Christopher Zolli

Additive Manufacturing Reimagining The Build Process |Christopher Zolli| |John Defazio|

“ Through Means of Additive Manufacturing, one can reimagine the build process of Multi Family Residential construction. This technology coupled with strategic modular forms can effectively lower costs, construction delivery time, while increasing individualagency over ones home and community. ”

Philadelphia 2035 Lower North District Plan Philly 2035

|Lower North District Plan|

Focus Area

|American Street|

The Philadelphia planning commission identified Olde Kensington as a potential revitilzation point for lost industry within philly that will support and promote community growth around it while creating safer residential corridors. The focus area hopes to reinvigorate the old industry still present while providing new opportunities for development.

Program Abstract Olde Kensington |19122|

RSA-5 - Single Family Modular Row Homes

I-1 - Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Plant

IRMX - Multi Family Residential Ground Floor Commercial

I-1

Industrial

IRMX

Industrial Residential Mixed Use

RSA-5

Residential Single Family Attached

Situated along Cecile B. Moore Ave at the intersections of Germentown Ave, N 5th St, and N Randolph St. The main site looks to create a series of single family Modular Row homes, a Multi Family Residential with Ground floor Commercial, and a Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Plant that will support the construction process in the area.

Each site in itself is a point of revitilization, either being a vacant lot, abandoned, or a operating landfill. The proposed buildings hope to bring back the lost Industry within the area, increase the amount of residential units in a very high density area, and create commercial units for community use and investment.

Case Studies

SQ4D

Free Form

Thanks to unique design of Apis Cor’s 3D printer the structure of the building was built directly on-site without any extra assembly works. The total area of the building is 640 sq. meters, which is larger than the printing area accessible when the Apis Cor’s 3D printer is stationary.

However, the Apis Cor 3D printer is mobile and was moved around the construction site by crane.

Most additive manufacturing technologies, such as 3D printing, utilize support materials in the fabrication process.

Beyond the technical challenges of support removal, these materials are wasteful – increasing fabrication and processing time while impacting quality. This paper presents “Freeform Printing”, a novel design approach for 3D printing without additional auxiliary structures.

|Dubai|

|Chattanooga Tenessee|

Case Studies

SQ4D

Yhnova

Using their patented ARCS system, SQ4D over an eight day period printed a 1,900 SF home at the cost of $6000. Their ARCS system works on two rails with a printer moving in 3 degrees of motion printing everything from the foundations to the walls. Leaving a cavity to be filled with traditional MEP’s and eventually spray foam insulation.

The Yhnova project is to involve construction of a 5-room, round walled social housing building designed by architectural firm TICA. Using a mobile Robotic arm system to deliver the molding for the eventual concrete. This system introduces a level of freedom unseen in traditional gantry systems as far as allowable area for the printer to maneuver.

|Calverton, NY, 1900SF |

|Nantes|

Process Drawings Mixed Use Residential |Daylighting|

With an understanding of the current systems being employed in the industry, as well as the systems currently in develpment. I began to incorporate day lighting into the fundamentals of the design. These diagrams show the process of flipping the units sideways and incorporating light wells based on the buildings orientation. These give the opportunity for each unit to have daylight on every side, as well as day light to reach the deepest parts of the interior hallways.

Innovation Center |Scale|

The Tiering of the manufacturing plant is directly associated with the scale of printing, scale of the human users, and the ability to bring light directly into the furthest bays. Each tier creates a different level of height that allows for various scales of printing to occur, from small, to medium, and large.

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RSA-5 - Single Family Modular Row Homes - 16 Single Family - 61,440 SF Res IRMX - Community Center - Multi Family Community Complex - Ground Floor Commercial - 6 Floors - 554,785 SF Res I-1 - Large Scale Additive Manufacturing Plant - 26,300 SF

CMX-2 - Ground Floor Commercial - Child Care Center - 6 Floors - 76,560 SF

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Design Review | Master Plan Olde Kensington |Master Plan|

The Main objectives at this phase of the project were to cement down the main programatic elements and gain a firm grasp on the amount of site I had to work with. The master plan involved the creation of an Industrial Printing facility that would be the back bone for supporting the infil and on site 3d printed Row Homes and Mixed Use buildings,

Design Review | Constructon Methods IRMX

- Multi Family

I Beam

Column Printing

Using available I beam steal.

