Designing for the Machine: A New Era of Concrete Architecture

A New Kind of Designer

In a world where architectural innovation increasingly merges with machine logic, a new kind of designer is emerging, one who doesn’t just sketch for beauty, but codes for precision, prints for structure, and thinks in layers of material. This is the vision behind PAACADEMY’s workshop on 3D-printed architecture, '3D-Printing Concrete: Sketch to Real-Scale Prototype,' where participants were challenged to design not for paper, but for the robot.

The two-day online workshop, led by Kristýna Uhrová, Michal Macuda, and Jiří Uran Vítek, invited architects, students, and computational designers to immerse themselves in a radically evolving design-to-fabrication workflow. Rather than treating 3D printing as an add-on to traditional processes, the workshop positioned it as the starting point, a generative constraint that shapes design decisions from the very beginning.

From Concept to Concrete

Over two intensive sessions, students delved into the full spectrum of concrete 3D printing workflows, learning how to translate a digital sketch into a buildable, full-scale prototype. The studio focused on creating a load-bearing façade element, guiding participants through parametric design in Rhino and Grasshopper, structural thinking using Karamba3D, and geometric aggregation with plugins such as Monoceros and Pufferfish. By the end, participants had not only developed design concepts but also generated robotic toolpaths optimized for extrusion-based 3D printing.

The process emphasized a core principle: designing with fabrication in mind. Every curve, joint, and opening had to respond to the physical realities of layered concrete extrusion. Students weren’t just exploring form — they were developing an understanding of how material builds up over time, how geometry responds to gravitational forces, and how patterns and repetition can serve both aesthetic and structural purposes.

Fabrication as a Design Driver

What set this experience apart was its direct link to fabrication. Unlike conventional design studios, the outcomes weren’t left on the screen. Selected student projects were realized in real concrete using robotic printing machines, turning parametric models into physical, structural components. These full-scale prototypes demonstrated that computational design is no longer just a speculative exercise; it’s a viable construction methodology grounded in material intelligence.

This hands-on experience also sparked broader discussions around the future role of the architect. As fabrication technologies evolve, so too must the designer's skillset.

The 3DCP Architect

The workshop introduced the concept of the 3DCP architect, a new hybrid professional who seamlessly transitions between scripting and slicing, as well as between spatial vision and structural logic. It’s no longer just about form-finding; it’s about designing systems that speak the language of machines, optimizing for efficiency, printability, and performance.

Throughout the sessions, students were not only guided by expert tutors but also inspired by the larger vision of how architecture is changing. From initial sketches to robotic slicing, the workshop provided a rare opportunity to engage with real-world tools, industrial fabrication logic, and forward-thinking design strategies all within a single, cohesive workflow.

This wasn’t just a learning experience; it was a glimpse into what’s next for the built environment. As the boundaries between code, material, and machine dissolve, architects must become not only designers of space but also authors of systems, logic, and production. At PAACADEMY, that future is already being built.