Architecture Commons^™

Don’T Try To Inflate House Prices For The Benefit Of The Banks, Lorcan Sirr

Media

When it comes to housing, the constant comparisons with the “peak prices” of 2007 make me wonder whether we’re about to lose the plot again. Perpetual benchmarking against an irrational peak suggests those destructive prices are a target we should aim to achieve, whereas nothing could be further from the truth.

Enhancing A Housing Technical Design Studio With A Collaborative On-Line Learning Space, Jim Roche

Conference papers

This paper presents the experience in participating in a collaborative learning environment involving different academic programs from various schools of architecture and urban planning within the framework of the OIKONET project. A collaborative project for new urban, environmental and architectural solutions for three social housing blocks built in Dublin in the 1950’s has been designed and implemented on-site and in a web-based learning environment following a blended-learning philosophy. Teachers from other schools have evaluated the student work presented in this environment. This blended-learning approach has contributed to enhancing the educational space of the on-site design studio. Students had to learn …

The City Of Tomorrow: Geddes Model Of 1945, Andreas Luescher, Sujata Shetty

Architecture and Environmental Design Faculty Publications

Toledo made national headlines in the mid-1940's when the legendary industrial designer Norman Bel Geddes, was commissioned to develop a plan for the city's future. Using archival work and field observation, this research analyzes the plan, and reflects on its impact on Toledo and on the design of American cities today.

Architecture Student Design Competition 2016 Final Report, Andreas Luescher

Architecture and Environmental Design Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment For Utilising Laminated Veneer Bamboo As A Primary Structural Material In High-Rise Residential Buildings, Philip Kavanagh

Masters

In a time when construction is ranked as one of the world’s least sustainable industries consuming about half of the world’s non-renewable resources (Hinson, 2012), it is important to develop and advance the methods and means by which we select and use building materials and how we design, engineer and construct our architecture. This research aimed to evaluate a method for utilising laminated veneer bamboo (LVB) as a primary structural material in high-rise residential buildings and evaluate the environmental potential of LVB through a comparative life cycle analysis (LCA). The process of life cycle analysis was completed through the development …

Tight Budget Constraints And The Absence Of Strategic Planning – An Exploratory Analysis Of Fm Service Outsourcing, Cynthia Huiying Hou, Daniel Chi Wing Ho, Jacky C.H. Chung, Kelwin K.W. Wong

Faculty of Design & Environment (THEi)

Purpose: This paper aims to identify the factors that affect facilities management (FM) service outsourcing.

Design/Methodolgoy/Approach: Five focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted for this study. A total of 25 professional FM managers were invited to participate in the FGDs. The qualitative data collected from the FGDs were analysed with the coding method.

Findings: FM managers commonly regard that tight budget constraints and the absence of strategic planning are two important factors that affect FM service outsourcing. Tight budget constraints reflect that clients control their service providers by constraining budgets, which creates a series of inefficiencies in the outsourcing process …

Measuring The Performance Of Property Management Companies In Highriseflats, Daniel Chi Wing Ho, Ervi Liusman

Faculty of Design & Environment (THEi)

Purpose: The complex nature of multi-ownership, multi-storey buildings requires the services of property management companies (PMCs). Naturally, homeowners favor PMCs with good performance. Yet, their performances vary. The purpose of this paper is to measure the performance of PMCs in managing high-rise flats using the logic model as the contextual framework with its indicators adapted from the building quality index (BQI) scheme.

Design/Methodology/Approach: For this pilot study, the research was based on visual inspection and interviews with building management staff for the information concerning the output and outcome indicators. The authors also tested the relationship between outcomes and outputs and …

Toledo Tomorrow: Reading Norman Bel Geddes' Vision For The Future In A Shrinking Midwestern City, Sujata Shetty, Andreas Luescher

Architecture and Environmental Design Faculty Publications

This paper examines Norman Bel Geddes’ 1945 Toledo Tomorrow plan, his only proposal for a specific city, and its stamp on the morphology of today's Toledo. The paper surveys retrospectively at the changes in the morphology of the city and critically analyzes the impact of the Toledo Tomorrow Plan. Today's Toledo, a shrinking rustbelt city, reflects Geddes' legacy of neglecting the historic core; focusing on highway infrastructure, that has since worked in tandem with the forces of decentralization and suburbanization; and the city's weak relationship with its natural features and larger region.

Notre Dame Des Canadiens 5 Salem Square, Worcester, Ma 01608, Amy M. Skrzek

Historic Preservation Capstone Projects

Notre Dame des Canadiens is an Exotic Style church located in downtown Worcester, Massachusetts at 5 Salem Square. The church was built in 1929 and was designed by architect, Donat R. Baribault of Springfield, Massachusetts. It is significant under Criteria A and C for the French Canadian community it represented and due to its architecture. The French Canadian community was one of the largest immigrant populations in Worcester contributing to the culture of the city. This church stands as a testament to the will of the French Canadian people to establish their own, French-speaking, parish and in doing so established …

Online Permaculture Resources: An Evaluation Of A Selected Sample, Claire M. Luchkina

