A digitally manufactured staircase saves material: Empa inaugurates “STEP2” unit in the NEST research and innovation building
The module in Dübendorf combines resource-efficient construction technologies. The curved concrete staircase was developed by a team led by the Chair of Digital Building Technologies at ETH Zurich and ROK Architects.
A digitally manufactured staircase, a wafer-thin concrete ceiling, floor and wall materials made from recycled waste: The latest module in the NEST research and innovation building at Empa in Dübendorf demonstrates material-saving, circular and energy-efficient construction technologies that are being brought to market readiness. Part of the unit called “STEP2”, which Empa presented to the media at the end of August, was co-developed by the Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich.
The second floor of the unit is accessed via a curved concrete staircase with the name "Cadenza", which forms the symbolic backbone of the building. For the staircase, a team led by the Chair of Digital Building Technologies of ETH-Professor Benjamin Dillenburger and the architecture firm ROK utilized the full potential of computer-aided design and 3D printing. The 17 steps were manufactured using a single reusable 3D-printed formwork, which allows for a complex and extremely material-reduced shape.
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The NEST building at Empa in Dübendorf. (Photos: Zooey Braun) -
View of the upper floor of the STEP2 unit. -
View of the "Cadenza" staircase from above.
The pretensioning technology of the Empa spin-off re-fer, which is based on a shape memory alloy, fixed the steps that were threaded onto each other. The expertise of the former BASF subsidiary Forward AM and New Digital Craft in the field of materials and 3D printing of the formwork, as well as the precast concrete parts manufacturer SW Umwelttechnik and the engineering firm WaltGalmarini, also contributed to the realization of the eye-catching component. "Together, they have developed a ready-to-use solution for individual construction projects that is not only suitable for customized concrete staircases, but also contributes to efficient and high-performance design solutions in general thanks to digital planning and production", external page Empa writes in its press release.
Nest-Unit "STEP2"
Research and industry partners involved: Empa, BASF, ROK Architekten GmbH, Digital Building Technologies – ETH Zürich, Aepli Metallbau AG, Stahlton Bauteile AG, SW Umwelttechnik Stoiser & Wolschner AG, WaltGalmarini AG, Bartenbach GmbH, Forward AM Technologies GmbH, Hilti AG, New Digital Craft GmbH, re-fer AG