biosphere. Con- from a materiality perspective, the research
sidering the European context, wood is regaining revisited plant- and earth-based composites by
importance and remains the only significant exploring novel building techniques through
renewable building material in the industry for hand-made prototypes at increasing scales
structural applications. However, within the accompanied by the development of their
repertoire of historic building techniques, other respective digital fabrication concepts and cus-
construction methods that use renewable mate- tom machinery. This ultimately led to the fabri-
rials can be found. One such construction method cation of a full-scale demonstrator made of the
is exemplified by the European vernacular wattle combination of willow and earth.
and daub, in which renewable materials are
combined with earth-based materials into a sus-
tainable composite. Such vernacular techniques 2 Materials and Methods
and materials, based on old craftsmanship and
know-how, are of limited applicability for mass To explore novel circular material systems, the
production and have been sidelined by the research started by examining the properties of
industrial revolution over the years. the materials. The objective was to assess their
To create novel circular material cycles, the suitability for construction applications by
material shift should therefore be supported by reviewing relevant literature. This exploration
devising new fabrication concepts, tools and aimed to gain insights into the materials’ poten-
technologies. Digital fabrication, in particular, tial for circularity, their current applications, and
can enable custom solutions for novel material their availability. Concurrently, the research
processes, providing in this way a plausible iteratively developed initial concepts for utilising
industrialised serial construction. With the help these materials, primarily focusing on architec-
of digital fabrication, renewable materials other tural applications, structural characteristics, cir-
than wood (such as bamboo, willow, reed and cularity, and digital fabrication prospects.
flax) are being revised through new processing One selected concept was further developed
techniques. The approaches are disparate, rang- as a construction system. Its fabrication system
ing from post-processing the raw materials for and details were prototyped and tested in differ-
use in additive manufacturing (Dawod et al. ent configurations, using both hand-made and
2019) or filament winding (Gil Pérez et al. 2022), digital techniques. Eventually, a full-scale
to using the material with minimal processing demonstrator served to test the correlations
thanks to demountable joints (Bouza and Asut between the different parts of the design, fabri-
2020; ETH Zurich 2022). cation and assembly process.
Combinations of renewable materials with This progression involved incrementally
other materials allow for the creation of com- scaling up the research prototypes and employing
posites that exploit the specific properties of each a design-through-making methodology. Addi-
material. Such investigations combine, for tionally, specialised subtopics such as material
example, willow and mycelium (Özdemir et al. characterisation and the advancement of the
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 493

digital fabrication system were explored, incor- back to the stump and regenerates year after year
porating feedback loops with the primary line of (Verwijst et al. 2013). Although SRC is still
investigation. marginal in Germany and most European coun-
tries compared to land used for cropland and
forests (Faasch and Patenaude 2012), the area has
2.1 Material Selection been increasing in recent years and could replace
marginal agricultural land with minimal effects
2.1.1 Willow on overall food and feed production (Aust et al.
Plant-based materials have a high potential for 2013).
introducing sustainable and circular principles Willow (Salix), in particular, can be coppiced
into construction and for rethinking building every year and the plant remains productive for
materials as non-dependent on finite resources. In several decades (Fig. 1). Although willow spe-
particular renewable materials, defined as “ma- cies are present worldwide, their main natural
terials that are continually replenished at a rate distribution is in the northern hemisphere (Ver-
equal to or greater than the rate of depletion” wijst et al. 2013). When they are not used as
(Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2019), and rapidly energy crops, willow is sold in bundles after
renewable materials, defined by USGBS as being left to dry for a year (Fig. 2).
“made from agricultural products that are typi- Thanks to the combination of fast growth
cally harvested within a 10-year or shorter cycle” cycles, regional availability and the existence of
(USGB 2022), offer the potential to introduce forestry practices for its commercial availability,
circular systems that are based on biological willow could become a local alternative to
cycles, returning the materials to the biosphere at bamboo in Europe, albeit showing vastly differ-
the end of their lifecycle. ent structural properties. For willow to be con-
Specific forestry practices for rapidly renew- sidered a building material, structural and
able materials, namely short rotation forestry consistent stiffness was introduced by exploiting
(SRF) and short rotation coppice (SRC), are geometrical and textile principles, such as
currently used for energy production and can weaving and braiding (Fig. 3).
enable large-scale harvesting. Notably, SRC These techniques utilise the bendability of the
involves shorter cycles in which the plant is cut willow stems to form three-dimensional woven or

Fig. 1 Willow (Salix) plants during harvesting

494 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 2 Bundles of willow stems after a 1-year growth cycle and a 1-year drying period

Fig. 3 Exploratory prototyping implementing braiding (a) and weaving (b) techniques

braided structures that have a higher structural the best balance between flexibility, thickness,
stiffness than the single stems, while still retaining area of cultivation and growth cycle (Table 1).
tensile capacity. This study tested different types Among the initial concepts (Fig. 4), additive
of commercially available willow to determine willow weaving (Fig. 4b) was chosen as the
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 495

Table 1 Different commercially available willow types were tested and evaluated according to their flexibility, area of
cultivation and length after a 1-year cycle
Plant Length of stems Average Closest area of Availability Flexibility
(1-year growth diameter of cultivation in large after 14 days
cycle) (cm) stems (mm) (commercially quantities of soaking
available)
Salix alba 250 9 Spain +++ +
Salix 240 8 Germany (Rheinland- +++ ++
purpurea Pfalz, RP)
uralensis
Salix 220 9 Germany (RP) + +++
fragilis
Salix 260 8 Germany (RP) ++ +++
purpurea

Fig. 4 a–c Initial 1:1 prototypes used to assess the initial concepts for d digital fabrication, e structural optimisation
potential and f envisioned architectural application
496 E. Zanetti et al.

Table 2 Earth techniques for construction

Technique Processing state1 Processing intensity Load-bearing
Mortar and bricks Plastic Low Yes
Cob Plastic Low Yes
Rammed earth Optimum High Yes
Earth bag Plastic Low Yes
Compressed earth blocks (CEB) Optimum Medium Yes
Adobe Plastic Low Yes
Wattle and daub Plastic Low No
Light earth Liquid Low No
Plaster Plastic Low No
Deep-soil mixing Plastic Medium Yes
Casting in willow formwork (InterTwig) Plastic Low Yes

method with the most potential for further research with no loss of mechanical strength. In this way,
thanks to its simple fabrication process, geometrical earth-based materials can be considered infinitely
freedom for different construction applications recyclable.
and potential for localised earth infill. A selection of different earth construction
methods is shown in Table 2, highlighting their
2.1.2 Earth differences in terms of the amount of processing
Earth-based materials have been used in vernacular required, whether the final structure is load-
architecture both as individual construction ele- bearing and their state during construction.
ments (e.g. monolithic walls) and in combination
with other materials (e.g. wattle and daub). Previous 2.1.3 Earth and Willow Composite
research into their benefits in terms of climate Willow as a fast-renewable and locally abundant
control, and their effect on humidity and energy material has been used in vernacular practices for
efficiency (Fabbri et al. 2022) has renewed efforts several centuries. Examples range from basket
for earth-based materials to be re-introduced into weaving, where willow is used in a three-
contemporary architecture. Offering an alternative to dimensional arrangement, to wattle and daub,
currently predominant aggregate materials, they where a two-dimensional woven lattice is used as
require far less embodied energy during manufac- infill within a timber frame structure. However,
turing than traditional building materials (Bruno these techniques are generally small-scale and do
et al. 2020). Earth-based materials have also been not create load-bearing components.
found to have a significantly lower global warming Using woven willow as tension reinforcement
potential than traditional concrete (Hegger et al. for the compression-bearing earth components
2007). Depending on the application and the pre- can create three-dimensional building elements
processing, earth-based materials can be crushed for a self-contained construction system. Addi-
and mixed again for new applications or returned as tionally, implementing the woven willow struc-
soil without loss of value or generating waste tures shown in Sect. 2.1.1 as an integrated
(Hegger et al. 2007). In particular, if earth-based permanent formwork for earth means that the
materials are used without stabilisers (such as
1
cement)—which improve their properties but make Optimum refers to the optimum water content state
the final material system irreversible (Zami and Lee where the soil reaches maximum dry density. Plastic state
indicates an excess of water above this level. Liquid state
2010)—the clay binding allows a complete and is from the point when the earth begins to crumble when
low-energy recycling of earth (Linden et al. 2019) rolled into a specific cylindrical shape.
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 497

Table 3 Additives for earth (based on Vyncke et al. 2018; Cruz 2013 and own research)
Additive Function Relative Circularity
cost
Straw Tension reinforcement, lighter € Yes, biodegradable
weight
Sawdust Shrinking improvement, lighter € Yes, biodegradable
weight
Seagrass Tension reinforcement, lighter €€ Yes, biodegradable
weight
Sand Increased compression strength €€ Yes, reusable after separation
Stones Increased compression strength €€ Yes, reusable after separation
Pozzolans Increased compression strength €€ No, irreversible chemical stabilising
process
Biopolymer Increased durability €€€ Yes, recyclable
Cement Increased durability €€ No, irreversible chemical stabilising
process
Lime Increased durability € No, irreversible chemical stabilising
process
Soda Increased durability € No, irreversible chemical stabilising
process
Sodium Increased durability €€€ No, irreversible chemical stabilising
hydroxide process

placement of earth could be optimised thus sav- choosing the additives, it was important to
ing material and energy, contributing to the evaluate their circularity—avoiding using cement
overall sustainability of the composite. and similar additives—with a preference for
Different techniques and material mixtures locally sourced and minimally processed mate-
were explored to find those that could bond and rials. Table 3 lists additives, in terms of their
be poured into the woven willow to provide function, relative cost and circularity.
structural stability, through a series of experi- The final mixture was created by using com-
ments informed by prior research. mercial earth products, with known standards.
Initial findings showed that clay was an These were tested in small prototypes in combi-
essential part of the mixture as it introduced nation with different additives (Fig. 5). The two
cohesion by acting as a binding agent between products, known as “plaster underlay” (Conluto
the willow formwork and the earth mixture. 2022) and “building loam” (Claytec 2022), were
However, too much clay causes cracks to appear mixed in a 10:1 ratio. The former contains a large
when drying as it increases the amount of part of sand and aggregates—for strength and to
shrinkage. Since the mechanical behaviour of avoid shrinking—while the latter contains sig-
earth depends not just on cohesion but also on nificant amounts of clay, which contributes to
friction due to the granular additives (Morel et al. plasticity and cohesion. This mixture was then
2021), sand or other aggregates were essential. combined with straw fibres of 1–2 cm to further
While the addition of sand improved the avoid shrinking (Fabbri et al. 2022).
shrinking behaviour, it decreased the plasticity of The result was a mixture used in a cob-like
the mixture (Fabbri et al. 2022) thus making it technique in which the additive content and
more difficult to fill in the cavities. When water content could be varied to achieve the
498 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 5 Small prototypes combining commercially available earth products with different additives

optimum mixture properties. This technique is the otherwise thin and bendable material into
compared to other earth techniques used in load-bearing configurations. Different approa-
construction in Table 2. ches were explored, aided by creating various
weaving sequences with digital techniques,
which were then tested in prototypes (Fig. 7).
2.2 Fabrication and Geometrical Two main approaches emerged and were cate-
Strategy gorised into linear and closed patterns (Fig. 6).
The final configuration consisted of a combina-
2.2.1 Additive Willow Fabrication tion of the two, exploiting their individual
Material Preparation Before the willow can be strengths: linear patterns distribute the stress
used for weaving, it must be temporarily softened throughout the component, while closed patterns,
to enhance its flexibility by soaking in water or which follow the triangular base grid, stabilise
by steaming. The latter method is faster, taking the component locally. Different patterns were
six hours to reach the required flexibility for the alternated to create sequences that created cell-
foreseen application, instead of two weeks. like configurations.
Soaking offers, however, the potential for a less Several parameters were observed to influence
energy-intensive process, whose timing could be the resulting strength of the prototypes (Fig. 8).
matched with the schedule of a fabrication line. The tightness of the weaving around the vertical
Setup for Fabrication The setup for fabrication elements was important as this increased the
comprised a bed of wood poles in which willow is friction and the pattern would be closer to the
arranged in an additive process to create a three- shortest path, thus creating components more
dimensional structure (Fig. 6). In this first resistant to deformation. The prototypes also
exploration, a base grid of equilateral triangles tended to delaminate under shear stress as no
was chosen in order to make use of their resis- chemical binders were used between the layers,
tance to deformation. The distance between the in order to maintain the circular potential of the
vertical elements followed the need to minimise final product. This was counteracted by adding
free-spanning willow stems, which act as unre- strings and self-locking washers (Fig. 9).
inforced elements, while maximising the spacing
for reachability during the weaving process. 2.2.2 Earth Casting
Weaving Patterns The weaving process fol- Earth Distribution The willow formwork con-
lowed a sequence of patterns, which transformed sisted of distinct cells, bounded by layers of
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 499

Fig. 6 Fabrication setup showing weaving patterns on poles (a), with linear (b) and closed (c) types, which create the
cell-like structures (d)

Fig. 7 Different types of weaving pattern configurations, developed digitally and tested with hand-made prototypes
500 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 8 Prototypes to test the influence of different parameters

Fig. 9 Delamination (a), strings (b) and self-locking washers (c)

willow on each side, which enabled the use of Setup for Fabrication There are a number of
plastic-state earth as a filling material. readily available tools and machines to aid the
Two parameters were considered when filling process; however, using them adds con-
choosing which cells to fill. As earth was the straints on the composition of the earth mixture
main contributor to self-weight, minimising the as the additive sizes and viscosity need to con-
earth infill meant easier handling and trans- form to the machine dimensions and the extru-
portation. Secondly, the surface area exposed to sion mechanism.
air had to be maximised, in order to aid evapo- Long straw fibres reduce the amount of
ration and reduce drying time (Fig. 10). shrinking but will block the pipes used with
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 501

done by hand in batches and followed by the

compaction with a concrete vibrator.

2.2.3 Digital Fabrication Development

In order to prove the feasibility of the automated
digital weaving process, a customised digital
fabrication system was developed. This consisted
of a two-axis, stepper motor-driven system,
controlled by an FPGA-based controller running
G-codes, which pulls willow stems within the
bed of poles (Fig. 12).
The unpredictable behaviour of unprocessed
materials gave rise to several challenges during
the development of the digital fabrication system.
Firstly, analysing the process of hand-
weaving versus machine-weaving highlighted
Fig. 10 Top view of a component showing willow cells some key differences. During hand-weaving, the
(a) and earth-filled areas (b) defined by poles (c) willow is supported in two points and the bend-
ing location is controlled by the distance of these
two support positions, whereas the machine pulls
conventional mortar pumps and are also more the willow stems through the bed of poles. This
likely to separate from the earth mixture during results in less control over the point where the
compaction. However, choosing a mixture willow bends and higher friction with the poles,
using such tools can streamline the process and with a consequent higher chance of stems
make the construction system more viable. breaking in case of patterns with small bending
Process of Fabrication Compaction was done radii. While this aspect can be minimised, a
locally in each cell by a concrete vibrator. This specific repertoire of machine paths that avoided
was to ensure that the mixture reaches all the tight radii had to be developed.
crevices in the components and that air bubbles Due to the changing diameter of the willow
are removed (Fig. 11). Thus, the entire process stems, the orientation for machine-weaving was
emerged, starting with pre-mixing the dry crucial. The thinner sections were able to take on
ingredients, adding the water in a concrete mixer more bending but were also less resistant to the
to create a uniform material; filling was then large stresses caused by pulling at the end effector

Fig. 11 Willow and earth combination in a component, top (a) and side (b) views
502 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 12 View of the two-axis machine showing the bed of poles (a), the end effector (b) and the stepper motors (c)

which resulted in the willow breaking. Thicker counterbalance the inconsistencies created by the
parts of the willow were more resistant to tearing non-processed willow stems. A digital design
but also stiffer to bend which in turn meant that process was developed that automated the
the forces were transferred to the wooden poles workflow from overall volumetric geometry to
effectively bending them about their vertical axes. the creation of the fabrication setup and patterns,
Finally, the varying lengths of the willow stems which were finally exported either as instructions
were also considered during the machine fabri- for a person weaving or as a coded path for the
cation by designing the machine paths with machine.
overlaps between consecutive branches. Two different component types were explored
in this study.
Components Made of Willow and Earth These
2.3 Component Design were planned to be used in a horizontal orienta-
tion with respect to the fabrication setup. Their
The design language emerged from the possi- maximum size was restricted by the weight of the
bilities of geometrical freedom that the fabrica- final components, to ensure transportability. The
tion process affords, enabling non-standardised geometrical freedom in the XY plane was
elements that can be tailored to specific condi- exploited to create interlocking components
tions. In the XY fabrication plane (see Fig. 6), a (Fig. 14) and the sequence of weaving patterns
large range of shapes is possible, while the was tuned to allow for bigger gaps so that the
freedom is restricted to a variation of heights in earth could flow between the cells.
the Z direction, up to a maximum of 50 cm to Components Made of Willow These could be
avoid bending the vertical elements excessively. arranged more freely, horizontally or vertically
Seven final weaving patterns were repeated in with respect to the fabrication setup. In this case,
different sequences until the desired height was a pattern sequence that created denser compo-
reached to create a component (Fig. 13). In this nents was implemented to achieve more stable
way, redundancy was introduced in the system to configurations.
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 503

Fig. 13 Example of a willow

and earth component, which
shows earth (a), poles (b) and
different weaving patterns (c)

Fig. 14 Interlocking
component system

The component design included the integra- five identical samples were tested. The tensile
tion of additional elements for joinery, trans- test of individual willow stems (Fig. 15a) aimed
portation and assembly. to obtain an average value of the maximum
tensile stress. Stems of different thicknesses were
tested and the tensile force was converted to
2.4 Material Characterisation stress with respect to the available cross-sectional
area. Three willow stems laid parallel to each
As this is a new material combination for which other (Fig. 15c) provided a reference value to
no standard exists, a wide variety of structural braided willow (Fig. 15b) to be able to record the
test scenarios were necessary to understand both influence of the braiding on tensile strength.
the respective properties of the individual mate- For the earth tests, cube samples were made
rials and the behaviour of their combination. with a side length of 20 cm (Volhard and Röhlen
For the classification of willow, the focus was 2009) to test the compressive strength of the self-
placed on different tensile test scenarios. Willow developed earth mixture (see Sect. 2.2.2) once
is a natural material that has a large variation in the equilibrium moisture was reached (about six
tensile strength due to material imperfections, so weeks) (Volhard and Röhlen 2009).
504 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 15 Single willow stem

(a), three willow stems
braided (b), three parallel
willow stems (c), braided
willow in the testing machine
(d)

To test the interaction between willow and reduced tensile force, the better bonding effect
earth as a composite material, rectangular test between willow and earth was a great advantage.
specimens with dimensions 10 cm  10 cm Furthermore, a tensile stress capacity was
75 cm were made, which underwent bending observed in the earth-willow test specimens,
tensile strength tests using a four-point bending which withstood a load of up to 2.2 kN in the
setup. four-point bending setup before the beams failed
Finally, two willow reinforcement types were or the deformation became too large, compared
examined. First, the willow was placed in the to specimens made of only earth with the same
formwork in three layers (Fig. 16), where the dimensions, which broke directly under their
reinforcement acted as a tie rod. The second type self-weight.
was a three-dimensional willow structure
(Fig. 17). Due to the spatial reinforcement
structure, a three-dimensional force transmission 3 Results
was expected (cf. truss).
The test scenarios described above were carried A full-scale demonstrator named “InterTwig”
out qualitatively and still require further develop- was developed and built by an interdisciplinary
ment steps to obtain quantitative results from them. team of students and researchers at the Karlsruhe
The preliminary tensile tests of the single Institute of Technology (KIT). It was presented
willow stems showed that they can absorb an in Karlsruhe in July 2022 (Figs. 18 and 19).
average tensile stress of about 70–90 N/mm2, The demonstrator served as a proof of concept
depending on the minimum and maximum cross- to test the whole process from design to fabri-
sectional area of the tested willow stems. The cation to assembly, widening the scope of the
earth cubes absorbed an average compressive research from components to a whole structure
stress of 1.8 N/mm2. representative of a construction system. Specifi-
In the case of the braided willow stems, lower cally, it aimed to test component logics (inter-
absorbed tensile force was observed in compar- locking components vs. joints) and different
ison to the willow stems that were laid parallel to application potentials (load-bearing willow and
each other. Although the braided willow had a earth components vs. lightweight willow
InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 505

Fig. 16 Test specimen with willow laid in layers parallel to each other (a), specimen before loading (b), specimen at
failure load (c)

Fig. 17 Test specimen with spatially braided willow (a), specimen before loading (b), specimen at failure load (c)
506 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 18 View of InterTwig

Fig. 19 Top view of InterTwig

InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 507

graded, with earth being predominant at the

bottom to carry the loads from the top and dis-
tribute them over a larger area. To determine the
proportion of earth to willow, each component
was first analysed globally with reference to its
local position, thus determining the approximate
direction of the component's internal forces. This
informed the overall earth distribution, which,
thanks to the versatility of the willow formwork,
can be placed only where needed, facilitating the
implementation of material efficiency principles
to create structural earth components that are
lighter than usual applications like rammed earth.
This resulted in earth and willow components
with a total weight ranging between 150 and
430 kg and an average of 315 kg (Fig. 22).
By designing a construction and material
system that does not use chemical binders, the
components can be separated into renewable
(willow, wood and straw) and non-renewable
Fig. 20 Exploded view of InterTwig (earth) materials and circulated back through
different cycles. By maintaining the earth in its
components), integrate a structural scenario for raw form with no stabilising agents, it can be
earth distribution and test the assembly process. removed from the willow framework by satu-
Designed as a freestanding structure, the rating it with water and recycled without any
demonstrator forms a tapered shape that rises to a significant loss of value. Once the earth is
height of about 4 m. Its core is articulated into removed from the components, willow and wood
four legs at the base with a ground plane area of can be returned to the biosphere through com-
7.5 m2. posting or anaerobic digestion.
It consists of 21 components that have been The temporary purpose of the structure rep-
prefabricated, thus enabling a production that is resented an opportunity to implement and test a
independent of weather conditions and a con- construction system that was designed to work
struction system that optimises ease of assembly with reversible, easily accessible joinery systems
and disassembly (Fig. 20). The 16 components at and lifting anchors (Fig. 23). These connections
the base of the structure, composed of willow are integrated into the components with wooden
and earth, are geometrically interlocked and plates that are kept in place by the woven willow
stacked on site. Here, the willow acts as a per- layers, while the lifting anchors for the compo-
manent formwork and as a tension reinforcement nents made of willow and earth additionally
in the composite material. The top five compo- employ a threaded rod. A truck with a mounted
nents, which are made primarily of willow and crane was used to transport and instal the struc-
mechanically connected to the bottom, are ture, which was assembled in 5 h and disas-
arranged in different layer orientations to create a sembled in 3 h (Fig. 24).
vertical segment that relies on component- Digital design techniques were fundamental
integrated joints and showcases the intricate fil- to handle and control the intricacy of different
igree of the material system (Fig. 21). The weaving patterns and their modification and
structure’s materials are therefore functionally optimisation according to the principles
508 E. Zanetti et al.

Fig. 21 Detail of a willow component, showcasing two pattern types (orange and yellow) and an integrated joinery

Fig. 22 Earth and willow components before assembly

InterTwig—Willow and Earth Composites for Digital Circular Construction 509

detailed, according to structural principles, thus

adapting them to specific design conditions.
A process that mutually informed handcraft-
ing, digital design and digital fabrication was
developed, exploring the innovation potential
provided by their combination. Digital design
and digital fabrication allowed the development
of customised principles that deal with the
imperfections and variations that are intrinsic in
plant-based materials, by-passing the standardis-
ation necessary to conform to existing fabrication
processes. While the current prototypes were
mostly hand-crafted, a digital fabrication system
was developed using the principles discovered in
the study that could enable automated and
affordable applications.
Fig. 23 Exploded view of a portion of InterTwig
showing the joinery system
4 Discussion and Conclusions
discovered in the iterations of exploratory pro-
totypes. While the application of digital tech- The presented work showcases a proof of con-
niques in this study focused on automation cept for the development of willow and earth
aspects, this is the first step for a process that composites for circular construction and their
could inform the geometries, both global and potential for digital fabrication, as well as

Fig. 24 Assembly of InterTwig

510 E. Zanetti et al.

providing relevant research questions for future References

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Biomimetics 7(2):39
 A Study on Carbon-Neutral
Biochar-Cementitious Composites

Nikol Kirova, Areti Markopoulou,

Jane Burry, and Mehrnoush Latifi

Abstract net embodied carbon of cementitious com-

posites when used as an amendment and
The global environmental challenges are call- cement replacement. As BCMs meet com-
ing for novel solutions and sustainable prac- pressive strength standards and can provide
tices in the fields of architecture and building materials with a net-negative embod-
construction. To respond to the SDGs agenda, ied carbon, the material research provides
the research investigates strategies for inte- valuable input for applications in the con-
grating biochar as an aggregate for struction sector. It is proposed that in the later
carbon-neutral cementitious composites and stages of the research the developed BCMs
to gain knowledge upon the effects that large can be applied within a materially driven
quantities of biochar within the material design process trough functionally grading the
system has on mechanical properties as well material and consequently designs with opti-
as carbon sequestration. The paper presents mised environmental impact can be achieved.
the development and assessment of a series of
grades of Biochar Cementitious Mortars
(BCMs). Assessment is structured upon (i) ma- Keywords
terial consistency, (ii) structural performance
and (iii) composite’s embodied carbon.

Biochar Cementitious composites

The results propose that biochar, derived

Carbon-neutral Carbon sinks

from agricultural waste, and as a carbon- Material-driven design
sequestering material, can be used to lower the

1 Introduction
N. Kirova (&) The buildings and construction sector accounted
Advanced Architecture Group, Institute for
Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, Barcelona,
for 39% of energy and process-related CO2
Spain emissions in 2020, 11% of which resulted from
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] manufacturing construction materials (United
N. Kirova
J. Burry
M. Latifi Nations Environment Programme 2020). Com-
School of Design, Swinburne University of pared to other construction materials, concrete
Technology, Melbourne, Australia stands out with its high use rate and environ-
A. Markopoulou mental impact (Estokova et al. 2017). Due to the
Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, high CO2 emissions associated with the
Barcelona, Spain

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 513
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
514 N. Kirova et al.

production of cement, the main ingredient of were no links between biochar and the con-
concrete, the cement industry alone accounts for struction sector, but this has changed. Research
approximately 5% of global anthropogenic CO2 publications on the non-agricultural uses of bio-
emissions (Birol 2019). char have increased exponentially since 2017.
Various frameworks, policies and interna- Several studies on cement mortars demonstrate
tional agreements starting with the Kyoto Pro- the carbon sequestering potential of biochar
tocol (1997) and more recently the Paris when investigated as an amendment to the
Agreement (2015) and the Sustainable Devel- composite (Gupta et al. 2021a, b, 2018a, b, c,
opment Goals (SDGs) have been put in place as 2017; Gupta and Kua 2020; Rockwood et al.
acting measures to prevent resource depletion 2020; Li et al.; Nair et al. 2020; Suarez-Riera
and a further increase in the CO2 emissions that et al. 2020). The main value of research on
has been directly linked to temperature rise biochar within the construction industry is that it
(Delbeke et al. 2019; European Commission is an abundant material with large carbon
2019). The “Advancing Net Zero” global cam- sequestering potential. Furthermore, it is pre-
paign conducted by the World Green Building dicted that the supply chain will increase soon as
Councils is working towards total sector decar- the interest in the properties and specifically its
bonisation by 2050. A net-zero carbon vision carbon sequestering potential creates incentives
acknowledges the time value of carbon emissions for its use outside of agriculture.
from materials and construction. One of the The properties of biochar have been explored
proposed ways to achieve the Net-Zero vision is for the first time in an architectural context by the
through radical cross-sector collaboration Ithaka Institute where it was demonstrated, on a
(WorldGBC 2019). In this context, the European building scale, how the use of biochar plaster can
Commission suggests that agricultural waste can regulate humidity, provide carbon negative fin-
be used to mitigate the large environmental ishing, and enhance thermal insulation (Schmidt
impact by potentially linking the construction 2014). Due to its non-structural application, the
and agricultural industries. It is proposed that biochar-based composite was to be mixed with
waste material from agricultural produce can be clay and lime instead of cement allowing for the
used within construction materials. material to be directly used as compost at the end
Building on the idea of cross-industry col- of its life cycle. The Ithaka Institute of research
laboration, the “From Farm to Facade” EU ini- laid the ground for further investigation of the
tiative proposes that by combining end-of-life applications and potential of biochar within the
products with new materials, the agricultural and built environment.
construction sectors can mutually benefit
(Polytechnic University of Bari 2021). For
example, if waste produced by the agricultural 2 Literature Review
sector is used as a product in the construction
sector not only does waste obtain a newfound 2.1 Sustainable Concrete
value and is therefore upcycled but raw materials Amendments
are not extracted and therefore depleted in the
same manner. This scenario aids both sectors to There are several types of industrial waste or by-
become more sustainable, producing less waste products that have pozzolanic properties, which
and decreasing their energy consumption and can substitute cement or be added in concrete to
loss. reduce the amount of cement needed. Some of
In 2016 a report by the European Environ- the most used by-products are blast furnace slag,
mental Citizen’s Organisation for Standardisa- which derives from the production of iron and
tion (ECOS), included biochar among other steel, silica fume, a by-product of the manufac-
waste materials that can be used as a fertiliser in turing of silicone, and fly ash, a by-product of the
the agricultural industry. Up until recently, there coal industry. Fly ash is one of the most adopted
A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 515

in the industry amendments for concrete, how- The study of Cuthbertson et al. (2019) sup-
ever it has significant environmental limitations. ported the observations of Akhtar and Sarmah
Cement replacement and sustainable concrete (2018). The compressive strength of concrete
amendments are slowly penetrating the concrete with the addition of biochar derived from dry
market but are limited by the associated eco- distiller grains was investigated. In particular, the
nomical costs and dependability on external, study looked at the effects of replacing sand and
often highly polluting, industries. An alternative aggregate within the composite with 1.2 and 3%
solution for a sustainable concrete amendment of biochar. The addition of 3% biochar yielded
that derives from the agricultural industry is maximum strengths of 21 MPa (when replacing
proposed, where biochar can be used within sand) and 22 MPa (when replacing aggregates).
cementitious materials to decrease the carbon In a study by Gupta et al. (2018a, b, c), the
footprint of concrete and cementitious mortars. optimum concentrations of biochar for increasing
Biochars are produced throughout the globe by the compressive strength of cement mortar were
the local agricultural industries, making them an found to be 1 and 2%. When compared to stan-
abundant product in comparison to some of the dard mortar, a significant increase of 22 and
previously discussed industrial by-products. 27% was observed. Following that, biochar
addition beyond 2% resulted in a reduction in the
strength.
2.2 Biochar-Cementitious Furthermore, Asadi Zeidabadi et al. (2018)
Composites reported maximum strength on the concrete
samples with added 5% bagasse biochar. In
The compressive strength of biochar cementitious contrast, Mrad and Chehab (2019) observed a
materials has been extensively studied in recent decrease in compressive strength when high
years. Research has shown that the mechanical percentages of biochar as 5% were added. Based
properties of biochar-cement composites can vary on these findings, we can conclude that the
depending on the type, content, and pyrolysis compressive strength of the concrete is highly
temperature of the biochar used. Studies have influenced by the feedstock used in the produc-
revealed a range of outcomes when it comes to tion of the biochar. The Sirico et al. (2020), also
the impact of biochar addition on the compressive agreed that the properties of the feedstock
strength of concrete and mortars. In general, most material have a great impact on the compressive
studies concur that high concentrations of biochar strength of the composite.
can weaken the composite, while low concentra- A recent study by Navaratnam et al. (2021)
tions (below 2%) can enhance strength through examined the effects of higher concentrations of
better hydration. Additionally, it is recognised biochar on cementitious mortars. The study tes-
that the source and type of biochar can greatly ted three different proportions of biochar (5, 10,
influence the mechanical properties of biochar- and 20% of cement weight) and found that the
cement composites, and further research is nee- compressive strength decreased as the biochar
ded to fully understand these differences. For concentration increased. Specifically, the com-
instance, a study by Akhtar and Sarmah (2018) pressive strength of the biochar mortars at room
found that adding 1% biochar to concrete blocks temperature was recorded at 35, 39, 28, and
made from rice husk, poultry litter, and paper mill 16 MPa for 0%, 5%, 10%, and 20% biochar
sludge resulted in lower compressive strength addition, respectively. This confirms the findings
than conventional concrete. However, after of other studies that the addition of biochar in
28 days of curing, the study found that the 1% higher quantities than 5% leads to a decrease in
addition of biochar improved the strength of the the compressive strength. Additionally, it can be
concrete due to improved hydration during the inferred that the feedstock type, pyrolysis tem-
curing process. perature, and particle size play a significant role
516 N. Kirova et al.

in the mechanical properties of biochar- indicating a growing interest in biochar and its
cementitious composites, but high concentra- ability to sequester carbon as more companies,
tions of any form of biochar will always lead to a industries, and researchers are exploring the
decrease in the compressive strength. The com- properties of this material.
position of concrete directly impacts its com-
pressive strength and introducing biochar in the
mixture ultimately results in a decrease in that 3 Materials and Methods
strength, however there is still room for investi-
gation of cementitious composites with high The research proposes that pyrolyzed agricultural
concentration of biochar (above 20%) as well as waste can be utilised within the construction
how does that relate to the embodied carbon sector as a carbon-sequestering amendment for
value of the material system. material composites. Creating synergies between
the construction and agricultural industries can
help develop sustainable solutions to support the
2.3 Biochar in Architectural growing population and the unavoidable con-
Composites struction of new housing and infrastructure.
Globally the agricultural industry generates about
In addition to cementitious composites, biochar 1.8% of the total global waste. Most of this waste
has also been utilised in other architectural is either being left to either decompose or used to
composites, with one of the most notable being create compost allowing for most of the captured
developed by the company Made of Air. Foun- CO2 to be released back into the atmosphere.
ded in 2016 by architects Allison Dring and However, through the process of pyrolysis,
Daniel Schwaag, Made of Air created a ther- agricultural waste can be transformed into bio-
moplastic that can be easily shaped and contains char, a stable carbon-rich material that sequesters
a significant amount of biochar mixed with sugar large amounts of carbon and holds them for long
cane. In April 2021, the thermoplastic was periods of time. Pyrolysis is a process during
employed for the first time on a building, which organic matter is being heated to high
specifically as the facade cladding on an Audi temperature in the absence of oxygen so that
dealership in Munich, comprising of seven ton- combustion does not take place and instead the
nes of hexagonal panels. It was estimated that the matter thermally decomposes into gas and char-
entire facade cladding sequestered 14 tonnes of coal (Boslaugh 2022).
carbon until the recycling of the cladding tiles Biochar is commonly used for soil remedia-
(Hahn 2021). tion (Sizmur et al. 2016; Matovic 2011), carbon
Another example of biochar-based architec- sequestration (Tan, 2020), energy storage and
ture can be found in the U.S. based company conversion purposes (Li et al. 2017), etc. The
``Interface'', which produced its first carbon- most common use of biochar, currently, is as a
negative carpet tile in 2021. The company spe- fertiliser. The architectural and construction
cialises in carpet backings made of biochar and applications of biochar are underdeveloped and
other composites. However, information on the have been explored more rigorously only in the
material composition and carbon footprint of past several years.
Interface's product is limited as it is currently on The phase of the research disclosed in this
the market. paper looks specifically into the material devel-
Currently, there are no biochar-based building opment and studies how the introduction of
or structural elements for the architectural sector. biochar affects the mechanical properties of
All the products mentioned above are related to cementitious composites when added in large
either interior or exterior cladding systems. quantities. The research is inspired by the idea
Nevertheless, it is noteworthy that all these that the carbon cycle can be altered as excess
products have reached the market after 2020, CO2 is removed from the atmosphere and
A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 517

sequestered within building structures and gather sufficient data to simulate the material
envelopes. The main premise is that as carbon is performance within computational design envi-
stored in buildings it converts them from “carbon ronments such as Rhino’s Grasshopper and
sources” into ``carbon sinks''. The research specifically the structural analysis plug-in
focuses on the mechanical properties of the Karamba3D.
developed composites when the quantity of bio- It is proposed that at the following stage of the
char is progressively increased and used as a research various computational design and fab-
cement replacement. rication techniques for heterogeneous or graded
Biochar as an amendment for cementitious material allocation will be explored to inform an
composites has been explored from a material optimal allocation of lower or higher quantities
engineering perspective. The addition of small of biochar in correspondence to case-specific
quantities of biochar within concrete has many structural needs. The design possibilities of the
beneficial properties such as carbon sequestration material system are at an initial stage of explo-
(Nair et al. 2020; Gupta et al. 2018a, b, c; Gupta ration. The goal is to propose a design solution
and Kua 2020; Das et al. 2020), improved veg- maximising the carbon sequestration potential
etation compatibility, fire resistance, thermal and aiming to mitigate the environmental impact
insulation, humidity regulation and acoustic of concrete construction.
dampening. However, the literature review indi-
cates that by introducing biochar to the com-
posite matrix the mechanical properties decline. 3.2 Carbon Sequestering Biochar
It is demonstrated that the quantity of biochar is Cementitious Composites
proportional to the decrease in both compressive
and tensile strength. This decrease can also be 3.2.1 Material System: Ingredients
associated with the decrease of cement within the The research investigates the addition of biochar
mixture. within a range of material mixtures of cementi-
tious mortars. Five sets of mixtures with varying
quantities of biochar are developed and stan-
3.1 Research Methodology dardised testing specimens are cast. The material
matrix is simplified to three main ingredients:
The study relies on empirical research in devel- Biochar; Sand and Cement. A detailed explana-
oping a materials system of Biochar Cementi- tion of each ingredient is provided below.
tious Mortars (BCMs) as well as testing the
Biochar
mechanical properties of the five grades of
developed BCMs. There are three main stages of Biochar is the main testing variable in the
development: preparation, prototyping and test- research. It is the material obtained when the
ing. The preparation includes a literature review, organic matter undergoes thermal decomposition
planning and material sourcing. The prototyping under a limited supply of oxygen at a relatively
phase consists of mould fabrication, material low temperature (<700 °C) (Vigneshwaran et al.
preparation, specimen fabrication and curing. 2021; Cha et al. 2016). It is a very stable carbon-
The first two stages of the research took place in rich material, which can sequester carbon for
the laboratory of the Institute for Advanced thousands of years. On average 1 kg of finished
Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC). The final biochar can sequester up to 1.8 kg of carbon
stage (testing) is carried out with the support of dioxide (Hettinger 2017). This value ranges from
an industry partner: BAC Engineering Consul- 0.5 to 2.8 kg depending on the type of feedstock
tancy Group (BAC ECG), at their material test- and the conditions of pyrolysis (temperature and
ing lab in Barcelona. atmospheric pressure) (Peredo-Mancilla et al.
Various mixtures are developed and tested for 2018; Iberahim et al. 2019; Popescu et al. 2014;
tensile and compressive strength. The aim is to Byrne and Nagle 1997).
518 N. Kirova et al.

The feedstock from which biochar is produced Cement

has a great impact on the properties and carbon
The developed cementitious material system
sequestration potential of the biochar. For
relies on the most commonly used cement mix-
instance, hardwood feedstock has a higher value
ture which is based on Ordinary Portland
of negative embodied carbon in comparison to
Cement. This is done in order to create a fair
softwood. This is due to the amount of carbon that
representation of the state material composition
the tree photosynthesises during the natural
with a standard range performance. Specifically,
growth process. As biochar is commonly pro-
a type of “CEM II BL” cement is used. This is a
duced from forest management feedstock, the
medium-range versatile cement used commonly
embodied carbon of the source material together
in building construction in the region of Catalo-
with the processing, transport and pyrolysis
nia. The “BL” indicates that the cement consists
conditions have to be taken into consideration
of 21–35% limestone (estimated from the ICE
when calculating the net embodied carbon of the
Cement, Mortar, Concrete model). The associ-
biochar. The calculation is therefore case specific
ated embodied carbon is 0.66 kg CO2/kg and the
and may vary greatly. As an example, just look-
density is 1440 kg/m3.
ing at the feedstock, it is estimated that softwood
biochar will have a carbon-neutral embodied Sand
carbon value whereas hardwood biochar will
Standard sand for construction with a particle
attain a negative embodied carbon value.
size of 1 mm is used. For future research, it is
For the research described in this paper, the
recommended to use a graded particle size for
biochar is sourced from a Spanish company
improved material packing.
based in Catalonia: CarbonVivo (CarbonVivo
2022). The biochar they provide is derived from
3.2.2 Material System: Preparation
forest management biowaste which is composed
Procedure
mostly of wood feedstock but can include small
The preparation process is described and visu-
quantities of leaves and other biowaste. The
alised below (Fig. 1). Stages 1–3 indicate the
sourced biochar is with a particle size of 1–
preparation of the biochar itself. As the material
10 mm, which is the smallest particle size
does not come in an appropriate particle size it
available from the producer.
has to be processed. Stages 4 to 7 indicate the
The biochar is produced using Kon-Tiki
preparation of the dry-to-wet mix of the mortar.
Kilns. This type of open kiln is less energy-
consuming and inexpensive making biochar
1. The biochar is ground down from 1 to 10 mm
production more easily accessible. The tempera-
particle size to > 1 mm particle size using an
ture of pyrolysis is estimated to range between
electric grain mill grinder.
600 and 700 °C. It is estimated that the embodied
2. The ground biochar is sieved through a
carbon of the sourced biochar varies from
300 lm size sieve. All particles that do not
−1 kgCO2/kg to −2.5 kg CO2/kg. The biochar is
pass through the sieve are returned to the
further processed in order to be used in the
grinder. This process repeats until all particles
material system.

Fig. 1 Material preparation

A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 519

are sieved and a maximum particle size of 7. The prepared mortar is cast in a standardised
300 lm is achieved. mould, covered with a damp towel for 48 h
3. The fine biochar powder is stored in a con- and sequentially unmoulded and left for cur-
tainer with sodium polyacrylate pads in order ing for 26 days.
to maintain low humidity as the biochar
exhibited hydrophilic characteristics.
3.3 Material System: Grades
4. Based on the recipes for the five grades of
BCMs designated during the planning, the
Five different compositions are created with a
appropriate quantities of biochar, sand, and
ranging proportion of biochar from 5 to 50%
cement (measured by volume) are added to a
measured by volume. The proportion of sand is
container and prepared as dry mixes.
kept constant at 25%. The literature review
5. After each of the five dry mixes is prepared, it
showed that most research on BCMs is limited to
is mixed using a mortar mixer and kept in a
investigating small quantities of biochar up to 20%
humidity-controlled environment.
by volume as partial cement replacement due to
6. When the moulds for the specimens are ready
the identified decrease in strength as the quantity
and covered with a release agent, the dry mix
of biochar increases above 2% of biochar by vol-
is taken out for the final mixing and water
ume. This research investigates the addition of
activation. In an iterative procedure, water is
larger quantities within a simple matrix of sand and
added to the dry mix while it is mixed with a
cement. The five grades of BCMs that are devel-
mortar mixer. Water is added to the dried mix
oped and tested have the following quantities of
in steps and the quantity is recorded until
biochar: 5%; 10%; 20%; 40%; 50% (Fig. 2).
workable viscosity is achieved.

Fig. 2 BCM’s developed material system

520 N. Kirova et al.

Fig. 3 Developed material mixtures

As biochar is the main study variable of the cementitious mortar testing (Fig. 4). Testing the
material system it is crucial to investigate what is specimens is conducted following a standardised
the impact of the cement substitution with bio- procedure and conforming to EN 196 Methods of
char. The amount of biochar and cement are Testing Cement. The specimens were tested for
proportionally linked. As the quantity of biochar tensile strength first and after breaking a total of
increases the quota of cement decreases. It is twelve tests for compressive strength were con-
observed that samples with higher quantities of ducted for each mixture.
biochar require a higher amount of water during
the mixing (Fig. 3).
The primary calculations showed that at about 4 Results
25% of biochar within the mixture the carbon
footprint of the sand and cement is completely 4.1 Observations
offset, essentially creating a net embodied
carbon-neutral material. Furthermore, it is cal- When the mechanical tests were performed, it
culated that the density of the material system was observed that BCM10 performed signifi-
can be programmed with the quantity of biochar cantly worse in comparison to the rest of the
ranging from 1.4 g/cm3 at 5% biochar to mixtures. It is possible that this is caused by
0.8 g/cm3 at 50% biochar. The price of the impurities and flaws in the cement used for the
material is estimated to double between the 5 and mixture. The tests with this composition have to
50% mixtures (Fig. 3). be repeated and at this stage are discarded from
the experiment. The rest of the mixtures showed
3.3.1 Material Testing a consistent decline in strength as the cement
Standardised specimens for mortar testing are quantity replaced by biochar increased.
produced. The specimens are rectangular cuboids During the preparation of the specimens, it
with a size of 40  40  160 mm. Six speci- was observed that due to the high water
mens are made for each grade of BCM. The absorption of biochar it is necessary to increase
relationship between the ingredients to strength is the amount of water to achieve the workable
studied through practical experimentation and viscosity of the composite. The amount of water
standardised testing. The tests are performed needed to hydrate the composite extends pro-
with a specialised hydraulic press for portionally to the amount of biochar. The water
A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 521

Fig. 4 Hydraulic press for

materials testing: tensile
strength set up on the left;
compressive strength set up
on the right

absorption leads to a strong binding behaviour of studies that investigate the effect of biochar addi-
the biochar composite. After the specimens were tion on the tensile strength of the biochar-
cured for 28 days, they were weighed and com- cementitious composite agree that with about 1%
pared. It is evident that the higher amount of addition of biochar the tensile properties are
biochar results in a lighter composite. Due to the improved (Gupta and Kua 2020; Cosentino et al.
higher water ratio, the biochar composite exhibits 2019). It is suggested that the higher specific sur-
a slightly longer curing time. face area of the biochar is the main reason for the
increase in flexural strength, which contributed to
the enhanced interaction with the matrix. The
4.2 Tensile Strength current research builds up to this by investigating
the addition of higher amounts of biochar.
Flexural strength is a metric that represents the When biochar was introduced as a partial
tensile strength of homogeneous materials such cement replacement it was interesting to see that
as concrete and mortar. The rule of the thumb is there was no decrease in flexural strength until
that the flexural strength of concrete is about 10– more than 20% of biochar is added. Furthermore,
20% of the compressive strength, however, this a slight increase was observed as the quantity of
correlation was not observed with the 5 and 20% biochar increased from 5 to 20%. This indicated
BCMs. Concrete and cementitious mortars are that the addition of biochar has a beneficial effect
generally poor in tension and rely on reinforce- on the flexural strength of cementitious com-
ment such as rebars or fibres to compensate for it. posites when added up to 20% by volume. With
There are studies examining the tensile strength higher quantities of biochar, the performance
of biochar-cementitious composites. Most of the decreased in a linear manner (Fig. 5).
522 N. Kirova et al.

Fig. 5 Flexural strength testing data

4.3 Compressive Strength than 5% leads to a decrease in compressive

strength. The same trend is recorded in this
Cementitious materials such as concrete and research as it is demonstrated that by increasing
mortars work well in compression and can take the amount of biochar in the mixture the com-
up high loads depending on their composition. pressive strength decreases (Fig. 6).
When it comes to the effect that biochar has on When putting the obtained data against some
the compressive strength of the composites, most industry standards for concretes and mortars, it
studies agree that a high concentration of biochar becomes clear that BCMs have multiple appli-
compromises the strength of the composite while cations in the concrete construction sector.
low concentrations (below 2%) can improve the Standard concrete compressive strength ranges
strength (Cuthbertson et al. 2019; Akhtar and from 2500 to 4000 psi which is lower that the
Sarmah 2018; Gupta et al. 2018a, b, c; Gupta values of the BCM20 composite. The BCM50
et al. 2020; Asadi Zeidabadi et al. 2018; Mrad mixture has the lowest compressive strength but
and Chehab 2019). can be used as both type N and type O mortar.
One of the few studies where higher concen- The BCM40 qualifies for low-performance type
trations of biochar have been examined is that of S mortar. Considering both the compressive and
Navaratnam et al. (2021). In comparison to the flexural strength as well as the net embodied
data obtained in this research, the values are carbon, the most intriguing grade of BCMs is
slightly lower. In the current research at 5% the the BCM20. The mixture has a compressive
compressive strength is recorded at 45.7 MPa and strength that makes it applicable to building
at 20% at 33.9 MPa. This difference could be due construction as it scores in the high range of
to the different compositions of the mixtures with standard performing concretes that can be used in
respect to sand quantity or the type of cement. columns, slabs, and other building elements
Similarly, to other studies, the conclusion is (Fig. 7).
that the addition of biochar in higher quantities
A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 523

Fig. 6 Compressive strength testing data

Fig. 7 Yield strength data and standards for concrete and cementitious mortars

4.4 Net Embodied Carbon related to the embodied carbon. As demonstrated

with quantities of biochar above 25% of the
The embodied carbon of each mixture was embodied carbon of the cement and sand is
estimated based on the values of the ingredients sequestered and a net carbon-negative material is
and their quantities. The values are taken into created (Fig. 8).
consideration and only the raw material is
524 N. Kirova et al.

