A Window to the Future (in a nutshell)

I asked my son for a list of things he had seen on the internet which interested him.  It was partly to get an understanding of what makes him 'tick' now that he is 16 and shaping his own views of the world.  It was also because the interests and values held collectively by our next generation of adults will shape the future of our business and industries.

This is the response below with his notes:  A set of nine youtube clips mostly about technology, economics, health and the future of our nations. 

How we can harvest the energy of the sun on a galactic scale and push onto the next level of civilisation:

How we can use the energy of the sun and move the whole solar system in any direction:

In-depth explanation of the recent pandemic:

How we could utilise this as antibiotics become obsolete:

Infusing glass with uranium to create luminescence: 

How we could turn a black hole into a bomb hahahaha:

Information on the EU:

The moral discussion of whether to allow robots to have rights as humans:

Where valuable minerals are created and the conditions needed:

It addresses an ambitious set of ideas which reflect the areas of technology we are entering in to now, including GRAIN (genetics, robotics, artificial intelligence and nano-technology) supported by Tier-0 technologies, and beyond with astrophysics and energy creation.

I thought it was a neat little exercise and might prove valuable as a wider student study to form a perspective on the valued held by our younger generation and what the world might be like in the future.

Innovations with Building Materials

I wrote a literature review on the innovation of  materials in the building industry some time back.   Then period architecture, especially Victoriana was considered more desirable than contemporary builds in popular culture.

Meanwhile, the rest of the world was on the start of a technological wave involving the internet, information technology and world wide communications.  The innovative products of this were conspicuous in their intent to introduce us to their brave new world.  By comparison, innovations in building materials were often hidden behind more familiar or traditional materials with reference to the past.  Other industrial sectors such as aircraft, train and car manufacturing appeared more confident about displaying a design aesthetic which marked their place in the present, looking forward.  

With the current generation of technological innovations progressing with the involvement of A.I., automation, genetics, 5G networks and nanotechnologies, it is worth taking a look at the position of the building industry in this context, to speculate what the affect might be on Architecture. 

Barriers to Innovation

Barriers to innovation arise from the balance of the relationship between producers and consumers.  The products of this relationship provide evidence of how innovation is managed and tells a lot about the producer / consumer relationship.  Back at the turn of the century, there was a strong reliance on design as a tool to reinforce the values of known materials rather than experimenting with the possibilities of the new.  There were and have been since, lots of innovations in building materials and building systems, but the finishing layers usually default to a familiar material with a commonly held value, with the innovation hidden behind.  There are many excuses that might be given, such as a building has a long design life so designing it to fit in to a known period style is safer than exposing innovation that might look dated in years to come, and innovative design presents a risk because new building systems can fail with serious consequences, but I believe the key issues lie within the structure of the building industry which and its knowledge and understanding of its consumer base and stakeholders. 

The building industry is very fragmented with a lot of independent business entities involved.  Clients appoint Architects to represent their requirements and aspirations with aesthetic designs.  Architects also have one eye on their position within the Architectural profession and standing with their peers, PI insurance, resource schedules and project risk assessments.  Other design team members are similar.  It is difficult to establish an integrated and cohesive R&D programme to a relationship which gathers for one project over the course of a year or two, then disbands.  Instead, design is used as the key tool to balance functional requirements and aesthetic aspirations, largely with materials and building systems available to the industry; products developed specifically by companies to ensure a successful uptake. 

Innovating with building materials

Knowing the market place and the customer base is a key item.  Typical examples where bold innovation has changed societies and industries are often characterised by single businesses which have carefully controlled their innovation processes and managed their risks to achieve great results.  The public face of these companies looks simple and understandable, even though the processes and supply chains behind are not. 

Brand value and standing within the market place reportedly accounts for a lot of credibility with the public.  It is hard won and easily lost, but represents customer loyalty and trust.  With the public's engagement in a company brand, the risk associated with bold innovations can be greatly reduced and more effectively managed. 

