![\"\"](\"https:\/\/clemson.world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/simPLY2.jpg\")
<\/a>A team of Clemson architecture students assemble Indigo Pine East, the first structure built using the sim[PLY] construction method. Off-the-shelf plywood is cut by CNC routers into interlocking tab-and-slot pieces that fit together to form a solid, tight frame. With the sim[PLY] method, digital cut files can be emailed to a CNC fabricator, then shipped flat-packed to the construction site, ready to be assembled by hand by unskilled laborers.<\/p><\/div>Clemson University\u2019s School of Architecture<\/a> is developing an innovative new construction method that is gaining worldwide attention for its potential market impact in rapid, low-tech sustainable housing. sim[PLY]\u2019s evolving impact:<\/strong><\/p>\n \n<\/div>\n Architectural communities in Italy, Austria and Germany \u2013 countries considered to be worldwide leaders in wood construction and sustainable building \u2013 have expressed interest in sim[PLY]. Overseas and in the U.S., sim[PLY]\u2019s sustainable performance benefits are compelling.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n The sim[PLY] rafter assembly for a CropStop community kitchen. Architecture student Paul Mosher examines sim[PLY] pieces cut by a Computer Numeric Control device. Sim[PLY]\u2019s interlocking connection technology is patent-pending.<\/p>\n \u201csim[PLY] is an ongoing, evolving project,\u201d Schwennsen said. \u201cNew teams of students are being challenged to optimize the design and create newer, smarter versions to meet the needs of a variety of commercial, government and end-user market applications.\u201d Clemson University\u2019s School of Architecture is developing an innovative new construction method that is gaining worldwide attention for its potential market impact in rapid, low-tech sustainable housing. Using the sim[PLY] Framing System, \u201cWith a click of the button, someone could order a custom-cut, flat-packed home online and construct it by hand with the help of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":17129,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[230,817,881,885,955,2384,2391,2601],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-16912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-these-hills","tag-architecture","tag-construction","tag-cw-spring-2017","tag-cw-spring-2017-in-these-hills","tag-department-of-defense","tag-research","tag-research-news","tag-simply"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/04\/ITH-Paul-Mosher-CNC.jpg.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16912"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16912\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16912"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=16912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nUsing the sim[PLY] Framing System, \u201cWith a click of the button, someone could order a custom-cut, flat-packed home online and construct it by hand with the help of their friends and neighbors in a matter of days,\u201d said Kate Schwennsen, professor and director of the School of Architecture.
\nOne of the sim[PLY] Framing System\u2019s innovative advantages is its revolutionary interlocking tab-and-slot connection system (patent pending). Assembly is intuitive and easy; so buildings come together much like a 3D puzzle, using no nails, just steel zip ties and some screws. This means buildings can be disassembled just as easily, without causing structural damage.
\n\u201csim[PLY] is faster, safer, easier and more energy-efficient than traditional construction with power tools,\u201d Schwennsen said.
\nsim[PLY] offers a rapid, low-tech construction solution with a profound reduction in a building\u2019s total carbon footprint. Here\u2019s how:<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>
Image Credit: Clemson University School of Architecture<\/p><\/div>An example of a sim[PLY] structure in use is the\u00a0CropStop community kitchen<\/a> on Lois Avenue in Greenville. The building makes it possible for crop owners to better process their harvests to meet local demand for fresh farm-to-table foods. A new universal CropStop prototype was designed in the fall and could impact global agrarian economies where there is interest in this concept for sustaining local growers and evolving farm communities.
\nsim[PLY] was first developed by Clemson architectural faculty and students as part of their entry in the 2015 Department of Energy Solar Decathlon<\/a> competition. While their end result was a solar-powered, energy-efficient home, it was just the beginning for the innovative framing system that is proving it has a marketable life of its own.
\n<\/a><\/p>\n
\nThe School of Architecture and its faculty continue to be leaders in integrating critical and creative research into its nationally ranked accredited graduate program<\/a>.
\nThe sim[PLY] team includes faculty inventors Dan Harding, Dustin Albright, Dave Pastre, Ulrike Heine, Vincent Blouin and Ufuk Ursoy; and contributing student inventors Anthony Wohlers, Michael Stoner, Eric Balogh, Tyler Silvers, Clair Dias, Alison Martin, Jon Pennington, Jeff Hammer, Will Hinkley, Justin Hamrick, Alexandra Latham, Neely Leslie, Daniel Taylor, David Herrero, Rebecca Mercer, Russell Buchanan, Amelia Brackmann, Paul Mosher, Allyson Beck and Alex Libengood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
![\n<\/a><\/p>\nArchitecture student Paul Mosher examines sim[PLY] pieces cut by a Computer Numeric Control device. Sim[PLY]\u2019s interlocking connection technology is patent-pending.<\/p>\n\u201csim[PLY] is an ongoing, evolving project,\u201d Schwennsen said. \u201cNew teams of students are being challenged to optimize the design and create newer, smarter versions to meet the needs of a variety of commercial, government and end-user market applications.\u201d\nThe School of Architecture and its faculty continue to be leaders in integrating critical and creative research into its nationally ranked accredited graduate program<\/a>.\nThe sim[PLY] team includes faculty inventors Dan Harding, Dustin Albright, Dave Pastre, Ulrike Heine, Vincent Blouin and Ufuk Ursoy; and contributing student inventors Anthony Wohlers, Michael Stoner, Eric Balogh, Tyler Silvers, Clair Dias, Alison Martin, Jon Pennington, Jeff Hammer, Will Hinkley, Justin Hamrick, Alexandra Latham, Neely Leslie, Daniel Taylor, David Herrero, Rebecca Mercer, Russell Buchanan, Amelia Brackmann, Paul Mosher, Allyson Beck and Alex Libengood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Clemson University\u2019s School of Architecture is developing an innovative new construction method that is gaining worldwide attention for its potential market impact in rapid, low-tech sustainable housing. Using the sim[PLY] Framing System, \u201cWith a click of the button, someone could order a custom-cut, flat-packed home online and construct it by hand with the help of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":17129,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[230,817,881,885,955,2384,2391,2601],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-16912","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-these-hills","tag-architecture","tag-construction","tag-cw-spring-2017","tag-cw-spring-2017-in-these-hills","tag-department-of-defense","tag-research","tag-research-news","tag-simply"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/04\/ITH-Paul-Mosher-CNC.jpg.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16912","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16912"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16912\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16912"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16912"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16912"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clemson.world\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=16912"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}](\"http:\/\/newsstand.clemson.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Paul-Mosher-CNC.jpg\"){kind=link}