Marywood University Professor Releases First Book on Architectural Automation

Dr. Elizabeth Andrzejewski, Assistant Professor of Architecture at Marywood University, has released her first book, Konrad Wachsmann’s Architecture Machine: The Location Orientation Manipulator, co-authored with Marcus Shaffer and published by Birkhäuser. The book is scheduled for release at the end of November.

The publication represents the culmination of several years of research exploring architectural manufacturing, automation and the future of construction. It examines the work of architect and engineer Konrad Wachsmann, particularly his Location Orientation Manipulator (LOM), a pioneering machine developed in 1970 to advance automation in building construction.

The book features a re-animation of the original LOM, which was destroyed, bringing renewed attention to its design and contributions to the field. It also explores Andrzejewski’s own design, the Automated Building Machine (ABM), developed in response to the LOM as a way to further investigate automated building systems and construction processes.

Andrzejewski’s research focuses on architectural manufacturing and automation through the relationship between theory and hands-on making. Her work on the ABM draws on more than 50 years of research into Wachsmann’s career and his contributions to architecture and engineering.

She received her doctorate from Penn State University and was named a Summer Bauhaus Lab Scholar in 2018. That experience resulted in The Art of Joining: Designing the Universal Connector. Her practical experience includes work on The Living Chapel and in the research and development department at Boyce Products Ltd.

Through this new publication, Andrzejewski brings together years of research and design work, contributing to ongoing conversations about the role of automation and technology in the future of architectural design and construction.