From Digital to Physical: Advancing Industrialized Construction through Digital Prototyping Processes

Abstract

Recent development in digital design strategies and fabrication tools has offered the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry the opportunity to rethink the prefabricated building industry. Different methodologies have been proposed with the aim of formulating an efficient link between design and fabrication processes, based on devising effective data workflows to overcome complexities associated with conventional production models. This paper demonstrates recent developments in implementing a Digital Prototyping model toward establishing a comprehensive strategy for design and fabrication of a family of building components. The proposed model is specifically designed and implemented to realize a prefabricated construction system, BONE Structure®, with the aim of enabling high precision in design and fabrication, in addition to supporting pre-defined assembly on jobsites. This paper represents a phase from an ongoing research endeavor toward infusing the design and production processes with digital logic, aiming for high flexibility and customization in building design, specifically the housing realm.