Embedding Intelligence: Architecture and Computation at Grimshaw,NY

Research and development at Grimshaw is concentrated in two groups: Design Technology (DT) and Industrial Design (ID). Seth Edwards from Grimshaw's DT group explains how these dual hubs provide an essential resource for the practice, offering expertise in complex geometry, rapid prototyping and construction. He illustrates three projects, originating in the New York office, that exemplify this approach.     

From Model Thinking to Process Design

The introduction of computational design processes and particularly of computer-aided fabrication methods recast roles across the design team. As Jan Knippers , founding partner of Knippers Helbig Advanced Engineering and Head of the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) at the University of Stuttgart explains, it offers structural engineers a unique opportunity: the potential to break through the barriers of conventional model thinking (thinking in discrete typologies) and to embrace process design and new forms of interaction.     

Recent Developments at Foster + Partners' Specialist Modelling Group

Established 15 years ago under the leadership of Hugh Whitehead, the Specialist Modelling Group (SMG) at Foster + Partners has an unrivalled reputation internationally as an in-house research group. It provides Fosters with expertise in computation, geometry and fabrication, as well as in environmental analysis and simulation. Xavier De Kestelier, co-head of SMG and partner at Foster + Partners, describes how the group has developed and expanded over the last few years, growing the range of its specialist knowledge that informs projects as diverse as the YachtPlus Boat Fleet (2009), Kuwait International Airport (2009-) and Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (2010).