Dear friends and colleagues,
Please feel free to join us during today’s Arch259 seminar for our first expert lecture.

Monday October 15, 11am in room 104 Wurster Hall

Michael Herrmann

(Managing Director, str.ucture GmbH, Stuttgart)

Abstract
The emergence of digital design tools facilitates collaboration among disciplines. This can be seen especially in areas of high complexity, such as lightweight membrane structures and shells, where an iterative design approach is essential. Integrating parametric design techniques including structural analyses methods like Topology Optimization and Isogeometric Analysis (IGA) during the early stages of the design process allow for quick assessment of complex geometry regarding cost efficiency and feasibility of production in a global design environment. Based on this framework it is possible to create a cooperative work approach that uses BIM models to coordinate clients, designers, builders, and facility managers over the whole life span of a building. The lecture presents the use of these tools in structural design based on exciting projects.

Short Bio
Michael Herrmann’s practice and research focuses on the development and integration of structural design tools as part of the integral design process at the intersection of complex geometry, architecture, and lightweight structural engineering. He studied structural engineering in Stuttgart, Germany and Calgary, Canada. During his PhD at the Institute of Lightweight Structures and Conceptual Design in Stuttgart, together with Professor Werner Sobek he developed the technology of functionally graded concrete, a bioinspired approach of saving mass and CO² in concrete structures using additive manufacturing and topology-optimized designs. He has been teaching structural design studios at the Architectural Association and Bartlett School of Architecture in London. In 2009, he cofounded the office str.ucture GmbH (www.str-ucture.com), an engineering company committed to the development of innovative lightweight solutions. Since 2018, Michael is a Visiting Research Scholar at UC Berkeley’s Department of Structural Engineering, Mechanics, and Materials (SEMM).