flexiblefullpage -
billboard - default
interstitial1 - interstitial
catfish1 - bottom
Currently Reading

SOM and DOE unveil 3D-printed, off-the-grid building

Modular Building

SOM and DOE unveil 3D-printed, off-the-grid building

The Additive Manufacturing Integrated Energy (AMIE) building features a high-performance shell with a photovoltaic roof and built-in natural gas generator.


By Mike Chamernik, Associate Editor | September 23, 2015

The AMIE building, unveiled by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory at the DOE’s Industry Day event. Images courtesy SOM

The Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has unveiled a 3D-printed building at the DOE’s inaugural Industry Day event on Wednesday.

Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the 38x12x13-foot Additive Manufacturing Integrated Energy (AMIE) building can be used for off-the-grid shelter.

A photovoltaics roof works with a natural gas generator to provide lighting and power for the building’s micro-kitchen.

The enclosure conserves energy due to its high levels of insulated solid surfaces (79%) to glazed areas (21%). The battery of the attached 3D-printed vehicle provides supplementary power for the building. Using bi-directional wireless energy gets the building off the power grid at peak demand times.

AMIE condenses the functions of a conventional wall system (structure, insulation, air and moisture barriers, and exterior cladding, for example) into an integrated shell. This could lead to zero-waste construction, and it makes the buildings easier to be recycled and reprinted for other purposes.

Read more

 

Related Stories

| Sep 11, 2013

BUILDINGChicago eShow Daily – Day 3 coverage

Day 3 coverage of the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland conference and expo, taking place this week at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza.

| Sep 10, 2013

BUILDINGChicago eShow Daily – Day 2 coverage

The BD+C editorial team brings you this real-time coverage of day 2 of the BUILDINGChicago/Greening the Heartland conference and expo taking place this week at the Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza.

| Sep 4, 2013

Smart building technology: Talking results at the BUILDINGChicago/ Greening the Heartland show

Recent advancements in technology are allowing owners to connect with facilities as never before, leveraging existing automation systems to achieve cost-effective energy improvements. This BUILDINGChicago presentation will feature Procter & Gamble’s smart building management program. 

| Sep 3, 2013

Delinquency rate for commercial real estate loans at lowest level in three years

The delinquency rate for US commercial real estate loans in CMBS dropped for the third straight month to 8.38%. This represents a 10-basis-point drop since July's reading and a 175-basis-point improvement from a year ago. 

| Aug 26, 2013

What you missed last week: Architecture billings up again; record year for hotel renovations; nation's most expensive real estate markets

BD+C's roundup of the top construction market news for the week of August 18 includes the latest architecture billings index from AIA and a BOMA study on the nation's most and least expensive commercial real estate markets. 

| Aug 22, 2013

Energy-efficient glazing technology [AIA Course]

This course discuses the latest technological advances in glazing, which make possible ever more efficient enclosures with ever greater glazed area.

| Aug 14, 2013

Green Building Report [2013 Giants 300 Report]

Building Design+Construction's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms. 

| Jul 29, 2013

2013 Giants 300 Report

The editors of Building Design+Construction magazine present the findings of the annual Giants 300 Report, which ranks the leading firms in the AEC industry.

| Jul 19, 2013

Renovation, adaptive reuse stay strong, providing fertile ground for growth [2013 Giants 300 Report]

Increasingly, owners recognize that existing buildings represent a considerable resource in embodied energy, which can often be leveraged for lower front-end costs and a faster turnaround than new construction.

| Jul 11, 2013

Lawsuit challenges modular apartment project in New York City

A plan to build pre-fab apartment buildings at Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn, N.Y., has been challenged by a lawsuit filed by the Plumbing Foundation in Manhattan Supreme Court.  

boombox1 - default
boombox2 -
native1 -

More In Category




Modular Building

Building with shipping containers not as eco-friendly as it seems

With millions of shipping containers lying empty at ports around the world, it may seem like repurposing them to construct buildings would be a clear environmental winner. The reality of building with shipping containers is complicated, though, and in many cases isn’t a net-positive for the environment, critics charge, according to a report by NPR's Chloe Veltman.

halfpage1 -

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021