Design Technology in Contemporary Architectural Practice

Design Technology in Contemporary Architectural Practice lifts the curtain to unveil how eleven world-leading design studios integrate technology (such as computational design, BIM, and digital fabrication) as part of their day-to-day design exploration and delivery. Via first-hand accounts, the book offers rare insights about how these firms apply technology to purposefully disrupt and support their creative design processes in order to then explore how technology can be integrated on an organisational level. The resulting practice stories are loosely tied to four chapters that discuss how Design Technology corresponds to studio culture, collaboration and delivery protocols, business opportunities, knowledge sharing, staff empowerment, and more. The author is less interested in presenting the latest and greatest tools than in focusing on cultural and organisational challenges and opportunities. This book benefits both the professional market (such as design firms reflecting on their technology use), as well as the academic context (with its critical reflection on the interface between design process and technology support). Stories from the following design firms are included: Coop Himmelb(l)au Foster + Partners Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) Zaha Hadid Architects Diller Scofidio + Renfo Heatherwick Studio Morphosis Architects SO-IL Woods Bagot Herzog & de Meuron LASSA

1. Introduction – Defining Design Technology; 1.1. Background to Design Technology; 1.2. How the ‘Information Age’ has Transformed Architectural Design Practice; Practice Insert: Coop Himmelb(l)au; 1.3. Computational Design in Architecture Practice – A Brief History; Practice Insert: Foster + Partners; 1.4. The Proliferation of Parametric Design and Scripting; 1.5. Object-oriented Design Documentation going Mainstream; 1.6. Digital Models for Structural and Environmental Performance Feedback; Practice Insert: Bjarke Ingels Group; 2. Positioning Technology within Design Practice; 2.1. The ambivalent relationship between architects and (Design) Technology; 2.2. Becoming strategic about technology choices; Practice Insert: Zaha Hadid Architects; 2.3. Matching Studio Culture with Technology Support; Practice Insert: Diller Scofidio + Renfo; 2.4. Addressing Design Technology on an Organisational Level; 2.5. Setting Up, and Positioning Design Technology within the Office Structure; Practice Insert: Heatherwick Studio; 2.6. Project Support; Practice Insert: Morphosis Architects; 2.7. Design Technology: Liaising with Practice Leadership; 2.8. The Next Level –Design Technology as a Business Opportunity; Practice Insert: SO-IL; 3. Tooling; 3.1. Seeking Alignment between Design Process and Tools; 3.2. Tool: From Drafting Support to Decision Support (and More?); Practice Insert: Woods Bagot; 3.3. More Flexible/Smaller/Lighter; 3.4. The Virtual Office; Practice Insert: Herzog & de Meuron; 3.5. File to Fabrication; Practice Insert: LASSA; 3.6. Convergence – Tooling Across Domains; 3.7. Design Technology, Semiotics, and Human Behaviour!; 4. Moving Forward; Interview with Four Leading Design Technologists

Dominik Holzer is Associate Professor in Digital Architectural Design at the University of Melbourne (Australia) where he teaches in architecture, construction, and architectural engineering. An architect by training, Dominik researches, educates, and consults across domains within the built environment. His work centres around the cultural and organisational opportunities and challenges associated with technology-use in contemporary practice. In parallel to his efforts in academia, Dominik established AEC Connect as an independent strategic BIM, Digital Engineering, and Design Technology consultancy, operating since 2009 in the Asia-Pacific region. He frequently presents and publishes on Design Technology, (post)Digital Practice, and transdisciplinary collaboration. His BIM Manager’s Handbook (2016) has received wide praise from both industry and academia. The topics covered in his publications draw on the expertise he has established over the past two decades, and his approachable writing style makes them accessible for a wide audience.