Dominik Reisach


Last Name

Reisach

First Name

Dominik

ORCID

0000-0002-2101-3463

Organisational unit

09724 - Langenberg, Silke / Langenberg, Silke

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2023 - 20268
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Publications 1 - 8 of 8
  • A Design-to-Fabrication Workflow for Free-Form Timber Structures Using Offcuts
    Item type: Conference Paper
    Reisach, Dominik; Schütz, Stephan; Willmann, Jan; et al. (2023)
    Communications in Computer and Information Science ~ Computer-Aided Architectural Design. INTERCONNECTIONS: Co-computing Beyond Boundaries.
    Currently, the timber industry in the European Union incinerates up to 80% of its waste wood, releasing its embodied CO2 into the atmosphere while producing energy. This practice also affects offcuts, a waste material from structural timber production, mostly because of aesthetic imperfections. However, there are potential architectural use cases for this material that extend its lifetime beyond downcycling. Therefore, we propose to employ these offcuts as load-bearing elements of free-form timber structures and present an integral design-to-fabrication workflow suitable for this task. In this paper, we discuss the underlying method in detail, specifically (1) the computational design process to optimally place timber offcuts and to compute wood joints, (2) the transfer of design data into a robotic fabrication process, and (3) the integration of these findings into a unifying design-to-fabrication workflow and its architectural implications. This process minimizes material waste and facilitates the design and buildup of offcuts into structural configurations, including their dis- and reassembly. The resulting timber morphologies consist of non-standard material aggregated under digital guidance, giving them a distinct aesthetic expression. A series of digital experiments demonstrated the capabilities of the conceived method. Finally, we prove the feasibility of the proposed workflow with the design and robotic fabrication of a full-scale Offcut Demonstrator under real-world conditions.
  • Offcut Tales
    Item type: Other Publication
    Reisach, Dominik (2023)
  • Digital Fabrication for Circular Timber Construction: A Case Study
    Item type: Journal Article
    Reisach, Dominik; Schütz, Stephan; Willmann, Jan; et al. (2024)
    Circular Economy
    The European timber industry has successfully implemented the cascading utilization of wood for several decades, downcycling material resources at the end of each product cycle by turning them into new industrial commodities through additional manufacturing procedures. In its current implementation, this approach is effective in keeping wooden materials in circulation. However, a significant amount of material still reaches the end-of-life stage through incineration prematurely, constituting a considerable waste of valuable resources. Therefore, we propose repurposing low-quality, low-engineered waste wood for architectural applications to avoid unnecessary downcycling processes. Specifically, we suggest a digital design and fabrication method to build tectonic structures using repurposed timber offcuts. As a case study, we present a pavilion structure built at a 1:1 scale, demonstrating the potential of digital technologies for circular timber construction. Based on this case study, we discuss how digital fabrication and material grading can foster a transition towards a circular built environment.
  • Offcut Tales
    Item type: Conference Poster
    Reisach, Dominik (2023)
  • Offcut Tales: Documenting the Aesthetics of Timber Waste
    Item type: Conference Paper
    Reisach, Dominik (2023)
    Proceedings of the 43rd Annual Conference of the Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture
  • Repurposing of Waste Marble Slabs for Architectural Façades
    Item type: Conference Poster
    Reisach, Dominik (2024)
  • Web-Based Material Database for Circular Design
    Item type: Conference Paper
    Law, Ian; Chang, Keng Chia; Önalan, Beril; et al. (2024)
    Scalable Disruptors: Design Modelling Symposium Kassel 2024
    In circular construction, sourcing reclaimed materials for design projects is often hindered by inconsistent data formats and lack of 3D data integra tion. This study addresses these barriers by proposing a digital workflow to stream line information flow between 3D architectural models and circular materials. Our approach includes three key elements: a PostgreSQL database integrated into the CAD environment for easy querying of reclaimed materials, an automated 3D model generation system using image-segmentation and depth-estimation models with OpenCV andMETA Segment AnythingModel, and an intuitive user-interface within 3D CAD software. The workflow detects and segments elements like windows and doors from image data, performs perspective transformations, and converts the data into JSON format for 3D model generation in CAD software to reduce manual modeling effort. It also includes a database for standardized material data and an intuitive user interface integrated into 3D modeling software to provide architects real-time access to circular materials. The interface features cost calculations, greenhouse gas emissions visualizations, and summary tools, ensuring digital models correlate with physical materials. This user-friendly approach simplifies incorporating reclaimed materials into designs, paving the way for future investigations into more complex shapes and materials. This integration significantly enhances efficiency for designers and architects during the design stage. Overall, in this research, we aim to showcase a more user-friendly approach to simplify the use of reclaimed materials. The proposed workflow enables architects and designers to efficiently and effectively incorporate reclaimed materials with detailed characteristics into their designs. Future work will expand the database to include diverse material types, such as structural components, and address the challenges of photo-based 3D model generation for more complex geometric shapes.
  • Computational Design Methods for geometry-driven upcycling of found objects in construction
    Item type: Review Article
    Sun, Qiming; Reisach, Dominik; Langenberg, Silke; et al. (2026)
    Automation in Construction
    Computational Design Methods (CDMs) have increasingly supported the use of Found Objects (FOs) for circular construction. These methods automate the geometric assignment of FOs to a target design, yet a comprehensive overview is lacking. In this context, this paper systematically reviews 142 publications on CDMs for upcycling FOs in construction. It categorizes existing workflows and identifies six key CDMs based on assignment logic and four geometric FO types. The review serves as a roadmap for future research and practical applications, aiding architects and engineers in informed decision-making. It emphasizes the potential of utilizing FOs’ inherent geometry as design drivers for economical and aesthetic architectural solutions. This paper also identifies challenges in scaling CDMs from prototypes to practical applications, such as structural performance and integration with existing workflows. Future research directions include developing AI-based methods, automating construction processes using CDMs, and advocating for sensitivity analysis to assess adaptability across design scenarios.
Publications 1 - 8 of 8