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This article presents a new method for the production of disposable carbon fiber formworks for the casting of reinforced concrete columns. The desired three-dimensional object can be made by the robotic hot wire cutting of polystyrene, thus generating the shape around which the carbon fiber is deposited. The manufacturing technique is the so-called filament winding, where the polystyrene shape—obtained through hotwire cutting—is wrapped in fiber tape and then undergoes a curing process, which returns the carbon geometry in solid form. At the end of the process, the final piece of carbon is obtained by dissolving the positive polystyrene mold with a solvent. This gives rise to a production method capable of creating geometries that cannot be achieved by other means. The choice of creating disposable fiber formworks for concrete castings has considerable advantages: the possibility of creating structural elements with complex geometries that cannot be obtained by means of traditional formworks or other materials; saving of time in the casting phase and the advantage of not having the de-casting phase; facilitating the positioning of formworks and other structural elements thanks to the reduced weight of the material; the possibility of having always different geometries and a finish with a high aesthetic value and functional performance. The combination of concrete and carbon fibers offers above all considerable advantages from the structural point of view. The formwork not only has the function of giving shape to the finished element but also becomes a collaborator for static purposes. If used for pillars, the carbon fiber formwork has the function of a hoop, which makes it possible to obtain columns with the same static capacity but with lower sections and the elimination of the transversal reinforcement.

With the emergence of a new materialism in architecture and as a result of the ongoing advancements in digital technologies, computer numerically controlled (CNC) fabrication and 3D-printing are rapidly gaining popularity within the building construction industry. Robots, CNC machines, and algorithmic programming allow us to create new construction systems and innovative designs that otherwise might not be possible. This chapter analyzes adaptive and flexible systems that facilitate the design and the production processes of mass-customized building components through digital fabrication and assembly. The aspiration is to achieve morphological complexity and performance in material constituents: an engineering computational design process that envisions a sustainable built environment, with higher-level functionality and higher-level integration between material system and environment.

Office buildings in contemporary architecture usually have a high value of window to wall ratio (WWR) determining transparent facade as the most important part of the building facade to control solar gains, thermal losses and visual comfort. Therefore, in order to fulfill strict National energy regulations and LEED requirements, facades require a proper balance between transparent and opaque or shaded surfaces to avoid overheating, optimizing daylighting aspects and outdoor perception. Concrete is usually used in building sector for primary structure or secondary structure of cladding solutions. With new concrete materials and innovative digital fabrication process is possible to rediscover concrete for high performance facade/shading solutions. The aim of this paper is the development of high performance concrete static shading system using computational design approach and its optimization, by genetic algorithms, based on several parameters such as radiation control, outdoor view and daylight indexes and energy performance. After the development of a geometry definition managed with a parametric modelling approach (Rhinoceros and Grasshopper), genetic algorithm optimization were used in order to define the openness's sizes and their cutting angle to minimize solar radiation entrance during year, maintaining outdoor view. The possible geometric alternatives were part of a sensitivity analysis with Radiance and Energy-plus engine to assess the shading system performance in terms of daylighting and energy use. In order to evaluate their performances a study case, a single office unit placed in Milan (Italy) was defined, considered with wall facing outdoors, having a WWR of 86%, and five surfaces adiabatic. The results shows that using this approach is possible to develop an effectiveness shading solution able to control radiation over the year and likewise guarantee a high performance regarding the outdoor perception and visual comfort.

Thanks to the growing awareness of the integration of design, material, and production process, and thanks to increasingly widespread digital technologies, new perspectives for the construction industry and new opportunities for designers and system integrators are emerging. The key players of this scenario are industrial robots, manipulators that move along programmed paths and process any material with precision and speed.

The research project presented in this paper investigates the architectonic and constructive potential of computational design and digital fabrication in steel construction. The original contribution of this project is the development of a digital design system that solves reciprocal interlinked structures through algorithmic design and iterative processes. The system is implemented with parametric definitions that optimize the mass-customization process for laser tube technology. In order to validate the assumptions, a mock-up has been realized out of stainless steel elements. The tubes are cut by a laser-tube robotic system, then manually assembled.Copyright © 2014 by ASME