Shape to Fabrication Conference 2023 | STF #8

The Symbiocene was described by environmental philosopher Glen Albrecht as opposed to the Anthropocene, when our species begins to renew a symbiotic relationship with natural systems, psychologically and technologically. 

Over the last two decades, there has been an inching towards these ideas in the fields of architecture and design and as we progress deeper into a fossil-fuel-free future, it is exciting to explore how natural materials and biological processes can be (re)integrated into the architecture and construction industry.  

As a part of PLP Labs’ ongoing research into developing sustainable material systems, we have conceptualised the use of timber at various scales and, more recently, biomaterials such as mycelium composites. Mycelium, the vegetative part of fungi, can be combined with almost any organic formwork or substrate, including waste generated in our homes and workplaces. The resulting composite is a hard sponge-like material that works well in compression, has a high strength to weight ratio and is fully bio-degradable. 

These projects examine the evolving relationship between natural materials, buildings and how they can be brought closer together through the constantly developing techniques of computational design and digital fabrication.

Images created by and copyright of PLP

Abhinav Chaudhary is an Associate Partner at PLP Architecture and a key member of PLP Labs’ Computational Research Group with a focus on AR/VR, computational design, and material research. Prior to joining PLP, Abhinav worked at Orproject (Delhi/London/Beijing) on several award-winning installations, dealing with fabricating complex geometries in timber, metal, and plastic. He has also worked as a Studio Tutor at the Emergent Technologies and Design graduate program at The Architectural Association.

Websites:

PLP ARCHITECTURE
PLP LABS

Social Media:

PLP: Instagram (Architecture) / Instagram (Labs) / LinkedIn / Twitter
Abhinav Chaudhary: Instagram

Critical environmental impact of the construction industry challenges architects to seek for alternative sustainable construction systems. At the same time, existing industrial processes from other industries generate considerable amount of waste. For instance, almost two thousand million tonnes of sugar cane are produced worldwide yearly for sugar refineries, resulting in six hundred million tonnes of fibre bagasse as by-product. 

Harvesting this opportunity, Sugar Slab project aims to using bagasse as the core resource for a novel material system. Due to a three-way collaboration between Grimshaw, UEL and Tate and Lyle Sugars, the project harvests Grimshaw's AEC industry expertise, university knowledge base and an industrial partner's production capacity.

The resulting Sugarcrete material is four times lighter than traditional brick and has only 15-20% of its carbon footprint. Using only 30% of the world bagasse production, Sugarcrete could replace the traditional brick industry entirely, offering potential saving of 1,08 billion tonnes of CO2, 3% of the global CO2 production.

Challenging misconception of waste-based materials being inferior in structural strength, Sugarcrete can offer self-supporting structural applications beyond infill. Furthermore, material is insulating, fire-resistant, easy to use with unskilled labour in-situ or off-site; and has reduced supply chain due to a simple composition. 

A novel kit-of parts interlocking system, Sugar Slab, has been tested with Sugarcrete in 1:1 scale. The system enables large span construction from small discrete components with no mortar. Due to reciprocity and distributed forces network the system performs superior to the conventional monolithic assembly. Casting is used to minimise material waste, while enabling formwork reuse, streamlined mass production and DfMA opportunities.  

As a result, SugarSlab presents material efficient, falsework-free, reconfigurable kit-of parts system, designed for disassembly and reuse. The project integrates material programming, geometrical design and advanced fabrication within one continuous toolchain. Having developed and prototyped ‘Sugar slab’ using advanced digital modelling, robotic fabrication, and-low carbon material, the team is working to demonstrate how it can provide a sustainable alternative towards decarbonizing construction industry.

Elena Shilova is an architect at Grimshaw and UEL visiting fellow. In practice, she contributes to large-scale infrastructure, masterplans and public spaces, focusing on modular systems and complex geometry of building envelopes. In addition, Elena has been lecturing at Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, Chalmers University and The Architectural Association. Leveraging Elena's design interests, her research spans computation, advanced fabrication and developing modern languages for indigenous techniques of sustainable construction.

