Description:
Over the past few years, sustainable building materials have gained in popularity as environmental costs associated with concrete and steel construction projects have become increasingly apparent, a fact that is reflected in the Paris Climate Agreement, which aims to achieve a carbon-free environment by 2050. Achieving this objective is only possible by actively using building materials with a low amount of embodied carbon. As forests store a significant amount of the planet’s carbon, using carbon sequestering materials such as wood is an attractive alternative option. Nevertheless, the ongoing supply chain crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has negatively impacted all sectors of the forest products industry. A persistent and escalating issue of inefficiency exists in the wood supply chain, which negatively affects logging operations that supply wood to mills as well as production delays and interruptions in delivery of goods to customers. Consequently, wood products have experienced dramatic price increases as a result of these inefficiencies. It is evident that advanced reciprocal frame structures can assist in an industry where there is a need to accomplish more with less resources. Material consumption can be reduced, accuracy can be increased, and cost-effective solutions can be provided by these structures. This paper investigates the potential of utilizing robotically fabricated, doubly curved, reciprocal frame structures as an alternative solution to the problems of global climate concerns and supply chain issues.



















Client: Ontario Place Corporation
Funding: Government of Ontario, Mass Timber Institute, University of Toronto
Location: Trillium Park, 955 Lake Shore Blvd W, Toronto, ON M6K 3B9
Lead Collaborators: Nicholas Hoban, Rahul Sehijpaul, Shannon Hilchie, Brady Peters
Student Collaborators: Nermine Hassanin, Cameron Manore, Elham Khataei, Zhenxiao Yang, Selina AlMadanat, Renee Powell-Hines, Meera Thomas, Liam Cassano
Support Collaborators: Zachary Mollica, Paul Kozak
Photographs: 6ix Films Productions