Opportunities for Innovation

Developments in technologies are progressing at an ever increasing rate and we are on the verve of a next wave of changes to society with Tier 0 technologies.  This will no doubt have an affect on the building industry with regard to how we design and produce buildings, how the services will operate, how they will be maintained and lots of stuff to do with what goes into them, but hopefully it will also mean more than a smarter way of producing a brick wall.  It's a chance for the building industry to catch up to other industrial sectors but for this to happen, it might require a new business model in the industry to present an integrated and cohesive offer; a Google or Netflix of the building industry.

An Introduction to Designing Facade Walls (or The Secret Life of Moisture)

Facade design can be a bit of a challenge.  Specific project requirements require different responses in design.  The basic parameters requiring consideration include:

• Different building types,
• Differences in functional and aesthetic requirements, 
• Specifics of the local environmental climate,
• How the building is to perform in relation to thermal mass, thermal resistance, air tightness and resistance to wind-chill etc.

One key performance factor is the behaviour of moisture within the building envelope, which if not designed out thoroughly could lead to deterioration of the building system and rot.  The secret life of moisture in external building envelopes is something I wanted to investigate further, so with the help of Will MacDonald, Head of Facades at AECOM, we have the following answers to unlock how how it all works.

Looking at moisture:

Water vapour in the air condenses on to the face of a cold glass of water, when the temperature on the glass reaches the ‘dew point temperature’; the temperature at which air can no longer hold all the water vapour which is mixed with it, and forces it to condense.  The dew point temperature is always lower or equal to the air temperature.  Water vapour particles hit the surface of the glass and stick instead of bouncing off.  

The amount of condensation created depends on the amount of water vapour in the air, temperature changes and the dew point.  Condensed water has to evaporate again which depends on the temperature of the water in relation to the temperature of the surface it is on.  Therefore, condensation depends on temperature and moisture content, while evaporation requires temperature, as long as the relative humidity of the surrounding air is less than 100%.  If cold enough, the condensation becomes frost.

There are two types of condensation in buildings: 

• Surface condensation, found normally on an internal or external finished surface, and 
• Interstitial condensation which occurs between the layers of the building envelope; inside the composition of roof, wall or floor build up.  

Adequate protection and ventilation os required to reduce the risk of moisture causing problems within the building fabric.

Surface condensation depends upon the surface energy balance of the building and the moisture content of the ambient air.  A higher level of insulation increases the risk of condensation on building facades in humid climates, especially in humid climates on clear nights where maximum heat loss occurs.  The risk of micro bacterial vegetation (algae) can accumulate on surfaces.  Variables affecting this include:

• Internal vapour transmission,
• Thermal gradient and level of insulation, 
• Heat transmission and sky emissivity

So what happens to moisture when it migrates in to a building structure?  These are Will’s explanations of how moisture content can be controlled with facade design: 

There are two main sources of moisture that have to be considered when designing a façade. These are: 

• Water from the external environment, usually in the form of rainwater, but may also include the diffusion of moisture from a wet surface, and,
• Moisture vapour diffusion. 

In temperate climates such as the UK, the air inside the building usually contains more moisture than the air outside. Therefore, moisture vapour will tend to migrate outwards through the building envelope. 

Water penetration resistance: 

There are two main approaches to water penetration resistance:

• Face sealing, otherwise knows as a curtain walling system 
• Secondary defence construction, otherwise known as a rainscreen system 

Face sealed systems rely on the outer skin of the construction alone to prevent water penetration. If there is any moisture ingress past the external skin, there is usually no provision to allow the water to drain back to the outside. 

An alternative approach to water penetration resistance is to provide a secondary defence rainscreen. This usually takes the form of a cavity behind the external face of the wall. The cavity allows moisture that ingresses through the external face to drain back to the outside through openings in the outer surface. The cavity may also have sufficient capacity and openings to allow ventilation, for increased moisture removal. 

A drained and/or externally ventilated cavity may also be beneficial in the removal of any moisture that migrates through the wall from the warm moist internal environment.

Classification of air cavities:

Air cavities may be classified according to a number of different factors. These include the position of the cavity in relation to the main insulation layer, and the size of the openings in the outer surface. 

Cold cavities: 

Cold cavities are located to the cold side of the main insulation layer. Because they are cold the moisture content should be kept low to reduce the risk of condensation forming. A vapour control layer (VCL) on the warm side of the insulation will reduce the moisture ingress in to the cavity.  They should be ventilated to the outside to remove moisture and keep moisture level close to the outside levels. 

