Individual Design
The Assignment
“The Wisdom of Nature,” read the motto of the German pavilion at the EXPO 2005 in Japan, the realization of which was entrusted to the architect’s office Lippsmeier+Partner. The leading theme was the future science of bionics. This takes natural models and transforms them into technical concepts.
RGD™ was entrusted with the technical realization as specialist for modulated free forms. The goal was to develop a two-story room-in-room construction in the form of a beehive. The 13 by 16-meter wide and 8-meter tall “experience lab” was supposed to consist of three dimensional hexagonal segments filled with dynamic pressure, in addition to making an impression by means of natural light effects. RGD™ took over all construction, production and logistics tasks through to completion.
The Challenge
The inflatable hive structure was a complex custom product. In just 3 months, RGD had to plan and realize the entire project. The high demands placed upon the materials represented a further challenge. In order to technically realize the basic conceptional idea of the architect’s office Lippsmeier+Partner, a special translucent and flame-resistant nylon material was necessary. Alone the acquisition of the materials was difficult, as several fabric producers needed to be contacted, and diverse tissues had to be tested. After an intense international search, the right nylon producer was found.
The Execution
A total of 7,500 pieces were needed to create the architecturally impressive hive construction. In order to be able to stay within the tight cost-time corset, the nylon tissue needed to be immediately delivered to Asia for production. Since nothing could be left to chance, RGD™ led the assembly of the individual pieces directly in the production workshop. After the assembly of the modules was complete, they were sent by airfreight to Japan. RGD™ followed the freight and assisted in the construction of the stand until the takedown at the end of the trade fair.
Project Details
The building of this trade fair stand was a constructive and logistic masterpiece. A well thought out process chain enabled RGD™’s punctual and high-quality completion of this project. Just how effective the combination of textiles, inflated elements and light was, can be seen by the feedback: More than 700,000 visitors viewed the German “beehive stand” at the EXPO 2005. The German stand was awarded a gold medal for the best realization of the trade fair’s motto. RGD™’s hive construction was an important contribution to that accomplishment.
