Architectural Practice Research Articles

Predicting Media Impact: A Machine Learning Framework for Optimizing Corporate Communication Strategies in Architectural Practices

The research investigates the role of media relations and corporate communications strategies of architectural firms that conventionally pursue PR methodologies and data-driven approaches have evolved. This has led to the conduct of research studies that use qualitative insights coupled with predictive modelling. These are used to examine how companies are evolving their communications approach in the digital age. This study investigates ten leading architecture firms, assessing communication effectiveness through qualitative interviews, media content analysis, and social media metrics. This further predicts the stakeholder engagement and media impact by applying machine learning models- Random Forest and LSTM networks with an accuracy of 85%. Key findings include that the drivers of engagement based on sentiment, content share ability, and media timing are significant. The study demonstrated how data-driven insights can drive strategic decision-making, optimize public relations, and improve stakeholder engagement. Moreover, the study provides an easily scalable framework for forecasting purposes in different markets. Further, it shows the promise of AI-driven communication strategies. Combining corporate communications theory with advanced analytics, this study shows how companies can benefit from the increasingly digital nature of media relations. This has been a major need for proactive reputation management and strategic content distribution. It enables architecture firms and others to better adapt to changing waves of media in response to maximal positive engagement.

Quantum Leap

This paper makes the case for practice architectures (Kemmis, et al., 2014; Mahon et al. 2017) as a useful conceptual tool in information practices research. It argues that practice architectures provides a meso-sociological framework which might be used to address long-standing critique of the narrow focus on the individual information seeker in traditional information research. The paper provides a brief overview of the framework’s key concepts (e.g. cultural-discursive, material-economic, social-political arrangements). It uses findings from an ongoing study of information practices in archaeological contexts to provide an example of how they can be applied to information practices research.

Discretisation strategies in architectural design process: a procedural classification system

This study addresses the issue of optimizing architectural production processes through discretisation methods. The primary aim is to develop a classification system for these methods, facilitating their application in digital design and robotic assembly. The central research questions are: What are the fundamental discretisation methods in architecture? How can these methods be classified for practical application? To answer these questions, we conduct a comprehensive review of existing discretisation methods and evaluate their core attributes. Our methodology involves a detailed evaluation of these methods, focusing on their adaptability, geometric predictability, and broadly repeatability. The findings highlight the potential for digitally controlled discretized design processes to innovate architectural practices, making construction faster, more affordable, and capable of producing complicated geometries. The significance of this study lies in its contribution to integrating digital design and modular discretisation in architectural production, moving toward advanced and adaptable production systems.

Leadership Practices That Enable and Constrain Retention in Early Childhood Education and Care Settings in Australia

Australia’s early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector is in crisis, with educator job tenure decreasing and workforce supply threatened. Despite worsening retention rates, many highly skilled educators remain and thrive within ECEC settings, ensuring strong relationships and positive outcomes for children. While research has uncovered the complex organisational factors contributing to workforce retention, the leadership’s influence on educator retention remains under-researched. This paper describes a small-scale Australian qualitative study of ECEC leaders and educators using a social constructivist lens. The present study explored how positional leaders in two high-quality ECEC sites enabled educator retention, considering the perspectives of leaders and educators. Data from semi-structured interviews were analysed using the theory of practice architectures to uncover the practices and practice architectures that enable and constrain retention. This research discovered six key practices of leaders. These six practices were flexible approaches to managing individuals, proactive approaches to creating and building professional relationships with educators, prioritising educators’ professional growth, positioning themselves to enable educators’ practice, creating cohesive teams, and valuing educators and their work. The practices of leaders and practice architectures illuminated in this study may be employed by organisations in the sector to support the retention of educators.

Fundamental Principles of Design Modeling in Modern Design Practice

Statement of the problem. The significance of the fundamental principles of design modeling in modern design practice from antiquity to the present is examined. The theoretical studies of modern scientists devoted to the universals of architecture, philosophy, culture and education are investigated in order to identify the trends in the formation of principles. Results.Architectural objects of different styles from antiquity to the present were analyzed and the principles of design modeling of various eras were identified. Classical, non-classical and post-non-classical science in the field of formation of architectural activity is discussed and the scheme “Diversity of the Principles of Classical and Post-Non-Classical Science (Synergy)” is developed. The author's hypothesis for the formation of a typology of design modeling principles and the concept of using the design modeling principles to identify verbal and figurative-graphic creativity in the search for an architectural project idea are set forth. Conclusions. The fundamental principles of design modeling are identified and compiled, accompanied by the author's sketches, and examples of the use of the principles in modern architectural practice are given.

