Architecture, Building and Planning - Research Publications
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ItemDeveloping An Evidence-based Understanding of Hospital Space Planning Efficiency(Architectural Science Association, 2018)Over the last two decades there has been a steady increase in the demand for healthcare services and a commensurate rise in the global expenditure in health (WHO, 2014). Given the significance of the financial investment in capital works programmes required to meet growing healthcare needs and the expanding environmental impact of the healthcare industry, it is important to gain a detailed understanding of how healthcare infrastructure assets currently perform, the strategic drivers impacting on hospital space use efficiency, and the complex interrelationship of factors that impact on the healthcare environment. This paper outlines a research project that was conducted by the University of Melbourne in conjunction with a local architectural practice partner, to examine space planning efficiency and emerging trends in hospital space planning requirements. To assist in developing a greater understanding of the space planning efficiency of healthcare infrastructure, and changing trends in hospital space planning, this study examined a range of measures across 31 hospitals against regional and international benchmarks. This paper outlines a novel multi-modal research methodology established to examine the complex range of interconnecting planning measures impacting space planning efficiency, and some of the difficulties in assessing hospital space planning efficiency.
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ItemUsing image processing to understand 20th-century architectural colour schemes in Singapore(Archetype Publications, 2018-05-25)Increasing awareness of architectural heritage in Singapore has led to greater shared responsibility in preserving the urban fabric. There is now widespread public acceptance of conservation guidelines and the gazetting of listed buildings as part of the planning process. However, conservation efforts are hindered by gaps in our knowledge of historic buildings materials and architectural finishes. This is certainly the case with historic paint and colour schemes in Singapore. If urban planning authorities are to advise building owners on historically appropriate colour schemes, it is vital to understand what colours and finishes were used in the past. This paper examines how image processing, machine learning and computer-aided visualisation can complement more established colour research procedures such as paint analysis to fill the gaps in our knowledge. This project utilises colour photographs of historic streetscapes in the Urban Redevelopment Authority's collection, taken as part of a heritage survey conducted from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, to complement conventional paint and plaster sampling to further our understanding of historic architectural colour schemes in Singapore. As colour photographs deteriorate over time, controlled digital restoration is necessary to provide more accurate colour information from the time when these images were captured. With further refinement, these processes, used in tandem with more conventional paint sampling techniques, could be of some use for researching and dating historic architectural colour schemes. It is hoped that this paper will provide a starting point for further discussion into these digital research techniques.
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ItemCNC Adjustable Mould to Eliminate Waste in Concrete Casting(eCAADe, 2018)Fabricating complex curvature in concrete panel typically required unique one-off formwork which is usually computer numerically controlled (CNC) milled, generating enormous waste as a by-product. What if, we can produce complex curvature in concrete with minimal or no immediate construction waste? This paper presents a novel machine designed by a team of architects and engineer to eliminate waste in concrete casting. Using a hyperbolic paraboloid geometric model, the machine produces variable shape using a single mould design reducing waste and cost to the casting process. The paper discussed the design framework of the system and its fabrication workflow. The outcome is digitally scanned and verified to satisfy industry standard. The paper concludes by reviewing the application of the system and highlighting the need for future research into digital fabrication and design that is less wasteful and waste conscious to better the process of constructing our built environment.
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ItemMachining Aesthetics: Tool Making as Design Research(The University of Sydney, 2018)This paper examines tool making as a form of design research. With the widespread availability of open-source electronic prototyping platforms and its knowledge, designers are no longer the end user of emerging technology and digital toolsets. Instead, we see a surge of designers dappling in the discipline of software, material and mechatronic engineering, escaping the constraints of existing computer numeric controlled (CNC) tools through designing and fabricating novel machinery. This paper presents three case studies from a master level design studio led by the authors. The result of each project include a novel CNC machine supported by a series of material prototypes that acts as evidence of the agentive capacity of the tool to deliver design outcome and its potential application in the inductry. Though examining tool making in architecture education, critical making is seen as drivers in design processes that has agency associated to it which delivers emerging tectonic and effects; we call Machining Aesthetics
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ItemFOAM: Custom Single Task Construction Robot(eCAADe, 2018)This paper discusses the design and fabrication of a novel in-situ fabrication system for building cladding envelope. The construction industry has utilised automation in onsite construction for many decades. This research examines how through the automation process, different construction techniques can be combined to generate a new system that is both performance and design lead. Through abstracting generative effects through the design process, the results are feedback into the fabrication process to construct a more meaningful dialogue between form, material and fabrication procedure. Using electronic prototyping, the researchers tested the system through large-scale prototypes. The paper concludes by discussing the interaction between material and design. We examine how this is evident in the machine workflow. The article addresses the theme of the conference through examining a revision of tool in design that embodied research knowledge for a more sustainable environment.