Websites:

Grimshaw / UEL / Tate & Lyle

Social Media:

Grimshaw - Facebook / Instagram / Twitter / LinkedIn / Vimeo

Elena - Instagram

UEL - Instagram / YouTube / Twitter / Facebook

Tate & Lyle - YouTube / LinkedIn

Project Team: 

Design team: Elena Shilova, Georgios Tsakiridis, Paolo Vimercati, Andy Watts (Grimshaw); Armor Gutierrez Rivas, Alan Chandler (University of East London)

Sustainability and material consultant: Bamdad Ayati (Sustainability Research Institute)

Industrial partner: John Kerr, Research & Technology (Tate and Lyle Sugars)

Engineering: Nicolo Bencini (AKT II)

Robotic fabrication: Paul Nichols (UEL FabLab)

Computational Design Specialist: Philip Singer (Grimshaw)

XR Specialist: Paris Nikitidis (Grimshaw)

UEL Master of Architecture students: Faith Omowunmi Ogundare, Busra Ciftci, Amy Gillespie, Hinal Arvindkumar Patel, Rova Taha, Dodangodagamage Kawan Roger Ranasinghe, Manoj Sai Ganji, Mohan Ukabhai Dungrani, Anca-Madalina Borda, Alina Klimenteva, Rashmi Madagamage Gunathilaka, Orseer Isreal Gbashah, Mahmoud Sayed Abdellattif.

Photographs: Chris Hopkinson

Innovative architecture often requires innovative digital systems and workflows. Grasshopper has become ubiquitous in academia and practice, yet the revolution it has created isn’t over. A further stage in this sea change is all about collaboration, combining the results of multiple designers, disciplines and software in a seamless experience. Foster + Partners Applied R+D team will show how the company is leading this shift to collaborative design systems through their extensive use on recent built work and projects on-site: a mixed-use development in San Francisco’s Dogpatch neighbourhood, the Mobility Pavilion for the Dubai World Expo 2020 and the Lusail Towers in Qatar.

Martha Tsigkari

Martha Tsigkari is a Senior Partner and Head of the Applied R+D (ARD) group at Foster + Partners. Her background spans architecture, engineering, and computer science. She has two decades of experience working in projects of all scales and uses. Her work incorporates computational design, human-computer interaction, machine learning, and optimisation. She has investigated the usage of deep neural networks and genetic algorithms in the design process, aiming to solve problems ranging from passively actuated micromaterials to performance-driven urban layouts. She is also an Associate Professor at the Bartlett, UCL and has lectured and published on the subject of computational design internationally.

Adam Davis

Adam is a Partner in the Applied Research and Development team at Foster + Partners. His background as an artist and software developer informs his work. Engaging with complex building and masterplan projects he has trained computers to anticipate design decisions; deployed a city-scale acoustic sensor network; and created a system for real-time exchange of data across disciplines, locations and design applications. He is currently delivering innovative smart building and digital twin technologies for the practice. Adam studied Architecture and Landscape Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania and Computational Design at University College London. He joined Foster + Partners in 2006.

Khaled Elashry

Khaled’s interests combine Architecture and Computer science. Currently works as an Associate at the Applied Research and development (ARD) group at Foster + Partners in addition to tutoring at the Bartlett school of architecture, University College London. He holds a master degree in Adaptive architecture and computation from University College London. His recent work bridges the gap between architecture practice and research applying state-of-the-art technological innovation to complex design challenges with expertise in optimization, fabrication, robotics, virtual reality and data visualization. He recently worked on multiple state of the art architecture projects like the Mobility Pavilion in the UAE expo, The Lusail stadium in Qatar and the UAE pavilion in Milan expo in addition to working with Boston dynamics in the applications of robotics in construction.

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Marios Tsiliakos

Marios is a Design Systems Analyst and Associate Partner at the Applied Research and Development Group at Foster + Partners, expanding the boundaries of applied computation and problem solving for AEC industry in large-scale design projects.

Within ARD his interests lie on the domains of complex geometry, data or performance driven design, and interoperability, focusing on the development of Hermes, F+P’s inhouse interop tool.

For more than a decade he's been teaching extensively in the UK and Europe, namely at the Bartlett School of Architecture-UCL, the Architectural Association and the Institute for Experimental Architecture in Innsbruck, Austria.

