Terramia
The Terramia pavilions are innovative emergency housing prototypes, uniquely combining digital fabrication and natural, local materials. The project consists of three doubly-curved shells, constructed from a bending-active formwork of locally sourced bamboo culms and CNC-cut jute fabric, and sprayed with a clay/sand mortar mix, reinforced with rice husks, an agricultural byproduct. The lifting and releasing of the jute fabric, the external spraying of the mortar, and blowing of additional rice husk was executed by aerial drones, thus avoiding any need for ladders or scaffolding. Summum provided parametric modelling and structural engineering, and supported the design process as well as construction on site.
Stephanie Chaltiel, of MuDD Architects, Barcelona, has been investigating the use of digital technologies in conjunction with earth construction, with research developed through the Innochain network. One of the outcomes is the ongoing “bioshotcrete” project, which borrows principles of shotcrete and wattle and daub while using exclusively natural local materials and making the most of robotic and drone technology. Large robots or drones are deployed in order to spray different layers of clay mix (daub) on a lightweight formwork (wattle). The work is continuing in the form of increasingly ambitious applied workshops and prototypes. The use of wattle and daub poses challenges in the context of contemporary building codes and construction practices.
For the Isola Design District, part of the Salone del Mobile or Milan Design Week, 9-14 april 2019, Chaltiel has been invited to design and construct three pavilions, based on her winning competition entry, demonstrating innovative emergency housing prototypes, and based on her ongoing research on bioshotcrete. The pavilions are located in the inner courtyard of the Regione Lombardia Headquarters in Milan. The structures highlight that affordable and fast construction method can lead to quality housing, and transform emergency housing from typically lightweight fabric into a system that is robust and durable. Summum Engineering was invited by, and collaborated with MuDD architects and CanyaViva during the design and development process, provided the structural engineering for the pavilions, and assisted during construction on site.
Video
Services: Structural design and engineering, parametric modelling, construction
Fast Company, June 3rd, 2019 | Drones spray could spray your next house out of a hose
Designboom, May 30th, 2019 | MuDD architects uses drone spraying to build ‘Terramia’ housing prototypes
Elle Decor, April 14th, 2019 | Una squadra di droni-architetti atterra in mezzo all’Isola Design District
Previous press
Dezeen, October 2, 2018 | Mud-spraying drones build prototype for emergency homes
Domus, September 28, 2018 | Stephanie Chaltiel. Building with drones and earth
Dezeen, August 29, 2018 | “Drone spray” architecture and Vitra furniture to feature at designjunction 2018
Team
Main sponsors
Regione Lombardia, Italy
Minerali Industriali, Italy
MuDD Architects, Spain
Client
Gabriele Cavallaro, Maria La Piana | Blank, Italy
Concept and research
Stephanie Chaltiel | Innochain
Design and modelling team
Stephanie Chaltiel, Fabio Gatti | MuDD Architects, Spain
Jonathan Cory-Wright | CanyaViva, Spain
Diederik Veenendaal, Francesco Verzura | Summum Engineering
Structural engineering
Diederik Veenendaal, Francesco Verzura | Summum Engineering
Consultants
Gavin Sayers, Edoardo Tibuzzi | AKT II, UK
Construction
Jonathan Cory-Wright | CanyaViva, Spain (bamboo)
Michaël Daris | RC Take Off, Belgium (drone)
Sebastien Goessens | Université catholique de Louvain (UCL), Belgium (drone)
Euromair, France (pump)
Francesco Verzura | Summum Engineering
Construction volunteers
Nadia Avezzano, Alessandra Benigno, Miriam Ceravolo, Michele Francia, Giulia Rosa, Mark Witte