Ulrich Knaack was trained as an architect at the RWTH at Aachen in Germany. After earning his degree, he worked at the university as a researcher in the field of the structural use of glass and completed his studies with a PhD.

In his professional career Knaack worked as architect and general planner in Düsseldorf, Germany, succeeding in national and international competitions. His projects include high-rise apartments and office buildings, commercial buildings and stadiums.

He was professor for Design and Construction at the Hochschule OWL in Germany, and currently works as appointed professor for Design of Construction at the Delft University of Technology Faculty of Architecture, Netherlands where he developed the Façade Research Group. In parallel, he is professor for Façade Technology at the TU Darmstadt Faculty of Civil Engineering in Germany where he participates in the Institute of Structural Mechanics + Design.

Marcel Bilow is Associate Professor at Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment and head of the Bucky Lab. He has been teaching building construction and product design for more than 20 years. Marcel is an expert on connections, products and materials use. He has a hands-on approach in research and education, especially within the field of façades, experimental prototyping and production techniques. Besides his academic activities, he ran an office for façade engineering and is the co-author of more than 15 books. Waste is a lack of imagination is the phrase that has inspired him since his early education and always keeps him thinking out of the box.

Acknowledgements

A huge thank you goes to Bea de los Arcos for her tireless enthusiasm in coordinating the production of this MOOC, and Tatiana Armijos Moya for her fabulous support in the outline development and handling of all written content. Next to this Hans de Jonge / oculusfilm.com is to be named, being a very inspiring and talented video professional, who was able to use the bits and parts we filmed to make good stories in each video.

We are also deeply thankful for the valuable support of the Extension School for Continuing Education, Delft University of Technology, and Wicona.

Finally, we would not have been able to bring this course to you without the willingness of the experts we visited around Europe to share their time and knowledge with all of us – thanks for this!