His research has been published in peer-reviewed conferences and his generative design work has been exhibited and presented around Europe, Asia, and North America.

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Twitter
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All images copyright Foster + Partners

Performance-driven design finds solutions to design challenges by combining the generation and evaluation of models and data. This can be in the form of human-in-the-loop tools providing rapid design feedback to inform designers about model performance. Or it can take the form of computer-automated generative design and analysis. In both cases, challenges of speed and accuracy need to be addressed. Interactive systems must provide designers with sufficiently rapid feedback that they can learn from the outcomes of their design decisions. Generative and optimisation systems must be able to create and analyse models in sufficient numbers to explore expansive design spaces with multiple objectives. Foster + Partners’ Applied R+D team will detail some of their advances in interactive design interfaces, high-performance distributed computing and optimisation, and custom analytical software to address all aspects of this generate-analyse-evaluate loop that is so critical to improving design outcomes.

Presenters

Martha Tsigkari

Martha Tsigkari is a Senior Partner and Head of the Applied R+D (ARD) group at Foster + Partners. Her background spans architecture, engineering, and computer science. She has two decades of experience working in projects of all scales and uses. Her work incorporates computational design, human-computer interaction, machine learning, and optimisation. She has investigated the usage of deep neural networks and genetic algorithms in the design process, aiming to solve problems ranging from passively actuated micromaterials to performance-driven urban layouts. She is also an Associate Professor at the Bartlett, UCL and has lectured and published on the subject of computational design internationally.

Marcin Kosicki

Marcin is an Associate Partner at Foster + Partners in the Applied Research and Development group. He has provided expertise in complex geometry, digital fabrication and performance-driven design for many high-profile projects all over the world including the MOL Group headquarter, Guangming Hub Transport Oriented Development or New Central Polish Airport. His current research is focused on leading the development of an inhouse high performance distributed computing platform called Hydra, and the implementation of both Dev and Design Ops methodologies into design workflows. Hi is a published author of peer-revied research papers, presented on international conferences and a tutor at the Bartlett School of Architecture-UCL – where he co-runs a studio called Simulated Realties.

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Sherif Tarabishy

Sherif is an architectural engineer, software developer and researcher. Currently he is an Associate Partner and Design Systems Analyst at Foster+Partners' Applied R+D (ARD) group.

Sherif's position there allows him to work on complex challenges on a daily basis, utilizing his expertise in geometry optimization, digital fabrication, virtual and augmented reality, and machine learning.

He is also an instructor and lecturer at The Bartlett in the MSc. in Architectural Computation and the M.Arch. in Architectural Design courses. For over 12 years, he has been lecturing, training and consulting at different universities and firms, with a focus on digital transformation in the AEC industry.

Khaled Elashry

Khaled’s interests combine Architecture and Computer science. Currently works as an Associate at the Applied Research and development (ARD) group at Foster + Partners in addition to tutoring at the Bartlett school of architecture, University College London. He holds a master degree in Adaptive architecture and computation from University College London. His recent work bridges the gap between architecture practice and research applying state-of-the-art technological innovation to complex design challenges with expertise in optimization, fabrication, robotics, virtual reality and data visualization. He recently worked on multiple state of the art architecture projects like the Mobility Pavilion in the UAE expo, The Lusail stadium in Qatar and the UAE pavilion in Milan expo in addition to working with Boston dynamics in the applications of robotics in construction.

Instagram
Twitter
LinkedIn

Adam Davis

Adam is a Partner in the Applied Research and Development team at Foster + Partners. His background as an artist and software developer informs his work. Engaging with complex building and masterplan projects he has trained computers to anticipate design decisions; deployed a city-scale acoustic sensor network; and created a system for real-time exchange of data across disciplines, locations and design applications. He is currently delivering innovative smart building and digital twin technologies for the practice. Adam studied Architecture and Landscape Architecture at the University of Pennsylvania and Computational Design at University College London. He joined Foster + Partners in 2006.