Inquiry: The University of Arkansas Undergraduate Research Journal

As a newly-emerging, sustainable approach to landscape management, permaculture seeks to integrate knowledge from several disciplines into a holistic system with emphasis on ecological and social responsibility. Online resources on permaculture appear to represent a promising direction in the movement by supplementing existing printed sources, serving to update and diversify existing content, and increasing access to permaculture information and praxis among the general public. This study evaluated a sample of online resources on permaculture using a framework of parameters reflecting website usability and content quality. Best practice for website usability, as well as diversity of information and applicability, was addressed. …

Using Landscape Visualization To Inform Streetscape Design, Brent C. Chamberlain, Rebecca Liu, Jessica Canfield

Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning Faculty Publications

The streets of commercial districts play an important role in the social fabric of communities. A well-designed streetscape provides an opportunity for thriving commerce, aesthetic enjoyment and public forum. The purpose of this study was to investigate how different elements of streetscape design influence a person’s preferences for the space. Using 3D visualizations of existing and possible future conditions, we studied the effects that infrastructure design had on perceived safety and attractiveness. Our study site was a small college town in the US. Results demonstrate that green infrastructure, including trees and bioswales, improve attractiveness and safety. Parking strategies also have …

Prediction Of The Root Anchorage Of Native Young Plants Using Bayesian Inference, Ryan Wai Man Yan, Lin Zhang, Flora T. Y. Leung, Ka-Veng Yuen

Faculty of Design & Environment (THEi)

The maximum vertical uproot resistance (Pmax) of a plant can be used to indicate its stability. Attempts were made to predict the Pmax of a plant empirically from some of its size parameters. In practice, an infinite number of empirical models with different complexities can be formulated. This study presents a Bayesian model class selection method to evaluate the plausibility of each empirical model among a list of model candidates. The models were ranked to identify the most plausible one. A database of vertical uproot resistance of four shrubs and trees native to Hong Kong was first compiled by performing …

Policy Mobilities And West Dallas Dream: Considering Transactive And Communicative Policy Ideas Tested In Vancouver And Assembled In Dallas, Wayne Mitchell Beggs

Planning Dissertations - Archive

This dissertation considers contemporary urban development and urban change as framed by emerging forces of neoliberalism and globalization and applies critical theory lenses to discuss how policy approaches developed in Vancouver, BC are mobilized in Dallas, Texas.

Architecture As Nature’S Canvas, Molly Mcclain

History: Faculty Scholarship

This short article explores architect Irving J. Gill's integration of the natural environment into his modern structures.

Future Viable Plant Palettes For Metropolitan Areas, David Hopman

Landscape Architecture Faculty Publications - Archive

No abstract provided.

A Need For Evidence-Based And Multidisciplinary Research To Study The Effects Of The Interaction Of School Environmental Conditions On Student Achievement, Josephine Lau, Lily M. Wang, Clarence E. Waters, James A. Bovaird

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

With funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Healthy Schools initiative, a research team from the University of Nebraska– Lincoln (UNL) is currently working on establishing how environmental conditions in K-12 school buildings impact student scholastic achievement. The objectives of the research project are: (1) to study comprehensively the impacts of a wide set of indoor environmental factors (including indoor air quality, thermal, lighting and acoustic conditions) on student achievement; (2) to investigate how these environmental conditions interact with each other to impact student achievement; (3) to rank order the environmental variables in terms of their relative impact on …

Cognitive Radio For Smart Grid With Security Considerations, Khaled Shuaib, Ezedin Barka, Nedaa Al Hussien, Mohammed Abdel-Hafez, Mahmoud Alahmad

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

In this paper, we investigate how Cognitive Radio as a means of communication can be utilized to serve a smart grid deployment end to end, from a home area network to power generation. We show how Cognitive Radio can be mapped to integrate the possible different communication networks within a smart grid large scale deployment. In addition, various applications in smart grid are defined and discussed showing how Cognitive Radio can be used to fulfill their communication requirements. Moreover, information security issues pertained to the use of Cognitive Radio in a smart grid environment at different levels and layers are …

Normalized Effect Of Condenser Fouling And Refrigerant Charge On Performance Of Vapor Compression Air Conditioning Systems, Mehdi Mehrabi, David Yuill

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Faculty Publications

Several laboratory experiments have studied the effect of faults on vapor compression cycle air-conditioning systems. There has been a particular focus on refrigerant charge variation, which is believed to be quite common in air conditioners, and a lesser focus on heat exchanger fouling. The majority of the published results evaluate the fault effects on particular system operating parameters in one unit. For example, the effect on capacity and efficiency are typically evaluated. The results differ from one study to the next. The current paper summarizes the effects for all of the results available in the literature for condenser fouling and …

Gabe's Reimagined: A Multi-Use Renovation Of An Abandoned Hotel, Alissa Ramburger

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

The building, named Gabe’s Tower after owner and public figure Gabe Fiorella, was once an icon of Owensboro. Unfortunately, due to population growth southward and the opening of a rival hotel downtown (The Executive Inn), Gabe’s Tower was unable to remain open. It has since undergone many different ownerships, each of which have struggled to remain profitable. The building has remained vacant for years and therefore has been subjected to becoming a location for crime. This has produced a very negative image for the building and the surrounding area. This negative image drives the purpose of this project. Through the …

Alcohol Nuisance Abatement Ordinance, Emilie J. Morse

City and Regional Planning

No abstract provided.