We can now take nature’s geometry, scale it, use suitable materials and create nearly limitless applications of yet unforeseen utility. That is where C6XTY’s lattice is the elegant ‘almost universal fabric’ based on Buckminster Fuller’s observation that compression can be thought of as ‘islands’ in a sea of tension. Tension and compression can be arranged in uniform lattices.
Tension and compression, thought of as being in opposition to one another, can be tamed into an harmonious relationship. That is accomplished through triangulation. Compression is triangulated in tension. That is the key, because stable structures are triangulated. This arrangement of tension and compression results in a uniform lattice that can be optimized for the specific application.
Strong materials and lightweight structures. Doing more with less!
A unique and innovative icosahedron-based architecture for assembled structural materials. Patent-pending geometry for building structures using well-proven engineering principles in new ways to leverage the inherent compression and tension forces of standard materials to their optimal natural performance.
Specifically, Flextegrity geometries, from nano-to-meso-scale, utilize polyhedral elements as compression members and a proprietary tensile matrix to produce omni-directional anisotropic structural materials with superior strength-to-weight ratios and precisely definable flexibility and stiffness characteristics in every dimension.
In the development of ships, airplanes, and cars, modular manufacturing practices have resulted in higher quality and enhanced features, while at the same time reducing costs and fabrication times. Yet this innovation is rarely practiced in architecture and civil engineering.
As Kieran and Timberlake rightly argue in their book, Refabricating Architecture: “Buildings continue to be assembled largely piece by piece in the field, in much the same way that the car was put together before the advent of mass production. Where is the evolution in building construction? Why is it that large parts of our buildings are not assembled as fully integrated major components, off site, in controlled factory conditions?”