Columns are attached to the Footers in order to act as the backbone of each bay as well as the rails for the printer itself.

With the gantry system in place, each column slowly prints the outer layers while infilling the rest with more concrete.

Gantry System

Foundations Construction begins with typical foundations and footers laid for the structural columns to follow.

RSA-5

- Single Family Modular Row Homes

Tilt Down Printing Reversing of typical tilt down construction. Instead of fighting gravity, the printer is able to layer the main wall while constructing the vertical floors which will be post tensioned together.

Vaulted Structure

With the Foundations and Structural Columns in place, The 360 Degree gantry system is attached.

Once each column meets at the center of the bay, one printer takes over to form the ending vaulted system. This method makes use of free form printing to eliminate any support materials.

Tie Rods

Full Floor

Once form has been secured and tilted down, floors are tied together with post tension members in tubes formed by latticed concrete only possible with floor members tilted up right during layering process.

The base form for which current site printers work best.

Half a Floor

Modular Row Home

Deconstructing of floor to a manageable printing form.

With each layer stacked, the interier is built with traditional walls and methods.

Design Review | Program Plan Olde Kensington

|Design Program Plan|

Retail Commun

Retail

Retail

ity Progra

Retail

Amenit y Clinic

m

Study Sp

ace

Cafe Studio

Amenity

Daycare

Gym

Amenit y

Facility

Pharmac y/ Convenie nc

Rowho me 3 Story

3 Story

Rowho me

Printing

ant Restaur

Space

The main programatic elements are a mix of retail, building amenities, and civic minded programs that could create community gathering points around the idea of a maker culture. As well as targeting specific programs that were missing as identified in my site inventory research.

Technical Review | Program Plan Olde Kensington

|Technical Program Plan|

Printing Floor Innova tio Center n

Cafe

Daycare d/ un Playgro ity Commun Garden

Maker Sp

ess Busin r Cente

ace

Lobby Lobby

Lobby

Lobby Commer cial

Fresh Food Market

ant Restaur

Lobby

Pharmac y/ Conven ienc

Commer cia Kitchens l

Gym

Rowho me 3 Story

3 Story

Rowho me

Admin

Parking Complex

e Day Car

After the design terms final critique. I took the feedback and went back to the drawing board on the pedestrian routes and what part of the master plan should be the point of emphasis that these paths ultimately lead to. This version of the plan aimed for the same programatic elements of the first, but attempts to shift the focal point to the main intersection between the Innovation Center and the larger mixed use buildings across the street.

Technical Review | Building Plans

Tecnical Review | Wall Sections Light Well Section

Wall Section

Mixed Use Sections |Technical Diagrams|

Rain Screen Tie Rod 1” Air Gap Vapor Barrier

Drop Cieling 4” Interior Insulation 3/4” Drywall 2”x4”

One of the main efficiencies of additive manufacturing is the ability to create complex forms not just on the outside, but also the inside. Creating different infill percentages based on the structural needs of any given area within the building. These voids act as both an insulation factor but also added structural capacity.

4” Exterior Insulation Extruded Concrete 2” Floor Insulation Mech Gap

Extruded Air Gaps

The main light wells between each unit create intimate balconies for each unit. The tiering of the buildings also allow for integrated mechanical voids for lengths of ductwork, conduit, and piping.

