Project Mesh Mould enters final of the Swiss Technology Award 2016
The research project “Mesh Mould” was selected as one of the three finalists of the year`s Swiss Technology Award in the category “Inventors”.
The Swiss Technology Award is the most significant award for innovation and technology transfer in Switzerland. Mesh Mould has been nominated for its potential to revolutionize the conventional construction of reinforced concrete structures.
In the conventional construction of reinforced concrete structures, the steel-reinforcement is surrounded by a material- and cost-intensive formwork which gives the concrete its final form. An interdisciplinary research team of ETH Zurich, amongst which researchers from the Agile & Dexterous Robotics Lab, within the framework of the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) Digital Fabrication has succeeded in combining the two commonly separated functions of formwork and reinforcement.
Norman Hack, project leader of Mesh Mould, explains: “First, a steel-mesh is robotically fabricated based on a computational model. Then, concrete is poured inside the mesh and a final surface finish is done. Thanks to the specific mesh structure and the particular concrete mixture, the concrete remains inside the mesh and does not run out. No separate formwork is needed, whether the target shape is of standard or highly complex nature.”
Award Ceremony on 24 November 2016
Organized by the Swiss Economic Forum AG, the highly coveted trophy honors the best technological innovations of start-ups, universities, technical institutions and established businesses in the three categories “Inventors”, “Start-Up” and “Innovation Leader”. The winners will be chosen on the 24 November 2016 during the Swiss Innovation Forum in Basel.