Construction Systems: Steel

2016 – 2026

Professor:

Ignacio Cardona

Institutions:

Harvard Graduate School of Design

Wentworth Institute of Technology

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Developed for lectures, workshops, and student consultations in the Master in Architecture I program at Harvard GSD and in the Comprehensive Studio at Wentworth Institute of Technology, this teaching material provides a practical introduction to steel as a construction system. Beginning with its historical development, the lecture introduces fundamental terminology and construction principles, with particular attention to standardized rolled-steel elements and the differences between bolted and welded connections in the assembly of tectonic structures.

Mies van der Rohe’s Farnsworth House is used to explain the construction sequence, connecting structural principles with assemblies and architectural details. Exercises allow students to apply these principles through practical problems. Together with parallel lectures on wood and concrete, the material also establishes a comparative framework for understanding how different construction systems organize materials, structure, assembly, and architectural form.