Lab building embodied carbon is significant, due to intensive structure, finishes, and MEP systems. Recent projects are experimenting with designs uncommon to labs: CLT structure, wood cladding, demountable partitions. But no resource collects these into a common framework for evaluating their carbon benefits. Low Carbon Labs evaluates (3) choices for (14) different building systems within... Read more »
Moisture performance in building assemblies affects building indoor air quality and integrity. Building on Perkins&Will’s implementation of WUFI for hygrothermal analysis, we propose a parametric workflow and extension of WUFI that allows architects to explore different wall assembly permutations specific to their project and check for potential moisture and mold issues. The back-end process of... Read more »
The Bus Delay Analysis Tool (BDAT) is a set of software and analysis procedures Nelson\Nygaard has been developing for our transit agency clients. Through the Innovation Incubator we developed the new and improved Project & Treatment Module, which enables our clients to sketch bus transit speed & reliability improvements. Additionally, using the tool to document... Read more »
This research project proposes a Framework and Toolkit to create a holistic, incremental approach to gas station adaptation & transformation. Given the current policy timeline of phasing out production of combustible-engine vehicles by 2035 in California and transition to a carbon-free economy nation-wide by 2050, the adaptation scenarios focus on tangible strategies for a near-term... Read more »
What design strategies should be used for expanding the boundary of healthcare facilities beyond the conventional norm? How could design practice create a facility that is more than a community wellness center? This paper focuses on the expansion and decentralization of healthcare within a community context. For academics and practitioners, the changing landscape of the... Read more »
This investigation was conducted for a conceptual design competition, specifically focusing on the design of a therapeutic community for space travel. The competition encouraged innovation by asking participants to solve challenges anticipated in the future delivery of healthcare without the usual restrictions tied to budget, schedule, and codes. This research focused on Translational Medicine, or... Read more »
This article investigates the design strategies for enhancing the well-being, comfort, and safety of the patient along with providing spaces for the care givers that streamlines workflow, adapt to technology and care within the premises of radiation oncology treatment. The vault is the core of the radiation oncology treatment process. This study analyzed how the... Read more »
The COVID-19 public health crisis has affected many aspects of daily living and working behavior, impacting carbon footprint. This research aims to explore adaptive working behavior and its direct and quantifiable environmental impacts. It studies various working and commuting behavior scenarios on energy consumption and the carbon footprint of commuting and building operations. The paper... Read more »
Research in the profession of Architecture has been an ill-defined endeavor for decades. During the 1980’s, research was by and large under the purview of academic institutions, and it was primarily focused on issues that were perceived by professionals as having questionable relevance to their work. Through the end of the millennium firms, with few... Read more »
The pandemic revealed that the challenges facing K-12 schools are examples of what are referred to as ‘wicked problems’. What is a wicked problem? Problems that are complex and difficult to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements. As 2020 revealed, these crises come in a variety of forms and are often hard to... Read more »
Designers are storytellers. From the procession to a building’s entrance to the interior, the real experience of architecture is defined by a journey of visual cues, spatial implications, and curated thoughts. Yet too often when presenting design ideas, we are limited by two-dimensional tools of screens and slides. Real Presentations in Virtual Rooms proposes spatializing... Read more »
