The Fabricate 2014 international conference was held in Z\u00fcrich, from February 12 -14. Architecture researchers and practitioners explored and discussed the impact of digital design and fabrication processes on architecture, engineering, design, construction, manufacturing, software and material design.<\/p>\n
Session chair Professor Philippe Bloch (ETH) presented the outcome of design build workshops conducted in Australia with Architect Melonie Bayl-Smith, (Universtiy of Technology), Tim Schork (Monash Art Design and Architecture).\u00a0Additionally, the D1 tower in Dubai designed by Australian firm Innovarchi was presented by German architect Hanno Stehling from Design to Production, showing new parametric driven fabrication of the four timber canopies skirting the tower.<\/p>\n
I attended the conference and caught up with University of Technology\u00a0(UTS) Adjunct Professor Melonie Bayl-Smith:<\/p>\n
JC:<\/strong> <\/span>The work of quite a few Australians were presented or mentioned at\u00a0the ETH Fabricate 2014, including yourself, Dave Pigram (Supermaneouvre),\u00a0Innovarchi and Danny Hills\u2019 product ‘FormaTech’. Why do you think that\u00a0innovative products, projects and fabrication work is being presented\u00a0internationally but not locally?<\/p>\n MBS:<\/span><\/strong> To be honest, I\u2019m not sure how much more \u2018digitally engaged\u2019 other\u00a0countries or regions are than Australia. But it\u2019s true that projects and\u00a0people interested in digital experimentation seem to receive little\u00a0credence beyond interested individuals, informed academic institutions\u00a0and manufacturers. Perhaps this is because in Europe, the key makers of\u00a0the machines and robots utilised in such experimental making and\u00a0fabrication are local, and therefore have more immediacy and\u00a0accessibility for support and R&D activities. Also, the building\u00a0industry is notoriously conservative, so novel explorations and\u00a0experimentation are often treated as an oddity unless proven to deliver\u00a0\u2018knowable\u2019 benefits in the construction process.<\/p>\n JC:<\/strong><\/span> How do you see the topic of ‘fabrication’ being re-integrated with architecture education in Australia when the focus at some of the\u00a0Architecture schools are on urban design and planning?<\/p>\n MBS:<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>I\u2019m not sure fabrication was ever integrated in the first place,\u00a0but certainly on the whole, architecture schools in Australia could take\u00a0a more innovative, integrated approach to teaching construction and\u00a0making to architecture students. This could occur via more design\/build\u00a0studios piggy-backed with research intents, live projects with real\u00a0clients and detailed modelling electives and workshops. Fabrication has\u00a0a wide scope for application beyond the shiny pavilions that are often\u00a0seen as the epitome of \u2018digital fabrication\u2019.<\/p>\n JC:<\/strong><\/span> Some of the large scale, well funded architecture practices in\u00a0Sydney don’t have space to make models, let alone the prospect of a\u00a0fabrication lab or workshop. Do you think architecture practice in\u00a0Australia can regain some of the lost knowledge of ‘design through\u00a0making’ by investing in this?<\/p>\n MBS:<\/span><\/strong> The capital cost of basic digital fabrication equipment, plus\u00a0training staff and having a place to house an in-house fablab are often\u00a0raised as barriers to establishing such facilities, particularly within\u00a0architectural practices. However, design through making extends the\u00a0architect\u2019s range of expression and design processes and coupled with\u00a0digital fabrication techniques can assist in producing quick prototypes,\u00a0models or experimenting with new materials or design ideas. I can see\u00a0that where the larger practices have established in-house studio or\u00a0research groups that \u2018fablabs\u2019 are the next logical step to support\u00a0built projects.<\/p>\n JC:<\/strong><\/span> Should the architecture practices in Australia start their own\u00a0‘fablabs’ and engage the public in the making of architecture?<\/p>\n MBS:<\/strong><\/span> Seeing the success of the MIT \u2018Fablab\u2019 network across the world\u00a0proves the opportunity provided by these facilities to connect and\u00a0building bridges with the general community. With an innate spatial\u00a0sensibility and the opportunity to \u2018spread the word\u2019 about expertise\u00a0that architects wield, it would be hard to see how local \u2018fablabs\u2019 could\u00a0go wrong in furthering the causes of good design, a respect for making\u00a0and exposing architecture to new markets and users.<\/p>\n Fabricate 2014 is organized in cooperation with the Bartlett School of\u00a0Architecture, University College London and was hosted by the Chair of\u00a0Architecture and Digital Fabrication at ETH Zurich.<\/p>\n Janine Campbell.<\/p>\n Image: Fabricate 2014.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Fabricate 2014 international conference was held in Z\u00fcrich, from February 12 -14. Architecture researchers and practitioners explored and discussed the impact of digital design and fabrication processes on architecture, engineering, design, construction, manufacturing, software and material design. 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