The building shell is the interface with the outside world: it offers protection and at the same time represents its owners or occupants. But what are the criteria for choosing a specific shell? Why is a particular material used on a particular undercoat? The second volume of the SCALE series, Enclose - Build, is not about the curtain, the dressing of the facade that surrounds a building, but rather on a causal level about the exterior termination of a building, the wall, the facade, which can be made of various materials, surfaces and achieves different design effects. The book shows the conditions under which certain constructions can be employed and why; what criteria such as construction costs, issues of sustainability, of energy efficiency, of assembly or of insulation or protection against moisture can also influence the choice of a system. In addition to classical constructions, Enclose - Build offers a look at future developments. How will the facade evolve as an interface for information? What do viable concepts for environmentally active, energy-efficient building shells look like? This book is an indispensable tool for every architect and planner.
Alexander Reichel Book order






- 2015
- 2013
Support I Materialise
Columns, Walls, Floors
Columns, walls and floors make up the skeleton of nearly every building. Thisthird volume in the series SCALE, Support| Materialise, takes an in-depth look at these load-bearing structures, covering the development and realization of appropriate constructions from idea and design intention all the way to constructional implementation
- 2007
Building with steel
- 112 pages
- 4 hours of reading
Detail Practice: Building with Steel is a handbook for quick, goal-oriented reading and implementation. Case study projects exemplify common norm details using large-scale drawings. The fundamentals of planning load-bearing structures provide design and planning help. This is supplemented by explanations of common load-bearing structures using examples of residential, office, hall and industrial buildings. Issues of fire safety and building physics particularly relevant to steel construction are treated alongside the use of steel as a material for cladding facades.
- 2004
Plaster, render, paint and coatings
- 112 pages
- 4 hours of reading
Plastering, colors, and coatings help characterize surfaces, determine the impression a room makes, create light effects. This volume uses international examples to present innovative solutions on this theme. Expert authors describe and define the essential principles, drawing attention to points to be aware of.