Robotic Fabrication Lab

Development + Construction /
2010-​2016

Participating Chairs /
F. Gramazio & M. Kohler, Architecture and Digital Fabrication
P. Block, Architecture and Structure
B. Dillenburger, Digital Building Technologies
A. Schlueter, Architecture and Building Systems
J. Schwartz, Structural Design

Participating Industry Partners /
ABB Schweiz AG
Güdel Schweiz AG
Bachmann Engineering AG

The RFL – initiated by the Chair of Architecture and Digital Fabrication – is located in the Arch_Tec_Lab building for the Institute of Technology in Architecture (ITA) on the Hoenggerberg Campus of ETH Zurich. This multi-​robotic facility is based on an overhead running gantry system covering the complete workshop space of the ITA building. A total of four six-​axis robots can cooperatively work on a maximum volume of 43 by 16 by 8 meters.

The RFL’s flexible and extendable configuration allows for a broad scope of different architectural design and construction experiments at full scale. The RFL also enables to simulate robotic fabrication and human-​machine cooperation on-​site, as well as advanced automated factory-​based digital fabrication processes.

Apart from the core research in the field of architecture, the RFL is set up as a platform open to other disciplines, providing the means to conduct numerous research projects that are dependent on digital controlled spatial applications.