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SUDU – the Sustainable Urban Dwelling Unit – an architectural experiment

SUDU cover

Hebel, Dirk E., Melakeselam Moges, Zara Gray, in collaboration with Something Fantastic (2015). SUDU – the Sustainable Urban Dwelling Unit, Manual and Research, Ruby Press, Berlin, Germany

SUDU―the Sustainable Urban Dwelling Unit―is a full-scale prototype for an affordable, two-story house built with local materials and traditional building techniques in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Developed in a collaborative endeavor between the Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development and ETH Zurich, SUDU ties in with the rich tradition of loam construction while at the same time taking a fresh look at how to adapt this tradition to contemporary needs. Recapitulating SUDU’s idiosyncratic construction process in two lavishly illustrated volumes, this publication details the building techniques employed, such as rammed earth, mud bricks, and timbrel vaulting. The first volume additionally explores the history of Ethiopian architecture, the postcolonial nature of its current construction industry, and the challenges of the country’s rapid urbanization. The second volume, a manual with more than 600 detailed drawings and instructions, demonstrates how to build a house, step-by-step, with the most readily available building material―earth.

You can order the book right here.

 
 

Alternativen inklusive

Stadt gibt es nicht
Hebel, Dirk und Aurel von Richthofen (2016). Alternativen inklusive, in: Stadt gibt es nicht! Unbestimmtheit als Programm in Architektur und Städtebau, Andri Gerber und Stefan Kurath (Hrsg.), DOM Publishers, Berlin, Deutschland.

Den Urbanisierungsprozessen begegnet die Architektur- und Städtebautheorie seit Vitruv, Alberti, Filarete und sogar bis in die Neuzeit mit der Idealvorstellung von Stadt. Die richtige Stadt, die schöne Stadt oder etwa die gesunde Stadt scheinen Rezept und Medizin zugleich zu sein. Allerdings fehlt dieser Idealvorstellung die Wirkungskraft, da sie die Dynamiken des Stadtwerdens verdrängt, die insbesondere von Unbestimmheit geprägt sind. Unbestimmtheit muss zum Programm einer zeitgenössischen Praxis in Architektur und Städtebau werden, die sich nicht der ideengeschichtlichen Herleitung eines Ideals, sondern einer vertieften wirkungsgeschichtlichen Auseinandersetzung verschreibt. Ihr Ausgangspunkt ist nicht Stadt, sondern das Bewusstsein, dass Stadt als reproduzierbare Entität nicht existiert und somit nicht eingefordert werden kann. Dieser Band versammelt Einblicke in die Praxis der Architektur, der Planung sowie der Geschichtsschreibung. Die Texte spiegeln die Unbestimmheiten in Forschung, Lehre und Alltag. Zugleich legen sie Zeugnis ab über ein zeitgenössisches Arbeiten, das in Echtzeit Stadtwirklichkeiten zu verändern vermag.

 
 

SUDU publication

SUDU cover

On December 01, 2015, Ruby Press Berlin publishes SUDU, Research and Manual, edited by Dirk E. Hebel, Melakeselam Moges and Zara Gray.  SUDU—the Sustainable Urban Dwelling Unit—is a full-scale prototype for an affordable, two-story house built with local materials and traditional building techniques in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Developed in a collaborative endeavor between the Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development and ETH Zurich, SUDU ties in with the rich tradition of loam construction while at the same time taking a fresh look at how to adapt this tradition to contemporary needs.

Recapitulating SUDU’s idiosyncratic construction process in two lavishly illustrated volumes, this publication details the building techniques employed, such as rammed earth, mud bricks, and timbrel vaulting. The first volume additionally explores the history of Ethiopian architecture, the postcolonial nature of its current construction industry, and the challenges of the country’s rapid urbanization. The second volume, a manual with more than 600 detailed drawings and instructions, demonstrates how to build a house, step-by-step, with the most readily available building material—earth.

 
 

Bambus-Stahl und Maurer-Roboter

Baublatt_BB_1542_coverbild

Kron, Ben (2015). Bambus-Stahl und Maurer-Roboter, in: baublatt (October 16 2015): 12–17

 

Seit fünf Jahren forscht die ETH Zürich in Singapur gemeinsam mit lokalen Unis an Lösungen für die Megacities der Zukunft. Die Wissenschaftler realisieren dabei eine Reihe von bemerkenswerten Projekten, die den Städtebau nachhaltig beeinflussen könnten.

 
 

Bamboo research on DEZEEN

dezeen bamboo

World Architecture Festival 2015: bamboo could “revolutionise the building industry” and replace steel as the dominant reinforcing material, according to a professor who is working on new applications for the grass. Speaking at WAF in Singapore today, Dirk Hebel said that bamboo fibre could be used as a more sustainable and far cheaper alternative to steel on construction sites. “This has the potential to revolutionise our building industry and finally provide an alternative to the monopoly of reinforced concrete,” Hebel said.

Read the full article here.