VR and computer vision based facade complexity analysis for building design

ABSTRACT Architectural practice is evolving through digital fabrication, enabling complex designs that challenge the uniformity of barren walls and fully glazed facades that often dominate contemporary streetscapes. This paper addresses the challenge of quantifying complexity in architectural facade design. It asks whether a Virtual Reality (VR) and Computer Vision (CV) approach can effectively measure facade complexity and align with user perceptions. The study employs the Computational Image Complexity Analysis (CICA) system, integrating VR and CV algorithms, to assess reactions to various facade complexities. Results reveal an average standard deviation of 9% between the system’s complexity measurements and participants’ perceptions, with a preference for moderate complexity. These findings highlight the importance of aligning architectural complexity with user preferences to enhance sustainability and satisfaction and the potential of this approach to quantify complexity and guide data-driven building design processes. Future research should explore the long-term impact of complex facades on user well-being and environmental sustainability.

Crossing the Chasm: A practical architecture augmentation for low-quality object detection

Crossing the Chasm: A practical architecture augmentation for low-quality object detection

Unveiling the Immaterial: The Premier Building Restoration Project At The Hope Waddell Institution

The Premier Building Restoration Project at the Hope Waddell Institution sought to explore architecture as a dynamic process that transcends mere physical reconstruction, engaging deeply with the immaterial aspects that shape and define built environments. This project was set against the backdrop of the Venice Charter to address pressing environmental, spiritual and cultural concerns, yet it equally emphasizes the importance of 'weightless' elements—narratives, memories, and cultural significances—that often remain hidden beneath the surface. Hope Waddell Institution, a historical educational complex with deep roots in Calabar, Nigeria’s socio-cultural fabric, serves as a case study for investigating the interplay between tangible and intangible heritage. The restoration project of the Premier Building is not merely about preserving the Scottish prefabricated wooden structure but about uncovering and reintegrating the institution’s rich traditional materiality,cultural heritage, stories, and historical figures that have shaped its legacy. By utilizing an inter/multi/transdisciplinary methodology, the project incorporates archival research, community narratives, and traditional use restorative analysis to reveal the hidden layers of the Premier building’s past. This includes understanding the socio-political contexts of its establishment, the evolving educational paradigms, and the community’s ongoing relationship with the space. The project challenges traditional restoration methods, proposing a more holistic view that considers the immaterial as equally crucial to the institution’s heritage. The Premier Building Restoration Project thus serves as a model for contemporary architectural practice, emphasizing the need to approach the built environment as a repository of hidden memories and stories. This approach not only enriches our understanding of architectural heritage but also fosters a more inclusive and reflective process of architectural (re)making, where the unseen and unheard narratives are brought to the forefront, expanding the discipline beyond its conventional boundaries.

How the enduring rhetoric of “raising aspirations” affects the higher education choice support offered to vocational students in an English further education college

ABSTRACT Vocational students are under-represented in both higher-status degree subjects and “elite” universities in England. Despite extensive criticism, government policy persistently attributes this to the idea that these students have low aspirations and that school/college staff can provide support in such a way as to address this issue. This paper explores the dilemmas inherent in raising aspirations towards “elite” higher education (HE) by considering the HE choice support offered to those studying a Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) course in a further education (FE) college. BTEC qualifications are the English vocational qualifications most frequently used to access university, whilst FE colleges are the English educational institutions that cater primarily to vocational students. Results are analysed in accordance with the Theory of Practice Architectures, a framework that enables the deconstruction of the pre-existing conditions underlying college practices. Findings suggest that whilst the notion of “raising aspirations” remains prevalent in college HE choice support, individual understandings differ, leading to strategies that are ad-hoc, poorly communicated and ineffectual. Underlying all of this is an unease with the whole concept of “raising aspirations” towards “elite” HE and tensions between this concept and other college priorities such as supporting local university provision and providing impartial guidance.

