Strataboard

Strataboard is the result of a 4-month research-intensive project focusing on the J.Paul Leonard Library and the inefficient utilization of the building's workspace commons. Strataboard is equal parts functional problem solving and novel, bold approach to form and manufacture.

Inspired by Origami and the complex art that can come from a two-dimensional material, I challenged myself to create an entire workstation in the same method.

Contemplation of form was conducted through conceptual sketching and paper modelmaking. The design incorporated a suspended white board for seamless cleanabilty and a structure that consisted of one solid piece of wood delicately molded with a bent-lamination method.

Aside from the singular wooden structure, the only structural component would be a steel dowel rod at the intersection of the vertical and horizontal faces.

After modeling the design in Solidworks, the geometry was reverse engineered to arrive at the precise profile of the two-dimensional sheets it would be created from. This process was also used to determine the exact points where the structure would self-intersect. The negative space of the structure was used to create a mold from which the most complex bends could be formed.

I used CNC to create molds from durable ply wood and MDF to serve as I then used those molds to drive the creation of the rest of the molding apparatus. I also used the CNC to create the precise profiles of the eight 1/8” sheets that i would laminate into the final product. I then soaked them of 2 hours to ensure maximum pliability. I configured them into the mold and I created spacers to allow them to dry in that shape before laminating with wood glue, Using 20+ clamps to keep maintain the form over 48 hours, I let the glue set at room temperature before removing the structure from the molding apparatus.

The Prototype was very successful. I sanded, oiled and painted the prototype to match the aesthetics of the J Paul Leonard Library before installing it in the commons area.