 
 

ILEK Stuttgart – Alternativen Konstruieren

ILEK Dirk Hebel

Public lecture of Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel at the Institut für Leichtbau Entwerfen und Konstruieren ILEK in Stuttgart on October 12, 2015 at 17:30pm.

 
 

Top Science Award for Alireza Javadian

Alireza award

Aliriza Javadian, PhD student in the Hebel Research Group at the Future Cities Laboratory in Singapore, wins top distinguished award in the 2015 Singapore Challenge: The Science of Future Cities for his research on Advanced Fiber Composite Materials. The Singapore Scientific Challenge 2015 is jointly organised by A*STAR, NUS, NTU, SMU and SUTD as part of A*STAR’s Science@50 initiative to mark a half-century of excellent science in Singapore on her 50th birthday. It seeks to promote engagements and collaborations amongst the wider scientific community and to raise the level of scientific thought leadership in Singapore.

 
 

World Architecture Festival 2015, Singapore

WAF

Two public lectures by Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel at the occasion of the World Architecture Festival in Singapore on November 04 and November 05 at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. From the organizers: “World Architecture Festival is the world’s largest international architectural event. It includes the biggest architectural awards programme in the world, dedicated to celebrating excellence via live presentations to delegates and international juries. This year’s programme 50:50 will examine how architecture and urbanism have changed during the last 50 years, how predictions have been fulfilled or denied, and how we think will change in the next 50 years.”

 
 

Sand – ein Baumaterial mit Zukunft?

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Public lecture by Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel at the occasion of the exhibition “Wie Sand am Meer”, ERES-Stiftung München, on October 08, 2015. “Der Rohstoff Sand scheint unerschöpflich. Doch verschlingen heute vor allem Stahlbetonbauten der Megacities, Straßenbau und Landgewinnung solche Mengen, dass Bausand zur knappen Ressource wird. Durch die wachsende Nachfrage lohnt es sich inzwischen, Sand zu stehlen und zu schmuggeln. Insbesondere in Entwicklungsländern wird unkontrolliert abgebaut, Strände werden abgetragen, Flüsse geschürft und Meeresböden ausgebaggert. Engagiert und kenntnisreich geht die Münchner Künstlerin Stefanie Zoche verschiedensten Facetten dieses Themas nach. In eindringlichen Bildern und überraschender Formensprache formuliert sie die Gedankenlosigkeit und Widersprüchlichkeit unseres Umgangs mit der kostbaren Ressource Sand. Ein Großteil der gezeigten Skulpturen, Installationen und Videoarbeiten sind im Auftrag der ERES-Stiftung entstanden. Mit dem Projekt setzt die Stiftung ihren Ausstellungszyklus zum Thema Anthropozän fort und lenkt den Blick auf einen bislang wenig beachteten Aspekt des menschlichen Eingriffs in Geo- und Biosphäre.” (Bild und Text: Stephanie Zoche)

 
 

focusTerra – lecture series

BodenSchätzeWerte-Karussell

Public lecture by Asst. Professor Dirk E. Hebel, September 23, 2015, 6pm. “Mineralische Rohstoffe bilden die Grundlage unseres täglichen Lebens. Ihre Verfügbarkeit ist für uns selbstverständlich, und der weltweite Verbrauch nimmt stetig zu. Was sind die langfristigen Folgen unserer zunehmenden Nutzung nicht erneuerbarer Rohstoffe? Welche Herausforderungen kommen auf uns zu?”

 
 

Wie Sand am Meer

sand am meer

Hebel, Dirk E, Aurel von Richthofen (2015). Sand, eine endliche Ressource, in Wie Sand am Meer, Reihe Kunst und Wissenschaft, Katalog zur Ausstellung, 08–11. München: ERES Stiftung.

Seine Fülle ist sprichwörtlich. Trotzdem gibt es ihn nicht mehr wie Sand am Meer. Wie es dazu kam, welche Alternativen sich abzeichnen und warum Wüstensand als Baumaterial ungeeignet ist.

 
 

World Bamboo Congress

WBC

Keynote speech by Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel at the World Bamboo Congress in South Korea on September 20th, 2015. From the organizers: “In the last 20 years, the WBC as a series of Sessions & Demonstrations has grown to attract participants from more than 30 countries around the world, including world-renowned experts in bamboo design, construction, and architecture. For any professional that works with this amazing natural resource — whether a botanist, biologist, horticulturist, architect, artist, designer, businessperson, government representative, non-profit organization, or economist, the WBC has been an ideal opportunity to meet and develop collaborations in research and development, project or business development, while at the same time, advancing the social and environmental goals derived from the various applications of bamboo.”

 
 

Spring Semester 2015 – Resource Switzerland

 
On 26th May 2015 the Final Presentations took place in the Assistant Professorship Dirk E. Hebel’s Design Studio. Guest critiques, including Bijoy Jain, Jürgen Mayer H, Steven Spier, Stefan Hörner and Philippe Block joined for the full day event and shared their valuable expertise.

