This is the lofted surfaces and then the result of an initial paneling exercise. It made me realize that the modeling of the panels has to be completely done in the paneling tool, which I don't really know how to model in. Am I confused or what?

This is what happened when I offset the shape - any ideas why this happened? I can't make it go away! It also happens if I offset to the inside.

I followed Calvin's advice and worked with the three profile curves. It didn't work as lines that had been separate and then joined, but when I traced full curves over the separated ones, the loft worked.

This shows the original loft in white and the offset one in green.

panel 2

Here's the aggregate copied a bunch to show the pattern that emerges. Still working on how to make the connections....... and to maybe express the lattice more 3 dimensionally.

panel 1

This is my first attempt at the panel - an aggregate that is symmetrical on one axis. It's way basic for two reasons - I had to make it simple to wrap my brain around what would create a lattice, and my rhino skills are still doing baby steps.

ex01

link to rhino tutorial files online

http://geometrie.uibk.ac.at/Archiv/CAD/Rhino_Handbuch/Training%20Level%201/