Pierre Mostert
Building Technology
A filament wound pillar for a pedestrian bridge
Filament winding is the process of winding resin impregnated continues glass fibres upon a rotating mould. In the case of the pillar for the pedestrian bridge a loadbearing hyperboloid isogrid was created. The incentive was to investigate the possibilities of fibre reinforced polymers as a structural building material whilst establishing a process-specific aesthetic value. The design process consisted of a form-finding phase in which the essential parameters were determined, an optimization phase by hand and digital calculations and finally a structural testing phase to substantiate loadbearing capacity and structural behaviour. Research was done by juxtaposing digital and physical models for which new configurations had to be developed. Essential in this process was the use of the actual material; a polyester resin and continues fibre glass. Working with these materials required a profound understanding of the material and associated production technique. A close connection with manufacturers and other faculties was important as both material and technique are already highly developed. New, however, is the combination of structural requirements and aesthetic value deriving from its manufacturing technique.