MX3D | TimeLine

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE MX3D BRIDGE PROJECT

At the airport in San Francisco, on our way to discuss with our first main sponsor Autodesk their involvement in MX3D, we brainstormed about what the ultimate poster project would be for showcasing all of the facets of our technology. We reached the conclusion that a bridge over one of..Read More

OPENING MX3D FACILITY AT NDSM

October ‘15 marks the official launch of the Bridge project: our project video had so much worldwide exposure that it managed to attract all the additional connections we needed to make it happen. Now, it’s up to us to show we can make this dream a reality. A big thank..Read More

PLACING LOCATION HAS BEEN SET

The final location has been set, and it is nothing short of iconic; it is to sit upon the crossing of the Oudezijds Achterburgwal and the Stoofsteeg. In other project-related news, we are proud to add Plymovent and Oerlikon to the team!d ArcelorMittal, ABB Robotics, Lenovo and Air Liquide to..Read More

DESIGN & TEST FASE

We have finalised the design at last! The initial design concept was focused on a very pure application of topological optimization; this particular technique was employed extensively early on in Joris Laarman Lab’s pioneering Bone Furniture collection. The software is programmed to reduce the required material to a minimum when..Read More

TWO WORLDS COLLIDE

Today, the modern world of optimisation software and 3D printing clashed with the traditional world of typical construction engineering. The engineering software used to address the various functional and safety requirements could not handle our complex geometry. Additionally, there remained many unknowns yet to be taken into account; amongst other..Read More

BACK ON TRACK

After a serious setback, we are back on track at last. In order to reduce complexity we employed an entirely new approach. In November of 2016, Arup joined our rockstar team and we began discussing a sheet-construction approach rather than the previously-attempted one centred around volume optimization. The benefits of..Read More

THE FINAL DESIGN

The final design is finished! We already explained in earlier posts that the design needed to change significantly due to regulatory, engineering and practical reasons. Joris Laarman Lab and Arup came up with a design that shows the potential of this technique, with a powerful new aesthetic.

WE ARE PRINTING

After a challenging 18 month-long process of engineering, designing, re-engineering, re-designing, discovering the world behind permits, safety measures, canal wall renovation, re-designing, programming, fundraising, test printing, re-designing and re-programming, the actual printing of the bridge has finally started. We are printing large parts of roughly one metre, which will then..Read More

HORIZONTAL PRINTING

The first tests with the robot printing in-situ are promising. We’ve managed to print a nice part horizontally; but there are still many issues to resolve. Soon, we will attempt to move the robot on the bridge and allow it to continue to print.

1/3 OF THE MX3D BRIDGE IS DONE

With close to a third of the bridge printed at the time of writing, we are well on track to be finished printing early 2018. By now, we’ve also mounted a robot directly on the bridge. What a great moment!

KICK-OFF SMART BRIDGE

In addition to its unique construction, the bridge is also a living laboratory for data scientists. It is instrumented by Autodesk, Force Technology, Imperial College London, Lenovo & HBM with an innovative sensor network. Read more

WE ARE FINISHED

The full span of the bridge is finalized!

WE WON THE 3D PIONEERS CHALLENGE

We are happy to announce that MX3D has won the 3D Pioneers Challenge for the digital category! The jury: „Symbolic for the award – Pushing the boundaries and connecting them!“

STARTS PRIZE 2018

MX3D Bridge has been awarded the STARTS Prize 2018! The jury: “This is the beginning of a great urban transformation. There are many large-scale 3D-printing projects happening all round the world but this project has built something that works for people living in a large European city and is leading..Read More

DUTCH DESIGN AWARD – DESIGN RESEARCH

Very proud that we are one of the winners of the Dutch Design Award 2018 in the category Design Research! The jury: “The form and material freedom achieved by Laarman and MX3D hint at almost unimaginable scenarios.”

FINISHED THE COMPLETE BRIDGE INLCUDING SWIRLS

PRESENTING THE SMART BRIDGE SENSOR NETWORK

In addition to its unique construction, the bridge is also a living laboratory for data scientists. It is instrumented by Autodesk, Force Technology, Imperial College London, Lenovo & HBM with an innovative sensor network. Read more

SHOW THE MX3D BRIDGE TO THE WORLD

The MX3D Bridge, designed by Joris Laarman Lab, with Arup as lead engineering partner is now ready to be installed at its final location, but will first be on display at the Dutch Design Week (DDW) in Eindhoven, from October 20th till 28th 2018! Read more!

PUBLIC AWARD DUTCH DESIGN WEEK

Very proud that we are one of the winners of the Dutch Design Award 2018 in the category Design Research! The jury: “The form and material freedom achieved by Laarman and MX3D hint at almost unimaginable scenarios.” https://www.ddw.nl/en/news/234/mx3d-bridge-wins-public-award-at-dutch-design-awards-2018

FINAL TESTING AT UT TWENTE WITH IMPERIAL COLLEGE

The MX3D bridge is going to be tested at the University of Twente. They will test the Bridge under a 20 ton load. Imperial College London has the lead for the testing which will take approximately one month. After that, the Bridge will stay for another two months at the..Read More

PASSED THE FINAL LOAD TEST!

The MX3D Bridge has gone through its first testing fase at UT Twente and we have passed! Imperial College has tested the bridge its strenght with a 20 ton load test. We are on to the next fase where UT Twente in collaboration with Autodesk are going to add sensors..Read More

MX3D BRIDGE