Search results

Decisions taken during the early design of adaptive façades involving kinetic, active and responsive envelope for complex commercial buildings have a substantial effect on inclusive building functioning and the comfort level of inhabitants. This study aims to present the application of an analytic network process (ANP) model indicating the order of priority for high performance criteria that must be taken into account in the assessment of the performance of adaptive façade systems for complex commercial buildings.

The nominal group technique (NGT) stimulating and refining group judgments are used to find and categorize relevant high performance attributes of the adaptive façade systems and their relative pair-wise significance scores. An ANP model is applied to prioritize these high performance objectives and criteria for the adaptive façade systems.

Embodied energy and CO₂ emission, sustainability, energy saving, daylight and operation maintenance were as the most likely and crucial high performance criteria. The criteria and the weights presented in this study could be used as guidelines for evaluating the performance of adaptive façade systems for commercial buildings in planning and design phases.

This research primarily provides the required actions and evaluations for design managers in accomplishing a high performance adaptive façade system, with the support of an ANP method. Before beginning the adaptive façade system of a building design process, the design manager must determine the significance of each of these attributes as high performance primacies will affect the results all through the entire design process.

In this research, a relatively innovative, systematic and practical approach is proposed to sustain the decision-making procedure for evaluation of the high performance criteria of adaptive façade systems in complex commercial buildings.

This paper aims to identify the different system approach using Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology that is equipped with decision making processes. Maintenance planning and management are integral components of the construction sector, serving the broader purpose of post-construction activities and processes. However, as Precast Concrete (PC) construction projects increase in scale and complexity, the interconnections among these activities and processes become apparent, leading to planning and performance management challenges. These challenges specifically affect the monitoring of façade components for corrective and preventive maintenance actions.

The concept of maintenance planning for façades, along with the main features of information and communication technology tools and techniques using building information modeling technology, is grounded in the analysis of numerous literature reviews in PC building scenarios.

This research focuses on an integrated system designed to analyze information and support decision-making in maintenance planning for PC buildings. It is based on robust data collection regarding concrete façades' failures and causes. The system aims to provide appropriate planning decisions and minimize the risk of façade failures throughout the building's lifetime.

The study concludes that implementing a research framework to develop such a system can significantly enhance the effectiveness of maintenance planning for façade design, construction and maintenance operations.

Conventional motion mechanisms in adaptive skins require rigid kinematic mechanical systems that require sensors and actuation devices, hence impeding the adoption of zero-energy buildings. This paper aims to exploit wooden responsive actuators as a passive approach for adaptive facades with dynamic shading configurations. Wooden passive actuators are introduced as a passive responsive mechanism with zero-energy consumption.

The study encodes the embedded hygroscopic parameters of wood through 4D printing of wooden composites as a responsive wooden actuator. Several physical experiments focus on controlling the printed hygroscopic parameters based on the effect of 3D printing grain patterns and infill height on the wooden angle of curvature when exposed to variation in humidity. The printed hygroscopic parameters are applied on two types of wooden actuators with difference in the saturation percentage of wood in the wooden filaments specifically 20% and 40% for more control on the angle of curvature and response behavior.

The study presents the ability to print wooden grain patterns that result in single and double curved surfaces. Also, printing actuators with variation in infill height control each part of wooden actuator to response separately in a controlled passive behavior. The results show a passive programmed self-actuated mechanism that can enhance responsive façade design with zero-energy consumption through utilizing both material science and additive manufacturing mechanisms.

The study presents a set of controlled printed hygroscopic parameters that stretch the limits in controlling the response of printed wood to humidity instead of the typical natural properties of wood.

This paper aims to develop an innovation management framework for achieving sustainability by managing risks associated with innovative solutions during the design process.

To achieve the abovementioned aim, a research methodology was designed to achieve four objectives. Firstly, a literature review was conducted to investigate the concepts of sustainability, innovation, innovation management and innovation and the design process. Secondly, three case studies were selected and analysed to validate the identified risks of innovation and to investigate the role of innovation management towards managing risks of innovation during the design process. Thirdly, a survey questionnaire was carried out with a representative sample of architectural design firms (ADFs) in Egypt to examine their perception and application of innovation management as an approach to managing risks of innovative solutions during the design process. Finally, developing an innovation management framework to achieve sustainability through managing risks associated with innovative solutions during the design process.

The literature review revealed that innovation plays a significant role towards achieving sustainability objectives, but integrating innovative solutions during the design process is frequently associated with risks. During the course of this research, 30 risks of innovation were identified and classified into four categories of product, process, person and press. Case studies showed that ADFs that applied innovation management approaches were successful in managing the risks associated with innovative solutions, whereas others that failed to use such approaches failed to meet sustainability objectives. Results of the survey questionnaire revealed that ADFs not only recognised the importance of innovative solutions in developing sustainable projects but also showed a gap between theory and practice. “Project delivery” is the most important type of innovation for ADFs in Egypt, followed by “building technologies” and “organisational culture”. Moreover, there is a misalignment between ADFs’ perceptions and the strategies used to deliver successful innovations. The highest risks of innovation are “unanticipated cost of innovation”, “manufacturing technologies and development issues” and “failing to meet technical criteria”.

