The MaCAD is a unique online programme training a new generation of architects, engineers and designers ready to develop skills into the latest softwares, computational tools, BIM technologies and AI towards innovation for the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry.

Filters

Minimal Surface Timber Gridshell – Structural Analysis

In the dynamic field of structural design, efficiency has emerged as a central theme driving innovative solutions. Our recent venture in the structural design and optimization seminar delves into the intriguing concept of minimal surfaces applied to timber gridshell structures. But what exactly do we mean by minimal surfaces? Defined as shapes that require the … Read more

Segmental Timber Panel Shell Structural Analysis

Tahsis BC Canada Our project is located in Tahsis, BC a former timber milling town that has become dilapidated since the closure of the sawmill in 2001, with a population decline of 90%. We aim to reinvigorate the town by providing access for tourism, attracted by the wildlife that has returned to the inlet since … Read more

Modular Bamboo – Massing Structural Analysis

Introduction Bamboo is considered one of the oldest materials used in construction, it has been widely used throughout history by many civilizations. Naturally growing in tropical regions such as South America, Asia and Africa. In this proposal, we explore the potential of utilizing bamboo in a modular manner to create a social housing in the … Read more

Hygroscopic Timber Vaults

Our project is an artisan market within a cultural centre in Srinagar, India. In our initial analysis of hygroscopic timber, we identified key factors influencing its behaviour. The bilayer structure, consisting of an active and a passive layer, allows panels to deform in response to moisture content changes. We also found a third locking layer … Read more

Corbel Arches

We decided to study how machine learning can help us to stack stones and build corbel arches. Corbel arches are a type of arch structure in which the arch is formed by successively projecting stones or bricks from each side until they meet at the center. The arch relies on the structural integrity of the … Read more

Martian Playground // Studio

Design Brief and Scope The purpose of this project is to design a colony on Mars to sustain life for 50 people with the possibility to expand to 300 people over time.  This specific projects revolves around the specific function of recreation. Site Detection and Analysis ChatGPT 3 is used to create a relative grading … Read more

Martian Playground // Integrative

Overview: Rhino.Inside as a Revit Workflow Integrating the flexibility of designing Grasshopper into the enclosed and precise environment of Revit is an extremely powerful workflow. Main Aspects Challenges Workflow Description Concept The project is located on Mars and as for the nature of the location the project is very unconventional. The purpose of our group … Read more

SYneRgism

Synergism is the interaction and cooperation of two or more organizations, agents, or groups of people to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their own. After analyzing how the city of Damascus has evolved over time, we saw how the city started slowly growing away from the Eastern inhabitable agricultural lands closer … Read more

Re- Earth Station Studio

Site Location: Xochimilco, Mexico Xochimilco is a borough of Mexico City. The borough is centered on the formerly independent city of Xochimilco,  which was established on what was the southern shore of Lake Xochimilco in the pre-colonial period. Today, the borough consists of the 18 barrios, or neighborhoods, of this city along with 14 pueblos, … Read more

Climate Canopy – Timber Grid Shell

Structural analysis and optimisation Our project is a timber grid shell which forms a roof canopy covering an underground train station in Sydney, Australia. The shell acts as a climatic roof providing shade and creating a cool public square below. The timber shell forms funnel columns that land in the station below the public square, … Read more

BREACHNG THE PARAMETER – STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS

INTRODUCTION Known as the capital of the North, Tripoli is Lebanon’s second largest city: from a regional trade capital for the past centuries, the city is nowadays the most impoverished of Lebanon and on the Mediterranean. The city has been scared by the violent clashes and conflict over the past 40 years and is confronted … Read more

Chronotope of the non-place

Aggregation-oriented, Extinction Museum, Pozzuoli, Naples, Italy. Concept The extensive environmental deterioration and the extinction of countless animal species have been attributed to the Anthropocene period, a geological epoch that represents the tremendous impact that human activity has had on the Earth’s ecosystems and climate. Anna Tsing, Heather Swanson, Elaine Gan, and Nils Bubandt explore the … Read more

A Route to Extinction

Broadening the perspective: An organism interacting with its environment. Sounds simple but life itself influences the atmosphere and nothing impacts life on earth today more than humanity does: explore that relationship between mankind and our environment.

ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS FOR BENGALURU

LOCATION : BENGALURU, INDIAKOPPEAN CLIMATE : Aw (TROPICAL WET & DRY CLIMATE) CLIMATE ANALYSIS Bengaluru has become hotter than it used to be 2 decades ago. Now we see temperature reaching above 40*c. The temperature starts getting hotter from March and reaches its peak in mid April and once the SW monsoon hits the coast … Read more

Peaceful Parasites

A Structural Analysis of Urban Lego Peaceful Parasites is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland and focuses on stitching back a scared urban landscape created by the conflicts of the recent troubles. It re-imagines a use of the existing dividing walls to create a more cohesive future. The structural analysis follows a four step process. Step … Read more

Escape

ITALY, LOCATED CLOSE TO THE BOUNDARY BETWEEN THE EURASIAN AND AFRICAN PLATE IS A VOLCANICALLY ACTIVE COUNTRY, CONTAINING THE ONLY ACTIVE VOLCANOES IN THE MAINLAND EUROPE.VESUVIUS, GENERALLY CHARACTERISED BY EXPLOSIVE ERUPTIONS IS CLOSE TO THE PROPOSED SITE TO THE EAST OF NAPLES. CONCEPT THE BASIC FORM OF THE STRCTURE IS INSPIRED BY THE FORM OF … Read more

UTIL_HUTS

THEORETICAL LENSEUtil_huts examines the ubiquities of traditional concrete design, construction and supply chain methods through the research and development of a design tool for backcountry safety huts in Iceland. This tool uses techniques in machine learning, parametric design and structural simulation to explore the architectural possibilities of cement mortar mixtures with basalt aggregates, also known … Read more

Bio-Inspired Structures

How can a building embody the principles of evolution? This project explores the use of cellular autonomy as a form generator. The principle of cellular autonomy allows for the creation of complex forms Video

SCALE MATTER

Structural Materials Is the scale of the projects in the experimentation on computational design fabrication an obstacle or an opportunity?  Since architects started to shed their skin on the conventional way in practice and caught the digital era, the abundance of application of digital design on the realization became joyful for the audience. Mario Carpo … Read more

IS COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN THE RENAISSANCE OF THE STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS ?

The last 10-15 years of development in computers and software have given most engineers and architects the capacity to self-resolve every kind of problem with complex structural forming in a short amount of time.                                                                         This has allowed them to break the calculability paradigm. Where what was not able to be calculated, or even … Read more