In 1960, in Colorado, United States, the first ‘Drop City’ emerged as an artistic and countercultural community dedicated to exploring new ways of living in harmony with nature, finding expression through art and architecture.
Today, several generations after the original American one, under the tracks of Milan’s central railway, the same spirit has led to the creation of a new Dropcity: a new center for progressive thinking in architecture and design within the tunnels of Milan’s Central Station, establishing a venue for aggregation and debate on architecture, design, and the contemporary city.
WASP 3D prints the spaces inside of Dropcity
This year, WASP takes part in the project by restoring and establishing its own operational center within Dropcity.
During the “Dropcity in-progress” event at Milan Design Week, WASP will start the renovation works of Tunnel 54, bringing its 3D printers on-site and beginning the production of furniture and offices for the renovated spaces. The long-abandoned tunnels will be revitalized and transformed into research centers and open-space offices, promoting values such as sustainable development, open-source sharing, and technological progress.
From April 12th to 21st, WASP’s 3D printing site will open its doors to the public, showcasing its technologies in action, and starting the restoration works in preparation for the official opening of the operational center in October.
In the center of the tunnel, the architectural 3D printer Crane WASP will be used to manufacture multifunctional wall modules, designed through variable parametric design to be used as workstations. For the first time, an experimental printer model, the Crane WASP Scara, will be used to print directly from within the tunnel alongside its walls, introducing a new approach to architectural 3D printing for building facades.
Simultaneously, a Clay 3D Printing Farm, consisting of a series of WASP 40100 Production printers, will be employed for the construction of architectural elements, including a parametric wall composed of hundreds of uniquely designed pieces. These modules will be mass-produced using WASP’s customized serial production system, enabling 24/7 automated production of ceramic products with different designs and in large quantities.
The event will take place at Via Giovanni Battista Sammartini 54, Milan, inside Dropcity, during the Salone del Mobile, from April 12th to 21st.
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