Using Precision Board Foam to Create Architectural Scale Models

The following Precision Board guest blog is from Hans Wendel, a teacher, and Tomasz Jan Groza, a student, both with the UCLA Architecture and Urban Design program (A.UD).  They describe a recent architectural project using PBLT-20 Precision Board urethane foam to create scale models.

Here’s a more specific description of the project from the A.UD Instagram account:

“The stacked section—mute, repetitive, indeterminate—has been the foil against which many architectural projects have positioned themselves. As the primary object of study, the M.Arch. first-year studio, Section and Elevation, is concerned with the capacity of the section to move beyond seriality to develop complex spatial propositions. In an effort to challenge and interrogate the limitations of the stack the studio proposes to nest together a parking garage and a gym.”⁠

 

 

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The stacked section—mute, repetitive, indeterminate—has been the foil against which many architectural projects have positioned themselves. As the primary object of study, the M.Arch. first-year studio, Section and Elevation, is concerned with the capacity of the section to move beyond seriality to develop complex spatial propositions. In an effort to challenge and interrogate the limitations of the stack the studio proposes to nest together a parking garage and a gym. ⁠ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁠ “This project began as a project about the articulation of the individual parking spot. In my reading of the parking and gym, I see both as highly individualized spaces with certain ergonomics that call for a 1:1 relationship. If the prompt suggests an exploration of the opportunistic mingling of gym and parking, then​125 Gyms removes the notion of mingling and forces the two programs to confront each other head-on, taking the two smallest units of parking and gym and interlocking them with one another.”⁠ #uclaAUD⁠ Work by: Sana Jahani⁠ Section led by: Katy Barkan, Spring 2019⁠ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁠ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁠ #uclaarchitecture #archimodel #studentwork #archinect #archilevelup #architecturestudio #architectureschool #archiboom #critday #allofarchi #uclaarts

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From Hans Wendel:

In the course of the studio project students produced 1’=1/8″ scale models. One of these models, work of Tomasz Jan Groza, was realized mainly with 20pcf 1.5″ HDU foam. The model proposes a stacked system of jogged vaults to house the entwined gym and parking programs within gently undulating interior spaces.

CNC Cutting in progress. Milling precision foam is quick and precise. With a 3/16” ball nose bit and moderate feed rate, even the most delicate 3D features can be carved in one pass.

 

Milling marks can be sanded off easily with medium grit sandpaper.

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One layer of the vault system after sanding.

One layer of the system assembled. Some of the most delicate features tend to break off during finishing.

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Although it was possible to carve small delicate details in precision foam, handling can easily damage them. To reinforce the model 1 / 8” MDF inserts were used to make up the forest of arcaded arches holding up the vaults. They were tension fitted and spot-superglued.

Stacked assembly up-side-down and right-side-up. Partial fragments of the model in various stages can be seen in the background.

Pieces in various stages of finishing.  Bulk of the model was milled out of 1.5” thick foam sheets and stacked, but some of the most delicate vertical features required a different method. Offcuts from the CNC’s sheets were used to produce foam strips about 1 / 8” thick which could be cut by hand and laser.

At this thickness 20pcf foam can bed around a two inch radius, and can be laser-cut with settings similar to 1/16” museum board. Thinning the strips with sandpaper allows the foam to bend around even tighter corners.

This fragment of the model is the ramping system for the vertical vehicular circulation in the building, It is made up of pieces of foam that were both 2D cut and 3D cut and glued together and to a wooden backer.

Views of the model interior at various stages of finishing and assembly.

Sanded and glued stacked vaults seen in the correct orientation.

Finished model of the building with a sectional fragment placed on a pedestal integrated into the model base.

Section views of the model

Views of the fragment showing mainly the facade

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Close up of internal section view

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The UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture (UCLA Arts) is dedicated to training exceptional artists, performers, architects and scholars who are enriched by a global view of the arts and prepared to serve as cultural leaders of the 21st century. Graduate degree programs are offered in the Departments of Architecture and Urban Design, Art, Design | Media Arts, Ethnomusicology, Music, and World Arts and Cultures. The School’s unique curriculum interweaves work in performance, studio and research studies, providing students with a solid creative, artistic and intellectual foundation. World-class faculty provides a depth of expertise and achievement that supports the most ambitious vision a student can bring to the campus.

Coastal Enterprises manufactures Precision Board, a versatile, cost-effective and eco-friendly urethane material used extensively in the tooling industry.  It is a closed-cell, rigid, dimensionally-stable substrate that is ideal for use in a number of different tooling applications.

Request free samplesget a quote or sign up for weekly e-blasts packed with helpful information.