The following classifications are taken from BS 5250: 2002 - Code of practice for control of condensation in buildings: 

• Vented air space cavity or void is that which has openings to the outside air, placed to allow some limited but not necessarily through movement of air. 
• An air layer having no insulation layer between it and the external environment but with small openings to the external environment shall also be considered as an unventilated air layer, if these openings are not arranged to permit air flow through the layer.
• Drain openings (weep holes) in the form of open vertical joints in the outer leaf of a masonry cavity wall are not regarded as ventilation openings. 
• A slightly ventilated air layer is one in which there is provision for limited air flow through it from the external environment by openings meeting a specific area. 
• A well ventilated air layer is one in which the openings between the air layer and the external environment allows air circulation.

Warm cavities: 

Warm cavities are located to the warm side of the major insulation layer. The cavity surfaces will be warmer than those of a cold cavity and the risk of condensation very much less. A vapour control layer may still be required to the internal face of the cavity in order to keep it dry. 

Thermal resistance of air cavities:

A still air layer in a cavity construction will add to the overall thermal resistance of the element and improve its U-value. The contribution that the cavity makes will depend on the level of ventilation between the cavity and the external environment and the direction of the heat flow. 

U-values: 

The U-value of a cavity construction will vary depending on the type of cavity present, and its location with respect to the main insulation layer.   The values given by manufactures are generally 1-dimensional U values and therefore do not include the additional heat loss due to brackets, fixings and cavity ties that may be present in the construction. The constructions are considered to be vertical with horizontal heat flow. 

Notes on cavity construction: 

A cavity that is neither vented or ventilated presents a serious risk of moisture collection. For example, an insulating glass unit requires a hermetic seal and the provision of desiccant in order to remain condensation free.  The higher the level of possible ventilation in a cavity, the more moisture may be removed from it. Liquid water will be removed by drainage and evaporation.  Moisture vapour will be removed by diffusion and mass transfer. 

A fully-ventilated cavity will provide the most reliable means of removing moisture in the cavity. Air movements will remove moisture vapour that has migrated from the internal environment, encourage evaporation of any liquid water and promote drying of the cavity.   

A vented cavity will have less capacity to remove excess moisture. It relies on the diffusion of water vapour in the cavity. Its performance will therefore be dependent on the vapour resistance of all materials to the cold side of the cavity and the size of the openings between the cavity and the external environment. The lower the vapour resistance and the larger the openings, the higher the rate of transportation will be. 

The removal of moisture in a vented cavity may be increased by using a wider cavity. This will improve the air circulation by convection as there will be relatively lower frictional forces to resist the air movements. 

Internally ventilated cavities:

Warm cavities are not externally ventilated and might have openings to the internal environment.  This will allow warm moist air to pass into cooler parts of the wall.  Although this is a warm cavity, the surfaces will be cooler than those of the room, and therefore there will be an increased risk of condensation. 

The risk of condensation will be minimised if there are enough openings so that the cavity is fully ventilated to the inside. This will ensure that the surfaces of the cavity are as close as possible to the internal surface temperatures. 

Building Envelope Energy Transfer:
Energy is gained or lost from a building by: 

• Radiation or convection from the outer surface of the building, and
• Air leakage (mass transfer) into or out of the building. 

Energy efficient facades have to be insulated to keep the external surface as close as possible to the external temperature, be sealed to prevent gross air leakage (reduce mass transfer losses/gains), and shield internal surfaces (reduces radiation losses & gains from or to internal surfaces).  They also should allow sufficient daylight in to the building to reduce energy required for artificial lighting. 

Energy transfer mechanisms:

Conduction is the mechanism by which heat energy travels through solids and stationary fluids and gases.  Materials such as metals are good conductors while materials such as mineral wool are poor conductors  but are good insulators. 

Radiation heat transfer occurs because all bodies at temperatures above 0ºK emit heat energy. Two surfaces at different temperatures will emit energy at different rates and energy transfer will occur. 

Insulation:

In a layered construction all layers resist heat transfer but a layer that has a significantly greater resistance to heat flow is usually be specified as the insulation layer, to reduce heat flow through the wall. 

