Have you been amazed by the architectural style at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Terminal 2 airport at Mumbai? Specifically, the peacock feather-like geometric pattern on the pillars at T2?
Well, the inspiration taken by Skidmore Owings and Merrill, the designers of the International airport have been hugely based on a parametric design style that 3D printing through reverse engineering can bring to life with great ease. Let us talk more about that in this blog.
What’s a parametric design?
Adel Zakout in his article ‘Top 10 buildings: Parametric Design’ in HuffPost dated 24th March 2011 (updated on 8th Jan 2013) says, “Parametric design is a method of intelligently designing architectural objects based on relationships and rules using the computer. These are defined in parametric software and are easily manipulated to quickly generate multiple iterations of the design in the 3D.”
Well, does it sound Greek and Latin to you? We have a way to simplify it.
Based on certain algorithms, the geometrical shapes are so organized in the computer that they form an intrinsic and complex pattern that may or may not be discernible at first go but they have a lot of aesthetic beauty.
The pattern’s complexity brings out the richness of design. The important elements of the design in terms of shapes and configuration are parametric, which is subject to change in such a way that the design is structurally pleasing and functionally purposeful.
Some world-famous architectural buildings using parametric design
Adel in his article further gives a list of these 10 parametric buildings: Walt Disney Concert in Los Angeles, BMW Welt in Germany, Beijing National Stadium in China, Burnham Pavillion by UN Studio in the US, Blobwall by Greg Lynn in the US, Son-O-House in the Netherlands, Guangzhou Opera in China, Yas Hotel in Abu Dhabi, Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center in Taiwan and Water Cube in China.
This just shows how architects across the globe are using the promising potential of parametric designing conceptualized through computer software and 3D printed through reverse engineering.
But, how exactly does additive manufacturing brings parametric designs to life with ease?
Additive manufacturing or 3D printing uses virtual designs created in software like Computer-Aided Design (CAD) or scanned images using 3D scanning to print objects layer by layer.
Several computer software help in manipulating patterns where certain parameters can be manipulated. This offers great flexibility in customization and building complexity in the design which would otherwise not be possible without such software.
Also, with continuous iterations, one can view the changes and keep altering till one is content with the final output.
When these software files can be made readable by 3D printers, prototyping services enable the production of these designs as samples to test their look and feel in reality.
Does Tesseract deal with printing such parametric designs?
Yes! Tesseract offers one of the best 3D printing services in Mumbai and India. We deal with clients globally across a wide range of industries including architecture, art and design, aerospace and automobile, and a host of industries where parametric designs have a special role to play.
Our expert team curates special designs based on customized parameters according to the client’s needs using CAD software. After a thorough evaluation of the design in terms of the preferences, our 100 plus 3D printing farm prints it additively using the required material through the right processes.
For innovative design conceptualization, great finesse, and production within time frames, contact us at contact@onetesseract.com!
PS: By the way, before we end, if someone ever asks you what happens at the intersection of technology and creativity; do let them read this blog! And then they’ll know the magic of 3D printable parametric designs!