In the Spring Semester 2015 the students were introduced to a broad number of Swiss resources. In collaboration with professional craftsmen they investigated the architectonic potential of specific building materials. Context, material and constructive principles followed a clear causality and ended in the design of an atelier or a different spatial arrangement of a similar scale, for the respective craftsman. On the basis of a built 1:1 extract we finally test the validity of the project.

It is the declared aim of the course to teach responsibility in the use of material resources and for the hereof deviated principles of construction. Decisions of design should not only result from aesthetic points of view, but bring up questions regarding availability of materials, skills, talents, responsibility for sustainable resources, functionality and respect for social and cultural settings and the traditional comprehension of handicraft, joining principles and production technologies.

Photo credits: Assistant Professorship Dirk E. Hebel/ Wojciech Zawarski

 
 

CNN: FCL Singapore developes ideas to steal from

CNNgross

Future Cities: Singapore focuses on the exceptionally forward-looking urban approach of the island nation to learn about the challenges of planning for future generations.

(CNN) Singapore is small, hot and heavily populated — the 5.5 million residents of the tropical city-state live in less than 750 square kilometres of land. And population is expected to reach 6.9 million by 2030. Despite these challenges, Singapore continues to be amongst the most liveable and economically successful cities in the word, with a GDP equaling that of leading European countries. With more than 50% of the world’s population living in cities already (a figure projected to reach 70% by 2050), Singapore — where everyone is a city dweller — is setting trends for rapidly urbanizing countries worldwide. …

With high-density living comes high-density waste. But Singapore has been organized with its refuse management systems, not only by collecting it efficiently but even employing it to make more land. “They don’t have the space to store waste,” says Dirk Hebel, from the Future Cities Laboratory at the Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability. …

Due to its close proximity to the equator, Singapore’s climate is hot and humid, with temperatures averaging above 30 degrees Celsius and little variation throughout the year. The built-up nature of the city increases temperatures further through the ‘heat island’ effect — caused by buildings blocking air flow, transport emissions and long-wave radiation heating up the island nation. As a result, a lot of the city’s energy expenditure goes towards cooling people down. “Up to 60% of Singapore’s electricity is for buildings,” says Arno Schlüter, Professor of Architecture and building systems, also with the Future Cities Laboratory. Most buildings use electricity to cool-down and dehumidify public and work spaces. “Singapore is a noisy city due to all the [cooling] units on the wall,” says Schlüter.

 
 

ETH Zurich designers create arched pavilion out of upcycled beverage cartons

dezeen
McKnight, Jenna (2015). ETH Zurich designers create arched pavilion out of upcycled beverage cartons, DEZEEN Architectural Magazine

Architects and engineers from ETH Zurich university used waste material to create a vaulted pavilion for New York City’s Ideas Festival. The ETH Future Pavilion was designed to demonstrate how trash can be transformed into a viable building material. The temporary structure was constructed within a narrow park that stretches between two buildings in New York’s East Village.

Read more here.

 
 

Building from Waste: swissnex San Francisco highlights

In April 2015 swissnex San Francisco together with Chair of Architecture and Construction at ETH Zurich organized a one week event called ‘Building From Waste’. During this time everyone interested in the issues of rethinking the use of waste could participate in a series of presentations, a panel discussion, a hands-on workshop and an exhibition.

 
 

ARCHITECT@WORK Zürich

Aatwork

Public lecture by Dirk E. Hebel at the architect@work event in Zürich, Switzerland. This international exhibition and symposium event takes place in ten different European countrys every year. The 2015 event in Zürich is the third of its kind in Switzerland. Special desigened exhibition layouts allow to place innovative ideas in architecture, construction and design at the forefront of discussion and exchange. Dirk E. Hebel will speak about the latest research outcomes of the team`s material and construction laboratories in Zürich and Singapore.

 
 

Rural Housing research project in Ethiopia enters its final phase with a stakeholders forum

RH

On Tuesday, April 28, 2015, a stakeholders forum in Butajira city to place to present and discuss further steps of the Rural Housing research project, a combined research project of EiABC and ETH Professorship Dirk E. Hebel, with representatives of Guraghe Zone Administration, City Government, Bete Guraghe Cultural Center, colleagues from Wolkite University and Wolkite Polytechnic College and other stakeholder.

In his opening speech, EiABC Scientific Director Joachim Dieter explained the role and importance of housing research for the development of the rural areas and the meaning of experimental and applied research in full scale for the education of Architects, Construction Manager and Urban Planner at the Institute.

Project Manager Melekeselam Moges and his team explained in their presentation the achievements of the SRDU project, the current state of research on the continuation project, improvements in it’s design and technical aspects as building materials and construction methods, while possible collaborations and partnerships with local authorities, University and Polytechnic, communities and NGO have been evaluated.

All topics of the presentation had been commented and discussed with the invited guests to reach maximum acceptance and learn from previous valuable experiences.

This research project is supported and facilitated by Switzerland’s Arthur Waser Foundation, the ETH Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, and ETH-Global.

