Inflatable Buildings

Axel Thallemer, head of corporate design at Festo, sees membranes and air as the sixth construction material.

1 minute read

December 7, 2002, 7:00 AM PST

"Are we ready to live like modern nomads, with ultra-advanced homes that pack up and travel with us wherever we go? For towns that spring up and vanish when they are no longer needed, or spacecraft that could be any shape you wanted. Axel Thallemer certainly is. His big idea is to build real inflatable buildings that are as far removed from the blow-up jokey plastic world of the 1960s as you can imagine. And at Festo, where he is head of corporate design, they already have eight years of experience in building working prototypes that are among the most advanced in the world - and the only ones based on close observation of nature."

Thanks to ArchNewsNow.com

FULL STORY: Castles of air?

Thursday, December 5, 2002 in New Scientist

Technology United States

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Start Learning

Advertise with us

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.