In building construction, it is difficult to estimate exact amount of materials to be used in advance. Thus, leftover materials are often found at construction sites. Having awareness of this fact, an idea of building a chair was triggered at a construction site with these simple questions; “What can we, as architects or designers, do to salvage and utilize deserted materials at construction sites?” “Can we build some furniture with these materials without relying on typical manufacturing methods?

 

At the construction site, a reinforcing steel bar was taken as a single material to build a chair with the idea of creating an essential form of a chair with a continuous single line. Based on a carefully thought-out building process which only requires bending, the rebar was cut in a length of 6 meters (19.7 feet) to be prepared to be bent 14 times. Manual rebar bending tools available at the site were used to bend the rebar to create the frame of the chair. Finally, a steel wire mesh was cut, bent and tied to the frame of chair to provide seating using basic hand tools like pliers. The wire mesh for seating also ties the frame firmly for additional structural stability of the chair. This entire production process does not require any bolt-nut joint or any welding.

 

This chair design highlights essential strategies of sustainability in building construction and the single material of steel would make the chair ideal for recycling. Aside from issues of aesthetics and comfort, this project suggests our important roles as designers in sustainability in building industry and furniture manufacturing.

 

Year: 2012

Type: Furniture

Materials: Reinforcing Steel

Publications: Archinect, Features, Furniture February