More architects are turning to composites to create dazzling designs.
Highly complex facades featuring dramatic curves are becoming a signature of today’s architects. New technology and materials are helping designers create these increasingly intricate facades that push the boundaries of engineering.
“Younger architects, developers and contractors are hungry for standout unique projects,” says Andy Bridge, vice president of industrial markets and director of research and development for Janicki Industries in Sedro-Woolley, Wash. Composites are poised to help architects in this mission. And as architects push the limits, they are more open to considering the possibilities available from previously unexplored materials.
To date, the biggest obstacle facing the use of composites in architectural applications has been a lack of familiarity with the product. But with new composite-based projects going up around the world, and new guidelines now available governing FRP’s use in architecture, experts predict that composites are likely to become a greater part of the design conversation.
Capitalizing on Today’s Trends
In many ways, composites fit perfectly into many of today’s top architectural trends. “They can produce highly curved shapes for truly innovative designs,” says Robert Steffen, Ph.D., PE, associate professor in the Department of Construction Management for Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, N.C. In addition, Steffen adds, “The texture, color and appearance of composites can be customized far beyond what can be done with metals.”
Composites also dovetail neatly with today’s interest in sustainability. The U.S. Green Building Council predicts that up to 48 percent of new nonresidential construction in 2016 will be green, and that number is expected to grow significantly in coming years. Architects are seeking materials that are environmentally friendly to manufacture and highly durable once installed. Composites fit that bill.
Bill Kreysler, president of Kreysler & Associates in American Canyon, Calif., and chairman of ACMA’s Architectural Division, points out that composite systems are environmentally efficient to manufacture since less material is needed to perform the same function as traditional building materials. This gives manufacturers a comparatively lower environmental footprint. Moreover, Kreysler adds, “Those of us in the composites business know our material is extremely durable. It’s been proven over decades.”
Stephen Van Dyck, a partner with LMN Architects in Seattle, adds that architects may also be more willing to work with composites due to today’s wider use of 3-D modeling technologies. “[Architects] are now using tools like Rhino, which is the same essential platform that boat builders have been using for years to communicate ideas to their manufacturing floor,” Van Dyck explains. He notes that many of these new software platforms also are able to easily convert design data into fabrication information. “The processes are converging,” he says.
Looking beyond today’s design trends, David Riebe, vice president of Windsor Fiberglass Inc. in Burgaw, N.C., sees the shift to composites as a necessity. Riebe cites United Nations’ statistics that suggest a 66 percent increase in population by 2050 will lead to significant demand for new housing stock – enough for 44 new buildings every day for the next 40 years. “With this demand and the emerging technologies and transportation networks that are in place, it isn’t long before we begin to see radical changes in the way buildings and infrastructure are built,” he says. “I really think that given material choices to meet this crazy demand, composites are becoming a necessity.”
While these advantages may seem obvious to composite fabricators, the architectural industry is only just discovering the ways that composites can help them reimagine building facades.
The Future of Buildings
For architects interested in experimentation, composites seem to present near limitless potential. “To me, composites are the future of buildings,” says Van Dyck. “They’ve proven to be very effective in conflating multiple needs of structure and skin and envelope, and that idea of solving lots of problems with a single system is compelling and potentially disruptive to our industry.”
Julia Koerner, a lecturer at UCLA’s SUPRASTUDIO, an experimentation-driven research platform for architecture students, agrees. “To have a lightweight, but at the same time strong material with the opportunity to create complex freeform geometries is a fantastic fabrication technique for architecture students and works well in combination with cutting-edge digital design modeling processes,” she says.
A combination of light weight, strength, aesthetics and structural needs drove Japanese architect Kengo Kuma’s recently unveiled use of composites for seismic reinforcement. In renovating the former head office of fabric manufacturer Komatsu Seiren, the design team sought to reflect the “fabric laboratory” the building was set to house.
The concrete block building, known today as “fa-bo,” is surrounded by hundreds of thin strands of reinforced fiber that run from rooftop to ground. These thermoplastic carbon fiber strands – known as the CABKOMA™ Strand Rod – are designed as an exterior reinforcement that essentially anchor the building in place in the event of an earthquake. The exterior reinforcement, working in conjunction with interior bracing walls, reportedly exceeds structural seismic requirements.
What makes the application all the more striking is the seemingly delicate appearance of the rods. Komatsu Seiren explains on its website that the CABKOMA Strand Rod features an inner layer of carbon fiber, an outer layer of synthetic fiber and inorganic fiber, all filled with thermoplastic resin. The result is what the manufacturer calls the lightest seismic reinforcement in the world. A 525-foot-long roll of the fiber weighs about 26 pounds. As the manufacturer points out, metal wire with the same degree of strength is about five times heavier.
It’s an impressive application that demonstrates the possibilities of composites in architecture. But the application stands out, in part, because few other architects are exploring composites’ potential as a structural member.
Overcoming Hurdles to Adoption
Industry experts point to factors that may limit the use of composites in structural applications. “Years ago we used to think it was going to take over steel and concrete as a structural element,” Steffen says. “But when you’re an FRP engineer, you realize quickly where it should be used and when it should not be used.”
Steffen recalls working for a bridge builder in Australia. The company aimed to create structures entirely out of composites, but quickly realized the costs were too high. Instead, the company found that composites worked well in certain minimal areas – the cables for suspension bridges, for example – but not for the superstructure itself.
“There are plenty of areas where composites should not be used because they cost more than your typical concrete or steel,” Steffen says. But, he adds, “When you consider its light weight, there are applications where the size of construction equipment can be decreased and you can save your money there.” For example, in raising composite facades, contractors can use a small scissor lift rather than a more expensive crane needed to lift concrete components.
“That’s a great plus for architectural facades. And there’s nothing wrong with a well-designed precast concrete beam. So why compete with that – unless the cost comes down and the durability can be warranted,” Steffen says.
Riebe agrees that in some cases it is difficult to justify the expense of composites for a structural application – but that’s only in traditional structural applications. “Currently, it is difficult to imagine FRP being used as columns and beams, or as a material replacement for traditional construction assemblies,” he says. “But if you look at monocoque structures, which rely primarily on structural surfaces and not individual members, composites begin to become a preferred material. This is why the aerospace and marine industries have so strongly embraced composite structural skin systems.”
Bridge advises composites fabricators to shift the conversation with architects and owners from upfront costs to big-picture savings. “We need to better explain the total installed cost of composite solutions and steer the focus away from just the uninstalled initial cost,” he says. As Bridge explains, those cost reductions include lower costs for support structure, reductions in crane capacity and location, erection savings and anti-corrosion benefits, just to name a few.
The BBVA headquarters in Madrid features GFRP fins as a lightweight shading device and eye-catching architectural feature. Photo credit: @BBVA / Carlos Benítez-Donoso
