The production of the concrete diamonds rhombi for the continuum by Heike Klussmann and netzwerkarchitekten would not have been possible without research into material development and production processes. In close collaboration with the manufacturer Schwab-Stein in Baden-Württemberg new production processes were developed, making it possible to produce panels with extreme geometries that do not require additional structural bracing while achieving a high degree of precision and surface quality. The emphasis was above all especially even surface, acute angles and precise edges. Precast fair-faced concrete sections are generally produced using formwork. This means concrete is poured into prefabricated casings as a hollow form where the casing side is visible and the filled side is to the back of the finished piece. Because this method only makes sense when it is used for a large quantity of identical elements, a different approach was used for the realization of continuum.

All of the 6700 individual diamonds of continuum were cut from blank slabs and produced with a vacuum filter molding method. The mixture consisted of high-performance concrete, aggregates of Nordic white and quartz sand and, for the pigment, 130 grams of black iron oxide per 100 kg of raw mixture. It was only possible to produce the light color with complete consistency using the specially developed mixture: cement and aggregates with a precise amount of added pigment. Then, the basic mold was filled with the raw mixture, leveled and homogenized, so that the material was evenly spread throughout. The homogenized raw slab then went to the concrete slab press (a 65-ton press, the largest in the world) and was pressed or rather compressed with a force of 3,000 tons per minute; in the process, up to 50% of the water was removed. This was followed by a hydraulic hardening process in optimum climatic conditions over two days. The back of the highly compacted base slabs was then calibrated and milled on the surface so that flatness tolerances in accordance with DIN V 18500 were achieved. After another storage period to achieve the final hardness, the slabs were cut and reworked. At this point, the diamonds for the Continuum were positioned using a photo supported detection system to use as much of the plates as possible and then a 5-axis CNC saw cut the slabs into the individual diamonds. Finally, the edges were profiled and four anchor holes were drilled into the back of each diamond panel.

In order to form the edges a special scheme was designed to guarantee that inspection requirements would be met. Classification as “bottom” or “top” fold panels meant that entire area of the building shell remained accessible and each individual diamond panel could be removed. At the same time, joints required no sealants and the mounting remained invisible. The minimal waste that was created was 100% recycled and reused as aggregate. The surface of the panels was then finished by applying a water-repellant coating and anti-graffiti protection.

What Materials will exist in a Decade?
Schriftenreihe BAU KUNST ERFINDEN – Vol. 01

Edited by
Thorsten Klooster, Heike Klussmann
Kassel University Press 2015
ISBN: 978-3-86219-494-0

www.baukunsterfinden.org

On the occasion of the Future of Building Congress 2014, invited by the Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs (BMVBS) and the Research Initiative Future Building from the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR), Heike Klussmann is giving a lecture about DysCrete - Solar Energy produced by Concrete at the Wasserwerk Bonn.

May, 13 – 14 2014
Bonn, Wasserwerk

Future of Building Congress – Download programme >>

Further informationen about DysCrete – solar concrete >> www.baukunsterfinden.org >>

The reseach platform BAU KUNST ERFINDEN // BUILDING ART INVENTION, department of architecture, urban planning and landscape design at the University of Kassel receives the 1. Prize of the Higher Education Prize for Teaching Excellence.

The laureates are Prof. Heike Klussmann, Florian Gwinner, Thorsten Klooster, Roman Polster, Karen Winzer.

The prize awarded by Hessian Ministry for Science and Art in collaboration with the Hertie-Foundation honors the work of the transdisciplinary research group BAU KUNST ERFINDEN (Building Art Invention).

Further information:
www.baukunsterfinden.org
www.wissenschaft.hessen.de/exzellenzpreis#/

Pressreviews/ selction:
Süddeutsche Zeitung 24.12.2012 >>
Die Zeit 27.12.2012 >>

Download BlingCrete™ Brochure deutsch >>
Download BlingCrete™ Brochure english >>

www.blingcrete.com

This exhibition presents works by artist Heike Klussmann, architect Thorsten Klooster, designer and artist Susanna Hertrich, and designer Clemens Winkler. In projects and experiments, they demonstrate the reciprocal action between the theoretical and material manifestations of membranes, surfaces, and boundaries, and their transitional stages between everyday objects, technology and aesthetic production.

www.aedes-arc.de/msb
www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/msb

...a small but very exciting group show being held in Berlins Aedes gallery. (Mathias Remmele, Added value surfaces, www.stylepark.com).

www.stylepark.com

Bauwelt 35|2011 publishes an interview with Heike Klussmann and Thorsten Klooster about Blingcrete™.

www.bauwelt.de/blingcrete

The Munich Creative Business Week (MCBW) provided the backdrop for the presentation of
the iF awards at BMW Welt in Munich, held on February10, 2012. BlingCrete™ received one of the coveted iF gold awards for highly innovative material development and outstanding design achievements.

www.ifdesign.de
www.blingcrete.com