Materials & ProductsExclusive Articles, from ArchDaily

Widely used in infrastructure, gabion walls are structures made of mesh metal cages filled with stones. These permeable walls use galvanized steel wire to withstand outdoor conditions. 

After centuries of using wood for the development of window and door carpentry, the Rationalism of the 20th century began to adopt a new material for these purposes: steel. Driven by industrial production, and promoted by architects such as Adolf Loos, Mies van der Rohe, and Le Corbusier, steel was evolving to generate increasingly thin and resistant frames. However, efficient and low-cost materials, such as aluminum and PVC, gradually began to replace its widespread use, increasing the size of the frames and losing steel's "clean" aesthetic when applied to a growing architecture of large glass paneled facades.

The characteristics of Corten steel has been respected by all architects, both for its strength and for its particular color. It corresponds to a type of steel manufactured with a chemical composition that provides an oxidation that protects the piece, practically without altering its mechanical characteristics. The architectural details of Corten steel present a diversity of situations and connections, not only the obvious constructive factor but it also gives an aesthetic value to any architectural project.

Materials, products, and construction systems are constantly evolving and following new technologies, discoveries, and market trends. Today, within the framework of our Monthly Topic “Innovation” we wonder: what products or materials could we use so that our projects make relevant contributions to the way we are inhabiting our planet?

Architecture and design influence not merely the aesthetics of buildings and other physical surroundings, but also the way individuals perceive and go about performing everyday activities. Contemporary architecture considers and shapes the behavior of people, whether at home, at work or during leisure activities. In this regard, contemporary architecture increasingly incorporates diverse materials with different and unique qualities in order to create surroundings that facilitate the intended and naturally occurring behavior of visitors and everyday users. Architects thus create spaces that enable people to perform daily tasks and a range of everyday social activities. However, architects also play a vital role in securing the future maintenance of newly designed buildings in order to ensure the continued existence of these physical spaces.

How to build light and modular facades with a rustic and monolithic appearance?

Composed of cement, cellulose, and mineral materials, fiber cement allows us to clad walls in a light, non-combustible, and rain-resistant way, generating facades with different textures, colors, and tones. Its panels are easily manageable and perforable, and can configure ventilated facades when installed with a certain separation between the rear wall. Check out 9 projects below that have cleverly used fiber cement as the primary material in facades.

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Concrete is the second-most used material on earth. It is also the second-largest emitter of CO2, with cement manufacturing accounting for 5 to 7 percent of annual emissions. The continued popularity of concrete as a material of choice in the design and construction industry, coupled with increasing unease of the environmental consequences, has put concrete firmly in the spotlight of innovation and experimentation. As a result, designers, architects, and researchers around the world are generating multiple visions for what the future of concrete in architecture could look like.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that Americans spend 90 percent of their time indoors. Spending that much time inside makes us feel disconnected from the outside world, affecting everything from our productivity to mental health. Not to mention physical health concerns ranging from poor circulation to airborne contaminants.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a term used to identify the manufacturing processes performed by 3D printing through layer-by-layer construction. In addition to avoiding the generation of waste through the use of precise geometries and exact quantities of material, these controlled processes can be much faster than traditional ones, since they don't require tools or other instruments.

Materials and technology come together in new spaces and experiences. When looking to innovations in advanced construction, the Institute for Computational Design (ICD) and the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE), together with students at the University of Stuttgart, have been creating a series of experimental pavilion for many years. These structures tell a story of computational design and computer-aided manufacturing processes for advanced construction.

Once restricted to space stations and satellites, photovoltaics are now gaining popularity and becoming an increasingly viable option. Every day, the sun releases an enormous amount of energy, far more than the entire population consumes. Being that the sun is a sustainable, renewable, and inexhaustible source for generating electricity, not using it seems almost counter-intuitive, especially considering the social and environmental impacts of other forms of energy generation. But the technology to create electricity from the sun is by no means simple and still has some limitations, the most significant being price. The following article attempts to explain some basic concepts about this process, and to highlight important considerations for designing a solar energy system. 

As construction evolves, new advancements are shaping how we design. These movements are the product of shared ideas and the convergence of building technologies that open up new possibilities for architecture. From the atomic scale of materials to preassembled homes and faraway planets, the changes in BuildTech are felt across industries. As a result, disciplines are learning from one another to reimagine how we build.

Square, rectangular, hexagonal, matte, shiny. It's hard to think of a more versatile flooring material than tiles. They're also known for their high durability, ease of maintenance and installation, and are among the most common choices for covering floors and walls, whether wet or not. Following are 10 common questions about ceramic tiles, and their answers:

Translucent facades are light glazing panels used on the exterior of buildings, protecting the structure from weather damage, dampness, and erosion. Its composition of polycarbonate microcells creates a soft, naturally diffused light with a wide range of possible colors, brightnesses, and opacities.

Today's generation no longer sees work in the same way as previous generations. New company models and occupation possibilities have changed the spaces where people develop their professional activities. Working from home, from coworking spaces, or remotely from anywhere in the world is already a fairly common reality. But a number of companies still do not utilize or create spaces where their employees can work together, collaborating in the same environment. In addition to shared culture that companies often try to create, it is essential that the design of an office takes into account the needs and particularities of each type of work and encourages communication and interaction, while providing places for concentration and focus. As generations and corporate cultures change, it is natural for the office space to move away from traditional layouts with cubicles, tables, and meeting rooms.