Design And Construction Analysis Of The Performing Arts Center & A Proposal For 3D Printing Architectural Structures To Scale
Open Access
- Author:
- Luttmann, Eric Wildey
- Area of Honors:
- Architectural Engineering
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Architectural Engineering
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- John Isaac Messner, Thesis Supervisor
Richard George Mistrick, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- 3D Printing
commercial construction
architecture
architectural engineering
Luttmann - Abstract:
- This report is divided into two sections. The first section consists of a proposal comprised of the design and construction of a multiple story building structure through additive building manufacturing (ABM) techniques made feasible by a concrete-extruding 3D printer. In the second portion of this report, the Performing Arts Center, a premier University music and performing arts facility, is investigated in-depth from a design and construction standpoint. The focus of this section includes three analyses that recommend alternative construction methods and designs to the project team. Additive Building Manufacturing: Automated construction through a digital fabrication technique known as additive building manufacturing can enhance the building industry by ushering in the next era of architectural design through the emergence of radical geometries and by providing commercial construction the benefits of safety, efficiency control and quality. To illustrate the feasibility of additive building manufacturing, a proposal to 3D print a two-story structure using on-site concrete extrusion is presented. Through a literature review, potential and existing approaches to additive building manufacturing and automated construction are investigated. The review is organized in the following categories: the need for automation of construction; the opportunity digital construction presents to the architectural, engineering and construction industry; the feasibility of the proposal based on the file-to-fabrication process; fabricator and material design; the actual implementation of these categories; and finally gaps in the technology. The Performing Arts Center: The Performing Arts Center is designed as a state of the art performance and teaching space for the music department, theater, dance, creative and performing arts at a University in New Jersey. In this report, the four building program, consisting of the Theater and Dance building, the Music Building, the Arts Tower and the DRUM theatre, is examined to illustrate the owner’s goals, the architectural design intentions, the major building systems, and general construction means and methods. Furthermore, the façade system is examined from a constructability, logistics and production standpoint. Then, project challenges and opportunities are illustrated. After that, a building information modeling (BIM) use evaluation and a sustainability implementation analysis are presented. After presenting the existing, technical details of the project, three major analyses constitute the focus of this section. The first analysis is a Cast-in-Place Concrete Wall Schedule Acceleration analysis in which schedule and cost of using Peri Trio steel wall forms are compared against the proposed Peri Maximo wall forms. Then, the second analysis focuses on implementing Construction Robotics’ Semi-Automated Mason (SAM) to install an Alaskan White Velour brick façade in place of a Lecce limestone finish in order to meet the critical path schedule delayed by the façade construction schedule. Finally, in order to improve energy performance, a fan-powered induction unit (FPIU) system is compared to a VAV system based on yearly energy consumption, cost savings and constructability.