Payette Prototyping Architectural Designs with Precision Board

Boston-based architecture firm Payette leverages their in-house fabrication capabilities to build mock-ups and models as part of their design process. PBLT-15 Precision Board HDU is a staple in their material inventory for CNC-machining, used for everything from topographical models to full-scale façade studies.

payette

“Models and prototypes help all parties understand the problem and have a voice in its resolution,” says Parke MacDowell, Fabrication Manager at Payette. “This is an incredibly powerful way to facilitate decision-making.”

MacDowell values Precision Board for its easy-machining and low environmental impact. “As designers, our quality standards are incredibly high; Precision Board helps us to achieve those standards efficiently. Furthermore, the properties of the material make for fast, tidy machining and a comfortable work environment at the shop.”

Some of the more complex prototypes Payette has recently explored include flip-milled acoustical panels. These test-pieces benefit from Precision Board being available in different thicknesses, eliminating the need for labor-intensive glue-laminating.  The studies are based on principals of acoustical diffusion, using faceted geometry to manage noisy environments by scattering sound waves, which reduces sound intensity.

From a blog Parke wrote last year on this project:

Sound privacy and noise level are among the qualities occupants are least satisfied with in existing buildings. More shocking than this is the relative lack of research into aural comfort compared to related topics like visual and thermal comfort. With this in mind, we decided to use our existing FabLab space with its very noisy CNC Router as a testing ground to develop tools and strategies applicable to the larger practice of architecture for addressing aural comfort.

These physical studies expand on past CNC tests and digital simulations. The new geometries push the limits of our fabrication capabilities and test out some novel machining approaches. We set specific goals and restrictions on the project to ensure our results would be relevant and applicable to the architectural typologies on which our firm focuses – i.e. Science and Healthcare. We set criteria that our solution be build-able and made from durable and cleanable materials. We also took this as an opportunity to develop digital tools to assist in the design and assessment of our studies resulting in grasshopper logics, fabrication techniques and verification algorithm being developed.

Over the past few months, we’ve been developing a new iteration of acoustical mock-ups, building on our previous physical studies and digital simulations. In the video above, we’re flip-milling (cutting both sides of the material) 6″ thick high-density foam (Ed note: PBLT-15 Precision Board HDU). After cutting the back-side, this time lapse shows us milling the front, with custom surfacing tool paths in evidence. Careful planning and alignments were needed to achieve the slit apertures that you see here.

Payette’s work on healthcare and laboratory projects drove the research agenda. MacDowell explains: “These intensive-use programs require durable, easy-to-maintain surface materials. Materials that satisfy these needs tend to reflect sound rather than absorbing it, which results in environments with harsh and noisy acoustics. We’re trying to improve acoustical performance while maintaining requisite material properties by using geometry to break-up the sound.”

ABOUT PAYETTE
Payette is a leading architectural design firm whose practice focuses on technologically and programmatically complex buildings for scientific research, higher education, healthcare, and corporate research clients. For more than three quarters of a century, Payette has practiced innovation in these highly technical buildings while developing a culture based on deep readings of program as one of the essential subtexts of architecture. This thorough understanding of how hospitals and laboratories work has helped clients transcend function to transform places and improve people’s lives. For more information, please visit their website or give them a call at 617-895-1000.

ABOUT COASTAL ENTERPRISES
Coastal Enterprises manufactures Precision Board HDU, a versatile, cost-effective and eco-friendly urethane material used extensively in the tooling industry.  It is a closed-cell rigid substrate that does not rot, warp or crack.  You can request free samplesget a quote or sign up for periodic newsletters packed with helpful information.

Ornate Railing – Andreozzi Architecture (Part 2)

Andreozzi Architects in Rhode Island used Precision Board HDU to recreate an ornate railing for a home that was originally a Calvert Vaux house design, but had fallen into disrepair. The railing had to hold up to the harsh beachfront environment and New England weather while also replicating the original style of the home from the 1920s. In part two of our two-part series, Sr. Associate and Project Manager Dave Rizzolo takes us through how they made an ornate railing out of mahogany and 30 lb. Precision Board HDU.

ornate railing

“During some extensive historical research at the beginning of the project we were able to find some historical photos of what the house looked like long ago.  There was a distinctive railing design at the front door that we wanted to bring back.  None of that original railing design remained and there were no drawings to work from – just the photo,” says Rizzolo.  “We used the photo to interpret the spirit of the original design and specified the construction in Precision Board PBLT-30 so that it would be immune from rot and insect damage for years into the house’s new future,” he added.

You can see one of the original photos below from the 20s, what the house looked like when Andreozzi Architecture started (painted white with the red roof) and final photos of the house and ornate railing taken by their office.

