DESIGN // DIARY 02
FREDERICK MAWHOOD
ASSIGNMENT 04
1 ASSIGNMEN T 04 ABANDONED PUMICE MATERIAL Whilst the operation was shut down when the island was declared to be a UNESCO world hertitage site there is still a large amount of already mined pumice material lying in piles across the mountainside with the necessary infrastructure needed to extract and transport it already in place. It would be nice if my project somehow made use of this material and linked Milazzo and Lipari together.
CONCRETE GRAIN SILOS Currently occupying the Milazzo site is the abandoned Molini Lo Presto flour mill which has been left to rust and decay for decades. The old facility is sprawling, but by far the most iconic and interesting space is the room containing the huge concrete silos previously used to store grain. My proposal should retain these structures and find a way to use them within thebuilding’s program.
KEY OBSERVATIONS INFORMING A RESPONSE TO SITE
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DECLINE IN MANUFACTURING SECTOR The abandoned flour mill is just one of many such facilities that have closed along Milazzo’s waterfront as a result of Italy’s struggling manufacturing sector. Companies have begun outsourcing their labour to cheaper countries and because of this many people in the area have lost their livelihoods. My proposal could help to reverse this trend if it were to bring a new type of manufacturing process to the area.
DILAPIDATED WATERFRONT APPROACH The old mill radiates a very large and important presence along the waterfront and is located very near to the busy ferry terminal which brings tourists to the island during the summer months. However, the area is very run down, with a chaotic road system and concrete parking area occupying what could be an engaging public space by the sea. My proposal should take this approach into account.
3 ASSIGNMEN T 04 During my research I stumbled across the Italian entreprenur Enrico Dini who, after the shoe factory he was working in closed down, invented his own 3D printer called D-Shape which he has been using to print large scale stone sculptures with sand from local quarries. His printer has the capability to produce a 6x6m print and is a relatively simple device to use, depositing layers of powder onto a flat surface before applying a bonding agent to solidify the form. After discovering Enrico’s story I realised that it resonated with many of the observations that I had made during our study trip to Italy and a concept began to form in my head. I could use the abandoned pumic stone from Lipari and, in conjunction with the D-Shape printers, create a new manufacturing environment in Milazzo and attempt to restore and regenerate the declining industrial facility on site.
ENRICO DINI & D-SHAPE 3D PRINTING INVESTIGATING A NEW MANUFACTURING PROCESS
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CONCEPT COLLAGE 1 - RESPONDING TO DECLINING INDUSTRY 3D PRINTING AS A NEW & SUSTAINABLE MANUFACTURING PROCESS FOR MILAZZO
Once the second biggest manufacturer of goods and home appliances in Europe, years of financial turmoil and outsourcing to cheaper countries has led to a collapse in the manufacturing sector for the region, with as much as 15% of total capacity completely destroyed. Milazzo epitomises this struggle, with abandoned grain factories and manufacturing facilities dominating it’s once booming waterfront, creating a rather neglected skyline greeting tourists visiting the city in the Summer. I am proposing a new, modern manufacturing industry for the city, one which requires little infrastructure and one with huge potential for the future. Many countries across the world are starting to invest in this new technology and my proposal would create a new and exciting future for Milazzo as a leader of the 3D printing industry in Europe, encouraging younger generations to stay in the region whilst also generating new jobs, infrastructure and tourism.
CONCEPT COLLAGE 2 - CONNECTING THE SITES USING STONE FROM THE ABANDONED PUMICE MINE IN THE PRINTING PROCESS
RAW PUMICE STONE COLLECTED FROM MINE
GROUND INTO PUMICE SAND & MIXED WITH BONDING AGENT
LIPARI
AEONIAN ISLANDS
MILAZZO
SICILY
PROCESSED INTO A 3D STONE PRINT USING D-SHAPE PRINTER
The island of Lipari is home to a vast pumice mine which has been abandoned since 2000 when the Aeolian Archipelago was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. The volcanic nature of the region has produced many valuable materials such as pumice stone and obsidian which has been used in construction processes since the early Roman Empire discovered their desireable qualities. Pumice aggregate, in particular, has a long history of being used in the manufacture of light structural concrete, appearing in projects as diverse as the Pantheon in Rome, and deep-sea oil rigs. Although continued mining on the island has been banned, the site still contains a vast quantity of mined and processed pumice stone, aggregate and sand which I can use as the primary material in the 3D printing processes taking place within my proposal. The left-over materials can easily be processed and cleared from the site, before being taken down to the beach and loaded onto container ships bound for Milazzo. Not only does this benefit the island by clearing a relatively dangerous site, it will also generate capital which could be used in future developments on the land.
CONCEPT COLLAGE 3 - PRESERVING ITALY’S CULTURAL HERITAGE 3D PRINTING COMPONENTS TO REPAIR MONUMENTS DAMAGED BY EARTHQUAKES
One of Italy’s biggest yearly expenditures is repairing historical monuments and artifacts damaged by frequent earthquakes in the region. 3D printing replacement parts for damaged artifacts across the region is a cheap and efficient way of cutting down on expensive restoration projects and a way of creating a new industry for Milazzo in the process. Aswell as printing replacement components for the region, 3D printing could also be an effective way of archiving, storing and documenting important exisitng relics by scanning and replicating them, thus preserving Italy’s heritage for years to come. Not only will my building create a new industry for Milazzo, it will also create a new way for tourists to enjoy Italy’s cultural heritage, transforming Milazzo’s waterfront into an organic, evolving museum for the region.
SKETCHES & DEVELOPMENT
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