Fig. 8 Net embodied carbon

of the developed mixtures

proposed that biochar can be used within

5 Discussion and Conclusions cementitious materials to decrease their net car-
bon footprint through its carbon-sequestering
It is evident that the concrete construction sector ability. Biochars are produced throughout the
has a large negative impact on the environment. globe by the local agricultural industries making
To mitigate and reduce this impact, various them an abundant product in comparison to some
solutions are investigated and developed both of the previously discussed industrial by-
from the material engineering side and from the products.
construction technology side. The cement man- It is important to encourage the use of locally
ufacturing sector is developing solutions for produced biochar. This requires material investi-
material systems with reduced embodied carbon gation prior to construction as the type offeedstock
and high performance relying on additives and and organic matter used can affect the performance
waste materials from other industries. These of the biochar as well as its carbon sequestration
strategies include changes in the raw materials, potential. Another aspect to be considered is the
cement reduction, the introduction of carbon- transportation of the material. The closer the
negative amendments, and novel fabrication source is to the manufacturing facility and/or site
techniques, among others. the lower net embodied carbon and therefore the
From the material composition perspective, higher carbon offset is generated.
there are several types of industrial waste or by- The current research explores the structural
products that have pozzolanic properties and capacity of BCMs and demonstrated the potential
therefore can be used as either full or partial of designing cementitious materials with net
cement replacements. Some of the most used by- neutral or negative embodied carbon with the
products are blast furnace slag which derives controlled addition of biochar. The mechanical
from the production of iron and steel; silica fume properties exhibited showed a consistent rela-
—a by-product of the manufacturing of silicone; tionship between the quantity of biochar and the
and fly ash—a by-product of the coal industry. strength of the material. Due to the identified
However, the potential of using waste resources impact of the addition of biochar on the structural
from the agricultural industry is not widely performance of the mixture as well as the carbon
explored, especially when it comes to the con- sequestration potential, the research proposes that
crete construction sector. a multi-material allocation would allow for an
The research proposes an alternative solution increase in carbon sequestration without com-
for a sustainable concrete amendment that promising the structural properties. This aspect is
derives from the agricultural industry. It is crucial for the further development of both the
A Study on Carbon-Neutral Biochar-Cementitious Composites 525

material system and the fabrication process. The Delbeke J, Runge-Metzger A, Slingenberg Y, Werksman J
developed material system is deemed suitable for (2019) The Paris agreement. Towards a climate-
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92377
 Irregular Architecture: The Possibility
of Systems Thinking for Bamboo
Architecture

Jed Long

Abstract used in vernacular cultures and in contempo-

rary design, the paper will highlight systems
Bamboo is a material that has been used for
and methodologies that respond to the irreg-
thousands of years in a wide variety of ularity of bamboo, focusing on both architec-
cultures distributed throughout the world in tural systems and broader socio-technical
different geographic and climatic settings
responses to working with bamboo. It is an
(Clark et al (2015) Bamboo Taxonomy and area of research currently unexplored and
Habitat). The availability of standardized, presents a novel approach to architecture
more durable industrial products has led to
where systemization allows for a flexibility
the displacement of bamboo within commu- that can account for non-standardized materi-
nities with a history of bamboo use (Sharma als.
(2010) Seismic Performance of Bamboo
Structures). Research has sought to recontex-
tualize the architectural use of bamboo from Keywords
vernacular material to modern construction
product, citing the sustainable, structural, and

Bamboo Vernacular architecture

social benefits of working with bamboo (Van

Sustainability Material standardization

der Lugt (2017) Booming bamboo: the (Re) DRenewables
discovery of a sustainable material with
endless possibilities). However, it is faced by
a seemingly insolvable conundrum; how do 1 Introduction
you standardize an irregular material to meet
the regulatory and structural requirements of a Bamboo is a material that has been used for
modern building industry? The focus of this thousands of years in a wide variety of cultures
paper is to posit an alternative question; does distributed throughout the world in different
bamboo need to be standardized? By exam- geographic and climatic settings (Clark et al.
ining the different ways bamboo has been 2015). It has formed a key component of differ-
ent vernacular architectural traditions because of
its local availability, rapid rate of growth, unique
structural properties, and versatility as a material
J. Long (&) for construction and use in everyday life. In this
School of Architecture + Design, University of form bamboo can be considered to have existed
Tasmania, Launceston, TAS, Australia
outside of ‘modernity’ (Dufrenot 2012) in a
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 527
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
528 J. Long

setting where its material durability and value help address the UN’S Sustainable Development
were dependent upon its context of use. As the Goals at various stages of its value chain.
various ‘bamboo cultures’ of use (Yu 2007) This paper seeks to examine the tension that
developed, their relationship with bamboo has exists between the desire to promote the use of
changed, redefining its meaning within the con- bamboo at a macro scale as a sustainable build-
text of a globalized and industrialized world. ing material and the challenges faced when
The availability of standardized, more durable working with bamboo at a micro scale, particu-
industrial products has led to the displacement of larly within informal, low socio-economic set-
bamboo within informal architectural contexts tings. The apparent paradox that emerges
(Sharma 2010). Over the course of the twentieth demonstrates that there is no singular under-
century, cultures with a history of bamboo use standing of bamboo and rather it exists in a
have gained access to industrialized products, plurality of roles, dependent upon the socio-
enabling new forms of construction that have material context of its use. In other words, there
replaced traditional local materials such as bam- are many different contexts in which bamboo
boo (Yu 2007). However, over the last twenty may or may not be appropriate for use, and many
years, a counter narrative has emerged that ways of working with bamboo.
champions bamboo as a sustainable building Through a review of specific case studies,
product, celebrating its capacity for local harvest common themes are established that demonstrate
and construction with social and cultural benefits an alternative way of practicing architecture that
(Van der Lugt 2017). Through the production of is responsive to the material, cultures and context
landmark architectural works such as Simon of the site and can be situated within broader
Velez’s ZERI Pavilion or Ibuku’s Green School, architectural discourse.
bamboo has been promoted as a rapidly renew-
able resource with unique structural properties
that offers a connection to local wisdom and an 2 Translating the Traditional Use
antidote to the “produced-ness” of modern of Bamboo
industrial life (Frey 2013).
These two alternative narratives are the pro- There are many different forms of bamboo
duct of two very different contexts of use and the architecture, distributed throughout a variety of
subsequent perceived value of bamboo. The different cultures spread across Asia, Africa, and
simultaneous decline in bamboo’s use within the Americas. Within these cultures, bamboo
informal architectural contexts and the promotion formed part of the vernacular architectural
and increased use of bamboo within an interna- response to the environmental context, that made
tional architectural context presents an inherent use of available resources and technological
contradiction. On one hand, while bamboo has knowledge to meet the specific needs and values
proven to be highly suited to vernacular con- of the community that built them (Oliver 2007).
struction as demonstrated by its widespread use It was architecture of necessity, because it was
across multiple cultures and contexts for thou- reliant on locally available materials to create
sands of years, it is being displaced by industri- climatically appropriate buildings (see Fig. 1).
alized building products that are standardized In most cases, bamboo was used as part of a
and more durable than bamboo. Conversely, the hybrid system of construction which was able to
perceived value of bamboo by the international address issues of durability and irregularity
design community extends beyond its cost and through combination with other semi-processed
material capacity to include intangible qualities materials such as timber, stone, mud or thatch. For
such as its ecological, social, and cultural cre- instance, the gassho-zukuri style Minka housing
dentials. As such bamboo is celebrated as a found in the Gifu prefecture of Japan utilizes
sustainable building material with the potential to timber as the primary structure and bamboo as a
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 529

Fig. 1 Gassho-Zukuri style

Minka housing in Shirakawa-
go, Japan (Image Jed Long)

secondary structure particularly for the battens and communities gained access and the economic
purlins of its roof (May 2010). These buildings are means to purchase imported industrialized prod-
characterized by the thick straw thatch of its A- ucts, bamboo came to be seen as a low quality,
frame roof, which also ensured the bamboo was impermanent material and is often referred to in
not exposed to sun or rain. Within these houses, various contexts as ‘poor man’s material’ (Yu
the upper levels were used for sericulture (silk- 2007) (see Fig. 3).
worm farming) and the smoke from internal fires Over the course of the twentieth century, as
rose to warm the space. This had the added benefit the vernacular use of bamboo began to be dis-
of carbonizing the bamboo through the constant placed through the introduction of industrialized
exposure to heat and smoke, protecting the bam- materials, a paradox emerged with designers and
boo from insect or borer infestation. This engineers from outside bamboo cultures begin-
demonstrates how bamboo was only used where ning to speculate on how bamboo could be uti-
appropriate and in combination with other locally lized in contemporary design. Floyd McClure’s
available materials to create a housing typology seminal text ‘Bamboo as a Building Material’
that responded directly to the needs of its occu- (1953) formed the basis of a growing narrative
pants and the local climate (see Fig. 2). promoting the use of bamboo in developing
The durability of bamboo was relative to the countries because of its vernacular tradition and
local context of use. Because it was often used as perceived cultural and ecological credentials.
a semi-permanent, locally available material it McClure identified the key benefits and chal-
was accepted that after a few years, the bamboo lenges of working with bamboo (McClure 1953):
would need to be replaced. A typical connection
methodology was to lash the bamboo structure Benefits:
together, as this allowed individual members to
be substituted if they began to degrade • Culms are of a size and shape that allow for
(Dunkelberg 1985). It was a process governed by easy handling, storage, and processing.
the climatic, economic, cultural, and material • Unique structural properties—high strength to
context of site. However, once these same weight ratio.
530 J. Long

Fig. 2 Traditional roof made

from lashed bamboo and teak
leaf, Chiang Mai, Thailand
(Image Jed Long)

Fig. 3 Traditional Bena style

housing built from a
combination of locally
available materials including
bamboo in Wogo Village,
NTT, Indonesia (Image Jed
Long)

• Unidirectional fibers make it easy to divide • Uneven surface—culms are rarely straight,
the culm by hand—e.g., splitting or sawing. have irregular spaced internodes and rate of
• Grown at a village scale. taper.
• Tendency to split.
Constraints: • Low durability.

• Variable dimension—hard to mechanize the The research of McClure demonstrated that

fabrication of bamboo. bamboo has unique structural, material,
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 531

ecological and cultural credentials that set it apart for research and a reference for designers and
from other materials and warranted further engineers (Trujillo 2018). The desire to standardize
investigation for its architectural use. However, it bamboo is derived in part from the recognition that
also highlighted that as a natural, unprocessed while objectively bamboo has many great eco-
material it did not have the durability and mate- logical and structural qualities, there is a challenge
rial regularity of comparable processed materials. in the implementation and construction of bamboo
Building on the work of McClure, subsequent architecture due to building regulations and the
research (Narayanamurti and Mohan 1972; requirement of specific construction knowledge.
Hidalgo López 1981; Dunkelberg 1985) contin- To date, research has succeeded in establishing
ued to develop a narrative promoting bamboo as standardized procedures for testing and processing
a sustainable, local, and culturally appropriate bamboo but is unable to address the challenge that
material for development programs throughout the material itself remains’ non-standard and thus
the equatorial regions of the world that was resistant to use within a regulated and globalized
hampered by one key concern- standardization. building industry. This suggests that the solution
While advances in research and design have lies in either processing bamboo into a standard-
improved the durability and understanding of ized material or accepting that there may be other
how to build with bamboo, as a natural material ways of working with bamboo where standard-
it remains a heterogenous object whose vari- ization is not a priority (see Fig. 4).
ability in size, dimension and structural capacity For some, the most logical solution to the
make it almost impossible to standardize for challenge of standardizing a natural material is to
modern construction (Janssen 1995). process it. A bamboo pole can be split into strips
that are treated, and dried to a prescribed state.
This process creates a dimensioned module that
3 Standardization can be reconstructed into various laminate bam-
boo products. These products have homogenous
Efforts to standardize bamboo have formed a key physical and structural characteristics enabling
component of research on the structural use of the use in widespread construction. There are several
material. This process has been supported through initiatives such as the Environmental Bamboo
the creation of national and international standards Foundation’s Rumah Bambu Lestari program
that have helped to establish a common language that demonstrate how this process when coupled

Fig. 4 Splitting bamboo into

strips (Image Kai
Wasikowski)
532 J. Long

Fig. 5 Grading bamboo

strips for lamination, Vietnam
(Image Jed Long)

with consideration of the entire value chain to by industrialized materials within informal
account for environmental, social, and cultural architectural contexts is due in part to the chal-
benefits can help to address many of the SDGs lenges of working with a natural material that
and a need for safe, durable, and standardized does not have the same durability as industrial-
housing (see Fig. 5). ized products. Processing bamboo provides a
The transformation of bamboo into a laminate solution to this challenge by changing the per-
product changes its material value, altering its ceived value of bamboo. However, it does not
material, physical and cultural properties. Rather provide a solution for those wanting to work with
than being a round and hollow form with unidi- bamboo in its natural state. If bamboo is per-
rectional fibers that is semi-processed, relatively ceived to be a desirable material of choice due to
cheap and lightweight, it has become a pro- its aesthetic, social, ecological, or structural
cessed, rectilinear, solid form that is significantly qualities then there is a need for the designer to
heavier, more expensive, and visually very dif- recognize that as a natural material, bamboo will
ferent. The processing of bamboo transforms it remain non-standard and subsequently require
into a new material ‘laminate bamboo’ that alternative ways of thinking with the flexibility to
solves some of the challenges of working with allow for its irregularity.
bamboo but also removes all the qualities that
may have attracted someone to bamboo in the
first place. While laminate bamboo creates new 4 Irregular Architecture
opportunities for the use of bamboo globally in
normative construction, it does not provide a There are clear benefits that drive a desire to
solution for those wanting to make use of bam- standardize and integrate bamboo into a
boo in its natural state since it alters its material homogenous global building industry. But as the
form (see Fig. 6). building industry continues to increase its con-
The aspiration for a homogenous outcome for sumption of finite resources (OECD 2018) an
a heterogenous object creates a contradiction that alternative question can be posited—is the desire
requires a socio-material response as well as a for homogeneity the only solution for the built
structural response. This is because the choice to environment or can we rethink the way in which
use bamboo as an architectural material is we use resources and takes lessons from working
dependent on its perceived value, which is with heterogenous materials such as bamboo that
objective and dependent on context. As men- require design to consider social, cultural, and
tioned previously, the displacement of bamboo ecological concerns? By examining the way in
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 533

Fig. 6 Preparing laminate

bamboo beams for shipment,
Indonesia (Image Jed Long)

which informal and formal design responds to account for bamboo's irregular form. This can be
the material variability of bamboo, this paper achieved either through combining bamboo with
promotes the idea of ‘Irregular Architecture’, a complimentary materials or devising structural
solution that requires design and structural sys- systems that create redundancy through multiple
tems to maintain a level of flexibility to allow for points of connection (see Fig. 7).
material variability and places greater agency A key example of this can be found in the
upon the craftspeople that resolve these chal- Caldas region of Colombia where eighteenth-
lenges in-situ. century Spanish builders reimagined the local
The wide variety of vernacular architectural vernacular building tradition by integrating
styles that make use of bamboo demonstrates European construction knowledge to form a new
there are many ways of working with heteroge- hybrid architectural style (Hidalgo López 2003).
nous materials. However, through examination The irregularity of the bamboo was overcome by
of the different cultures of use, common themes encasing it in a mud or plastered finish like wattle
can be extracted that suggest an alternative and daub that was known as bahareque. When
approach for building with bamboo that does not doors or openings were required, timber could be
rely upon standardized forms. used to form the frames and lintels and over time
As discussed earlier, semi-processing bamboo this technique became highly sophisticated. The
into strips or flattening it into panels transforms city of Manizales offers some of the best exam-
bamboo into a different form that creates new ples of this with multistorey buildings imitating
opportunities. In traditional cultures, examples of European styles seemingly appear to be crafted
this can be seen in the roofs of Tongkonan from stone, when in fact they are made from
houses in South Sulawesi where layers of flat- bamboo and earth. Bahareque has the added
tened bamboo form roofs up to 1 m thick benefit on encasing the bamboo which preserves
(Widjaja 2019) or in the Dorze and Gamo com- it from degradation and insect infestation. This
munities of Ethiopia that weave walls of their case study demonstrates that bamboo’s non-
houses from strips of bamboo (Asilis 2022). uniformity can be accommodated through hybrid
A second approach is to create a structural building systems made from complimentary
system that contains the tolerance or flexibility to materials (see Fig. 8).
534 J. Long

Fig. 7 A wall in Manizales,

Colombia made from
bahareque. The concrete
render is applied to panels of
split bamboo attached to
whole bamboo poles. By
rendering the bamboo
buildings can take on
rectilinear forms, giving the
impression of masonry
construction. (Image Jed
Long)

Fig. 8 The Ede House

presents a different iteration of
bamboo being used as part of
a hybrid structural system.
Hanoi Museum of Ethnology,
Vietnam (Image Jed Long)

A different example of hybrid structural sys- Kampung Bena in East Nusa Tengarra (Achmad
tem that accommodates bamboo’s variability is 2019) (see Fig. 9).
the Ede houses of Vietnam. Timber forms the These common themes carry through to con-
primary structure and bamboo is used as a sec- temporary construction with bamboo and are
ondary structure reducing the need for the bam- perhaps most evident in the work of Simon Velez,
boo to have a consistent dimension. This idea can who employed a hybrid structural system of
be seen repeated in many different contexts such timber and bamboo for the creation of the ZERI
as the Sumbanese Uma Mbatangu or the Pavilion at the Hannover World Expo in 2000.
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 535

Fig. 9 The 1:1 prototype of

the ZERI Pavilion, by Simon
Velez. Built using a hybrid
structural system of timber
and bamboo, Manizales,
Colombia (Image Jed Long)

While Simon Velez built upon traditional structural and material properties of bamboo
Colombian methods of construction to create (Gaß 1985) (see Fig. 10).
new innovative forms. The outcome of this research is best demon-
Alternatively, bamboo’s irregularity could be strated through the work of Indonesian design
accounted for through structural systems that firm Ibuku, and the construction of the Green
create redundancy through multiple points of School in Bali. Working in collaboration with
connection. Frei Otto and his team at the Colombian based bamboo expert Jorg Stamm,
University of Stuttgart helped to define this novel the buildings were designed to take full advan-
approach to the design of bamboo structures tage of bamboo’s physical properties, utilizing
through the publication of ‘IL31: Bambus- structural systems first discussed in IL31 (Gaß
Bamboo’ in 1985. Drawing upon Klaus 1985). The flexibility and round form of bamboo
Dunkelberg’s research of vernacular architecture were seen to suit grid shells and parabolic forms,
(Dunkelberg 1985) and extensive analysis of leading to the key innovation of building
traditional ways of working with bamboo, Otto hyperbolic columns from bamboo. They are built
and his colleagues speculated on new structural by setting out rings at the top and bottom of the
solutions that took advantage of the unique column that are divided into a set number of

Fig. 10 Reciprocal bamboo

tower holding the roof of
Sharma Springs by Ibuku,
Bali, Indonesia (Image Ibuku)
536 J. Long

Fig. 11 Bamboo model

making at Bamboo U (Image
Soben Giordan)

points. The bamboo connects the two points production and combines high- and low-tech
making a lattice that can be joined at each building practices with local craft and vernacular
intersection. This system allows for the vari- wisdom (see Fig. 12).
ability of bamboo as it has a large degree of By considering the implications of designing
tolerance and does not require identical units of for material variability, an alternative approach to
bamboo for its construction. Rather than mim- design emerges that is contingent upon social
icking traditional vernacular forms, the buildings inputs, since design decisions cannot be con-
of the Green School demonstrate a hybridization veyed through prescriptive orthographic details
of knowledge systems to champion new ways of and must be resolved through the course of
working with bamboo based upon structural building. This process speaks to Latour’s notion
systems with enough flexibility to accommodate of the hybrid, which Jeremy Till describes as a
the irregular nature of bamboo (see Fig. 11). social construction that rubs together things and
The design process for bamboo buildings people, architecture and life (Till 2009). Bruno
offers an alternative to normative construction Latour’s (1993) suggestion that production
practices. Rather than extensively detailing the should be at once both intentional and partici-
building through two dimensional orthographic pative describes a condition that can be under-
drawings, Ibuku designs and documents its stood through the lens of working with bamboo.
buildings through models, which allows form The design of bamboo architecture such as the
and construction technics to evolve. This process Green School, requires the guiding hand of a
responds to the irregular nature of bamboo and design team and structural expertise of engineers
places added agency with the skilled craftspeople but is only achieved through the embodied
who translate the model into a building. Because knowledge of skilled craftspeople who can
no two pieces of bamboo are the same, each resolve the design in-situ. Once completed the
connection presents an individual problem that building then continues to evolve in response to
must be resolved in-situ (Arce-Villalobos 1993). the programmatic requirements of its users as
Ibuku can take advantage of Indonesia’s long well as the material upkeep of its form (see
history of skilled craft with bamboo to champion Fig. 13).
a different form of design and construction that By reviewing the process of building with
allows for the heterogenous nature of bamboo by bamboo a connection can be drawn to a field of
making use of local renewable resources and architectural research that is defined through
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 537

Fig. 12 Constructing a
parabolic column, Bali,
Indonesia (Image Soben
Giordan)

Fig. 13 Setting out the form

of Woven Sky, Woodford,
Australia (Image Kai
Wasikowski)

Jeremy Till’s concept of Lo-Fi architecture (Till these concepts, as it requires a response that is
2009), a theory that built upon the work of highly contingent upon context and the interre-
Latour and Henri Lefebvre (1991) to promote lation between craft and design. The most suc-
architecture, as something more than an aesthetic cessful bamboo projects tend to demonstrate an
consideration, that also includes the social and interplay between the agency of those involved
the ethical. The idea of architecture as object, is and an overarching structure that provides suffi-
displaced by a process that is collective and cient constraint and guidance (see Fig. 14).
requires design and production to be a negotia- Industrialization and globalization have pro-
tion rather than an imposition, alert to the phys- moted the processing of resources into plastic
ical and social context in which it is situated (Till forms that are homogenous, separated from local
2009). The heterogenous and unprocessed nature identity, upon which design is imposed. Working
of bamboo, situates bamboo in alignment with with bamboo challenges this idea by requiring
538 J. Long

Fig. 14 Selecting bamboo poles for harvest, Crystal Waters, Australia (Image Kai Wasikowski)

Fig. 15 Simplicity of value chain allows for the social, cultural, economic and ecological impacts of a material to be
assessed. (Image Scott Francisco)

the design to be contingent and aware of material with ‘SDG 15—Life’ on Land. The harvest of
variability, responding to the unique identity of bamboo which is most often used close to the
each member. Bamboo architecture expands point of harvest is an example of ‘SDG 12—
agency beyond design professionals, requiring Responsible Consumption and Production’.
the input of multiple actors at multiple stages, in While the final built makes use of bamboo that is
turn setting itself apart from other forms of most likely carbon negative, aligns with ‘SDG 11
architectural production when considering how —Sustainable Cities and Communities’.
architecture can play an active role in achieving The simplicity of bamboo’s value chain pro-
the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals vides an example of how architecture can play a
(SDGs) (see Fig. 15). role in achieving the UN SDGs, extending the
As a natural material, the social, ecological, value of a material beyond physical and eco-
and economic impacts of bamboo can be asses- nomic attributes to include social and ecological
sed through a simple value chain that connects concerns. This is significant when rethinking the
the cultivation of bamboo to the construction of way in which we use resources, because, unlike
architecture. In making this assessment the SDGs finite fossil-based resources with complex value
help to define the different impacts at each stage chains that are extractive and incur significant
of the process, beginning with the cultivation and ecological costs through production, bamboo is a
management of bamboo forests which aligns rapidly renewable resource that can be used
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 539

locally in a semi-processed state and has net communities, is the work of RAW Impact, an
positive ecological and social impacts. NGO based in Cambodia and founded by Aus-
By discussing the role bamboo can play in tralian aid workers Troy and Nicole Roberts.
achieving the SDGs, this paper is setting out the RAW Impact has been working with vulnerable
perceived macro benefits of bamboo. The work communities on the outskirts of Phnom Penh,
of designers such as Ibuku or Simon Velez providing a case study of how the SDGs can be
demonstrates that bamboo’s heterogenous form implemented at a local scale within marginalized
offers an alternative approach to practicing communities. Through the construction of bam-
architecture where flexible structural systems and boo housing, RAW Impact looks to increase
contingent design can account for material economic and ecological resilience, while also
irregularity. However, these projects are able to empowering the community through new liveli-
do this because they have the budget and tech- hoods and skills development (see Fig. 17).
nical knowledge to do so. When discussing the The design for the community has evolved out
implementation of these ideas at a micro scale of an ongoing dialogue between RAW Impact,
within informal architectural settings, this the local community and design studios run at the
becomes much more challenging as the socio- University of New South Wales and Sydney,
cultural context is vastly different. facilitated by Casey Brown and Cave Urban.
Most of the construction involving bamboo This provides an example of how north–south
occurs informally in low socio-economic com- partnerships can build capacity and deliver local
munities with a history of vernacular use solutions that make use of local resources and
(Dunkelberg 1985). In these settings, the low fabrication (SDG 17—Partnerships for the
resilience of communities, renders the broader Goals). Through a process of learning by making
ecological and social benefits of bamboo largely and community feedback, the designs have
irrelevant, with users prioritizing materials that evolved to suit the local climatic, social, and
are economical, durable and aspirational. As economic context (SDG 11—Sustainable Cities
such, a different approach is required to reframe and Communities). The housing modules are
how bamboo is perceived and offer simple built from locally sourced bamboo which has led
methods of working with bamboo that is not to RAW Impact planting their own bamboo
dependent on technical skill and provide durable plantation to source material directly (SDG 15—
outcomes (see Fig. 16). Life on Land and SDG 12—Responsible Con-
One example that showcases the successful sumption and Production). Construction is
delivery of bamboo housing for low-income undertaken by international volunteers working

Fig. 16 Bamboo houses built

by RAW Impact, Cambodia.
(Image Nina Annand)
540 J. Long

Fig. 17 Khmer workers

prefabricating a bamboo roof
for RAW Impact, Cambodia.
(Image Nina Annand)

with local workers who are largely young Khmer Innovation, and Infrastructure). Quality control is
men. The Khmer builders were initially unskilled achieved through metal frames that are used as a
in bamboo construction and so their employment jig to create a standardized form. This reduces
doubles as an opportunity to develop new skills the complexity of the construction process by
in bamboo construction and create new liveli- creating a series of repeatable tasks that can be
hood opportunities for them (SDG 4—Quality taught to workers (see Fig. 18).
Education and SDG 8—Decent Work and Eco- An integral component of this process is the
nomic Growth). To ensure a consistent standard continual reflection and revision involved in
of construction, RAW Impact has innovated a improving systems and designs. This forms a
construction methodology that accommodates feedback loop giving agency to the local com-
the irregular nature of bamboo and the use of munity to help determine what should be con-
unskilled workers (SDG 9—Industry, structed and how. The design and build

Fig. 18 The lower level of

one of the houses built by
RAW Impact, Cambodia.
(Image Nina Annand)
Irregular Architecture: The Possibility of Systems Thinking for Bamboo Architecture 541

methodology provide a system for construction, and ecological qualities and the challenges of
but the individual selection and connection of building with bamboo, it can be addressed in part
members as well as the final details and finishes through the adoption of design practice that
are determined by those that build and occupy accounts for variation and includes local knowl-
the houses. While there has been some design edge as a mechanism of resolving challenges in-
input and construction advice from outside situ. By emphasizing flexibility and systemiza-
designers, most decisions have been made by tion over standardization, designers can rethink
RAW Impact and those building and living in the how natural resources such as bamboo are uti-
structures. This offers a different paradigm for lized to allow for the involvement of multiple
architecture, where the architect and engineer sit actors and celebrate irregularity as a social
adjacent to the construction process, relinquish- condition.
ing individual agency in favor of mutual input by
a wide range of actors.
The self-build process that is fostered by References
RAW Impact is not a new concept, rather it
builds upon the legacy of vernacular architecture Achmad ZH (2019) Typology of Bena traditional archi-
and more recent architectural movements such as tecture, Flores. Local Wisdom: Jurnal Ilmiah Kajian
Kearifan Lokal 11(2)
Walter Siegel’s self-build housing (Grahame Arce-Villalobos OA (1993) Fundamentals of the design of
2015). Making use of lightweight, locally avail- bamboo structures. Eindhoven University of
able, and inexpensive materials reduces the need Technology
for specialized construction knowledge and cre- Asilis L (2022) Vernacular bamboo structures around the
world. [Link]
ates an opportunity for self-determination and structures-around-the-world/. Accessed 10 Jan 2023
empowerment for those living in low-income Clark L, Ruiz-Sanchez E, Londono X (2015) Bamboo
housing (Grahame 2015). It provides a different taxonomy and habitat
approach to architecture that can be situated with Dufrenot X (2012) A sociological approach of bamboo
exploitation within development-how the space of
a broader field of architectural theory through opinion reveals the ‘Real-Development’ and its con-
correlation with ideas such as Jeremey Till’s tradictions. In: 9th world bamboo congress, pp 801–7
notion of Lo-Fi Architecture (2009) or the work Dunkelberg K (1985) Bamboo as a building material. In:
of Latour (1993) and Lefebvre (1991). IL 31: Bambus-Bamboo. University of Stuttgart,
pp 38–263
Frey P (2013) Simon Velez: architect mastering bamboo.
Actes Sud
5 Conclusion Gaß (1985) Bambus = Bamboo. IL: 31. Institut fur
Leichte Flachentragwerke, Universitat Stuttgart
Grahame A (2015) ‘This isn't at all like London’: life in
The process of working with a heterogenous Walter Segal's self-build ‘anarchist’ estate. https://
material defies conformity to the standardized [Link]/cities/2015/sep/16/anarchism-
and homogenous nature of contemporary design community-walter-segal-self-build-south-london-
and construction, requiring a different approach estate. Accessed 10 Jan 2023
Hidalgo López O (1981) Manual de Construcción Con
to architecture that assimilates high- and low- Bambú, Estudios Técnicos Colombianos
tech building practice with local vernacular Hidalgo López O (2003) Bamboo: the gift of the gods
knowledge and global visions of sustainability Janssen JJA (1995) Building with bamboo
and resource use. Responding to the socio- Latour B (1993) We have never been modern. Harvester
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cept of irregular architecture recognizes that London
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 Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record
of Design Enquiry

Phil Ayres, Adrien Rigobello, Claudia Colmo,

You-Wen Ji, Jack Young, and Karl-Johan Sørensen

Abstract contributions in relation to the state of the art

and offer insight into our practice-based
The technologies of weaving and fermentation
research methodology. This is visually pre-
represent two of humanity’s most enduring sented as a journey through the project
technologies. In the Fungal Architectures development. Our practice-based approach
project, we investigate their combination in
combines physical and digital experimentation
the development of a novel architectural with the objective of developing both the
construction concept that utilises construction concept and the requisite design
mycelium-based composites in conjunction
tools and workflows.
with Kagome weaves. Underlying this inves-
tigation is an effort to rethink resources in the Keywords
making of architecture. This is considered in
terms of raw material sourcing with a focus on

Fermentation Mycelium-based materials

locality, alternative materialities, material

Bio-fabrication Kagome weaving

forming processes and the capital infrastruc- Computational design
tures required for production. Our intention is
to develop an architecture that is not reliant
upon advanced industrial technologies for its 1 Introduction
production. Far from being anachronistic, our
aim is to reveal fermentation and weaving as Evidence of the use of microbially mediated
deep reservoirs of innovative, disruptive methods to effect desirable transformations of
potential, leading to new architectural expres- matter through the technique of fermentation,
sions and production techniques that create a permeates human history. Across time and across
platform for promoting inclusion, equitability, cultures, fermentation has provided accessible
knowledge sharing, community practice and means to produce, preserve and enhance food
empowerment through accessible craft mas- and beverages, extract valued material compo-
tery. In this visual essay, we outline our nents through selective decomposition and to
produce a wide variety of organic compounds
with broad utility.
P. Ayres (&)
A. Rigobello
C. Colmo
In the research presented here, we focus on a
Y.-W. Ji
J. Young
K.-J. Sørensen relatively novel use of fermentation, mediated by
Royal Danish Academy, IBT, CITA, Chair for filamentous fungi, to bind substrates and produce
Biohybrid Architecture, Copenhagen, Denmark
materials with varying mechanical, functional
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 543
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
544 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 1 Mapping of the rapidly expanding field of discrete-element and monolithic construction logics. In
architecturally focused research projects exploring the this hybrid methodology, monolithic structures are tar-
use of mycelium-based composite materials through geted through the assembly of living discrete elements
speculative constructions and various fabrication pro- that continue to grow and bind themselves together. We
cesses. The mapping reveals a sub-set of projects with a investigate a novel approach to this methodology in the
vector of investigation that spans the categories of full-scale studies presented in this paper

and aesthetic properties. Over the last two dec- fungi to grow materials necessitates the sourcing
ades, research into mycelium-based materials has and preparation of lignocellulosic substrates.
rapidly accelerated, largely driven by the pro- These can be readily found in abundance as
spect of creating viable, sustainable and agricultural and land-management residues and
biodegradable alternatives to materials with waste streams (Monforti et al. 2015).
negative environmental impacts across a wide When MBC reach their end-of-life, they can be
range of sectors (Fig. 1). recycled or biodegraded. MBC production can
Sapotrophic basiodiomycetes are the most therefore act as a viable component of a circular
commonly used class of fungi in the production economy (Grimm and Wösten 2018).
of mycelium-based composites (MBC). This MBC exhibit many properties suited for
class of fungi are specialised lignocellulosic application within building construction. They
decomposers and perform cornerstone roles in a can perform well thermally (Xing et al. 2018)
variety of ecological cycles. The appropriation of and acoustically (Pelletier et al. 2013), are
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 545

lightweight, fast growing, have low embodied rationalising production by relieving the need to
energy and can act as a carbon sink if produced cut, or otherwise shape, components to the target
using carefully considered production protocols geometry. Geometry emerges through the inter-
(Livne 2022). Where these materials underper- action of material properties and the arrangement
form mechanically in comparison to common of material in a principled topology. However, to
structural materials, the diligent design of struc- achieve this, the material must have local plia-
tural form can provide pathways to exploitation bility to achieve interlacing, whilst having suffi-
(Heisel et al. 2017). Within the Fungal Archi- cient stiffness to generate shell-action across the
tectures project, our MBC research has extended lattice. This material consideration presents the
the state-of-the-art by considering the bulk vol- key challenge to the transfer of weave principles
ume of the substrate as a design space that can be to architectural scale, leading to sacrifices in the
composed with orientated fibres to differentiate direct transfer of weaving principles and prop-
and improve mechanical characteristics. This has erties, and therefore limiting the application of
been explored in the context of compressive craft know-how (Ayres et al. 2020).
behaviour (Rigobello and Ayres 2022) and By using a proprietary method of timber
bending behaviour (Rigobello et al. 2022). In the steaming and compression, recent investigations
case of bending behaviour, results showed a in the Fungal Architectures project have achieved
significant increase in performance in compar- the direct transfer of weaving methods using
ison to the literature and demonstrate clear vec- solid timber sections up to 60  30 mm. Inter-
tors for further improvement. lacing is manually achieved using basic and
Another dimension of innovation is in the widely available tools—clamps and lever
combination of MBC with Kagome weav- arms (Figs. 12 and 13).
ing (Fig. 2). This concept aims to address the As per their basket-scale counterparts, these
need to contain inoculated substrates to target architecturally scaled elastic grid-shells do not
shape whilst the mycelium colonises and fully require mechanical or chemical fixings during or
binds the substrate. Typically, this is achieved post-assembly—the lattice is held together
through moulds which are often fossil fuel based through local jamming action resulting from the
and disposable. The Kagome weave can be made network of reciprocal triangles that are the fun-
of lignocellulosic material and therefore acts as a damental tectonic motif of this weave method
stay-in-place mould, surface reinforcement and (Figs. 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22).
nutrition source, as it is colonised by the myce- We believe that the direct transfer of princi-
lium (Figs. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7). Kagome is a triaxial ples across scales in weaving, and the production
weaving technique that embodies simple princi- of materials through local sourcing and fermen-
ples for generating double curvature (Ayres et al. tation techniques, can help facilitate greater
2018). As such, this craft can be easily learned empowerment, inclusivity, equitability, knowl-
and, with time and practice, mastered by anyone edge sharing and community practice within the
with the motivation. Within our research, the built environment. The first evidence of this,
principles underlying Kagome have been instru- resulting directly from applying our research
mentalised in a digital workflow for generating within the Fungal Architectures project, is
principled pattern topologies of arbitrary design through engagement with the Tasatrupgaard
targets (Ayres et al. 2021) (Figs. 8, 9, 10 and 11). resident’s association, Denmark. Here, we have
The weave method allows complex geometries, helped to establish an independent field lab, run
including high genus morphologies, to be by Anders Hansen, for the production of myce-
approximated using straight strips of material. lium composite materials by local residents. The
This is of particular interest in the context of composite panels will be used to clad a newly
architectural fabrication as it provides a means of constructed community oven building, designed
546 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 2 Proof-of-concept study showing the constituents morphologies to be realised using straight strips of
of the construction concept—substrate material (centre- lignocellulosic material. The use of straight material strips
left), mycelium spawn (bottom-centre) and a Kagome rationalises fabrication, and their lignocellulosic compo-
weave which acts as a stay-in-place mould and reinforce- sition provides a pathway for full colonisation and
ment. The Kagome weave technique allows complex integration during the mycelium growth phase

by architect Gitte Juul (Hoff Sonne 2022). Such production efficiency and quantity to satisfy
initiatives represent promising socially driven market needs, is challenged. These socially
efforts in material production, with positively concentrated efforts are better described through
entangled consequences on the local built envi- the notion of ‘scaling deep’—creating impactful
ronment—across resource sourcing and place changes in behaviours and norms through cul-
making. Here, the industrial imperative of ‘scal- tural innovation (Moore et al. 2015).
ing up’, with its attendant concern to achieve
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 547

Fig. 3 Proof-of-concept study showing the inoculated substrates and production protocol used. By conceptual-
substrate packed into the Kagome weave. Analogous to ising the formwork as a lignocellulosic stay-in-place
other casting processes, a form is required to hold the mould and reinforcement, we relieve the use of plastics
inoculated substrate to shape whilst the mycelium and/or disposable forms common to many production
colonises and binds. This process can take a few days approaches described in the literature
to a few weeks depending on the mycelium strain,
548 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 4 The first colonised proof-of-concept study after visible on the foreground branch. This is largely due to
approx. 25 days growth. The rattan weave has been shrinkage from de-naturing using a heat-based process
colonised and bound to the contained substrate in most that kills the organism and reduces moisture content
areas. Delamination of the weave from the substrate is within the bulk volume
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 549

Fig. 5 A second proof-of-concept component. Greater inoculation stage prior to weave packing, has resulted in a
control of growth parameters, in combination with a well ripened and consistent skin encapsulating the weave
modified production protocol employing a substrate pre-
550 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 6 Two studies of doubly-curved geometries—syn- synclastic geometry (top) is produced by introducing a
clastic (top), anti-clastic (bottom)—investigating the inte- pentagon in the centre. The anti-clastic geometry (bottom)
gration and bio-compatibility of structurally performing is produced by introducing a heptagon in the centre.
woven carbon-fibre lathes within the mycelium material. Rattan weaves, woven at a smaller density to hold and
The different geometries are generated by altering the contain inoculated substrate, sandwich the carbon-fibre
regular topology of the weave through the introduction of and provide a conformal surface for the mycelial growth
a non-hexagonal polygon into the weave pattern. The
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 551

Fig. 7 Result of the synclastic prototype after approx. aiming for consistency of colonisation and surface
25 days growth. Scaling up the component size beyond conformity, the rich landscape of pockets and differenti-
that of controlled lab conditions is challenging. Witnesses ated material becomes suggestive of spatial qualities to be
to these challenges include contamination on the rattan articulated
ends and inconsistent growth. However, whilst initially
552 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 8 A digital articulation of the suggestive spatial pockets and varied spatial conditions that nuance distinc-
conditions provided by the growth prototype shown in tions between internal and external. The frame in the
Fig. 7. Here, we explore a double weave configuration bottom right speculates on the partial colonisation of the
that separates the roles of structure, shown as a white weaves. We also explore the possibility of the structural
weave, and skin, shown as a yellow weave. This weave being woven at different densities, generated
separation creates an additional design vector for creating through a sub-division strategy in the digital model

Fig. 9 Investigating an
alternative weave density
strategy compared to the
discrete approach shown in
Fig. 8. Here, we explore
continuous density change
and how this might be driven
in the digital model through
different design parameters.
On the left, the weave density
is driven by proximity to an
arbitrary feature. On the right,
the weave density is driven by
surface curvature
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 553

Fig. 10 Preliminary workflow definition for weave gener- determine if there is an impact on the weave topology. This
ation and design refinement. Design refinement is informed is due to the geometry being an emergent property of weave
through structural form, spatial organsiation and environ- pattern topology in interaction with material properties. In the
mental analysis. Design refinement leads to geometric digital model, a significant enough change in geometry
alteration. Geometric alterations must be fed back to results in topological adjustment of the base design mesh
554 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 11 Surface geometry of the secondary weave is (columns) and illustrates the morphological outcomes
adjusted through parameterised feature control. This across changes in the parameter (rows)
matrix defines the geometric features that are controlled
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 555

Fig. 12 Structural Kagome weave study using content. As the moisture content decreases, the timber re-
40  20 mm section solid beech members. The timber stiffens. This period of plasticity facilitates the direct
is steamed and compressed prior to weaving. This transfer of weaving principles to large-scale timber
treatment allows the timber to be bent to significantly sections with architecturally relevant load-bearing capac-
smaller radii of curvature than untreated timber. This ity. No mechanical or chemical fixings are required during
plasticity remains whilst the timber has a high moisture or post-assembly
556 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 13 Evaluating the geometric deviation between the basin’ defined by the specific topology, local geometry
model and the physical weave. In weaving, topological can be adjusted to achieve a closer net approximation of
accuracy is of primary concern as this directly impacts the design target
macro-scale geometry. Having established the ‘geometric

Fig. 14 Detail design study exploring the various layers of the construction concept and indicating notional
performance requirements
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 557

Fig. 15 Speculative design study of a Fungal Architec- fragmentation, decay and renewal. Through the active use
ture. The architectural motif of the ruin is re-interpreted of fermentation, the notion of decay, in relation to the
through a fermented and woven tectonic. Common to the ruin, takes on new agency and scales of operation by
motif are indeterminate qualities poised between building acting as a process of material construction in the context
and landscape, culture and wilderness, completeness and of mycelium-based composites

Fig. 16 Sectional study revealing the use of panel revealed in relation to the ground, adding to the ruinous
elements to create spatial sub-divisions within the grid- spatial and tectonic vocabulary being developed
shell structure. Additional archaeological qualities are

Fig. 17 Study of constituent layers for a full-scale pre-inoculated and grown in controlled lab conditions.
prototype fragment of the Fungal Architecture. On the left A secondary consolidating growth phase was planned
are the cutting patterns for hessian ‘burlap sausages’ to be once fully assembled
558 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 18 Digital model (left)

and preliminary assembly of
the full-scale prototype
fragment showing the
relationship between the
primary weave and the first
layer of the secondary weave
(right)

Fig. 19 Detail of the

completed prototype. The
design intention was to have
the secondary weave fully
colonised by mycelial growth,
encapsulating and binding all
elements. In this case,
mycelium growth has stalled
as seen by the fact the hessian
jackets are not fully colonised
Fermented Weaves—A Visual Record of Design Enquiry 559

Fig. 20 Environmental record of the growth conditions humidity levels were not adequately maintained during
for the prototype. The data provides an indicator for why the growth period
the mycelium growth did not colonise as expected—

Fig. 21 Environmental record of ambient CO2 levels v. shift in growth, from vegetative to fruit forming. This
Incubator levels where good mycelium growth is correlated with what was observed on closer inspection of
achieved. This data illustrates another vector of environ- the prototype, where many primordia could be seen
mental control missing in the prototype growth. As the forming. Maintaining the required environmental condi-
prototype was exposed to ambient atmospheric CO2 tions for desired growth is a key challenge of working in
levels, we can observe that these are far below the the field at larger length scales. The concentrations of CO2
concentrations required to promote mycelial growth. The produced as a metabolic product of the fermentation
drop in CO2 levels generally acts as a trigger for a phase process should also be noted against health risk levels
560 P. Ayres et al.

Fig. 22 Completed
prototype fragment. Where
the objectives related to
mycelial growth have not
been satisfied, the objectives
related to testing the
interaction and effect of the
two weave densities are
successful and lays the
foundations for the next
research iterations

Acknowledgements This work contributes to the Fungal Advances in architectural geometry 2018. Chalmers
Architectures project (FUNGAR), which is funded by the University of Technology, pp 72–93
European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation Ayres P, Bornaz S, Orlinski A, Heimrath M, Martin AG
programme FET OPEN “Challenging current thinking” (2020) Architectural scale Kagome weaving: design
under grant agreement No. 858132. methods and fabrication concepts. In: Fabricate:
design & making. UCL Press, pp 178–185
Ayres P, You-Wen J, Young J, Martin AG (2021)
Meshing with Kagome singularities: topology adjust-
References ment for representing weaves with double curvature.
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Ayres P, Martin AG, Zwierzycki M (2018) Beyond the sées, pp 188–207
basket case: a principled approach to the modelling of Grimm D, Wösten HA (2018) Mushroom cultivation in
Kagome weave patterns for the fabrication of inter- the circular economy. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol
laced lattice structures using straight strips. In: 102:7795–7803
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Heisel F, Schlesier K, Lee J, Rippmann M, Saeidi N, Moore ML, Riddell D, Vocisano D (2015) Scaling out,
Javadian A, Block P et al (2017) Design of a load- scaling up, scaling deep: strategies of non-profits in
bearing mycelium structure through informed struc- advancing systemic social innovation. J Corp Citizsh
tural engineering. In: Proceedings of the world 58:67–84
congress on sustainable technologies, pp 1–5 Pelletier MG, Holt GA, Wanjura JD, Bayer E, McIntyre G
Hoff Sonne FG (2022) Forskere ‘tryller’ svampe om til (2013) An evaluation study of mycelium based
mursten og pølser i jagten på grønne byggematerialer. acoustic absorbers grown on agricultural by-product
[Link] substrates. Ind Crops Prod 51:480–485
svampe-om-til-mursten-og-poelser-i-jagten-paa- Rigobello A, Ayres P (2022) Compressive behaviour of
groenne. Accessed 12 Jan 2023 anisotropic mycelium-based composites. Sci Rep 12
Livne A, Wösten HA, Pearlmutter D, Gal E (2022) (1):6846
Fungal mycelium bio-composite acts as a CO2-sink Rigobello A, Colmo C, Ayres P (2022) Effect of
building material with low embodied energy. ACS composition strategies on mycelium-based composites
Sustain Chem Eng 10(37):12099–12106 flexural behaviour. Biomimetics 7(2):53
Monforti F, Lugato E, Motola V, Bodis K, Scarlat N, Xing Y, Brewer M, El-Gharabawy H, Griffith G, Jones P
Dallemand JF (2015) Optimal energy use of agricul- (2018) Growing and testing mycelium bricks as
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529 IOP Publishing, p 022032
 Regenerative Material-Human
Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium
for Living and Decentralized
Architectures in Rwanda

Nina Sharifi, Yutaka Sho, Daekwon Park,

Morgan Noone, and Kiana Memarandadgar

Abstract tion and construction models through local

flows of material and information. The work
The perpetuation of highly carbon-intensive aims to (1) test, prototype, fabricate, and
construction practices by wealthy industrial- install mycelium-based modular systems
ized nations in non-industrialized contexts, in onsite, and (2) focus existing local knowledge
conjunction with the globally asymmetrical on the effort of building a sustainable frame-
effects of climate change, has brought about work for design-build that enables
long-lasting ecological and economic issues. continuity-in-place. By engaging with local
The present work aims to embody an alterna- stakeholders, including farmers, craftspeople,
tive approach to reconsidering resources, mushroom growers, organizations, and
defined here as the material, knowledge, and builders, the project envisions the reconsider-
economic flows that constitute an ecology of ation of resources through the culmination of a
building, for non-industrialized contexts self-supporting material-human ecosystem.
through the application of regenerative design
principles. Sited in a semi-rural site in Kigali,
Rwanda, this project investigates the potential Keywords
for the co-development of living biocomposite
construction through cooperative knowledge

Regenerative design Non-industrialized
and supply ecosystems that enable decentral-


contexts Mycelium Local knowledge

ized architectures through local design Sustainable framework
agency. The unique properties of mycelium,
the filamentous networks of fungal organisms,
are utilized to test the adaptability of fabrica- 1 Introduction

Construction and demolition waste account for

N. Sharifi (&)
Y. Sho
D. Park
M. Noone
over 35% of landfills (Papargyropoulou et al.
K. Memarandadgar 2011) and 27% of global greenhouse gas (GHG)
School of Architecture, Syracuse University, emissions (IEA 2019). Carbon emissions initia-
Syracuse, USA
tives range from international to local scales
e-mail: nmsharif@[Link]
(Behuria 2021), but high-emission material life
Y. Sho
cycles continue to be found in design and con-
e-mail: ysho@[Link]
struction practices (Hertwich 2021). Sustainable
D. Park
building certification systems such as LEED,
e-mail: dpark103@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 563
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
564 N. Sharifi et al.