Oscar Borgstrom

Oscar is a Design Systems Analyst in the Applied Research + Development team at Foster + Partners. He currently leads development of Cyclops, the inhouse raytracing analysis software that implements CUDA and the Nvidia Optix SDK. During his years at Foster + Partners he has developed several pipelines to provide performance driven design solutions for architectural projects, such as view/obstruction analysis, environmental analysis, path traced rendering and thermal radiation. Oscar studied Architecture and Engineering at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden and has previously worked with many computational aspects progressing the AEC industry. His work has spanned a wide range of areas including complex geometry, digital fabrication, optimisation, structural engineering, VR and interoperability.

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All images copyright Foster + Partners

Advances in digital fabrication and computation enable us to address the increasingly urgent requirement of decreasing embodied energy and waste in construction. However, access to digital fabrication processes is not equally distributed, resulting in the construction industry being amongst the least digitised, with SMEs having limited access to digital construction processes. Through case studies, Alicia reflects on how human-compatible novel digital design and construction methods can augment onsite construction techniques by reducing material waste whilst building beautiful and efficient structures. The talk speculates on hybrid construction systems that enable emergent technologies to become an integral part of the construction ecosystem and change the way we build today for a better tomorrow.

02_topopt shell_photo Ale Vazquez

03_Learning from Candela

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04_curved timber laminas

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06_Tallin (1)

07_circular Factory (3)

07_circular Factory (4)

08_curve folding

09_street furniture

10_MItoolbox

07_circular Factory (2)

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Alicia Nahmad is an architect with a passion for robotics and digital fabrication, a strong believer that robotics can augment rather than replace human craft and that human-robot collaboration is the future of the construction industry. As a research-based practising architect, for the last 12 years, she has been engaged with the digitization of building trades and adapting advanced digital design and robotic fabrication methods to incorporate the wisdom and craft of traditional building cultures. Her projects include the construction of award-winning ‘Knit-Candela’ and diverse collaborations with practice and academic institutions. She holds a PhD from Cardiff University and a MArch from the AADRL. 

Her work focuses on exploring design through integrating materials, local skills and cutting edge design and digital fabrication technologies - such as machine learning and robotics - in relation to context-specific environments. She has developed workflows for human-robot collaboration in the design and construction process that engage with local communities. Alicia’s work expands across a number of scales, from architectural pavilions and robotic installations to developing customised PPE masks for frontline personnel. 

As an academic and an entrepreneur, Alicia is the founder of Architecture Extrapolated (R-Ex), The Circular Factory (CF), and MITollbox. Alicia works as an assistant professor at the University of Calgary SAPL. She also co-directs the Laboratory for Integrative Design. Before joining SAPL, she worked as studio master at the AADRL. Previously, Alicia worked developing digital tools for practices like Populous and Zaha Hadid Architects. Her work has been published in numerous conferences and journals and she has lectured internationally on related topics. 

This research presents a novel workflow for the design, fabrication, and assembly of a kit-of-parts structural system derived from actively bent plywood sheets. The structural system encompasses a hierarchical organisational logic defined by varying load-bearing capacities, which in turn is reflected in the level of reconfigurability. The system is comprised of actively bent plywood modules, and the module morphology is driven by the objective to reduce material waste of plywood sheets to a minimum. Physical experimentation has informed the variation throughout the system and led to the calibration of the computational workflow. The computational workflow incorporates material behaviour, structural performance, and life cycle assessment (LCA) of the plywood sheets into a multi-objective optimisation workflow to generate a pool of design candidates before moving to the fabrication and assembly processes. The reconfigurability and reusability of the system is extended by a configurator app that extends the design space of the system and allow the participation of the wider public audience.  Overall, the project addresses themes of generative design, material computation, large-scale fabrication, and assembly technologies.

