Re-imagining facade design
Climate change will have a severe impact on human wellbeing and health, especially in dense, urban environments. With the increase of extreme weather phenomena, such as prolonged heat periods, urban streets will become important urban arenas to counter climate change’s effects on a city‘s population.

At its core, the project investigated the impact of self-shading building structures and the resulting reduced solar exposure and heat storage on the surrounding microclimate and perceived human comfort level. This was achieved by applying digital design & robotic fabrication technology to 1) design an optimised structure based on the specific location and solar exposure of a building and 2) build the structure with precision only achieved by human-robot collaboration.

As the constructed prototype shows, the project is also exemplary for seamless links between simple and straightforward design ideas; and it harnesses the opportunities that technological innovations offer. This fosters open access to digital tools and, thus, the application of technology to architecture where it can be the most effective.