The team of EiABC included both wings of the management, academic and administrative, and was represented by Scientific Director Joachim Dieter, Managing Director Dr. Beatrice Delpouve, Project Manager Melakeselam Moges and his team, Chairholder Imam Mahmoud – Chair of Housing, Head of Finance Shimeles Habtamu, and the Head of International Relations, Mr. Agus Prianto. The event was concluded with a visit of the future project site.

 
 

Design workshop at SWISSNEX San Francisco

Can design reduce waste production? How can small adjustments in the typical life cycle of everyday products drastically minimize waste flow? The search for the answers to those and other refuse-related questions were the goals of this year’s ‘Constructing from Waste’ workshop in San Francisco led by Marta H. Wisniewska and Felix Heisel. Participants with different background and experience, including students, school teachers, architects and product designers, worked on eight different proposals. Andreas Müller of Birkhäuser, publisher of the Building from Waste book, awarded the best three proposals with recent publications.

The Constructing Waste: Upcycling and Rethinking Trash workshop was organized in cooperation with Mary Ellyn Johnson of swissnex SF in the frame of a one week long event at swissnex San Francisco promoting the Building from Waste book, which has just entered the US market.

For more information click here.

Photo credits: swissnex SF/ Mayleen Hollero

 
 

`Building from Waste` exhibition at SWISSNEX San Francisco

The exhibition Building from Waste: Material Showcase accompanied the Building from Waste book promotion week, which took place at swissnex San Francisco between April 20 – 25, 2015

The Asst. Professorship of Architecture and Construction Dirk E. Hebel brought the Building from Waste: Material Showcase to swissnex San Francisco, items of loan from the Baubibliothek of the ETH-Bibliothek. Visitors had a chance to experience over 20 alternative construction materials produced from waste. The exhibited materials cover a wide range of building elements made from straw or PET bottles, fibers extracted from old newspapers, juice and milk containers, denim jeans, and many more. Additionally the exhibition included an extended display of mycelium lightweight products in different moments of growth produced by local artist and inventor Phill Ross of Mycoworks.

For more information click here.

Photo credits: swissnex SF/ Mayleen Hollero

 
 

Waste Not: `Building from Waste` panel discussion at SWISSNEX San Francisco

Waste Not Panel Discussion at swissnex San Francisco on April 21, 2015 started a week-long event organized by Mary Ellyn Johnson and the swissnex SF team around the launch of the Building from Waste book for the US market.

Future resilient cities will be constructed out of their own refuse. This hypothesis was the spark for the book, Building from Waste: Recovered Materials in Architecture and Construction by Dirk E. Hebel, Marta H. Wisniewska and Felix Heisel from ETH Zurich and the Future Cities Laboratory in Singapore.

Felix Heisel and Marta H. Wisniewska gave a conceptual and practical look at materials and products that use waste as a renewable resource during their presentation and panel discussion at swissnex San Francisco. From the local experts, Philip Ross (Mycoworks), Thom Foulders (Foulders Studio) and Peter Ratto (Recology), the guests could hear how mushrooms can be a viable building material, how experiments in architecture are incorporating unique products focused on sustainability and renewal, and how San Francisco’s Recology is working towards zero waste for the city by 2020.

For more information click here.

Photo credits: swissnex SF/ Mayleen Hollero

 
 

Afrikas Moderne

Bild_wbw_04_2015 copy

Hebel, Dirk (2015). `Afrikas Moderne`, werk, bauen+wohnen, Display 4-2015. Seite 55-56, Zürich, Schweiz

«Architektur der Unabhängigkeit» im Vitra Design Museum Weil am Rhein. Zwischen 1957 und 1966 erlangten zweiunddreissig der heutigen vierundfünfzig afrikanischen Länder ihre Unabhängigkeit. Diese Zeit war geprägt vom Geiste des Aufbruchs, des Stolzes, des Optimismus und auch einem latent vorhandenen Grössenwahn, der seinen Niederschlag in unzähligen Bauten und Projekten wiederfindet, welche die Ausstellung «Architektur der Unabhängigkeit» in der Galerie des Vitra Design Museums in Weil am Rhein hervorhebt.

 
 

Bauen mit Müll

Baublatt
Paul, Jochen (2015). `Bauen mit Müll`, Scheizer Baublatt, Seite 16-19, Rüschlikon, Schweiz

Global betrachtet wird Müll in naher Zukunft zu einer wichtigen Ressource: Entwicklungsländer könnten ihre Importabhängigkeit bei Baustoffen reduzieren, die lndustriestaaten wertvolle Rohstoffe und graue Energie einsparen. Notwendig dafür ist ein Umdenken.

 
 

Action for Cities

Singarch
Toh, Felicia (2015). `Action for Cities`, Singapore Architect. Issue 04/2015: Education and Research, page 130-137, Singapore

The Future Cities: Research in Action exhibition by Future Cities Laboratory featured prominently on the ground floor of URA Centre from 23 January to 13 March 2015. Felicia Toh investigates its key research interests in cities.

