Architectural Blog archdaily reported recently on the ongoing research of CoReSing’s bamboo composite materials for the building industry. “Developing countries have the highest demand for steel-reinforced concrete, but often do not have the means to produce the steel to meet that demand.  Rather than put themselves at the mercy of a global market dominated by developed countries, Singapore’s Future Cities Laboratory suggests an alternative to this manufactured rarity: bamboo.  Abundant, sustainable, and extremely resilient, bamboo has potential in the future to become an ideal replacement in places where steel cannot easily be produced.” The full article can be found here.

Impulse, the magazine for the German-speaking community in Singapore, recently published a short article on Felix Heisel in their issue “German Researchers in Singapore”. It describes his motivation to work in Singapore as well as his research in urban design and construction materials. The issue is available online here.

From the forests of Indonesia to the skylines of future cities. The rapid urbanization in emerging market countries sparks a search for new and better building materials. This video is part of the ‘HSBC Canada in the Future’ Series, directed by Meg Andersen, The Mark Studios, Toronto Canada.

Dirk E. Hebel and the group’s research on Advanced Fiber Composite Reinforcement has been featured in The Edge Singapore on December 09th, 2013. The article titled ‘Bamboo could replace steel in reinforced concrete, says Future Cities Lab’s Hebel’ describes the background and research aims of the project. The Edge Singapore is a weekly magazine on business and investment and also includes a daily blog, which can be found here.

Dirk E. Hebel and the group’s research on Advanced Fiber Composite Reinforcement has been featured in the Straits Times on November 10th, 2013. “Now, researchers from the Future Cities Laboratory, a collaboration between Singapore and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), hope to harness the flexibility and strength of bamboo fibres to replace steel rebar used in reinforced concrete. As Singapore goes through a construction boom, it is paying more attention to greening the construction process – from studying the use of bamboo to reinforce concrete, to calculating the carbon footprint of buildings. Recently, the Building100

ETH Globe published in its latest issue called “The particle tamers” an article on the research of the Chair of Architecture and Construction Dirk E. Hebel at FCL Singapore called “Bamboo – rock-hard iron substitute for the tropics” by Samuel Schlaefli. “Bamboo grows quickly, is common in tropical countries, and some species have a greater tensile strength than steel. It would be an ideal alternative to imported construction steel for the rapidly growing cities of the south, which is where the Future Cities Laboratory in Singapore comes in.” See also: www.ethz.ch/about/publications/globe