Archinect - News

Walmart to 3D print an expansion to its store in Athens, TN

2024-10-01T09:37:00-04:00

Retail giant Walmart is set to create one of the largest free-standing 3D-printed commercial concrete structures in the United States. Working with 3D printing company Alquist 3D, the chain will use the technology to create an addition to its existing store in Athens, TN.

The extension, rising 20 feet high and measuring 8,000 square feet, will enhance Walmart’s Online Pickup & Delivery program, marking the first time Walmart has utilized 3D printing technology at a large scale. The company also hints at a second collaboration with Alquist 3D in the future.

Still from video, courtesy Alquist 3D

Walmart is the latest commercial company to embrace 3D printing in architecture and construction. Last month, we reported on BIG and ICON breaking ground on Liz Lambert’s 3D-printed El Cosmic resort in Marta, months after Archinect spoke with both Bjarke Ingels and ICON’s Melodie Yashar about the future of the technology.

Several educational institutions have also recently announced advancement...

NASA explores potential for green roofs to lower temperatures in cities

2022-05-30T09:02:00-04:00

Research undertaken by NASA has found that rooftop gardens can offer substantial temperature reductions in cities during summer months. In a study published in the journal Sustainable Cities and Society, the group used satellite imagery to measure temperatures at three rooftop gardens in Chicago compared to before the roof gardens were installed.

The research sought to understand ways of mitigating the “urban heat island” in cities, where the heat absorption and retention of materials such as concrete and asphalt can cause temperatures to be ten degrees higher in cites than in surrounding areas.

Related on Archinect: 10 green rooftop spaces we liked this week

“As cities grow and develop, they need to make good decisions about their infrastructure, because these decisions often last for 30 or 50 years or longer,” said Christian Braneon, a climate scientist and civil engineer at Columbia University and co-author of the study. “In the context of more frequent heatwaves and more extreme...

Gensler to design Walmart's new 350-acre campus in Arkansas

2019-08-29T18:15:00-04:00

With abundant natural daylight, expanded food offerings, convenient parking, fitness options, and an on-site childcare facility, Walmart’s new 350-acre campus in Bentonville, Arkansas, has ample amenities to attract next-gen talent...It’s a connected and sustainable campus where associates are inspired to do their best work, a place that reflects the company’s culture, and a campus that seamlessly integrates into the fabric of the local community.

Gensler has been named the Design Architect for the office buildings that will populate the new campus. The firm will also act as the Executive Architect for the overall campus design, leading a "team of consultants to create a campus that honors Walmart's history and amplifies the company's potential to impact the local community."

The omnivorous quality of WalMart(s)

2015-06-01T09:26:00-04:00

It’s where the Girl Scouts set up their cookie-selling tables, and community groups host bake sales in the parking lot. In the store, Barragan inevitably runs into students, former students, parents of students, and fellow teachers; sometimes it takes forever to get a simple errand done because of all the neighborly small talk.

Rachel Monroe examines how in rural America WalMart has become the new town square.

What It’s Like To Be A Walmart Architect

2014-05-08T13:54:00-04:00

in Washington, D.C., the retail behemoth gave architects more creative license. The result is a move away from the blandness of Big Box in favor of place-based design. [...] I got a call from Gabe Massa of MMA Architects, who helped design this Walmart. I asked him how it was that this store managed to be so different and he laughed. “That’s a really loaded question,” he said.

The Walrus Magazine discusses Safdie's Walmart-funded art museum

2012-11-19T12:44:00-05:00

Moshe Safdie has designed buildings around the world for almost fifty years but doesn’t have an identifiable style. His latest work, an Arkansas art museum funded by Walmart heiress Alice Walton, illustrates why it doesn’t matter