Skin That Fits: Designing and constructing cladding systems with as-built structural data (2005)
article⁄Skin That Fits: Designing and constructing cladding systems with as-built structural data (2005)
abstract⁄An awkward interface exists between the structure and skin of complex architecture. The primary structure is typically allowed much higher tolerance ranges than that of the cladding industry, due primarily to the delicate nature of the building envelope which, above all, must prevent water penetration and meet the aesthetic requirements of the architect and client. As architecture has integrated advanced design and fabrication techniques to realize increasingly complex shapes, this problem has been aggravated because of the tangency requirements for high gloss curved finish surfaces and the larger variations found with rolled steel columns and undulating concrete forms. To date, most innovations in this area have been focused upon mechanical connections that can be adjusted and shimmed, thus requiring increased design engineering and onsite labor costs for effective implementation. It would be preferable to manufacture cladding components that are properly adjusted to the actual site conditions, negating the need to predict and accommodate potential dimensional variation with complex connections. The research provides a model for implementing long distance laser scanning technology to facilitate a realtime parametric BIM, herein called an Isomodel.