 
 

Researching the Future City

cubes
Lim, Jan (2015). `Researching the future city`, CUBES. pages 156-157, Singapore

An exhibition at the URA Centre presented four years of research and offered practical proposals for the development of sustainable future cities.

 

 
 

The Bamboo Revival: Green Structures

bamboo1

Article published at Sourceable: Bamboo is one of the world’s oldest structural materials and has been used in construction for centuries. Now new research could potentially bolster its continued resurgence and use as a material in green structures. Steel-reinforced concrete is the most common building material in the world. Developing countries use close to 90 per cent of the cement and 80 per cent of the steel consumed by the global construction sector. According to research by the chair of architecture and construction at Future Cities Laboratory (FCL) in the Singapore-ETH Centre, 70 per cent of damage in the built environment today is caused by corrosion of steel inside reinforced concrete structures. In addition, steel is also costly and energy hungry when it comes to production and transportation. Read more here.

 
 

Could bamboo replace steel reinforcement in developing countries?

archdesign

Johnson, Nathan (2015). `Could bamboo replace steel reinforcement in developing countries?` Architecture and Design Australia. Chatswood, Australia.

Singapore’s Future Cities Laboratory is working to tap into the potential of bamboo as an alternative to steel for reinforced concrete applications in developing countries. Currently, steel-reinforced concrete is the most common building material in the world, and developing countries use close to 90 per cent of the cement and 80 per cent of the steel consumed by the global construction sector. However, few developing countries actually produce their own steel or cement and are thus forced into exploitative relationships with sellers in the developed world. read more

 
 

The Bamboo Revival: Green Structures

bamboo revival

McGar, Justin (2015). `The Bamboo Revival: Green Structures`, Sourceable. Industry News and Analysis, Australia and Canada

Bamboo is one of the world’s oldest structural materials and has been used in construction for centuries. Now new research could potentially bolster its continued resurgence and use as a material in green structures. read more

 
 

Bambus statt Beton

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Bislang sind Häuser und Brücken aus Bambus Einzelfälle. Forscher von der ETH Zürich wollen jetzt aus dem Süßgrasgewächs einen ökologischen und günstigen Massenbaustoff für die Städte von morgen entwickeln. Ein Beitrag von Oliver Ristau im Technology Review Magazin für Innovation. (article in German only)

 
 

Spring Semester 2015 – Ressource Schweiz

FS15_Poster_Hebel

Es ist das erklärte Ziel des Entwurfsstudios im Frühjahr 2015, Studierenden eine Verantwortung für den Einsatz von Materialressourcen und den daraus abgeleiteten Konstruktionsprinzipien zu vermitteln. Entwurfsentscheidungen sollen nicht aus rein ästhetischen Gründen getroffen werden, sondern Fragen aufwerfen nach der Verfügbarkeit von Materialien und Talenten, der Verantwortung eines nachhaltiges Ressourceneinsatzes, der Funktionalität und der Achtung von sozialen und kulturellen Eigenheiten und dem traditionellen Verständnis von Handwerk, Fügungsprinzipien und Verarbeitungstechniken. Die Studierenden werden ihren Entwurf diesen lokalen Bedingungen durch Feldforschung in Zusammenarbeit mit lokal ansässigen Handwerkern/Künstlern durchführen und auf Erkenntnisse mit angemessenen und würdigen architektonischen Strategien reagieren. Es ist das Ziel, Bauweisen und Details zu entwickeln, die in der Schweiz verfügbare Fähigkeiten sowie Materialien integrieren und diese in ein architektonisch und konstruktiv schlüssiges Konzept umsetzen. Ort, Material und konstruktive Prinzipien folgen einer klaren Kausalität und münden in den Entwurf eines Ateliers für die jeweiligen Handwerker.

Eine Seminarwoche zu diesem Thema wird interessierten Studierenden angeboten. Die Teilnahme wird empfohlen, ist aber nicht zwingend.

Die erstellten Entwürfe beinhalten materialspezifische, architektonische sowie konstruktive Untersuchungen, Zeichnungen und Modelle. Darüber hinaus werden 1:1 Ausschnitte des Entwurfs gemeinsam mit den entsprechenden Handwerkern erarbeitet und ausgestellt.

Die Professur bietet den Entwurf mit der integrierten Disziplin Konstruktion an. Ebenfalls bietet die Professur Philippe Block die integrierte Disziplin Tragkonstruktion an.

 
 

‘Future Cities: Research in Action’ exhibition opened at the URA Centre Singapore

Future Cities @ Urban Lab ST 240115

The ‘Future Cities: Research in Action’ exhibition opened on 23 Jan 2015 at the URA Centre atrium in Singapore It will run till 13 Mar 2015. Focused on cities, urbanisation, and global environmental sustainability, it presents research conducted by FCL towards the development of sustainable future cities. In this context, the Assistant Profesorship of Dirk E. Hebel (who also curated the show) exhibits their work on alternative future building materials. In general, the exhibition features the work of more than 120 FCL researchers from over 30 countries over the past four years. Integrating science, design and technology, they tackle urban challenges at multiple scales, from building materials and systems to neighbourhoods, districts, cities and their hinterlands. Click here for more information.

