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Wilcox and Trandafirecsu win Architect R+D citation

Wilcox and Trandafirecsu win Architect R+D citation

Assistant Professors of architecture Anca Trandafirescu and Glenn Wilcox, principals of Area, were given a citation in the Architect magazine R+D awards for their carbon fiber project, C-Lith.

The C-Lith prototype is a semi-cylindrical, hollow structure composed of 143 interlocking carbon fiber modules that vary in shape and size. C-Lith reflects the teams research interests in developing carbon fiber architectural units that can be joined to form structural framing, scaffolding, and lightweight construction.

According to the judges, this year’s R+D Award winners stood out for, “potential to inject architecture with intelligence, upgrade longstanding manufacturing and construction methods, and overhaul entire streetscapes and cities. They weren’t only about making things, they were also about solving human-scale problems.”

The initial funding for the C-Lith research came from Taubman College’s 2013/2014 Research Through Making grant. The C-Lith project was featured on the cover of the July 2014 issue of Architect – the magazine of the American Institute of Architects.