Plaster sculptures are displayed on wooden pallets inside this ancient Tuscan church, which has been converted into a gallery by Italian practice Microscape (+ slideshow). (more…)
Canfield Gardens is a private home located in London, England. Completed in 2013, it was designed by Scenario Architecture. Canfield Gardens by Scenario Architecture: “This house is designed with a unique take on minimalism. Sharp corners and angular forms are replaced by soft, continuous and curved geometries. Those are juxtaposed with materials in their most bare state; concrete, wood, aluminium, glass and natural plaster, to introduce a sense of ‘eroded’..
From the architect. According to various constructions on the progress and considering number of constructions on the soar, pavilion is amongst sectors with a significant effect on audience’s mind and it practicality plays the main role in it. These spaces most convenient in the present time and represent adaptability in future.
IN order to achieve this aim these spaces most be designed in a supple way. Creating space fluidity is one of the important factors in Plaint Design. Hamedan’s Economic Affair project (in which special renovation has been done according to the past use) has been able to create sense of confidence for the foreign investor as a representative icon in Hamedan. By eliminating existing and limiting walls and then using glass to make extrusion sequence, this project has been able to fulfill needs of a supple space and create special fluidity in visual dimension.
Transformation of a single paper surface into a volume in space with the emphasizing elements of smooth layering has helped this cause. Circulations space’s involving different kinds of movement and experiencing visitors. Generic Plan induced in the eyes of audience while moving into the space, has created a unique and independent identity in contrast to other spaces as if they presume it as a distinct space. Thus we may conclude this space design appropriate for the present time and supple enough for the future.
This unusually long Victorian Lion House is situated at the bend of a long terrace in Fulham. Given the limited depth of the rear garden and narrow proportion, the main body of the building and its rear wing were carefully extended towards the side and into a large basement, in accordance with the historical constraints imposed by its heritage context.
Extensive light wells topping the extensions are utilised to expose newly open, contemporary interiors, capturing abundant natural light and opening carefully sculpted internal openings.
An ample basement space is connected to the upper levels both visually and physically through light wells, glass floors and cantilevered staircases, thus opening spaces across levels and creating a flexible and welcoming family home environment.
From the architect. The ‘Modular Lilong’ was designed for Value Retail China to showcase ‘Chuang x Yi’; a concept brand that provides a platform for Chinese fashion designers. The 150 sqm site is located in Yioulai Shanghai Village; a sister to Bicester Village in London – both global shopping developments. The intent of ‘Chuang x Yi’ is to create a retail experience specifically related to the context of Shanghai.
The term lilong refers to an urban typology, organized around meandering lanes, which often display creative solutions in response to issues of space shortage. The resulting blur between private and public, residential and commercial gives Shanghai its signature streetscape. Following the design brief to create a backdrop showcasing selective contemporary Chinese designers, Lukstudio re-interpreted the local, urban fabric with 3 ‘lanehouses’ arranged into different display areas; one waiting lounge, two dressing rooms, the main cashier counter and a service area.
The structure of these lanehouses is conceived as a modular kit of parts, so that it can easily be disassembled and re-installed in another shop location if needed. The pieces are based on architectural features and textures found in a lilong. For example, old stone gates known as, ‘shikumen’ are used as entranceways, with their typical round corners seen in the smooth outline of the display cases. Furthermore, hanging washing lines are turned into copper-coated racks to display clothes, while bamboo rattan; a texture used in vernacular furniture, is applied to the divider screens. Display plinths and racks are positioned along the lane reminiscent of the common scene of scattering benches and stools.
Despite the clear boundary between the stone pavement and the wooden flooring, the open display allows a fluid visual dialogue between the urban lane and the elegantly stacked houses. The retail experience consists of many architectural layers combined into a cohesive structure; offering a sense of pliancy and order that reflects the adaptive nature of lilong life. In this way Lukstudio has generated a journey of discovery, connecting old Shanghai architecture with today’s design world.
This “House in Kimitsu” is located in the countryside of the city of Okayama in western Japan, where fields and rice paddies spread out.