The house itself, in Middletown, RI, and just around the corner from Newport Third Beach, is of notoriety. It was designed for the daughter of Edwin Booth who was considered by some to be the greatest American actor of the 19th century (and brother of John Wilkes Booth). His daughter, Edwina, was marrying Downing Vaux (the son of Calvert Vaux).  Also of note – in 1929 the house was used for a flim-flam scam that was the basis for the 1973 movie “The Sting”.

Dave says, “we come up with the design concept, bring the owners into the conversation so they can see what we’re thinking and give feedback.  Then it goes to the general contractor.”

Andreozzi Architects were familiar with Precision Board HDU from using it over the years in a variety of applications, including gables, mailbox posts, etc.  They used PBLT-30 for the interior green parts and put them between mahogany rails.

“We were concerned with rot and insect damage and harsh coastal weather and knew Precision Board could withstand it all,” Rizzolo adds.

“For a hand-railing, you need to provide rigidity and strength, so we looked at what kind of materials we could use to substitute for wood,” Dave says.  “Wood these days seems less long-lasting, so materials like Precision Board HDU that have more durability are better suited for something like this.”

“If something looks wobbly, if sports balls can dent it, that will have an impact on what material we use and what density,” adds Dave Andreozzi, Andreozzi Architecture founder.  “We don’t want people to look at something and think it’s fake.  A lot of man-made materials out there look fake, don’t look like wood.”

From design to install, the ornate railing took several months.  In this case, Kirby-Perkins, the general contractor, had their own mill workshop and did it all in house and then installed on-site.

In addition to restoring the railing, Andreozzi Architects renovated the whole house, ripping out 50% of what was there because it wasn’t original.  They kept some of the original stuff and built off of it.  They moved the entire house off the original foundation.  After completely rebuilding the foundation, they put part of the house back on it.

“We did a renovation that doubled the size of the house while capturing the spirit of the original,” Rizzolo adds.

ornate railing

Above photo courtesy professional photographer Aaron Usher.

You can read Part 1 here of our two-part series where Dave talks about using Precision Board HDU to create a scalloped window panel.

Founded in 1988, Andreozzi Architecture specializes in historically based residential architecture expressive of its sense of place, attentive to its detail and proportion, and timeless in its beauty. A regional architecture: historically mastered, meticulously preserved, respectfully honored, and artistically reinterpreted; from city, to mountain, to ocean. Commissions exist from Commonwealth Avenue, to the shores of New England, to the Bahamian Islands.

They are a unique team of design-oriented architects driven by a passion for creating elegant architectural solutions that address their client’s needs and desires in ways that are innovative, respectful of tradition and craft, yet respective of budget. The size of a project or cost per square foot is irrelevant in their quest to produce successful projects and happy clients.  You can give them a call at (401) 245-6800 or visit their website.

Coastal Enterprises manufactures Precision Board HDU, a versatile, cost-effective and eco-friendly high-density urethane material that has achieved a certified “Carbon Balance” of 3 to 1 and a “Rapidly Renewable Resource Content” of 23.9%.  Precision Board also assists in meeting LEED requirements for obtaining USGBC and ICC 700-2008 building credits.  It is a closed-cell rigid substrate that does not rot, warp or crack.  You can request free samplesget a quote or sign up for periodic newsletters packed with helpful information.

Scalloped Panel – Andreozzi Architecture (Part 1)

Andreozzi Architects in Rhode Island used Precision Board HDU to create a historically influenced scalloped panel that is the “base” to a window composition for a beachfront house in Narragansett, RI built by Suburban Renewal. They chose Precision Board because they knew from past projects that it carves well and paints up just like wood so it would tie into the adjacent wood trim without a visible difference. They also liked that it would hold up in the harsh beachfront environment.  In part-one of our two-part series, Sr. Associate and Project Manager Dave Rizzolo takes us through one of the many architectural applications for Precision Board- a scalloped panel.

scalloped panel

The team at Andreozzi Architecture designed this house from top to bottom and used PBLT-20 Precision Board HDU to create a scalloped window panel.  “This was a first for us in terms of doing something ornate for a window panel,” says Dave.

Rizzolo was concerned about how they were going to keep water out of the wall systems.  Given the extreme weather of the area and its impact on the house over time, having one piece was key- no joints.

“If it was going to be built out of wood, it would be fairly big pieces and be more vulnerable to water. You don’t want to get water behind your trim work,” Dave says.  “With the Precision Board HDU we were able to create one solid piece,” he adds.

scalloped panel

The scalloped panel wasn’t the only part of the home that they built using Precision Board high-density urethane.  The three raised panels on the dormer as well as the triangular gable over the front door were made using Precision Board.  Andreozzi Architecture founder David Andreozzi adds, “We used true Roman proportioned numbers for the address panel to make it look like they had been hand-chiseled or made out of wood.”