Elif Erdine, PhD, MArch., BArch 

Dr. Elif Erdine is an architect, designer, and researcher. She is the Director at Emergent Technologies and Design Post-Graduate Programme (EmTech), at the Architectural Association (AA) School of Architecture. The research agenda of EmTech focuses on investigating new synergies of architecture and ecology through the critical intersection of computational design and fabrication. During 2010-2015, she conducted her PhD at the Architectural Association PhD in Design Programme, titled ‘Generative Processes in Tower Design: Algorithms for the Integration of Tower Subsystems’, under the advisory of Dr. George Jeronimidis, Dr. Michael Weinstock, and Patrik Schumacher. Since 2010 she has been directing and teaching in various AA Visiting School programmes (AA Istanbul VS, AA Summer DLAB), exploring generative design techniques, integration of algorithmic design methods with large-scale digital fabrication tools. She has worked for Zaha Hadid Architects during 2006 - 2010. She received her B.Arch. degree from Istanbul Technical University in 2003 (High Honors), and M.Arch. degree from the AA Design Research Lab (AA DRL) in 2006 (Project Distinction). 

Her research interests comprise the integration of algorithmic generative design with robotic fabrication techniques. Her PhD thesis has focused on developing a generative system of design that offers simultaneous integration and differentiation throughout the subsystems of a concept for a tall building during the conceptual design phase. Her wider research interests include biomimicry, complex adaptive systems, and robotic fabrication. She has published and presented her research in Design Studies, eCAADe, CAAD Futures, SimAUD, and ACADIA, among others. 

Milad Showkatbakhsh, PhD, MArch., BArch 

Milad Showkatbakhsh is an architect, designer, and researcher. He is the Studio Master at EmTech and co-directs the AA Istanbul Visiting School and AA DLAB. He holds a PhD from the Architectural Association. After obtaining his BSc. in Architectural Engineering from Shahid Beheshti University, he completed his M.Arch. from Pratt Institute where he graduated with Sidney Katz award for design excellence in 2015. Milad has worked for several architecture and design firms in Asia, U.S.A and Europe as design technology specialist such as Contemporary Architecture Practice (CAP) amongst others. His research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and conferences. Milad is the co-director of the AA Istanbul Visiting School and DLAB, with the research focus on integration of algorithmic design methods with large-scale digital fabrication tools. He is the co-founder of ‘Wallacei’, an evolutionary and analytic engine with embedded machine learning algorithms that gives users full control over their evolutionary simulations in Grasshopper 3D.

His research interest lies at the intersection of biology, computation and architecture. His doctoral thesis focuses on the application of homeostatic principles in biology within architectural design processes and the correlation of such principles with evolutionary development and morphogenesis of species. Milad is working towards the application of biological principles of intelligence in architecture and urban design through computational processes. His wider research interests include machine intelligence, robotic fabrication and complex systems. 

Andy Watts, MArch., BA(Hons), ARB

Andy is the Director of Design Technology at Grimshaw and leads the practice’s global Design Technology team, overseeing digital discipline such as computational design, BIM, extended reality, urban computation, applications development and environmental performance. 

As a qualified architect with a background in computational design, Andy has an interest in problem-solving, regardless of scale or platform. From low-key computational tinkering to digital transformation on a practice-scale, his passion lies in making the lives of architects and designers easier through the use of technology.

Andy is a proponent of open and equitable access to technology. Within Grimshaw he has sought to break down the silos between technologies, allowing for the cross-pollination of expertise to be available to any project within the practice. In the wider industry, Andy has continued to drive for an open approach to technology, through engagement in industry-wide research consortia such as the Construction Innovation Hub, participation in public events, and playing a role in groups driving for industry change.

Andy is also actively involved in academia, has taught at the Architectural Association and University of Westminster, and has also lectured and critiqued at the Pratt Institute, Melbourne University, Dundee University, RCA, UCL and others.

Websites:

Emtech
Grimshaw

Social media:

AA Emtech - Instagram
Elif Erdine - Instagram
Milad Showkatbakhsh - Instagram
Grimshaw - Instagram

3D modelling is often considered a task that takes place exclusively during the planning phases of a project. This is a missed opportunity and misconception. We argue that 3D modelling is even more critical during execution phases when used as a means of understanding onsite conditions and directing activities. Using iterative solvers to interpret survey data and as-built point clouds we’ll demonstrate how to digitally “test fit” and “best fit” designs in a process we’ve deemed Reconciliation Modelling. In this process, we use the specified adjustability (tolerance) of anchor points to construct a design space of all potential install positions. This design space allows us to verify tolerance rules are not broken, optimise for various criteria, and visualise areas where field installers cannot be successful long before arriving at the job site. 

