COMPUTER AIDED SCHEMATIC DESIGN: HOW TO MANAGE LARGE DATA IN THE EARLY STAGES OF URBAN DESIGN PROJECTS

Abstract

The study was designed to research and analyse the existing methods used in the industry and propose alternative solutions that would meet the growing project demand. One of the major findings of this paper shows that 65% of interviewed architects and urban designers reported a lack of data accuracy in their concept design solutions, as well as dissatisfaction with the segregated concept design process. Having identified key inefficiencies in pre-design and the schematic design stages of urban design, the study develops a multiplatform web application - a space planning tool that is capable of assisting with data informed design decisions in the early stages of large-scale urban design projects. The alternative solution allows for the execution of concept stage prototyping through UI cell modification by integrating data and generating spatial solutions based on the adjacency requirements.
 Purpose: the purpose of this study is to understand, improve and eliminate inefficiencies in the early stages of the urban design process.
 Methodology: this study will first review existing inefficiencies of the architecture and urban design industry using 2 researched methods: non-participant observations and surveys. Non-participant observations were continuous and were carried out for a period of 9 months. The group that was studied involved 17 people that worked on the early-stage design stage of large-scale architecture and urban design projects. In addition to that, a survey was carried out to examine the identified inefficiencies further and to confirm the hypothesis. The survey involved 370 industry professionals from over 15 countries. Based on the developed understanding of project delivery inefficiencies, a classification will be developed to categorize the existing software. Finally, this study will conduct a series of experiments to develop a technical solution to meet current industry demands.
 Results: identification of key pre-design and the schematic design inefficiencies, development of a multiplatform web application.
 Practical implications: the application is being tested and used in the industry of architecture, urban and spatial design, it has the potential to save companies time and financial resources.