Metal 3D Printing in timber construction

The second structural innovation is the use of 3D-printed stainless steel joints, which assemble the double-curved, diamond-shaped timber lattice shell into a reversible connection. This makes a significant contribution to circular construction, as the dismantling and reuse of the components can be easily achieved. The LPBF-XXL process, developed at the Laser Institute of Mittweida University of Applied Sciences, is used to print the stainless steel nodes. The generative node design – which derives the shape of the connecting elements from the geometry of the connected rods and generates a filling structure comprising ‘continuous surfaces’, thereby enabling continuity in the printing process – was developed by the FLEX research group at HTWK Leipzig.