Heat transfer through a sandwich panel:

Assuming that a sandwich panel comprises a 120mm thick core of mineral wool with thermal conductivity of 0.035 W/mK and is faced on both sides with a 1.5 mm aluminium sheet with thermal conductivity of 160 W/mK, the heat transfer can only occur if heat is gained at one surface and lost at the other by convection and / or radiation (otherwise known as surface resistance).

In practice when a building element is exposed to the environments, the surface temperature on the cool side will be warmer than the air on that side.  The surface temperature on the warm side will be cooler than the air on that side.  These temperature differences exist and cause convection and radiation heat transfer at the surfaces.  It is possible to calculate the surface temperatures but it is more convenient to calculate heat transfer knowing just the air temperature on each side of the construction.  The thermal resistance for convection and radiation at each surface can be combined into a surface resistance measuring the total resistance to heat flow.  Temperatures through out a layered construction can be calculated from the resistance of each layer. 

Thermal bridging:

A thermal bridge occurs where a material or component of high conductivity pierces an insulating layer of lower conductivity. This allows heat to bypass the insulation with two effects:

1. The rate of heat transfer through the combined materials is greater than it would have been through the insulation alone, and

2. The warm surface is cooler and the cool surface is warmer. 

The second effect gives rise to the term ‘cold bridging’.  In cool climates thermal bridges cause localised cold patches on the inner surface of the building envelope and are associated with problems of condensation, dampness and mould growth. 

Isotherms:

Isotherms are lines of equal temperature and these may be plotted to show how temperature is distributed through a construction system. 

Isotherms

Design principles:

Introduction 

Moisture is introduced into buildings through life processes such as heating, cooking, bathing etc.  Water vapour may be removed by natural ventilation or air conditioning, however, there must be water vapour in the air to make a room comfortable for habitation. 

Water vapour disperses through the air and migrates through porous solids in an attempt to give a uniform vapour pressure.  In the UK external air moisture contents are lower than internal levels and water vapour, which then  migrates outward through the wall.  For air-conditioned buildings in some warm and humid climates water vapour moves inward through the wall. 

Water vapour should not migrate past the first vapour control layer only to be captured by a second vapour control layer or a breather membrane which incorrectly acts as a vapour control layer.  

Precautions: 

Cavities formed on the warm and humid side of a vapour control barrier may be affected by severe condensation. Cavities may be formed as part of the internal building fit out when window boards and internal panels are added. These will often provide insulation so that the cavity is cooler than the room but provide very little resistance to vapour movement. Solutions include ventilating these cavities to the room so that they are warm, and incorporating a vapour control layer to the inner wall panel such as a foil-backed dry lining. 

Rainscreen cavities should be ventilated so that any water ingress stopped by a breather membrane will dry out after drainage has removed most of the water. 

Two layers having a similar vapour resistance should be avoided.  A metal sheet might be perforated to avoid the creation of an unwanted vapour barrier and it might be necessary to provide a breather membrane to prevent external water ingress by-passing the perforated sheet. 

Mould growth on the internal surface is prevented by limiting moisture levels at the internal surface.  This can be achieved by ventilating the room or improving the wall insulation to raise the 

temperature of the internal surface.  BS EN ISO 13788 recommends that the relative humidity at the internal surface should be less than 80% to avoid mould growth. 

Condensation assessment:

Condensation assessment requires knowledge of the moisture contents and temperatures within a wall.  Building envelopes containing a single well-defined layer offering high vapour resistivity at the warm side of the construction can often be acceptable. For walls with no well-defined vapour control layer, or one that is in a cooler part of the construction, an analysis will be required. 

The behaviour of moisture:

Condensation occurs in the ventilation cavity and not on the outside face because the heat flow direction is from inside to the outside. The warm air in the cavity has a higher lever of water vapour and as it cools it forms condensation. The temperature difference is very small between the cavity and the outer face, hence no condensation.  On some well-constructed unitised façade system (front sealed) you can often see condensation on the metal spandrel panel.  