BREEAM, and others (Olanrewaju et al. 2022) temperature, substrate type, and growth time,
have been developed with consideration toward which can be controlled in fabrication (Pelletier
embodied carbon life cycle of materials and et al. 2013). It is low-cost and biodegradable, and
environmental metrics (Hafez et al. 2023), mea- can be recycled upon mechanical disaggregation
sures which may play a role in advancing the (Holt et al. 2012).
integration of novel material approaches in Mycelium biocomposites with solid lignocel-
industrialized contexts. There is an urgent need, lulosic substrates, such as wood fiber, have been
however, for material innovation that responds to studied for their structural properties under var-
energy, environmental, and cost criteria in non- ied growing conditions (Soh and Ferrand 2023;
industrialized contexts where waste and Elsacker et al. 2019) and for linkages between
emissions-intensive construction prevails without cell growth behavior and material characteristics
access to wealthy industrial countries’ problem- such as density (Sun et al. 2022), which can
solving technologies and other resources (COP27 affect weight and strength. Mycelium biocom-
2022). In response to increasing demand for posites have also been tested for thermal and
affordable housing and other building types in acoustic properties (Schritt et al. 2021; Jiang
many African countries, strategies have been et al. 2017; Jones et al. 2020). While examples of
developed for design and construction that built projects have been recorded, such as the
improve energy efficiency and life cycle perfor- mycelium pavilion at the 2019 Dutch Design
mance while keeping costs low (Purchase et al. Week by artist Pascal Leboucq, full-scale exhibit
2021). Development in non-industrialized structures have not been accompanied by docu-
regions, however, is often inundated by foreign mentation of the methods used to produce the
interests (Mahmood et al. 2020) and relies on materials, construction details, or specific design
imported concrete and other emissions-intensive strategies that enabled integration of the bio-
materials for construction (Bah et al. 2018). In composite. Full-scale testing of a living material
Africa, the circular economy concept (Bilal et al. system for long-term construction requires
2020) is being promoted to foster innovation that investigation of growth factors as they relate to
embodies principles of regenerative design (Attia material properties. Finally, mycelium biocom-
2018). Organizations such as the African Circu- posites can be fabricated with little energy and
lar Economy Alliance promote the elimination of widely available organic waste materials, which
waste and pollution, using and reusing local may assist the development of local, decentral-
materials, and regenerating the natural ecology. ized manufacturing networks that align with
The major role that buildings play in the gener- regenerative and circular economic principles.
ation of waste, pollution, and resource extraction Such networks could provide a bulwark against
calls for the development of architectural mate- dependency on imported construction materials
rials that embody regenerative principles. and labor while fostering a local product and
As designers seek materials with lower carbon design network. However, most mycelium
emissions, fungal mycelium has emerged as a explorations target the global North and appli-
basis for biocomposite modular systems in cations where technology, materials, expertise,
buildings. Mycelium, the filamentous network of and controlled lab spaces are readily available.
hyphal elongated cells that make up the majority Documentation of how to implement co-
of fungal organisms, binds organic substrates that development of mycelium-based material sys-
can be sourced from abundant agricultural and tems and architecture in non-industrialized
construction waste such as bran (Sisti et al. regions is needed to realize the benefits of a
2021), grain husks, or waste wood material circular material design, manufacture, and reuse
(Jones et al. 2020). As mycelium secretes ecosystem.
enzymes to partly digest organic substrates, its The development of mycelium-based bio-
hyphal network grows and becomes denser in composites is aided by their geometric plasticity
response to environmental factors including and modifiable growth behavior (Appels et al.
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 565

Fig. 1 Summary chart of an array of raw materials for mycelium biocomposites found in prior work

2019). The potential for interior finish applica- supply chains are not present in many regions in
tions, including ceiling panels or partitions, the global South.
acoustic panels, and insulation, has been docu- A case study is presented in a semi-rural
mented (IEA 2018; Pelletier et al. 2013). A wide community in Rwanda, where the team has
range of mycelium and organic substrates have practiced and conducted research since 2008.
been used to produce biocomposite variations Industrial building materials such as concrete,
(Girometta et al. 2019) as seen in Fig. 1. steel, and finish materials are imported from
The ability to control certain physical prop- Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and China, and tariffs
erties of a mycelium biocomposite module, such and transport costs are high. Landlocked and
as a block or panel, is useful in considering steep terrains of the country add cost, and the
possible applications in the built environment. construction is said to be 30–40% more costly
Whether developing structural, insulation, or than neighboring Kenya. The industrial materials
finish materials, regenerative design principles are out of reach for low-income Rwandans, 60%
prompt consideration toward emissions, waste, of the population living on less than $1.25 a day
and human and ecological health criteria. A re- (Weatherspoon et al. 2021). Research on 370
generative paradigm as a point of reference rural homes and their built environment con-
suggests the need to reevaluate the limited ability ducted in 2019 showed only 3% of the household
of conventional material components to address had access to water within their properties, and
such criteria. Polystyrene foams and concrete, for 11% had access to electricity (Sho Forthcoming).
example, while lauded for their material proper- With few paved roads and limited vehicular
ties, remain part of the fossil fuel-based linear access, to build affordably and sustainably in
consumption-and-waste paradigm. For certain Rwanda is a Herculean task.
applications in which insulation, structure, free- Industrially produced construction materials
dom of form, and versatility are needed, myce- may be inaccessible for most in Rwanda, but soil,
lium biocomposites may provide viable labor, and knowledge of self-building processes
alternatives, particularly where industrialized are abundantly available (Sho 2014a). Typically,
566 N. Sharifi et al.

rural homes are built by residents themselves Database 2022; Malik et al. 2021). While their
with sun-dried adobe blocks or wattle-and-daub. Euromodernist aesthetics may signify progress,
Rwandan agriculture supports a diet of cassava, little of the industrialized construction methods
potatoes, amaranth, and bananas. Entities like are transferred to the local building sectors, and
Kigali Farms have introduced mushroom grow- the actual spaces and their programs are available
ing entrepreneurship, for sale of edible mush- for a small fledging middle class (Goodfellow
rooms at urban supermarkets. In a news article, 2017; Sho 2014a; Goodfellow and Smith 2013).
Audace Hirwa, Director of Documentation, In contrast, in rural regions, 95% of homes
Publication, Communication and Technology necessitated repairs, made difficult by the short-
Promotion Unit at Rwanda Agricultural Board age of cash income (Sho Forthcoming).
(RAB) commented on the country’s focus on Where earth-based brick or block structures
mushrooms as an effective means of income are commonly found, but pose certain climatic
generation and cheap source of protein for and practical issues in Rwanda, the introduction
Rwandans. “The edible mushrooms reduce pov- of mycelium-based design and fabrication
erty, stunting and malnutrition among children,” methodologies could enable alternative modes of
he explained, adding that medicinal mushrooms construction through the material’s affordability,
invigorate the body’s immune system. According low technical and skill barriers in construction,
to the article, 32 companies and 20 cooperatives and circular life cycle. The scalability and plas-
are currently cultivating around 629,200 mush- ticity of mycelium-based biocomposites present
room growing kits involving 123 individual opportunities for expression of construction log-
farmers, harvesting around 523,600 tons per year ics and aesthetic identities. There is potential to
(Nkurunziza 2021). With evolving practices and complement existing knowledge, skills, and
government policies, there may be opportunity in material networks, introduce labor opportuni-
the complementarity between existing agricul- ties, and foster mutual augmentation with grow-
tural and construction knowledge and the ing economic activity, as outlined below in
development of mycelium-based biocomposites. Fig. 2.
Developing alternative modes of construction Agricultural waste, or agriwaste, was identi-
in non-industrialized communities requires col- fied as an affordable and locally abundant source
laboration to avoid the historically common of raw materials to work with in Kigali. The
inculcation of foreign culture into indigenous Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) uses cotton-
design identities through architectural artifacts. seed hulls as a substrate in their mushroom center
Global development entities may excel at solving in Southern Province, as do Kigali Farms
immediate problems or beautifying urban built (Umubyeyi 2021a), who also suggested bean
environments, yet they have missed qualitative straw, wheat straw, and maize residual materials.
factors such as locally acceptable aesthetics and Other substrates used in Rwanda are rice bran,
the economic and knowledge gaps the develop- wheat bran, maize husks, and bean and soybean
ment projects may exacerbate (Sho 2014a). residual materials. These substrates are mixed
In Rwanda’s capital city Kigali, soaring office with water and limestone powder or ash to pro-
towers, shopping malls, and luxury housing duce the biocomposite (Umubyeyi 2021b).
projects stand as architectural evidence of the In addition to organic agriwaste, Rwanda
miraculous economic comeback from the 1994 produces an abundance of inorganic waste. In
genocide (Effective Logistics and Consultancy Rwanda, manufacturing, use, importation, or sale
Group 2020). These urban infrastructural and of single-use plastic bags has been prohibited
construction projects are made with imported since 2008, but plastic water bottles and takeout
cement, steel, and glass, and many are contracted containers are regularly used. As seen in Fig. 3,
by Chinese companies (Chinese Loans to Africa plastic and other unrecycled material waste flows
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 567

Fig. 2 Outline of teams, materials, and information flows that foster the development and integration of mycelium
biocomposites

Fig. 3 Flows of waste matter

in Rwandan districts
(Effective Logistics and
Consultancy Group 2020)
568 N. Sharifi et al.

continue to be produced in Kigali City and out- advantage of instrumentation to record tempera-
lying areas (Effective Logistics and Consultancy ture, humidity, and other parameters that influ-
Group 2020). ence the growth of mycelium and its binding to
Mitali Diogene represents Agruni Company the substrate materials. The Rwanda setting
Group, a private waste management company provided the dynamic complexity endemic to
contracted by Kigali City for 12 of its sectors. design testing, including a fluctuating climatic
The 350–450 tons of waste they collect each day environment, locally sourced raw materials, the
are dumped in the open Nduba landfill, one of local workers that made up a labor force with its
the primary dumpsites for the city (Umubyeyi own knowledge and skills, and economic and
2021a). The majority of rural and semi-rural organizational leaders who helped to forge col-
households discard their waste in the woods until laborative relationships.
there is enough to set on fire. Integrating cleaned The development of local knowledge and
waste such as plastics into mycelium-based bio- supply chain networks may help to address the
composites may present an opportunity to pre- chronic shortage of low-cost and self-build
vent combustion and other emissions from waste architecture and support income generation for
practices. Plastics are of particular interest in this the rural poor using the agencies of design and
work because many are nonbiodegradable, and building. This project seeks to demonstrate such
plastic waste is a widely acknowledged global an approach on a small scale through (i) docu-
problem. The present work asks the question of mentation of growth and prototyping methods for
whether plastic waste materials can be used to the purpose of repeatability, (ii) documentation
test, through design, the concept of a non- of visual observations of mycelium behavior
biodegradable material occupying a space within under changing conditions; and (iii) design and
the circular life cycle of a biomaterial-based construction of a full-scale installation to evalu-
composite. Given the ubiquity of plastic waste, ate constructability, test configurations of mod-
such an exercise may produce information useful ular units, and consider the potential for further
to the integration of nonbiodegradables in com- design applications in the built environment.
posites in different contexts. The work of prototyping was conducted in
two environments where the team was co-
located: a controlled research laboratory, and a
2 Materials and Methods kitchen space in Rwanda. The laboratory setup
consisted of a fabrication chamber for the mixing
This work aims to evaluate the potential for a of raw materials and mycelial growth phase of
mycelium biocomposite in a material-human the biocomposites. The chamber, shown in
ecology that draws together agricultural, build- Fig. 4, was constructed in an interior laboratory
ing, and waste systems. Modular, unit-scale, and space using a simple wood frame structure sealed
full-scale development were necessary to observe over with 3 mil clear top sheeting to prevent dust
and understand factors such as climate, available and microbes from contaminating the workspace.
materials, and physical parameters that influ- Cut-outs were made for a filtered forced-air
enced design outcomes. Prototyping, fabrication, supply fan and exhaust vent, with the chamber
and building integration approaches were tested positively (outward) pressurized while in use.
at the research laboratory and at the building site Within the chamber were a steel worktable and
in Rwanda. To leverage the learning advantages shelving units, the latter of which were wrapped
of both locations, the laboratory setting provided in another layer of sheeting to protect the pro-
a controlled interior climate that could be sani- totypes during their growth period. Finally, the
tized, which allowed mixing of raw materials in a biocomposite prototypes once pressed into
contamination-free space. It also provided the formwork were themselves wrapped with air
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 569

Fig. 4 Section drawing of

laboratory-based mycelium
biocomposite prototyping
chamber with three layers of
dust membranes to prevent
contamination during the
growth process

exchange via filter patches, which is needed for material. Sun-drying and forced-air drying can
the mycelium to grow aerobically and colonize also be implemented, as long as debris and dust
the substrate. are controlled.
The fabrication of prototypes between the two While the laboratory-based fabrication process
setup locations was marked by important differ- enabled a degree of control over environmental
ences. The laboratory setting could be sanitized conditions, the process in Rwanda presented
easily, including the steel work surface, and air- unique discoveries and challenges. Firstly,
flow mechanically controlled. Despite differences Rwanda has two annual rainy seasons bringing
in the prototyping spaces between the laboratory torrential rains in short periods of time. Because
and Rwanda, the process for fabricating proto- most roads are unpaved, soil baking and com-
types was similar, and was carried out in a series paction during the dry seasons prevent water
of steps over a period of 5–10 days. The raw absorption, creating trenches, gullies, and water-
substrates, including cleaned agriwaste, were falls everywhere in rural areas. While mycelium
inoculated with mycelium, enough water to grows a protective hydrophobic skin naturally, it
achieve a consistency similar to loose soil (ratios is not waterproof on its own; therefore, applica-
were modified throughout the process), and in tions with exposure to rain would need to be
some cases, additional pulverized nutrients such finished with coatings such as beeswax, which is
as flour to augment the mycelium’s enzymatic available through local honey farms. The second
“digestive” process and increase the rate and challenge is the prevention of contamination in
extent of mycelial binding and colonization. The the lab. Unpaved roads in combination with par-
mixes were then allowed to colonize in bags for ticularity of the Rwandan soil cause fine dust to
later use, and when a certain amount of growth circulate during dry seasons, so a contaminant-
had occurred, the mixes were lightly pressed into free environment must be maintained while pro-
thermoformed plastic formwork and covered, viding a small amount of air exchange for the
with controlled fresh air exchange to allow aer- mycelium to fully colonize the cleaned substrate.
obic colonization. The modules were removed The prototyping work the team conducted in
and dried, in some cases using additional heat Rwanda took place during the dry season, so
from a low-temperature oven (between 90 and coverings such as clean fabrics and sheet mate-
100 °C) to accelerate drying without cooking the rials were used during the growth phase. The third
570 N. Sharifi et al.

challenge is the fabrication of formwork neces- pressed into formwork. Several prototypes were
sary to shape and contain the loose mix of produced using the mix, and revealed variation in
mycelium inoculate and raw materials while the color and texture. A summary diagram of the
growth and binding process takes place. The process of mixing the raw materials, growth (or
thermoformed plastic that was used in the original colonization), and drying of the prototypes can
laboratory setting was not available to construct be seen in Fig. 5.
formwork in which to grow the mycelium mixes. During the prototyping process in Rwanda,
In the absence of a functioning national postal the organic and inorganic substrates varied based
service, and the exorbitant cost of shipping using on an abundance of plastic waste and agriwaste
private carriers, any non-local materials must be materials. In the production of flat panel mod-
brought to the country in person. Few digital ules, banana leaves were coarsely ground and
fabrication machines are available in Rwanda, at used as a substrate, with the addition of between
the Westerwelle Start-Up Haus Kigali Mak- 7 and 9 g per panel of finely ground sorghum or
erspace and the Kigali Digital Fabrication Labo- wheat flour to increase the rate of growth. Full
ratory, at a high monetary and energy cost. colonization was achieved in five days with
Locally available materials were used in multiple mixes where airflow was controlled, as
keeping with the project’s goal of evaluating the shown in Fig. 6. These modules were light,
potential for a system for growth, production, and yellow-to-white in color, foamlike, rigid, and had
self-building. Three materials were used to fab- enough compressive strength to be stood on by a
ricate the formwork for panels to be installed in an grown person without visibly modifying the
office interior where acoustic soundproofing was original geometry. Two prototypes that were not
requested. The first formwork was constructed adequately covered during the growth process
with paper, which proved to be the least robust, were not fully colonized, and were possibly
and gradually disintegrated in the presence of contaminated by airborne microbes. After
moisture, but was fast and low-cost to construct. 16 days they were removed, and were dark
The second formwork was made of ceramic by brown in color, which was close to the original
local artisans and provided a viable inexpensive color of the raw materials mix prior to colo-
alternative that could be reused many times. nization. They held together with a weak, web-
Ceramics are also available in rural areas, where it like mycelium network when picked up, but
is a priority for this work to test the potential of a disintegrated under minimal stress. Due to the
biocomposite growth and construction ecosys- risk that they were contaminated, these panels
tem. Finally, steel sheet forms were used, and were not crumbled and remixed into new mod-
provided a smooth, non-porous surface against ules, but isolated and disposed of separately.
which the biocomposites grew successfully. The
steel sheet forms required materials and tools not
readily available in rural areas, however, and 3 Results: Translating Prototyping
would add a nontrivial cost to construction. Other Outcomes to Full-Scale Building
materials that were considered, and are planned Investigations
for inclusion in future testing, included wood,
packed earth, and locally available textiles. The first set of prototypes and formwork-making
Finally, the question of whether the locally processes had been developed for the intended
produced nonbiodegradable waste plastics could end-use of an interior acoustic soundproofing
be integrated into the biocomposite was investi- panel in accordance with the needs of an office;
gated. In both the laboratory-based setting and however, there was an opportunity to engage
the Rwanda-based setting, the organic raw with agricultural activity in a direct way through
material substrates were combined with clean, design and fabrication. Small mushroom growing
ground waste plastic aggregate (approximately huts, domed-shaped structures typically less than
1 mm diameter) during the mixing phase and 3 m at ground-level diameter, had sprung up in
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 571

Fig. 5 Top, diagram of fabrication process for mycelium-based biocomposite prototypes; Bottom, materials-gathering
and finished prototypes with integrated organic and inorganic (plastic) waste materials
572 N. Sharifi et al.

Fig. 6 Matrix of Rwanda-based fabrication modifying growth variables to produce changes in material appearance,
structure, and density

this landscape due to a recent boom in edible mix then dries and desiccates quickly, killing the
mushroom cultivation by local small-holding mycelium and preventing further unwanted
farmers. Mushrooms were grown on the ground growth. With the inherently stable geometry of
of these huts, which consisted of lightweight the dome-shaped hut, the biowelding was suc-
sheet materials and a mix of bamboo and other cessful in attaching the block modules when the
framing materials. The use of a single horizontal walls of the hut were constructed, as shown in
ground surface limited total growing area to less Fig. 5. The bond was strongest when two mod-
than 4–5 m2. The research team, presented with ules were joined just prior to the completion of
the design problem of constructing the growing the growing phase. The pieces continued grow-
huts with mycelium-based biocomposites, pro- ing while attaching to each other, and afterward
duced additional formwork with the goal of dried out together. Future fabrication must also
developing a block module that could be stacked. take desiccation into account, as the extent of
In the mushroom hut prototype, one design drying affects the final size of each module, and
criterion was that the processes of fabricating therefore the organization and fit of the overall
modules and full-scale construction had to be structure. For an exterior standalone hut appli-
accessible to non-designers, and lightweight cation, the exposed surfaces would require a
enough for women and elderly, who already coating to waterproof the structure; a beeswax,
participate in self-building in Rwanda (Sho biopolymer, shellac, or other locally sourced
2014b, c). Biowelding, a term used to describe a coating could be used in such an application
process in which natural growth methods or (Fig. 7).
organic materials are used to bind objects toge- The mushroom growing hut project remains
ther, was introduced into the fabrication process in development, and full-scale mockups are
as a way to simplify construction using the same planned in the future for construction onsite,
principles already present in the existing growth where they can be tested in the extremes of the
method. Before the mycelium modules are dried, rainy and dry seasons in Rwanda. In addition,
and thus still living, additional fresh mycelium secure funding and a reliable supply chain will
mix can be used between modules in a manner need to be established in conjunction with the
similar to mortar, binding blocks together verti- construction process in order to be self-sustaining
cally and horizontally. This small addition of wet and locally owned. In the near term, the focus of
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 573

Fig. 7 Top, section drawing of possible configuration in Rwanda; Bottom, agricultural mushroom hut mock-up

the work remains on the interior office applica- and screens, tiles, insulations, and paint are
tions, where ongoing projects in Kigali were mostly imported from China. They are limited in
ready to integrate the panel modules. selection, inconsistent in supply, of lower qual-
A shortage of interior architectural elements in ity, and high in life cycle carbon emissions.
Rwanda presents many opportunities. Interior Locally sourced and produced mycelium panels
construction materials including gypsum boards, could offer replacements to such imported
drop-ceiling and soundproofing panels, partitions materials, while adding new knowledge to the
574 N. Sharifi et al.

Fig. 8 Adapting Rwandan textile patterns to interior panel geometries

local construction industry. The research team The development of interior acoustic panels
worked closely with the local staff in the project, continued with design testing of panel size,
who were instrumental in piecing together the geometry, and method of integration. Traditional
knowledge network related to the production of pattern motifs from woven partitions and wall
mycelium-based materials in Rwanda. Rwandan decorations found in indigenous architecture
architects, crafts artisans, mushroom farmers, (Kanimba and Pee 2008) became an origin point
business leaders, and builders were engaged to for exploring geometric pattern expression, as
find resources and create prototypes for the pro- seen in Fig. 8. The application of simple patterns
ject. Many were surprised, intrigued, and demonstrated the ability of the biocomposite to
impressed by the resultant panels. We received articulate surface geometry while remaining
many positive responses and enthusiasm for the lightweight and allowing multiple options for
project, especially from mushroom farmer Sister mounting or framing.
Pascasie at Centre Umushumba Mwiza who, For the interior office application, the team
very much familiar with mycelium herself, aimed to work only with materials and tools that
expressed shock when she found that architec- could be locally and easily sourced in Rwanda.
tural materials could be made from it. The only These included slender wood pieces for framing,
concern noted by Rwandans was the use of a joinery that would work with hand tools and
food product in the production process. Food available hardware such as nails rather than
scarcity and hunger are urgent problems screws, to eliminate the need for a drill. Slotted
throughout Africa and certainly in Rwanda. We frame systems were developed to hold panels in
found a sensitivity toward using edible materials such a way as to enable changing or replacement
in the creation of a product other than food, over time, as shown in Fig. 9. Also requested
which should be addressed in future work. was a lightweight dropped ceiling system, which
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 575

Fig. 9 Framed interior partition structure designed for ease of assembly/disassembly

576 N. Sharifi et al.

Fig. 10 Detail and installation of a biocomposite interior ceiling-mounted acoustic panel system

was designed with a similar frame that could be to the multiple sites and projects with which the
constructed with hand tools and existing skills whole team ultimately engaged. The acoustic
(Fig. 10). Due to the slight shrinkage (between 8 panels are planned for vertical-surface integration
and 12% in all directions, in our observation) of and ceiling mounting in offices in an existing
panels, the team has designed both panels and the workspace in the semi-rural neighborhood in
frame to accommodate for shrinkages. which the Rwanda-based team has been working.
The products of research that are exported to In addition, the team was given access to the
Rwanda from the laboratory included the Masoro Learning and Sports Center, a recently
knowledge and techniques required to begin completed project by General Architecture Col-
production onsite in Rwanda, as well as an laborative, and the team has been invited to
illustrated manual created in the laboratory design a hanging acoustic surface installation
describing the fabrication process. The team in there. A concept rendering can be seen below, in
Rwanda acted as a catalyst to cultivate a network Fig. 11. This continuation of this work is
of knowledge exchange and also provided access planned.
Regenerative Material-Human Ecologies: Investigating Mycelium … 577

Fig. 11 Rendered view of planned suspended acoustic surface in the Masoro Learning and Sports Center, Rwanda

resources by embarking on a co-development of

4 Discussion and Conclusions waste-based mycelium biocomposites with the
larger, dynamic ecosystem of materials and
The outcomes of investigating mycelium-based knowledge that enable material innovation, have
hybrid materials for the Rwandan semi-rural site fostered the interdisciplinary and cross-cultural
must incorporate the local construction culture framework between the global South and North,
and knowledge, without relying on industrialized science and design, and living and static systems
supply chains and infrastructure. Next steps upon which the human-material ecology could be
include providing further directions in best developed for semi-rural and semi-urban envi-
manufacturing process, evidence of structural ronments. Operating within Rwandan design
and acoustic performance of mycelium panels, constraints has enabled participatory modes of
and implementation of mushroom growing making involving mushroom farmers and dis-
structures. Further developments must embody tributors, waste management industry, local and
low-carbon principles of ecosystem comple- expatriate designers, rural self-builders, and
mentarity, including the analysis of organic and urban professional contractors—a construction
inorganic waste as substrate, and assessment for mode decidedly distinct from those existing in
sequestering high-carbon materials, streamlining the South or North. Because of its carbon-
the reuse of agricultural byproducts, matching of negative performance, available low- and high-
material production with the existing mushroom end market niches, and the relative ease of
economy, and skills and knowledge creation. knowledge transfer, the mycelium building
Designing mycelium-based materials and coop- component research continues to provide
erative models for living architectures in Rwanda opportunities for decentralized regenerative
revealed previously untapped resources such as architectures. In recent years, the world has
agriwaste and plastics, farming knowledge witnessed the environmental degradation in
applied to construction, and new collaborations. which industrialized economies have been the
The learnings gained from reconsidering major culprit, while non-industrialized
578 N. Sharifi et al.

economies have been disproportionately impac- lignocellulosic substrates. PLoS ONE 14:e0213954.
ted. For this reason, in addition to designing [Link]
Girometta C, Picco AM, Baiguera RM et al (2019)
sustainable and marketable building materials Physico-mechanical and thermodynamic properties of
and methods, the building disciplines are called mycelium-based biocomposites: a review. Sustainabil-
to design new engagements between the global ity [Link]://[Link]/10.3390/su11010281
South and North. The mycelium research team Goodfellow T (2017) Urban fortunes and skeleton
cityscapes: real estate and late urbanization in Kigali
believes that this project contributes a small and a and Addis Ababa: urban fortunes and skeleton
tangible step toward such engagement. cityscapes. Int J Urban Reg Res 41:786–803. https://
[Link]/10.1111/1468-2427.12550
Acknowledgement The authors would like to acknowl- Goodfellow T, Smith A (2013) From urban catastrophe to
edge the support of Syracuse University and collabora- ‘model’ city? Politics, security and development in
tions with our teams in the laboratories and in Rwanda, post-conflict Kigali. Urban Stud 50:3185–3202.
including Cynthia Twagirayezu, Carene Umubyeyi, Sister [Link]
Pascase, James Setzler, Ivania Rivera, and Helna Zhen. Hafez FS, Sa’di B, Safa-Gamal M et al (2023) Energy
efficiency in sustainable buildings: a systematic review
with taxonomy, challenges, motivations, methodolog-
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 Production of Thermoplastic Starch
Pellets and Their Robotic Deposition
for Biodegradable Non-standard
Formworks

Benjamin Kemper

Abstract are discussed within the scope of the archi-

tectural research field. This paper focuses on
The climate crisis challenges architects,
the production and digital fabrication tech-
designers, and engineers to explore alternative niques of TPS pellets, with the primary goal of
opportunities for more sustainable fabrication developing a sustainable, bio-based, and
processes. Biopolymers have emerged as a
bio-compostable system for concrete form-
potential material to replace petroleum-based work in architecture.
plastics used in building and construction
processes. This research aims to re-evaluate
the production of non-standard building ele- Keywords
ments and introduce bio-based and biodegrad-
able materials for formworks in architecture.

Biopolymers Sustainable fabrication

This research paper investigates the produc-

Thermoplastic starch Concrete formwork

tion of thermoplastic starch (TPS) pellets and Robotic 3D printing
connected digital fabrication techniques. It
studies the effects of varying ratios of the
plasticizer on the behavior and properties of 1 Introduction
the material. TPS pellets are further processed
using a large-scale robotic 3D printing setup, In 2015, the United Nations established 17
utilizing the Fused Deposition Modeling shared goals for peace and prosperity for
(FDM) method. The initial printed results humanity and the planet (UN General Assembly
using a robotic pellet extrusion system are 2015). The present research endeavors to adopt a
presented, analyzed, and evaluated. The sustainable approach to utilizing the planet’s
advantages and challenges of this approach resources in the building industry, an issue that
the discipline of architecture must address with
immediacy. These goals may be deemed an
opportunity to re-examine building and con-
B. Kemper (&) struction processes through innovation (goals 9,
Digital Building Technologies, ETH Zurich, Zurich, 11) and responsibly transition to bio-based and
Switzerland compostable materials instead of relying on
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]
conventional material systems (goals 12, 13).
B. Kemper
Materiability Research Group, Anhalt University of
Applied Sciences, Dessau, Germany

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 581
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
582 B. Kemper

The early results of this research were briefly 2 Biopolymers

discussed in “Bio-Formwork” (Kemper 2022).
The construction industry is a significant con- Biopolymers have a similar chemical structure to
sumer of plastics, comprising 19% of total con- traditional plastics, making them a viable alter-
sumption (Geyer et al. 2017). The majority of native. Unlike conventional plastics derived from
buildings are constructed using traditional mate- petroleum, biopolymers are composed of poly-
rials, each with distinct requirements. These mers from biological matter such as sugar cane,
materials often rely on finite resources. Due to starch, or cellulose found in trees, straw, and
their affordability and advantageous characteris- cotton. These biomaterials can be engineered to
tics such as robustness and lightweight, exhibit biodegradability, compostability, robust-
petroleum-based polymers are frequently ness, and durability properties (Goodall 2011,
employed in building materials, including insu- pp. 2–6; Kemper 2022, p. 65).
lation, window frames, piping systems, packag- Biopolymers can be classified into four
ing (Häkkinen et al. 2019, p. 5), and formworks main groups (Chandra and Rustgi 1998; Clarin-
(Kemper 2022, p. 65). val and Halleux 2005; Jamshidian et al. 2010,
However, the continued use of plastics in the pp. 552–553):
building industry is problematic due to their
harmful environmental footprint caused by 1. Produced by microorganisms or genetically
incorrect recycling, high energy consumption, modified bacteria
pollution of the oceans, destruction of marine 2. Produced by chemical synthesis from bio-
life, micro debris, and harmful additives (Kretzer derived monomers
2017, p. 102). This research addresses this issue 3. Derived from fossil resources
by exploring opportunities to replace petroleum- 4. Derived from natural raw resources.
based plastics with bio-based and biodegradable
polymers in the built environment. These types of biopolymers can be further
Non-standard formwork is one application of divided into two categories: bio-polyesters and
engineering materials in architecture and con- agro-polymers (Avérous and Pollet 2012, p. 16).
struction that aims to decrease the consumption Agro-polymers originate from natural resources
of resources. By fabricating unique molds using and can be converted into a biopolymer through
digital fabrication techniques, such as robotic simple procedures, which differ significantly from
milling (Mostafavi et al. 2019, p. 427) and the other groups. On the other hand, bio-polyesters
additively printed formworks (Peters 2014; Jipa are transformed through biotechnology and chem-
et al. 2018; Leschok and Dillenburger 2019), it is ical synthesis into a biopolymer. The following
possible to reduce the amount of material needed subchapter will investigate a biopolymer from the
for traditional formworks and the consumption of bio-polyesters (PLA) group and a polymer from
concrete. These processes are efficient in the agro-polymers (starch) group, highlighting
resource reduction but still depend on petroleum- each material’s benefits and disadvantages.
based polymers. It is essential to consider that using corn starch
Despite the reduction in material used for for non-food applications may pose a potential
concrete components achieved through the uti- conflict as corn is a valuable food crop. This can
lization of complex, single-use formworks affect food security and may also compete with
(Meibodi et al. 2017, p. 213), printed plastic food uses for the available corn supply, potentially
formwork contributes to a greater environmental driving up food prices and presenting a higher risk
impact of the element. As such, this research for developing nations. However, corn starch for
aims to investigate bio-based and biodegradable non-food applications can also create a revenue
materials as an alternative solution to address the stream for farmers. In 2020, approximately
challenges of disposing of valuable resources. 57.14% of the industrial starch market was used
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 583

for food, with the remaining being divided among Bioplastics, as commonly referred to, have a
uses such as feed (3.57%), the paper industry range of applications in everyday life, such as in
(28.57%), pharmaceuticals (5.36%), and other the form of bioplastic cutlery and cups, as well as
applications (5.36%). This market’s compound in architecture. While PLA is often perceived as an
annual growth rate is projected to be 5.75% by ecologically friendly material, it only breaks down
2025 (Adewale et al. 2022, pp. 2–3). effectively under specific industrial settings not
In this research context, it was found that commonly encountered in nature. It generally
multiple types of starches, including rice and takes two to three months to degrade in com-
wheat starch, can be used for printing with sim- posting plants with warm temperatures (55 °C)
ilar results. This allows for broader distribution and a moisture-rich environment (Kale et al. 2007,
and reduces reliance on a single material. Locally p. 260; Madhavan Nampoothiri et al. 2010,
sourced materials can be used, eliminating the p. 8498; Teixeira et al. 2021, p. 27). It can take
need to import specific starch types to fabricate years for the material to degrade when exposed to
3D-printed TPS structures. Still, this raises ethi- natural conditions such as soil and oceans (Lam-
cal concerns as food materials are being used for berti et al. 2020, p. 2556; Kemper 2022, p. 66).
non-food purposes. It is acceptable on a small
scale, but it becomes a pressing issue as usage 2.2 Thermoplastic Starch (TPS)
increases. Politics, industry, and research must
work together to ensure the development of Given the challenges in the biodegradability of
diverse techniques for sustainable processes and Polylactic Acid (PLA), research has been directed
the use of various bio-based material resources. toward investigating alternative materials, such as
Ultimately, finding all possible solutions to break polysaccharides, specifically thermoplastic starch
free from the dependency on petroleum-based (TPS). TPS has been widely employed in (food)
plastics is crucial. packaging and biomedical applications (de Car-
valho and Trovatti 2016, p. 5; Khan et al. 2016,
p. 6). TPS is obtained from biomass sources, for
2.1 Polylactic Acid (PLA) example, starch from maize, potatoes, and wheat
(Khan et al. 2016, p. 4), and can be disposed of
A notable instance of bio-polyesters is Polylactic through composting. The degradation of starch-
Acid (PLA), which is generated through based polymers is seen as a potential solution for
biotechnology by converting lactic acid into a issues related to petroleum-based polymers (Saiah
thermoplastic polyester. The production of PLA et al. 2012, p. 75; Kemper 2022, p. 66).
offers several benefits, including the use of lac- Compared to PLA, TPS has a higher potential
tide monomers from lactic acid extracted by the for sustainable use in architectural elements.
fermentation of corn, the fixation of carbon Furthermore, TPS’s greenhouse gas emissions
dioxide by the corn plant, energy conservation, and cradle-to-gate non-renewable energy usage
the enhancement of the agricultural economy, are significantly lower than conventional plastics,
and the ability to modify the material’s physical making it a more environmentally friendly option
properties (Dorgan et al. 2000, pp. 1–2). (Shen and Patel 2008, p. 163). According to the
The production of PLA combines agricultural, material database website [Link],
biological, and chemical technologies. Frequent TPS is considered carbon–neutral, meaning that
utilization of PLA is found in food packaging, the material decomposes the same amount of
specifically for fresh produce such as fruits and CO2 sequestered during plant growth. However,
vegetables, accounting for approximately 70% of it is important to consider the CO2 production of
its usage (Jamshidian et al. 2010, p. 561). the entire process, including cultivation, trans-
Another typical application of PLA is as a fila- port, and production, in a life cycle assessment
ment for 3D printing. (de Pietro and Winterthur 2022).
584 B. Kemper

TPS is described as a modified natural mate- algae as a substitute for petrochemical plastics by
rial. It is chemically and physically altered from converting it into a biopolymer, creating innova-
the biopolymer starch found in nature (de Pietro tive and accessible products. The studio focuses
and Winterthur 2022). Starch granules swell and on aquafarming seaweed, which absorbs carbon
form a gel if their outer layer is broken through dioxide during growth and binds carbon to bio-
mechanical work and flow (Saiah et al. 2012, mass, with the resulting starch used for biopoly-
p. 58). When exposed to warm water, the soluble mer formulation (Klarenbeek et al. 2017).
component of the starch evaporates through the In 2014, the Mediated Matter Group
granule wall, causing swelling and bursting of (MIT) led by Neri Oxman published the project
the grains (Andersen et al. 2000, p. 16; Khan “Water-Based Robotic Fabrication,” which
et al. 2016, p. 3). Native starch granules can be examined the additive manufacturing of regen-
transformed into a thermoplastic using a plasti- erated, biodegradable hydrogel composites such
cizer in combination with temperature and shear as chitosan and sodium alginate using a multi-
(Wang et al. 2008, p. 110). A suitable ratio of chamber extrusion system to achieve a hybrid
plasticizers in the formulation leads to a starchy biomaterial with varying properties in specific
material consisting of entangled polysaccharide areas (Mogas-Soldevila et al. 2014).
chains, referred to as thermoplastic starch (Saiah More recently, CITA/Royal Danish Academy
et al. 2012, p. 58). TPS is typically fabricated has explored cellulose-based robotic printing and
through extrusion or solvent casting (Saiah et al. its impact on material properties and geometry
2012, p. 58). It is essential to note that TPS during the extended curing phase of the bio-
exhibits severe shrinkage and deformation during based material. Rather than altering the material
the setting phase, resulting in deformation and formulation to decrease shrinkage, the research
cracks (Shanks and Kong 2012, p. 113). team aims to computationally monitor and eval-
uate the curing behavior to anticipate specific
results and integrate this knowledge into the
3 Materials and Methods design process (Rossi et al. 2022).

3.1 State of the Research 3.1.2 3D Formwork

In architecture, the use of non-standard building
This research paper evaluates two scientific elements is becoming increasingly relevant.
fields. The first field examines the 3D deposition Although the research in this area is still devel-
of bio-based and biodegradable materials, while oping, advancements in technology and material
the second field focuses on the latest research on science make non-standard elements a progres-
freeform formworks for optimized structures, sively crucial part of the built environment. The
specifically 3D printing with plastics for 3D benefits of individualized building components
formworks and the possibility of replacing them include design flexibility through innovative
with biopolymers. shapes, increased efficiency through additive
manufacturing, and reduced waste. Using unique
3.1.1 Bio-based Materials for 3D formworks for concrete structures can improve
Printing structural integrity and reduce material usage.
The field of 3D printing using bio-based mate- Formworks play an important role in ensuring
rials is multifaceted, with ongoing research in the geometry of concrete elements during the
sustainable and ecological design. However, setting and curing phases. Research has shown
there needs to be more advancement in applying that the cost of formworks for standard concrete
bio-based and biodegradable materials for large- elements can account for up to 50% of the total
scale architectural projects. cost (IfB, D-BAUG, ETHZ), while for individ-
The work of Eric Klarenbeek & Maartje Dros ualized elements, the cost increases between 80
and Atelier Luma highlights the potential of using and 90% (Burger et al. 2020, p. 49). Therefore,
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 585

multiple research projects are focusing on the building components. Studies have highlighted
optimization of concrete structures through the the cost-effectiveness of using BAAM for form-
use of 3D-printed plastic formworks. works, as it can significantly reduce (up to 50%)
A common challenge with these individual- labor and material costs compared to traditional
ized 3D-printed formworks is the presence of wooden molds (Love et al. 2019, pp. 2, 9).
two forces during and after casting: hydrostatic
and granular pressure (Leschok and Dillenburger
2019, p. 191). The “Dissolvable 3DP Formwork” 3.2 Preliminary Studies
project addresses this issue through design
adjustments such as incorporating of a hexagonal Preliminary studies have been conducted to
rib structure, which provides additional support examine the suitability of TPS for 3D printing
in areas where it is needed (Leschok and Dil- and formworks. The material properties evalu-
lenburger 2019, pp. 191–193). ated included strength, shrinkage, durability,
Research on Big Area Additive Manufactur- curing time, viscosity, stickiness, processability,
ing (BAAM) has gained significant attention in and cost. Encouraging results have been obtained
architecture. BAAM is a large-scale Fused Fila- by incorporating hemp fibers into the TPS com-
ment Fabrication (FFF) system that creates large- position prior to heating. During the setting
scale, additively manufactured parts (Roschli stage, TPS tends to shrink due to water evapo-
et al. 2019, p. 275; Paolini et al. 2019, pp. 5–6). ration. Incorporating hemp fibers helps mitigate
One of the critical applications of BAAM is in this shrinkage and improves the material’s tensile
the design of formworks for concrete, which strength (Fig. 1).
allows for the creation of large-scale, unique

Fig. 1 Effect of hemp fiber percentages on TPS shrinkage using LDM (150  225 mm); moist TPS (top) and cured
geometry (bottom); 0.00%, 0.79%, 3.10% hemp fibers (left to right)
586 B. Kemper

At the laboratory scale, various experiments applications. Using a pellet FDM heat extrusion
were undertaken to alter the properties of the approach, it was possible to overcome the limita-
TPS. Due to its simple production process, using tions of the material and provide a suitable fabri-
natural additives is a feasible option to extend the cation strategy. Due to the thermal stability of
material palette. By adding bio-additives to the TPS, it can be extruded multiple times (Saiah et al.
mixture, the results demonstrated the suitability 2012, p. 64), allowing for the conversion of cured
of these additions and the evident modifications TPS back to the plastic state and vice versa. The
in material properties. melting point of the TPS used in the experiment
An initial liquid deposition modeling was between 200 and 230 °C. Testing on a Ger-
(LDM) approach was utilized to investigate the man RepRap 3D printer with a modified Mahor.
extrusion of TPS in its moist form. A Delta Wasp xyz small-scale pellet extruder confirmed the fea-
60,100 printer was adapted to deliver liquid TPS sibility of FDM 3D printing with TPS (Fig. 3).
to the printing head. The aim was to examine the
printability of TPS in combination with various
additives. However, this method was considered 3.3 TPS Pellet Production Process
inappropriate due to the dynamics during the
setting process (Fig. 2). Preliminary testing has demonstrated that pellet
The first studies on the use of TPS in 3D extrusion is a viable method for 3D depositing
printing and formworks revealed that TPS has the TPS. By altering the base formulation to improve
potential to meet the demands of these material properties and incorporating additives

Fig. 2 LDM 3D printing of

TPS (left); dried LDM print
and resulting deformation
caused by high shrinkage due
to water evaporation (right)

Fig. 3 Initial small-scale TPS pellet extrusion test prints (120  80 mm)
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 587

Fig. 4 TPS pellets with various bio-additives (left to right: corn starch, raw cellulose fibers; corn starch, hemp fibers;
corn starch, chitosan; corn starch, coconut fibers; rice starch, Indigofera; rice starch, spirulina)

that provide additional material characteristics, it manually cut into small pieces (max. 30 mm) and
is possible to produce usable pellets on a labo- shredded in a blender. This strategy led to the
ratory scale (Fig. 4). initial 3D deposition tests with a small-scale
In order to ensure optimal performance with pellet extruder ([Link]) using TPS, demon-
the specific setup, it is crucial to adhere to the strating the suitability of TPS pellet heat extru-
recommended pellet size and form as outlined by sion. This process has the disadvantage of a
the manufacturer. Dyze Design advises that the prolonged drying time and increased suscepti-
ideal pellet should be spherical, with a diameter bility to contamination from microorganisms.
of 3–5 mm and minimal variations in size. Additionally, the resulting TPS flakes are of
Additionally, they recommend other pellet types varying sizes, which do not meet the require-
such as repro/flat disks, considered an overall ments for pellet extrusion and require extensive
suitable format, and chopped 2.85 mm cylinders, sorting and sifting.
considered to be overall acceptable (Dyze Design
2022). Given the experimental nature of the 3.3.2 Extrusion and Direct Slicing
material and the laboratory setup, various The next series of tests utilized a method inspired
strategies were implemented to research the by industrial pasta production. The base recipe
production of cylindrical pellets. was modified by reducing the amount of water to
a minimum (Table 2). The mixture was heated
3.3.1 Casting and Blending and stirred using an automatic and powerful
In order to evaluate the suitability of TPS for 3D heating and stirring device. The heating process
deposition using pellet extrusion, two liquid caused the starch to swell, forming a solid dough.
solutions of TPS were cast in large containers This dough was then extruded into filament ele-
(Table 1). ments with a 500–1,000 mm length using a
After a two-week drying period at room regular meat grinder. Special attachments were
temperature, the resulting sheet material was constructed to slice the extruded material in its

Table 1 Two formulations Formulation A (%) Formulation B (%)

for casting TPS for
subsequent blending Distilled water 72.60 68.20
Glycerol 99.50% 3.20 9.10
Corn starch 14.50 13.60
White vinegar 5.00% 9.70 9.10
588 B. Kemper

Table 2 Two groups of TPS A (brittle) TPS B (elastic)

basic TPS formulations for
pellet production Distilled water 250 g 25.00% 250 g 22.22%
Glycerol 99.50% 125 g 12.50% 250 g 22.22%
Corn starch 500 g 50.00% 500 g 44.44%
White vinegar 5.00% 125 g 12.50% 125 g 11.11%

moist state directly at the end of the machine. Products 2020). The TPS filament was fed
The slicing system featured rotating blades into a chamber using a standard filament
directly in front of six outlets with a diameter of feeder (powered by a stepper motor), where a
3.5 mm at the end of the meat grinder. However, modified Forstner bit chopped the dried fila-
due to the sticky nature of the material, this ment into small pellets.
method was found unsuitable for creating pellets
directly from the moist dough, as it often led to Two basic TPS formulations (A: brittle and B:
clogging in the setup. elastic) were examined (Table 2).

