Research
01.01.12
Tech Lab Annual Report 2011
Tech Lab is an on-going program of our Excellence in Execution Initiative to advance the performance of project designs, to improve design decision-making and documentation, and to…
12.06.11
BIM on the WAN
As architects computerize their design practices they are faced with unique networking challenges. One of these is the “wide area design” problem. This is the problem of…
12.06.11
Performance-Driven Design and Prototyping
This article discusses performance-driven design and fabrication as one of the emerging approaches in architectural design, where computational tools are used for integrated design…
12.06.11
uPOD: A Modular Living Environment for Students
Institutions have prioritized the development of new residence halls that respond to incoming student classes who expect more privacy, social space, technology and fewer boundaries…
12.06.11
Research Journal Vol. 03.02
This issue of Perkins+Will Research Journal includes five articles that focus on diverse research topics, such as evidence-based design in healthcare; design of a modular student…
12.06.11
The Information Content of BIM
The application of general information theory to pragmatic problems within the architecture, engineering, construction, owner and operator (AECOO) industry is explored in this article.…
12.06.11
A Design-Based Approach to Collecting Evidence
Evidence Based Design (EBD) research analyzes the built environment through a very rigorous lens, one that takes its methodology from scientific protocol. Most environmental designers…
12.02.11
Innovation Incubator: Designing into the Fabric of Culture
We are committed to helping clients find ways to be innovative and forward thinking, better positioning them for the future while maintaining focus on sustainable and best practice…
12.02.11
Innovation Incubator: Computational Shading
Through our Innovation Incubator program, Yehia Madkour (Perkins+Will Vancouver) investigated the potential of parametric modeling to dynamically resolve and control a performative…
12.02.11
Innovation Incubator: San Francisco Parklets
Local design firms, non-profits, community organizers and residents of San Francisco have inspired a recovery of paved spaces recreated as urban oases. The city of San Francisco,…
10.31.11
2012 Workplace Trends
Each year, we bring together our best and brightest to identify the trends and research topics that are redefining how companies work. The 2012 Workplace Trends represent evolving…
06.10.11
Parametric Control of BIM Elements for Sustainable Design in REVIT
Using analytic data as a driver to control the geometry of BIM elements is currently a promising method for parametric creation of design elements such as sun shades, which respond to…
06.10.11
Understanding Glare: Design Methods for Improving Visual Comfort
Daylight harvesting in architecture is a complicated task as the most prominent characteristic of daylight is its variability. There are many methods of estimating how daylight will…
06.10.11
Global Design in Developing Countries
This article discusses several key principles for foreign architects doing work overseas in the global workplace. The article uses the Kenya Women and Children’s Wellness Centre as a…
06.10.11
A Study of Occupant Engagement
It is well known that occupant behaviour is a factor that affects a building’s energy performance. While a good deal of study and research has been done on residential energy use,…
06.10.11
Research Journal Vol. 03.01
The fifth issue of the Perkins+Will Research Journal features four articles that focus on diverse research topics, including occupant engagement and behavior relating to energy…
06.10.11
Computational Environments with Multimodal Representations of Architectural Design Knowledge
This article, recently published in the International Journal of Architectural Computing, discusses interaction between multimodal representations of architectural design knowledge,…
05.04.11
Renovation and Reuse: A Plan for Sports and Recreation Facilities
Phil Fenech's Renovation and Reuse: A Place for Sports and Recreation Facilities presentation reviews sustainable considerations when deciding to build new or renovate. Case studies…
04.27.11
Building Technology Research in Architectural Practice: Emerging Trends
Aksamija, Ajla, "Building Technology Research in Architectural Practice: Emerging Trends", Tech Lab, Perkins+Will, Chicago, IL. This paper discusses relationships between research,…
02.09.11
Tech Lab Annual Report 2010
Tech Lab is an on-going program of our Excellence in Execution Initiative to advance the performance of project designs, to improve design decision-making and documentation, and to…
01.13.11
Energy Modeling Guidance
Designing energy efficient buildings requires an understanding of the energy impact of design features and how they interact with each other during the design process. This article…
01.13.11
Building Performance Predictions: How Simulations Can Improve Design Decisions
This article discusses relationships between building performance simulations and design decisions and how building performance predictions can improve the design outcomes. The first…
01.13.11
Design Considerations for Pool Environments
The natatorium environment is one of the most challenging environments to design and build in northern climates. This is due to the large swings in levels of humidity and temperature…
01.13.11
Exploration of Complex Curtain Wall Solutions
This article explores the various curtain wall façade system solutions as developed for the Shanghai Fisherman's Wharf project's iconic skyscraper. The high-rise tower comprises a…
01.13.11
Students of Today and Tomorrow: Discovering How and Where They Learn Best
This article explores various educational theories, research and factors that can be correlated to or have an impact on the physical spaces in which learning takes place. As school…
01.11.11
Research Journal Vol. 02.02