Because of the conceptual nature of the developed framework, it has to be tested and validated to ensure its capability to achieve sustainability through managing the risks of innovative solutions during the design process which, in this research, adopted the Royal Institute of British Architects plan of work stages. Moreover, the lack of data availability directed this study to present and analyse only three case studies.

This research presents a practical solution to achieve sustainability through managing risks of innovation during the design process. It is a structured tool that can be used by ADFs in Egypt towards facilitating the shift in the direction of a more economically viable, environmentally friendly and socially acceptable built environment.

Although innovative design solutions are needed in developing sustainable buildings, a practical and systematic framework to manage associated risks during the design process is still lacking. In addition, current studies are business-oriented and need to be reinterpreted to fit with the architectural, engineering and construction disciplines. Thus, this research developed an innovation management framework to achieve sustainability through managing the risks associated with innovative solutions during the design process, which represents a synthesis that is novel and creative in thought and adds value to the knowledge in a manner that has not been previously explored.

The aim of this paper is to present a parametric design method to generate optimum adaptive facades regarding occupants' comfort and building energy criteria. According to the literature review, the following questions have arisen to address the research gaps: Is it possible to have the outside view throughout the whole year without discomfort glare by utilising adaptive solar facades (ASFs)? How can architects integrate both view quality and quantity into ASF design? What is the impact of dynamic vertical shading systems mounted on south facades on the outside view, occupants' visual comfort and operational energy? How can we evaluate the view quantity through multi-layer shading systems?

In recent years, there is a surge in demand for fully glazed buildings, motivating both architects and scholars to explore novel ideas for designing adaptive solar facades. Nevertheless, the view performance of such systems has not been fully explored especially when it comes to the effect of dynamic vertical shading systems mounted on south facades. This fact clarifies the need to conduct more research in this field by taking into account the window view and natural light. Consequently, a simulation research is carried out to investigate the impact of a dynamic shading system with three vertical slats used on the south facade of a single office room located in Tehran, on both view quality and quantity, visual comfort and operational energy. The research attempts to reach a balance between the occupant's requirements and building energy criteria through a multi-objective optimisation. The distinctive feature of the proposed method is generating some optimum shading which could only cover the essential parts of the window area. It was detected from the simulation results that the usage of a dynamic vertical shading system with multi slats for south facades compared to common Venetian blinds can firstly, provide four times more view quantity. Secondly, the view quality is significantly improved through enabling occupants to enjoy the sky layer the entire year. Finally, twice more operational energy can be saved while more natural light can enter the indoor environment without glare. The final outcome of this research contributes toward designing high-performance adaptive solar facades.

This paper proposes a new metric to evaluate the view quantity through a multi-layer shading system. The proposed method makes it clear that the usage of dynamic vertical shading systems with multi-layers mounted on south facades can bring many benefits to both occupants and building energy criteria. The proposed method could (1) provide four times more view quantity; (2) improve view quality by enabling occupants to watch the sky layer throughout the whole year; (3) slash the operational energy by twice; (4) keep the daylight glare probability (DGP) value in the imperceptible range.

The research limitations that should be acknowledged are ignoring the impact of the adjacent building on sunlight reflection, which could cause discomfort glare issues. Another point regarding the limitations of the proposed optimisation method is the impact of vertical shading systems on users' visual interests. A field study ought to be conducted to determine which one could provide the more desirable outside view: a vertical or horizontal the view. Research on the view performance of ASFs, especially their impact on the quality of view, is sorely lacking.

This paper (1) analyses the performance of dynamic vertical shadings on south facades; (2) evaluates outside view through multi-layer shading systems; and (3) integrates both view quality and quantity into designing adaptive solar facades.

This study aims to examine the rehabilitation project of the iconic urban industrial building in Athens, “FIX” brewery, and the practices followed, so as to initiate a discussion on the role of the façades in such a process. In particular, this study suggests that by choosing to restore just two of the façades out of the whole building, while placing emphasis on creating a new face for the new use, frontality is promoted against the pre-existing homogeneity approach, and façadism is introduced. However, both façadism and frontality distance this project from the rationale behind the adaptive reuse and redevelopment of built heritage.

A thorough architectural analysis of the FIX brewery building's long history and its consecutive transformations, besides providing adequate evidence for the hypothesis set, provided the opportunity to broaden the scope of this research and explore the role of the façades in adaptive reuse practice. Methodology-wise, this research was further strengthened by a comparative analysis of the Weverij De Ploeg adaptive reuse project in Bergeijk.

In the light of this critical analysis, the current study first highlights the importance of a building's façades in shaping public perception and establishing a connection to the city, by transmitting information and meanings about the building's structure, function, character and era. Accordingly, it stretches the need for façades' retention when adapting an industrial building of cultural heritage to a new use. Second, it emphasizes the need of fostering a holistic perspective toward a historic industrial building of such merit, respecting the building as a whole and in all its depth.

