SCALExD

Innovating Large-Scale Design Education Through Digital & Sustainable Craft

scalexd.eu

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The Challenge

Traditional manufacturing and craft sectors across Europe are in decline with historic expertise in furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, metalwork, and other disciplines fading due to factory closures and a lack of skilled successors. This loss is partly due to the fragmentation of production, where specialization has distanced designers from manufacturers, limiting collaboration between craftsmen, architects, and industry.
Since the 1990s, digital fabrication has opened new possibilities, shifting focus from mass production to mass customization. However, much of this innovation has remained confined to small-scale experiments rather than transforming larger production ecosystems. To truly sustain and evolve these crafts, we must bridge the gap between digital advancements and industrial-scale manufacturing.

Our Solution

SCALExD was created to address this challenge—training a new generation of designers, artists, and architects to integrate digital, ecological, and open-source production models into manufacturing. By reconnecting craft with industry, the project aims to revitalize artisanal sectors, foster innovation, and ensure these traditions thrive in the digital age.

Type of Project

Erasmus+

The Project

The SCALExD project aims to train a new generation of digital craftsmen, young designers, artists and architects. It focuses on establishing a new interdisciplinary training curriculum at the intersection between art, design, engineering and architecture that is capable of training HEI trainers and learners from different backgrounds to develop skills in the design and fabrication of large-scale artefacts using new technologies and sustainable materials.