3.3.3 Extrusion and Filament Cutting

In the subsequent stages of the process, various 3.4 Print Setup
post-production strategies were implemented.
Four methods were evaluated for the production The initial experiments on 3D deposition using
of TPS pellets: TPS were carried out at the Lab of the Materi-
ability Research Group within the design faculty
1. The extruded TPS filament was allowed to at the Anhalt University of Applied Sciences. The
dry for two to three days at room temperature, equipment used for these experiments can be
after which it was cut into small pieces (3- broadly categorized into the following subgroups:
5 mm in length) using an all-purpose slicer.
This method yielded pellets with a suitable 3.4.1 Robotic Setup
size and shape. An HRC-capable robot (KUKA lbr iiwa 14 R820)
2. The extruded TPS filament was allowed to mounted on a mobile platform (KUKA flex-
dry for a maximum of one day at room tem- FELLOW H900 Standard), which operates the
perature, after which it was cut into small KUKA [Link]. The toolpath for the robot was
pieces using an all-purpose slicer. This generated within the Sunrise Workbench in JAVA
method resulted in TPS elements that were and the Grasshopper 3D plugin KUKA|prc (Fig. 5).
softer and easier to cut.
3. The extruded TPS filament was allowed to 3.4.2 End Effector
dry for a maximum of one day at room tem- A large-scale pellet extruder (Dyze Design Pul-
perature, after which it was cut into small sar™) was used, which featured three individual
pieces (3 mm in length) using a large-scale heat zones (top, bottom, nozzle), a 348 mm
paper cutter. This method allowed for more extrusion screw with three zones (feed, melting,
precise control over the length of the pellets. and metering zone) (d = 16 mm), and heating
4. The TPS filament was extruded and dried in a power of 1,100 W. The nozzle had a diameter of
drying cabinet at 105 °C for four hours. After 5 mm, intended for large-scale manufacturing
drying, the TPS filament was cut into small objects. The system was liquid-cooled (Dyze
pieces (approximately 4 mm long) using a Design 2022). Pellets were manually inserted
filament granulator setup designed by a DIY into the end effector via gravity feeding. The
enthusiast and hobbyist (JohnSL - Random extruder controller was separated from the robot
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 589

Fig. 5 TPS extrusion process (left) and 3D printing setup (right) showing control unit, liquid cooling, Kuka iiwa, and
large-scale pellet extruder

Table 3 Printing Formulation A (brittle) Formulation B (elastic)

parameters for Dyze design
pulsar and Kuka LBR iiwa Extruder temperature 190 °C 185 °C
Top 200 °C 200 °C
Bottom 220 °C 215 °C
Nozzle
Feed rate 3.24 mm/s 8.07 mm/s
50.91 mm3/s 126.78 mm3/s
Speed toolpath 4.50 mm/s 7.50 mm/s
Cylinder diameter 80.00 mm 80.00 mm
Walls 1 1
Layer height 2.00 mm 2.00 mm
Air cooling No No

controller at this experimentation stage, allowing

for the investigation of the actual temperature 4 Results
values of the different heat zones and feed rate of
new materials. The hardware used to control the With the previously described equipment and
extruder was a simple 3D printer controller board parameters, standard cylinder shapes were prin-
(RAMPS 1.4+ Arduino Mega), running Marlin ted. Each cylinder had a diameter of 80 mm. This
firmware and connected with a computer exe- object geometry allows for comparability
cuting the open-source application OctoPrint between various TPS formulations and facilitates
(Fig. 5). The parameters used for the robotic and comparison with the digital representation,
extruder setup are presented in Table 3. enabling the detection of any potential anomalies.
590 B. Kemper

4.1 Printing Results Therefore, it is essential to ensure that the

material is kept in the heated zone for an
Analyzing the initial TPS prints (Figs. 6 and 7) appropriate time.
produced using the large-scale pellet extruder When the fitting TTR parameters are reached,
reveals several key findings and hypotheses. One the material flow is constant, with no notable
important aspect is the temperature–time ratio flaws or errors detected. Furthermore, it was
(TTR) of TPS pellet extrusion. The results indi- noted that when TPS melts, the material begins to
cate that the glycerol concentration of the TPS crystallize. A higher concentration of glycerol is
formulation impacts the TTR. Specifically, a found to reduce this phenomenon.
higher glycerol concentration slightly reduces the In terms of layer adhesion, it is essential to
TPS’s melting point. The time the pellets spend differentiate between the adhesion of the first
in the heat zone is also crucial. The melt time, as layer to the base plate and the adhesion between
well as the melt temperature, decreases with subsequent layers. Currently, it is necessary to
higher glycerol concentrations. It is important to use double-sided adhesive tape to help the first
note that compensating a higher feed rate with layer adhere to the base plate. However, the
higher temperatures does not result in the same adhesion between subsequent layers did not
material properties; instead, it can lead to the present any difficulties. Additionally, it was
burning or melting away of the material. found that the nozzle temperature must be

Fig. 6 3D printed cylinders

of formulation A (left) and
formulation B (right)

Fig. 7 Detail of 3D printed

cylinder of formulation A
(left) and formulation B
(right)
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 591

Table 4 Print results for Formulation A (brittle) Formulation B (elastic)

two different TPS
formulations Wall thickness 6.00 mm 8.50 mm
Cylinder 77.00 mm 76.00 mm
diameter
Shrinkage 3.75% 5.00%
Height 98.00 mm 66.00 mm
Color pellets Matt white/light yellow Matt white/light yellow
Color print Glossy amber Matt golden/brown honey
Further print prop Glassy, crystalline, brittle, strong Elastic, little
crystallization

slightly higher than the melting point of TPS to • The material properties, such as brittleness and
create a smooth and sticky material flow at the elasticity, were present in the printed objects.
end of the extruder. Lower temperatures result in However, it was observed that the higher glyc-
less layer adhesion. erol concentration in the TPS formulation had a
The maximum height was not reached due to more significant impact on the printing param-
a limited quantity of TPS pellets. Object A, with eters than on the actual elasticity of the printed
a height of 98 mm, was successfully printed, and material. The produced pellets were found to
the material distribution remained stable. The have less ductility compared to the flexibility.
cylindrical shape helped to stabilize the print, and • When the temperature of the heat zones of the
it is speculated that larger prints will not pose a extruder was slightly higher than the mate-
problem. The wall thickness can be increased to rial’s melting point, the TPS began to
create a more robust object, and structural addi- crystallize.
tives or compressed air cooling can be utilized to • It was found that the extruded material
enhance the structural properties. Compared to undergoes slight changes after deposition, and
the LDM approach, the shrinkage observed in it takes approximately one day for the final
TPS pellet printing is low, between 3 and 5%. material properties to develop. For example,
This shrinkage should be considered and taken formulation A becomes more robust and less
into account during the design and material for- brittle, while formulation B regains some
mulation processes by incorporating additives, elasticity. Two key findings were made:
fibers, and fillers. The pellets must be dried at
105 °C before being used in the large-scale – The most significant finding was the impact of
extruder. If not appropriately dried, embedded the glycerol concentration in the formulation
water in the material will evaporate and accu- on the material properties. A higher concen-
mulate at the top of the extruder, causing small tration reduces the time needed for heating at
explosions and steam and leading to extruded a slightly lower melting point (5–10 °C),
material with air bubbles similar to what is seen resulting in less crystallization, a higher feed
in conventional plastic pellet printing (Table 4). rate, and a higher print speed.
– A simple test series placing material frag-
ments of the extruded TPS in water for several
4.2 Material Results days, and documenting the results every 12 h,
showed that the material dissolves quickly in
Analyzing the material properties of the first water (Fig. 9). After one day, the material
printed TPS pellets revealed several insights becomes soft and shows signs of water
(Fig. 8): absorption. After three days, the material can
be easily squished by hand into a watery
592 B. Kemper

Fig. 8 Detailed images of the crystalline structure of extruded TPS material; left: Sample A (brittle), right: Sample B
(elastic)

Fig. 9 The dissolution of the material in water over time; left: Sample A (brittle), right: Sample B (elastic) at 0, 12, 24,
and 36 h

starchy paste. This test series indicates that the using less plasticizer, resulting in a denser,
extruded material retained the parent mate- crystalline, almost glass-like material structure.
rial’s hydrophilic properties, suggesting that In this small-scale experiment, the material could
the produced objects are bio-based, easily resist the water in the concrete for a sufficient
compostable. period until the concrete began to cure. However,
the material became softer due to the hydrophilic
nature of TPS.
In contrast, cylinder B (Formulation B, elas-
4.3 Formwork Tests tic) was significantly more susceptible to water.
The printed elastic formwork displayed less
This study evaluated 3D-printed test cylinders for crystallization and a less closed material surface,
a basic concrete test. The experiment involved allowing water to penetrate easily. As a result of
casting both TPS objects with a standard con- its strong hydrophilic properties, large cracks,
crete mixture consisting of CEM I 42.5 R separation of single layers, and slight expansion
cement, 0/2 mm aggregate size sand, and a of the formwork were observed (Fig. 10).
mixing ratio of 1:3.5:0.4 (cement:sand:water). The process of removing the formwork was
The cylinders were observed for five days before straightforward. Cylinder A absorbed a small
the formwork was removed. amount of water from the concrete and humidity.
Upon examination, significant differences As a result, the formwork was softer than the
were noted between the two TPS formulations. initial printed output and could be removed
Cylinder A (Formulation A, brittle) exhibited without needing external mechanical or thermal
minimal visible effects on the concrete, with only energy. The individual layers were observed to
minor cracks observed. This was attributed to stick together as blocks that could be easily pried
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 593

Fig. 10 Comparison of
concrete cylinders cast with
TPS formulations after five
days of curing; left:
Sample A, right: Sample B

Fig. 11 Comparison of
formwork remnants after
removing TPS cylinders; left:
Sample A, right: Sample B

out by hand. The only visible cement remnants cylinder A exhibited good results and a detailed
were found on the inner surface of the TPS surface structure in the simple concrete casting
formwork. process, cylinder B was rendered unusable. The
Cylinder B absorbed a significant amount of substantial loss of water evaporating into the TPS
water, making the removal of the formwork formwork B led to two notable effects: Firstly,
effortless. The adhesion between the layers was the formwork was unable to maintain the shape
dissolved, allowing the formwork to be removed of the cylinder, resulting in an irregular shape.
layer by layer. Cement remnants were found only Secondly, due to the distorted water-cement
on the surface (Fig. 11). ratio, the concrete could not cure correctly,
As a result, the outcomes of the two distinct leading to the appearance of cracks in the mate-
TPS formulations differed significantly. While rial (Fig. 12).
594 B. Kemper

Fig. 12 Comparison of
concrete cylinders produced
using TPS formwork after
removal; left: Sample A,
right: Sample B

and weak spots can be calculated and incor-

5 Discussion and Conclusion porated into the design and printing process.
2. Building an endoskeleton and voids into the
5.1 Architectural Application and Use formwork to reduce tensile forces from the
Case inside. The dissolvable nature of TPS would
support the ease of removal and could create a
In conclusion, the potential architectural appli- unique design aesthetic led by the material
cations for the described material and technique and its constraints.
have been thoroughly examined. Considering the 3. Enhancing the reinforcement properties and
superior properties of conventional fossil fuel- counteracting tensile forces by incorporating
based and non-renewable polymers is essential. natural fibers, such as long hemp fibers and
The hydrophilic nature of pure TPS may be short cellulose fibers, into the material.
considered a disadvantage, but its dissolvability
and bio-receptivity can also be considered ben-
eficial. Possible applications include formworks
for optimized concrete structures, as long as the 5.2 Further Research
material can withstand the water content of the
cement until its reaction. However, the potential The material experiments described in this paper
contamination of bio-based TPS through cement were among the first of their kind, providing
is a concern that should be addressed. It should crucial indications and raising numerous follow-
be noted that the TPS and concrete experiments up questions and topics for further investigation.
presented here are still on a small scale, and In particular, further research in this area will
particular dynamics, such as the hydrostatic focus on the following areas:
pressure of the concrete, will emerge when
scaled to architectural size. Therefore, an • Optimization of printing and material proper-
approach to tackle these issues is threefold: ties: This paper demonstrates a sensitive
1. Incorporating additional external structures connection between printing and material
(exoskeleton) that follow the toolpath and properties, and further work is needed to
material logic. TPS offers an environmentally optimize these factors. Key areas to be
friendly and cost-effective option, allowing improved include the material feed rate,
for increased usage. The expected pressure resulting print speed, and heat reduction.
Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets … 595

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 MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid
Material System
with Mycelium-Based Composites
and Bacterial Cellulose

Natalia B. Piórecka , Peter Scully ,

Anete K. Salmane , Brenda Parker ,
and Marcos Cruz

Abstract tems, qualities and speculative applications that

can embrace this discovered affordance. The
In an attempt to become more sustainable,
hybrid assemblage, explored through a
architects have increasingly begun employing material-driven approach, demonstrates that
biomaterials in design practices. The current mycelium can effectively grow within the cellu-
ethos merely considers biomaterials as an
lose produced by bacteria, where mycelium is a
eco-friendly substitute for conventional solu- structural, bulk element and bacterial cellulose is
tions. This paper attempts to elevate the benefit a sacrificial mold hosting the growth and
of using biomaterials by creating and evaluating
gradually being integrated within the fungal
a hybrid material formed as a result of collab- skin. The manufacturing methodology used
oration between living organisms of mycelium, principles of fabric forming fabrication as a
and by-product of kombucha brewing, SCOBY
primary technique to create geometrical expres-
bacterial cellulose. The fabricated artefact pro- sions, by translating 2D sewn bacterial cellulose
vides an example whereby a combination of membranes, into 3D structures with mycelium
distinct living organisms in a complimentary composite filling. The resulting hybridised bio-
fashion holds potential for the discovery of material system with augmented characteristics
previously unimagined goals, new value sys- combines complementary properties such as
mechanical strength of BC performing well in
tension and the mycelium-based composites in
compression.
N. B. Piórecka (&)
P. Scully
A. K. Salmane

B. Parker
M. Cruz Keywords
Bio-Integrated Design Lab, Bartlett School of
Architecture, University College London (UCL),

Mycelium Bacterial cellulose Hybrid

London, United Kingdom

biomaterials Material system

e-mail: [Link].21@[Link]



Multi-materiality Fabrication Rethinking
P. Scully
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]


resources Living organisms

A. K. Salmane
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] 1 Introduction
B. Parker
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] The global demand for environmentally friendly
M. Cruz materials resulted in new research studies seek-
e-mail: [Link]@[Link] ing novel biomaterials aiming to address United

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 597
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
598 N. B. Piorecka et al.

Nations Sustainable Development Goals and This paper will elaborate on to what extent,
strategies. While that emerging practice can does the collaboration between mycelium and
provide innovative solutions and applications, bacterial cellulose host the potential for sustain-
biomaterials are currently often considered able fabrication methods for both existing and
through the lens of established norms as surro- future architectural goals and structures. It will
gates or alternatives to conventional materials investigate what may be the opportunities of the
(Karana et al. 2018). We valorise their charac- hybrid material in the current and future archi-
teristics in so far as they may offer up sustainable tectural context and how the future development
options for existing ambitions. However, they towards digitalised workflow can leverage
may offer pathways towards previously unimag- regional abundances of resources through scien-
ined goals, opening the horizon for potentially tific and manufacturing understandings towards
new value systems, qualities and speculative delivering contemporary and architectural
applications that can embrace this discovered responsibilities.
affordance. Both mycelium-based composites and bacte-
Throughout the design industry, the shift of rial cellulose are broadly researched materials
the emphasis from geometrical expression to and their intersection has already raised curiosity
material-driven approaches and production among scientists (Hoenerloh et al. 2022). The
modes has been observed (Oxman 2010; Gazit study will primarily explore the promising
2016). Within the scope of abilities to program organic link between the materials, where the
functionality, biomaterial systems along with the recognised limitations can be mitigated through
use of digital and computational tools, result in the interaction between them. The collected data
unique fabrication strategies, which could will inform the qualitative compatibility judge-
become more accessible to architects and ment and examine what opportunities and bene-
designers, therefore, enabling biomaterial appli- fits it can introduce as a hybrid material system.
cations with a positive, environmental impact on Secondly, the study is looking at the material
a much greater scale (Gazit 2016). characteristics at the interfaces of scaled-up
At present, biomaterial development focuses production and fabrication of the two materials,
on research, analysis and tuning of optimal utilising unique, individual properties, to assess
growth conditions to generate homogenous, the material behaviours and the potential rela-
mono-biomaterials. There are a limited number tionship between the two. Lastly, the study aims
of studies touching on one or more materials to develop a methodology and workflow of
working together. Looking at biomaterial sys- material assembly combining living materials
tems where the rules within are organically synergistically through material-driven curiosity,
related, intimate and adaptable may be the key where both materials complement each other,
(Oxman 2010). creating unique design opportunities.
Drawing from the architectural and construc-
tion industries, the multi-functionality of the
building system is achieved with a combination 1.1 What are Mycelium-Based
of various materials’ assemblage and varied Composites?
functionality, rather than with the usage of a
single homogeneous material (Mostafavi et al. Mycelium-based composite (referred to from
2019). The approach of multi-materiality and now on as: MBC) has been well studied over the
material assembly applied to the living compo- last few years in order to understand its possi-
nents raises the question if we could achieve a bilities and limitations (Appels et al. 2019;
strong material bond resulting from the inter- Alemu et al. 2022). It has been explored as an
growth as opposed to typical non-active mate- opportunistic composite that could be tuned to
rial layering (Oxman 2010). specific needs depending on a range of factors
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 599

including feed substrate, mycelium species and demanding cellulose obtained from plants (Esa
growth conditions (Jones et al. 2020; Manan et al. 2014; Yu et al. 2021; Derme et al. 2022).
et al. 2021). Bulk MBC materials, are created With low waste and energy input, similar to
with the mycelium’s ability to bind particles MBC, BC is a lightweight and fully biodegrad-
through the process of decay. Moreover, with the able material which shape, thickness and strength
decomposition processes, the MBCs offer the can be manipulated with the vessel, media
opportunity of the so-called “bio-welding”— composition and growth time (Gazit 2016).
binding between two individual units of the liv- Despite this, BC alone has still limited capabili-
ing material, as an aspiring method for fabrica- ties to fulfil the current demand for high-
tion and assembly (Saporta et al. 2019; performance biomaterials within the field of
Modanloo et al. 2021). By utilising locally architecture (Esa et al. 2014; Yu et al. 2021).
resourced organic waste in the form of natural Previous studies have been investigating poten-
fibres, the material offers an economically viable, tial means of translating the harvested in static
lightweight composite with low cost and minimal conditions, flat biofilm into 3D structures on both
energy production (Jones et al. 2017). The micro and macro scale. With the production
resulting MBCs are known to perform well in process not being efficient and consistent for
compression, however, they are not durable in large quantities of production (Gazit 2016; Fer-
tension. Due to that fact, various experimental nandes et al. 2020; Derme et al. 2022), various
studies aimed to further synthesise MBCs techniques and post-treatment methods were
strength with the appropriate use of the geometry developed, but are yet not applicable within
(Goidea et al. 2020). macro scale contexts (Stoica-Guzun et al. 2012;
The feasibility of current fabrication tech- Arevalo Galllegos et al. 2016; Patchan et al.
niques for cultivating 3D mycelium forms are 2016; Greca et al. 2018; Laromaine et al. 2018;
mostly limited to moulding with an impermeable Derme et al. 2022). Consequently, with the need
mould or a more recently developed alternative of the design industry for transferable solutions
—extrusion based 3D printing. Therefore, across several scales continuous research is
ongoing research among designers and scientists necessary to elaborate on the scaled 3D biofab-
aims to develop effective ways to fabricate rication processes of BC, currently not fully
MBCs, in order to capitalise on the unique resolved in scales applicable to architecture.
properties that the material displays (Ghazvinian
and Gursoy 2021).
1.3 Mycelium-Bacterial Cellulose
Biohybrid
1.2 What is Bacterial Cellulose?
Few studies have considered the juxtaposition of
SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and the two living materials together. A study by
Yeast)—a gelatinous pellicle, composed of bac- Elsacker et al. (2021) used the bacterial cellulose
terial cellulose (referred to from now on as BC) as reinforcement for the growth of the mycelium
—is formed on the air–liquid interface as a by- within a MBC composite. Another study con-
product of kombucha tea fermentation (Gazit ducted by Hoenerloh et al. (2022) demonstrated
2016). The layer of BC, supports the microbial that mycelium and BC can be effectively grown
culture in kombucha and protects the fermenting in the company of one another, focusing on
liquid (Römling and Galperin 2015). The pelli- utilising the growth of BC along the MBC
cle, also commonly known as a tea mushroom, is (Hoenerloh et al. 2022). This study elaborates
mainly built with high purity cellulose, with no further on the multi-organism composites
hemicellulose, pectin or lignin, which makes it a experimentation by undertaking an opposite
potential alternative to the high energy and cost approach to material assembly. Inspired by the
600 N. B. Piorecka et al.

findings of Elsacker et al. (2021), observing BC when considered as a membrane, needs

strengthening of internal bonding of the myce- support to maintain the 3D geometrical form. To
lium material after adding BC, this paper con- achieve a complementary system with the two
siders cellulose as a feed for mycelium aiming materials, the fabrication strategy is drawn from
for organic connection and gradual intergrowth principles of fabric forming, in a similar fashion
within materials. to the strategy applied by Yogiaman et al. (2020)
with cotton knitting. This experimentation is
using sewing as the main manner to create the
1.4 Challenges and Opportunities geometrical form from the BC, permitting the
for Biohybridity augmentation and control. The MBC functions as
a filling and reinforcement for the sewn BC.
To achieve sustainable development objectives, Simultaneously, the BC provides an envelope for
outlined in Sect. 4, multiple studies consider mycelium composite. Acting as a sacrificial
MBC and BC as renewable materials with the mould built with the cellulose the sewn BC
focus to maximise the performance of each as a envelope will be integrated into the growing
homogenous material. In contrast, this experi- geometry by being fused though the growth of
mentation takes a bottom-up approach towards mycelium into the fungal skin. As defined by
the unexplored territory of unexpected goals and Drisko and Sanchez (2012), the two dissimilar
potential developments of a new class of func- components would be hybridised, meaning that
tionalised biomaterials (Fig. 1). This paper will they would blend together, making a single entity
examine the potential of sustainable fabrication with either enhanced or completely new
of the investigated, novel Mycelium-BC synthe- characteristics.
sis, challenging limitations of components by The significant advantage of the two dis-
turning individual material weaknesses into a cussed biomaterials is their ability to utilise waste
collective advantageous solution, fulfilling each through growth. Once applied on a larger scale, it
other’s needs outperforming the materials could have a significant impact on how we
individually. manage regional abundancies of resources. In
Based on the material properties and the short, BC can be cultivated in the growth media
prospective, intimate relationship of the hybri- that use the waste from glucose-rich sources as a
dised bio-materials, a novel fabrication technique nutrient. Similarly, mycelium can biodegrade the
is proposed. In order to obtain the desired form cellulose-based agricultural waste and transform
MBC, the bulk material considered here needs a it into a viable material. Once the fabrication
host for the growth, whilst for the same purpose strategy is effective and well defined it could

Fig. 1 Material concept

diagram towards biohybrid
material. Image credits N.
B. Piórecka
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 601

provide a subsequent sustainable, attractive and white-rot fungi (Floudas et al. 2012), Gano-
accessible moulding alternative to the current derma lucidum as a competent mushroom spe-
manufacturing MBC methods (Colmo and Ayres cies from the division of Basidiomycota, which
2020; Soh et al. 2020). That might broaden the are known for being cellulose degraders
design perspective, utilising local resources and (Edwards et al. 2008) with the highest cellulase
addressing the economic and social viability activity once compared with Pleurotus ostreatus,
(Jones et al. 2020). Trametes versicolor and Phanerochaete
chrysosporium (Fauzi et al. 2018).
For the secretion of the cellulose used in the
2 Materials and Methods experimentation, the Gram-negative bacteria
Gluconacetobacter xylinus (formerly known as
The experimentational testing aimed to investi- Acetobacter xylinum) was used, as a model
gate the individual and collaborative affordance organism for the commercial fermentation and
of the Mycelium-BC hybrid material fabrication, BC production, due to the high yield of cellulose
in the context of leveraging regional resources (Of et al. 1954; Lahiri et al. 2021).
and exploring future architectural goals that the
material offers. The success was measured and
assessed based on multiple criteria centred 2.2 Production of Mycelium-Based
around the material relations. These included Composite
biological compatibility between the mycelium
and BC and their uninterrupted growth, species The mycelium-based composite was cultivated
selection, material preparation, optimal growth using hemp waste from East Yorkshire (UK)
conditions for both materials individually and farm, sieved to approximately 1.5 cm. Two
collaboratively, minimised cross-contamination, strategies of sterilisation of the waste fibres were
state of each materials in order to achieve their compared in the context of scaled-up substrate
interaction, potential for scaled-up material pro- preparation and energy efficiency: (1) pasteurised
duction, and biomaterial system assemblage —temperature maintained above 70 °C for 2 h
through fabrication. Additionally, those criteria and (2) sterilised—in Autoclave at 121 °C for
were used to determine optimal species selection 20 min. Since both methods were comparable in
and fabrication strategy in order to maximise the terms of cultivation success rate, the study con-
probability of success, as discussed below. tinued with the pasteurisation as a less energy-
intensive process, able to accommodate larger
amounts of the bulk substrate within a similar
2.1 Biological Compatibility timeframe, as opposed to volume restrictions of
and Species Selection the autoclave.
For the initial cultivation, the Ganoderma
Considering the biological compatibility of fungi lucidum strain (OSMOSE_GL/PE-P22-G2), was
and cellulose, the former can use cellulase purchased from the Osmose studio (London,
enzymes to degrade the latter into smaller com- UK). The Ganoderma lucidum used is a local
pounds such as glucose and cellobiose that could wild strain, isolated in South Yorkshire
subsequently be metabolised (Lynd et al. 2002; (UK) ensuring that the local biodiversity is not
McNamara et al. 2015; da Silva et al. 2021). The impacted by the distribution of non-regional
consumed part of glucose is used by fungi for organic matter. The following material cultiva-
biomass formation (anabolic process) and the rest tion used the overgrown hemp substrate from the
for energy generation (catabolic process). The prior batch to cultivate further the bulk material,
study selected a cellulose-degrading species, in a proportion of 2:5, reducing the number of
602 N. B. Piorecka et al.

steps in the material production workflow. 2.4 Biomaterial System

Optimal growth of the MBC has been achieved Assemblage: Experiment 1
in the air temperature of 25 °C and air humidity and 2: Materials State
of 70%. and Assembly

The key link between the two organisms is cel-

2.3 Production of SCOBY Aka BC lulose; the experimentation goal is to encourage
mycelium to partially degrade cellulose within
Using the traditional technique of kombucha the BC and establish the material relation as
brewing to cultivate the BC, the study cultivated presented in the Experiment 1 (Fig. 2). Evaluat-
the cellulose in static conditions testing various ing layering choreography along with the state of
recipe iterations aiming for the uniform growth the materials used within the organism’s life
of the pellicle. The most stable and unified cycle will determine conditions for the most
growth of the BC pellicle used the recipe (per 1 effective growth.
L): 3 black tea bags, 100 ml of a starter tea and In the following Experiment 2, material was
80 g of cane sugar. The initial certified SCOBY assembled testing various states of the material:
were ordered from Kombuchaorganic, UK. (a) Living Mycelium with dried BC, (b) Living
The BC was grown at room temperature of 22 ° mycelium with wet BC, (c) Dry mycelium with
C, up to 5 mm thickness, which through a series wet BC. The experiment aimed to test myce-
of conducted tests proved to be most suitable for lium’s ability to attach to wet or dry BC as well
the following experimentation in terms of as testing if the BC itself is able to mechanically
strength and flexibility both in wet and attach to the mycelium sample (Fig. 3).
dry states. To increase production yield same material
Combining SCOBY and mycelium requires recipes were used with 25 kg of hemp as a
careful considerations of pH levels. The balanced substrate for mycelium cultivation. Expansion of
cellulose secretion is achieved at pH: 2.5–3.5, BC membranes size required increased growth
where the acidity limits the contamination, area. Six 12L (550  360  90 mm) Allstore
hosting safe fermentation. In comparison, the containers were prepared to produce workable
most favourable for mycelium growth of Gano- A3 sheets of BC, cultivated in 2L growth media.
derma lucidum is pH 5 (Jayasinghe et al. 2008;
Subedi et al. 2021). To avoid the possible growth
constraint of mycelium tissues due to pH differ- 2.5 Experiment 3A: Cotton Fabric
ence, the produced bacterial cellulose was post- Fabrication
processed to raise the cellulose pH level with
cleaning and purification methods, such as Prior to applying fabrication methods of sewing
washing and bleaching applied in the later stages to BC, as a control it was first tested with the
of experimentation (Han et al. 2018). cotton fabric (nearly 90% cellulose), similar to

Fig. 2 Experiment 1—Close up of the Petri-dish test of continuous growth of mycelium over the cellulose pellicle
the MBC growing in the presence of pre-grown BC. After was observed. Image credits N. B. Piórecka
the mycelium growth developed within the substrate, the
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 603

Fig. 3 Experiment 2—Interaction between various states (right image); c Dry mycelium with wet BC. Image
of biomaterials: a Living mycelium with dried BC; credits N. B. Piórecka
b Living mycelium with wet BC and resulting interaction

successful application by Yogiaman et al. (2020). then continued for another 7 days without the
The experiment assessed method viability for foil, allowing for further growth over the cotton
iteration of geometries, seeking opportunity in fabric surface, then samples were dried. Devel-
both sewing technique and ability of mycelium to oped fabrication techniques were subsequently
bind and grow though organic fibres. As shown implemented in the experiment 3B with the BC.
in Fig. 4, cotton fabric experiment looked at
various bespoke geometries from base tube
geometry (a), to geometries testing potential 2.6 Experiment 3B: Bacterial
creation of textures (ridges) (b), self-binding Cellulose Fabrication
abilities though the sewn material (c), integration
of the openings (d), creation of unified panels The experimentation was continued with the
(e) and modular geometries for potential assem- harvest of uniformly grown 5 mm thick, A3 BC
bly through strategies like interlocking or sheets. Tests included post-treatment of SCOBY,
aggregation (f), using binding properties of as a measure for eliminating potential cross-
mycelium through the so called “bio-welding” to contamination between the organisms after
connect modules. The two panel prototypes (d, e) material setup and assembly. Two cleaning
introduced wet BC sheet within the created methods were tested: (1) SCOBY washed with
opening with no fixing. deionised water; (2) SCOBY purified with two
In this instance, fabric was sewn into shape successive 1.0 M NaOH washings at 90 °C,
using industrial sewing machine, in order to followed by the treatment with 1.5% (w/w) aq.
create a 2D envelope, cleaned by soaking in NaOCl for 2 h, tested by Amarasekara et al.
ethanol and water and then filled with pre-grown (2020) as an effective method for purification.
MBC, converting flat sheets into a 3D formations The SCOBY only washed with deionised water
as displayed in Fig. 5. Packed with MBC units still had the presence of bacteria within its three-
were protected by wrapping in perforated cello- dimensional fibre structure, therefore the matter
phane foil for the initial growth period of 7 days of potential cross-contamination in later stages of
in the low-tech growth chamber. The growth was the growth was present. Therefore, the
604 N. B. Piorecka et al.

Fig. 4 Experiment 3A: cotton fabric geometries. Image credits N. B. Piórecka

Fig. 5 Converting flat cotton fabric sheets into 3D formations. Image credits N. B. Piórecka By author
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 605

Fig. 6 Biohybrid material making workflow (1) harvest- perforated cellophane foil, (9) growing without foil for
ing the BC, (2) cutting desired shape, (3) hand sewing, surface growth and (10) drying. Image credits N.
(4) flipping the BC inside out, (5) cleaning, (6) preparing B. Piórecka
mycelium substrate, (7) filling with MBC, (8) wrapping in

methodology implemented the cleaning process when considering the bio-welding as a binding
of immersing BC in a 0.5 M NaOH and soaking technique for the aggregation assembly. The
in water to eliminate NaOH solution leftovers scaffolded unit was made of wood and metal ele-
before placing the MBC. Cleaning was applied ments, soaked in bleach and water for cleaning,
after sewing to minimise steps of chemical wrapped with cellulose sheets and filled with
cleaning treatment. MBC. The cellulose sheets used were thinner
Both BC and MBC were grown simultane- (2.5 mm) than in the other experiments to be
ously. While BC cellulose was cultivated, the lighter and adhere to the scaffold more easily. The
substrate for mycelium growth was pasteurised experiment aimed to assess the material hybridis-
and pre-cultivated with mycelium following the ation implemented into a 3D shape, its opportunity
procedures described before. Once the cellulose for achieving free standing prototypes as well as
was harvested, a similar process sequence was considering potential ways of increasing the pre-
used as described in experiment 3A (Fig. 6). cision of the fabrication, aiming for a seamless
Building on the geometries in the experiment translation into digital fabrication between the
3A, experiment 3B applied the hand sewing fab- physical prototype and designed digital form. The
rication method within the geometries presented in steps of the production can be generalised
Fig. 7. It focused on modular geometries (a, b) and according to the diagram in Fig. 8.
bespoke geometries with openings of the contin-
uous BC membrane (c). Along with the sewn BC
envelopes filled with MBC, the modular geometry 3 Results
was also created with an additional scaffold (d, e).
The role of the scaffold was to lock the sheet of All experiments conducted assessed the com-
BC in place allowing for more precise control bined potential of bacterial cellulose and myce-
over the geometry, accommodating unified lium in a hybridised material system and tested
connection joints between the units, applicable the developed fabrication methodology.
606 N. B. Piorecka et al.

Fig. 7 Experiment 3B:

bacterial cellulose geometries.
Image credits N. B. Piórecka

Fig. 8 Summary of the

material preparation, method
and production. Image credits
N. B. Piórecka

3.1 Experiment 1 and 2: Materials The most favourable growth of mycelium in

State and Assembly Experiment 2 was observed when the BC was in
the wet state in the material setup (b). The growth
The first experiment proved that mycelium can of the mycelium hyphae towards BC was clearly
grow in the presence of the BC without distur- visible at the interface of the materials after two
bance and is able to fully overgrow the container days of growth. Subsequently, the BC membrane
with the BC, displaying signs of biological was gradually consumed by the living mycelium
compatibility between the living materials. that continued to grow up to 14 days, and created
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 607

a fungal skin over the BC surface. The attach- 3.3 Experiment 3B: Bacterial
ment was still strong while the samples dried. Cellulose Fabrication
In contrast, in the material setup (a) no strong
attachment between the materials was observed The results of the mycelium and bacterial cellu-
—the layers could be easily separated. The wet lose hybrid prototype were even more effective in
BC membrane in the material setup (c) placed on terms of the growth rate once compared to the
the dried mycelium adjusted its shape to the cotton fabric. The juxtapositioned dried results
textured MBC surface and physically stuck to the are presented in the Fig. 10.
surface while drying, maintaining the dried The growth of mycelium within the wet BC
shape. However, there was no attachment and the was already visible after 3 days of incubation
materials could be easily separated mechanically, and on day 7 also on the external surface of the
similar to the setup (a). The material stages cellulose. As in experiment 2 the use of the wet
explored in the setup (b) were the most suc- cellulose matrix allowed to capture and retain
cessful in terms of observing an interaction moisture supporting the growth of the MBC
between materials and for that reason were used within the BC with quicker and more intensified
in the following experiments. It is hypothesised mycelium overgrowth, as opposed to the rela-
that the moisture present within the pellicle might tively dried control cotton samples. The air per-
have been an important factor in the hybridisa- meability of the BC pellicle (Yang et al. 2016)
tion of the two, additionally supporting the was sufficient for the uninterrupted mycelium
mycelium growth. growth inside the BC.
Over the process of drying the prototypes
stiffened and gained rigidity, resulting in the
3.2 Experiment 3A: Cotton Fabric formation of free-standing structures, captured in
Fabrication Fig. 11. The surface of the fresh, thick and
hydrated cellulose pellicle was gradually covered
The results of the experiment using cotton fabric and partially degraded by the mycelium, inte-
have shown that mycelium can grow through a grating the BC within the fungal skin and fusing
cellulose rich envelope of the cotton fibres and it with the rest of the material. Moreover, the
confirmed that the method of sewing and filling integrated openings within the sewn BC mem-
is viable. The cotton fabric samples filled with brane, host further design opportunities of cre-
MBC grew without interruptions, gained strength ating semi-enclosed, translucent zones, that due
with the mycelium growth and became rigid once to the properties of BC could partially allow the
the samples were dried. The mycelium growth light to pass though as shown in the Fig. 11
was visible on the external surface where it (middle right) The overall shrinkage of circa
started to form the fungal skin growing through 10%, did not disrupt the overall biohybrid sys-
the cotton fabric, strengthening the bond between tem integrity, however the shrinkage in the
the materials. The panels with the introduced wet thickness of the BC influenced the aesthetics of
BC sheet in the openings, displayed strong the external surface, displaying visible texture,
attachment between the BC and cotton fabric corresponding to the filling fibres of the myce-
without any fixing applied. The attachment lium substrate used inside (Fig. 10, top right).
between the cellulose fibres themselves could be That suggests that the fibres used as substrate
a further step to explore in future iterations. The for mycelium growth could dictate the final
described results of the experiment are presented texture, giving an interesting design
below on the Fig. 9. opportunities.
608 N. B. Piorecka et al.

Fig. 9 Results of the experiment 3A. Image credits N. B. Piórecka

Fig. 10 Dried cotton fabric (top) and BC (bottom) prototypes. Image credits N. B. Piórecka
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 609

Fig. 11 Results of the experiment 3B. Image credits N. B. Piórecka

The free standing BC scaffold unit, filled with resulting prototypes displayed unusual aesthetic
mycelium, also achieved the material interaction. and tactile value changing their colour, texture,
However the growth quality was inferior com- transparency and structure along the growth and
pared with the previous prototypes due to the decay processes. A range of various stages were
premature moisture loss. In the larger scaffold observed: wet, shiny, flexible and lightly
unit the BC dried before the mycelium could coloured surfaces of BC and white, soft and
fully grow through it. The thickness of the BC fluffy mycelium filling that resulted in robust
sheet storing moisture has an influence on the elements with a mat, dark and tensioned surface
growth of the mycelium and therefore should be with a texture imprinted by the firm mycelium
considered in future scaffold iterations. The composite merged into one.
610 N. B. Piorecka et al.

4 Discussion follow similar strategies as employed in projects

as “Single Cast Fabric Formwork” (Richard et al.
The results of this iterative experimental approach 2010) or “Fabric Forms” (Culver et al. 2016).
displayed an intriguing relation between the That could allow to transform the protypes into
materials produced by living organisms through big scale mock up models, testing the hybrid
processes of fermentation, growth and decay. The system feasibility in 1:1 scale. The fabrication
creation of three-dimensional forms of BC and processes developed, despite currently focusing
MBC though various methodologies and strate- on a hand craft, are designed to be transferable
gies is an ongoing attempt in the field mostly towards further automation and scaled up mate-
considering the materials separately. Proposing rial production. The automation of the processes
an assembly driven by the specific material would also support the future standardisation of
properties, behaviour and characteristics, trans- the created biohybrid material system with the
lating the flat membrane of the BC and bulk aim to offer new value system with nature as its
mycelium based composite into a free standing inseparable element. Moreover, it is important to
form hosts meaningful opportunities supporting mention distinctive aesthetic values the material
design and fabrication feasibility of both. Further combination uncovers. Considering that both
material tests of the Mycelium-BC biohybrid biomaterials of BC skin and mycelium compos-
should be conducted to precisely evaluate the ites are not yet well established individually
biohybrid characteristics looking at mechanical within general public, the aesthetic value of the
strengths, economic, social and ecological value hybridised solution may have its enthusiasts and
in comparison to other materials available on the critiques. Evoking both admiration or fascination
market. On top of that, supplementary experi- as well as the negative feelings, undoubtedly the
mentation would be required to assess the impact biohybrid offers a unique set of aesthetic and
of the diversified conditions on the biohybrid tactile characteristics, opening new design
elements for indoor and outdoor applications as opportunities with the beauty of undiscovered
well as its commercialisation viability and acts of nature, where the nature undertakes the
industrial scalability. Nonetheless, the resulting role of the designer itself.
fabrication technique is further opening a dis- Moreover, uncovering a potential novelty and
cussion regarding application and utilisation of promoting interdisciplinary workflow of blurring
the two as a biologically driven material system. the lines between science, design and fabrication
The relationship observed between materials with is challenging the common understanding of how
structural and functional complementary proper- we currently source materials. Careful and
ties, hosts a superior opportunity for further respectful collaboration with nature by applying
exploration within the architectural industry. One biomaterials through a system approach may
is performing well in tension providing a growth lead us to truly sustainable solutions and
vessel and a sacrificial mould and the other is alternatives.
performing well in compression, providing the The fabrication process implemented sought
bulk filling binding fibres as a “natural glue”. optimisation and simplification during each step
Through the iterative design process the of the fabrication working with low tech strate-
conventional production method, derived from gies, considering what impact the Mycelium-BC
fabric forming, usually using concrete, was biohybrid may have throughout its lifecycle.
applied to the unconventional material system Minimising potential liabilities and enhancing
explored in this study, proving to be a suitable the restorative approach towards resources works
method for a BC and MBC hybrid fabrication. towards the UN Sustainability Goals, namely
Looking at the resemblance of the production Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, Sustain-
technique with concrete fabric forming, the able Cities and Communities, Climate Action
future development and prototype scale up may and Life on Land.
MYCOlullose: Fabricating Biohybrid Material System with Mycelium … 611

The proposed system as a fully biodegradable multiple opportunities for an efficient and sus-
material may contribute towards reducing the tainable production. The emerging notion of
negative impact on our ecosystem and human collaborating with nature may lead us to revalu-
health, air and land pollutions, prevent soil ate our design approaches leading towards tem-
degradation, biodiversity loss, global warming porary elements, objects and architecture of a
and diminishing of planetary resources. It aimed limited life span. Conception of “destined to
to underlay the need to reduce energy con- decay” building elements, could become a strong
sumption and processing applied, reducing the proposal for augmenting current architectural
chemical usage to necessary minimum and industry standards and perceptions.
replacing the energy intensive process of sterili-
sation to more sustainable, low tech, replace-
ment. A quantitative evaluation using Life Cycle 5 Conclusions
Assessment will further identify areas for
improvement. The research in this investigation focused on the
By rethinking the resources procurement with organic compatibility between the mycelium—
the application of living materials created with based composite and bacterial cellulose as well
mycelium and bacteria we are able to utilise local as the potential influence of fabrication strategies
agricultural waste streams, and ensure the bio- within the broader architectural context. Imple-
diversity is not disrupted, by using locally mentation of an iterative, experimental notion of
available species. Once waste disposal is con- material-driven thinking through making allowed
sidered, the system should not affect the envi- to create a base, organic material interaction. It
ronment as the untreated biohybrid material explored the biological compatibility of myce-
would simply decay. For this reason, the system lium and bacteria-produced cellulose, as well as
could be applied and adjusted to various biocli- the efficient fabrication sequence of assembly to
mate zones and regions, towards achieving create a biohybrid material system. This contri-
regional affordance of the local resources, with bution towards fabrication logic, with further
the appropriate management ensuring ecological research, could result in a novel fabrication
safety. On the production scale any cut-out pie- intelligence.
ces of cellulose during the process could be uti- The results demonstrated that the mycelium
lised as additional reinforcement for the MBC to can effectively grow within the cellulose pro-
further enhance the material’s mechanical prop- duced by bacteria, where the mycelium is a
erties (Elsacker et al. 2021). Using locally structural, bulk element and the bacterial cellu-
available resources would also minimise the need lose is a sacrificial mould and a feed envelope
for transportation, enhancing the economic via- hosting the mycelium growth. The manufactur-
bility. With the standardisation of the fabrication ing methodology used principles of fabric form-
technique and material production it would most ing fabrication as a primary technique to create
likely first become available to architects and geometrical expression, by translating 2D sewn
designers to then reach the broader public and bacterial cellulose membranes, into 3D structures
make it accessible to local people, even where with mycelium composite filling. The fabrication
specialised equipment is not available. used harvested and cleaned bacterial cellulose
A fully biodegradable hybrid material and the and living mycelium to create a hybridised bio-
combined potential of both the BC and MBC is a material system with augmented characteristics,
promise promoting a new life cycle of material combining complementary properties such as
systems focusing on rethinking the use of mechanical strengths of BC performing well in
resources with the circular economy approaches tension and MBC in compression. Comparing
of waste utilisation and integration of biology various states of bacterial cellulose, the best
within the design process. Introducing a concept growth rate of the mycelium-based composite
of growth and decay as tools opened up a was observed within the wet pellicle, cleaned
612 N. B. Piorecka et al.

with NaOH after the sewing process, which with a sustainable source to develop value-added products
the proceeding growth became gradually inte- —A review | Gallegos | BioResources
Bush R, Chan T, Powell A (2010) Single cast fabric
grated within the fungal skin. formwork | Concrete fabrication. [Link]
Grounding this research in the material char- [Link]/2010/12/03/single-cast-fabric-
acteristics, in and of themselves, but also at their formwork/. Accessed 14 Jan 2023
interface with each other, will support research Colmo C, Ayres P (2020) 3d printed bio-hybrid structures
investigating the architectural potentials of
outcomes that are rationalised towards the mycoremediation
‘wants’ of the materials and their hybrids, Culver R, Koerner J, Sarafian J (2016) Fabric forms: the
allowing this to drive and shape goals. Doing so robotic positioning of fabric formwork. Robot Fabric
through all the attributes that these ‘new’ goals Architect, Art Des 2016:106–121. [Link]
10.1007/978-3-319-26378-6_8
may have, factors such as regional resources, da Silva CJG, de Medeiros ADM, de Amorim JDP, do
waste utilization, scaleability, low energy and Nascimento HA, Converti A, Costa AFS, Sarubbo LA
cost processes, mechanical and structural per- (2021) Bacterial cellulose biotextiles for the future of
formance are to service social and planetary sustainable fashion: a review. Environ Chem Lett
19:2967–2980. [Link]
goals. These all should be structured in the trades 01214-X/TABLES/6
within the research towards feasible delivery of Derme T, Mitterberger D, di Tanna U (2022) Growth
contemporary architectural responsibility. based fabrication techniques for bacterial cellulose:
three-dimensional grown membranes and scaffolding
Authors Contributions The main author N. B. Piórecka design for biological polymers. In: Proceedings of the
was responsible for the conceptualization and design of 36th annual conference of the association for computer
the study, as well as the analysis and interpretation of the aided design in architecture (ACADIA), pp 488–495.
data. She contributed to the writing and revising the [Link]
manuscript. Drisko GL, Sanchez C (2012) Hybridization in materials
P. Scully was the main thesis supervisor, provided science—Evolution, current state, and future aspira-
critical and insightful feedback regarding the research tions. Eur J Inorg Chem 5097–5105. [Link]
methodology, production and fabrication processes. 10.1002/EJIC.201201216
A. K. Salmane provided important insights that shaped Edwards IP, Upchurch RA, Zak DR (2008) Isolation of
the direction of laboratory work, experiments design and fungal cellobiohydrolase I genes from sporocarps and
protocols. forest soils by PCR. Appl Environ Microbiol 74:3481–
B. Parker and M. Cruz contributed constructive criti- 3489. [Link]
cisms to improve the study and ensure accuracy. All Elsacker E, Vandelook S, Damsin B, van Wylick A,
Peeters E, de Laet L (2021) Mechanical characteristics
should be structured in the trades within the research
towards feasible delivery of contemporary architectural of bacterial cellulose-reinforced mycelium composite
materials. Fungal Biol Biotechnol 8:1–14. [Link]
responsibility.
org/10.1186/S40694-021-00125-4/FIGURES/8
Esa F, Tasirin SM, Rahman NA (2014) Overview of
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 Water Resources Management
in a Regenerative Design Approach

Alessandro Stracqualursi
and Maria Beatrice Andreucci

Abstract a replicable design support tool to come up

with sensible functional choices thus prevent-
Increasingly scarce and less affordable, water
ing water scarcity risk, as a catalyst for
is taking on the characteristics of a precious progressing UN SDG 6 in synergy with SDGs
resource able to increase marked inequalities. 11, 12, 13 and while reducing trade-offs with
The issue of water resources management at
SDG 3.
the micro-scale (building) stands as a priority
field of investigation, and as a central Keywords
approach in the transition to sustainable
architecture, recognizable as ‘Regenerative

Water management Water scarcity Circular

Design’. Water scarcity represents a pending


building Climate adaptation Recycle and
risk, derived from multilayer interferences that reuse
threaten consequences on the availability and
affordability of resources, especially in the
urban built environment. The proposed con- 1 Introduction
tribution offers an original method for
building-scale water management, developed Many questions arise in front of the quality of the
as a strategic framework encompassing miti- buildings we live in and in which we roughly
gation and adaptation strategies. The research spend 90% of our time (Kelly and Fussell 2019),
adopts a mixed-methodology for data collec- resulting in high demand for resources, including
tion and analysis, articulated in three phases, water. The ecosystem in which these structures
and widens the scope of analysis to all the are placed, currently the urban built environment,
components that contribute, even indirectly, to inevitably makes them an integral part of the
water consumption along all phases of the dynamics that govern it: a system mostly
building’s life-cycle. A set of 11 key perfor- dependent on unidirectional flows of resources
mance indicators is proposed, as instruments (water, energy, waste, etc.) depleted in human
for the model-based testing as well as for the society, figuratively expressed as linear metabo-
design process benchmarking. The outcome is lism (Girardet 2019). This anthropogenic influ-
ence on the water resources is also exacerbated
by the effects of Climate Change, which deter-
mine a progressive alteration of natural water
A. Stracqualursi (&)
M. B. Andreucci cycle, compromising accessibility and safety
PDTA, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
(IPCC 2021).
e-mail: [Link]@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 615
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
616 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Relevant problems loom and require to face held by water use in the construction and per-
considerable challenges. The key issues are forming water services, requiring the resource
related to the exploitation of water inside build- and altering its quality, subtracting it from
ings, directly and indirectly, which exacerbates (scarce) availability. The dynamics of Embodied
the macro risk of water scarcity (World Eco- Water (EW), Water-Energy Nexus (WEN), and
nomic Forum 2022). Currently in Europe, water Non-Revenue Water (NRW) can be related to
withdrawal is destined to five main sectors: these variables. Water is a renewable resource
domestic (9.6%); agriculture, forestry and fish- that is widely used in the construction sector, as
eries (58.3%); mining, manufacturing and con- an embodied ‘invisible’ element. EW expresses
struction (10.6%); energy production and air the water volume of a product, associated with
conditioning (18.2%); and tertiary (3.3%) (EEA water consumption in the processes of extraction
2022). Among the most demanding challenges is of raw materials, production of materials, pro-
that of transforming the metabolic flow of cessing, and construction of the building (Fay
buildings (Pearlmutter et al. 2021) and making et al. 2000). This value is generally quantified
them an integral part of a system that does not through the Water Footprint Indicator (Hoekstra
limit the pressure on the environment but trans- et al. 2011) or as the result of a Life Cycle
forms it into positivity. The importance of water Assessment (LCA). WEN establishes the con-
management is taking on an increasingly inter- nection between energy production and water
disciplinary and multi-scale interest in the consumption. Although fully interrelated, water
approach to problems. However, many studies and energy resources have historically been
have drawn attention on water governance in investigated and regulated independently, and by
cities at the macro-scale (urban water manage- different bodies. The resources consumption does
ment) with less attention at the micro-scale of not take place unidirectionally: WEN takes into
buildings (Fletcher et al. 2015; Romano and account the consumption of water resources for
Akhmouch 2019; Langergraber et al. 2020). energy production, but also of energy consump-
The factors that contribute to fuelling this tion in the treatment, distribution, disposal,
critical condition are attributable to 5 main heating, and cooling of water (Magagna et al.
dimensions—environmental, technological, eco- 2019). Further relationships are investigated in
nomic, social, political—and 3 key factors—cli- multidimensional relationships with Food, Soil,
mate change, population growth, urbanization— and Waste. Additional threatening effects are
that will radically mark the evolution of urban recorded in water dispersed for system ineffi-
systems in the coming years due to the alteration ciencies. This water is defined as NRW. The
of natural hydrological cycles (IPCC 2022); losses in the water supply alternate between real
overpopulation (UN/DESA 2022); and expan- losses, when the water is supplied but not con-
sion of vulnerable environments (UN/DESA sumed, and apparent losses, when the water is
2019). Building design and urban planning gen- consumed but not recorded by the meter (un-
erally limit the goal of reducing consumption to a billed authorized consumption or measurement
field of direct use of resources, offering partial errors). NRW has been globally estimated at 126
solutions to containing demand in the building km3/year, which has a financial cost/value of
operational stage. Weighting each single water USD 39 billion/year (Liemberger and Wyatt
consumptive process of the building system in its 2019).
entire life-cycle without neglecting the indirect On these premises, the research has conse-
contribution (i.e., in a regenerative approach), quently been conducted aiming at three main
allows instead to define a more effective long- general objectives: (i) the identification of key
term sustainable intervention scenario. issues and challenges as far as ‘water sustain-
We refer to indirect causes, as integrative ability’ in building and construction is con-
parameters of water demand, that establish a cerned; (ii) the formulation of possible strategies
correlation with water consumption. Demand is and solutions for sustainable water management
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 617

in buildings following a regenerative approach; dimensions of Environment-Society-

and (iii) the development and dissemination of Economy, placing the environmental field as
innovative integrated frameworks and tools able a priority area of interest. The scope is to
to support the building ‘water sustainability’ evaluate the effectiveness of the model and
assessment. establish a basis for future advancements.