One of the characteristics of the house is its inner garden, three sides of which are surrounded by rooms. That enables you to feel all the time nature such as light, wind and greenery while living in any of the rooms.
By placing the inner garden in the center of the house, all the rooms are connected with each other through the garden.Therefore, this inner garden seems like part of the living room.
On sunny weekends and holidays, you can bring out a table onto the open veranda next to the inner garden and enjoy lunch with your family. You will feel as if you are having a picnic, though you are staying inside the house.
Local architecture firm Studio Octopi added this brick and glass extension to a Victorian terrace in west London to improve the connection between the property’s reconfigured interior and garden (+ slideshow). (more…)
While BIM is increasingly becoming a necessity in architecture, it is still difficult to quantify the benefits it is bringing to the industry. Currently, there is no industry-standard method for calculating BIM’s Return on Investment (ROI) and, due to the complexities of the calculation, many firms have not adopted any consistent measurement practices to determine the monetary benefit that the technology has brought to their practice. The difficulty centers upon the fact that traditional analysis of ROI is unable to represent intangible factors that are important to a construction project such as avoided costs or improved safety.
Therefore, as the leading providers of BIM technology, Autodesk was interested in researching the subject. Their study, “Achieving Strategic ROI: Measuring the Value of BIM,” reveals that the role of ROI in technology decision making is shifting in that leading firms are seeking a more nuanced view of ROI to inform their strategy of investment and innovation.
Transcending the traditional “profit versus cost” calculation, companies are looking into different dimensions of the company to develop well-informed quantifications of their ROI for BIM.
Autodesk’s study reveals that firms do indeed understand the costs associated with BIM adoption. However, there is significant variation among firms in the practice of measuring or tracking BIM investment as a separate cost, distinct from business operations as a whole. The costs of BIM often extend far beyond hardware upgrades, so in calculating the cost to your firm you should consider the following are three areas:
The long-term benefits of BIM to firms come thanks to the changes in internal processes that result from BIM’s unique workflow. These changes occur in various ways in the firm and generally create intangible factors that are difficult to quantify in ROI calculations, including:
While these changes do not necessarily result in instantly larger profits, quantifying these benefits in their ROI assessment allows firms to be better at understanding how measurement and technology innovation can be combined strategically to inform progress toward future levels of BIM maturity. Autodesk’s study found that the maturity of a firm’s level of BIM adoption was correlated with their reports of high ROI: a majority of high-maturity BIM users reported high ROI, while only 20% of low-maturity BIM users could claim the same, showing that BIM is an investment which requires patience and commitment.
Interestingly however, Autodesk reports that firms with a mature level of BIM adoption actually found their ROI more difficult to measure. In some of the most experienced firms, rigorous approaches to ROI had transformed the workflow of the companies so completely that they no longer found the measurement of BIM to be critical to decision making. One construction BIM manager writes:
“We realized that we were achieving three to five times payback on the number of dollars we put into a project. Eventually we got to the point where… we have an inherent knowledge that there is value to BIM.”
At this point, ROI is used to inform decisions on specific strategies in which BIM is an assumed component, rather than being used to validate their initial investment in BIM.
To apply the concept of ROI towards making smart decisions regarding your firm’s technology adoption, it’s important to target expected BIM benefits such as “increased design productivity from parametrically coordinated documents” or “fewer design change orders.” In order to assess these benefits, companies can apply tangible measures that are associated with these benefit targets, with the most obvious of these metrics being cost savings through a decreased amount of hours spent on a project, or an overall project timeline reduction. Here are a few examples on how that might be determined:
While it is not a straight-forward process, measuring the return on your BIM investment is an important practice that goes beyond determining whether the initial costs of your transition to BIM was worth it. Calculating your firm’s ROI by targeting benefits, tracking investments, and measuring returns helps you strategize over how to implement the best BIM technologies and practices for your firm’s specific place in the market.
Access more information about transitioning to BIM, including a getting-started guide and a deployment workbook at the Autodesk architect resource center.
This article was sponsored by Autodesk.
