Informing sustainable building design

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 194-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathilde Landgren ◽  
Signe Skovmand Jakobsen ◽  
Birthe Wohlenberg ◽  
Lotte Bjerregaard Jensen
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Integrated Design ◽  
Building Design ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Design Decisions ◽  
Sustainable Building ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design

Purpose In recent decades there has been a focus on reducing the overall emissions from the built environment, which increases the complexity of the building design process. More specialized knowledge, a greater common understanding and more cooperation between the stakeholders are required. Interdisciplinary design teams need simple and intuitive means of communication. Architects and engineers are starting to increase their focus on improving interdisciplinary communication, but it is often unclear how to do so. The purpose of this paper is to define the impact of visually communicating engineering knowledge to architects in an interdisciplinary design team and to define how quantifying architectural design decisions have an impact during the early phases of sustainable building design. Design/methodology/approach This work is based on a study of extensive project materials consisting of presentations, reports, simulation results and case studies. The material is made available by one of the largest European Engineering Consultancies and by a large architectural office in the field of sustainable architecture in Denmark. The project material is used for mapping communication concepts from practice. Findings It is demonstrated that visual communication by engineers increases the level of technical knowledge in the design decisions made by architects. This is essential in order to reach the goal of designing buildings with low environmental impact. Conversely, quantification of architectural quality improved the engineer’s acceptance of the architects’ proposals. Originality/value This paper produces new knowledge through the case study processes performed. The main points are presented as clearly as possible; however, it should be stressed that it is only the top of the iceberg. In all, 17 extensive case studies design processes were performed with various design teams by the 3 authors of the paper Mathilde, Birthe and Signe. The companies that provided the framework for the cases are leading in Europe within sustainability in the built environment, and in the case of Sweco also in regards to size (number of employees). Data are thus first hand and developed by the researchers and authors of this paper, with explicit consent from the industry partners involved as well as assoc. Professor Lotte B. Jensen Technical University of Denmark (DTU). This material is in the DTU servers and is in the PhD dissertation by Mathilde Landgren (successful defence was in January 2019). The observations and reflection is presented in selected significant case examples. The methods are descriped in detail, and if further information on method is required a more in depth description is found in Mathilde Landgrens PhD Dissertation. There is a lack in existing literature of the effect of visualisation in interdisciplinary design teams and though the literature (e.g. guidelines) of integrated design is extensive, there is not much published on this essential part of an integrated design process.

Exploration of Entrepreneurial Student Teams Performance and Student Team Members’ Personality via the Big Five Test

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
José E. Lugo ◽  
Mari Luz Zapata-Ramos ◽  
Carla P. Puig
Keyword(s):  
Big Five ◽  
Design Thinking ◽  
Idea Generation ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design ◽  
Student Teams ◽  
Behavior Theories ◽  
Group Compositions ◽  
Start Ups

Entrepreneurial teams are generally interdisciplinary in nature; they tend to combine business, design, and engineering disciplines/expertise. The effectiveness of interdisciplinary design teams has become more important for both start-ups and companies that want to innovate; however, it is often troublesome to determine the group composition that delivers a good product/business idea. The purpose of this study is to investigate the traits in personalities that are needed in a successful entrepreneurial student design team. A study was conducted in which 40 students were divided into seven groups to deliver a technology-based product using design thinking techniques, and consumer behavior theories and research. The personality for each team member was evaluated utilizing the Big Five Test and analyzed jointly as a team, denoted as Team’s Overall Personality (TOP); and by the variability of their personalities in the group, referred as Team Personality Distribution (TPD). The teams’ performances were accounted, ranking them in Best of Best (BOB) and Worst of Worst (WOW) by taking into consideration their performance in: interview collection, idea generation, prototyping, and final presentation. The results demonstrated that the teams with best performance had high variability in Neuroticism and Extraversion when analyzed by TPD and average personality traits in Extraversion and Agreeableness when analyzed with TOP. Therefore, analysis supported that each member’s personality affects his or her team’s performance. It is recommended that the relationship is further investigated for a better representation of efficient group compositions. Recommendations on how to compose entrepreneurial design teams are provided.

scholarly journals WHAT CAN BE LEARNT FROM 130 CHILDREN'S DREAM WHEELCHAIR DESIGNS? ELICITING CHILD-CENTRED INSIGHTS USING AN INTERDISCIPLINARY DESIGN ANALYSIS FRAMEWORK

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 3409-3418
Author(s):  
Cara O'Sullivan ◽  
Farnaz Nickpour ◽  
Francesca Bernardi
Keyword(s):  
Design Process ◽  
Design Analysis ◽  
Design Approach ◽  
Childhood Disability ◽  
Analysis Framework ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design ◽  
Written Descriptions ◽  
Children’S Voices