Figure 1 illustrates the research’s workflow: the

2 Materials and Methods study begins with the outcomes of literature
review carried out with the web-based tools of
The study proposes a synthesis of the progress of Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar.
research on the water resources management in The main search terms included: ‘Sustainable
buildings, the elaboration of Key Performance Water Management’, ‘Efficiency’, and ‘Reuse’.
Indicators (KPIs) for the evaluation of water The review is aimed at the identification of cur-
management within them and a regenerative rent trends (2017–2022), with specific reference
strategic implementation model for the integrated to older studies. The result is that water man-
intervention to prevent the water scarcity through agement is linked to many kinds of interdisci-
design. The research adopted a mixed- plinary and multi-scale approaches, but this work
methodology which incorporates both quantita- limits the focus on the topics of regenerative
tive and qualitative methods of data collection design and circularity, as themes closer to
and analysis (Creswell 1999). The methodology architecture. The most relevant issues are
was articulated in three phases: deduced, and relevant studies are reported. From
the analysis of the SDGs, the main objectives to
• In the first, analytical-descriptive phase, strive for are highlighted. From the comparative
together with an analysis of the regulatory evaluation of GB protocols and integrated
framework and certification systems for green assessment tools, the KPIs are then proposed.
buildings (GB), the investigation conducted Subsequently, a novel strategic framework is
through a literature review aimed at inter- proposed. Finally, the results of the model testing
preting and condensing all the elements that phase are presented.
collaborate in defining the context, such as the
stress factors to the natural and urban hydro-
logical system, through the identification of 3 Results
specific metrics and performance indicators.
• In the second, elaborative-experimental phase, 3.1 Regenerative Design
intervention scenarios for the prevention of and Circularity
the risk of scarcity in buildings were devel-
oped, proposing a regenerative strategic The conventional limiting approach to resource
implementation model. The UN’s Sustainable management will have to transition to a regen-
Development Goals (SDGs) were taken as a erative model. Regenerative Design stands as a
reference. In particular, in order to identify the positive approach to the interaction between
main design goals, the SDG 6—Clean Water artificial and natural systems. Design can no
and Sanitation was analyzed in all its targets, longer be just about reducing negative impacts
highlighting synergies and trade-offs with the but needs to adopt a net-positive thinking and
other SDGs. regenerative sustainability (Lyle 1996). To have
• In the third, model testing phase, the strategies a positive impact, a holistic conception of envi-
were assessed. In this process, the established ronmental, economic, and social systems is nee-
KPIs are used as evaluation metrics. The ded, and that they are aligned with planetary
output is a semi-qualitative impact assess- limits (Rockström et al. 2009). Above all,
ment, with benefits and barriers for the three architecture can no longer act as a structure
618 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Fig. 1 Workflow of the research mixed-methodology

Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 619

detached from the natural cycles of the environ- impact on people and environment (Andreucci
ment and design cannot ignore a concept of and Marvuglia 2021).
multi-scalar approach that takes into considera- Sustainability in water management requires
tion the complex relationships. to follow four main goals:
To regenerate the built environment is nec- 1. Preserve the quantity of accessible water
essary to seize the opportunities that arise from resources;
the introduction of the principle of circularity in 2. Improve the quality of waters and
the economic system. There are many current wastewater;
initiatives to implement this model (Kalmykova 3. Increase the resilience of the building and
et al. 2018), so much so as to place the circular community water system;
economy as a structural component for the pro- 4. Implement circularity in the management of
gress of the entire Europe (European Commis- water resources flows.
sion - DG COMM 2020). To achieve a paradigm
shift, cyclical and regenerative innovations are The above goals refer to the purpose of con-
required at every design scale (Prieto-Sandoval serving available resources (quantity), of con-
et al. 2018). The restoration and maintenance of trolling their chemical-physical-biological state
the water cycle, as well as the treatment, recov- (quality), of limiting risk factors (resilience), and
ery, and reuse, are among the greatest challenges of transforming flow dynamics (circularity). At
of a circular city (Atanasova et al. 2021). the building-scale, these translate into three
specific goals:
1. Reduce water consumption;
3.2 UN SDGs and Specific Goals 2. Minimize the impact of building on water
resources;
Sustainability is the center of an ever-changing 3. Balance the mix of water resources to cover
debate, commonly defined as a holistic approach the needs.
that considers the environment, society, and the
economy, recognizing them as pillars for lasting
prosperity (Brundtland 1987). It underlies more
of an objective than of an intrinsic quality. The 3.3 KPIs
United Nations 2030 Agenda transformed this
aim in 17 SDGs and 169 related targets. In this Multiple assessment criteria—relating to the
framework, environmental sustainability is one Water category—offered by the major interna-
of the main themes. In particular, SDG 6 strives tional GB Certification Systems (20 Standards
for equal access to water and hygiene, with and 112 criteria) supported by methods and tools
efficiency in use and promoting an integrated and for integrated sustainability assessment (8 sets of
in-depth approach—up to the basin scale—in indicators and 93 criteria), have been reinter-
management. Synergies are substantial with SDG preted to overcome an evaluation framework
15, while many trade-offs occur with SDG 3. But limited to the site boundaries and to some phases
it is in comparison with SDG 11, SDG 12, and of the building life-cycle. At the base lie the
SDG 13 that we can understand the relevance for metrics, quantitative or qualitative, absolute or
the environment, especially urban, of water relative. Having set the goals, the references are
management at the micro-scale. By relating the then compared. The indicators are broken down
targets of these SDGs, the path to take becomes by affinity to the general objectives (Figs. 3
clearer (Fig. 2). In this framework, the role of and 4). For the integrated sustainability assess-
regenerative design will be prominent in bringing ment indicators, two intermediate categories
our society ever closer to achieving the SDGs, were considered: the fields of assessment within
tackling with determination effects of Climate water management and shared specific goals. For
Change and with a potentially very positive each set, the specific number of useful indicators
620 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Fig. 2 Main targets for a regenerative approach in water management and interlinkages among SDGs

(step 1) is distributed among thirteen fields of and 2). Each indicator was divided into 5 per-
evaluation (step 2), conformable to thirteen formance levels, the thresholds of which were
specific goals (step 3) related to the four general established through benchmarking on statistical
goals (step 4). data.
Filtering and implementation processes led to Indicators ‘1’ and ‘2’ collaborate to define a
the elaboration of 11 KPIs, structured on 15 sub- given quantity of water that is used in the
indicators, for the evaluation of the sustainability building use phase, in restricted survey periods,
of water management in buildings (Tables 1 by reading the water efficiency, but also energy
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 621

Fig. 3 GB certification systems analyzed and distribution of credits, within the Water category, according to the four
general goals identified (above), and average percentage value of points distributed among all 20 systems (below)

efficiency, of the appliances and user demand. In ‘1’, there are different units of measurement
The following ‘3’, ‘4’, ‘5’, and ‘6’, monitor the according to the different objects analyzed and
progress toward the goal of reducing the water their functionality. In ‘2’ and ‘3’ a measure of the
impact of the building system, evaluating the demand between residences and offices is pro-
volume of water incorporated in all life stages, posed. In ‘4’, ‘5’, ‘6’, ‘7’, and ‘8’, there is a
the apparent uses due to losses, and the effect of relative value of the effectiveness of the inter-
construction on the soil and on the quality of the ventions and resource pressure through a per-
water inside the site, from rain to waste. The centage measurement. ‘9’ rates through a
KPIs ‘7’ and ‘8’ represent aggregate indicators Boolean variable no/yes, which indicates the
that help to understand the balancing capacity presence or absence of solutions for this purpose,
between the components of the demand coverage while ‘10’ considers a reference scale where the
mix and the level of pressure on the available minimum is the absence of involvement and the
resources, to establish the water autonomy maximum is the proactive condition or empow-
capacity of the system from the city network and erment level. For ‘10’, four synthetic indicators
the environment. The field of observation of of period and impact of investments were
sustainability is then extended to social dynamics selected.
‘9’ and ‘10’, and economic-financial ‘11’.
622 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Fig. 4 Sankey chart with the connections between set of economic sphere. Acronyms: LCA Life Cycle Assess-
indicators for sustainability assessment. The numbers ment, WFA Water Footprint Assessment, LCC Life Cycle
indicate the quantity of criteria for single indicator and Cost, OECD Organization for Economic Co-operation
their distribution among common fields of assessment, and Development, EEA European Environment Agency,
specific and general goals. The colours in the second ISPRA Italian national institute for protection and research
column indicate affinity with the environmental, social, or on environment

3.4 The Regenerative Strategic administrative guidelines, clashing with the

Implementation Model social challenges of coping and empowerment.
The containment of the water impact is a mit-
The model was developed as a strategic frame- igative strategy that aims to reduce the indirect
work, distinguishing between ‘impact mitigation’ depletion of resources. EW must be regulated
and ‘behavior adaptation’ measures, aligned with above all in the building envelope (EW-O),
the specific challenges to face and sustainable involving manufacturers of building materials
water management goals (Table 3). and designers who choose them, to mitigate the
The efficiency of indoor and outdoor water impact of the pre and post-use phases of the
systems (EI and EO) is a dual strategy on a building. The Smart Water Management (SWM)
product scale that is intended to all water appli- means putting all water appliances in communi-
ances, facing the challenge of technological cation in a coordination and optimization struc-
alignment with the aim of achieving high per- ture, which minimizes structural inefficiencies,
formance in provision of controlled quantities such as unaware use and losses. Quality conser-
with limited losses. Awareness raising (AU for vation is an adaptive strategy, aimed at active and
user awareness and AD for design awareness) is passive systems of drainage and rainwater run-
an adaptive strategy aimed at regulating demand off, and wastewater treatment, with the aim of
among buildings users and their designers. Its collecting, storing, and reusing these resources
application involves community choices and (OSM and DWT). Finally, diversification is a
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 623

Table 1 List of the KPIs, with the description of indicators and sub-indicators
Nr Name Definition Time and
frequency
1 Resources for Potable water used in water appliances Building
appliances operation phase
Electricity used in water appliances Building
operation phase
2 Water for occupants Potable water required for daily activities Daily
needs
3 Embodied water Embodied (or virtual) water in Pre-use Occasional
(Production + Construction) and End-of-use phases of
Building life-cycle
4 Coverage of the Main water use monitored with smart meters and sub-meters Occasional
monitoring system
5 Stormwater Runoff Permeability coefficient of the site in relation to the Hourly
Management in the predevelopment hydrological conditions
site Rate of rainwater temporarily stored, treated, and released Occasional
a
6 Effectiveness of water Rate of stormwater treated on site Daily
purification Rate of wastewater (gray, black, and process) treated on sitea Daily
7 Reuse potential Coverage of non-potable water needs using local resources Annual
from alternative sources
8 Water Exploitation Level of pressure on local water resources exerted by human Seasonal
Index plus (WEI+) activity (summer)
9 Wellbeing Presence of solutions that through the integrated use of water Occasional
contribute to aesthetic quality, recreational pleasure, and
comfort
10 Participation Participation level of the occupants in city programs or urban Annual
policies of empowerment and advocacy for water conservation
11 Life cycle cost Payback period of the cumulative strategies adopted in a water Occasional
resources management plan
Incidence of implementation costs for strategies on the water Occasional
supply and sanitation systems, in relation to the total cost of
the building over the entire life-cycle
a
According to the qualitative values of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD),
Total suspended solids (TSS), and other compounds, as per the limits set for reuse and discharge into water bodies
(Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) and Successive amendments)

strategy that takes on a double effect: mitigative rate and unit consumption values of all the pos-
by application in the use of water (DA), thanks to sible appliances involved in the domestic use of
the resource allocation, which aims to expand the water in residences and offices are then traced,
benefits of a regenerative management of the and which collaborate to achieve a daily operat-
water cycle of the building; and adaptive by ing capacity of 130 l/ca in the former and of
source in water use (DS) in order to expand 50 l/ca in seconds. In a complementary way, the
access to supply sources, for an incremental outdoor consumption of taps and external sys-
exploitation of resources. tems should reach a stable consumption of
Point to efficiency means bringing indoor 30 l/ca/d, even if in this context the efficiency
consumption—of taps, sanitary ware, appliances, variables of the systems are very large.
and systems—as close as possible to an amount Containing the demand is one of the key
that is essential to perform its functions. The flow strategies for reducing consumption. In raising
624 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Table 2 List of the KPIs with the object of the evaluation, level of rating (from 1 = min. to 5 = max.)
KPI Object/Intended use Level Unit of
1 2 3 4 5 measure

1 WC >6.0  6.0  5.5  4.5  3.5 l/min

Urinal >4.0  4.0  3.0  2.0  1.0
Faucet >13.0  13.0  10.0  8.0  6.0
Shower >13.0  13.0  10.0  8.0  6.0
Mixed products >13.0  13.0  10.0  8.0  6.0
Bathtub >200  200  185  170  155
Dishwasher >12.0  12.0  10.0  9.0  7.0
Washing machine >41.0  43.0  45.0  48.0  50.0
Washer-dryer >41.0  43.0  45.0  48.0  50.0
Bathtub >200  200  185  170  155 l/cycle
Dishwasher >12.0  12.0  10.0  9.0  7.0
Washing machine >41.0  43.0  45.0  48.0  50.0
Washer-dryer >41.0  43.0  45.0  48.0  50.0
(I) Sprinkler >1.00  0.80  0.60  0.40  0.20 kWh/m3
(D) Circulator pump >0.40  0.35  0.30  0.25  0.20
(D) Waste water >3.00  2.40  1.80  1.20  0.60
(D) Stormwater >1.50  1.50  1.30  1.15  1.00
(DHW) Generic faucet >0.50  0.50  0.40  0.30  0.25 kWh/use
(DHW) Kitchen faucet >0.45  0.45  0.35  0.25  0.20
(DHW) Shower >0.35  0.35  0.25  0.20  0.15
(DHW) Dishwasher >0.80  0.80  0.70  0.60  0.49 kWh/cycle
(14p.)
(DHW) Washing >0.64  0.64  0.56  0.48  0.41
machine (7 kg)
(DHW) Washer-dryer >3.76  3.76  3.11  2.58  2.10
(7 kg)
2 Residential >200  200  165  145  120 l/ca/d
Office >120  120  85  65  40
3 Residential >30  30  20  15  10 kl/m2
Office >35  35  25  20  15
4 Coverage  50  70  85  99 >99 %
5 Soil permeability  30  40  50  75 >75 %
Rainwater drained  50  70  85  95 >95 %
6 Stormwater  50  70  85  99 >99 %
Waste water  50  70  85  99 >99
7 Water for reuse  45  60  80  99 >99
8 Pressure on local water >40  40  25  15 5 %
resources
9 Technological solutions No – – – Yes No/Yes
available
10 Participation level No Passive Active Reactive Proactive
involvement
(continued)
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 625

Table 2 (continued)
KPI Object/Intended use Level Unit of
1 2 3 4 5 measure

11 Payback period >10  10 8 6 5 Years

Acquisition cost >25  25  15 8 5 %
Operating and >20  20  10 8 5
maintenance cost
Demolition and disposal >5 5 3 2 1
cost
I Irrigation, D Distribution, DHW Domestic Hot Water

Table 3 The regenerative strategic implementation strategic model

Goals 1—Reduce water consumption 2—Minimize the impact of 3—Balance the mix of
buildings on water resources water resources to
cover the needs
Threats Demand growth due to Erosion of available and renewable Variability of
technological inadequacy and water resources meteorological and
social dynamics hydrological models
Causes Systems obsolescence Speculative construction Water Stress
Consumption patterns Soil sealing Rainfall reduction
Pollution Alteration of the water
Infrastructure leakage cycle
Mitigation Efficiency Impact reduction Diversification
strategies

EI EO EW-O SWM DA
Efficiency of Efficiency of EW Smart Water Diversification by
indoor water outdoor water optimization in Management application in water
systems systems the building use
envelope
Adaptation Awareness Quality conservation Diversification
strategies

AU AD OSM DWT DS
User Designer On-site Decentralized Diversification by
awareness awareness stormwater wastewater source in water use
management treatment

awareness of users, administrative, economic, environmental subsidies and tax deductions, or

and regulatory measures are relevant, starting loans to incentivize innovation and direct con-
with public information, which moves between sumption choices, while negative direct incen-
different broadcasters as well as endogenous and tives aim to correct inappropriate behavior,
exogenous communication channels. Financial through penalties and fines. Indirect incentives
incentives are economic tools that offer direct or make users aware by putting them in front of
indirect stimuli. Positive direct incentives collect variable prices for consumption thresholds.
626 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Finally, obligations and limitations are intended EW-O caters to the building envelope as it is
to regulate the water consumption in a compul- the class of technological unit with the greatest
sory manner, in times of need, while the rules impact on the resource consumption and one of
aim to regulate it. the pivots of energy flows in the building,
AD is influenced by education and training becoming part of the dynamics of WEN. It also
received by designers through a cycle of studies represents a variable of awareness in design
or received sporadically with events such as choices, depending on its water impact. A com-
conferences and workshops, or constantly parison between the elements is necessary: for
through professional training courses. A great this purpose a quantitative analysis of EW per
input comes from subsides: facilitated taxation unit of area was previously conducted on 24
on professional income; start-up funds for inno- different envelope packages, including vertical
vative businesses; professional incentives to and horizontal upper and lower elements (Strac-
participate in action programs, to be able to deal qualursi 2022). For each solution, its thermal
with a flexible administration, and to receive transmittance (U) is also measured in order to
professional recognition from external bodies, establish the correlation between water demand
such as for ISO 14001 or LEED, BREEAM and thermal insulation capacity (Fig. 5). The
certifications, etc. water demand for production and construction of

Fig. 5 EW and U for the

different envelope elements
analyzed. The components are
ordered, from left to right,
according to the increasing
surface mass
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 627

1 m2 of building envelope is on an average of vegetated spaces, implementing fountains and

5.111 l. Implementation and type of materials are pools with induced flow flanked by trees as
the main variables in determining these values. integrated elements of the drainage system.
The use of synthetic insulating and waterproofing In DSW, decentralized wastewater treatment
materials, combined with a high number of layers systems (DEWATS) perform the functions of
of the package, and metallic finishes make the separating internal discharges and local treatment
envelope packages heavier, compared to tradi- of all polluted waters—black water, gray water,
tional masonry or wood solutions and dry and other processed water—so as to recycle. The
systems. treatment is associated with the contaminants
SWM in building is divided into 5 system typology, the pollution load, and the intended
levels (Li et al. 2020), alternating ACT auto- end use of the effluent, through three treatment
mated control technologies and ICT data levels: primary/physical, for the removal of sus-
exchange, in phases of monitoring and process- pended solids with sedimentation, through
ing of water consumption data, with the triple degreaser, IMHOFF tank or septic tank;
purpose of: making the system more efficient by secondary/biological for the abatement of
detecting leaks; inform users; and increase biodegradable organic matter and removal of
management flexibility. The first physical layer, non-sedimentable solids, with activated sludge or
which monitors pipes and systems, provides a membrane systems, attached biomass, moving
reading of the operational status of the infras- bed, biodisc, and discontinuous cycle reactors;
tructure; the detection and control level works to tertiary/physical–chemical, which disinfects the
establish the automation, responsiveness, con- outgoing water reducing the microbial load,
nectivity with network and software, and inter- through pressure filters with activated carbon or
operability with external users capabilities; the sand, UV sterilizers, or natural phytoremediation
communication layer establishes a two-way systems.
connection between users and managers; the DA exploits water for collateral functions,
visualization of the data informs users and which can be associated with three categories:
managers of the trends in progress; the process- regulation, which uses water as a mitigating tool
ing and analysis of data makes the system a valid for indoor and outdoor microclimate; recreation,
tool to support operational choices. as a characterizing element of collective spaces;
OSM is the containment of stormwater flow and symbolism, as an element of the definition of
within the site, through drainage and collection the contemplative space. For the first category,
into tanks, and slowing the extension of imper- two functions are available: evaporative and
vious surfaces to avoid run-off and lowering of radiative cooling. The evaporative cooling
the water table. The priority scale should place employs direct, indirect, and combined systems.
the collection at the top for reuse and place the Experimentation in the building sector occurs in
discharge into the combined sewer as a last applications of water reuse for direct evaporative
resort. Adaptation is implemented through the cooling of interior spaces by exploiting the ver-
collection, drainage, and treatment tools derived tical flow of water and providing thermal
from nature-based solutions. Storage tanks with capacity to the envelope—within integrated sys-
induced flow can be placed at the top of the tems, such as water wall and roof pond. The
building, using gravity for water distribution, or radiative cooling is exploited by active and pas-
at the base, flanked by a booster pump. The sive chilled beam systems or water to air
drainage can be supported by green roofs and all exchangers. The second category is linked to
the vertical green system, which offer great ecosystem services pertaining to health and well-
potential in terms of implementing technologies being. This is through the intervention on aes-
for the treatment, including gray water. Water- thetics, acoustics—especially with soothing
proofing is a process to be contrasted with hard sounds in workstations—and wellness, with a
permeable flooring for the paths and soft for the therapeutic effect through SPA, hydromassage,
628 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

Fig. 6 Graphic summary of advantages and barriers for the strategy framework

and bio-pools. The last category creates a sym- and economic spheres. The assessment for indi-
bolic relationship between the water element and vidual strategies is summarized in Fig. 6. It refers
the distribution of interior spaces and paths. to a present scenario, taking into consideration
DS is the final process placed at the top of existing technologies. The recorded effects relate
regeneration, which after the reduction of to the present and the immediate future. The
demand and impact, culminates in the integration focus is set on building design and context is
of alternative sources. The water resources limited to urban environment. Even if water is a
available within the entire building site are natural resource and its availability is strongly
superficial, underground, wastewater, rain, and linked to local circumstances, it is assumed that
air humidity. The period and area of availability, consumption in new buildings is linked to system
the possible applications, and the variables that efficiency and to the daily demand of residents,
characterize their usability must be investigated which makes it a generalizable picture and not
specifically. strictly localized. Overall, the environmental
benefits derive from: indoor and outdoor water,
with associated reductions in energy and Aver-
3.5 Model Testing Phase age Incremental Carbon Costs for Water Effi-
ciency labeled products; stabilization and
The application of the model offers benefits and improved water demand management capacity;
encounters barriers in the environmental, social ecosystem services that preserve the quantity and
Water Resources Management in a Regenerative Design Approach 629

quality of rainwater, also making it available for capital that involves us globally. A healthy eco-
recycle; increased resilience and flexibility of nomic system should be planned to prosper,
water as a resource. The main social benefit is respecting these margins with a constant com-
produced by the proactive involvement of all mitment that must lead us to “Create to regen-
users, for daily use, and for personal and com- erate”. Moving from actual sustainability to
mon well-being. At the same time, the effec- regeneration (Reed 2007), translates into pro-
tiveness of the savings is mainly delegated to gressing from ‘green’ to ‘regenerative’ design
appliances, not involving the user habits. Incon- (Cole 2012; Mang and Reed 2020). The transi-
veniences caused by detection and maintenance tion toward a Circular Built Environment (Ellen
are frequently reduced. In the economic dimen- MacArthur Foundation and ARUP 2018) is
sion, affordable operating costs are the benefit therefore essential.
with the highest value. Savings are found both on To close the circle, the outcome—albeit pre-
the variable component of the tariff (quantity of liminary—is a prototype of an operative design
use), and on the fixed costs (distribution and supporting tool. It is clear to think that solving an
treatment). Overall, water-efficient buildings with extended risk such as water scarcity through the
a certification acquire a relatively higher real building design is impossible. This is why a
estate value. method, or rather, replicable design guidelines
There are, obviously, also obstacles. Firstly, have been developed. The proposed KPIs are
the environmental barriers are derived from the diversified parameters useful not only for the
global impact of water efficiency appliances. testing phase. They are also designed to facilitate
Water is mainly saved but the consumption of the benchmarking process in comparing distinct
other resources is considerable. Recycling/reuse, buildings or different scenarios for the same
especially on site, is a risky process in terms of building, as analysis tools integrable into, as an
hygiene and health. The social barriers are linked example, a digital twin. The strategies are mul-
to willingness of users to accept compromises tifaceted because they are oriented toward dif-
and to overcome cultural barriers related to the ferent solutions, since to regenerate complex
fear of using recycled water. Furthermore, gen- systems must be managed simultaneously. The
eral information on water saving is often inade- effort is to make the building process, in all
quate and risks becoming counterproductive and phases, integrated into the economic, social, and
leading more to consumerism than to preserva- natural cycles of the environment, minimizing
tion. This empties the importance of the concept, conflicts and discontinuity. In conclusion, sim-
which from driver turns into distrust. Finally, the plify, recycle, and create synergies.
economic obstacles linked to initial investments The research shows limits from which devel-
must be considered, with higher acquisition costs opment perspectives have been identified. First:
and increased maintenance costs in relation to the absence of direct application of the model, for
additional components. Recycling/reuse systems example through a case study. Second: the lim-
require investments for infrastructure upgrading itation of effective applicability in the reality of
and maintenance, with a low return in micro- the professional world and not just the academic
scale systems such as buildings. one. The next steps to be taken, from a research
advancement perspective, are mainly three:
1. Modeling, simulation, and testing of the
4 Concluding Remarks proposed system to validate its effectiveness
and provide a series of intervention alterna-
We have the right to a clean, healthy, and sus- tives for designers;
tainable environment (UN General Assembly 2. Synthesis of the results for encouraging the
2021) and to an equal society (European Com- adoption of a flexible tool for concrete
mission 2021). The natural environment is a usability in the professional world;
630 A. Stracqualursi and M. B. Andreucci

3. Proposal of solutions integrated with the IPCC (2021) AR6 climate change 2021: the physical
building envelope, as interactive components science basis. Cambridge University Press
IPCC (2022) AR6 climate change 2022: impacts, adap-
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Kalmykova Y, Sadagopan M, Rosado L (2018) Circular
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The Value of Waste
 Extending the Circular Design
Framework for Bio-Based Materials:
Reconsidering Cascading
and Agency Through the Case
of Biopolymer Composites

Mette Ramsgaard Thomsen, Gabriella Rossi,

Anders Egede Daugaard, Arianna Rech,
and Paul Nicholas

Abstract composites as case studies, we examine how

introducing this class of materials into the
Pressing issues of sustainability drive the circular design framework challenges the
pursuit of new circular bio-based design actions and implication of cascading and
frameworks in order to limit the use of finite reconfigures the weighting of agency and
resources and fossil fuel energy consumption.
control. The conceptual, technical and practi-
In architecture and the built environment these cal implications of the usage of such materials
efforts have fostered a renewed interest in in future building practice are speculated on
bio-based materials as the only truly sustain-
through the creation of six design scenarios
able resource for building materials. However, that expand the role of cascading creating a
bio-based materials are different to the new connectivity between material practices.
resources that cascade through technological
cycles. With the increased interest and appli- Keywords
cation of bio-based material in the building
sectors comes the realisation that they do not


Circular design Cascading Bioeconomy

map directly on to existing models of circular

Waste streams Sustainable materials

design for the built environment. In this paper Biopolymer composites
we present an effort to extend the circular
design framework for biopolymer composites
in architectural applications. The paper takes 1 Introduction
point of departure in a mapping of existing
strategies for cascading in the built environ- Our societies are under great pressure to
ment. By presenting two biopolymer rethink the way we employ our resources. The
climate crises and the need to decrease CO2 has
led to a renewed focus on transitioning to mate-
M. Ramsgaard Thomsen
G. Rossi (&)
rials arriving from the biosphere. Frameworks
P. Nicholas such as the European Green Deal (European
CITA / Royal Danish Academy, Copenhagen, Commission. Directorate General for Research
Denmark and Innovation 2021) foreground bio-based
e-mail: garo@[Link]
materials as solutions for carbon neutrality,
A. E. Daugaard
A. Rech renewability and embedded circularity through
Danish Polymer Center, Danmarks Tekniske
Universitet, Kogens Lyngby, Denmark biodegradability and composting. In architecture,

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 635
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
636 M. Ramsgaard Thomsen et al.

engineering and construction the transition to a managing finite stocks and renewable flows
bio-based material paradigm holds potential of (Stahel 2016). Based on three principles—de-
significant impact. Globally, the built environ- signing out waste and pollution, keeping prod-
ment represents 40% (United Nations Environ- ucts and materials in use and the regeneration of
ment Programme 2020) of all materials and 50% natural systems (McArthur 2013)—it is a driver
of energy consumed (Waste Generation 2020, of new business models that foster reuse and
2022). A transition into a more intense use of bio- extend service life through repair, refitting and
based building materials based on grown resour- refurbishing, which turn old goods into as new
ces and upcycled agricultural waste is argued to resources. As such, Circular Design points to
empower a step change in resource deployment. systemic changes in which multiple actors across
However, bio-based materials are fundamentally the production and consumption value chain act
different to traditional geo-sphere driven resour- together to retain as much value as possible. In
ces. Shaped by growth cycles and formed by their architecture, as in other sectors, there are multi-
environment, bio-based materials are easy to ple levels of engagement: from a governmental-
manufacture and modify, but also malleable, institutional position driving new legislation,
prone to weathering and characterised by shorter from industry position building new business
life spans. These characteristics shape their models for value retention and through design
implementation in the built environment. reshaping products enabling materials to have
This paper asks how a transition to bio-based longer life spans across multiple cascaded
material extends circular design thinking in functionalities.
architecture and construction. By taking the point In architecture and the built environment
of departure as the key concept of cascading, the Circular Design is seen as a step change in
paper identifies fundamental changes to how intensifying the use of resource across its life
building materials can be fabricated, deployed, span. While Design for Sustainability has many
maintained, reused and recycled. The paper first layers of resource driven, industrial and societal
contextualises the idea of cascades in existing implication, the most popular frameworks in
architecture circular design strategies. Through a contemporary practice, such as Green Design,
mapping of circular design architectural strate- Cradle-to-Cradle or biomimicry is concerned
gies to the Circular Design Systems Dia- with circularity at the “Product design innovation
gram (McArthur 2019) we present an overview level” (Ceschin and Gaziulusoy 2016). Most
of emerging cascade thinking in architecture contemporary architecture and construction
which belong mainly to finite resources of tech- adoptions of Circular Design approaches revolve
nological cycles. This mapping is then extended around two of six strategic Rs: Recycling and
to bio-based materials. Finally, we use the case- Reuse (Dokter et al. 2021; Yang et al. 2022).
study of the 3d-printing of biopolymer compos- This is suggested either through circularity at the
ites and the creation of six future use scenarios to product and component scale through material
exemplify these changes and discuss the con- passports, components banks and complex data
ceptual, technical and practical implications on pipelines which allows to disassemble, retrieve
future building practice. and reuse materials across buildings, or through
adaptability, redesign and reuse at the larger
building scale (Hamida et al. 2022). From a
2 Circular Design in Architecture lifecycle perspective, Circular Design-in-
and the Built Environment construction strategies tackle all phases of the
value chain, from design and manufacturing,
Circular Design aims to shift from a ‘take-make- through installation, maintenance and operation,
waste’ linear economic model to one that pre- all the way to end of life and disposal via the
serves and enhances natural capital, optimises established infrastructure of BIM and LCA
resource yields and minimises system risks by software. They aim to improve the value chain
Extending the Circular Design Framework … 637

through “slowing resource use by prolonging longevity and by practices of repair. In private
building lifetime, closing the resource loop homes these cycles of repair might be undertaken
through by diverting End-of-Life materials from by the inhabitant, while in other building stocks
landfills and narrowing resource use through these are undertaken by skilled labour managed
design efficiency” (Chen et al. 2022). and scheduled by a building manager teams. The
second cascade level points to refitting as a
practice of continually adapting building as
2.1 Understanding Practice Through (Askar et al. 2022). Refitting might adopt prac-
the Lens of the Circular tices of maintenance and repair while intensify-
Design Cascades ing these to transform building programme and
performance. These processes similarly address
When interpreting architectural practice through an overlap of private and skilled labour and can
the Butterfly Diagram (Fig. 1), cascading can be engage architects to develop a design strategy.
thought of in respect to six central measures: The third cascade practice of refurbishing
retain, refit, refurbish, reclaim & reuse, intensifies these processes further. Primarily
remanufacture and recycle (Cheshire 2021). planned by architects and undertaken by con-
Each of the cascade levels retains different tractors, processes of refurbishing rethinks the
degrees of the value of the designed artefact. In building stock by adapting the existing structure
the following we outline these emphasising the into new structures. Adaptation is seen as the
different actors and processes that they involve central proponent of circular design in architec-
across the value chain. ture allowing buildings to attain longer life spans
Cascading starts with the effort to retain while simultaneously answering changing needs
building occupation through building for (Cheshire 2021). Adaptation can renew strategic

Fig. 1 Circular economy system diagram (Ellen McArthur Foundation) reproduced from https://
[Link]/circular-economy-diagram
638 M. Ramsgaard Thomsen et al.

layers of the building (Habraken 2005) while which have already extracted resources and uti-
retaining others. The fourth cascade level of re- lized energy to be shaped. Additionally, that
claim & reuse defines processes of using the agency is mainly placed within skilled labour
building stock as a resource of building elements. actors thereby negating the direct agency of the
Through processes of deconstruction, building occupant. This approach, while offering imme-
elements are harvested and reused in new build diate areas of action for designers, industries, and
or refitting processes. These processes are mainly policy makers alike, disregards the complemen-
enacted by deconstruction companies together tary side of the McArthur circular design butterfly
with architects who play a central role in creating model. That of the “biological cycles”. To enter
design solutions that enable disassembly and into bio-based material practices for architecture
reuse (Manelius 2017). The fifth cascade level, we need to expand our understanding of cascad-
remanufacture, downcycles elements further ing and engage the fundamental differences in the
into new elements and components, executed by network of actors and processes that bio-based
building deconstruction companies (O’Grady material practice include.
et al. 2021). These might downcycle structural
materials such as structural timber or concrete
elements as tertiary building elements such as 3 Bio-Based Materials
flooring or wall finishing. The material loses part for Architecture
of its initial value while gaining new value
through design and remanufacture. Processes of In architecture, bio-based materials can be
remanufacture necessitate industrial actors able described across three material perspectives:
to build adequate infrastructures and processes of harvested materials, designed materials and liv-
refabrication. The sixth cascade level ends with ing materials (Ramsgaard Thomsen and Tamke
material recycling. As highlighted by circular 2022). Harvested materials, such as timber,
design principles generally, recycling is the least bamboo, hemp or straw are increasingly used in
valuable practice of cascading as its focus on the architecture, as processes of design and manu-
material alone undoes the value added through facture are maturing (Mahapatra and Gustavsson
design and manufacture. This is undertaken by 2008). At the same time, new classes of har-
demolition and waste management companies vested materials such as Acetobacter Xylinum
who collect material for recycling. In building producing cellulose sheets (Derme et al. 2016)
processes of recycling channel back materials to and Mycelium elements (Ayres et al. 2023; Bit-
fabrication in which they are mixed varying ting et al. 2022) are currently being investigated.
degree of intensity with virgin materials. Recy- At the other end of the spectrum lies the func-
cling includes links between waste management tionalisation of living materials utilising their
processes and fabrication. ability to metabolise and transform agents of
material performance or the production of
energy. The aspiration of integrating living
2.2 Arguing for the “Biosphere”-Side microbial fuel cells into the built environment; to
of the Butterfly Diagram use building facades hosting mosses or algae to
purify air (Cruz et al. 2019) or dedicated bio
The cascade structure in circular design for the factories producing heat or nutrition (Peruccio
built environment has a very clear limitation: it and Vrenna 2019; Wurm and Pauli 2016), define
only addresses the finite “technological cycles” new ways of understanding the building as the
side of the McArthur circular design butterfly host of a new set of organisms that extend a
model (Leipold and Petit-Boix 2018). They also building’s performances (Ramsgaard Thomsen
have a tendency towards the upper part of the and Tamke 2022). While promising, these tech-
diagram with more emphasis on value retention in niques are still at their infancy for large scale
already existing products and building elements, production and require adequate lab settings for
Extending the Circular Design Framework … 639

Fig. 2 The two cases of biopolymer developed at CITA, in collaboration with DTU, using respectively Xanthan Gum
and Collagen Glue as binders

their success (Bitting et al. 2022). The attrac- properties and performance of the printed arte-
tiveness of the third category: designed materials facts. In this paper we present two material sys-
such as biopolymers and bio-composites, lies in tems which are suitable for 3d-printing and fitting
their capacity to be produced at large scale, and to a digital fabrication pipeline while also being
flexibility in absorbing waste streams into their truly biodegradable and entirely based on waste
material composition as such enabling cascading stream materials.
at a material level. Our research sits within a In the following we will firstly define the two
growing interest in additive manufacturing of materials systems based on Xanthan Gum and
biopolymer composites. While casting might Collagen respectively (Fig. 2), then outline a
provide a high-volume production method of strategy for understanding the cascading of
modular elements, 3d-printing allows for a larger biopolymers at both the material and architec-
design space not only through geometrical free- tural level. This will lead to the rethinking of a
dom which has performance and formal drivers cascading framework for the bio-based material
(Goidea et al. 2020), but also allow for water in architecture.
content grading (Mogas-Soldevila et al. 2015)
and possibilities for integrating data-driven
shrinkage-compensation models (Dritsas et al. 3.1 Xanthan Gum Bio-Composites
2018). for Self-Supporting
The argument presented in this paper uses the Building Blocks
case of 3d-printed biodegradable biopolymer
composites as a particular way of viewing the Our Xanthan Gum bio-composite is entirely bio-
potential differences that bio-based materials offer based constituted mainly of waste-stream mate-
to architectural production. Biopolymer compos- rials. Xanthan Gum is a by-product waste of
ites are typically composed of a binder—a cheese production and is a common emulsifier
biopolymer- mixed into a solvent and reinforced and stabiliser used in the food industry. In our
by fibres—the filler. Their attractiveness lies in material recipe, we use Xanthan Gum as a
their designability: the choice of materials and binding biopolymer for the 3d printed slurry.
proportions; and how these considerations cou- When dispersed in water it forms a gel, to which
pled with fabrication systems give the material its filling and reinforcing agents can be added. Our
key properties. Our research explores the poten- recipe uses recycled paper flock as a fibre ele-
tial of recipe grading as an enabler for interface ment, again a waste stream material being
between fabrication, design and material upcycled into a structural reinforcer of the
640 M. Ramsgaard Thomsen et al.

Fig. 3 a Cellulose Enclosures: 3d-printed blocks with the employing a large-scale gantry printer allows us to test
Xanthan Gum composite material. The blocks present a the performance of self-supporting block measuring 2 m
tectonic language which integrates aeration, structure and height. The material performance and print pattern scales
joinery. The blocks have a size of 50  70 cm on seamlessly
average. b Cellulose Screens: scaling up the prints

material mix. The slurry is then shaped through treatment of bones and tissues from the meat
the 3d printing nozzle and will cure into a solid industry. It exhibits two main advantageous
material as water content slowly evaporates. behaviors: it is thermally responsive, which
We use this material to make self-supporting means that its setting is reversible, and it is water
interior partition blocks. Printing toolpath design soluble. The collagen glue is used as a binding
needs to consider the drying process. The porous matrix for a mix of waste-stream fibres including
patterns enable the exposure of the material to air bark, cotton, wood flour and seagrass. The choice
allowing water content to evaporate. Once dry, of fibers affects not only the structural properties
the blocks can be shaped with conventional of the mix, but also its texture, color and smell.
woodworking tool (drills, saw sanding) and off- The main difference to the Xanthan Gum-based
cuts can be rehydrated and reused to print more slurry is that, rather than requiring a high vol-
components. Our demonstrators showcase the ume of water to achieve a printable viscosity, the
capacity of this material to be stacked vertically collagen glue requires heat. Extrusion tempera-
in an assembly Cellulose Enclosure (Fig. 3a) and tures are between 50° and 60°. At that tempera-
to carry their own self-weight (Fig. 3b). In large ture range the collagen glue is entirely
scale tests (Fig. 3b) we have found that material recyclable and can be remelted and reused
behaviour scales proportionally, with 2 m tall without any loss in its structural properties. It has
pieces printed on a large scale 3d-printing gantry mechanical properties similar to nylons, acetals
being structurally sound. The material exhibits and epoxy resins, without the environmental
further interesting properties relevant to the impact.
architectural quality such as thermal insulation, In the demonstrator Radicant (Fig. 4), we test
acoustic absorption and hygroscopic regulation. the printing of large panels with this material.
Again, we develop intricate print patterns to steer
the distribution of the material in a series of
3.2 Collagen Glue Bio-Composites bespoke interior architectural panels. Each panel
for Building Panels is composed of multiple variations of the base
recipe by grading the fibre content. The compo-
Our collagen glue bio-composite is also a bio- sition is consolidated during the 3D printing
based employing waste-stream materials. The process as each new print layer seamlessly mer-
collagen glue binder itself is a by-product of the ges with the subsequent layer as soon as the
Extending the Circular Design Framework … 641

Fig. 4 Radicant: 3d-printed

blocks with the bone glue bio
composite material. The
panels are composed of
interlacing print beads made
through material grading,
with different fibers and
concentrations. The panels
size average is 30  50 cm

temperature of the print drops below 30°. The

resulting print is stable but remains malleable as 4 Circularity with Architectural
it further cools and water evaporates. In experi- Biopolymer Composites
ments we have found that this allows further
forming. By laying prints on the formwork, we The two cases-studies described above demon-
can achieve double curved panels. End of life strate different potentials and use-cases for the
possibilities vary from reheating and reprinting, application of biopolymers as a means of upcy-
to grinding down the material to pellets for cling waste stream materials into building mate-
recycling to biodegradation through composting. rials. In the following we will introduce
642 M. Ramsgaard Thomsen et al.

cascading logics for biodegradable biopolymers reformulated from the base components to enter
first at a material processing level and then at an the cycle at the very highest level again (4). At
architectural component and use scenario level. the fifth level, an attractive pathway is possible
for bio-based materials that can act as feedstock
for use in the rapidly growing bioeconomy.
4.1 Biopolymer Composites: Specific Materials of poor quality due to degradation or
Cascade Thinking pollution can still be valuable feedstock for fer-
at Material Scale mentation processes, leading to the preparation
of a broad range of products or energy recovery
At a material level, a transition to biopolymer through incineration (5). Finally, the very last
materials, presents a range of new possibilities stage of the process can be either returning the
for reusing and recycling (Fig. 5). Like most materials to nature by composting (6).
other materials, biopolymer materials go through The material cascading is enabled by its sen-
different stages of reuse, recycling, and repro- sibility to water. Where this limits the outdoor
cessing, where each additional level of handling applications of biopolymers, it simultaneously
and processing adds to the environmental impact enables valorisation and revitalisation of waste
of recycling and revalorising the materials. materials at across multiple cascade at all stages
Direct reuse is preferable (1), and, for these of the process.
materials, it is the most benign and environ-
mentally friendly valorisation. Waste resulting
from initial processing steps can typically be 4.2 Biopolymer Elements: Specific
valorised by direct feeding into the process, Cascade Thinking
either in its pure form or, as in the cases above, at Architectural Scale
by using minor amounts of water (2). This stage
corresponds directly to the mechanical recycling Existing methods for understanding cascading in
of classical plastic materials, effectively reducing bio-based materials at the level of architecture
the amount of in-process and fabrication waste aims to preserve absorbed carbon and increase
materials. Considering a lower quality material, total quantity of material through processes of
aged or substantially polluted over a longer downgrading (European Commission. Direc-
lifetime, these types of fractions can be disas- torate General for Internal Market, Industry,
sembled entirely into their separate components Entrepreneurship and SMEs 2018). This is in line
through dissolution techniques (3). Through with the circular thinking for materials of the
disassembly, rinsing and purification processes “technological cycles” and is in part driven by
can be applied to bring the quality and purity of the long time and high processing effort that is
the material up, and new materials can be needed to transform the raw resource into a

Fig. 5 Valorisation of
biopolymer materials after
end-of-life and how they enter
a recycling cascade
Extending the Circular Design Framework … 643

usable element for construction in traditional bio- captured by this diagram, these are described in
based materials such as timber. However, as the form of everyday scenarios to highlight how
explained in the previous section, the biopolymer actors, actions and implications intersect within
composites we describe above are biodegradable, these new biological cascades.
based on waste-stream materials and relatively
easy to process and quick to remanufacture. 4.2.1 Retain Scenario: Thicken
These characteristics uncover opportunities to The retain scenario takes point of departure in
create new architectural cascade thinking specific maintenance and repair. The wall in the entry hall
to their biological cycles. Rather than emphasise has recently been damaged and received a large
design dismantlement and value retention of dent. Localised heating applied with a simple
individual building elements, which concentrates hair dryer makes the material malleable, allowing
activity with larger and more systemic actors, the inhabitant to push the displaced material back
these new cascades activate the more local with a small trowel. DIY hand work, simple
agencies of the occupant, maintenance team, tooling and a bit of time is enough for the result
contractor and architect. to be as good as new. Later that Autumn, the
In the following, we propose a new interpre- inhabitant recoats a degraded part of the south
tation of the butterfly diagram specific to archi- façade with a new layer which contains a higher
tectural circular design thinking which also ratio of seagrass to better resist the rains of the
integrates the emerging considerations from the winter. Over 20 years of living and maintaining
usage of biopolymer composites in construction the building, this yearly cycle has resulted in the
(Fig. 6). In order to further unpack the relations southern walls becoming 10 cm thicker.

Fig. 6 In our redrawing of the right side of the diagram we emphasise the correlation between the different levels of
cascading and with which actor agency is placed
644 M. Ramsgaard Thomsen et al.

4.2.2 Refit Scenario: Reprint 4.2.5 Remanufacture Scenario:

The refit scenario intensifies these practices to Decomposition
transform an aspect of building performance. After 10 years of heavy use, the same interior
When the inhabitants moved in, the same entry fitout has become substantially run down and
hall was not fitted with storage, benches or coat damaged. Small areas have become contami-
hooks. They contact a local contractor who nated. The manufacturer sends out a recovery
operates a room-scale 3d-bio-printer and is able team to break it up and return it to the manu-
to print these new elements directly onto the facturer’s facilities. Here the pieces are put
existing floor and walls of the house. The builder directly into a dissolution process to separate the
uses a bark material that is sourced from a local biopolymer from the fillers. After subsequent
sawmill waste and gives the newly fitted interior rinsing and purification processes, the manufac-
a warm timber look. Waste spilled during fabri- turer is able to use the same base components
cation is immediately sieved and reused in the within a new material, and on a different product
fabrication process. line.