 
 

Bambus statt Beton

tech Review

Ristau, Oliver (2015). `Bambus statt Beton`, Technology Review – Das Magazin für Innovation. Ausgabe 02/2015, Deutschland

Bislang sind Häuser und Brücken aus Bambus Einzelfälle. Forscher von der
ETH Zürich wollen jetzt aus dem Süßgrasgewächs einen ökologischen und günstigen Massenbaustoff für die Städte von morgen entwickeln.

 
 

Wundermaterial mit Langzeitfolgen

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270.000 tons of plastic waste particles are floating in our oceans. Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel is writing on garbage swirls and plastic materials in the ETH Zukunftsblog (article in German only). Click here to read the article.

 
 

Bioplastik und eine Müllabfuhr für die Weltmeere

BioplastikHebel, Dirk (2015). `Bioplastik und eine Müllabfuhr für die Weltmeere`, ETH Zukunftsblog. ETH Zürich, Switzerland

Das Umweltproblem Plastik hat erschreckende Ausmasse erreicht und wächst stetig. Die dringende Suche nach Alternativen kommt langsam in Gang, mit einigen vielversprechenden Ansätzen. read more

 
 

Wundermaterial mit Langzeitfolgen

wundermaterial

Hebel, Dirk (2015). `Wundermaterial mit Langzeitfolgen`, ETH Zukunftsblog. ETH Zürich, Switzerland.

Fast 270‘000 Tonnen Kunststoffmüll treibt in den Weltmeeren. Plastik ist zu einem Umweltproblem unfassbaren Ausmasses geworden, das bis in die letzten Ecken der Erde vorgedrungen ist. read more

 
 

Simulating the Future

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Hebel, Dirk and Felix Heisel (2015). `Simulating the Future`, FCL Magazine N0. 03: Simulation. page 22-25, SEC, FCL Singapore

The ADDIS 2050 research project combines the collective activities and collaborations within FCL and African partners over the last few years in Ethiopia, especially in it`s capital Addis Ababa. The title ADDIS 2050 derived from an international conference in November 2012, where FCL, together with the Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development EiABC developed a vision for the city of Addis Ababa as well as the Ethiopian nation state at large.

 
 

Bambus statt Stahl

bauenzukunft

Saul, Louis (2015). `Bambus statt Stahl`, Bauen für die Zukunft. Callway Verlag, Seite 71, München, Deutschland

Stahlbeton ist aus dem Bau von heute nicht mehr wegzudenken. Aber morgen vielleicht.

 
 

Spring Semester 2015 Seminar Week – Tour de Suisse

SeminarWeek_FS15_Poster_Hebel

Seminarwoche März 2015

Wir bereisen die Schweiz und besuchen Bauten, deren Konzept getragen wird von einem lokal gewonnenen Baumaterial. Es ist das Ziel, die Materialien der Schweiz, die damit verbundenen Orte und Verarbeitungstechniken und die Leute dahinter besser kennen zu lernen.

In Laufen besichtigen wir mit dem Ricola Kräuterzentrum von Herzog de Meuron nicht nur den grössten Lehmbau Europas, sondern auch die Lehmgrube, wo das Material gewonnen wurde. Wir besuchen die Holzbaufirma RUWA und werden sehen, wie aus einem Baum ein Haus wird. Auf der neuesten Baustelle von Shigeru Ban zeigt uns der Holzbauingenieur Hermann Blumer wie komplex bearbeitete Leimholzträger aufgerichtet werden. Im Gegensatz dazu schauen wir uns in Graubünden Strickholzbauten von Peter Zumthor an, bei denen er zeigt, wie mit der traditionellen Bautechnik auch eine offene Raumgestaltung erreicht werden kann. Und in Illanz führt uns Gordian Blumenthal durch das Stampflehmkino – wo wir uns anschliessend einen Film anschauen, und vieles mehr…

Daten: Montag 16. März bis Freitag 20. März 2015
Kostenkategorie: B

 
 

Architecture de crise – Seminaire théorique

seminar theorique

Public lecture of Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel on December 02, 2014 at HEPIA, Geneva, Switzerland. The seminar investigates the potential of crises or emergency situatiuons and their impact on the transformation process of our environment, architectural culture, or art to build.

 
 

Neue Werkstoffe

Infopapier_Neue_Werkstoffe copy

Public lecture by Asst. Prof. Dirk E. Hebel at the Technical University Munich (TUM) on Thursday, November 27, 2014, focusing on alternative materials and their application in architecture and construction. Next to the well-known concept of recycling, the talk will focus on other aspects of material cycles. Densifying, reconfiguring, transforming, designing, and cultivating are some of the areas, the research of the Assistant Professorship of Architecture and Construction Dirk E. Hebel is concentrating on.