AbstractThe design of inclusive paediatric mobility (IPM) interventions, such as children's wheelchairs, are entangled with technological, health and social considerations. As narratives around childhood, disability and mobility shift and transform, these entanglements evolve. In order to optimise the experience of childhood mobility, IPM designers must understand and respond to such changes and channel children's own requirements, desires and 'dreams' into the design process; this can be achieved by utilising a child-centred design approach. This paper identifies meaningful child-centred IPM design insights and opportunities through the interdisciplinary analysis of 130 dream wheelchair designs by disabled children, aged 4 to 17 years. A novel interdisciplinary and child-centred design analysis framework is developed to dissect, categorise and code the topics and features expressed through visuals and written descriptions in each of the children's dream wheelchair designs. Children's mobility narratives, desires and requirements are elicited and trending topics are discussed. It is proposed that valuing children's voices in the IPM design process could alter both the process of designing IPM interventions as well as the product outcomes.

scholarly journals Control of uncertainties within an interdisciplinary design approach of a robust high heel

2012 ◽  
Vol 34 (spe2) ◽  
pp. 597-603 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Mosch ◽  
S. Adolph ◽  
R. Betz ◽  
J. Eckhardt ◽  
A. Tizi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Design Approach ◽  
High Heel ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design

Interdisciplinary design checklists for mechanical, electrical and plumbing coordination in building projects

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-43
Author(s):  
Mohammad A. Hassanain ◽  
Mohammad Aljuhani ◽  
Muizz O. Sanni-Anibire ◽  
Abdullatif Abdallah
Keyword(s):  
Architectural Design ◽  
Careful Consideration ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Building Projects ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design ◽  
Importance Index ◽  
Plumbing Systems ◽  
Electrical Engineers ◽  
Coordination Process

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop and assess interdisciplinary design checklists for mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) systems’ coordination, for building projects, in Saudi Arabia.Design/methodology/approachRelevant documents were acquired including: heating, ventilation and air conditioning schedules; ductwork and chilled water pipes layout; and technical queries, among others, from residential and school projects. Next, factors influencing MEP systems’ coordination were extracted, and verified to ensure clarity and validity. They were formulated into design checklist items for MEP systems. Finally, the checklist items were assessed through a questionnaire based on a five-point Likert scale of importance. Respondents were comprised of mechanical, architectural, construction, electrical engineers, design coordinators and quality assurance managers. Data were then analyzed using the relative importance index.FindingsThis study presents 63 design checklist items. The items for each discipline were grouped under four categories, highlighting specific considerations. The findings revealed that careful consideration and communication between the mechanical, structural and architectural design teams was paramount in achieving proper mechanical coordination. Furthermore, it was found that constant communication between the electrical and the other design teams was necessary, to avoid electrical design conflicts. Finally, fire safety consideration was found to be most important in plumbing systems’ coordination.Originality/valueThe checklists for facilitating the MEP coordination process in building projects aim at minimizing waste in resources and enhancing the overall quality and productivity. In the absence of existing checklists, this paper provides a practical benefit to design professionals to alert them to devote more effort to the dominant category of checklist items.

scholarly journals Interdisciplinary Design Teams Lessons Learned From Experience

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Leiffer ◽  
Roger Gonzalez ◽  
Thomas Hellmuth
Keyword(s):  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design

Preparing Students to Work Effectively as Members of Interdisciplinary Design Teams

2017 ◽  
pp. 299-320
Author(s):  
Alok Bhandari ◽  
Larry E. Erickson ◽  
E. Marie Steichen ◽  
William A. Jacoby
Keyword(s):  
Design Teams ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design

Interdisciplinary Design Teams Translating Ethnographic Field Data Into Design Models

2021 ◽  
pp. 173-201
Author(s):  
Jeni Paay ◽  
Leon Sterling ◽  
Sonja Pedell ◽  
Frank Vetere ◽  
Steve Howard
Keyword(s):  
Collaborative Design ◽  
Field Data ◽  
System Modelling ◽  
Design Teams ◽  
Design Models ◽  
Interdisciplinary Design ◽  
Software Engineers ◽  
High Level ◽  
Shared Understandings ◽  
Final System

Translating ethnographic field data to engineering requirements and design models suitable for implementing socio-technical systems is problematic. Ethnographic field data is often “messy” and unstructured, while requirements models are organized and systematic. Cooperation and communication within an interdisciplinary design team makes the process even more complicated. A shared understanding between ethnographers, interaction designers, and software engineers is vital to ensure that complex and subtle social interactions present in the data are considered in the final system design. One solution for supporting team conversations uses the quality goal construct as a container for complex and ambiguous interaction attributes. Quality goals in system modelling promote shared understandings and collaborative design solutions by retaining a high level of abstraction for as long as possible during the design process. This chapter illustrates the effectiveness of abstract goals for conveying complex and ambiguous information in the design of a socio-technical system supporting social interaction between couples.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document