Segmented Timber Shell
TRR141 A07 Demonstrator, University of Stuttgart

Role: Development, design, fabrication planning; in a research team

The Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD) and the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) at the University of Stuttgart in collaboration with the Institute for Structural Mechanics (IBB) at the University of Stuttgart and the Invertebrate Paleontology and Paleoclimatology at the University of Tübingen have completed a thin segmented timber shell for the special exhibition „baubionik – biologie beflügelt architektur“.

The segmented shell is made out of only two centimetre thick beech plywood plates spanning over approximately 7 meters. This was only possible by structurally optimizing shell geometry and plate arrangement, while considering fabrication constraints throughout the design process. The arrangement of the plates reduces the forces in the joints and leads to an increased stiffness of the entire shell.

The collaborative work between architects, engineers and biologists from the Universities of Stuttgart and Tübingen is just one of many items exhibited at the “baubionik – biologie beflügelt architektur” exhibition at State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart, Schloss Rosenstein from 19.10.2017 to 06.05.2018.

 

ICD Institute for Computational Design – Prof. Achim Menges
Prof. Achim Menges
ITKE Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design, University of Stuttgart
Prof. Jan Knippers
Invertebrate Paleontology and Paleoclimatology, University of Tübingen
Prof. Dr. James Nebelsick
Institute for Structural Mechanics (IBB), University of Stuttgart
Prof. Dr. Manfred Bischoff

Scientific Development
Tobias Grun, Ivan Jimenez, Oliver David Krieg, Dr. Malte von Scheven, Tobias Schwinn, Daniel Sonntag

With support of
Léonard Balas, Nikolas Früh, Juan Patricio Lara Ditzel, Xun Li, Israel Luna Miño, Marie Razzhivina, Hans Jakob Wagner, Jacob Zindroski

This research has been funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) as part of the Transregional Research Centre (SFB/Transregio) 141 ‘Biological Design and Integrative Structures’ / project A07. Thanks to Georg Ackermann GmbH and Peri GmbH for sponsoring and support during the project.