Archinect - News

UMaine experiments with 3D printed floor panels made from recyclable natural materials

2024-08-10T11:00:00-04:00

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Maine are leading interesting new engineering research into floor cassettes made using recyclable natural materials that are strong enough to be used in multi-story buildings. Thanks to experiments at UMaine's cutting-edge Advanced Structures and Composites Center (which previously contributed to our coverage of bio-based 3D printed homes), engineers were able to produce a capable model made from polylactic acid and lumber by-products, such as wood flour.

The SM2ART Nfloor cassette components can be 3D printed in roughly two-thirds the time it takes for a typical floor cassette to be factory assembled, thus saving labor costs. Scott Tomlinson, a structural engineer at the Center, shared: "This technology holds a lot of promise for the future of sustainable buildings." The project came together at the initiative of the SHoP offshoot Assembly OSM.

The work was also recently on display as part of the ...

From lighting design to custom millwork, a background in architecture creates room for alternative job opportunities

2022-02-08T16:22:00-05:00

Following January's look at architecture's relationship with furniture and product design, we're taking another look at alternative career paths an architecture education can provide. This week, we highlight a selection of exciting job opportunities listed on Archinect Jobs involving wood floor/millwork and architectural lighting at MADERA and L'Observatoire International.

The new Editions de Parfums boutique in Paris. Image credits: Roland Halbe and Maxime Hibon/Courtesy of L'Observatoire International.

When designing any building or structure, several factors come into play, however, an often-overlooked element when designing a space is the power of lighting. While we aren't negating the importance and value of natural lighting, indoor lighting setups play essential factors when illuminating an area and creating an overall mood and tone. For the New York-based L'Observatoire, the firm's passion and expertise started in 1993 with French lighting designer Hervé Descottes.

Since its ...

Roman mosaic floor discovered beneath vineyard in Italy

2020-05-28T13:30:00-04:00

A Roman mosaic floor has been discovered under a vineyard in northern Italy after decades of searching. Surveyors in the commune of Negrar di Valpolicella north of Verona published images of the well-preserved tiles buried under metres of earth. According to officials, scholars first found evidence of a Roman villa there more than a century ago.

A note posted on the Facebook page of Negrar di Valpolicella, the Northern Italian town where the historic mosaic was discovered, stated: "After countless decades of failed attempts, part of the pavement and foundations of the Roman Villa located north of the capital, discovered by scholars over a century ago, has finally been brought to light."

OMG! OMA

2017-11-17T14:32:00-05:00

The most radical art space to launch in Paris in decades will open next spring in a five-storey, 19th-century building in the Marais district. The Fondation d’Entreprise Galeries Lafayette, run by the eponymous French retail chain, commissioned Rem Koolhaas and his OMA company to renovate the historic building at 9 rue du Platre.

OMA has placed a glass and steel exhibition tower in the building’s courtyard, which operates as a ‘curatorial machine’,” according to a project statement. This tower incorporates four mobile platforms that move in and out of sight, allowing 49 different spatial configurations. As the floors move, galleries of varying sizes with different ceiling heights are created. In the basement, artists will make works in a production workshop.