Awards
Research Award goes to ITV Denkendorf
Scientists of ITV Institut für Textil- und Verfahrenstechnik, Denkendorf (D) are the recipients of the first time ever Gips-Schüle Research Award for a bionic façade shading named Flectofin® without joints and hinges
The winners are Dr. Markus Milwich, Head of the Light Construction Centre at ITV Denkendorf, and Prof. Dr. Jan Knippers from the Institute of Supporting Structures and Constructive Design at the University of Stuttgart (D) and Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck, Director of Botanic Gardens of the Albert-Ludwigs-University, Freiburg (D) as well as their teams. The Gips-Schüle Foundation bestows the prize with EUR 40000 and intends to award the prize in the future every two years.
Flectofin® is a nature inspired adaptable construction for architecture. The step less adaptable folding mechanism allows the alignment of lamella according to requirements. The scientists refrained from using high-wearing joints and hinges. The elastic plastic deformation of the folding mechanism is copied from the blossom of the crane flower. The flower is pollinated in South Africa by birds sitting on a “perch” of overlapping petals. Through the weight of the bird the petals are opening up and the plant offers the pollen, the bird transports afterwards to the next petal.
The basic material for the Flectofin® folding mechanism is a carbon fibre reinforced plastic with high elastic characteristics and easy deformation qualities. The folding and unfolding of lamella is coupled to the bending of an integrated rod in the lamella, allowing an inclination of up to 90 degrees. Flectofin® systems can be applied in cases of effortful façade shadings and curved façades. The scientists hope that this is a new impetus for modern civil engineering. Flectofin® can be applied from one family houses to large façades of 20 to0 30 m height.
The same research teams were already bestowed with Techtexil’s Innovation Prize 2011 for Architecture and in 2012 the team won ”International Bionic-Award” of the Schauenburg Foundation (D).
The Gips-Schüle Foundation has been founded in 1965 based upon the fortune of the Schüle family. This family has founded in 1870 the first plaster manufacture in Stuttgart (D). The foundation’s aim is the enhancement of applied sector overlapping Research and Science as well as of junior scientists. With the award, research projects of high innovation potential and sustainable benefit for the society are bestowed.