Chattanooga, Tenn.–based architectural fabricator Branch Technology claims to have build the world's largest 3D-printed structure for Nashville, Tenn.'s LEED ND–targeted OneC1TY neighborhood. Made of carbon fiber–reinforced Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene, the 20-foot-tall, 42-foot-wide structure was unveiled this week at the 2018 International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures, an annual architecture and engineering symposium held this year at MIT, in Cambridge, Mass.
Commissioned by Dallas-based developer Cambridge, the pavilion was designed and fabricated by Branch Technology. Form studies in the early design stages revealed that the pavilion's shape and volume would require an obtrusive steel substructure to support its load that would have tripled the project cost. To optimize the structure's design and to eliminate the need for a supplemental steel reinforcement, a team led by Branch Technology designers Melody Rees and Jason Vereschak worked with New York–based structural engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti's R&D incubator CORE Studio to engineer an open-cell structure. Using the company's Cellular Fabrication (C-Fab) 3D-printing technology and a combination of in-house and aerospace software programs, the team printed 40 panels off site and assembled them on the designated spot in Nashville. "C‐Fab is distinctive in that it prefabricates volume as cellular matrices," according to a press release. "The open‐cell nature allows for efficient builds and endless geometric form. For architectural application, the matrix acts as a formwork or scaffold to accept traditional building materials. The results deliver a product that is as robust as it is revolutionary."
Finished with an ultraviolet protective exterior-rated metallic paint, the OneC1TY pavilion weighs approximately 3,200 pounds and was printed in 10 weeks. Designed to Nashville building code standards, it can withstand 1 inch of ice buildup, up to 12 inches of snow, and 90 mph of wind load.
Previously, Branch Technology collaborated with SHoP Architects to fabricate the Flotsam & Jetsam pavilion for the 2016 Design Miami. The practice's other projects include Curve Appeal at Chattanooga State Community College in Tennessee and the Cheekwood Playhouse in Nashville. The firm has also worked with Foster + Partners to fabricate a structures for the NASA's 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge.
This story has been updated since first publication.