Enhancing Engineering and Architectural Design Through Virtual Reality and Machine Learning Integration

This study introduces a framework that leverages the synergistic potential of Virtual Reality (VR) and Machine Learning (ML) to enhance graphical modeling in engineering and architectural design. Traditional clash detection methods in Building Information Modeling (BIM) systems are predominantly reactive, identifying discrepancies only after their occurrence, leading to costly and time-consuming design revisions. By integrating ML algorithms with VR-driven BIM, our approach proactively identifies and resolves clashes, as demonstrated across 28 diverse engineering projects. The results indicate a reduction in design clashes by 16% and iterative revisions by 15%, culminating in a 12% decrease in overall project timelines. This research underscores the transformative impact of combining VR and ML on additive manufacturing (AM) workflows, significantly improving efficiency and reducing the iterative nature of traditional methods. The findings highlight the framework’s scalability and adaptability, promising substantial advancements in engineering and architecture practices.

Exploring natural ventilation strategies in Javanese vernacular houses for sustainable design

ABSTRACT This study investigates natural ventilation strategies in Javanese vernacular houses to enhance sustainable building design tailored to local climates and promote comfort and environmental sustainability in Javanese communities. It examines adaptations of these strategies in rural (Saradan) and urban (Laweyan) contexts using a comprehensive methodology comprising document analysis, literature review, stakeholder interviews, and case studies. Insights from classical texts and architectural records inform traditional values and principles related to energy sustainability, supplemented by perspectives gathered through interviews with homeowners, architects, and cultural experts on integrating local values into sustainable practices. The findings reveal that in Saradan’s rural areas, expansive layouts and natural elements effectively facilitate natural ventilation, utilizing large courtyards and strategically positioned windows to optimize airflow and thermal comfort. In contrast, Laweyan’s urban setting employs compact designs with smaller openings and internal courtyards to manage airflow and mitigate heat accumulation. The study illustrates how traditional Javanese architectural practices adapt to contemporary contexts, supporting energy efficiency and occupant well-being while reconciling technological advancements with cultural heritage preservation. It offers insights for architects, researchers, and policymakers to develop guidelines and innovations that optimize Javanese ventilation strategies across diverse climatic conditions and explore their socio-economic impacts.

Architectural Laboratories

This paper examines the emerging role of the laboratory in architecture, investigating how the "lab" framework has transcended its traditional scientific connotations to become integral to creative, practice-based fields. Historically understood as a controlled environment for producing reliable scientific facts, the laboratory has now been appropriated in interdisciplinary contexts, particularly in architecture, where the focus extends beyond the replication of scientific methods to the development of new research methodologies. This shift has been driven by architecture's inherent dualities—science vs. art, theory vs. practice, and living vs. non-living—compounded by increasing complexity in production. Through an exploration of laboratories in universities in detail the paper situates architecture within a possibility of a new practice supported by research. By engaging with thinkers like Bruno Latour, Karen Barad, and Bernard Stiegler, this study highlights the dynamic possibilities of architectural practice when rethinking material agency, data, and human/non-human relationships. It argues that architecture’s appropriation of the lab framework reflects a deeper engagement with the performative systems of matter, technology, and epistemology. Furthermore, the paper underscores the necessity of reconfiguring architectural practice to address contemporary challenges, by fostering new forms of action that transcend conventional boundaries of laboratory. Ultimately, this paper reveals how the laboratory in architecture is not merely a space for the application of scientific methods but a fertile ground for speculative practices and experimental methodologies that challenge established epistemological frameworks. Through this lens, the architect-agent becomes a connector, facilitating a process that resists total control and embraces open-ended, interactive systems, contributing to the creation of new forms of knowledge and practice.