 
 
       
 
 
 
Karlsruher Institut für Technologie
Fakultät für Architektur
Institut Entwerfen und Bautechnik

Professur Nachhaltiges Bauen
Englerstr. 11, Geb. 11.40, Raum 25
D-76131 Karlsruhe
 
Tel: +49 (0)721/608-42167
 
 
 
Recent Publications:  
 

    Building for the world of tomorrow

    April 24, 2025

    Monkenbusch, Helmut. „Bauen für die Welt von morgen.“ Hörzu, 24.1.2025

     
     

    Funghi – underground networkers

    April 24, 2025

    Hebel, Dirk E., Tanja Hildbrandt. „ Pilze – Netzwerker im Untergrund“. alverde, dm-Magazin, April 2025.

     
     

    Fungi are versatile

    February 24, 2025

    Merkert-Andreas, Carolin. “Pilze Sind Vielseitig.” Wohnglück, January 2025.

     
     

    “RoofKIT – Carbon storage and Material storage”

    January 9, 2025

    Boerman, Elena, and Dirk E. Hebel. “RoofKIT – Kohlenstoffspeicher Und Materiallager.” Architektur.Aktuell, vol. 12.2024, no. Tradition und Innovation, Dezember 2024, pp. 98–109

     
     

    Interview: “From a Linear to a Circular System”

    November 13, 2024

    Hebel, Dirk E. Interview: “Vom linearen zum zirkulären Kreislaufsystem.” Interview by Sandra Hofmeister, DETAIL 11.2024, Nov. 2024.

     
     

    Building with renewable materials – Nature as a resource depot

    October 29, 2024

    Hebel, Dirk E., Sandra Böhm, Elena Boerman, Hrsg. Vom Bauen mit erneuerbaren Materialien – Die Natur als Rohstofflager. Stuttgart: Fraunhofer IRB Verlag, 2024.

     
     

    Guest contribution: ‘Thinking, designing and operating in circular ways.’

    June 27, 2024

    Hebel, Dirk E. “In Kreisläufen denken, entwerfen und wirtschaften.” MÄG – Mein Häfele Magazin, 2024.

     
     

    Interview: ‘Mycelium power for the construction industry’

    June 10, 2024

    Rubel, Maike, and Patricia Leuchtenberger. Interview: “Pilzpower für die Bauindustrie.” competitionline, 7 June 2024, https://www.competitionline.com/de/news/schwerpunkt/pilzpower-fuer-die-bauindustrie-7283.html.

     
     

    ‘Future building materials: mushroom, hemp and algae’ in neubau kompass

    May 27, 2024

    Müller, Janek. “Baumaterialien der Zukunft: Pilze, Hanf und Algen.” neubau kompass – Neubauprojekte in Deutschland, May 3, 2024. https://www.neubaukompass.de/premium-magazin/.

     
     

    Interview: ‘We have disposed of valuable materials’

    May 7, 2024

    Sören, S. Sgries. “Interview: ‘Wir haben wertvolle Materialien weggeworfen.’” Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung, April 27, 2024, SÜDWEST I 28 edition, sec. Sinsheimer Nachrichten.

     
     

    Built on mushroom

    April 24, 2024

    Schweikle, Johannes. “Auf Pilz gebaut.” Stuttgarter Zeitung, April 23, 2024, sec. Die Reportage.

     
     

    Organic Architecture – Fungus mycelium and flax as materials for the ecological building transition

    February 13, 2024

    Klaaßen, Lars. “Organische Architektur – Pilzmyzel und Flachs als Materialien für die ökologische Bauwende.” In Deutsches Architektur Jahrbuch 2024, edited by Peter Cachola Schmal, Yorck Förster, and Christina Gräwe, 198–209. Berlin, Germany: DOM publishers, 2024.

     
     

    Circular construction – Circulation instead of demolition in “BUND-Jahrbuch 2024”

    January 18, 2024

    Streiff, Peter. “Zirkuläres Bauen – Kreislauf statt Abriss.” BUND-Jahrbuch – Ökologisch Bauen & Renovieren 2024, January 2024.

     
     

    Redesigned Material Library at KIT in ‘Mitteilungsblatt des VDB-Regionalverbands Südwest’

    January 8, 2024

    Mönnich, Michael, and Sandra Böhm. “Neu gestaltete Materialbibliothek am KIT.” Südwest-Info: Mitteilungsblatt des VDB-Regionalverbands Südwest Nr. 36 (2023), 2023.

     
     

    RoofKIT Wuppertal, Germany; Interview with Prof. Dirk Hebel

    November 20, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “RoofKIT Wuppertal, Germany; Interview with Prof. Dirk Hebel: The aim is clear, we must forge the path ourselves.” In Sustainable Architecture & Design 2023/ 2024, edited by Andrea Herold, Tina Kammerer, and InteriorPark., 46–55. Stuttgart, Germany: av edition GmbH, 2023.