Dave worked with a local millwork shop on the design of the scalloped panel.

“The shop created submittals of the carving, done on their CNC, for our review and feedback. After the first submittal we made a few tweaks and changes and clarified the design intention which were further clarified in the second round of shop drawings,” Rizzolo adds. “The panel was installed along with the adjacent wood trim and painted with Benjamin Moore Exterior paint – you can’t see a difference between the materials.”

Andreozzi Architecture is a unique team of design-oriented architects driven by a passion for creating elegant architectural solutions that address their client’s needs and desires in ways that are innovative, respectful of tradition and craft, yet respective of budget. The size of a project or cost per square foot is irrelevant in their quest to produce successful projects and happy clients.  Founded in 1988, they specialize in historically based residential architecture expressive of its sense of place, attentive to its detail and proportion, and timeless in its beauty. A regional architecture: historically mastered, meticulously preserved, respectfully honored, and artistically reinterpreted; from city, to mountain, to ocean. Commissions exist from Commonwealth Avenue, to the shores of New England, to the Bahamian Islands.  You can give them a call at (401) 245-6800 or visit their website.

Coastal Enterprises manufactures Precision Board HDU, a versatile, cost-effective and eco-friendly high-density urethane material that has achieved a certified “Carbon Balance” of 3 to 1 and a “Rapidly Renewable Resource Content” of 23.9%.  Precision Board also assists in meeting LEED requirements for obtaining USGBC and ICC 700-2008 building credits.  It is a closed-cell rigid substrate that does not rot, warp or crack.  You can request free samplesget a quote or sign up for periodic newsletters packed with helpful information.

Architectural Ceiling Design for American Girl New York

When American Girl wanted a unique architectural ceiling design for their new store in New York, they got in touch with Moss Retail and Environments who, in turn, contacted Jim Dawson at Synergy Sign and Graphics.  He consulted on the design and mounting for about six months and once the designs were approved, Jim got the go ahead to make this creation a reality.  Dawson fabricated the design out of large sheets of Precision Board HDU at his shop in Ohio, which were then broken down into smaller, shippable pieces that were sent to New York and then reassembled.  We talked to Jim to get some tips on the architectural applications of Precision Board as well as how they mounted the intricate designs on the ceiling.

architectural

“We used PBLT-18 in both 2 inch and 3 inch thicknesses,” said Dawson. “These shapes were cut from several large sheets of Precision Board from 4′ x 8′ up to 5′ x 10′,” he added.

Synergy was sent auto cad drawings of the ceiling and the individual profiles. They used Enroute Pro and nested everything to cut out the individual pieces. There was a “Part A” and “Part B” which resulted in the fabrication of a lot of small pieces- 60 of one part for example.

Dawson said, “For the large complicated petals, we cut the 10′ by 10’ designs in half so the pieces were smaller for shipping and then reassembled. Installers used Bondo to reattach them after shipping and then touched up the seams.

It was at this point that the individual pieces of Precision Board HDU had to be mounted to the ceiling.

When Moss and Synergy designed the pieces, they wanted an install method that would be completely hidden and wouldn’t need a ton of touch up in the field.  PBLT-30 Precision Board pucks were created that were attached to the ceiling via screws and zip toggles.  They routed corresponding pockets in the backs of the petals so the pucks could drop inside.  The petals were then glued to the ceiling using fast set epoxy.   It made for a completely hidden mounting system.

One small issue that Dawson had was finding a bit that they could use to cut the material. “We did a lot of testing because it’s hard to find bits long enough to cut 3 inch material. We did speeds and feeds calculations and it turned out that one of the cheapest bits we bought worked the best.”  Jim used a ½ inch diameter x 5” long four flute low-helix spiral bit from Hartlauer that was classified an end-mill. He spent $25 on it.

The entire project took three days of routing and 4 days of finishing / packing and was shipped in just short of 1 week.

We think that Jim Dawson and his team do some really excellent work. Synergy Sign & Graphics has a highly experienced staff whose backgrounds include graphic design, marketing, trade-show design, print media, branding, point of purchase design, fulfillment, and more. Check out their website or give them a call at (330) 878-7646 to see about your next project!

Chuck Miller, the President of Coastal Enterprises, was recently in New York and stopped in to the American Girl store to snap a photo of how the ceiling looks with a store full of happy customers.  Check it out!

Check out our Precision Board architectural ceiling design at the 1:27 mark in this video released by American Girl about their NYC grand opening.

You can get large sheet sizes of Precision Board HDU up to 5′ x 10′ in any increment from 1/2″ up to 24″.  Get a quote or request free samples today to see if Precision Board is right for you.  We’d love to hear from you!