Final Review | Program Plan Olde Kensington

|Final Program Plan| The final iteration of the ground floor has seen all the program of the commercial mixed use shift to a series of small Artisan Industrial. These can be small brewing facilites, bakers, pottery studios etc. Doing this was in part to gain an extra story by right through zoning. But more importantly to reinforce the Maker mentality of the site. |Ground|

|Typical|

|Roof|

|Ground|

|Typical|

|Roof|

|Ground|

|Typical|

|Roof|

The addition of Loggias create a more defined pedestrian street scape.

Coupled with stronger defined landscaping paths that branch off from the loggias openings connecting the different entrances to the commercial units.

Final Review | Construction Methods Printing Around Rebar

Pre - Fab Window Supports

Pre - Fab Bathroom Units

|Exterior Walls Step 1|

|Exterior Walls Step 2|

|Exterior Walls Step 3|

At this point in the building, the central structural nodes have been established with rebar coming up from solid pour locations. Using a Robotic arm system to make use of the mobility to print around the rebar support. The printer can mold the walls to create the mold for the later pour. The exterior walls in between will be printed at varying infill capacity to reduce on material Use.

When approaching usable windows where free form printing cannot achieve the desired form.

Functional pre fab windows are placed one the appropriate layer to then be printed in place and act as supports.

To make use of finder detailed printers that can print at lower layer heights for increased detail. Pre fab bathroom units are dropped into place just before the next floor is poured.

Final Review | Construction Methods Shafts

|Interior Wall Step 3| The 2’ offset of each unit creates a flowing shaft that seperates the unit from the corridor. The resulting form is both visually intriguing and forms a unqiue rythm on each floor.

Drywall | Raised Floor

|Interior Wall Step 2| After traditional framing methods are employed. A raised floor system is installed to allow for MEP runs throughout the apartment to not obstruct the cieling creation.

Framing

|Interior Wall Step 1| Traditional framing methods are employed once the roof system is complete.

HVAC Perferations |Exterior Wall| As the printer creates the exterior walls, it can accomodate in built ventialation for HVAC units through latic like structures.

Final Review | Construction Methods Roof Membrane

|Floor Slab Step 5| Once the final floor is poured, the Roof membrane is installed to complete this module.

Final Slab

|Floor Slab Step 4| using the lights as a method of creating a topo esque map of the lighting. The final form takes on a waffled slab structure with rebar reinforcement.

Pre - Fab Cieling Trays

|Floor Slab Step 3| Using reusable plastic based extrusion methods.

The nearby Innovation center can make reusable forms for different modules that can incorprate MEP needs in interesting and unique ways.

Light Connections

|Floor Slab Step 2| As a means of streamlining wiring of the unit, each light recieve a conduit run that is imprinted into the

Lights

|Floor Slab Step 1| As a starting point, the lights are laid out within the

Final Review | Views

Final Review | Views

Final Review | Views

Final Review | Views

Feedback | Observations | Reflections Feedback

|Large Capacity Block| + The project demonstrated forms only feasible through the proposed method of additive construction + The type of materials explored here is just the beginning of what you can do. + Creates spaces unlike that seen anywhere else in Philadelphia -/+ The project would have benefited from sooner focus on one method and program typology -/+ The plans are less important than the explanation and exploration of the technology

Observations

|Large Capacity Block| The most compelling observation came about after rigorous thought experiments and prototyping using my own 3d printer. I came to the conclusion that no one method I was researching could complete the project as I anticipated. In fact the technology as it is today cannot hope to come close to being robust enough to make such a project feasible. It was this Observation that pushed me to further dovetail traditional methods and explore how additive manufacturing can enhance these processes instead of replace them.

Reflections

|Large Capacity Block| My original expectation for the project was to fully construct a method for the creation of a printing facility, a modular row home, and a mixed use mid density residential complex. These would all be fully constructed by various 3d methods.

In hindsight I should have constrained myself to tackling one of the three separate program buildings, Factory, Row Homes, and Mixed Use versus trying to design them all in tandem. If I had focused on type, and the one method of construction I would have come to my final conclusions quicker and had more time to develop the communal portions of the building both on the ground floor, and the typical residential floors. To this same end, the projec