ENAC Seminar Series by Dr M. Popescu
Event details
| Date | 27.08.2021 |
| Hour | 09:00 › 10:00 |
| Speaker | Dr Mariana Popescu |
| Location | Online |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
09:00 – 10:00 – Dr Mariana Popescu
Postdoctoral Researcher, ETH Zürich
Building better structures using form-finding, computational tools and digital fabrication
The need for sustainable design, engineering and fabrication strategies for concrete construction is recognized as a key challenge in the building industry. Structural designers are therefore in the unique position of being able to shape the built environment at a time when building sustainably is more important than ever. Advancements in the past decades have enabled us to design and fabricate increasingly more complex geometries, making it seem that the options are limitless. However, in the current climatic context, the time has come to move away from the paradigm that anything is possible and that engineering is only focused on analyzing, confirming and making the (given) shape work at all costs. Applying the principles of efficiency, economy and elegance in designing structures that intelligently include structural performance and architectural geometry makes it possible to significantly reduce the amount of material used in a structure and its embodied emissions. Their expressive, intricate and bespoke geometries can be challenging to build with traditional formwork methods. To harness the full potential of non-standard and non-repetitive efficient concrete structures, the formwork systems used for construction need to be rethought. As such, alongside design, the fabrication and construction process play an equally important role in reducing the impact of buildings on the environment. This presentation will look at concepts of designing with structural intelligence in mind, how form-finding methods are beneficial in the early stages of design, why computational tools play an important role in all design stages and how digital fabrication allows us to build less wastefully.
Short bio:
Mariana Popescu is a computational architect and structural designer with a strong interest and experience in innovative ways of approaching the fabrication process and use of materials in construction. Within architectural design, her area of expertise is computational and parametric design with a focus on digital fabrication and sustainable design. Her extensive involvement in projects related to promoting sustainability has led to a multilateral development of skills, which combine the fields of architecture, engineering, computational design and digital fabrication. In 2019, she successfully defended her Ph.D., which was nominated for the ETH Medal for outstanding dissertation, and was named a “Pioneer” on the MIT Technology review global list of “35 innovators under 35”.
Postdoctoral Researcher, ETH Zürich
Building better structures using form-finding, computational tools and digital fabrication
The need for sustainable design, engineering and fabrication strategies for concrete construction is recognized as a key challenge in the building industry. Structural designers are therefore in the unique position of being able to shape the built environment at a time when building sustainably is more important than ever. Advancements in the past decades have enabled us to design and fabricate increasingly more complex geometries, making it seem that the options are limitless. However, in the current climatic context, the time has come to move away from the paradigm that anything is possible and that engineering is only focused on analyzing, confirming and making the (given) shape work at all costs. Applying the principles of efficiency, economy and elegance in designing structures that intelligently include structural performance and architectural geometry makes it possible to significantly reduce the amount of material used in a structure and its embodied emissions. Their expressive, intricate and bespoke geometries can be challenging to build with traditional formwork methods. To harness the full potential of non-standard and non-repetitive efficient concrete structures, the formwork systems used for construction need to be rethought. As such, alongside design, the fabrication and construction process play an equally important role in reducing the impact of buildings on the environment. This presentation will look at concepts of designing with structural intelligence in mind, how form-finding methods are beneficial in the early stages of design, why computational tools play an important role in all design stages and how digital fabrication allows us to build less wastefully.
Short bio:
Mariana Popescu is a computational architect and structural designer with a strong interest and experience in innovative ways of approaching the fabrication process and use of materials in construction. Within architectural design, her area of expertise is computational and parametric design with a focus on digital fabrication and sustainable design. Her extensive involvement in projects related to promoting sustainability has led to a multilateral development of skills, which combine the fields of architecture, engineering, computational design and digital fabrication. In 2019, she successfully defended her Ph.D., which was nominated for the ETH Medal for outstanding dissertation, and was named a “Pioneer” on the MIT Technology review global list of “35 innovators under 35”.
Practical information
- General public
- Invitation required
- This event is internal
Organizer
- ENAC
Contact
- Cristina Perez