For today’s edition, we’ve got a bundle of interesting articles, insights, and trends just for you. Let’s take a look:

• Building facades the recycled way shows how architects are turning waste into opportunity, creating eco-friendly facades that rethink sustainability.

• The King Toronto Residences are a bold addition to the city’s skyline, combining greenery, geometric design, and modern living into one iconic project.

• IoT: The hidden brain in smart buildings explores how interconnected systems are revolutionizing building management, making structures smarter, more efficient, and adaptable.

• The KAFD Metro Station by Zaha Hadid Architects is a stunning example of futuristic design, blending flowing forms with cutting-edge functionality to redefine public transportation in Riyadh.

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  Warm regards,
  Parametric Architecture

Building Facades the Recycled Way

Sustainability is now a key focus in architecture, with architects using recycled materials to reduce waste, energy use, and environmental impact. Tools like BIM and LCA are helping optimize designs, promoting eco-friendly practices throughout a building's lifecycle.

BIG’s King Toronto Residences Rising as a Pixelated Hilltop in Toronto’s Skyline

King Toronto Residences are set in a transitional area of Toronto between the tall towers of the Central Business District to the east and the low-rise neighborhoods in the northwest. Located at the meeting point of three 20th-century neighborhood parks, the building is organized as a traditional perimeter block with a public park and plaza in the center.

IoT the Hidden Brain in Smart Buildings

In an effort to create intelligent and automated spaces for residential, commercial, and corporate usage, an increasing number of buildings are designed, constructed, and remodeled in accordance with the concepts of smart buildings. This form of intervention relies heavily on the Internet of Things (IoT).

Breathing Life into Buildings with Carbon-Negative Facades

The façade, which is the skin of a building, plays a significant role in the building’s sustainability performance. The façade of a building is one of the most important and challenging elements to design as it establishes the benchmark for iconic structures. The current façade design is constantly evolving as technology progresses rapidly.

Tencent Helix Shapes Shenzhen’s Skyline with Twisting Towers

Leading multinational Tencent, one of the world’s most valuable publicly traded companies, set an ambitious brief for its new global headquarters in Shenzhen – widely regarded as “China’s Silicon Valley”. Globally known for its super-app WeChat with more than 1.3 billion users, Tencent’s new headquarters will be part of a new urban development that is comparable in size and shape to Midtown Manhattan.

Bioinspired Weather-Responsive Adaptive Solar Gate Installed as Shading for livMatS Shell

The Solar Gate is a weather-responsive shading system installed on the south-facing skylight of the livMatS Biomimetic Shell. Inspired by the hygromorphic principles observed in pine cones, it achieves adaptive shading without relying on metabolic or electrical energy. Instead, the system utilizes bioinspired mechanisms that emulate the anisotropic structure of cellulose found in plant tissues.

ETH Zurich’s ‘Unfold Form’ Cuts Concrete and Steel Use by 60%

An architecture PhD student at ETH Zurich has developed a simple solution for building concrete floors in a more climate-friendly way. Significant amounts of concrete and steel can be saved thanks to a lightweight, robust, and reusable formwork design.

KAFD Metro Station by ZHA Leads Riyadh’s Transit Revolution

The King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station, designed by Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), serves as the key interchange on the new network, connecting the KAFD terminus, King Khalid International Airport, and providing access to the sky bridge for the local KAFD monorail.