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ItemNeptune's Fishbowl: Australia's first post modern building(The University of Sydney, 2018)Robin Boyd’s Neptune’s Fishbowl in South Yarra (1970) was his last building. At the time it attracted thunderous criticism, based on public and professional misunderstanding by those who thought Australia’s major critic of ‘Featurism’ in architecture, and a devout Modernist, had jumped ship to design what some dubbed the nation’s first Post-Modern building. But that was not the case, and I will argue a different view of that history by placing the building and relevant architectural literature of the period in context with Boyd’s design. This account is told from the point of view of that years of the design and construction of the building, dating from around 1969 to 1972. It reflects the currency of debate at the time surrounding Modernism, Post-Modernism, Boyd’s Featurism and notes the rise of the Venturis in America. In that period, there was no clear definition of a Post-Modern architecture, and the ‘death’ of Modernism would not be pronounced by Charles Jencks, albeit with tongue firmly located, until 1972 — but by 1972 the Fishbowl had been built, operating, and demolished.
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ItemConstruction Project Manager Skills: a systematic literature review(The Architectural Science Association and RMIT, 2018)The construction industry is one of the most important economic activities in the world, and research in this field has identified a positive relationship between project management skills and the success of construction projects. This research project systematically reviewed more than 380 documents in 14 academic journals from the construction and project management fields, searching for construction managers’ skills and competencies, and identifying key skills in educative terms for graduates. The final selection of articles was reviewed in detail and categorised into three themes: education, project manager competencies, and employment. Additionally, a database with 306 competencies, gathered from the reviewed studies, was quantitatively analysed, grouping them into overarching categories. One of the main findings from this systematic literature review is the importance (in quantitative terms) of a project manager’s personal attributes and leadership skills. This systematic literature review explores the current dichotomy the exists within the literature between research about key managerial competencies, and the lack of them within the industry and formal education institutions. Future research will explore how to bridge the gap between academic programs and industry needs.
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ItemCan construction bidding practices be improved through use of the scrum project framework?(© RICS, 2018, 2018)The selection of the “right” construction contractor has been a topic of continual interest within academia and industry, with attention focussed on both the selection of the optimal procurement method and the process of tender evaluation. As a consequence, the bidding process, as well as how a tender is conceived and developed, has now been recognised as a crucial element of future project success. This research investigates whether scrum, an agile project management framework, could be of benefit in the tender development and bidding process. The scrum framework, initially developed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of collaborative projects in the information technology (IT) industry, has been associated with improvements in project planning, communication, team work and project outcomes. The applicability of scrum to construction tender formulation will be considered and proposed research, involving a two-stage methodology of interviews and focus groups with six major contractors, described. A generic model of both the bidding and tendering process and scrum application will be developed. In this first phase of the research, traditionally procured building projects ranging from AUD 20 to 80 million will be examined. Further research will be extended to design and construct (D&C) projects with their additional complexities.
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ItemMobile and Sustainable Shelter for Urban Nomads(© RICS, 2018, 2018)Cities around the world are growing fast and some without proper organisation and urban planning. The number of people who, by choice or forced by economic or social conditions, are forced to live in big cities without a permanent home is increasing. Rural unemployment and temporary works requires that a significant number of people need to live in the city, sometimes for short periods of time. An unwanted appropriation of public spaces and its negative impact in urban environment, and consequent social and economic impact on the community, is having a huge effect in some cities. This research proposes a mobile city caravan to give answers to the needs of the people that cannot afford to buy a house or an apartment, even temporarily, and introduce an important part of sustainability using cork and bamboo. Habitability and functionality principles, that embrace the design ideas developed through requirements as health and safety, mobility, multifunctionality and connection. Moreover, develops concepts as belonging, connection, engagement with community and design friendly with urban environment. This research follows a preliminary study, for urban mobile shelters and opens new areas of research to use materials that could help developing countries using their local materials with economic solutions.
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ItemInvestigating equivalence in compliance pathways to Australian housing energy efficiency(RMIT University, 2018)Current regulatory pathways to compliance in energy efficiency for Australian housing are via provisions in the National Construction Code (NCC). This paper first identifies performance evaluation criteria set out in the code presented as a comparative analysis across the different methods of achieving compliance. Jurisdictional and concessional variations are discussed and thereafter an examination of the effect of specific design and location factors that impact the commonly used deemed to satisfy route to compliance. A study is presented in the paper investigating typical South Australian temperate climate housing styles in terms of their expected energy performance and compliance. This is done to test for measurable differences or test where equivalence can be shown to be reasonably achieved. This study highlights the issue of alternative pathways, being different options of using software modelling or elemental compliance based on specification details. The sample set is a modest seven houses only but carefully chosen to show the compliance pathway results for different options across this sample set. Further measures of house energy performance evaluation and comparison are drawn from the literature.