Research on Integrated Design Strategy of Campus Buildings Under the Concept of Green Ecology

In recent years, the problem of social ecological environment deterioration caused by high energy consumption has attracted widespread attention. How to integrate the integrated design strategy of green campus buildings will be deeply discussed in this paper. Starting from the concept of green ecology, the paper analyzes the current situation of green ecological campus, and believes that through optimizing the selection of building materials, improving building energy efficiency, introducing renewable energy systems, and rational layout and spatial planning, it explores and practices a building design scheme that not only meets the needs of education functions but also realizes the goal of energy conservation and emission reduction. Based on the integrated practice of campus architecture in a certain place, the paper proves that the integrated design strategy of campus architecture under the concept of green ecology has great practical significance from the aspects of building site planning, energy saving technology and so on, and hopes to provide reference for similar campus projects.

Navigating a Climate in Crisis through a Biomimetic Epistemology

We have entered a geological epoch where environmental change is driven primarily by human activity. The technology-centric approach to sustainable development as the dominant model of innovation in industrialized countries has led to expansive ecological degradation. This paper critiques this paradigm and builds on existing literature from environmental philosophy to propose a new model of ethical, bio-inspired architectural thinking. Though Biomimicry is often celebrated as a model for nature-inspired innovation, it can inadvertently reinforce notions of mastery over nature, a harmful phenomenon that environmental philosopher Freya Mathews calls ‘anthropocentric triumphalism.’ In response to those challenges, this paper explores the philosophical underpinnings of bio-inspired design to advocate for a transformative pedagogical model within architectural education and practice. By exploring the conflicts implicit in biomimetic processes, we aim to disentangle students’ thinking from techno-centric models and prepare them for the broader societal implications of a necessary energy shift. This exploration emphasizes the importance of cultivating a holistic understanding of ecological systems, urging designers to appreciate the intricate relationships within ecosystems rather than viewing them solely as sources of technological inspiration. By addressing the conflicts inherent in biomimetic processes, this paper calls for a more comprehensive and ethical approach to biomimicry – one that emphasizes both the source of knowledge as well as its application. Ultimately, we seek to foster a responsible relationship between architecture and the natural world, paving the way for a sustainable future that goes beyond mere imitation to encompass true coexistence.

Cultivating Slow Curating in Times of Acceleration

This paper introduces key ideas and issues in the changing debates on heritage practices and sustainability. It draws attention to the capacities of heritage to activate and unfold new meanings and increase the resilience of territories and landscapes—namely depopulated ones—through slow curating processes. We will argue that slow curating processes cultivate ‘slower’ ways of knowing, act as seedbeds of emergence and as catalysts to transformation that recuperate the pieces of a fragmented territory while also helping to re-locate its existence—its past, its present and its future—in balance with and within a constellation of living networks. Through heritage criticality, we will investigate territory interpretation and intervention examples that adopt disruptive, cross-, inter-, and trans-disciplinary approaches, including artistic, architectural, urban, performative, and curatorial practice, as effects and methods of slow curating taken as a public activity. We will pay special attention to its production contexts (reasons, subjects…), to what and how resonance dispositions and axes are produced within these non-linear public acts, and how the co-presence of past and the future is extended so heritage public acts may engender new forms—of knowledge, being…—and become a resource for current times.

Formulating architectural ethnosemantics as a new research method

Ethnography is one of the oldest methods in qualitative research rooted in anthropology. Considering that Indonesia is rich in the diversity of vernacular architecture and the culture of its people, ethnography, which means 'the study of culture', is often an option for architectural research. However, architectural research frequently only adopts the steps of the anthropological ethnographic method to reveal the cultural knowledge of a specific community; then, this cultural knowledge is simply applied to justify specific architectural works. This study aims to formulate a new architectural-ethnographic method. Of all types of ethnography, this study elaborates on ethnosemantics put forward by James Spradley. The rigorous analytical steps of ethnosemantic are then elaborated into a theory of architectural ordering principle based on the existential needs of architecture. The results of the study are expected to enrich architectural science, especially in terms of research methods. Thus, the results of this study can also improve existing architectural theories and practices, as well as become a source of new knowledge for the wider community.

