When it comes to 3D printing, the sky is the limit. As 3D printing technology continues to advance, applications can be as far reaching as airplane and automobile parts to medical devices and even anatomically correct, biocompatible models. Although 3D printing technology is developing at a rapid pace, the technology itself is not new. It emerged in the 1980s as a means of creating rapid prototypes. In recent years the applications for 3D printed models have evolved with the available hardware, software, and printable materials. Evolving technology, paired with the creative and innovative minds of scientists, engineers, and physicians, has been the launching pad for developments within 3D printing technology specific to healthcare. One way 3D printing technology is poised to create better patient outcomes is in creating an anatomically and patient-specific models to aid in surgery and medical procedures. With the capability to 3D ...
Sometimes the best choice is not between paper or plastic, but for both paper and plastic.
In February, an earthquake in New Zealand destroyed the spire and top half of the tower and caused structural damage to the Christchurch Cathedral. Construction of a temporary paper-and-plastic structure will begin in January.
Tokyo-based Shigeru Ban Architects designed the temporary structure without charging a fee. The structure is similar to one that the firm designed to replace a church damaged by the earthquake in 1995 in Kobe, Japan. The firm is renown for a novel design that uses cardboard, corrugated polycarbonate sheets, and shipping containers. The weatherproof, fireproof buildings can last up to 20 years.
Kate Tilley reports for Plastics News:
Shigeru Ban’s brief was to design a building that would be sustainable, environmentally friendly, safe, durable, beautiful, innovative and versatile.The firm designed a US$3.1 million tent-like, A-frame structure, constructed predominantly from cardboard tubes. It will seat more than 700 people. Twenty-foot long shipping containers will form the building’s base. There are 64 cardboard tubes, each 30 inches in diameter and 55 feet long. The roof will be manufactured from corrugated PC sheets.Shigeru Ban’s Yoshie Narimatsu, who is in charge of the project, said PC is a thermoplastic polymer and easily worked, molded and thermoformed. ‘[The sheets are] easy to handle, cheaper than glass and translucent,’ Narimatsu said.
Shigeru Ban, the firm’s owner, told Tilley that cardboard is an ideal building material because it is readily available and affordable after a disaster, recyclable, and surprisingly strong. “The strength of the building has nothing to do with the strength of the material,” he said. “Even concrete buildings can be destroyed by earthquakes very easily. But paper buildings cannot.”
The temporary structure should be completed in three months. Meanwhile, the Anglican Church in New Zealand will decide whether it will be feasible to repair the damaged cathedral, which was started in 1864 and finished in 1873.
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