4.2.3 Refurbish Scenario: Prefabricate 4.2.6 Return Scenario: Biodegrade

Add-Ons In the return scenario, elements can be com-
An old timber building is being refurbished by a posted locally by the inhabitant in small scale
contractor. After purchasing pre-fabricated stan- residential cases, or taken by a contractor to a
dard size bio-panels from a local building mar- biomass collection point for larger quantities of
ket, they use heat to alter the edge of each panel material. The material is rinsed and purified and
so that they fit into the non-standard gaps then used as foodstuff for the growing of mush-
between the structural timber. A new cellulose rooms entering the food chain.
wall is installed to subdivide one of bedrooms
into two: here the cellulosic material has the
added benefit of improving the acoustics and 5 Discussion and Conclusions
modulating internal humidity levels. Where the
ceiling is not straight—the floor to ceiling height In this paper we address the potential for bio-
varies by 15 cm over the length of this wall— based materials to extend circular design thinking
they are able to cut the wall to shape using a in architecture and construction, where the field
simple hand saw. recognises the need to intensify the use of bio-
based resource, the current lack of a framework
4.2.4 Reclaim/Reuse Scenario: Shred for circular design in bio-design limits applica-
A local contractor is replacing an interior fitout tion. By focusing our study on biopolymer
into a rented office space. They remove the composites, we have reinterpreted the circular
existing biopolymer panels and other elements design framework for biopolymer composites in
whole and take them directly to a local fab-lab, architectural applications. The aim of our new
which in addition to 3d-printing offers local bio- interpretation is to highlight and partially address
polymer circulation services. The returned a gap in architectural knowledge between the
materials are mechanically shredded and heated, better understood cascading of technical materi-
and the material mass is supplemented with als and the less defined cascading of bio-based
additional fillers or diluted with an additional building materials. Here, we identify the links
biopolymer to achieve the specific properties between six R-strategies and the agency of actors
required for the new fit-out. The contractor in the built environment.
returns to the building to install the same mate- Our diagram identifies the relevant actors in
rials as they had removed, now in a new form the architectural value chain, starting with the
that has been designed by an architect. inhabitant as the first level. It traces the cascades
Extending the Circular Design Framework … 645

specific to biopolymer composites, based on the scaling up architectural applications of mycelium-

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 Sustainable (Re)Development in Post
Industrial City Regions Centering
Circular Systems of Food, Energy,
Water, and Waste: A Case for Detroit

Geoffrey Thun, Tithi Sanyal,

and Kathy Velikov

Abstract lar synergies, reduce waste flows, and evaluate

proposal impacts based on Co2e per capita in
For architects and urban designers working on
the resulting urban design schemes. Quantifi-
sustainable urban projects and aiming to cation of systemic impacts alongside visual-
integrate UN SDG frameworks, a broader set izations of resulting building and urban
of methods and practices is required than
configurations, engineering components, and
those that have traditionally been part of the public space design are presented. Lessons
discipline. To apprehend and evaluate sus- from Detroit offer portable strategies for other
tainable development project goals and
post-industrial cities and urban centers where
impacts, a collaborative and systems-oriented issues of equity and access to food systems are
design approach is required to situate design pressurized.
within its broader complex of networks and
processes and to expand project priorities and Keywords
interventions to operate in multiscalar and
integrated ways. This paper describes a

Sustainable urban design FEW nexus SDG

framework that evaluates the Food Energy


integration Systems-oriented design Detroit
Water (FEW) Nexus across scales from
Region (Great Lakes Megaregion), to State
(Michigan), to the City of Detroit to illuminate
issues of equity and access across FEW 1 Introduction
domains while aiming to leverage circular
systems towards more just and sustainable The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
urban futures. Working with stakeholders in aim to address complex and interconnected
Detroit, the project illustrates a design-based problems, which require integrated and system-
methodology and strategies to enhance circu- based and cross-sectional approaches for archi-
tects and urban designers. As recognized by the
United Nations Development Programme
G. Thun
K. Velikov (&) (UNDP), challenges to sustainable development
Taubman College of Architecture and Urban “cannot be dealt with in isolation” and solutions
Planning, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA “must be integrated” (UNDP SDG Integration
e-mail: kvelikov@[Link]
2022). Toward this “nexus approach,” frame-
T. Sanyal works such as the Food Energy Water (FEW)
School of Architecture, University of Virginia,
Nexus, have the capacity to integrate across silos
Charlottesville, USA

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 647
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
648 G. Thun et al.

of both research and implementation, and most part underserved by physical and social
simultaneously address multiple SDGs (Liu et al. infrastructures, the product of an ongoing history
2018). It has also been argued that the FEW- of racial segregation and tensions (Thomas and
Nexus could also strengthen synergies across Bekkering 2015). The contemporary develop-
SDGs (Ibid). However, FEW-Nexus approaches ment context is limited in part by the capital
need to expand from privileging environmental demands of environmental site remediation, par-
science and engineering principles that look to cel assemblage, and the spatial sprawl of Detroit’s
optimize stocks and flows across food, water, and urban fabric, coupled with its current levels of
energy systems and leverage efficiency and cir- vacancy that together produce a context where
cularity, toward “design-led” approaches that can service provision in untenable, and for decades
address multiple stakeholders in broad and inte- underdelivered (Surgrue 2005). This has con-
grated ways (Roggema et al. 2021). Design-led tributed to a concentration of conditions referred
approaches, where architectural and urban design to as ‘food deserts’ and ‘food swamps’, which
thinking plays a central role, are more able to define a lack of access to healthy food options
balance and consider synergies and trade-offs (Pothukuchi 2011, 2015; Detroit Food Policy
across needs of social sustainability, equity, and Council 2016). Documentation of the linkages
community in relation to socio-technical system between these contexts and chronic health dis-
optimization. parities are extensive (Budzynska et al. 2013).
This project paper describes a design-led Yet this context has produced one of the most
approach developed by the University of Michi- uniquely cultural entrepreneurial environments in
gan team for the city of Detroit within the context the nation with respect to the ways in which
of a global multi-institutional project. The work grassroots organizations and community activists
was funded by The Sustainable Urbanisation related to social justice and food security have
Global Initiative (SUGI)/Food-Water-Energy begun to mobilize to rebuild the city towards
Nexus and focused on six cities/bioregions more just futures with specific focus on the pro-
around the world: Amsterdam, Belfast, Detroit, duction of local food in residential and mixed-use
Doha, Sydney, and Tokyo. The research and contexts (Allnutt 2019; Detroit Food Policy
design framework developed by the authors’ team Council 2017; Hoey and Sponseller 2018).
evaluates the FEW Nexus across scales to illu-
minate issues of equity and access across domains
while aiming to leverage circular systems towards 2 Methods
the design of more just and sustainable urban
futures in alignment with the SDG’s. Through this project we have developed a
Detroit is a city that has been a central actor in transferrable framework and workflow for
the history of American industrialization, race designers and architects to work with other
relations, and economic decline. It is a case study stakeholders in support of sustainable develop-
in shrinking post-industrial cities, and most ment and evaluation of FEW Nexus-based urban
recently, in regeneration and resizing of a post- design proposals (Fig. 1). This process includes
industrial legacy city. Several broader patterns (i) documentation and visualization of existing
exist today within which the FEW Nexus relative FEW system analysis and spatialization at the
to future sustainable urban development is con- regional, city and neighbourhood scale, (ii) iden-
sidered. These include spatial fragmentation due tification of specific local issues and contexts
to industrial infrastructure and patterns of esca- (cultural, social environmental, infrastructural,
lating vacancy amplified by forces that include policy, and systemic) that shape the deployment
systematic redlining, disinvestment, failure of of FEW principles in the urban development, and
service provision, poverty, and corruption (Dewar (iii) development of urban design prototypes that
and Thomas 2012; Detroit Future City 2017). integrate these priorities into engineered com-
Detroit’s highly distributed population is for the ponents and design, and (iv) quantification of the
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 649

Fig. 1 Design research

process framework and
workflow to integrate FEW-
nexus principles into specific
local urban design proposals
aimed to lower CO2 emissions
per capita

environmental impacts of the design proposals’ 2.1 Multiscalar FEW System Mapping
carbon dioxide emissions using the FEWprint
tool developed with our collaborators from TU Multiscalar mapping engages cross-scalar think-
Delft (Ten Caat et al. 2022). In addition to the ing in imagining FEW futures for designers by
FEWprint tool our team has also developed describing the nature of FEW systems as they
several processes and tools to assist design teams manifest across cascading scales in a specific
in identifying priorities responding to local con- geography. We unpack the contextual narratives
texts to address FEW systems in the development of FEW systems and their interactions across
of urban design proposals: three scales provisionally defined through
ecosystems scale (regional), jurisdictional scale
(i) Multiscalar Mapping techniques for visu- (state), and operational scale (city). Recognizing
alization of FEW systems contexts the global nature and extents of supply chains
(ii) FEW Material Flows and Interactions and extraterritorial urban impacts these tech-
Visualizations niques reflect the unique locational contexts
(iii) FEW Actor-Network Mapping Process (social, cultural, environmental, infrastructural,
and application to online tools climatic, economic) of specific urban locations.
(iv) MultiModal Access Mapping Tools for A detailed description of the multiscalar mapping
application to issues of food access and process and related insights has been published
site identification in (Thün et al. 2021).
(v) FEW Design Toolkit and stakeholder Each scale of consideration brings into view
engagement processes. alternating narratives and priorities for
650 G. Thun et al.

apprehending FEW systems locally. We consider dominance reveals high differentiation in policies
here the ecosystems networks defined by the and law regarding systemic governance relative
Great Lakes Megaregion, spanning the U.S.- to neighboring states and provinces producing
Canada border in North America (Thün and often highly constrained contexts for its cities
Velikov 2017; Thün et al. 2015). Each cartog- and municipalities. The cartographies describe
raphy depicts the broader urban, environmental, the interconnected food, energy, water, and waste
commercial, and energy resource contexts that contexts beyond the city (Fig. 3).
undergird Detroit’s broader regional systems and At the scale of Detroit, we see the operational
network connections. In this territory, where a legacies of its shaped industrial and cultural
resource-based viewpoint would identify sub- histories, contexts of racial and economic
stantial energy and water resources with exten- inequality and the legacies of a post-industrial
sive and highly developed food systems, the U.S. city. Each context points to different opportuni-
city of Detroit is positioned as a border city ties and constraints for developing FEW-nexus
central to exchange and material flows (Fig. 2). based urban interventions in Detroit. (Fig. 4)
At the scale of the State of Michigan, the Insights from this analysis inform priorities for
realities of state rights and jurisdictional urban design proposals (see Fig. 1).

Fig. 2 Thematically differentiated ‘Sheds’ of the Great Lakes Megaregion: (from Top Left) The Agrished, the
PowerShed, the potentialshed and the enviroshed
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 651

Fig. 3 Thematically differentiated Cartographies of Michigan: (from Top Left) Agro-food system, energy networks,
liquid crises waste and recycling systems

2.2 FEW Material Flows power. This research identifies three distinct
and Interactions: policy-based areas of concern that shape design
Visualizations in the Detroit considerations to reduce the environmental
Context impacts of FEW systems and strengthen resource
efficiency including (i) “optimizing dietary habits
Concurrent with the mappings, the sustainability of households to improve phosphorus use effi-
systems experts on our team undertook a “ma- ciency”; (ii) “improving effluent-disposal stan-
terial and energy flow analysis (MEFA)” to dards…, promoting adequate fertilization, and
quantify the stocks and flows within the FEW enhancing the maintenance of wastewater col-
systems of the Detroit Metropolitan Area (Liang lection pipelines” to regulate nitrogen emission
et al. 2019). The method calculates flows using levels; (iii) “improving water use efficiency of
nitrogen, phosphorus, energy, and water as cur- thermoelectric power plants” to reduce water
rencies for measurement. This research points withdrawal (Ibid).
out that a standard household and its associated
services are the main drivers of the FEW Nexus;
there is a high per capita intake of phosphorus 2.3 FEW Actor-Network Mapping
and output of nitrogen into the water bodies, and
the electricity sector is the largest consumer of Complimenting the multiscalar mapping and
water especially to generate thermoelectric material energy flow and analysis, actor-network
652 G. Thun et al.

Fig. 4 Thematically differentiated cartographies of Detroit: (from Top Left). Industrial legacies, vacancy, food access,
excess food estimates, energy generation, water supply and discharge

mapping further illuminates the FEW context in national, regional and local programs, initiatives,
urban areas. The Actor-Network map is a tech- policies, funding, and stakeholders within the
nique utilized to define relationships between system and assists in identifying points of inter-
different entities (actors), networked relationships vention. These groups, financing sources, laws
and interrelationships within the FEW nexus and policies assist in identifying sources of sup-
within a given urban context. Developed in the port and stakeholders for engagement to be
web-based relationship mapping tool KUMU leveraged in project design development and
([Link] the mapping identifies delivery.
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 653

Fig. 5 FEW actor-network visualizations for detroit food networks

FEW Actor-Network mapping reveals key businesses and urban-agricultural practices,

actors in both the policy and implementation nonprofits, and corporate entities through urban
space while exposing gaps within the network design and planning initiatives such as curbside
that assist in identifying spaces of design inter- design strategies, organic waste centers within
vention (Fig. 5). Considering food access as a cities, and developing training and research
priority in Detroit, we see organic growth of food centers to innovate methods of generating cir-
production and distribution network that caters to cular products following cradle to cradle
the residents in the city. Focusing on specific principles.
instances within the actor-network reveals a
series of socio-political influences especially
with respect to grassroots initiatives working 2.4 FEW Design Toolkit
towards food justice in Detroit. and Techniques for Design
While the Actor-Network describes existing Engagement
networks, it can also point to initiatives and
entities in need of greater connectivity to increase There is a history of urban designers working on
impact. For instance, a crucial aspect of the FEW complex and systemic questions to develop
Nexus is determining ways of achieving circu- game-based tools (computational and analog) for
larity, thus limiting the use of virgin materials, analysis and stakeholder engagement and to
diverting waste from landfills, and reducing enable shared visualization and design iteration
environmental pollution. In Detroit, few organi- and co-creation (Brković Dodig and Groat 2019).
zations are working in smaller networks to Our project has developed the (i) Urban Access
manage and repurpose waste. Here, the Actor- Mapping Tool, (ii) a set of FEW Instrument
Network reveals an opportunity for synergetic Cards, and a (iii) participatory mapping process
development between policymakers, small- model for community design engagement.
654 G. Thun et al.

Fig. 6 Urban access mapping tool Detroit: overlays of current development projects proposed by the DPDD,
residential ‘inaccess hotspots’, food access metrics, and access enabling actors in focus area

The Urban Access Mapping Tool (Figs. 6 design proposals through multistakeholder
and 7) aggregates data across a range of urban engagement (Fig. 8). The cards depict specific
accessibility metrics (Food, Health, Learning and system components, their relative costs, perfor-
Mobility) as essential urban rights that should mance, configurations, spatial requirements,
form a central dimension of any new urban operational logics and systemic impacts. Cards
design proposal aiming to address social justice are thematically organized across themes of
and principles of equitable development (Inde- Access: Food, Health, Learning, Mobility, and
pendent Group of Scientists 2019; Detroit Future FEW systems: Food production, Energy savings
City 2017; EPA 2020). The tool is built on the and generation, and Water processing, storage,
GoogleMap API and aggregates metrics by retention and Waste circularities, reduction, and
census tract from a range of US Governmental processes. The Instrument Cards are at once a
data sources that can be accessed through a set of digital artifact recording the data gathered as part
pull-down menus. Information regarding for of systems research undertaken within the project
profit, non-profit and NGO agencies working to and a physical design assist tool. The cards
deliver access across these thematic areas, as facilitate groups working on the proposed urban
access enabling actors, are also spatialized within design projects to discuss, assess and debate and
the tool (Thün and Velikov 2020). The team has co-design project components and technologies
prioritized issues of food access and advance- within moments of project development and
ment of urban agriculture and circular food pro- group meetings across a diverse range of con-
duction and waste systems within project site sultants and stakeholders within interdisciplinary
determination. and public contexts.
While the priority of the mapping tool is to As a means to prototype stakeholder engage-
provide rapid visually comprehensible access to ment for FEW-based urban design proposals we
urban statistics, data, and their existing spatial- undertook participatory mapping workshops that
ization in the city, FEW Instrument Cards focus utilize both the Urban Access Mapping Tool and
on defining the programs, technologies, and the FEW Instrument Cards in an iterative design
products that can be incorporated into urban exercise (Fig. 9). Teams utilized the mapping
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 655

Fig. 7 Urban access mapping tool: 2015 USDA food of perceived high quality food retailers; details of a
environment Atlas data for food accessibility by census particular food actor
tract; food actors, service areas within a 5 or 10 min walk

Fig. 8 FEW instrument cards

656 G. Thun et al.

Fig. 9 Mapping process and

stakeholder engagement
workshops

tool to explore, assess and understand site related production of an innovative locally produced
access issues. New insights and ‘user identified’ food enterprise that creates job opportunities
sources of data are manually added to the map- for Detroit’s residents returning to the work
ping tool to enhance the limitations of official force (Recovery Park 2019).
datasets (Thün and Velikov 2020). • Detroit Planning and Development
Department (DPDD) has been rethinking
models of development in the city, including
3 Results and Discussion innovative zoning, establishment of the
Detroit Land Bank Authority (2019) as a
3.1 Detroit as a Living Lab: Local powerful tool that enables the city to be
Stakeholders proactive in defining how development
occurs, and careful community engagement
In parallel with the multiscalar mapping and processes to enable development while limit-
analysis process, we engaged with Detroit-based ing gentrification. The team engaged with staff
community partners to understand how their in discussions to identify strategic neighbor-
respective efforts within current developments in hoods in which to develop the FEW Nexus
Detroit might serve as local test beds for urban urban design prototypes.
design engaging the FEW Nexus. Each of these
partners constitutes an important actor within the
city that is working to advance dimensions of
equitable development and socially engaged 3.2 Design Proposal Development,
change in Detroit. Evaluation,
and Implementation of FEW
• Oakland Avenue Urban Farm (OAUF) Principles
identifies as the “nation’s first “Agri-Cultural”
urban landscape” and works toward produc- Four sites were selected that embodied project
ing “healthy foods, sustainable economies, priorities: Oakland Avenue Urban Farm,
and an active cultural environment” (Oakland RecoveryPark, Eastern Market, and the River-
Avenue Urban Farm 2020). OAUF’s mission bend neighborhood, the first two of which are
is to support sustainable cultural and ecolog- elaborated on in this paper (Fig. 10). For each
ical systems in the community to catalyze site, the team developed a speculative design
equitable redevelopment. proposal for urban form, density, and mixed-use
• RecoveryPark, a non-profit organization that infill addressing existing social models, urban
aims to “leverage the city’s underutilized farming, and secondary and tertiary food pro-
assets: a large available workforce, abundant cessing, through feedback with FEWprint tool
open space, access to fresh water, extensive analysis.
infrastructure and a wide array of manufac- Key priorities advanced across the proposals
turing and technology companies” towards the can be summarized as:
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 657

Fig. 10 Detroit design sites and proposal development distribution

• Leveraging Vacancy and Sustainable Site Sustainable Systems 2020). Anticipating a

Planning Practices. Given the role of DLBA, transition toward more healthy eating prac-
a primary assumption is that aggressive FEW tices, we assume the current U.S. national diet
system planning guidelines can be introduced to describe the existing condition and project a
at each site. These principles also align with transition toward a “universal healthy refer-
and advance core goals and actions in the ence diet” developed by the EAT-Lancet
Detroit Sustainability Action Agenda (City of Commission (Willett et al. 2019).
Detroit 2019). • Domestic Energy Demand and CO2 Emis-
• Equitable Food Access. Each scheme sions Reduction. Heating and Cooling in
addresses questions of access to healthy food residential buildings are estimated to account
through measures that include local produc- for 44% of energy consumption in U.S. homes
tion to provide a portion of the diet of resi- in 2020 (US EPA 2020). Residential elec-
dents. In addition, commercial programs are tricity use in 2018 emitted 666.5 mmt CO2e,
included to offer a location where healthy 10% of the U.S. total (US EPA 2020). All
food can be purchased, community or com- new residential buildings in the proposed
mercial kitchens to enable upcycling of food scenarios have been designed to meet Passive
products and food entrepreneurship, and House standards (PHIUS+ 2018), with appli-
spaces for locally operated educational pro- ance and lighting performance targets
grams that encourage healthy food practices. aligned with targets based on LEED v 4.1
• Dietary Transformation. Food consumption (USGBC 2021).
accounts for 10–30% of a household’s carbon • Renewable Energy. Each proposed scenario
footprint and can typically be a higher portion incorporates onsite renewable energy pro-
in lower-income households (Center for duction with targets to offset the energy
658 G. Thun et al.

demands associated with site-wide food pro- of per capita and total CO2e of the existing site
duction, and where there is possible, offset condition (2021), and for the proposed develop-
energy demand for residential buildings. ment scheme (2030).
• Water Conservation and Diversion. Water
conserving appliances that meet targets out-
lined in the LEED v4.1 standard are utilized 3.3 Oakland Avenue Urban Farm
for all new proposed residential buildings. Proposal
Rainwater recovery for use in on site irriga-
tion systems and other water demands are Oakland Avenue Urban Farm Context: OAUF
coupled with on-site stormwater retention and represents an emerging model where community-
bioswales to minimize projected stormwater led activism and land assembly strategies have
to district CSOs. The proposed scenario also produced a centrally located public space cou-
accounts for 4% increase in precipitation pled with food production, education, and cul-
due to climate change in the Great Lakes tural programs (Fig. 11) (Oakland Avenue
(ELPC 2019). Urban Farm 2020). As such it is a compelling
• Food Waste Utilization. Organic waste, pri- precedent for exploring urban design and devel-
marily food and animal waste associated with opment that could be represented in other pre-
each proposal is utilized for biodigestion cincts within the city.
(scaled according to proposed scenario) with
OAUF Design: This urban design scenario
biogas generation supplementing energy
builds on the masterplan developed by Akoaki
demand and residual digestate utilized for soil
([Link] and develops a set of
production and upcycling. An increase in
strategies for producing new single-family
domestic recycling fraction from 15 to 30%
detached homes and townhouses that densifies
is assumed, based on Michigan target
development surrounding the ‘farm’ as a form of
(MDEQ 2017).
open cultural park focused on sustainable food
• Mobility CO2 Demand Reduction. Cars and
and cultural production and a community-
light trucks emitted 1.1 billion metric tons
managed argi/cultural public space (Fig. 12).
CO2e or 17% of the total U.S. GHG emissions
This prototype is aimed for potential replication
in 2018 (US EPA 2020). Current patterns of
around similar high-vacancy contexts anchored
mobility via car ownership, vehicular miles
by local community non-profit organizations as a
traveled, and fuel used are offset through
new model of ‘platting plan’ within Detroit’s
neighborhood electric roundtrip car sharing
former residential areas and focusses on incre-
programs, multimodal transit hubs, and
mental infill of vacant lands coupled with mixed
reduced parking accommodation within each
use reinforcement of existing arteries. The pre-
site plan area.
cinct incorporates innovations in water resource
management, micro-livestock rearing facilities,
Evaluation of each scheme is undertaken
and renewable distributed energy generation.
through the FEWprint tool (8.5 v). The tool
New housing typologies are incorporated for
developed by TU Delft aims to account for the
indoor and outdoor growing and low-cost high-
per capita CO2e of a mixed-use development,
performance building envelope systems. Within
and models future proposals based on a priority
the site boundary, the existing population is
of meeting the food demands for a given neigh-
estimated at 427, with an average household size
borhood through local production (Ten Cat et al.
of 2.2. The projected population residing within
2022). While not all schemes developed have the
the site is envisioned to be 2,676, with an aver-
capacity to meet this requirement, each is eval-
age household size of 3.3.
uated through the tool to produce a comparison
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 659

Fig. 11 Site Analysis:

Oakland Avenue Urban
Farm. (from Top Left)
Walkability and mobility,
land tenure. Environmental
analysis, surface analysis
(Permeable/Impermeable),
and Site Programing

Fig. 12 Design proposal:

Oakland Avenue urban farm
urban design massing
660 G. Thun et al.

The total area for the design development is of chicken production. The commercial corridors
36.7 ha. The project includes a series of new along Oakland Avenue and Owen streets contain
housing developments including single detached retail space accounting for 3626 m2. The project
homes, townhouses, apartments, and mixed-use proposes 225 round-trip carshare parking spots
housing accounting for 86,937 m2. The new as an attempt to reduce the need for personal
housing is designed to passive house standards. vehicle ownership within the site boundary
The neighborhood also includes existing single (Fig. 13).
detached homes amounting to 20,370 m2 which
OAUF Discussion: FEW Systems Overview:
remain unaltered in the design proposal. All new
FEWprint tool (v8.5) analysis indicates the pro-
residences have access to either backyard farm-
posed design can reduce the per capita carbon
ing or greenhouse cultivation. The greenhouse
emission from 10,975 (existing scenario) to
structures are attached to single family homes
2,975 kg/year. The total food produced in this
and on rooftops of apartments and mixed-use
neighborhood is 233 tonnes/year. The scheme
buildings. The total urban farming area of 68,938
fulfils 39% of vegetables, 38% of fruits, 31% of
m2 includes 56,966 m2 of open-field farming,
pulses and legumes, 32% of starchy roots, 4% of
11,919 m2 of greenhouse cultivation, and 54 m2

Fig. 13 Oakland Avenue Urban Farm: FEW urban design visualizations. (Clockwise from Top) streetscape infill,
urban agriculture as cultural space, OAUF social infrastructure
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 661

eggs, and 8% of nuts and seeds of the Lancet diet Hamilton Anderson Associates ([Link]
for residents within the project boundary. In [Link]/), to masterplan the
terms of local energy generation, the project expansion of its food production facility. The
includes (i) a small solar farm at the north of the master plan of 123 ha between Canfield and
site, and (ii) rooftop photovoltaic on new single Harper Street has been prepared to attract future
detached homes and townhouse typologies, investment and philanthropic support for its
generating 3,991 MWh/year of electricity. efforts which focus on community job creation
A small-scale floating drum anaerobic digester of within a FEW-nexus paradigm.
464.4 m2 with containers holding 87.56 m3 is
RecoveryPark Design: The team has modified
proposed. The anaerobic digester generates
the design proposal by Hamilton Anderson to
52,284 m3/year of biogas energy and 38
advance FEW-nexus considerations. The design
tonnes/year of digestate as a nutrient-rich fertil-
proposal includes the masterplan area and pro-
izer for urban farming. Through rooftop rain-
poses an additional residential zone and a solar
water collection, the project collects 25,181
farm on the former Detroit Incinerator facility,
m3/year of rainwater which is directed towards
increasing the area to 135 ha. This prototype
urban farming. The project envisions a change in
takes the form of a large-scale urban agriculture
the domestic recycling fraction from 15%
campus including housing for transitional agri-
(current MI standards) to 30% in the design
cultural workers in recovery. The core compo-
proposal. Further, 100% of organic domestic
nents of the design strategy include high-
waste is processed by the anaerobic digester
performance greenhouses, open field farming,
(Fig. 14).
rooftop rainwater collection systems, bioswales
connecting segments of existing blue-green
infrastructure, an autonomous geothermal sys-
3.4 RecoveryPark Proposal
tem to heat greenhouses, and solar power gen-
eration. Within the site boundary, the existing
RecoveryPark Context: RecoveryPark Farms is
population is estimated at 338, with an average
a for-profit urban farming initiative in Detroit
household size of 2.2. The projected population
that integrates technical farming systems with
for this design scheme is 2,209, with an average
large-scale greenhouse production (Fig. 15).
household size of 3.88. The project proposes 72
RecoveryPark Farms has commissioned

Fig. 14 FEW system diagram and FEWprint analysis: OAUF

662 G. Thun et al.

Fig. 15 Site analysis:

RecoveryPark. (from Top
Left) walkability and
mobility, situated actors, land
tenure, environmental
analysis, surface analysis
(Permeable/Impermeable),
and Site Programing

round-trip carshare parking spots as an attempt to Recovery Park Discussion: FEW Systems
eliminate personal vehicle ownership within the Overview: FEWprint tool (v 8.5) analysis indi-
site boundary. cates the proposed design can reduce the per
The project includes a series of housing types capita carbon emission from 53,947 (existing
designed to Passive House standards that are scenario) to 4,384 kg/year. The total food pro-
supportive of individual, collective, and familial duced in this neighborhood is 4,656 tonnes/year.
arrangements, accounting for 85,610 m2. The Food items produced within greenhouse or open-
new housing types include micro-unit housing, field farming are prioritized based on the market
single-family infill housing, and multi-unit value and productivity, with a focus on high
housing, in addition to high-performance reno- commercial value food items over meeting local
vations to the existing single-family detached diet demands. The site generates 46,252 MW of
homes on the site. The urban farming area geothermal energy, and 17,286 MW of electric-
accounts for 484,368 m2, comprising 190,405 m2 ity from photovoltaics on roofs of newly con-
of open field farming and 293,964 m2 of green- structed or renovated homes and by repurposing
house cultivation. The project also includes the Detroit municipal incinerator. 160,820 m3 of
commercial programs comprised of a 3,136 m2 rainwater is collected from rooftops and is uti-
salvage center, 7,888 m2 administration campus, lized for irrigation and residential purposes.
4,607 m2 of market space, 6,410 m2 of process- Water amounting to 188,962 m3/year is diverted
ing facilities, 2,857 m2 equestrian facilities, and from streets into bioswales and constructed
2,880 m2 of community education programming wetlands. 100% of the stormwater runoff is
(Figs. 16 and 17). diverted from the central wastewater treatment
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 663

Fig. 16 Design proposal: RecoveryPark

Fig. 17 RecoveryPark: FEW urban design visualizations. (Clockwise from top) Constructed Wetlands as Public Space,
multi-unit and accessory housing, Greenhouse Urbanism
664 G. Thun et al.

Fig. 18 FEW System diagram and FEWprint analysis: RecoveryPark

plant. 100% of organic domestic waste is pro- teams that is necessary for the task of working on
cessed by the anaerobic digester. An anaerobic sustainable development and urban design today.
digester on a campus of 580 m2 utilizing con- This paper outlines a collaborative design
tainers holding 71.9 m3 is proposed to generate process that centers how FEW systems-based
42,880 m3/year of biogas energy and 32 urban design benefits from a design led process
tonnes/year of digestate as fertilizer for urban that includes a multi-perspectival lens, stake-
farming (Fig. 18). holder engagement, and specific computational
and tools that evaluate and integrate context
specific issues beyond those afforded by stock
4 Conclusion and flow analysis of current engineering-led
methods. Tools such as the FEW print evalua-
“As a result of these cybernetic, sub-theoretical tion framework offer models for ways in which
developments, many architects wanted to design design-led solutions can be quantified in terms of
systems but, on the whole, they were expected to CO2e outcomes to inform decision making and
design buildings…there is a sense in which the scenario evaluation. Key strategic considerations
brief given to an architect has widened during the such as the challenges of food access and policy-
last decades,” wrote Gordon Pask (Pask 1969). based limitations of urban composting within the
Architectural designers, whose training has tra- case of Detroit point to ways in which urban
ditionally focused on the design and crafting of design efforts can center and surface policy
physical objects and spaces, even today have few questions in the development of FEW-Nexus
shared toolsets and frames of reference with based schema using design scenario possibilities.
which to approach design within entangled and Through the methods and approach outlined in
multiscalar situations such as the UN SDGs this paper, the authors are hopeful that a broader
implicate, not to mention the need for data-driven community of designers may engage with
impact assessment that informs design. And yet, aspects of FEW Nexus urban design strategies to
it is precisely the architectural designer’s abil- explore the ways in which SDGs might be
ity to think iteratively, systemically, and to leveraged to shape local change through a
shape and structure complex and competing systems-based approach to equitable design
entities into synthetic propositions with larger transformation in post-industrial city contexts.
Sustainable (Re)Development in Post Industrial City Regions … 665

Acknowledgements Project: Moveable Nexus (M- Detroit Future City (2017) 139 square miles (20–71).
Nex): Design-Led Urban Food, Water And Energy Island Press, Detroit, MI
Management Innovation In New Boundary Conditions Of Dewar M, Thomas JM (eds) (2012) The city after
Change. abandonment. University of Pennsylvania Press,
International Institutional Partners and PIs: Philadelphia, PA
University of Michigan (U-M): Geoffrey Thün, Delft DLBA (2019) Policies & procedures. [Link]
University of Technology (DUT): Prof. Andy van den [Link]/our-policies/. Accessed 31 Jan 2020
Dobbelsteen, KEIO University (KU): Prof. Wanglin Yan, EPA (2020) Smart growth and equitable development.
Queens University Belfast (QUB): Prof. Greg Keeffe, [Link]
Qatar University (QU): Prof. Sami Sayady. equitable-development#others. Accessed 29 Apr 2019
U-M/RVTR Design Research Team: Kathy Velikov Hoey L, Sponseller A (2018) “It’s hard to be strategic
(CoPI), Tithi Sanyal (Research Associate), Ife Owolabi, when your hair is on fire”: alternative food movement
Linda Lee, Lucas Denit, Andrew Kremers, Jiushuai leaders’ motivation and capacity to act. Agric Hum
Zhang Dan McTavish, Mary O’Malley. Values 35(3):595–609
Funding: M-Nex is a granted project of the collabo- Independent Group of Scientists appointed by the
rative research area Belmont Forum (1314551). We Secretary-General (2019) Global Sustainable Devel-
appreciate and acknowledge the financial support of the opment Report 2019: the future is now—Science for
U.S. National Science Foundation (1832214) and achieving sustainable development. United Nations,
the University of Michigan. Any opinions, findings, and New York, NY. [Link]
conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of org/globalsdreport/2019. Accessed 27 Apr 2020
the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Liang S, Qu S, Zhao Q, Zhang X, Diagger G, Newell J,
sponsoring agencies. Miller S, Johnson J, Love N, Zhang L, Yang Z, Xu M
(2019) Quantifying the urban food-energy-water
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 Can Digital Matchmaking Boost
Circular Construction? Lessons
from Reusing the Glass of Centre
Pompidou

Catherine De Wolf, Sultan Cetin,

and Nancy Bocken

Abstract artificial intelligence and digital information

sharing to match materials for reuse with
Digitalization is driving innovation towards a
people who can reuse them is exactly what the
circular economy in various industries—but construction industry needs for a paradigm
the construction industry is lagging behind. shift towards circularity.
The building industry, a growth sector due to
increasing urbanization, is at the same time Keywords
actively depleting our resources, generating
waste, and emitting greenhouse gases at a

Reuse Centre Pompidou Circular

tremendous scale and speed. This chapter

construction Digital matchmaking
argues that we must urgently shift from a
linear take–make–waste model to a circular
one whereby we utilize our resources wisely
and keep them from becoming waste. The 1 Introduction
experience of reusing the glass from the
Centre Pompidou in Paris, France, confronted It is evident that the building industry is a growth
the architects with the many challenges we sector due to increasing urbanization and yet, at
face when renovating a building with circular the same time, one that is actively depleting our
principles. Finding architects to use the iconic resources, generating waste, and emitting green-
bent glass instead of crushing it for recycling house gases at a tremendous scale and speed.
(or worse, for disposing it in a landfill) turned This essay argues that we1 must urgently shift
out to be a time-consuming task. Adopting from a linear take–make–waste model to a cir-
cular one whereby we rethink our resources
wisely and keep them from becoming waste.
Adopting digital innovation is exactly what the
C. De Wolf (&)
ETH Zurich, Department of Civil, Environmental construction industry needs in order to achieve
and Geomatic Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland this shift (World Economic Forum 2022). This
e-mail: cdewolf@[Link] also responds to Sustainable Development
S. Cetin Goals such as ‘Industry, innovation and infras-
TU Delft, Faculty of Architecture and the Built tructure’, ‘Sustainable cities and communities’,
Environment, Delft, Netherlands
N. Bocken
Maastricht University, Maastricht Sustainability
1
By “we,” I am referring to key actors of the construction
Institute (MSI), Maastricht, Netherlands sector: designers, architects, engineers, contractors, etc.

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 667
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
668 C. De Wolf et al.

‘Responsible consumption and production’, and Digital technologies can help us disassemble
‘Climate action’. and reuse much quicker, cheaper, and smarter
Today, we construct buildings using “linear than before. What if we used Building Informa-
economy” principles: we extract resources from tion Modeling (BIM), to store information about
the earth, produce construction materials, use materials available for reuse? What if we used
them, and then dispose of them when we no artificial intelligence (AI) to match people
longer need them. In the process, we deplete wanting to design with reused building materials
global resources such as sand (United Nations with people who have materials from demolition
Environment Programme 2019). What’s more, sites? How about we apply algorithms to find the
we produce a huge amount of waste: in 2018 and right match between supply and demand? If we
in the United States alone, we generated 600 had better management tools, we could use
million tons of construction and demolition buildings instead of the earth as a mine: the
waste (United States Environmental Protection buildings would become depots and banks of
Agency 2016). We also intensify the climate materials.
crisis: the building sector accounts for around The construction industry has been slow in
38% of our global greenhouse gas (GHG) emis- adopting digital innovation, even though it is
sions (United Nations Environment Programme everywhere and growing: blockchain technology
2020). Of course, we know this results in a loss is now used by over 20% of traditional banks
of value and resources, but we clearly haven’t (Graffeo 2021), the Internet of Things is shaping
sufficiently considered how to fix this costly smart cities in the making, and AI can be found
problem. And it is getting worse. By 2060, we everywhere from online marketplaces like
expect to add 2.4 trillion ft2 (230 billion m2) of Amazon to matchmaking platforms like Tinder.
floor area due to the growing population, Though designers in these fields are taking con-
urbanization, and higher demands—this is siderable steps forward, the construction industry
equivalent to constructing one New York City has not explored these technologies enough to
every month for 40 years (Architecture 2030). solve its biggest current challenge: transitioning
The question is, how do we break the pattern of the built environment to a circular economy. The
resource depletion, waste generation, and pollu- Excess Materials Exchange (EME) platform is an
tion in the construction sector? example of a digital marketplace that uses
A shift to a “circular economy” model resource passports so companies can exchange
would yield maximum value from building excess materials with each other (Excess Mate-
materials by extending their service life through rials Exchange 2022). This concept of digital
maintenance and repair and reusing them as new matchmaking, plus exploring technologies such
resources when they reach the end of their life. as AI and blockchain, needs to be extrapolated to
Yet, while pioneering circular projects have been the building industry.
promising, a static industry with little cross- The construction sector could use emerging
sector communication impedes the practical digital technologies to make this transition hap-
implementation of circular construction on a pen. In academia and practice, new digital tools
large scale (Nußholz et al. 2020). This was not are being developed or used to manage circular
always the case: reuse was common until about a construction. Take the Centre Pompidou2 in
century ago, when, due to the high price of land Paris, France, for example (Fig. 1). The archi-
in dense urban areas like Manhattan, we began tects faced many challenges when renovating the
demolishing buildings rather than disassembling structure’s façade with circular principles. They
them. Because of the time required to carefully needed to replace the bent glass due to changing
disassemble buildings and reuse their materi-
als, we have moved away from the circular 2
The author’s own experience is described in the
construction model. But it doesn’t have to be documentary Samsara (Circular Engineering for Archi-
that way. tecture and DiCE 2021).
Can Digital Matchmaking Boost Circular Construction? Lessons from Reusing … 669

Fig. 1 Renovation of façade and reuse of its glass from the centre Pompidou by maximum, Paris, France. ©Alexandre
Attias and maximum architecture

security norms. The value chain in today’s con- closing, slowing, and regenerating resource loops
struction industry does not make it easy to reuse (Bocken et al. 2021). Narrowing the loop uses
this glass. Often, it gets thrown away or, in the fewer resources per product, e.g., through struc-
best-case scenario, recycled. Surely, there must tural optimization, so that fewer materials are
be architects who dream of reusing such iconic needed. An example is the Guastavino vaulting
bent glass instead of crushing it for recycling or, system found in hundreds of buildings across the
worse, disposing it in a landfill. United States, which uses a uniquely thin layer of
Spoiler: the architects were able to save the tiles (Ochsendorf 2010). Slowing the loop is
glass (as you can see on the right side of Fig. 1), about using buildings for longer, e.g., through
but not without time, passion, and dogged per- adaptive reuse of building spaces. An example is
sistence. Could digital technologies have helped Apple’s reuse of a historic theatre building in Los
these architects navigate this process more Angeles, United States (Foster + Partners 2021).
easily? This essay argues that we need digital Closing the loop ensures that materials are used
innovation to match materials with users to make again, e.g., through reusing materials after
circular construction possible. demolition. An example is the reuse of window
frames from all EU nations in Samyn and Part-
ners’ European Council building in Brussels,
2 Transitioning to Circular Belgium (Samyn and Partners 2016). Regener-
Construction ating improves natural ecosystems in which
materials exist, e.g., through green facades that
Narrow, slow, close, regenerate. Let us start help purify the air. An example is the Torre de
with the basics. What is a “circular economy”? It Especialidades in Mexico City, Mexico, built
is a system that supports sustainable develop- with Made of Air technology sucking up air
ment to secure the resources to provide for cur- pollution (Made of Air 2022). Most of these
rent and future generations. This is achieved by strategies have been applied only in niche pro-
applying four distinct strategies: narrowing, jects, but a collaboration, information sharing,
670 C. De Wolf et al.

and automation would enable building designers as possible in order to connect with potential
to take a more holistic, circular approach. In this end users. Today’s matchmaking methods are
essay, the case of Centre Pompidou’s renovation manual and very time-consuming. For example,
shows how we can ‘close’ the loop by reusing pioneering reuse practitioners in Switzerland such
the bent glass in Maximum Architecture’s new as Baubüro In Situ hire ‘material hunters’ who go
project (Fig. 1), but we could also note how its around the country looking for poles indicating
structure already ‘narrows’ the loop by optimiz- demolition sites3 and then contact the building
ing water-filled (for avoiding fire-protection) owners (De Wolf et al. 2020). There is not yet a
steel columns, how its renovation ‘slows’ the feasible circular matchmaking strategy that can be
loop by keeping the building in use longer, and broadly applied in construction practice, but
how its presence ‘regenerates’ the neighbour- digital technology could improve efficiency of the
hood from a social perspective by hosting process.
culture.
Monitor, Manage, Match. If we would like
to automate circular construction, or automate 3 Use Digital Technologies
the reuse of the bent glass from the Centre for More Efficient Matchmaking
Pompidou, we need to: (a) collect and monitor
data—we need to know what the materials in our Digital technologies could have better stream-
buildings are, what resources we use, and their lined the reuse of the glass from the Centre
condition; (b) manage data—we need to know Pompidou, especially for digital matchmaking,
when these materials and resources become digital tracking, and creating online connections.
available and where we can store and distribute Numerous digital technologies already exist that
them; and (c) find the right match between could support those endeavours. Learning from
supply and demand—we need to know who has this reuse experience, laboratories4 have been
materials to offer and who wants to turn them created to explore how digital innovation can
into resources. These monitoring, managing, and foster a circular economy.
matching strategies are already being applied at We need to connect the end-of-life of build-
the scale of an individual building in the Swiss ings with the start-of-life of other buildings
Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and making the reuse of building materials more
Technology’s (EMPA) experimental NEST effective, user-friendly, and widespread. Existing
building, for example. This building is a full- platforms list materials available for reuse, but in
scale experiment, showing the latest innovation practice, the major challenge is finding the right
in Swiss research and industry. Two particular match. Companies struggle to find architects who
NEST units demonstrate how circular strategies design with reused materials, construction sites
can be managed in construction: in the Urban in which the materials fit, contractors with the
Mining & Recycling (UMAR) unit, all resources skills needed to reuse them, and so on. To solve
are reusable, recyclable, or compostable; and in this, we need to create a ‘Tinder’ for materials,
the Sprint unit, Covid-19 flexible offices were buildings, and people. Utilizing digital tools
designed with largely reused materials (Swiss that have proven their feasibility and effective-
Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and ness in other sectors, we need to develop algo-
Technology (EMPA) and Swiss Federal Institute rithms adapted to the construction sector to tackle
of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) the challenge of matching supply and demand,
2018, 2021).
3
Today, the work of predicting recoverable In Switzerland, construction sites must be staked out
with poles to show how high a new construction will
materials is performed by a limited pool of
become.
experts who measure and collate data manually. 4
Examples are the Circular Engineering for Architecture
In this field, efficiency is key, so it is important to (CEA—[Link]) lab and the Digital Circular
understand the available components as quickly Economy (DiCE—[Link]) lab.
Can Digital Matchmaking Boost Circular Construction? Lessons from Reusing … 671

acting as ‘matchmakers’ for owners, users, incentives to record their data and store the
designers, suppliers, and workers across the passports of buildings, is an example of such an
entire value chain. initiative (Madaster 2022). Material passports
In the last several years, Industry 4.0, also can be connected to a digital twin, a virtual
known as the “fourth industrial revolution”, has replica of the physical world, which is already
triggered a paradigm shift, particularly in the commonly used in the automobile, aerospace,
manufacturing sector, and has emerged as a and process industries to simulate performance
promising technology framework used for inte- (Çetin et al. 2021). Such a connection can
grating and extending manufacturing processes at potentially extend the service life of building
both intra- and inter-organizational levels elements through predictive maintenance. Other
through the use of cyber-physical systems (Xu platforms, such as Material Mapper, provide
et al. 2018). Tracking devices even enable us to insight into all buildings about to be demolished,
use the Internet of Things (IoT) to gather, store, rebuilt, or newly built so that the type and
and transmit data on the condition and avail- quantity of materials available for reuse can be
ability of materials such as Centre Pompidou’s estimated (Material Mapper 2022). Many other
glass using cloud computing and wireless sensor platforms exist on the market, but we lack stan-
networks. The application of IoT in a circular dardization on how to map materials and globally
economy is dispersed across various fields, cov- measure circularity so that these platforms may
ering topics from smart cities (Larson 2022) to truly thrive.
sustainable product lifecycle management To help facilitate resource and waste opti-
(Ingemarsdotter et al. 2019). mization by matchmaking materials available for
If online platforms5 that list all the materials reuse with designs from reused materials, we can
locally available for reuse were well known by use AI, and in particular Machine Learning
all stakeholders in the supply chain, architects (ML), in combination with Big Data Analytics.
such as those at Centre Pompidou could list their ML trains algorithms to learn from data and
glass on such a platform. By connecting supply identify patterns for decision-making. More
and demand, digital sharing platforms and mar- specifically, deep learning, a subset of ML, is
ketplaces create circular markets, thus facilitating based on neural networks. While used regularly
communication and collaboration between value in other sectors, it has been recently applied to
chain actors. Ideally, we need access to digital building demolition records’ datasets (Akanbi
representations of a built asset, what we often et al. 2020). Though not a common use case in
call Building Information Modeling (BIM). the field of computer vision, which trains com-
However, the use of BIM is not as widespread as puters to interpret and understand the visual
the sector would have hoped today. Its use would world, some research has brought computer
help to create what we call a “material pass- vision methodology to the construction site too.
port” that includes information about the com- We can learn a lot from the many images that
ponents in a building such as material type and exist of the Centre Pompidou. For any building,
properties, dimensions and geometry, quantity, even things like simple Google Street View
condition, location, etc. A material passport with images, social media images, historical archives,
digitally registered data describing a compo- or national demolition records can enable us to
nent’s characteristics, location, history, and map and match materials generated from
ownership status would serve to facilitate the deconstruction and demolition projects (Struc-
sharing or selling of materials such as the glass tural Xploration Lab 2018). Algorithms can
from Centre Pompidou on a digital platform. The indeed identify patterns in the data for building
Madaster platform, which provides owners components’ end-of-life treatments in order to
make the right match (Raghu 2021). Companies
5
For example, [Link]/links/, [Link]. such as FaSA (Facade Service Applicatie 2022)
com/store/, or [Link]. and [Link] (Spotr 2022) use AI to predict the
672 C. De Wolf et al.

