Eggshell Pavilion - ultra thin printed formwork

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In the second 11-week module of the second trimester of the MAS ETH in Architecture and Digital Fabrication, we will explore the application of ultra-thin 3D printed formwork for concrete to create a pavilion.

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Based on Eggshell, an ongoing Gramazio Kohler Research project, the MAS ETH in Architecture and Digital Fabrication will fabricate a concrete pavilion. The objective of the course is to explore the use of ultra-thin 3D printed formwork to create optimised, material-efficient concrete structures. The pavilion will exemplify how the Eggshell technology can be used as an industrially scalable system in a real-world construction context.

 

The Eggshell technology aims at realising structural concrete elements that use less material than conventionally built elements. It uses robotically 3D printed ultra-thin formworks filled with a set-on-demand concrete to minimise formwork pressure, allowing for high geometric freedom while using conventional steel reinforcement. Previous research demonstrates that Eggshell can be used to fabricate columns, as well as floor slab elements with material savings of over 40%.

 

The realization of this pavilion will show the potential of digital fabrication for concrete construction, paving the way for industry adoption. Through the project, students will be applying how computational design workflows, as well as digital fabrication technologies, can be used to create a 1:1 architectural space.

 

Eggshell Research project, Zurich, 2017 – ongoing, Gramazio Kohler Research, Chair of Architecture and Digital Fabrication, ETH Zurich 

​In cooperation with: Physical Chemistry of Building Materials group (Prof. Dr. Robert J. Flatt), Concrete Structures and Bridge Design (Prof. Dr. Walter Kaufmann), IWK Institut für Werkstofftechnik und Kunststoffverarbeitung (Prof. Daniel Schwendemann)

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Eggshell Pavillion, Zurich, 2022

 

Tutors: Joris Burger (project lead research), Petrus Aejmelaeus-Lindström (project lead teaching), Guillaume Jami, Seyma Gürel Saydam, Philippe Fleischmann

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Selected Experts: IWK Institut für Werkstofftechnik und Kunststoffverarbeitung (Prof. Daniel Schwendemann), Marc Akermann

In cooperation with: Nicolas Fehlmann Ingénieurs Conseils SA, Dr. Filip Niketic

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Sponsors: NFIC, Müller Steinag, Holcim, Debrunner, SACAC, ABB

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Final critique : 9th of June 2022 14:00 - 18:00

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