Kickoff 2026 | Final Imagery

 

Render vs Reality

 

 

 

 

  

Night vs Day

Kickoff 2026 I On-site Assembly and Inauguration

After months of planning, designing, prototyping and fabrication, the project has finally entered the final stage. After disassembling, students carefully inspected, labelled and organized each component. With each piece playing a specific role in the overall structure, careful preparation and attention to detail were essential in order to prepare for a smooth installation day.

(Photos Taken By Downtown Yonge BIA, Andy Nguyen, Allie Male and Denielle Tiri)

Kickoff Team Moving Pieces to the Site

The team transported all the pieces to the final site, working together to carry the pieces through Sankofa Square, as well as unloading the bigger pieces from the truck. On site assembly required students to work collaboratively and problem solve as each piece was assembled to form the final installation.

Students Start Assembling the Base of the Structure

 

Students Begin Constructing the Geodesic Structure

Students inside the interior of the structure while installing the display

Students Installing the Alucobond Panels

The final step of this project was completing all the final electrical wiring. The STEM WORKS team applied the finishing touches that brought the project to life, showcasing the technical and creative work that went into the installation's lighting elements.

STEM Works Team Working on the Electrical Wiring

This exciting journey ended with inauguration day, where the Young Street BIA Team, the TMU Architectural Science Faculty and our sponsors from Upper Canada Forest Products helped the student team unveil the final structure. Seeing all the months of hard work come together in this final form was a rewarding milestone for everyone involved. This day celebrated the dedication, teamwork and resilience of TMU Architecture students. This project was a valuable and exciting hands-on experience for students, teaching how to bring a design to life.

Kickoff With Our Client, Downtown Yonge BIA

Kickoff Opening Ceremony With Co-Leads Saad Malik and Jose-Miguel Calle with DAS Chair, Lisa Landrum

Kickoff Opening Ceremony With Co-Leads Saad Malik and Jose-Miguel Calle With Pat French

Kickoff Opening Ceremony With Co-Leads Saad Malik and Jose-Miguel Calle With Shop Technicians Filip Tisler, Jason Ramelson and Jordan So

Taken By Downtown Yonge BIA

Kickoff Opening Ceremony With Co-Leads Saad Malik and Jose-Miguel Calle with engineering team member Abdul Samad Sheikh

  

Kickoff 2026 Team, Taken By Downtown Yonge BIA

Kickoff 2026 I Creation and In-house assembly

As opening day comes closer, the Kickoff team has reached several major milestones, completing final testing and beginning assembly of the full-scale structure.

(Photos Taken By Andy Nguyen)

After weeks of carefully fabricating individual components, students have begun assembling the geodesic structure, ensuring that every piece works together correctly. This stage allowed students to become familiar with the construction process, gaining a deeper understanding of the role each component plays in the final structure through hands-on experience.

Students Assembling the Base

At the same time, the team is able to focus on the finishing details that bring the Kickoff installation to life. Students began painting pentagon and trapezoid panels and completed the final sanding, giving the structure its distinct visual identity as well as preparing it for the final assembly.

With the wooden components complete, the team began CNC machining the alucobond panels. Working closely with the TMU DAS shop technicians, students learned how to work with the new material. The team familiarized themselves with new tools and learned new fabrication skills as they used rivet connections to assemble the alucobond components before attaching them to the geodesic structure. As each panel was installed, the installation began to take shape, transforming each individual component into one cohesive system, allowing students to see a month of hard work come together at full scale.

Throughout this stage, students completed the final rounds of testing, confirming the structure's stability and familiarizing themselves with the assembly process. Testing at the full scale allowed the team to identify and resolve any remaining issues before instillation day.

Our partners, STEM Works made significant strides by rigorously testing the installation's integrated LED lighting systems. They evaluated how the electronic components and wiring will interface seamlessly with our fabricated modules and node connections. To ensure a smooth installation process, their team also mapped out the exact logistics of how all the separate lighting circuits will connect together once transported to the site. This critical testing guarantees that our structural framework and their lighting technology will merge perfectly into one glowing, interactive installation.

STEM Works Team Testing the LED Lighting Systems

To ensure a smooth installation on site, students practiced assembling and disassembling the full structure in the DAS building atrium in order to ensure each member understood and was comfortable with the construction process. Once the team felt ready, students began disassembling the installation, sorting and organizing pieces in preparation to transport them to the site.

Students Working Together to Organize and Disassemble the Structure

With design development, prototyping, fabrication and assembly now completed, the project was ready to move on to the final installation.