RCO Office, Mumbai, Serie Architects.
I came across this unfamiliar process called Rapid Prototyping method (3d Model Printing) for the first time when I was working with an architectural firm (serie architects) at Mumbai in 2008.
The office building that I was working on had a complex membrane in the form of a twisting atrium, kind of a canyon which wraps the floors and acts as a structural support. The complex geometry and time constraints resulted in switching ourselves to 3d model printing for this particular project.
Twisting Atrium
The model got build in a Machine mould Fabrication workshop at Mumbai as there is no such 3d printing facility was available other than this. The workshop had an experience of fabricating mechanical parts (prototypes/mould) which would further given to the respective company for mass production. This was their first encounter with Architects.
The Structure
The model got fabricated in two parts to lower down chances of damage during transportation. The total structural framework and the planes of twisting atrium got fabricated and the transparent skin that is glazing and its supporting grid got hand modelled by us. The contrast between timber base and the white structure made the total setup appealing. And we ended up bagging the project.
The impressive aspects about 3d model printing that I realised very strongly are its accuracy/precision, time efficiency and it prints things that our hands could ever imagine to model.