The higher the value of insulation, the greater the risk of condensation.  The value refers to heat flow of the material. The higher the value the more heat will be lost. As more heat is lost you will get more vapour changing to liquid, promoting a risk of condensation.  The condensation isotherm lines change with the different value of insulation.  Good practice with rainscreen design recommends these lines are kept within the cavity.

Looking at different cladding systems and why those used in Antarctica are different to each other, and different to solutions of other climates:

Interstitial condensation a risk of material breakdown with the build-up of a wall in an environment which experiences freeze-thaw cycles is caused when warmer air is trapped in an unvented cavity and is cooled so that moisture is formed. Warmer air has higher relative humidity levels and more moisture than cooler air, and as it cools the problem occurs. This is often a problem on rainscreen systems when EPDM is used to seal up a façade before the cavity.  It was a principle carried out in Canada which has caused major problems.  The extent of material breakdown depends on the type of material used. Past projects suggest that precast concrete has no problems, however dry lining showed signs of mould after a relatively short time. Any seals and gaskets at the interfaces of the façade should be robust because they could suffer damage in freeze-thaw cycles and allow moisture to ingress the building fabric from the inside. 

The cladding system at the American South Pole base does not have a ventilated cavity or use membranes in the same way as cladding systems do in temperate climates.  Finished panels are applied directly to timber sips, but the outside temperature never rises above freezing.  The only natural heating affect might be from solar gain. The moisture risk here is mitigated because the South Pole cladding system  is a front sealed, air tight system which stops air-driven ice and snow at its outer surface.  The temperature on the inside of the building would be 20ºC and so the heat should flow would from the inside to outside. As the outside air temperature is always below 0ºC the relative humidity is either very low or zero, hence no condensation.  As the aluminium covering the SIP are impervious the only area moisture that can be a problem is the interfaces, or at cold bridging points, although these were carefully designed out. 

Similarly, Halley VI for the British Antarctic Survey was built with closed panels encapsulating their insulation core.  They intend to eliminate moisture ingress from both inside and out, that could degrade the insulation under freeze-thraw action. The solution resolves a lot of the problems of the natural environment which includes resisting the accumulation of wind driven particles of microscopic ice, known as spin-drift.  GRP was used as the outer skins to the panels.  It is a workable material to shape and make bespoke complex panels and eliminate cold-bridging.  Closed cell insulation was also used for the core to resist any accumulation of moisture.  The fixing details were carefully detailed to prevent cold bridging and create a robust structural skin. 

Could the cladding principles of the Halley system and its ability to lock out moisture be replicated in cladding systems in temperate environments, either with GRP panels or with a timber SIP system, and eliminate the ventilation cavity?  Yes, however you relying on workmanship and you do not have a second line of defence.  The application of the single ply membrane is depending on workmanship, weather conditions, application methods, location and material used.  The vented cavity system acts to equalise pressure.  When there is a difference in pressure on a façade, some areas will suck in air and other area allow air to be exhausted, which happens in the cavity.  This system reduces the pressure on the façade system.  Due to the temperature difference between the inside and outside of the building, there always will be a pressure difference. 

Conclusion: 

Different environmental conditions pose different design problems to be resolved with cladding systems.  Even across a single country (albeit a continent) varying and localised environmental conditions might require specific and bespoke design responses.  Importing a fabricated system used in a different country for a project in the UK might not necessarily be suitable if it performs differently because of differences in local climatic conditions.  The conclusion is that we need to thoroughly and carefully study how cladding systems work for each project.  It is not enough to work on a basic understanding of system types, and where relevant, involve a Cladding specialist to help ensure the designed proposals are robust.

Thanks to Will MacDonald, Head of Facades and AECOM for their input in to this post.

Project Management Tools for Architecture

Running architectural projects and managing a practice often feels like a very fluid set of activities, requiring flexible thinking and the adaptability to meet quickly changing demands in the project environment.  Being able to adapt to these situations does not necessarily mean that we have to think on your feet and use our wits to progress.  The RIBA Plan of work 2019 and the RIBA Handbook of Practice Management provides a framework within which to work, but project management resources developed by the Association for Project Management (APM) and AXELOS (PRINCE2) offers a comprehensive set of tools to navigate through any situation, and add value to the working methods of the architect.  Road mapping projects and practice management procedures with these tools adds confidence that the project is stable and likely to proceed more efficiently, but also that these techniques can be introduced to improve the creativity and performance of the project team. 

