Pergola with swings
Salekhard, Russia | 2021
Description:
A modular pergola structure originally developed with curved steel tubing for its roof frame. Due to fabrication challenges, particularly insufficient bending precision, the design was re-engineered into a welded steel beam system using laser-cut sheet metal components.
Eventually, a third version was developed with segmented straight square tubing, approximating the curve with linear elements and drastically simplifying the fabrication process.
The final design supports fast production, flexible layout variations, and modular scaling for different site conditions.
Dimensions:
40 × 19 × 10.2 ft (W × L × H)
Software:
Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk AutoCAD, CorelDraw, Solid Edge
Materials:
Square steel tubes, steel sheet, wood
Technologies:
Welding, tube bending, sheet metal bending, CNC laser cutting
My roles in this project:
• Reviewed and reworked an initial concept with unfeasible tube bending
• Re-engineered roof framing using laser-cut welded steel beams
• Designed a final modular version based on straight square tubes and laser-cut mounting brackets for wood cladding
• Created a fully parametric model in Autodesk Inventor, enabling rapid adaptation to varied dimensions and configurations
• Reduced production and welding labor by more than threefold through structural optimization
Key achievements:
• Engineered three iterations of the pergola structure, evolving from curved bent tubing to a highly efficient modular frame using only straight elements and laser-cut components.
• The final design reduced welding labor by over 3x and significantly lowered production cost.
• The parametric 3D model enabled rapid redesigns for varying site plans, making the system scalable and reusable for diverse architectural layouts.
