Moody•Nolan Streamlines Design and Review by Printing Physical 3D Models with ZPrinter 650
05/27/10
BURLINGTON, Mass., USA – An award-winning architectural firm designing the International African American Museum is using 3D printing technology from Z Corporation to accelerate the design cycle, save money on concept models, and help ensure the building properly expresses the story of Africans in America.
The Charleston, S.C., edifice will reflect the fact that more slaves entered North America through the city than any other. The $80 million museum will also chronicle African American progress in the ensuing centuries, through the conceptual design. It should open in 2015.
“We’ve considered the entire African American narrative, the bad and the good, as we select materials, conceive the spaces and forms, and review our work with the project founders,” said Michael Woods, Moody•Nolan, Inc. associate and one of the project designers. To enable us to create early massing models and produce presentation models with accurate detail we never could have obtained even after weeks of handcrafting, we now have ZPrinting.. The most recent models interested the city planners, as well as the mayor and steering committee..”
Moody•Nolan, Inc. uses the ZPrinter® 650, which delivers the industry’s biggest models, highest throughput, highest-quality color and finest resolution.
The museum is intended to be a “window” into the African American story, a concept embodied in the glassy façade overlooking Liberty Park. During gatherings in the park, guests will be able to see glimpses of the museum’s interior. The East-facing facade can also be viewed as a window looking back to Africa.
“This is a sophisticated building with a lot to say, and ZPrinting helps us convey concepts and details to numerous audiences, each in a way that makes the most impact,” said Woods. “We can ZPrint a new model from any of our four software packages – MicroStation, Revit, form•Z, and Google SketchUp – 10 times quicker and at a fraction of the cost of handcrafting. The more complex the models, the greater the savings are..”
ZPrinting helps audiences fully understand the building that is being proposed, unlike on-screen renderings. “You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really substain it,” said Woods~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really expand it,” said Woods}~{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really visualize it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~{{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really expand it,” said Woods}~{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really substain it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really expand it,” said Woods}~{{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really substain it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really study it,” said Woods}~{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really visualize it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really expand it,” said Woods}~{{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really expand it,” said Woods}~{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~{{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really visualize it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really study it,” said Woods}~{“You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really see it,” said Woods}~”You can touch a ZPrint, pick it up, turn it up, turn it over and really study it,” said Woods}. “ZPrinting allows us to move the design process forward more quickly, iterate more effectively and more deeply involve clients and other stakeholders. It’s a terrific tool and everyone benefits.”
Moody•Nolan is collaborating on the project with Antoine Predock. Architect PC, who also uses Z Corporation’s ZPrinting, and actually introduced Moody Nolan to the technology.
Moody Nolan relies on Z Corporation’s authorized business partner 3DP Technology, Inc~Moody Nolan depends on Z Corporation’s authorized business partner 3DP Technology, Inc}. of Ohio for support, sales and service. “It was exciting to see how expeditiously Moody Nolan people adopted the ZPrinter process and equally gratifying to see the positive impact the ZPrinter had on their business,” said Sam (Sandra) Phipps Lees, sales and certified Z Corp. tech at 3DP Technology. “From day one, that machine has been thoroughly utilized.”