Examining the differences between the APMP and PRINCE2 methodologies,
how they might compliment each other,
and what it offers for Architectural projects and practices

The PRINCE2 methodology is a clearly defined structure for managing projects effectively.  It is unambiguous with all its processes and procedures set out in the PRINCE2 handbook.  It gives the comprehensive set of tools for managing any project.  The APM system is not limited to project management, including a holistic range of operational management procedures too.  Unlike PRINCE2, it is not prescriptive and offers options on methods, techniques, soft skills and alternatives for the implementation of the architectural project manager.  The combination of systems makes a robust set of tools with flexibility on how to use them.

Mapping the subject areas of Project Management
which offer a very useful set of tools and resources for
improving productivity in Architectural projects and practice management 

The combination of methods in the APM and PRINCE2 systems can add a lot of value to work as an architect.  It gives scope to manage innovation in a positively structured way, promote creative and cohesive working teams where team members can grow in to their roles, minimise team conflict, simplify communication with clear lines of communication across the team structure, ease risk management, create efficiencies with procurement supply chains, improve negotiation skills, structure cost control so it remains in control, streamline resourcing, make clear the management and coordination of all stakeholder parties in the project, promote robust leadership and enable a much greater control over the project and its environment.  Having a good set of robust road-maps is a great resource to have on any project.  The thumb-nail diagrams above are project management summary notes and prompts, used as references to help guide work in a managed, structured and creative fashion.

References:

• APM and PRINCE2; Five reasons why they work together, by Michelle Rowland
• APM Project Management Qualification podcasts by Qantas

Working From Home

Now is the time to develop our abilities to work remotely 

with online applications for communication, conference calls,

interactive white boards, document sharing and editing, etc.

Platforms include Zoom, DropBox, MS Whiteboard, Skype, 

Go To Meeting, Adobe Connect, WhatsApp, Google Classroom, 

and others.

The outbreak of Covid-19 is obviously very concerning for everyone.  It has presented the necessity for some of us to work from home and this brings to light important opportunities on how we might develop future working methods to enable us to work successfully, without the need of a desk in an office.  Communication and the productive management of  our work-loads can increasingly be handled remotely with a selection of developing internet-based applications, which might become the way more of us work in the future.

Internet-based phone calls, video conference calls, webinars, document sharing and editing, interactive whiteboards and VR access to events and remote locations are becoming more commonplace, allowing us to communicate, be productive, and attend events, meetings and site visits without travelling.  It seems the USA is leading the way with this, but as the technologies take hold it might ultimately become the next revolution in our work place.

One strategy in innovation is to ask what if the opposite were possible.  We currently live in a society with the precept that a business needs an office.  The idea that we don’t need to be stationed at a specific desk, or even that a business does not need an office, might not only enable us to work from home or our favourite coffee shop, but break down current geographic, time-zone and language restrictions, allowing the businesses themselves to develop on many different levels.

It might seem to promise a more utopian work / life balance, but the technology will no doubt ensure that we can never be too far beyond the reach of our bosses, even if you do relocate to a neighbouring continent, but at least the choice of coffee should be better.

The Shape of Things to Come (for Architecture)

Technology is breaking the Survival Rule of Threes.  This lists out our basic needs as humans.  We can survive 3 weeks without food, 3 days without water, 3 hours without shelter, and 3 minutes without air, but not one moment without wifi!

The Survival Rule of Threes

Technology is changing the world at an incredible rate.  It is not easy to see how progress will change our lives and what it will do for architecture but there are definitely structures in place which point towards how it will affect us in the future.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been developing rapidly and is becoming a natural and organic part of our lives,   AI allows us to interact efficiently with our environment but also has the power to control and direct our environment.

Robotics and Automation advances promise opportunities for groups of items to work together more efficiently.  Developments will take the form of automated systems and robots working independently of humans, and collaborative robots (Cobots) where machines and humans interact in shared workspaces.  Advances in lightweight, mobile power sources supports these advances.

