Deciduous
- Project Entered by: Middle East Architecture Network (MEAN)
- Design: MEAN
- Client/Owner: Dubai International Financial Centre
- 3D Printing: Ai Build (Polymer 3D Printing); Besix 3D (Concrete 3D Printing); 3D Vinci (3D Printing Contractor); Reflow (Polymer Filament Supplier); Sika (Concrete mix supplier)
Designed by Middle East Architecture Network (MEAN) for Dubai International Financial Centre, Deciduous is a 3D printed pavilion that invites us to revisit our relationship with nature as an experience. It is an exploration in scaling 3D printing processes to the architectural space, composed of a hybrid of 3 different sustainable materials: a CNC-milled Birch plywood flooring, robotically 3D-printed concrete base, and a series of branching 3D printed PETG stems – a plastic polymer upcycled from 30,000 discarded water bottles.
In light of Dubai’s focus on 3D printing as a sustainable technology, the hybridisation of state-of-the-art Robotic 3D printing in plastic and concrete is a first attempt to explore the possibilities that the two technologies can offer, contributing to the Emirate’s vision of ecological construction growth towards 2025.