     
     

    The existing building stock is the future resource

    November 16, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Der Bestand ist die künftige Ressource – Den linearen Umgang mit Baumaterialien schnellstmöglich stoppen.” Planerin – Mitgliederfachzeitschrift für Stadt-, Regional- und Landesplanung, Oktober 2023.

     
     

    Article: Investigation of mechanical, physical and thermoacoustic properties of a novel light-weight dense wall panels made of bamboo Phyllostachys Bambusides

    October 30, 2023

    Gholizadeh, Parham, Hamid Zarea Hosseinabadi, Dirk E. Hebel, and Alireza Javadian. “Investigation of Mechanical, Physical and Thermoacoustic Properties of a Novel Light-Weight Dense Wall Panels Made of Bamboo Phyllostachys Bambusides.” Nature Sientific Reports 13 (October 26, 2023). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-45515-3

     
     

    Building Better – Less – Different: Clean Energy Transition and Digital Transformation

    October 16, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E., Felix Heisel, Andreas Wagner, und Moritz Dörstelmann, Hrsg. Besser Weniger Anders Bauen – Energiewende und digitale Transformation. Besser Weniger Anders Bauen 2. Basel: Birkhäuser Verlag GmbH, 2023.

     
     

    From hunting, breeding and harvesting future building materials

    September 27, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Vom Jagen, Züchten Und Ernten Zukünftiger Baumaterialien.” Baukultur Nordrhein Westfalen, September 2023.

     
     

    Building Circular

    September 21, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E., Ludwig Wappner, Katharina Blümke, Valerio Calavetta, Steffen Bytomski, Lisa Häberle, Peter Hoffmann, Paula Holtmann, Hanna Hoss, Daniel Lenz and Falk Schneemann, eds. Sortenrein Bauen – Methode Material Konstruktion. Edition DETAIL. München: DETAIL Business Information GmbH, 2023.

     
     

    Fungi

    September 18, 2023

    Schweikle, Johannes. “Fungi.” In Earthlike, 1:70–75, 2023.

     
     

    Recent Contributions in “wohnen”

    September 18, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Die Stadt als Rohstofflager.” wohnen – Zeitschrift der Wohnungswirtschaft Bayern, August 2023.

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Das RoofKIT-Gebäude der KIT Fakultät für Architektur – Gewinner des Solar Decathlon 2021/22 in Wuppertal.” wohnen – Zeitschrift der Wohnungswirtschaft Bayern, August 2023.

     
     

    The City as Materials Storage

    July 14, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Die Stadt Als Rohstofflager.” Aktuell – Das Magazin Der Wohnung- Und Immobilienwirtschaft in Baden-Württemberg, 2023.

     
     

    Building-Circle instead of One-Way-Economy

    June 30, 2023

    Ellinghaus, Tanja. “Bau-Kreislauf Statt Einweg-Wirtschaft.” Transition – Das Energiewendemagazin Der Dena, 2023.

     
     

    Pure construction methods – circularity-based self-conception in architecture

    June 14, 2023

    Hebel, Dirk E. “Sortenreines Konstruieren – Kreislaufbasiertes Selbstverständnis in der Architektur.” Baumit, 2023. https://www.calameo.com/read/0011023184a57c4715124.

     
     

    Building as a Project of Circularity

    June 14, 2023

    Reddy, Anita. “Bauen Als Kreislaufprojekt.” Engagement Global GGmbH, October 20, 2020. https://www.faz.net/aktuell/rhein-main/frankfurt/frankfurt-setzt-auf-recycling-nach-abriss-stadt-wird-baustofflager-18707619.html.

     
     

    Vivid Cycles: Reopening of RoofKIT on the KIT Campus

    May 17, 2023

    Lux, Katharina. “Anschauliche Kreisläufe: Wiedereröffnung Des RoofKIT Auf Dem KIT Campus.” Baunetz CAMPUS(blog), May 16, 2023. https://www.baunetz-campus.de/news/anschauliche-kreislaeufe-wiedereroeffnung-des-roofkit-auf-dem-campus-8235818.

     
     

    Solar and Circular Construction

    May 15, 2023

    Wagner, Prof. Andreas, Nicolás Carbonare, Regina Gebauer, Prof. Dirk E. Hebel, Katharina Knoop, and Michelle Montnacher, eds. “RoofKIT.” In Solares und kreislaufgerechtes Bauen, 186–213. Wuppertal: PinguinDruck, 2023.

     
     

    The built environment as a Resource

    April 5, 2023

    Blümke, Katharina, Elena Boerman, Daniel Lenz, and Riklef Rambow. “Die gebaute Umwelt als Ressource – Mit RoofKIT vom linearen zum zirkulären Verständnis des Bauens.” ASF Journal, March 28, 2023.

     
     

    Solar Decathlon Europe 21/22

    March 29, 2023

    Voss, Karsten, and Katharina Simon, editors. Solar Decathlon Europe 21/22: Competition Source Book. 2023.