Fig. 2 QR code engraving in reused beams for tracking and tracing material passports for matchmaking. ©Anna Buser

need for façade maintenance. ZenRobotics uses where they are shipped to along the supply chain
AI to build smart sorting robots for recycling is also what TradeLens, powered by IBM, is
(ZenRobotics 2022). Geographical Information doing in the global trade and shipping industry
Systems (GIS) are often used as a data set to (TradeLens 2022). Circulor also enables the
identify, map, and manage resources in building traceability of supply chains through blockchain
stocks for future reuse or recycling. This system and tagging (Circulor 2022). Indeed, tagging
is also used to support urban mining in the built technologies such as Quick Response
environment. For example, GIS data of the city (QR) codes, Near-Field Communication (NFC),
of Zurich is currently being used to identify the and Radio Frequency Identification System
materials available in buildings (Raghu 2022). (RFID) chips enable this transparent material
Using AI techniques, scenario modelling tracking. In pilot projects that reuse building
regarding future demolitions can help predict materials, such as Buildings As Material Banks
which materials will become available for reuse. (BAMB) (2022) or the ETH Reuse Dome (Gor-
For a further level of detail, drone imagery can be don et al. 2022), QR codes are used to track and
used in combination with AI; this is what busi- trace materials through different building life
nesses such as AeroScan offer to assess the cycles (Fig. 2).
condition of building assets (Aeroscan 2022).
Another challenge in reusing materials such as
the glass from the Centre Pompidou is the 4 Collaborate and Be Critical
transaction itself. The construction industry’s
supply chain is highly fragmented, and designers Complexity & interdependencies. Buildings are
are reluctant to share information about their unique in the sense that they have a long lifespan,
projects. Researchers are exploring blockchain are composed of many parts (site, structure,
technology (Tapscott and Vargas 2019; Hun- façade, finishes, furniture), and use diverse
hevicz et al. 2020; Li and Kassem 2021), a resources (materials, land, energy, water, nutri-
secure distributed peer-to-peer system that ents). Consequently, many stakeholders are
enables transparent value transactions without involved, including architects, developers,
the need for central authorities and intermedi- designers, engineers, governments, occupants,
aries, as a way to trace materials. Securely clients, contractors, material suppliers, and
sharing data on where products have been and demolishers. As a result, the industry is
Can Digital Matchmaking Boost Circular Construction? Lessons from Reusing … 673

extremely compartmentalized. If it is going to we can’t use blockchain technology to facilitate

transition to a circular model, construction transactions of reused materials without thinking
designers need to collaborate with computer about the energy consumption of this Industry
scientists, lawmakers, engineers, business 4.0 technology.
developers, and others. Digital tools, such as As we have seen, digital technologies can help
BIM and IoT, could make it easier for designers transition from a linear to a circular model in the
to communicate, coordinate, fabricate, and visu- built environment. Due to rapid urbanization,
alize, but not in isolation. One digital technology powerful driving forces will be needed to gen-
is rarely used without another: e.g., Material erate a fundamental paradigm shift from a linear
Passports are created using BIM and can be to a circular model in construction. The digital
connected to the IoT to sell reused elements on technologies described here will help tackle
digital platforms. urgent societal urbanization needs to ensure that
New business models. Visionary actors in the buildings, not raw materials, are the resources for
construction sector know they must reinvent their construction in the future. Architects of Centre
business models to transition to a circular econ- Pompidou’s renovation site were able to make
omy. European research project Circular X pre- the iconic glass available for reuse in a beautiful
sents a series of business models as an inspiration project by Maximum Architecture (2022). But
for circular experimentation in construction, digital technologies for matchmaking reused
including buildings-as-a-service, movable hous- materials are essential for a happy—circular—
ing solutions, and temporary material banks ending.
(Circular 2022). Buildings can be seen as trees
by “supplying energy and raw materials for Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank
Pavillon de l’Arsenal ([Link]
reuse” (Kraaijvanger 2022). The digital tech- fr/edition-e-boutique/collections/recherches-et-experimen
nologies discussed here enable these new circular tations/[Link]), Raphaël
business models. The Material@Hand service Ménard, 169 Architecture, Elioth, by Egis ([Link]/en/
from construction materials multinational Saint- beaubourg-caterpillar/), and Maximum Architecture
([Link]) for the case study as well
Gobain, for example, uses robotic measurements, as Alexandre Attias and Anna Buser for the images. This
BIM, and a tracking app to determine the exact research was funded by Vlaanderen Circulair—Call Cir-
material quantities needed for partitioning culaireBouweconomie—Vlaams Agentschap Innoveren
walls—avoiding the 15–25% waste created by & Ondernemen (VLAIO).
the current industry’s bulk package delivery of
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 Tak for Sidst: A Field Study
of Demolition in Denmark

Tom Buckland

Abstract 1 Introduction
Construction and demolition waste contributes
huge amount of emissions to the climate The planet is in a climate crisis. In summer of
crisis. The EU has asserted that moving 2021 UN Secretary-General António Guterres
toward a circular economy is one strategy to (2021) declared that “the evidence is irrefutable:
address climate change, of which resolving greenhouse gas emissions are choking our planet
issues with construction and demolition is an and placing billions of people in danger”
important aspect. Denmark is leading the way (Guterres 2021). The contribution of the con-
in terms of construction and demolition waste struction industry to greenhouse gas production
recycling. However, the Danish Ministry of is significant. In the EU, the European Com-
Interior and Housing has suggested that the mission (2020) asserts that the construction and
current 85% construction and demolition use of buildings accounts for 50% of all extracted
waste recycling rate can be improved on. resource and energy consumption. According to
Through a hands-on field study of a state-of- the European Commission (2015), waste gener-
the-art sustainable demolition project in ated from construction and demolition such as
Copenhagen, this paper investigates crucial concrete, bricks, glass, wood, metals, and plastic
collaborators for architects when circular accounts for more than a third of all waste gen-
economy principals are applied and practiced. erated in the EU. United Nations Sustainable
Strategies and important stakeholders are Development Goal 12 (SDG 12), Responsible
detailed. Consumption and Production, intends to “ensure
sustainable consumption and production pat-
Keywords terns” (UN n.d.). In reference to SDG 12, The

Construction
Demolition

Sustainable Development Report (UN 2021),
Sustainability
asserts that “a path for sustainable consumption
Recycling
and production requires circular economy
approaches, designed to reduce or eliminate
waste and pollution, keep products and materials
in use, and regenerate natural systems” (p. 50).
The current global economy is mostly linear
rather than circular. Materials are collected,
T. Buckland (&) processed into products, and eventually disposed
Det Kongelige Akademi, Frederiksberg, Denmark of in landfills or incinerated. According to the
e-mail: info@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 677
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
678 T. Buckland

European Commission (2021) in the Circular at public auctions (Rotor, para 4). Korhonen
Economy Action Plan, revisions of material et al. (2018) define a circular economy as one
recovery targets for construction and demolition characterized by cyclical material flows, renew-
waste (CDW) are necessary in order to maximize able energy sources, and cascading 1-type energy
economic, social, and environmental sustain- flows. They assert that the circular economy
ability. Since 2008, the EU has recommended “limits the throughput flow to a level that nature
construction and demolition waste be separated tolerates and utilizes ecosystem cycles in eco-
at source as part of its ongoing transition to a nomic cycles by respecting their natural repro-
circular economy. This recommendation under- duction rates” (Korhonen et al. 2018, p. 39). The
scores the economic and environmental potential logic of circular economy suggests that rather
of utilizing recycled building materials, thereby than ending up in landfills, waste should be
preserving embedded carbon. The European integrated into new products that can be recycled
Commission (2021) asserts that few enterprises again when no longer useful. Koutamanis (2018)
comply with the rules regarding separation of indicates that urban mining has been discussed in
CDW, something that needs to be remedied if the relation to the possibilities offered by circular
European Union is to move toward a circular economy. Rotor (2021), explains:
economy. In Denmark, building and construction In its purest, conceptual sense the circular econ-
waste accounts for 39% of all waste at 5,023,253 omy promises an endless cycle of reusable
tons. Wood waste represents 2.5% of that, at resources. With regard to the construction industry,
154,893 tons, metal, 444,046 tons, while the concept often revolves around the central
metaphor of the urban mine, which understands the
3,910,264 tons are categorized as mixed building city as an accumulation of valuable materials and
waste (Danmarks Statistik 2019). Out of reusable elements. (para. 1)
5,023,253 tons of CDW, 4,381,182 tons are
recycled (Danmarks Statistik 2019). The Danish Bachmann (2019) claims that “construction in the
Ministry of Interior and Housing (2021), suggest Anthropocene era will rely on the recovery and
that although 85% of CDW, which accounts for recycling of building materials from the urban
more than a third of total waste in Denmark, is ecosystem” (p. 7), harkening back to earlier times
recycled and utilized, there is potential for more when materials were reused many times over. As
appropriate reuse and recycling of materials. Bachmann (2019) explains, urban mining regards
This paper asks, if Denmark is to improve on the built environment as a repository of raw
an 85% CDW recycling rate who are important materials that can be collected or extracted under
collaborators for architects when circular econ- appropriate circumstances to be used again in
omy principals are applied and practiced in the new constructions. Jarre et al. (2020) assert that
field? cascading use is another aspect of a circular
economy, and literature often reveals overlaps in
ideas between the two theories. Generally, cas-
2 Method cading use refers to “a river over a sequence of
plateaus” (Sirkin and ten Houten 1994, p. 10) that
The idea of reusing building materials is not a describes a process wherein biomass material
new one. Throughout history scarce or expensive (forest products) are efficiently utilized by cycles
materials have motivated deconstruction and of recycling and then ultimately incinerated as
recycling. The ancient Romans used the word fuel for energy generation (Jarre et al. 2020, p. 2).
“spolia” to refer to reused stone. During the Conceptual considerations and practical applica-
urban renewal of Paris coordinated by Baron tions of cascading use are widespread in the for-
Haussman in the mid-1800s, large swaths of estry industry (Jarre et al.).
tenement buildings were demolished and These interrelated fields, concepts, principals,
Haussman ordered reusable materials to be sold and practices have major implications for the
Tak for Sidst: A Field Study of Demolition in Denmark 679

way architects and the construction industries 11-storey design would have allowed the preser-
function. In order to investigate the practical vation of the original building, surrounding it on
application of circular economy principals this three sides while several stories would cantilever
paper employs the demolition of a building at over it (J. Thamdrup, personal communication,
Jagtvej 169B and the recycling of the building’s December 3, 2021). The proposal allowed for a
constituent materials as a case for field study. significant rental area, about 15,000 m2, or 375%
Jagtvej 169B was built in 1860 as the home of on the property. However, the design faced con-
Aldersro Brewery in the Østerbro neighborhood siderable objection from the community due to its
of Copenhagen. In 1870 the building switched to height and concerns about infringement on day-
production of cigars and cigarettes which con- light access to neighboring properties. Since then,
tinued until the 1970s when it was converted to a different architect, Dissing + Weitling, was
offices. The building was demolished in late brought on who also attempted to design around
2021. The Jagtvej 169B project is unusual in that the existing building. Since the existing business
the developer had a goal to recycle a large case was for 15,000 m2 it was clear to ATP
amount, about 95%, of the components and Ejendomme that the new building should achieve
materials from the building and sought out a the same area. However, Dissing + Weitling
demolition company that would be able to determined it was not possible to design a project
undertake such a task efficiently. of that scale while preserving both existing
This field study was conducted in a way in the structures. ATP negotiated with the community
style of what landscape architect Kahn (2011) and municipality to establish a “lokaleplan,” the
describes. The fieldwork took place both in the permit procedure required in Denmark, and a
professional field of architecture and disciplines permit was granted to demolish Jagtvej 169B
that intersect with it and on a physical field at the while leaving 169A, the slightly newer building
demolition site. Data was collected through field to the west, standing (J. Thamdrup, personal
research consisting of participant observation as communication, December 3, 2021).
a demolition laborer for Søndergaard Nedrivning The project has faced some criticism from the
A/S. Participant observation, defined by Dewalt community (K. Sørensen, personal communica-
et al. (1998), is a method of research in which tion, December 2, 2021). One neighbor and local
information is gained by participating and architect said that the demolition is a “tragedy
observing, while recording, in field notes. Field and should be a scandal” due to what he con-
notes consisted of observations and recordings in sidered the wasteful demolition of a historic
the form of writing, photographs, videos, docu- building in the interest of a few DGNB points
ment gathering, conversations with coworkers (community member, personal communication,
and community members, and interviews with December 10, 2021). Sørensen himself conceded
stakeholders. Interviews were conducted with that the “most sustainable thing to do would have
Kasper Sørensen, Produktionsdiretør at Sønder- been to leave the structure and facade of the
gaard, Jens Thamdrup, Construktion Arkitekt building standing” in a “soft-strip” style, typical
and Senior Projektchef at ATP, and Thomas Bo of extensive renovations, rather than demolish
Nielson, Innovation Engineer at RGS Nordic. the entire building, including the foundation (K.
Sørensen, personal communication, December 2,
2021). Another neighbor said he was “worried
3 Results about what is coming next,” but the knowledge
that materials are being recycled was some con-
Developer ATP Ejendomme began acquiring solation (community member, personal commu-
properties adjacent to Jagtvej 169 in 2011 with nication, 10/11/21).
successive purchases accumulating into a large Kasper Sørensen, Produktionsdiretør at
corner lot. In the intervening years one major Søndergaard (2021), explains that typically,
Copenhagen architect put forth a proposal. The demolition of buildings is carried out as quickly
680 T. Buckland

as possible. Most wood materials are sent to the a long, natural life before being cut down. Jagtvej
incinerator, bricks are crushed for fill under roads, 169 was no exception, making wood a primary
and metal is sent to be melted down. The ambi- concern on the project and one of the most
tion of the developer was to reuse materials from challenging. Having been built in 1860, the
the building and dedicate funds to reach their structural timbers had ring counts that suggested
goal. To achieve it ATP included in the tender for the trees were 200–300 years old when they were
the demolition contractor the requirement to cut down. Old growth timber is characterized by
complete an assessment of resources, “resource- tightly spaced growth rings as a result of slow
mapping,” which would consist of a meticulous growth over a long period making it desirable for
mapping and cataloging of all the materials and its density and perceived beauty, in contrast to
components in the building (J. Thamdrup, per- widely spaced growth rings of second growth
sonal communication, December 3, 2021). timber as a result of fertilization and watering
Thorough environmental assessments are making it less dense, less visually appealing, and
required and typical for demolition to identify the structurally weaker than old growth timber. Costs
location and quantity of materials like PCB and usually prohibit time-consuming assessment of
asbestos. However, the requirement for resource- wood and whether it could serve a better purpose
mapping is unusual (K. Sørensen, personal com- than being incinerated for energy generation.
munication, December 2, 2021). ATP hired the However, increasingly, regulation and market
engineering firm EKJ for the exhaustive resource- changes are pushing more meticulous separation
mapping process. Søndergaard was selected as and consideration of construction and demolition
the demolition contractor as they were demon- waste (K. Sørensen, personal communication,
strably the company most well equipped to take December 2, 2021). Thomas Bo Nielson, inno-
on such a challenge. At Jagtvej 169B, materials vation engineer at RGS Nordic (2021), one of the
and components were assessed and mapped. waste disposal contractors at Jagtevej 169
J. Thamdrup (2021) explains that “sanitary explains, while wood cannot be melted down and
installations were mapped, lamps, suspended reconstituted like metal it can be broken down to
ceiling, doors, door knobs, radiators, windows, smaller fragments and bound together with
everything” (personal communication, 2021). adhesives to form building materials like
Many components like windows, doors, and Oriented-Strand Board (OSB), chip board, and
radiators were sold through an online auction, medium-density fibreboard (MDF) (T. Bo Niel-
while other materials, such as approximately son, personal communication, November 26,
1200 square meters of Oregon pine floorboards, 2021). Because of the complexity of the supply
were donated locally to Rasmus Greve, a car- chain, it can be difficult to determine whether
penter (K. Sørensen, personal communication, cascading used of recovered wood from build-
December 2, 2021). His company, Loud Living, ings has environmental benefits. Niu et al. (2021)
will be producing furniture for the new building at have concluded that “reusing structural timber
Jagtvej 169 (R. Greve, personal communication, components is beneficial regarding combating
1/2/21). Removing the floorboards was one of the global warming” (p. 7). A study by Weber-
first tasks I was assigned while working in the Blaschke and Richter (2013) “revealed a con-
field. The floorboards were covered with carpet siderable amount of recovered wood from the
that had to be removed before prying them up building sector available in conditions which
from an additional two layers of lumber, with allow a high-quality material cascading and thus
power and network cables running between them. a secondary utilization” (p. 313). But they con-
It was a difficult and time-consuming process to ceded that “to apply the concept of cascading of
remove the boards carefully and efficiently, in a recovered wood in the most beneficial way, fur-
way that they retained their value. ther research regarding the ecological and eco-
Timber in pre-1950 Copenhagen buildings is nomic benefits, the necessary logistics, and the
typically old growth, meaning that the tree lived technical processing is necessary” (p. 313).
Tak for Sidst: A Field Study of Demolition in Denmark 681

Knauf (2015) noted that “previous environmental removing, sorting, and storing took considerably
comparisons of waste wood management (waste longer than the rapid, albeit wasteful, demolition
wood recycling or its use for bioenergy produc- more typical in the industry. Furthermore, it
tion) do not take into account the alternative use relied on the demolition worker to make dozens,
of the fresh wood saved by recycling” (p. 3). perhaps hundreds, of small decisions every day
Knauf (2015) concludes that “material use as a about where pieces of waste should be put. This
first use is far superior to initial direct use for is ensured only by having systems in place that
energy production” (p. 3). Wood recovery and make it possible and easy as possible to do so
recycling is therefore a way to recapture value and supervisors that were able to motivate and
and carbon in order to combat climate change. instruct workers in the appropriate way.
The urgent need for sustainability in construction Despite the extra length of the contract ATP is
and demolition is obvious and well documented. paying only 5–8% extra for demolition, exclud-
Sustainable demolition practices and recycling of ing external expenses like scaffolding and crane
materials can cut emissions through reduction of rentals (K. Sørensen, personal communication,
extraction, production, and transportation. December 2, 2021). J. Thamdrup (2021) says the
“Generally speaking,” says Sørensen, “reusing a project is DGNB certified, a process conducted
piece of wood is better than burning it” (K. by Sveco as consultant. Jagtvej 169B is the first
Sørensen, personal communication, December 2, project in Denmark that has DGNB points
2021). Wood has a lot of potential for reuse, in a awarded for demolition of a previous construc-
wide spectrum of applications from practical tion. DGNB points can only be awarded if work
applications on construction sites to high-end is planned, so therefore the resource-mapping
counter tops and tables. If wood recycling is to provides an estimate for potential recycled
be effective, it has to span across that spectrum of materials and proves it is intentional. To com-
use (K. Sørensen, personal communication, plete this process Søndergaard documented all
December 2, 2021). The challenges to wood materials recycled or sold and surpassed esti-
recycling are very large in scope. At a high level, mates by 2%, resulting in a 97% recycling of
inefficient recycling of wood is a common prac- materials (J. Thamdrup, personal communica-
tice worldwide, and improving it requires coop- tion, December 3, 2021). Furthermore, as
eration between many actors. On the other hand, J. Thamdrup (2021) explains that “even if there
wood recycling at a large scale requires thou- was no value according to environmental things,
sands of minute, time-consuming tasks like tak- there would be a value just according to the
ing nails out of boards (T. Bo Nielson, personal building process” (personal communication,
communication, November 26, 2021). December 3, 2021). That is to say, if no carbon
RGS Nordic was responsible for management emissions were spared by mapping resources and
of wood waste that was not already bought or carefully deconstructing and separating recover-
donated for a specific purpose. There were three able parts, the resource-mapping would provide
dumpsters at the site that represented three value through savings of time and effort in
streams of waste. Generally, pieces of solid wood negotiating unforeseen circumstances that typi-
that were two meters or longer went in the first cally arise during demolition and preparation for
dumpster. Søndergaard machine operators were new constructions.
careful not to damage large beams and floor-
boards in order to allow direct recycling. Pieces
of solid wood that were less than 2 m that were 4 Discussion
free of paint and other contaminants were sent to
chip board production, while small pieces of At Jagtvej 169B the demolition phase of the
plywood and anything with glue went to the project was mostly guided by the ambitions of
incinerator (K. Sørensen, personal communica- the developer. The primary stakeholders from an
tion, December 2, 2021). This careful work of architectural perspective were the customer, ATP
682 T. Buckland

Ejendomme, who presented the tender including myriad other building materials intact and effi-
goals for the demolition, the demolition con- ciently should not be underestimated. The pres-
tractor Søndergaard, engineer, EKJ, who con- ence of demolition workers as more than an
ducted the resource-mapping, and the demolition abstract labor unit in discussions about the cir-
workers who carried out the demolition. Two cular economy is a glaring omission.
documents emerged as crucial tools. In the The circular economy and practical applica-
Jagtvej 169B project, Søndergaard workers tions of circular principals in cases such as
sought “to harvest resources to the highest value” Jagtvej 169B presents the possibility of having a
(K. Sørensen, personal communication, Decem- market of previously used building materials
ber 2, 2021). It is an ambition that is instructed where instead of a designer dictating what
by the tender and facilitated by the resource- building materials will be used, reused building
mapping. Through the tender and resource- materials instruct what can be designed. The
mapping, stakeholders were able to align on quality of building materials and reliability of
goals and collaborate effectively. In order for supply relies on the workers handling them. If
improvement of recycling, it has to be planned demolition workers are to be relied on for col-
for and implemented from the outset by moti- laboration on they should be included in dis-
vated stakeholders. Resource-mapping provides cussions about the value of recycling and the
environmental benefits along with cost savings ways in which it is conducted.
and improvements in efficiency. There is a ben- This paper has investigated the practical
efit to the customer, as J. Thamdrup says, the applications of circular economy principals and
resource-mapping allowed the demolition the stakeholders involved through a field study of
process to go more smoothly with less surprises Jagtvej 169B. The case demonstrates concrete,
as well as facilitating DGNB points to be applied replicable ways to reduce waste, keep building
to the new construction. If material can be materials in use, thereby complying with UN
diverted from incineration in order to be Sustainable Development Goal 12, reducing
directly recycled there is a benefit of saving CDW from 39%, and improving upon Denmark’s
carbon emissions. The resource-mapping is a 85% CDW recycling rate by up to 12%. The
crucial tool that described the building and question of whether this historical building should
allowed the demolition contractor and their have been torn down is an important one, but one
employees to conduct operations smoothly, that is beyond the scope of this paper. From the
dismantling the building and distributing its perspective of the developer, it was necessary.
composite components and materials for reuse in The case of Jagtvej 169B provides a model for a
other applications. The resource-mapping makes more sustainable demolition process that can be
the internals of the building visible and man- applied to less contentious developments.
ageable to site supervisors and in turn, demoli-
tion workers, laying out a framework for how to
treat building materials and where to put them. References
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 Enhanced Databases on City’s
Building Material Stock. An Urban
Mining Method Based on Machine
Learning for Enabling Building’s
Materials Reuse Strategies

Areti Markopoulou, Oana Taut,

and Hesham Shawqy

Abstract automated way to physical inspections which

makes it applicable to different cities that lack
The climate crisis and the growing urbaniza-
registers of building data. A data repository
tion needs urge design and construction prac- map is developed in the format of an interface,
tices to shift their focus to the anthroposphere so that it can be used by different stakeholders
as a source of, rather than just a destination for,
including decision-makers in the formulation
building materials. The concept of urban and planning of urban material reuse strate-
mining is revisited by many to manage the gies, as well as designers in the early stage of
existing building material stock exploring the
circular design processes. Tackling the accu-
potential for reuse in new constructions. By racy limitations of machine learning, the paper
combining image-based segmentation with concludes with studying the potential of com-
cadastral data in a GIS database, this paper
bining the use of image unstructured data with
proposes an end to end process for an statistical data of existing building registers
integrated web-based application enclosing including age of buildings and preservation
and delivering cross-referenced data about a state.
city’s material stock. The study uses unstruc-
tured data from Open Street View to identify Keywords
relevant patterns for making estimations of the
quantity, state, and projected availability cycle

Machine learning Urban mining Mapping

of concrete, brick, stone, metal, timber, and


resources Material reuse Circular
glass in building facades. By applying predic- construction
tive modelling at the city scale, the algorithm
can identify, geolocate and quantify façade
materials with a present accuracy of 87%. The 1 Introduction
developed method proposes an alternative
Buildings are responsible for half of the global
primary material consumption while they are
A. Markopoulou (&) accountable for almost 40% of global climate
IAAC, Institute for Advanced Architecture of emissions, of which 50% are produced during
Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain construction. In recent years the increased
e-mail: areti@[Link]
demand of resources required, the amount of
O. Taut
H. Shawqy waste related with the built environment and the
IAAC, Institute for Advanced Architecture of
reduced building lifetimes have led to a growing
Catalonia, Barcelona, Spain

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 685
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
686 A. Markopoulou et al.

interest in urban mining (UM) in buildings demolition and construction material provision
(Koutamanis et al. 2018; Arora et al. 2020). and demand (Arora et al. 2021). Although such
Current urban mining practices and policies, scenarios could be ideal for cities and while
though, are primarily focusing on reusing con- recycling of demolition waste has a sizeable
struction and demolition waste (CDW) by potential, the reality is that in many urban envi-
downcycling them (Pomponi and Moncaster ronments—including cities like Amsterdam that
2017). The majority of demolition waste, for has provided high investment in CE—this
instance, is used as filler when building road- potential falls short on achieving the policy goals
ways, which prevents its further reuse or recy- required for reducing primary material con-
cling. There is very little research on how CDW sumption set forth by the 2016 Paris Agreement.
can be reused as primary materials in new The current study contributes to creating material
building construction, and this is due to the lack databases of the entire stock of existing build-
of building information on the amount, state, and ings, beyond, therefore, the analysis of buildings
reuse possibility of the existing building material planned for demolition. Such building informa-
stock. Current urban mining initiatives for tion data becomes significant for contributing to
building materials and components reuse rely on the formulation of long-term urban policies and
the expert survey and analysis of field data, in planning strategies for building reuse that tackles
conjunction with other relevant census or issues of mismatch between annual demolition
cadastral data sources from public building reg- and construction material provision and demand.
isters (Kumar and Ai Lin Teo 2019). However,
on the one hand, public building data lack key
information on materials and on the other, the 2 Material and Methods
need for extensive prior field research results in a
process that requires high costs and sophisticated As a growing field related to translating
equipment, making it difficult to implement in unstructured visual data into meaningful seman-
low-budgeted administrations or in countries tic by using AI, Computer Vision captures mul-
where extensive public open data is not available tiple tasks related to automatic identification of
(Raghu et al. 2022). Developing, therefore, features in images. Due to the ease to source
quick, feasible, and replicable methods to create image data regarding urban environments from
inventory of existing building stock reuse open sources, this direction is particularly rele-
through automating the expert field audit and vant for the current study and has been explored
inspections is a key research field that requires with different end goals in several previous
further exploration. research, forming the field of Visual Facade
In the field of urban policies there is an Classification. Depending on the goal of the
increasing number of urban administrations that classification, two approaches are mainly
in their effort to minimize the negative impacts of observed:
the built environment and to achieve their goals
for reducing the consumption of primary mate- – multiple object detection frameworks, specif-
rials, they invest both economically and intel- ically R-CNN (Lee et al. 2020); or
lectually to set up policies and the necessary – pixelwise labelling commonly called semantic
infrastructure that enhance Circular Economy segmentation (Fröhlich et al. 2010) (Fig. 1).
(CE). The principles of CE lie in limiting mate-
rial and resource loss, minimizing waste, and The scope of material reuse, however, which is
enabling design for reuse (Ellen MacArthur the scope of this study, goes beyond identifiable
Foundation 2012). Most of these administration building features (windows, railings, decoration)
efforts, however, focus on matching demolition and differentiation between different facade fin-
and construction material flows in cities, which ishes requires pixelwise comprehension. In this
means finding a balance between yearly regard, semantic segmentation method which has
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 687

Fig. 1 Image showing

different computer vision
tasks (Abdulla 2018)

been previously used for facade material recog- equivalent labelling mask, is necessary, and its
nition, and material segmentation (Bell et al. collection and manual labelling was a necessary
2015), has been selected as most relevant for this first step.
study. While pixelwise image segmentation can
predict the material mix of a given building
facade, many applications related to urban-scale 2.1 Collection
material reuse strategies, such as material density
mapping, require relating the segmented image to Although existing urban facades sets follow a
a geographic information system (GIS) (Kang labelling strategy suited to identify building ele-
et al. 2018). ments, indiscriminate of their materials, and are
The need for material aware segmentation of therefore unsuitable for the training task, best
thousands of images, essential to make city scale practices and characteristics observed in the
estimations, called for an artificially cognizant popular CMP dataset were followed as closely as
network, in other words a deep neural network, possible (Tylecek 2012). In accordance with
capable of pixelwise image classification. Several these, images included in our dataset were
viable options were considered to respond to the required to be orthogonal, removing lens distor-
need stated as follows: starting from a ground- tion insofar as possible. The overall strategy and
truth image, generating an equivalent image the intended application also dictate the data
mask, and grouping in different color patches the collection source and parameters. Both for the
pixels of high probability of representing the initial training dataset and for the prediction
same material. After evaluating relevant work on database, images must be retrieved from an
similar data types, a type of generative adver- openly available and extensive street level ima-
sarial neural network (GAN) (Goodfellow et al. gery source. Google StreetView API was found
2020), specifically a conditional GAN based on to satisfy both requirements. Apart from the
the Pix-to-Pix framework (Isola et al. 2017) was requirements of a suitable GAN training dataset,
selected. To train this model, a sizable dataset of the need for quantitative evaluation at a global
pair images, containing ground-truth and level as well as geo-referencing of this data, calls
688 A. Markopoulou et al.

for standardization of the images collected to each building polygon was projected to the street
obtain orthogonal views with a consistent focal centerline segments, and the intersection point
length, and with a viewpoint and angle that can was used as camera position. The camera orien-
be related back to the building ID in GIS tation was then calculated based on the line
mapping. deviation from true North. With these parame-
The first step was therefore finding a suitable ters, an algorithm was created to automatically
method to extract orthogonal images using write the API requests. This process was used
GoogleStreetViews API. This interface allows to first to collect the training dataset, and then to
extract views following a schema of user collect one relevant facade for each building in
parameters such as location lat/long values, view the Barcelona Metropolitan area in preparation
direction, view horizontal and vertical angle. for the prediction step. The image below shows
Considering the image collection methodology the camera viewpoint in relation to the building
of this service, by Google car, it is understood centre point. This process proves successful in
that the camera position is always fixed to the retrieving the best orthogonal view of the façade
street and 360° angles are available at each point. in approximately 60% of the cases but requires
Due to this fact, an uncontrolled amount of street further review to account for corner buildings
view images could be extracted from one street, and larger buildings, especially when placed on
showing the same buildings from different narrow streets. Possible solutions are to apply the
angles. This wouldn’t be suitable as data per- centroid projection algorithm to building facade
taining to the same building in multiple pictures segments and find the furthest available view
cannot be easily referenced back to a single within a set range (Fig. 2).
building ID, therefore a strategy was necessary to
Training Dataset Collection/Variation/Criteria
define a single “main facade” image for each
building. To collect the best orthogonal image for Based on initial tests using the Pix-to-Pix model
each facade, geodata was first extracted from an selected, a dataset containing 800 images was the
open-source online mapping service, specifically minimum requirement for suitable training of the
OpenStreetMap, which retrieves building foot- model. Dealing with a relatively small dataset,
prints and street centerlines by their geographic the selection strategy is important to ensure the
locations (latitude, longitude). The centroid of model can generalize across features bracing the

Fig. 2 Image standardization

technique showing the
centroid projection to street,
in blue, and the adjusted
camera position and angle,
in red
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 689

full variation of the city in study. Using infor- to each other. In the case of Pix2Pix, the gener-
mation from the open city data, selection criteria ator is a U-net, a type of architecture already used
were embedded considering buildings from dif- in state-of-the-art image segmentation research,
ferent neighbourhoods, heights, and typologies. while the discriminator is a patch GAN network,
A manual screening is also necessary to ensure recognized to produce sharper images, by judg-
variation across architectural styles, dominant ing between real and fake at the scale of the
finishing materials such as concrete, bricks, image patches rather than averaging over the
stone, as well as sufficient representation of entire image at once.
special use materials such as wood, metal, and
Training Runs and Changes
glass. The 800 images so collected were dis-
tributed in sets of 60 to a group of researchers at While training this model, different methods of
the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Cat- labelling the dataset were tested, starting from
alonia, with clear labelling instructions and a images with 10 labels that included a wider
one-hour long labelling tutorial. For each image, domain of mapping IDs. This method was quite
6 labels were used to identify different material challenging as the model complexity was getting
classes: concrete, bricks, stone, glass, wood, and higher and the output mapping images were
metal were each assigned their colour code to be distorted. It was noticed that model performance
easily distinguished by human and computer was degrading along the training process.
alike. To label different materials for individual Finally, images with only 6 labels were used for
images, an image processing software was used the training as it was indicating a good model
for hand-labelling. For each material region, a performance.
new label was added associated with the colour The model has been trained using Pix2Pix
code. Consistent with similar projects, the GAN model on Google Colab, this online plat-
researchers reported spending 6–8 min per form allows writing python code and utilizing
image, which amounts to a total labelling time of Google’s great computing resources. The model
approximately 70% of the total spent on the performance has been monitored using [Link]
Neural Network training aspect of this project. platform, which affords analytics tools to com-
pare between different models’ architecture per-
formance and accuracy.
2.2 Training For each model, different hyper parameters
were tested against the accuracy to validate the
Pix-to-Pix Architecture model performance. The network’s performance
was evaluated using the metric of both generator
To go from 800 to 3200 labelled images (the
and discriminator loss. It’s a standard metrics
number of images required to estimate materials
used in GAN models. It indicates the difference
for the metropolitan area of Barcelona), a Pix2-
between the predicted labelled image and the
Pix deep neural network was employed. Devel-
ground truth. The final model was trained for
oped originally by Phillip Isola et al. this model
1500 epochs only as the network performance
is a particular type of generative adversarial
stopped evolving at this point. That model was
neural network that uses semantic labels in
tested with new images that were not used in the
addition to random noise to generate a new
training dataset and it was able to correctly
image starting from a given condition image.
generate labelled images in 65% of testing cases.
This task is commonly known as image-to-image
More details about the final model performance
translation. A particularity of GAN, the model
will be provided later in the results section
consists of two neural nets, a generator, and a
(Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6).
discriminator, working in adversarial relationship
690 A. Markopoulou et al.

Fig. 3 Google street imagery and ground-truth labels versus the predicted labelled images comparison to evaluate
different models performance

Fig. 4 Generator and discriminator loss comparison to evaluate different models’ performance

Fig. 5 Final model evaluation graphs using the metric of both generator and discriminator loss

Merging the Existing Geodata with the Material project scope. To this end, with an acceptable
Data (CSV) level of accuracy, the model trained as above is
used to make a prediction for one image of each
As per our research statement, automatic image
building facade and reference it back to open
comprehension achieved by training the deep
urban data through the building ID. Such data,
generative neural network model resolves only
available for the city of Barcelona includes year
part of the problem statement. Enabling inference
of construction, building use, building area, his-
in relation to additional cadastral data about
torical protection status, building occupancy, etc.
existing buildings is key to accomplishing the
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 691

Fig. 6 Final model generates fake images sample

Additional columns containing facade level pre- building’s material recognition model. Both
dictions (facade percentage and facade area of frameworks have the flexibility to be used in all
plaster, brick, stone, metal, timber, and glass) levels of urban analysis and materials extraction
were added to the database, which was then (Fig. 7).
exported in CSV and .shp format. The suitability
Integration with Rhino-GH
of the workflow was then tested by asking the
research study group of Institute for Advanced The first setup, the integration of the Geojson
Architecture of Catalonia to use the resulting and csv files with Grasshopper3d (node-based
database to drive insights on Urban Mining algorithmic environment within Rhinoceros3D
potential in their research design studio. modelling software) allows users to interact
with the data locally on their machines.
A Grasshopper3d script was developed to
2.3 Interface visualize three-dimensional geodata within the
Rhino software associated with the metadata
Having the compiled database in a CSV file extracted from the complied buildings materials
format, allowed the flexibility of exchanging the database.
data with different platforms. During our research That script afforded 3D data enquiry on mul-
both offline and online user-friendly tools were tiple levels; visualizing building materials for the
needed to allow users to interact with the mate- whole city or smaller neighbourhoods. The end
rials dataset. The two frameworks attached below user would start using this script by picking the
have been proposed as preliminary prototypes desired Geojson and csv files for a city, then
which involves the development virtual envi- define the search parameters such as search
ronment for the analysis and evaluation of the domain, radius, material filter, buildings age
692 A. Markopoulou et al.

Fig. 7 Materials prediction

sample

Fig. 8 The interface

of the local model using
Rhinoceros and
Grasshopper3d script

domain, single or multiple regions, and finally This framework has a wide domain of
would end this process by extracting both 3D potentials, allowing users to explore data in three
geometries and material metadata (Fig. 8). different levels.
1. Explore data in a map scale, showing the
Deploying the Model on the Web
building’s materials for a complete city, filter
The second setup, the web deployment of the data using a layering system, and extract a csv
model provides the general framework for the table of an average materials percentages.
collaborative mapping environment. This light- 2. Explore data in a region scale, having the
weight online environment contains a variety of ability to select several buildings using a
functionalities including a user interface for data region, and extract a csv table of an average
visualization, search boxes, media library, mate- materials percentages plus buildings count.
rial charts, building material vs Google street 3. Explore data for individual buildings, where
imagery visualization, and data export (Fig. 9). the user can get the information for the
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 693

Fig. 9 The landing page of the web interface

Fig. 10 Map view of the interface, a legend key for material percentages on the left side, and search parameters on the
right side

building’s age, typology, google street view end interface which visualize data on the browser
image, and material percentage radar and receive search parameters from users. This
Chart (Figs. 10, 11, and 12). workflow was developed using Mapbox, Open-
streetmaps, Javascript, Python, and the prototype
The collaborative platform has been developed was finally deployed using a Github server.
using a client–server web application architecture The geometrical representation of analytical
to facilitate communication between the com- data can vary and be shaped in multiple formats
piled material dataset and the web platform front- such as vector layers, images, 3D interactive
694 A. Markopoulou et al.

Fig. 11 Region views of the interface and materials charts on the right side for the selected region

Fig. 12 Building view of the interface, blocks information, GSV image, and materials radar chart

model, charts, and statistical data for the material corresponding to the associated activities:
percentages as a result from the GAN model. A main wide layout that shows the map plus
These different layers and data are being stored the Geojson file, and a side bar that
on the server and could be requested using shows statistical data plus raster images. This
Mapbox and Javascript. simple interface affords a higher level of com-
The user interaction takes place on the plat- munication between the user and the prototype
form interface that consists of two main parts (Fig. 13).
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 695

Fig. 13 Technical workflow diagram

not a predominant facade finishing material, but

3 Results it does appear in structural and non-structural
components throughout the building. An exam-
Observing the results of the use of both the ple of how to face this limitation is the formu-
database and interface for detecting and cluster- lation of a filtering strategy that uses multiple
ing different materials, provides critical feedback database fields in an established sequence to
regarding the value, suitability, and necessary screen for the probability that different wooden
improvements of the proposed process. When components are present. By combining the filters
tasked with mapping different material avail- in different orders, and applying different
ability at the urban scale, it is immediately thresholds, a workflow allows to map the confi-
apparent that facade information alone surfers dence level that timber floors or wooden trusses
from a very narrow understanding of the quan- are present in buildings without the need to
tities and types of material. For example, wood is perform an on-site survey (Fig. 14).

Fig. 14 Decision tree

showing the connection
between combinations of data
filters to probability of finding
wood in the skin or the
structure of buildings
696 A. Markopoulou et al.

The strategy above proves that it’s possible to reused, showcased that building year of con-
formulate building typologies where the combi- struction, and building height can be a better
nation of data extracted from the street view indicator of the presence of precast concrete
façade and available cadastral information can panels, and that adding a percentage of glass as a
estimate material quantities within a set limit of filtering element is necessary to exclude the
accuracy. For example: a building age of less buildings most probably built on steel frame
than 25 years, in combination with a glass esti- (Fig. 16).
mation of over 50%, and a building height of This exercise provides sufficient proof that the
over 7 floors suggests structural steel presence combination of facade material prediction with
within a 70% level of accuracy. This strategy other census information enables more accurate
needs to be further researched (Fig. 15). predictions and expands its scope from the
Similarly, the use of the database for identi- facade to other elements of the building. Given
fying concrete in existing buildings that can be the relational nature of this application of ML,

(a)

(b)

Fig. 15 Workflow diagram showing the variables, filters, filters using public cadastral information to estimate the
and results of a potential building typology estimation probability that a building scale condition is met. a and
workflow built on top of the proposed fade material b show different estimations based on the building use,
prediction model. Buildings classified based on main, construction year, and height
secondary, and accent material pass through a sequence of
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 697

Fig. 16 The mapping of cast in situ concrete considers facade area in the 90 percentiles. The result is presented as
buildings constructed after 1960 with a proportion of a a geolocated gradient map as well as a bar chart
minimum 40% of the facade predicted as plaster, and a computing neighbourhood totals

the process can be expanded to include com- addressed first including the size and quality of
prehension of different types of image-based the labelled dataset and the consistency of the
datasets. Satellite view for example will provide test data presented to the trained model.
important information about the building state (if Deep learning is known to require large
roof is in bad state, the building is likely unused, amounts of training data, and popular bench-
while a newly repaired roof is likely a sign of marking datasets for the state-of-the-art models
major renovation), and about the roof finishing contain upwards of a few thousands images,
material, thus augmenting the scope and accu- reaching to hundreds of thousands for the more
racy of the material estimation. Similarly, dif- general use models. The AI used in this study is
ferent sources of information from city initiatives trained on 800 labelled images, which passed
and public data can be added to narrow the scope data augmentation techniques, like rotation and
of material identification where necessary. For mirroring, to artificially increase the number of
example, when working on identifying reuse samples. Therefore, increasing the quantity of
ready brick in the former industrial area of Bar- original samples can have a significant effect on
celona, data can be sourced about future re- the model performance. However, the quality
zoning proposals and combined it with existing and consistency of the manual labelling as per-
databases to reveal the brick buildings that will formed by the research group that has partici-
be proposed for demolition in the next ten years. pated in the study is an equally interesting pound
Addressing the machine learning model used, to address (Fig. 17).
specific topics affecting the prediction accuracy More comprehensive documentation for the
must be addressed. Finetuning and obtaining labelling standard is required as well as quality
highly accurate GAN models is a very wide and assurance and filtering of unsuitable labelled
technical topic. The selected architecture and the samples prior to training. Another possible
reference model used come pre-set with the most improvement can be observed when the retrieved
recent best practices, and these hyperparameters building database in more detail. While approx-
were used for training on the dataset. The model imately 60% of the images achieve the desired
trained for 1500 iterations, and the accuracy plots standard—meaning the main building image-
appear to be stabilized by this point. While centred, its entire facade visible and its position
continuing training may provide an increase in being orthogonal—there is a large percentage of
accuracy, it is likely that other aspects must be outliers presenting important distortions and
698 A. Markopoulou et al.

(a)

(b)

(c)

Fig. 17 From top to bottom: a mislabelling of stone as bricks. Bias to labelling metal; b bias to labelling metal.
Dismisses stone features on facades c bias to labelling wood. Mislabelling d labelling key
Enhanced Databases on City’s Building Material Stock … 699

Fig. 18 Top left to bottom

right: a, b samples of the
correctly standardized images;
c, d samples of aggressively
cropped images; e, f samples
of buildings hidden behind
tall fences; g sample of non-
orthogonal image; h sample
of complex urban layering,
making human and computer
comprehension difficult
(a) (b)

(c) (d)

(e) (f)

(g) (h)

making a coherent prediction either difficult or

impossible; for instance, more than one buildings 4 Conclusions
are featured at different angles or depths, only a
small percentage of the building ground floor is This study explores the methods and techniques
visible, building is covered by tall monotonous for creating an open repository to map the
fence, trees cover most building features, fully material availability in the existing building stock
orthogonal view is not achieved, and others of a city. The study enhances building public
(Fig. 18). datasets that can contribute to the circular
700 A. Markopoulou et al.

economy in construction including datasets of detailed site surveys by aerial and terrestrial
material quantification in relation to the state of robots or physical inspections and on-site
components, age of building, or renovation/ photogrammetry.
demolition states, among others. The contribu-
tion of this paper is the creation of an integrated
web-based application that could be used by References
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 Post Rock: From Designing
a Building Material to Designing
a Business Ecosystem

Meredith Miller, Thom Moran,

and Christopher Humphrey

Abstract advancement, but they also point to broader

challenges to circular design models. The
Post Rock is an ongoing research initiative
work-in-progress shared here illustrates the
developing new architectural materials made importance of expanding design efforts
from waste plastics. The authors, academic beyond a singular focus on the product itself
researchers in architecture and advanced fab-
and toward co-designing a regional ecosystem
rication, have developed novel processes for of stakeholders across multiple sectors for
thermoforming that yield variable, stone-like waste products, particularly plastics, to
patterning. This paper discusses a recent
become a climate-positive component of
reframing of the technical and design research future buildings.
through an immersion in evidence-based
entrepreneurship. Lessons from over 100 Keywords
interviews with building industry profession-
als not only provided key input at an early


Post rock Waste plastics Circular design

stage of commercialization, but also shaped

Immersion entrepreneurship Business
the team’s thinking around circular strategies

ecosystem Materials
for architecture. The paper will demonstrate
the feedback loops between insights shared
from professionals “in the field” and refine- 1 Introduction: Building Material
ments to Post Rock materials and fabrication Paradigms
processes “in the lab.” Four key hurdles to
commercializing this building technology The climate emergency has prompted sweeping
will be discussed: identifying a customer audits of global energy use and greenhouse gas
segment, defining sustainability and climate emissions sources, leading to an increased
change goals, ensuring fire safety, and con- awareness of the embodied energy of construc-
necting cross-sector regional resources. Not tion materials within the allied fields of archi-
only are the findings relevant to this project’s tecture, engineering and construction. With this
growing concern for material life cycles, the
practice of categorizing materials as mineral or
M. Miller (&)
T. Moran
C. Humphrey bio-based has emerged as a way of distinguishing
University of Michigan, Taubman College of their relative global warming potential (Churkina
Architecture and Urban Planning, Architecture, Ann 2020). Derived from inorganic primary resources
Arbor, USA
extracted from the earth, mineral-based materials
e-mail: mlmmlm@[Link]

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 703
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
704 M. Miller et al.

such as steel and concrete are the obvious target products cannot be used in construction appli-
for embodied carbon reduction, though their cation due to their performance properties. The
strength and durability make them challenging to material composition of building assemblies that
replace. Wood is commonly known as the most require water-resistance such as foundations,
extensively used bio-based material in construc- envelopes, and roofing must be considered
tion, but other bio-based building products are in within the framework of embodied carbon.
wide use, such as bamboo or plant-fiber insula- Reusing resources that have already been
tion. Where the energy demands of processing or extracted and processed can help reduce the
transporting these materials are not excessive, embodied energy intensity of new building
wood and bio-based materials can yield a posi- materials. Could plastic waste, especially streams
tive carbon balance, essentially storing the of plastic waste that are currently untapped,
atmospheric carbon absorbed and chemically become resources for future building?
altered during the plant’s lifetime. This paper will discuss lessons on circularity
Synthetic polymers confound the mineral learned from pursuing commercial applications
versus bio-based paradigm. Industrially produced for Post Rock, an experimental architectural
plastics are “organic,” in the chemical sense that material made from waste plastics and other
hydrocarbons are central to their molecular materials. Addressing the UN Sustainability Goal
structure. Plastics derived from petrochemicals #12, Post Rock research and development
contain carbon traces of the prehistoric life that rethinks the value chains of building materials.
was pressed into fossil fuels over hundreds of While this process of translating architectural
millions of years. Thus, in addition to the energy research is still at an early phase, the ongoing
required across the oil extraction, chemical pro- efforts have revealed a range of insights relevant
cessing, and manufacture of plastic products, the to the UIA conference’s themes, including
carbon trapped within the polymer chains can regional resources, rethinking waste, material life
release greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere if cycles, and the role of design and architects
the plastic is allowed to decay or burn. Waste-to- within these cross-sector domains.
energy facilities in the U.S. were responsible for
12 million tons CO2e in 2016, more than half of
which resulted from incinerating plastics (Royte 2 Design Experiment to Designing
2019). Improving recycling rates, cutting down a Product
single-use plastics and decoupling plastic pro-
duction from fossil fuel resources are all impor- Post Rock is a material research initiative devel-
tant strategies for mitigating the climate impacts oping new building materials from waste plastics
of the plastics industry. However, it is also and aggregates. Since 2015, a team of architects
important to think about the staggering amounts and advanced fabrication specialists within a
of plastic that have already entered the world’s North American university’s architecture depart-
systems–over 60 million tons of polymers were ment have been exploring methods for converting
produced in North America just last year plastic material from problematic waste streams
(Beyond Plastics 2021). The global warming into a durable and aesthetic composite. This work
potential locked within all that synthetic plastic began as an architectural design experiment
in circulation would have devastating impacts on inspired by a recently named geological phe-
CO2 reduction goals if allowed to escape. nomenon, plastiglomerate. Formed when organic
Buildings offer long-term storage for carbon- and inorganic materials such as stone, sand, and
sequestering materials such as mass timber and seashells fuse with polymer plastics, plastiglom-
other bio-based products. When designed for erates are the result of plastics accumulating in
reuse and reassembly, recycled plastic compo- marine and intertidal ecosystems (Corcoran
nents could offer a smaller but still significant 2014). Given the inherent durability of both stone
piece of the puzzle, especially where plant-based and plastic, plastiglomerates are likely to last for a
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing a Business Ecosystem 705

very long time, leaving behind a layer in the

geological record indicating a human-dominated
period of earth’s history. While plastiglomerate
rock specimens must meet a threshold of hardness
and mineral composition to be included in this
classification, their appearance varies with the
different component parts of human and natural
origins. Partially melted fragments of shampoo
bottles, braided fishing rope, seashells, and other
objects agglomerate within a medium of rock
swirled with unnatural colors. Smooth and rough,
synthetic and natural, banal and uncanny, this Fig. 1 Early post rock test sample, 2016
hybrid geologic material is being called the stone
of the anthropocene (Corcoran et al. 2014).
an aesthetics of waste, giving new value to an
The ambition behind the initial Post Rock
otherwise undesirable class of materials through
research effort was to speculate on the architec-
design.
tural potential of this hybrid, durable material.
From a technical perspective, the team aimed
Rather than deriving plastiglomerate from the
to develop thermoforming processes that were
polluting processes that led to its formation,
low-energy, choosing polymers with a lower
however, the team aimed to divert plastic waste
flow-temperature and using gravity to move the
from damaging waste streams by finding new
melted plastics in the mold and create various
end-of-life solutions. Initial prototyping simu-
patterns. Moving on from the initial small-scale
lated the geological processes that form plas-
prototypes, the team has developed thermoform-
tiglomerates at a small scale in the team’s
ing methods1 that apply robotically controlled
architectural fabrication lab. A wide range of
movements to produce unique patterns and varied
thermoplastics (PP, LDPE, PE) and mineral
textures at the surface of the material while
aggregates (sand, reclaimed concrete) were
maintaining a modular shape and size. This
combined and heated in molds. The process
technical progression of the research has been
design evolved to ensure the smaller plastic
driven in large part by a pivot toward thinking of
fragments melted enough to bind the mixture
Post Rock as a viable commercial building
while larger fragments (plastic and non-plastic)
product. Having shared early prototypes in
remained at least partially intact, acting as the
architecture exhibitions and design publications,
aggregate within the fluid medium of melted
the team sought to expand beyond the limited
plastic. This approach created a heterogenous
impact of small-scale, one-off projects. The key
surface patterning similar to the unique, hybrid
question became: how can Post Rock have a
appearance of plastiglomerates, where compo-
measurable impact on the enormous amount of
nent parts such as the curved rim of a flowerpot or
plastic waste? According to the Environmental
a broken piece of concrete remained legible
Protection Agency (EPA), only 8.7% of the
within smooth blends of plastic and sand (Fig. 1).
approximately 36,000 tons of plastic discarded in
From a design point of view, the team
2018 in the United States was recycled (EPA
embraced the way in which different “waste”
2022). The global construction market is a $12.5
components remained visible, rather than blend-
ing into a homogenous new whole. As an
1
authored version of plastiglomerate, Post Rock The team has patented its novel method of applying
had the potential to not only absorb plastic waste, heated molds and controlled gravity-assisted movements
during the casting period. Moran et al. Monolithic ther-
but also to visually communicate the dispersed
mocasting of polymer mixtures for architectural applica-
geography of its component parts. Used in tions. United States Letters Patent No. 11,623,372.
architectural applications, Post Rock could define Issued April 11, 2023.
706 M. Miller et al.

