The Global Recycling Day is surely the best occasion to tell the result of the collaboration between LATI3DLAB, LATI’s laboratory specialized in the development of special materials for 3D printing, Gimac, manufacturer of machines and plants for extrusion and microextrusion in Castronno (VA), and Vudafieri Saverino Partners, the architecture and interior design atelier based in Milan and Shanghai.
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Wilhelm Lamp - inspired by the 1930s
Back in 2019, Tiziano Vudafieri used a plastic material from LATI3Dlab to create his Wilhelm Lamp, a large pendant lamp inspired by a vase designed in 1935 by the modernist architect Wilhelm Wagenfeld, of whom Vudafieri is a collector. The unique piece is produced by eXgineering SA with Gimac technology, by means of special 3D printers for technopolymers in granule, and was presented within the context of the event “Guiltlessplastic – Master’s Pieces”.
An important distinguishing factor of its creation was the use of transparent polycarbonate coming exclusively from recycled material. The selected polymer was also optimized by LATI to maximize its final properties after a transformation through 3D printing, while preserving its transparency, resilience, dimensional stability, and aesthetic appearance.
Veils and flames moved by the wind
Today LATI3DLAB, Vudafieri Saverino Partners and Gimac propose a new masterpiece obtained always with strictly recycled material. It is a set of lamps installed at the Paradiso Cannes, a restaurant in the Barrière hotel in Cannes, and at Paradiso restaurant in Abu Dhabi.
Also in this case the material used is LATIECO 87 MR AM, polycarbonate from mechanical recycling, chosen and developed by LATI3Dlab and then transformed by eXgineering, using Gimac additive technology, into the shapes the architects conceived. Geometries similar to those of veils and flames moved by the wind, dear to the masters of blown and handcrafted glass, which are impossible to achieve using injection molded plastics.
With 3D printing, or rather, thanks to additive technology, in this case Robotic Additive Moulding (RAM), even the most daring evolutions take shape thanks to the extreme freedom of expression guaranteed by this 6-axis process, capable of preserving the chemical-physical properties of the material, conditioning its microstructural properties, thus acting as a closed loop between material and design.
Light, colorful and transparent, elegant but above all with a reduced environmental impact, these lamps bear witness to what is possible today by combining the flexibility of the production method, expertise in the world of materials, and the inspired vision of Italian design. With the utmost respect for the environment and in accordance with the principles of sustainability.
