11: Wood Innovation For Architecture In Brazil: Integrating Computational Thinking, Digital Fabrication and Robotics In A Creative Experience

Scarce resources and dependence on non-renewable materials demand ecological solutions integrated with technology to drive innovation. Wood is an abundant, renewable material in Brazil; however, faces methodological and cultural challenges. The Wood Innovation for Architecture in Brazil (WI-FAB) research merges computational thinking, generative design, digital fabrication, and robotics to rethink wood use in architecture and construction (AEC). Brazil’s LAMO and Denmark’s SDU-CREATE labs established a partnership advancing two LAMO’s earlier research lines: Computation for Architecture in Python (CAP) and Flat Panel Tectonics (TC), leveraging SDU-Create’s robotics expertise. The WI-FAB research includes an undergraduate and postgraduate course including an international workshop on collaborative robotics. Facing fabrication constraints, participants develop planar materials—laser-cut cardboard - accelerating prototyping cycles for wood application. They developed codified grammars for discrete wooden components using digital fabrication and robotics, emphasizing reversible assembly, material reuse, and circular-economy principles. Future work will focus on full-scale fabrication and robotic applications.