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Beyond Biomimicry - The Temple Factory

Part 2 Project 2022
Kyle Lewis Crossley
 Leeds Beckett University | UK
This Project bridges the gap between nature and architecture, mitigating our negative effects on the planet through the growth of living and sustainable building methods and materials. The project seeks to harness live materials that can heal when damaged, have little to no building costs and require less maintenance than carbon intensive buildings.

The project engages with local conceptions of sacred space though an innovative combination of natural site resources and digital technology. The Temple Factory connects the natural sanctity of the existing, thriving banyan tree with the sanctity of physical temples being commissioned and repaired across the regions expanding urban and rural areas.

The factory engages the naturally occurring red clay earth of the site with digital 3-dimensional printing technologies to manufacture modular temple components for export and assembly off site throughout the region. Local communities, working alongside the Pondicherry Technology University will be trained to operate the 3D printers and software in order to control the physical printed components for the buildings.

During festival seasons, the Temple Factory produces modular elements to cater for and accommodate a plethora of multi-faith, religious festivals. These modular components can be printed in-situ and combined with experimental prints, to serve as an ‘exhibition’ for the site visitors. The project provides an experience for visitors to learn about sustainable design solutions using renewable and carbon negative materials, offering a template for future generations.

Tutor(s)
2022
1 . Bamboo Material Analysis An Analysis of Bamboo at both a Macro and Micro scale. Understanding the uses of Bamboo as a building material as well as the bamboo types that can be grown on the Matrikunj Site.
2. Red Earth Printing Material Analysis An analysis of the Red earth on the Matrikunj site and the possibilities of processing and 3D Printing with this material to create modular building blocks.
3. Banyan Growth and Generational Teachings The long term guidance and growth methods of the banyan tree around the bamboo scaffold. Showing generations of families guiding the banyan roots.
4. The Temple Factory isometric of construction layers From Top to Bottom; Banyan Tree Growth, Bamboo Scaffold, 3D Printed walls, equipment and processing, current tree types on the site.
5. The Temple Factory plan with Sequential Sections Plan view of the temple factory with iterative sections. The banyan growth can be seen in green emanating from the current banyan trees location.
6. Modular Assembly of A Gopuram Temple with Modular Festival Aspects Temples such as the Gopurams can be broken down into smaller, printable parts. These can then be constructed at the Temples factory and exported. Modular parts can also be printed in si
7. Pongal Festival Plan Pongal. More commonly known as the Harvest Festival. People celebrate Pongal by eating the traditional Pongal dish and decorating local cows.
8. Holi Festival Plan Holi, The festival of colour. Where people celebrate with music, food and throwing coloured powder over one another.
9. Ganesh Chaturthi Plan People celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi by decorating statues of Ganesh with paint and powder then parading them through the streets. Eventually submerging these statues into water.
10. Matrikunj Site Isometric showing Temple Factory & Printed Constructs The temple factory (Left) and part of the Matrikunj site. Here shows a fully constructed Gopuram (Right) as well as a Kitchen being 3d printed on site (Centre)
• Page Hits: 4005         • Entry Date: 10 September 2022         • Last Update: 10 September 2022