This in-depth analysis provides a solid ground for rethinking adaptive reuse, concretizing the appropriate approaches to industrial buildings of cultural heritage from parties involved (inter alia government leaders, legislators, property developers, historians, urban planners, architects and other engineers), to ensure both the building's continuity and longevity, and an efficient and sustainable urban regeneration.

This study aims to present an architectural application of 4D-printed climate-adaptive kinetic architecture and parametric façade design.

This work investigates experimental prototyping of a reversibly self-shaping façade, by integrating the parametric design approach, smart material and 4D-printing techniques. Thermo-responsive building skin modules of two-way shape memory composite (TWSMC) was designed and fabricated, combining the shape memory alloy fibers (SMFs) and 3D-printed shape memory polymer matrices (SMPMs). For geometry design, deformation of the TWSMC was simulated with a dimension-reduced mathematical model, and an optimal arrangement of three different types of TWSMC modules were designed and fabricated into a physical scale model.

Model-based experiments show robust workability and formal reversibility of the developed façade. Potential utility of this module for adaptive building design and construction is discussed based on the results. Findings help better understand the shape memory phenomena and presented design-inclusive technology will benefit architectural communities of smart climate-adaptive building.

Two-way reversibility of 4D-printed composites is a topic of active research in material science but has not been clearly addressed in the practical context of architectural design, due to technical barriers. This research is the first architectural presentation of the whole design procedure, simulation and fabrication of the 4D-printed and parametrically movable façade.

Advances in digital design tools enable exploration and generation of dynamic building facades. However, some processes are formally prescribed and manually driven to only visualize the design concepts. The purpose of this paper is to present a proactive framework for integrating parametric design thinking, paying particular attention to building facade patterning.

This work developed the PatternGen^© add-on in Autodesk® Revit which utilizes an analytical image data (AID) overlay approach as a data source to dynamically pattern the building facade. The add-on was used to manipulate the placement rules of curtain panels on facade surface geometry. As means of validating this research model, a real-life design project has been chosen to illustrate the practical application of this approach. Feedback and observations from a short end-user questionnaire assessed qualitatively the facade patterning and panelization approach.

The proposed merge (or overlay) of AID images can be used as a parametric thinking method rather than just theory to generate and articulate dynamic facade design. The facade panelization responds to an AID that resembles design-performance data (e.g. solar exposure, interior privacy importance and aesthetics).

This work identifies a form of parametric thinking defined as the expression of geometrical relationships and its configuration dependent on the AID pixel Red Green Blue color source values. In this type of thinking, it explores the impact of the digital process and parametric thinking utility when driven by an AID overlay. The framework highlighted the practical application of AID pixel approach within a digital process to benefit both designers and computational tools developer on emerging design innovations.

The application of circular building adaptability (CBA) in adaptive reuse becomes an effective action for resource efficiency, long-lasting usability of the built environment and the sped-up transition to a circular economy (CE). This paper aims to explore to which extent CBA-related strategies are applied in adaptive reuse projects, considering enablers and obstacles.

A stepwise theory-practice-oriented approach was followed. Multiple-case studies of five circular adaptive reuse projects in The Netherlands were investigated, using archival research and in-depth interviews. A cross-case analysis of the findings was deductively conducted, to find and replicate common patterns.

The study revealed that configuration flexibility, product dismantlability and material reversibility were applied across the case studies, whereas functional convertibility and building maintainability were less applied. Low cost of material reuse, collaboration among team members and organisational motivation were frequently observed enabling factors. Lack of information, technical complexities, lack of circularity expertise and infeasibility of innovative circular solutions were frequently observed obstacles to applying CBA.

This paper provides practitioners with a set of CBA strategies that have been applied in the real world, facilitating the application of CBA in future adaptive reuse projects. Moreover, this set of strategies provides policymakers with tools for developing supportive regulations or amending existing regulations for facilitating CE through adaptive reuse.

This study provides empirical evidence on the application of CBA in different real-life contexts. It provides scholars and practitioners with a starting point for further developing guiding or decision-making tools for CBA in adaptive reuse.

Nanostructured titanium dioxide (TiO₂) coatings can potentially address the current surge in façade cleaning cost, maintenance and labour problems. The purpose of this paper is to investigate potential maintainability issues and design challenges concerning the effective performance of TiO₂ façade coatings’ hydrophilic properties, especially in tropical environments such as Singapore. This paper aims to establish a list of green maintainability design criteria to help minimise future TiO₂ façade coating issues when this coating is applied on commercial buildings with concrete and stonemasonry façade materials.

A mixed-mode approach that includes a literature review, site investigation, instrumental case studies and expert interviews is used in this study.

TiO₂ coatings help improve façade performance whilst offering environmental benefits to society. This study reports that green maintainability design criteria are vital requirements in designing sustainable buildings at the outset. The identified defects and issues will aid in ensuring the effectiveness of TiO₂ application in building façades.

This study acts as a foundation for future researchers to strengthen this little researched area, serves as a useful guide in preventing possible TiO₂ coating issues and promotes industry awareness of the use of TiO₂ façade coatings.