Clothing for Buildings ?

Members of both the façade engineering and materials consulting teams at Arup were recently involved in an innovation workshop with MaDE (Materials and Design Exchange) and the façade contractor Frener & Reifer. Invited guests were asked to discuss priorities for future materials re-use: is it possible to design facades that are economical to dismantle at the end of their life ? Can we create a ‘clothing’ system for buildings by creating closed loop facades ? What innovation in design, materials, and business models might be necessary to create a step change ?

This workshop was part of a long-term goal to make the end of life process for building facades more sustainable, through the effective application of design and materials. Previous research activities include the teardown of a model facade at Frener & Reifer, to identify opportunities and issues for component and material re-use, and visits to building demolition sites and material recycling facilities to understand current waste streams practice.

If you are interested in the possibilities and would like to attend further workshops, please email Facades-UK@arup.com.

kristian.steele@arup.com

Double Space for BMW: Precision & Poetry in Motion

Designers, Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby, have collaborated with BMW to create a remarkable and memorable experience at the V&A. Arup is once again making an engineering contribution to the London Design Festival and the challenge for 2014 has presented a dichotomy as the piece is a contradiction, both spatially and physically. The two conjoined sculptures have a huge presence, each spanning over 15 metres, rotating within the large volume of the Raphael Gallery; their reflectivity causing a distortion, expansion and compression of the space that they inhabit.

Stefan Marinitsch, Project Manager for Arup, stated, “The choice of aluminium to form the structure and its skin reflects the engineering needs to limit the weight of the art-work to an absolute minimum. This complements BMW’s ambitions to increase efficiency by reducing the weight of its products”.

The sculpture can be viewed in the Raphael Gallery from 13th September to 24^th October 2014.

stefan.marinitsch@arup.com

Is the Street a Stage ?

Thomas Pearson from the London facade team recently presented 'Is the Street a Stage ?' to an industry audience as part of the 'Breakfast with Arup' series.

Thomas reflected on the importance of the façade to the streetscape, historically and in contemporary architecture and explored how façades contribute more to the life of the city when designed to age well and be adaptable.

A video of the talk is available here which also includes thoughts from some of the audience.

thomas.pearson@arup.com

Engineered Skins 2014 at the University of Cambridge

Ed Forwood was delighted to give the keynote speech at Engineered Skins 2014. The conference examined recent developments in glass and façade engineering research and was hosted at the University of Cambridge and attended by industry, design and academic professionals.

Ed demonstrated how the engineering behind modern iconic building skins has become increasingly sophisticated, driven by progressively complex architectural forms and the performance expectations of clients and building engineers. He presented a range of Arup’s past, present and future projects, explained how the engineering of façades has developed over the last 20 years and explored how building envelopes may evolve in the coming years.

ed.forwood@arup.com