After taking a look at their robot-constructed building-concept installation, we wanted to learn more about other curious projects that architects Gramazio Kohler have completed. Luckily, last year they took on another wholly ingenious venture in Switzerland.

The company was comissioned by engineering firm Basler & Hofman to create and install a specially designed timber wall. The 8,500 blocks used in the project were specifically cut and orientated to improve the acoustic absorption in the room, as well as to act as a ventilation system.

As with their previously covered project Gramazio Kohler utilised computers as well as the robotic systems lab at ETH Zurich to produce a system of block placement that applies the principles of the Schroeder diffusor – with a variety of different depths in a structure that allows sound to bounce and disperse off the multiple surfaces, diffusing the sound.

Not only does the placement of the blocks create a soothing atmosphere with its sound absorption ability, it also acts as a highly intriguing feature. The rippled surface effect produced by the variation in depth and orientation of the timber provides an exciting sense of movement – offering the ideal enigmatic companion to the Swiss company’s cafeteria.

Gramazio Kohler
Basler & Hofman

A new post by Hanna Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, March 2020.