value drivers are explored in depth.
In order to fully realise these benefits, though, the industry must first question which of our current processes should be automated and which should be re-thought..Many technologies, such as 6-axis industrial robotic arms, have not yet been fully explored, due to:.
The complexity involved in construction processes.The requirement of specialist robotic programming skills.Technical and financial risks that limit the possible uses of robotic arm technology.
To address these issues and to connect robotic technology to Bryden Wood’s ‘Platform Approach’ to Design for Manufacture and Assembly (P-DfMA), our Creative Technologies team has developed F.R.A.C.– a Framework for Robotics and Automated Construction.. F.R.A.C.
provides an open, extensible and collaborative platform that enables all designers – not only specialists – to engage with robotic technologies and to embed digital manufacture workflows into their everyday design activities.. F.R.A.C.
is an easy to use digital workflow that connects industry standard design software to robotic technology tools, using custom apps to provide:.The P-DfMA approach significantly reduced embodied carbon of the superstructure.
This is due to the reduction in steel weight.Once the concrete mix was taken into account, the use of 40% GGBS and local procurement, and 26% recycled content of steel the savings are circa 60%..
The embodied carbon within the façade increased compared with initial projections.This is partly due to the anodized finish of the aluminium frame curtain walling (this couldn’t be altered due to the extant planning permission) and partly because the façade was manufactured in Poland – a country with both many transport miles and an electricity grid predominantly fuelled by coal..