The 5G Network promises an explosion of what we can do to access and control items on 'the internet of things'.  3GPP focuses on industrial applications to improve on connectivity within factory buildings.  5G promises flexible mass-scale connectivity to the worlds of manufacturing, industry and logistics.  The label 'Industry 4.0' is used to describe the smart factory.

AI, 5G networks and automation creates a powerful structure representing the next wave of technological developments which will affect our lives over the next decade.  Beyond this and longer term, other developments on the horizon include quantum computing, blockchain, nanotechnology and genetics bringing even more radical developments and integrating the structures above.  Nuralink for example is working to directly link the human brain with computers, connected to globally networked AI.

The Shape of Things to Come

What does this mean for Architecture and the built environment?   For example, we can connect current technological developments in BIM (Building Information Modelling) and BMS (Building Management System) servicing agreements with the bigger picture of AI, network and automation.  It's not a stretch to see how BIM could be used in the service life of buildings to monitor and manage building and services assets, and call up orders for replacements when required.  Likewise, advances in network technologies will enable much greater connection and control of buildings by facilities management companies via their BMS systems.  Each active component of a building (services and anything that moves or has a control) will be a smart devise linked to the building's BIM and BMS, creating smart buildings.  BIM with AI will also develop as a data gathering tool to optimise buildings for the requirements of the owner, users, specific groups of users and individuals.  This should assist the economics of the property in use and efficiency of its life cycle.

There are still a bigger picture beyond this.  Innovation begins with people and the individual is not tied to the building or the work place.  Technology developers will be following their markets so if individuals provide the greatest revenue stream, buildings might need to accommodate changes in how they are used.  Architecture might need to address new issues involving flexibility and adaptability of spaces and services, mobility of buildings in part or whole, and how building fabric and services meets the demand for greater virtual connectivity with other locations across the globe.  Walls, floors, ceilings, doors and windows might transform out of current recognition to meet these requirements.  The building industry has a fantastic opportunity to develop with innovations in materials, adaptive environments and the design / construction work-flow.

Needs, Material Wants and Aspirations

Meanwhile, individuals are riding the crest of the technological wave.  I'd bet the tech that each of us have on our phones, wrists, in our ears and in our homes has advanced more quickly than the tech in the work place.  It is making us more independent and aspirational.  In addition, technology is offering a growing range of personalised and bespoke goods and services, tailored specifically to individual needs; a big departure from industrialised mass produced products.  This will transfer to the work place with pressure for remote working and flexible hours.  Depending on affordability and personal aspirations, your staff might be anywhere in the world to suit their cultural, climatic, family and schooling requirements, possibly working from a virtual workstation which brings them right inside business HQ!

These innovations might affect the building industry directly, but could have greater pressure from the developing needs and aspirations of individuals.

Chair-ish Creativity

Year 6 (11-year olds) at Furzedown Primary School
design and model solutions for a chair, using structural kits, paper and card.

Creativity should be cherished in schools!  It is something which allows us to think around a problem and come up with ingenious, novel and innovative solutions.  It helps kids to think for themselves and means our minds never dwell with a dead-end problem.  Creative thinking is also a learnt skill which can be applied across any subject, but it does not appear to be a central part of the national curriculum. 

The UK is focused on STEM subjects; science, technology, engineering and maths.  These objective subjects teach us how things are supposed to be, rather than prompt us for possibilities of alternative or parallel solutions.

The counter argument for STEAM proposes to add Art based subjects to the curriculum.  Subjective and more questioning subjects are essential to develop thinking skills.  Art based subjects are also important to add depth and dimensions in support of the STEM subjects.

In addition to both, creative thinking techniques can be incorporated into the classroom to help students make the most out of learning.  Creative thinking helps the student take ownership of the subject, promotes engagement and can add fun.  For example, our architectural workshops for primary and secondary schools examine structures, materials, space, colour and light.  These bases are objective and a general brief is set, but the solutions are not prescribed.  The workshop dynamics are generally lively and a big part of their delight is witnessing the creativity of kids when they are allowed to let their minds run free. 

We are in a rapidly transforming world; job markets are changing, technologies are reshaping industries, working practices and life-styles, and globalisation is breaking down geographic barriers.  In such a dynamically changing world, creative thinking must surely be an essential component of our children's education.