trillion industry (Oxford Economics 2021)— program, which annually runs several cohorts,
perhaps the only industry large enough to absorb each comprising about 24 academic teams seek-
all this waste and put it to use. The challenge, ing to commercialize their technology or inno-
then, was to change the team’s approach in order vation (National Science Foundation Innovation
to chart a path toward commercialization. What Corps 2022). Similar to its application in the
began as a series of design-driven projects and private sector, the NSF trains researchers in this
installations within the limited realm of archi- approach to learn early on what problems their
tecture academia evolved into a business- innovation might solve in the “real world.” The
informed design of a circular building product intensive seven-week course introduces aca-
and, more importantly, the ecosystem of partic- demic researchers to EBE tools with a focus on
ular stakeholders necessary to support a circu- Customer Discovery, encouraging them to get
lar building product. This paper will describe “out of the lab” in order to talk with people
the team’s application of evidence-based whose experiences can provide insights into the
entrepreneurship as a methodology for gaining field their research is aimed to impact.
insights from industry to shape research toward As participants in the National ICORPS
greater impact. Summer Cohort #2 (online, 6/28/2021–
8/12/2021), the authors conducted interviews
with professionals across the building design,
3 Evidence-Based Entrepreneurship construction, and product manufacturing indus-
tries to more narrowly define a user group, their
Architects often express the ambition for our needs, and the specific hurdles to producing a
work to reach beyond an esoteric audience and to Post Rock product that could meet these needs.
solve problems in the world. Less commonly do To qualify for this national program, the team
architects describe precise methods for identify- participated in the Midwest ICORPS Node in
ing where and how architecture can be effective. July 2018. At this earlier date, the building
Evidence-based entrepreneurship (EBE), also application was still undetermined. The funda-
known as the lean start-up methodology, is a mental assumption that needed testing was more
systematic approach to business development broadly the idea that architects would choose to
that emphasizes learning at the early stages. specify a recycled plastic product in their build-
Popularized by Eric Ries, author of The Lean ing out of a combination of sustainability goals
Startup (Ries 2011), this methodology has and aesthetic preferences.
gained a following among tech industry execu- Given these questions, the team drilled down
tives and aspiring entrepreneurs. A central prin- to the decision-making factors that informed a
ciple of this approach is for the entrepreneur/ particular material choice. EBE literature
inventor to “get out of the building,” or seek encourages asking questions that prompt the
input from people who represent the end-user of interview subject to reflect on recent behaviors
the proposed business or innovation early in the and experiences, rather than speculate on what he
process. The idea is not to pitch the innovation or she might do in a hypothetical future scenario.
but to listen to people’s experiences within the Rather than ask: “Would you, (Project Architect
specific domain that the entrepreneur/inventor at leading American design firm), specify a high-
hopes to enter. This process of “getting out of the recycled-content rainscreen product in a future
building” and “talking to people” is referred to as mid-rise building?”, the team would inquire about
Customer Discovery, an early step in learning past experiences: “Can you tell me about a recent
and validating the core assumptions behind a time you’ve selected a new rainscreen product?
business idea before heavy investment is made What was the team looking for and how did you
(Constable et al. 2014). The U.S. National Sci- rule out other options?” For an architect, the
ence Foundation (NSF) has adopted the EBE response may focus on a specific project where
methodology in its Innovation Corps (ICorps) various pressures of cost, design ambition, and
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing a Business Ecosystem 707

approval processes steered the cladding decision focused the efforts toward rainscreen facade
toward certain products and finishes. For a builder panels as the initial target application. A rain-
or installer, the questions may prompt stories screen facade assembly is an opaque, exterior
about installation issues, pricing challenges, or wall assembly in which an outer layer of finish or
back-and-forths between the builders and the cladding materials are held off the primary
design team to reduce risks posed by a new or weather barrier of the wall with an air gap of at
untested facade assembly. In these conversations, least 3/8″ (10 mm) between. Thus, the outermost
the purpose was to gather anecdotal evidence layer of rainscreen panels is not load-bearing but
from experienced professionals that could con- provides the primary aesthetic component of the
firm or challenge the assumed role Post Rock building facade. Half the architects and builders
could fill within the building industry. In aggre- the team interviewed in the first round referenced
gate, the interviews revealed patterns and ten- the widespread adoption of rainscreen technol-
dencies that pointed to the values, pressures, and ogy in certain regions of the United States,
pain points affecting material selection from dif- despite it being a more costly wall assembly than
ferent stakeholder perspectives. more typical wall assembly methods. While
Through these two programs, the team has rainscreens have been prevalent in European
conducted 150 interviews, 84 of which have markets for decades, it has experienced recent
engaged industry professionals believed to rep- growth in the U.S., in part due to new energy
resent the target customer (architects, developers/ standards for building envelope design. One key
owners, and builders), with the remainder rep- new standard for non-residential buildings over
resenting the broader product ecosystem (com- four stories high, ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard
petitors, manufacturers, engineers, material 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except
suppliers, building code officials, regulating Low-Rise Residential Buildings (ANSI/
bodies). Interviews were conducted primarily ASHRAE/IES 2019), require a continuous layer
over video conference and were not recorded to of insulation which is more easily and affordably
promote candidness and protect privacy. The achieved with a rainscreen assembly. Given the
researchers took thorough notes in a spreadsheet visibility of the rainscreen facade panels, many
that enabled key-word coding of responses and of the architects interviewed by our team cited
categorizing the interview subjects by stake- the need for a greater number of options on the
holder category. The following sections will market in order to differentiate their projects from
summarize the findings of these two rounds of that of others while meeting their project goals
customer discovery interviews and describe the (cost, sustainability, and durability being the
impact of these findings on the research trajec- most common). In terms of performance, rain-
tory. Finally, a few key interactions with relevant screen facade panels must withstand loads from
stakeholders will be shared in greater detail to wind and self-weight (a significant criteria for the
show specific models of circular and/or plastic design of attachment systems and substructures);
building material ecosystems that provide valu- the rainscreen material must hold up to UV
able insights into the challenges and opportuni- radiation; and depending on the building type
ties of pursuing a commercial product in an and location of installation, the panels must meet
industry that is notoriously resistant to change. certain tiers of fire safety and health regulations.
Of the thirty-two professionals interviewed in
the first round in 2018, 18 or more than half,
4 Applying Feedback Between were with architects and interior designers,
Field and Lab including architects at large international design
firms known for innovative buildings, mid-size
While other applications for Post Rock thermo- design-build firms, small boutique practices,
forming technology remain on the horizon, the LEED-driven corporate firms, and technology-
first stage of customer discovery interviews driven companies with alternative delivery
708 M. Miller et al.

Fig. 2 Column prototype installation, in group exhibition

(name withheld for anonymity) 2017

models. Six interview subjects represented

manufacturers of rainscreen or cladding panels Fig. 3 Heated mold in “slip-forming” configuration to
and three came from construction firms. Others produce hollow, monolithic components
included professional construction and reuse
associations, architecture journalists, and mate-
rial distributors. In addition to confirming the
rising use of rainscreen construction in the U.S.,
these “user groups” offered different points of
view on rainscreen products including finish
preferences, sustainability concerns, lead time,
compatibility with existing back-up systems,
ease of installation.
These insights informed the next phase of
prototyping, which shifted away from the prior
focus on monolithic casts and toward a modular
panel system that would integrate with conven-
tional facade construction. The largest Post Rock Fig. 4 Tests of modular mold configuration, 2019
prototypes at that time were large (48″–96″ or
122–244 cm in height), hollow components that color (Fig. 4). While the appearance and dura-
could make up a primary building element, such bility proved promising for architectural appli-
as a wall or column (Fig. 2). The fabrication cations, the process offered little control over
method used heated molds in an incremental important qualities including consistency and
manner similar to slip forming monolithic con- dimension of wall thickness, predictability of
crete structures (Fig. 3).2 One successful exam- surface appearance and mixture distribution.
ple produced through this early phase of With the new goal to produce panels that
prototyping is the “Tripod,” a freestanding could be easily lifted and installed by one person
assembly consisting of (3) 30″  30″  50″ and mechanically fastened to a third-party rain-
hollow, monolithic components connected by screen back-up system, the research team made
hardware. Its stone-like surface patterning resul- significant modifications to the fabrication pro-
ted from sand (40%) and a mixture of heteroge- cess. Modular, reusable molds constructed from
neous post-consumer polymer mix sorted for sheet aluminum and aluminum T-slot framing
were developed to minimize material waste in the
2
Fabrication process patented in the U.S, Mexico, and production of panels. The smaller mold size
Canada. allowed the team to utilize the department’s
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing a Business Ecosystem 709

six-axis Kuka robot, affixing the heated molds to would choose Post Rock over other options such
the arm so that the gravity-assisted flow of as UHPC, GFRC, or terracotta. Early on it
materials could be controlled during heating and became clear that this statement includes a
cooling. Successful prototypes (12″  12″  4″ number of untested assumptions. First, what tier
hollow blocks with ½″ walls) have been pro- or cost range of rainscreen product would a Post
duced using this process of widely varying Rock panel compare to? Would a Post Rock
mixtures (Fig. 4), including. rainscreen panel measure up to existing products
i. post-commercial regrind mixed poly- of a similar cost range in terms of safety and
ethylene and polypropylene and sand durability requirements? What metrics of sus-
(varying percentages from as little as 5% tainability are architects using to evaluate prod-
sand up to 60% sand) ucts, particularly those belonging to the facade
ii. 50% sand, 40% post-consumer polypropy- assembly? Given the varying exposures to risk
lene, 10% virgin polypropylene among project team members, are architects even
iii. 100% industrial shredded TPU (Thermo- the primary “customer” or are owners and
plastic Polyurethane) builders key decision makers to convey the
merits of a recycled-content rainscreen product?
The molds currently being developed will pro- This section will address findings from the
duce square panels with dimensions more closely second stage of customer discovery interviews
approaching that of rainscreen cladding, at and the shift from designing a product and pro-
20″  20″ (50  50 cm) with a thickness of 2″ cess to designing an ecosystem.3 The table below
(50 mm). breaks down the stakeholder categories of the
The pivot from many molds with unique 118 interviews completed between June 28 and
geometry to a limited set of reusable molds with August 12, 2021. (Note that this category tallies
modular dimensions also put emphasis on the add up to 127 because some interviews included
patterning of different colors and textures of the more than one interview subject and some
plastic ingredients as the primary options that interview subjects represented more than one
could be customized. Architects spoke about the category, for example, an architect who also acts
importance of a major finish material as having a as a zoning commissioner).
“story” or “narrative” that aligned with a pro-
ject’s overall sustainability messaging. With the Stakeholder category Interview count
possibility of aligning the feedstocks to different Architects 35
geographies of waste, Post Rock could not only Competitors 22
perform sustainably but also communicate a Building owners/Developers 15
story of material reuse through its heterogenous
Contractors 13
aesthetic.
Key partners 13
Engineers 10
5 Lessons on Building Circular Advisors 8
Ecosystems Material suppliers 6
Zoning commissioners 5
Having narrowed the target application to rain-
screen panels (Fig. 5), the team joined the 2021
NSF National ICorps Cohort with a new set of
hypotheses to test. The seven-week course
3
required a minimum 100 interviews. Primary Interviews were conducted under the condition that
proprietary information would not be published. This
among these hypotheses was the belief that
paper shares generalized conclusions derived from pat-
architects seeking a lightweight, customizable terns in interview responses. Any information linked to a
rainscreen panel with a sustainability narrative, person’s identity here is publicly available elsewhere.
710 M. Miller et al.

awareness of embodied energy in architecture

and other sectors. While improving the opera-
tional energy efficiency of buildings has been a
particular focus of sustainable design and con-
struction for over two decades, accounting for the
carbon impacts across the full life cycle of
building materials (resource extraction, process-
ing, manufacturing, transportation, and installa-
tion) has revealed some hidden environmental
costs of energy-efficient construction. A recent
study reports: “While the average share of
embodied GHG emissions from buildings fol-
Fig. 5 Post rock rainscreen panel designed to integrate
with existing wall assembly systems
lowing current energy performance regulations is
approximately 20–25% of life cycle GHG emis-
sions, this figure escalates to 45–50% for highly
Relevant insights from the interviews fall energy-efficient buildings and surpasses 90% in
within three related areas of further study: extreme cases” (Rock 2019).
sustainability, fire safety, regional resources. Increasingly, life-cycle assessments (LCAs)
Sustainability and Climate Change and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs)
Mitigation: The Post Rock team went into cus- serve as tools for quantifying the whole-life
tomer discovery with the belief that transforming impact of a building product and making this
plastic waste into a recycled product with a data accessible to decision makers across the
durable application would undeniably be (and be design and construction timeline. Material prod-
perceived as) sustainable. Not only did material ucts that support a “circular economy” are one
reuse divert waste from landfills, incineration, or way to reduce the negative impacts of construc-
more problematic disposal scenarios, the use of tion and the manufacturing sector that supports
non-virgin polymers would have a smaller car- construction but reporting frameworks that rely
bon footprint compared to newly processed and on “cradle-to-gate” LCAs do not always account
manufactured polymers. The majority of people for the costs and benefits of using recycled
interviewed cited sustainability as a driving content in place of virgin equivalents. The
concern for their work. Speaking to people across authors’ interviews with design and construction
architecture firms, construction companies, professionals revealed an uneven landscape in
engineering firms, and sustainable design con- terms of how embodied energy is influencing
sultants, the team heard a range of priorities from building product selections and construction
focusing on natural ecosystems to energy effi- approaches. With these methods still emerging,
ciency to human health. A number of certifica- major industry players with larger economic
tion platforms, such as U.S. Green Building capacity than smaller producers have an edge to
Council’s LEED score or Living Building Insti- perform the necessary studies and obtain third-
tute's Passive House Standards played a role in party verification. Aware of these issues, the Post
how professionals measured sustainable impact. Rock team has been working with potential
However, between interviews conducted in the suppliers of waste plastics to understand the
summer of 2018 and those conducted summer of availability and quality of data that would plug
2021, one focus area of sustainable design into transparent reporting of a Post Rock’s
became quite clear: there was a dramatic increase building product. Understanding upstream fac-
in mentions of carbon footprint. (Two out of 32 tors such as energy type and use, material com-
interviewees brought up building’s carbon foot- position, and processing and transport needs at
print in 2018 versus 42 out of 118 interviewees this early phase of commercialization can help
in 2021.) This change reflects a more general the team weigh decisions about supply that
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing a Business Ecosystem 711

would later impact the product’s global warming material to meet the needs of a project of this
potential values and other key impacts. scale.
Fire Safety Certification: While waste plastic Two key insights from this conversation
is seemingly an ideal construction material to include, first, the importance of building a team
reach carbon sequestration goals, the flamma- with experts who can fill gaps in the R&D pro-
bility of petroleum-based polymers raised con- cess, particularly when it comes to material
cern throughout the customer discovery process. engineering and fire certifications and secondly,
Polymer products are no stranger to construction the perceptions of plastic as a hurdle to wide-
assemblies with flooring, roofing, siding, decking spread adoption among architects and building
and other products commonly composed of owners. Following Kreysler’s model, the authors
thermoplastics, thermosets and composites. are establishing relationships crossing industry
Within facade assemblies, laminar products such and academia to conduct incremental studies of
as vapor barriers, insulation, weather-proof fire propagation behavior at a bench scale, well
membranes, and multi-material finish compos- before attempting NFPA 285 which is specific to
ites are an industry standard that obtain code an assembly, not a material. However, by using
compliance through the reliance on a non- waste thermoplastics, Post Rock differs from the
flammable surface material. Recent building fire virgin thermosets used in Kreysler’s panels. The
catastrophes, such as the Grenfell Tower in SFMoMA FRP panels included certain industrial
London and Torch Tower in Dubai, cite facade byproducts as flame retardants, in addition to the
cladding as the main catalyst for flame spread, presence of glass fibers, to slow down combus-
putting facade materials under increased scrutiny tion (Kreysler 2021). Our team aims to avoid
for their ability to propagate flame spread incorporating substances that undermine the
(Messerschmidt 2020). Compliance with carbon benefits of sequestering waste plastics.
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 285 Another “competitor” working through similar
and American Society for Testing and Materials commercialization issues, Netherlands-based
(ASTM) E84 was often cited as a major barrier to start-up Pretty Plastics was founded by architect
commercializing a polymer composite as a Peter van Assche and partners. Having first tested
facade cladding material. Along with that warn- their 100% recycled plastic cladding tiles on
ing, several interview subjects offered the interiors and a temporary pavilion, they have also
example of Bill Kreysler as proof that it could be had to reformulate their feedstocks to address fire
done. His fiber-reinforced polymer panels safety standards without having to use retardants
recently obtained the rigorous NFPA 285 certi- that would add too much weight, diminishing the
fication for use on the facade of the San Fran- knock-on benefits of using a lightweight cladding
cisco Museum of Modern Art extension. Having (Assche 2022).
started his career fabricating boats, Kreysler Reusing waste materials over virgin feed-
evolved his business model and material pro- stocks presents challenges with contamination
cesses to meet the needs of architects designing and consistency, but it also presents the oppor-
complex geometries. Snohetta’s design for the tunity of finding thermoplastic feedstocks that
SF MoMA extension relied on Kreysler’s FRP already have flame resistant properties. The fol-
panels to create the rippling white surfaces of lowing section describes the team’s process of
its enclosure while keeping the overall weight of forging regional connections with potential sup-
the building under a limit set by existing pliers of waste feedstocks.
foundations. The authors conducted a number Regional Resources: The previous categories
of interviews with various stakeholders involved addressed key features or properties to incorpo-
in the SFMoMA design and construction, rate in a market-ready Post Rock product to
including Kreysler. As a “competitor” and “ad- come. Anticipating embodied energy certifica-
visor,” his experience offered insights from his tions as well as fire safety certifications empha-
process of scaling up an experimental polymer sizes the importance of transparency throughout
712 M. Miller et al.

the product development. At this early stage One major automaker headquartered in
designing a recycled-content product, it became southeast Michigan has expressed interest in Post
clear that these “downstream” features or prop- Rock research as a potential end-of-life alterna-
erties (how the product would perform) will rely tive for waste plastics from their two production
on the “upstream” characteristics of the material facilities in the state. Like many major corpora-
supply chain (how the product’s feedstocks tions in the U.S., they have committed to a clean
would be sourced and processed). energy transition and to finding circular solutions
Following the intensive seven-week period of to reduce waste. One of the company’s chief
customer discovery interviews, which gave executives stated: “[Our company’s] zero-waste
insights into stakeholder needs at the user end of initiative aims to divert more than 90% of its
the life cycle (architects, builders, building manufacturing waste from landfills and inciner-
owners), the team shifted to focus on stake- ation globally by 2025” (Silverstein 2022).
holders representing the supply side of the value Under these initiatives, this company created a
chain (manufacturers, producers of waste plas- circular solutions department which is actively
tic). Located in the Great Lakes region, where the seeking creative solutions for a number of chal-
automotive industry has and continues to loom lenging waste streams. This department provided
large in the regional economy, the research team the research team with a list of over 100 different
has begun building relationships with potential plastic waste categories generated by its regional
suppliers of waste plastics. Automotive plastics, manufacturing activities, totaling 7000 metric
especially those used within the interior of the tons per month. Of this monthly amount, most is
car, have performance requirements driven by either reused internally or mechanically recycled
similar concerns as building codes. Like small via third-party recyclers. Approximately 10% is
building enclosures, motor vehicles contain incinerated for energy recovery. 200 metric tons
materials that come into close contact with of various plastic materials per month are land-
occupants and harsh exterior conditions. The filled. With input from engineers the Post Rock
minimum thresholds of health and human safety, team reviewed and evaluated this list of potential
UV resistance, and smoke and flame resistance feedstocks to determine whether any of these
for automotive plastics are parallel to those of the post-industrial polymer waste streams would
building industry. However, the metrics and meet the performance criteria needed for a
standards for automotive components are specific building cladding. The top five materials by mass
to that industry, primarily the National Highway include: PET, PPE, LDPE, HDPE, and PS. Based
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). To on preliminary analysis, the team has narrowed
predict whether a product made from plastic in on a few candidates of automotive polymer
recycled from, for example, a dashboard, would waste for further evaluation. By producing small
meet the fire-resistance requirements for a scale samples, preliminary fire-behavior data can
building cladding product (Standards ISO 5660– be obtained through cone calorimeter testing at
1:2015 and NFPA 271) would require translating third-party lab. This data will inform the final
between two separate industry-specific codes and feedstock selection and mix in conjunction with
standards. Most experts in fire-safety engineering other performance criteria for the panel.
are familiar with one particular industry, and one While more research and development are
consulted by the team advised that testing. This needed to refine the product, the work to date has
example sheds light on a larger barrier to more revealed a need (lower carbon façade materials)
widespread reuse and recycling of materials and an underutilized regional resource (automo-
across different sectors—a lack of coordination tive plastic waste) that could be addressed
among regulating standards, placing the burden through the creation of a new value chain.
of testing and proof-of-concepts on innovators Understanding stakeholder’s needs, both down-
(often small businesses and researchers). stream and upstream, at this early phase of
Post Rock: From Designing a Building Material to Designing a Business Ecosystem 713

commercialization allows the team to continue to experiences–whether evaluating, specifying,

adapt and refine its business model. Given the manufacturing, installing, or ultimately living
material characteristics of the recycled Post Rock with cladding materials–has not only shaped the
product itself, changes in the value chain are team’s research agenda but also provided a broad
changes to its visual and material qualities. The view into the level of cross-sector coordination
colors and textures would derive from the auto- needed for circular strategies to transform the
motive plastic feedstocks. Reflecting current design and construction industry.
trends in car design and marketing, this edition of Business development tools such as EBE and
Post Rock will revive some of the early design Customer Discovery were developed for entre-
goals, where the legible traces of various inputs preneurs, who by definition take on financial risk
would visually communicate a particular geog- in search of high profit margins. However,
raphy of waste. Moving upstream, engineers placing these methods in the context of a
from the automotive partner have suggested mission-driven design innovation empowered the
altering the material composition of their plastic Post Rock team to imagine other forms of risk
components if it improves its compatibility with and gain: environmental, social, aesthetic. Within
Post Rock manufacturing needs. This idea speaks research institutions, the process of identifying a
to the need to coordinate with stakeholders market fit for academic innovations is referred to
across value chain to improve rates of material as “commercialization.” For the authors of this
recovery by designing products and materials in paper, whose approach is more informed by
ways that anticipate future reuse. Design-for- design practice than scientific models of
disassembly principles have informed the devel- research, this process has become an important
opment of a more modular Post Rock panel, extension of architectural practice–defining ways
rather than custom shapes and components the for our work to be of service, and for whom.
team initially prototyped, so that the life of the Eschewing the paradigm of designer-authored
product could be extended before recycling singularity more common to architectural prac-
would be needed. tice, the Post Rock research initiative aims to
work with regional stakeholders to co-design an
upcycling ecosystem. In this way, the work can
6 Conclusion contribute to a larger effort changing building
practice at a scale commensurate with that of
In order to reuse one class of plastics in another plastic waste.
industry or application, a number of hurdles must
be confronted–hurdles that are not only technical
but also logistical and cultural. Extending the life References
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forming new relationships among committed dard for buildings except low-rise residential build-
ings. pp 45–53
stakeholders across different sectors. While pro-
Assche P (2022) Personal interview with peter von
totyping continues to be a valuable technique for Assche and Reinder Bakker by the authors
advancing the commercial potential of Post Rock, Beyond Plastics (2021) The new coal: Plastics & climate
evidence-based entrepreneurship has become an change
Churkina G et al (2020) Buildings as a global carbon sink.
important feedback channel to test the team’s core Nat Sustain 3:269–276. [Link]
assumptions. Customer discovery interviews s41893-019-0462-4
have also helped the team navigate the complex Constable G et al (2014) Talking to humans: Success
ecosystems around building material manufac- starts with understanding your customers
Corcoran P et al (2014) An anthropogenic marker horizon
turing, from supply chains to regulatory bodies to in the future rock record geological society of America
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Kreysler by the authors Geographic. [Link]
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[Link]/News-and-Research/Publications-and- Silverstein K (2022) Environment and energy leader: GM
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Grenfell. Accessed 3 Oct 2022 programs. [Link]
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[Link] circular-programs/. Accessed 7 Oct 2022
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 Circular Economy Principles
as Obstacles to Creativity?—A Study
of Architects’ Expectations
of Challenges and Opportunities

Mia B. Münster and Marie-Jo Gutenkauf

Abstract Danish architects whose job duties particularly

concentrate on artistic or creative work were
In the design phase, 80% of the environmental
interviewed. This study presents architects’
impact of products and services is determined. thoughts on how CE might impact their
The implementation of a circular economy creativity and discusses expected opportunities
(CE) has the potential to reduce waste and
and challenges related to considering CE in the
encourage the reuse of resources. A CE creative process. By contributing to research
enables firms to reduce pressure on the envi- on architects and the transition towards a CE,
ronment and stimulates the fight against
the project touches on two of the 17 United
climate change by adjusting the take-make- Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Goal
use-dispose paradigm to an approach that 11, which pertains to sustainable cities and
focuses on keeping materials in closed loops.
consumption, and Goal 12, which concerns
A significant portion of the environmental responsible consumption and production (Uni-
impact of products and services is determined ted Nations in The 17 Goals. Department of
in the design phase, which potentially gives Economic and Social Affairs, 2015).
architects, who are involved in the early stages
of the creative process, responsibility for Keywords
meeting sustainability requirements. It has
been claimed that sustainability requirements

Circular economy Creativity Design

may reduce creativity. Therefore, it is relevant


process Sustainability Architects
to investigate whether and how considering
circular economy principles in the design
phase will influence creativity. To investigate
and comprehend the influence that principles 1 Introduction
of CE may have on creative outcomes, 21
According to The European Commission (2018),
80% of the environmental impact of products and
Mia B.Münster (&) services is determined in the design phase.
School of Design, Polyu Design, Hong Kong A circular economy (CE) enables firms to reduce
Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong pressure on the environment and stimulates the
e-mail: mbmuens@[Link]
fight against climate change by adjusting the
M.-J. Gutenkauf take-make-use-dispose paradigm to an approach
Copenhagen Business School, Frederiksberg,
focusing on keeping materials in closed loops,
Denmark

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 715
M. R. Thomsen et al. (eds.), Design for Rethinking Resources, Sustainable Development Goals Series,
[Link]
716 Mia B. Münster and M.-J. Gutenkauf

ultimately reducing waste. The concept of a CE Implementing a CE in built environments is, in

is therefore seen as a new way of thinking about many regions, no longer just an option. From
business (Ellen MacArthur Foundation 2013). January 2023 onwards, it is expected that life
Both academics and policymakers agree that cycle assessments (LCA) will have to be carried
design plays a crucial role in the transition out for all new buildings over 1000 m2 in Den-
toward a CE (Moreno et al. 2016; The European mark (Indenrigs–og Boligministeriet 2021;
Commission 2018; Dokter et al. 2021). Since Arkitektforeningen 2022). Therefore, it is rele-
architects are involved in the initial phase of any vant to study how and whether architects can
design process, it has been argued that they are in think and work in a more circular manner without
a unique position to influence and implement compromising creativity and artistic design. This
new ways of building sustainable practices study explores the potential impact of CE prin-
(Ruiz-Pastor et al. 2021; Sumter et al. 2021). ciples on creativity, as revealed through inter-
Architecture shapes the everyday lives of views with 21 experienced architects whose job
people, keeping them comfortable, healthy, and roles primarily focus on artistic or creative work.
safe, but it also makes up a large part of the The paper explores architects’ experiences
world’s resources. As one of the most resource- with and expectations of including CE principles
intensive industries, the field of architecture has in their creative process, focusing especially on
enormous potential to impact a CE transition revealing whether and how the CE is seen as an
(Creative Denmark 2021). According to the obstacle to creativity. We do this by asking two
Circular Economy Action Plan, the built envi- questions: “How are CE principles expected to
ronment requires vast amounts of resources. The impact creativity in the design process?” and
construction sector accounts for about 50% of all “What challenges and opportunities do architects
extracted material and is responsible for over expect when implementing CE principles in the
35% of the EU’s total waste generation (The design process?” By answering these questions,
European Commission 2020). The designs of we aim to contribute to the research concerning
buildings are key to how they are used, their the transition toward a CE in the field of archi-
impact on their surroundings, and how long they tecture. Moreover, we expect the findings to be
remain fit for their purpose. Therefore, designing useful for management in architectural studios.
new buildings in line with CE principles is an The paper is structured into the sections: an
important way of implementing CE in the built introduction, the background, methods, results,
environment (Arup and Ellen MacArthur Foun- and a discussion with concluding remarks.
dation 2022). However, many architects, partic-
ularly those who are more experienced and have
been trained in the past, have not been educated 2 Background
on the application of CE principles.
Creativity is required to meet the demands of 2.1 The Circular Economy
clients or society in terms of both functional and and Architecture
aesthetic design solutions. Charter (2018) states
that designing for a CE requires thinking about Geissdoerfer et al. (2017) define the concept of a
how to enable CE principles in the early creative circular economy as follows: “A regenerative
stages of the design process. Previous research system in which resource input and waste,
suggests that the demands of clients or society emission, and energy leakage are minimized by
can be interpreted as restrictions by designers and slowing, closing, and narrowing material and
obstacles to creativity (Ruiz-Pastor et al. 2021). energy loops. This can be achieved through long-
Several studies also claim that sustainability lasting design, maintenance, repair, reuse,
requirements may reduce creativity (Collado- remanufacturing, refurbishing, and recycling.”
Ruiz and Ostad-Ahmad-Ghorabi 2010; Moha- Design certainly rests at the heart of the cir-
nani et al. 2014). cular economy. It requires redesigning, among
Circular Economy Principles as Obstacles … 717

other things, products, business models, cities, “idea validation,” which involves analyzing ideas
and the linear systems that have lasted for the against criteria for a task to ensure the usefulness
past centuries (Ellen MacArthur Foundation or appropriateness of the novel ideas emerging
2015). To support designing for a CE, several from the idea generation stage. Finally, the cre-
methods, tools, and frameworks have been pro- ative process ends with the “outcome assess-
posed. For instance, Bocken et al. (2016) devel- ment,” where decisions are made based on the
oped a framework of strategies that aims to results of the previous phase. The creative pro-
facilitate the shift from a linear economy to a cess applies to all degrees of creativity, from low
circular economy, defining terminologies of to high. The final level of creativity depends on
slowing, closing, and narrowing resource loops. the levels of these three factors of individual
Within the field of architecture, CE principles creativity and the extent to which each stage of
have been described as focusing on waste man- the process is completely realized.
agement and the reuse of construction and
demolition waste (Joensuu et al. 2020; Munaro
et al. 2020). According to previous studies, 2.3 Creativity Within a Circular
practices such as adaptive reuse, design for dis- Economy
assembly, design for repair, and remanufacturing
have been introduced to encourage CE principles Several studies have been performed on the role
within the field of architecture (ibid.). of designers in a CE. Sumter et al. (2021) iden-
tified key competencies for designers who spe-
cialize in design for CEs: circular systems
2.2 Creativity thinking, design for recovery, design for multiple
use cycles, circular business propositions, circu-
With creativity playing a crucial role in the lar user engagement, circular materials and
design process, theories on creative work and manufacturing, design impact assessment, circu-
processes are relevant to this study and will help lar economy collaboration, and circular economy
to understand the design process. Mumford et al. storytelling. Although creativity is implicit in
(2002) identified two different processes associ- these competencies, the study does not specifi-
ated with creative work: activities leading to idea cally mention creativity or examine the rela-
generation and activities needed to implement tionship between CE and creativity.
ideas. Furthermore, Csikszentmihalyi (1988) Münster et al. (2022) show how a specific
argues that conceptualization, meaning the group of designers and architects, those involved
identification of an unsolved problem, requires in retail and hospitality design, are motivated to
creativity and can be acknowledged as a creative engage in the transition toward a CE but express,
task itself. Regarding the creative process, among other things, a lack of knowledge and
Amabile (1983) introduced the componential systems and do not trust themselves to take a
model of creativity, which describes the stages of leading role in the transition toward a CE.
the creative process. As visualized in Fig. 1, the Without studying the creative process in detail,
first stage of the process is called “task presen- their findings indicate that designers see their
tation” and involves identifying the goal or creative abilities as strengths that could be
problem. This stage can be kicked off either by utilized.
an individual’s strong intrinsic motivation or by Some scholars have claimed that sustainabil-
an external source, such as an assignment from a ity requirements reduce creativity (Collado-Ruiz
project manager. The next stage, “preparation,” and Ostad-Ahmad-Ghorabi 2010; Mohanani
includes the preparation of a successful process, et al. 2014). Collado-Ruiz and Ostad-Ahmad
meaning a phase for building up knowledge, Ghorabi (2010) show that exposure to examples
skills, and other relevant information. The third of environmental information caused fixation and
phase is called “idea generation,” followed by reduced overall creativity in the idea-generation
718 Mia B. Münster and M.-J. Gutenkauf

Fig. 1 Componential model of creativity. Author’s creation, adapted from Amabile (1983)

process among students. The results of their with issues pertaining to sustainability and
experiment prove that detailed information sig- creativity. Our focus is therefore on understand-
nificantly reduces the creativity of design ideas, ing designers’ expectations within the context of
but that soft information, on the other hand, does their practice as opposed to instances and fre-
not. Mohanani et al (2014) shows that framing quencies of a particular response (Gioia et al.
something as a “requirement” may cause a fixa- 2013).
tion on requirements, where designers’ preoccu-
pations with satisfying explicit requirements
inhibit their creativity. 3.2 Participant Selection
A study of creativity and CE conducted by
Ruiz-Pastor et al. (2021) shows that the intro- An interview guide was designed and tested prior
duction of guided questions on CE principles to the interviews to enhance reliability (Yin,
during the design process leads to no significant 2003) and ensure that respondents would be able
differences in creativity or circularity. The to both understand the topics in focus and
indefinite results in these studies support the idea express their thoughts and experiences in their
that there is still a need for research on how to own words. Topics in focus ranged from former
foster creativity when designers are required to experiences with sustainability initiatives in a
be creative while considering CE. professional context to knowledge of CEs in
general, and finally to experiences and consid-
erations of involving CE in the creative process.
3 Method Respondents met all the following criteria:
they (1) had earned a degree in architecture from
3.1 Research Design an accredited institution, (2) had at least five
years of professional experience, and (3) worked
Given the explorative nature of this study, a in full-time positions as architects, either in a
qualitative approach was deemed appropriate design studio as in-house designers or as inde-
(Crotty 1998). Allowing architects to express pendent architects, (4) their job particularly
thoughts and experiences in their own words focused on the creative process or on creating
provides insight into possible ways of dealing artistic solutions, such as retail design, which is
Circular Economy Principles as Obstacles … 719

Table 1 Respondents interviewed in the study

# Gender Organization type Design expertise Experience (years)
1 F In-house Retail architect 5
2 F In-house Retail architecture 14
3 F Independent Interior architecture 15
4 F Design studio Interior architecture 13
5 F Design studio Interior architecture 18
6 F Design studio Interior architecture 11
7 F Design studio Interior architecture 5
8 F Design studio Interior architecture 10
9 F Design studio Interior architecture 13
10 M Design studio Interior architecture 14
11 M Design studio Interior architecture 24
12 F Design studio Interior architecture 13
13 M Independent Interior architecture 12
14 M Design studio Interior architecture 12
15 M Architectural studio Projects architect 25
16 F Architectural studio Lead architect & Project manager 20
17 F Architectural studio Project architect 10
18 F Architectural studio Project architect 20
19 M Architectural studio Project architect & Project manager 25
20 F Architectural studio Senior architect 15
21 M Architectural studio Architect, Partner 25

known for rapid turnover and a demand for where they work, indicate their seniority, and
constant renewal in order to stay relevant on the describe in their own words what they find
market (Münster et al. 2022), and interior important in their practice. The architects were
designers and architects employed in studios that asked whether they were familiar with the term
have a specific focus on artistic design solutions “circular economy” and were invited to view a
(Table 1). short, animated video introduction to CE (Ellen
MacArthur Foundation 2016), which they all
accepted. Afterwards, the interviews circled
3.3 Interviews around the architects’ experiences with applying
CE principles, followed by a discussion of
From spring 2020 to spring 2022, 21 semi- whether employing CE principles would limit
structured interviews were conducted. The creativity in their work.
interviews conducted in 2020 were online due to All interviews were recorded and transcribed.
the pandemic-related lockdown that required The interviews were coded afterwards, and
most Danish architects to work from home. The themes were identified. The findings are pre-
face-to-face interviews were conducted in the sented in accordance with the identified themes.
architectural studios where the respondents This limited sample is not intended to repre-
worked. Each interview lasted 30–60 min. As a sent all architects, but rather to offer insights into
warm-up question, the respondents were asked to considerations and obstacles associated with their
describe their current roles in the organization creative process.
720 Mia B. Münster and M.-J. Gutenkauf

4 Results rather than providing new insights, the findings

are only described briefly.
The architects interviewed had no or limited The findings related to opportunities will be
experience with implementing CE in practice; reported in Sect. 4.2 and are divided into five
therefore, our findings are based on the archi- themes that were identified: (1) fostering curiosity
tects’ expectations of the influence that CE might through a CE, (2) CE principles enhancing cre-
have on creativity. Due to the architects’ limited ativity, (3) constraints as idea generators, (4) eas-
practical experience with CE, limited examples ing consciences through a CE, and (5) architects
were provided on the impact on creativity in the as advocates.
different stages of the design process. However,
the participants emphasized that CE principles
should be considered as early as possible in the 4.1 Challenges of Implementing CE
design process. “We have to put it in as early as Principles in Designs
possible,” one participant said, and another one
expressed that “if it is to have any place on Earth, The findings suggest that most participants
I think you should start up with it because it’s a experience and expect barriers to applying CE
decision dealing with the client and with the principles, but rather than expecting the CE
contractor. And it’s a financial decision also.” principles to reduce creativity, the architects
Such claims suggest that CE considerations mentioned practical challenges to employing CE
should be part of the “task presentation” and principles. These challenges include a lack of
“preparation” phases identified by Amabile knowledge and skills, education on the choice of
(1983). materials, practical experience, and information
Most respondents highlighted their creative on costs. Another challenge mentioned is the
skills when describing their work and acknowl- lack of interest or motivation from clients. The
edged that creativity is required in their approach architects often expressed a certain degree of
to design: “I think it’s very important to be cre- dependency on clients for cues to include such
ative and to be a storyteller because that’s what principles in the design process. Moreover, the
architects create all the time,” or “I’d say cre- lack of industry power needed to enforce CE
ativity goes into all aspects of what we do.” principles often kept them from suggesting CE
In general, the architects interviewed considerations. This means that architects do not
acknowledged their role in the transition to a CE, feel authorized to present or implement CE
and while recognizing the challenges associated principles in projects and rely on legislators to
with that process, they showed enthusiasm and define common rules. Finally, several partici-
did not believe that their creativity would suffer. pants experienced difficulties in reusing certain
“There are lots of possibilities in it, and down components of existing buildings due to a lack of
the road, we will have to think along those lines storage.
because the planet’s resources will be used up at In terms of including circular economy prin-
some point. As architects, we are used to work- ciples in the design process, the participants
ing with restrictions in the design process, so I referred to CE principles as a requirement
don’t see that it’s a problem to do that.” alongside many other requirements added to the
In the following sections, the findings on the design process, which adds complexity to the
impact of a CE on creativity have been divided design process: “You [architects] have so many
into a section related to challenges and a section requirements, and every time you add a require-
related to opportunities. ment to the process, it gets more complicated.”
The findings related to the challenges will be Another participant said that “there are more
reported in Sect. 4.1. Since the findings in this constraints—process constraints or municipality
section were found to support former research constraints or authority constraints—than design
Circular Economy Principles as Obstacles … 721

constraints,” indicating that being an architect is Another architect put it this way and empha-
not only about being creative. This was supported sized that design is always about creating
by others, who said, “Architecture is a con- something new; therefore, considering new
strained form of art, in that we do have regula- requirements can be seen as inspiring rather than
tions, and we do have a budget most of the time.” limiting: “I think that design benefits from the
Although implementing CE principles in the idea of circularity and sustainability. It feeds
design process might be challenging, the archi- curiosity […], and, I mean, it underlines the idea
tects still viewed this task positively: that there is never a fixed solution. We cannot
“There are always new regulations coming just go with what we did before.”
along [that we must follow], and we are always Such expressions indicate that architectural
being challenged by clients. So, having to take design might benefit from CE principles, as new
one more thing in as one of the parameters for challenges stimulate architects’ curiosity: “We
how something is going to look, I don’t think are used to handling lots and lots of requirements
there are many architects who would see that as a and restrictions, so I see it purely as a possibility
problem. Of course, it will present some chal- for development. It could be really exciting.”
lenges, but probably mostly in terms of price As such, the constraints arising from circular
rather than the creative side, I think.” economy principles were, in most cases, per-
The seriousness of the reason behind the ceived as positive: “There are constraints, and
challenges was also clear to the architects, who everybody needs to accept these constraints and
mentioned that they, like everyone else, are take them in a positive way.”
obliged to fight climate change: “Everybody
CE as a Driver of Creativity
needs to accept these constraints and take them in
a positive way.” The participants mentioned that considering CE
In general, the architects acknowledged the principles can enhance creativity and that they feel
challenges and always mentioned opportunities stimulated by the principles. One architect said, “I
as well: “You can also take the constraints as think it could be a good chance for development.
something positive.” Another offered the fol- It would be inspiring,” indicating that the dis-
lowing thought: “It would be hard for me not to cussion of CE had triggered her creativity, and she
say that it [considering CE principles] is a limi- was already inspired to grapple with it.
tation, but it could also be motivating. Isn’t it Some mentioned that CE principles would
always like that? Other possibilities open up.” allow them to think in a different way and that it
might be stimulating to change their focus: “It is
possible that you can think of it in another way
4.2 Opportunities Arising […] I think you can get more creative.” Another
from Implementing CE respondent stated, “I think you need to embrace
Principles in Designs the circularity […] you should be happy about it
and not feeling constrained, but actually feeling
CE as Fostering Curiosity that it’s a driver. A positive drive.”
The participants expressed that CE principles go Constraints as Idea Generators
hand in hand with their artistic design approaches,
Architects acknowledged that there might be
as they develop the participants’ mindsets and the
challenges in the process, but they highlighted
way they work, reinforcing the curiosity needed
that they believed that the consideration of CE
for the artistic design. For example, one respon-
principles would generate new ideas: “It will
dent said the following: “I think that [including
challenge you to change your focus a little bit.
CE principles] truly goes hand in hand with this
So, in that respect, you can feel challenged, and
curiosity [that architects need], this way of
maybe you’re going to get a new idea.”
developing our mindset, and the way we work.”
722 Mia B. Münster and M.-J. Gutenkauf

Others described the link between constraints Architects as Advocates for a CE

and new ideas in the following ways: “It would
The architects acknowledged that they could
probably cause some problems, but it doesn’t
potentially have a central role in the transition
need to. Of course, it might be that a lot of ideas
toward a CE due to their involvement in the
get shot down because, oh no, we can’t do that—
early stages of the design process and their close
but it might also be that that leads us to other
collaborations with clients, contractors, and
things that we might not otherwise have thought
suppliers.
about.”
Architects become more, in my opinion, the puzzle
I see it as a possibility for development. With collectors; they collect all different industries
design, you are always working with limitations in together, and it’s important for the architects to
one way or another, so I see this clearly as a have a very clear vision of what we are creating.
possibility to develop in the right direction—but
also in the correct societal direction with respect to As such, architects could take upon them-
this. I see that as a huge benefit and also as a
selves the role of educating and consulting other
responsibility.
stakeholders about including CE principles.
Some mentioned that their clients would not have
Easing Consciences Through a CE
the time to look into the sustainability issues of
Another opportunity mentioned by the architects projects and that they would expect architects to
is that a CE could help ease their consciences provide information: “I know that they [the cli-
about the effect that architecture has on the ents] won’t look into it, and they want me to look
environment. Several architects expressed a into it.”
guilty conscience over the high level of resource Another architect suggested that architects
consumption and waste production associated who have worked with CE for a long time could
with their practice. For example, one respondent eventually become advocates for CE and guide
said that she still felt like a part of the problem: others, either as consultants or in the companies
“I would much rather like to be, you know, part where they work:
of the solution than part of the problem. And I
Actually, I could almost see myself as a salesper-
feel that I’m still a little bit too much part of the son [for a circular economy], selling the idea to the
problem by building new [structures].” brand I work for, because there definitely isn’t
Others directly mentioned that they had a bad anyone else in the company who is thinking about
these things.
conscience about their work: “I feel bad about
working in a profession that consumes so many Such advocates might be able to evaluate
resources. When we use natural stone, for design proposals and come up with suggestions
example, we use resources that will never be for alternative materials that would be more
returned to the environment from where we took sustainable. Or, as one respondent suggested,
them.” they could build up a library of materials from
The hope that CE could change that was buildings that have to be torn down: “A place
expressed by several architects. For example, “I where materials could be stored so that others
would really like it if my work didn’t leave me could use them—I would like that.”
with a guilty conscience. That would make me Architects would need knowledge and prac-
feel better about what I do.” And as another one tical experience with CE to educate other
said, “I definitely see it [CE] as a possibility for stakeholders, but the role of architects could
development. Personally, I think I would be involve convincing stakeholders of the value of
happier about my product if circularity was built the CE in the future and engaging with that
in from the start.” possibility.
Circular Economy Principles as Obstacles … 723

5 Discussion and Conclusion but more studies are needed to identify the pos-
sible impacts on creativity in the different stages.
The findings suggest that the participants were This could be done by studying architects as they
motivated, curious, and had a strong will to play a work through the different stages of the
role in the transition toward a CE. Our findings design process. The “task presentation” and
confirm former studies from scholars such as “preparation” stages are also stages in which
Dokter et al. (2021) and Münster et al. (2022) external factors, such as legislation, project
suggesting that more knowledge, systems, and management, and clients, are involved. This
legislation are needed, and that the market might indicates that the transition to a CE will not be
not always be ready for the transition to a CE. solved solely by the architects but requires a
However, our findings also indicate that creativity mindset shift among all stakeholders involved in
is not likely to suffer from considering CE prin- innovative projects. Further studies on collabo-
ciples. On the contrary, the interviewed architects ration between stakeholders are needed to
described their practice as “a constrained form of understand the impact of external resources on
art,” and their responses indicated that they were creativity.
trained to handle problems, deal with limitations, In conclusion, our study has provided insights
and still come up with creative solutions. Thus, into the potential impact of CE principles on
even without having much experience with han- creativity in the field of architecture, as revealed
dling the limitations that CE principles might through interviews with a small sample of
cause, it was obvious that the new constraints architects. Our findings suggest that CE consid-
triggered the architects’ creative minds during the erations may not have a negative impact on
conversations. It is therefore likely that consid- creativity, but rather may drive curiosity, cre-
erations of CE principles will not have a negative ativity, and generate new ideas. While the study
impact on creativity; rather, it is likely that CE supports previous research on the need for more
considerations will be seen as solutions that knowledge, systems, and legislation to support
architects would like to be part of. Besides the the transition to CE, it also highlights the need
environmental benefits, the interviewed architects for further studies to fully understand the impact
suggested that considering CE principles in the of CE on creativity in the different stages of the
design process might (1) foster curiosity, (2) drive design process. Additionally, it is important to
creativity, and (3) generate new ideas. The note that the transition to CE will require a
architects also saw CE as a way to (4) ease guilty mindset shift among all stakeholders involved in
consciences caused by working in a field that innovative projects, thus further studies on col-
intensely exploits natural resources. Finally, some laboration between stakeholders are needed to
architects suggested that knowledge of CE prin- fully understand the impact of external resources
ciples might (5) provide them with the opportu- on creativity.
nity to become advocates for CE, thereby
suggesting a new role for architects in organiza-
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