FOJAB sharpens design and construction process with digital skills

Solutions to complex problems, innovative design and a more efficient manufacturing process. Sound like a dream? It isn't. This is what FOJABcode offers, where code stands for computational design.

Code is about using digital computing tools and programming in the design process. The applications for architects are many.

One is at early stages, such as volume studies to work out how the shape of a building affects its carbon footprint. Or in studies of daylight, wind conditions and views. In order to maximize the lake view in the neighborhood The beach of the drum in Växjö, Sweden, FOJAB developed the View Machine, which shows how much and how good a sea view each apartment has at a certain shape. Each apartment was designed according to the View Machine's results for the best possible sea view.

Another use is as a modeling tool. Computational design can contribute to innovative design and is advantageously used for free-form structures and buildings with organic shapes.

- If the design is to be optimized at the same time, it can be too time-consuming to try to find the ultimate form, and it may not even be possible. Using a mathematical model, you can simulate different solutions and produce a strong expression where geometry and construction reinforce each other," says Henrik Malm, architect and head of FOJABcode.

FOJAB uses computational design both in research collaborations and in projects, such as the mobility house. The doll in Västerås, whose facade consists of sheet metal bent along curved lines.

- When bending along straight lines, you can intuitively understand how the bent material behaves, but when the bending line is a curve, it is not as easy. A digital model was developed to simulate the process, showing what the bending line should look like to give a certain result," says Henrik Malm.