When designing or renovating a student housing facility, square footage, number of occupants and budget are often top design considerations. Designing for student safety ranks even higher, say the experts at KWK Architects. “Protecting students from intruders and dangerous individuals is always top of mind, and frequently discussed during the design...
The Kö-Bogen I by star architect Daniel Libeskind has become a landmark in the heart of Düsseldorf, Germany. Behind its facade of glass and white natural stone, which is broken up with diagonal cuts, or "cuts," is a mix of high-quality shopping, gastronomy and office space. Two 26meter-high buildings offer...
Flooding is a significant problem for buildings all around the world, including architectural treasures like the Farnsworth House that have been plagued by the issue time and time again. In particular, one-third of the entire continental U.S. are at risk of flooding this spring, especially the Northern Plains, Upper Midwest, and Deep South. Last April,...
Six pine buildings form this storm-resilient marine research center in Mississippi designed by US architecture firm Lake Flato Architects. The Marine Education Center (MEC) is an educational facility that is part of The University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast Research Laboratory. It is located in Ocean Springs on a 500-year-old floodplain...
This isn’t the first time a traumatic event has affected the built environment, but how we learn from and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic will say a lot about who we are as people and designers. The initial reaction of many after the terror attacks of 9/11 was to fortify...
Serenity Sliding Door Systems has recently released a new “Antimicrobial Slide”, the first complete sliding door system with antimicrobial finishes available for both healthcare and commercial office interior space. “It’s no secret that doors and door handles are one of the most commonly touched places. This creates many opportunities for transferring...
With the help of Spillman Farmer Architects, Millersville’s new Welcome Center is a beautiful, high-performance project that was designed to achieve Net Zero (meaning that energy consumed by building occupants is less than or equal to energy created on-site). The first of its kind on campus, the building demonstrates Millersville’s...
Finding the perfect space is an almost impossible task for any business. In some cases, the best option is to dynamically alter your existing space. Unfortunately, traditional construction methods don’t offer the flexibility your business needs to meet your shifting and changing needs. If you want your business to be able...
The sleek freestanding, four-story building serves as a gateway to the existing medical campus at Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton. The new structure was designed to help promote future-based healthcare services through its modern, clean design. Complete with a medical oncology clinic, the new 60,000 sq ft facility consolidates radiation...
In our increasingly digitized world, where everything from our phones to our thermostats is “smart,” it should come as no surprise that virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are starting to play a role in the design industry. It’s a logical relationship: designers have always imagined new or re-imagined...
While digital twins have been used for years in manufacturing and aviation, adoption is slowly making its way to construction. These virtual models collect real-world information about a structure via sensors, drones, and other wireless technology. The “twin” continuously learns from multiple sources, including advanced analytics, machine-learning algorithms and artificial...
Here we discuss reducing the embodied carbon of building materials and how it relates to the overall environmental footprint of healthcare buildings. Sustainable design challenge: reducing building materials’ carbon footprint: For many years, addressing energy in healthcare design has focused on reducing the energy required to operate buildings. This approach is...
Many in the construction industry understand and are committed to moving to net-zero energy homes and buildings. And the number of zero energy homes and buildings is growing rapidly. But when it comes to zero carbon, many of us may feel overwhelmed with the complexity that appears to be involved in taking the...
Resiliency is not any single solution, concept, or perspective. Resiliency is a multifaceted lens that balances proactivity and reactivity to inform solutions to disruptions. Resilient Design is taking that lens and using it to rethink the built environment. In this brief introduction, we discuss some practical elements that begin to...
The Doc B’s Fresh Kitchen in Fort Lauderdale Project by DMCA Architecture marries the company’s “focus on fresh, house-made and mindfully sourced dishes”, with an idea of timelessness, a universal quality that transcends moment or place. The material’s palette evokes a graceful mid-century nostalgia and its associations of home, a...
If you - like us - are obsessed with alternative homes and unique design, you’ve probably considered joining the shipping container home revolution. Although the trend has had its share of opposition from select builders, it’s proven to be a cool and cost-effective shelter solution across the globe. The fact...