تأثير تضاريس الأرض على الهندسة المعمارية للمناظر الطبيعية من خلال منظورات متعددة الأوجه

This research focuses on the different relationship between land topography and landscape architecture, examining how natural terrain influences design decisions, spatial organization, and overall landscape quality. The study evaluates the effectiveness of topographic analysis techniques and their implications for the practice and education of landscape architecture. Findings indicate that land topography significantly shapes design processes and outcomes, highlighting the importance of integrating topographic considerations into landscape architecture practice. Practical recommendations are offered to enhance the integration of land topography into design practice, with a focus on contextually sensitive approaches and sustainable landscape practices. Furthermore, the research identifies challenges and opportunities in landscape architecture education related to the incorporation of topographic analysis. The research aims to contribute to the creation of resilient and harmonious landscapes that enrich human experience and support ecological integrity, thereby fostering a culture of innovation within the landscape architecture profession. Keywords: Landscape architecture. Land topography. Design decisions. Sustainability

Traces of Aydın Boysan s Architectural Practice in an Industrial City: The Case of Kocaeli

Industrial areas within a city are one of the important components of urban memory, shedding light on the economic and social life, architectural design and building technologies of their era. However, modern research by architects on the industrialization process of Kocaeli, one of the most important industrial cities in Turkey, which has left important traces in the city, is insufficient. Leading architects of the period played an important role in the city's path to becoming an "Industrial City". Architect Aydın Boysan is a valuable professional who realized the pioneering architectural designs of his period in Kocaeli and made significant contributions to the city. Boysan, who designed many industrial buildings in Turkey, is the architect of four large industrial sites built in Kocaeli. These four buildings were not only important centers of production in their respective sectors for the country, but also unique representatives of modern architecture that was influential all over the world. It is an important responsibility of architectural historiography to bring these works of modern architecture, which shed light on an era, to the agenda and into the literature before they are lost. This study examines the structural, formal and functional characteristics of the facilities and their status today through Boysan's architectural identity and design approaches to industrial buildings. These facilities started operations in the 1960s, an important historical threshold in Kocaeli's transformation into an industrial city. Research on these representations of Boysan's unique modernist architectural style expands our knowledge about the production of the built environment for an industrial city and reveals traces of an important architect of the period.

Space

A thing, being placed in space, like in aitch-two-oh, despising the risk, longs to displace the space; but your eye does not notice the splashes of space on the floor. Brodsky. Dedication to a chair ‘Space’ is one of the most popular and, at the same time, the most ambiguous words in the theory and practice of architecture. Perhaps there is not a single philosopher, urbanist or designer who would not use it in their work. The materials of the current issue of our journal include a wide range of reflections on the essence and properties of space – from criticism of established ideas in practical architecture to reflections on the metrics of structured, meaning-forming space of the modern city. Space in our consciousness is inextricably linked to the concept of North and South. The hot, arid and antiquities-rich South and the cold, seemingly unfriendly, but in its own way beautiful and promising North. We have divided these notions, although in fact there is no unambiguous border between them. It is even more difficult to define the boundary between the West and the East. Nevertheless, we include a selection of materials from our regular authors, researchers of architecture of the Far East. And the usual coordinates disappear completely when we start to fantasize about architecture in outer space. As usual, we do not pretend to exhaustively cover the immense topic of Space. Rather, our goal was to ask as many meaningful questions as possible and to bring many different opinions into contact.

Innovative architectural design practices enabled by AI-powered parametric and computational approaches

The intersection of artificial intelligence and architectural design represents a significant technological advancement that fundamentally reshapes spatial creation and design methodologies. This research explores how computational approaches, specifically machine learning and parametric design algorithms, are transforming architectural practice by introducing novel capabilities for spatial exploration, performance optimization, and generative design. Artificial intelligence emerges as a collaborative tool that expands architectural design possibilities. Advanced neural networks and generative design algorithms enable computational systems to analyze extensive datasets, generate complex design iterations, and optimize architectural solutions across multiple dimensions of structural integrity, environmental performance, and contextual responsiveness. Empirical evidence from case studies of sustainable urban housing in Singapore and adaptive architectural systems in Madrid illustrates how computational technologies can produce design solutions that surpass traditional methodologies, addressing critical challenges in environmental sustainability and urban resilience. The research critically examines the technological capabilities and limitations of AI in architectural design. It highlights the potential for algorithmic bias, challenges in capturing phenomenological experiences, and ethical considerations surrounding creative agency. By emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary collaboration and robust ethical frameworks, the study provides a nuanced approach that balances human intuition with technological innovation.