James Coleman is co-founder of SumPoint. He brings a unique mix of design, engineering, construction, and digital fabrication expertise to projects. His work focuses on the comprehensive process of delivering extraordinary buildings; leveraging parametric design-to-fabrication-to-installation workflows.

Previously, James acted as Vice President - Innovation R&D at Zahner, a company that specializes in computational fabrication at an architectural scale. As a part of the Executive Team, James led research initiatives and provided strategic support on large scale and complex projects.

He has worked as a Design Engineer with award winning architecture firms around the world and as a Product Development Engineer at Ford Motor Company James holds a Master of Architecture and Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Bachelor of Environmental Design from the University of Colorado-Boulder.

Websites:

SumPoint

Social Links:

James Coleman - LinkedIn / Instagram

I would like to address the opportunities of engineering solutions driven by fabrication which are outside the standard code of practice. Non-standard structural elements, as a result of utilising new technologies in the material, fabrication and construction industry aiming to reduce carbon impact are becoming more the norm.

In order to validate these "non standard solutions" they need to be "classified" to something we can understand as part of the code – yet how can we introduce / name / classify new structural typologies?

Using testing we can get closer to the compound capacity of the structure as well as understand the failure mechanisms. Furthermore we aim to understand the product beyond its modelled behaviour and estimated capacities, to reach a new approval, reducing carbon in our new constructs.

So how can we share and consolidate engineers' links to fabrication driven design projects, requiring unique performance specifications?

Manja van de Worp – is the director of YIP Structural Engineering London (former NOUS engineering London), holding Master degrees in Architecture, Structural Engineering and in Emergent Technologies and Design. She is a structural engineer with 15 years professional experience in the Construction Industry focusing on Structure Geometry and Fabrication, while teaching at the RCA, Architectural Association & IAAC.

She has worked for Arup in London in the Advanced Geometry Unit and at the Advanced Technology and Research group in ARUP, designing structures with a complex geometry and moveable structures.

YIP, Yes it's possible is an engineering consultancy bearing extensive knowledge of advanced structural analysis tools, complex structural systems, materials and fabrication technologies. Current projects involve structural design with recycled plastic, design for dis and reassembly of timber frame structures, a bespoke made timber rib structure for a greenhouse in Sofia. YIP also focuses on structural product design and research based projects, a longstanding relationship with AUAR looks at innovative ways to use timber block systems.

It is often impossible to predict in advance the challenges that one will encounter throughout the design, fabrication, and construction process. Having experienced this over the course of hundreds of built projects, at Front we have developed an approach to computational design that emphasises flexibility, adaptability and problem-solving.
In this talk we will share how this approach enabled the design, fabrication, and installation process for the Lusail Plaza Towers - a set of 4 high rises consisting of 23,000 individually unique and 3-dimensional facade panels. Through our close collaboration with the facade contractor, we leveraged Rhino's inherent flexibility and robustness along with our adaptive digital infrastructure to tackle a series of challenges as they arose. Among the innovations we will share include:

• Representing the project as a networked collection of smaller models
• Advanced Brep-creation techniques for CNC fabrication:
  • perfectly flush and tangential subtractions without Boolean operations
  • data stored directly on the fabricated faces of the objects
• Automated generation of millions of fabrication documents, in traditional 2D formats as well as 3D formats
• Optimization of panel geometry that allows for fully 3-dimensional prefabrication in a factory-controlled environment
• Generation of thousands of Finite Element simulations which are use to train a Machine Learning model for reverse-engineering the flat shape of curved glass

Keyan Rahimzadeh is a Senior Associate at Front, Inc, with ten years of experience across the New York and London offices. With a hybrid background in engineering, architecture, and computation, he has realized complex façade projects around the world. His principal interest is the creation of innovative workflows –simulations, data management, automation, and so on– which enable architects, engineers, fabricators, and contractors to bring ambitious projects from design to construction. 

He is also currently the lead developer of eleFront, a plugin for Rhino 3d that allows users to generate metadata directly in their parametric workflows, as well as tools that make it easier to manipulate extremely large models with millions of objects.

Websites:

www.frontinc.com
www.elefront.io
www.keyan.info