In the fourth issue of Perkins+Will Research Journal we have five articles that focus on diverse topics, such as methods for improving design decision-making through simulations and…
11.11.10
Documenting the NICU Design Dilemma - Pt. 2
To test the efficacy of single family room (SFR) neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) designs, questions regarding patient medical progress and relative patient safety were explored.…
11.10.10
Pre- and Post Occupancy Evaluation of the Arlington Free Clinic
This research involves two phases of data collection occurring before (preoccupancy) and after (postoccupancy) the redesign of the Arlington Free Clinic. Read the article in the…
09.01.10
2010 Workplace Trends
Over the course of many years and projects throughout the world, we have identified ten workplace trends to which companies have gravitated. Representing the evolving thinking on…
05.24.10
Research Journal Vol. 02.01
This issue of Perkins+Will Research Journal contains five articles that focus on diverse topics including: design of complex curtain wall geometry; effects of heat flow and moisture…
05.01.10
Innovation through challenges with BIM
The Rush University Medical Center transformation project demonstrates the value of BIM Article at Healthcare Design online
05.01.10
Integration of Knowledge-Based and Generative Systems for Building Characterization and Prediction
This paper discusses the integration of knowledge bases and shape grammars for the generation of building models, covering interaction, system and implementation. Knowledge-based and…
01.01.10
Hygroscopic Climate Modulated Boundaries
The operation and construction of buildings account for almost half of the energy use in the United States. To meet global climate change targets, energy consumption of buildings in…
01.01.10
Effects of Heat Flow and Moisture
This article describes the importance of the effect of heat flow and moisture on the building's exterior enclosure. It provides a basic understanding of the concerns of why…
01.01.10
Cell Wall: Resolving Geometrical Complexities
The Cell Wall is the iconic feature of the Shanghai Nature Museum and the main design feature from the initial competition phase. It is composed of three layers, each with its own…
01.01.10
Comparative Analysis of Flooring Materials
The environmental impact of flooring materials is the aggregate of impacts of raw material properties and composition across all stages of the product life cycle including extraction,…
01.01.10
Urban Wastewater
This article proposes a new urban ecological paradigm that values urban wastewater as a renewable, reliable, freshwater resource for urban farming. The potential benefits of…
01.01.10
Documenting the NICU Design Dilemma - Pt. 1
With neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) evolving from multipatient wards toward family-friendly, single-family room units, the study objective was to compare satisfaction levels of…
07.01.09
Next Generation Law Enforcement Facility Design
Law enforcement methods are constantly evolving in every part of the country, but recent changes have occurred rapidly and across jurisdictions. Connecting facilities to their…
06.30.09
L'Oreal Case Study
L'Oreal's primary objective was to have its workplace better align with the organization's culture and business objectives and this meant a shift from an office-intensive environment…
05.21.09
Changing Medical Education Curriculums are Requiring a New Architectural Response
Since 2006, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has advocated that US medical schools expand their capacity and train more doctors. After speaking with leaders from…
05.11.09
Research Journal Vol. 01.01
The Perkins+Will Research Journal is dedicated to presenting practice-related research associated with buildings and their environs. The aim of this journal is to capture and document…
05.01.09
Automating Practice
Computation in architectural design, specifically algorithmic/generative design, is a byproduct of advances in software development that have enhanced the digital tools available for…
05.01.09
A Study for Carbon Neutrality
This research study focuses on the factors that impact the carbon footprint of a residence hall building, particularly the steps and considerations required to achieve carbon…
05.01.09
Systems Thinking
Concerns over the effects of climate change affect not only the architectural design world, but the larger web of society as a whole. As such, the solutions developed need to address…
05.01.09
Principles for High Performance Interior Design
In a diverse design practice such as Perkins+Will, we have found recent trends in interior design that reach across market sectors that appear to link aspects of environmental design…
03.01.09
Community Hospital Replacement Study
The Community Hospital Replacement Study, co-sponsored by Perkins+Will, is a comprehensive national study of 72 community hospital replacement projects completed between 2000 and…
01.01.09
Healthcare Think Tank
Our healthcare market sector is large and widespread across the firm. If there was a way to quantify the experience and expertise we have between our offices, it would be a very…
01.01.09
Research Journal Vol. 01.02
This issue of the Perkins+Will Research Journal includes five articles that focus on diverse topics, such as sustainable design for achieving carbon neutrality in higher-education…
01.01.09
Water, Water...Not Everywhere
The conservation of water across the globe is not a concern for the future, but a pressing issue for us to face today. This issue is of even more importance with regard to the…
01.01.09
Mountain Pine Beetle
This report accesses the potential carbon emissions of harvesting dead lodgepole pine as a result of an outbreak of mountain pine beetles. The report reviews the potential benefits…
01.01.09
Healthcare Planning: Nursing Unit Simulation
Simulation is the process of designing and developing a computerized model of a real system in order to perform numerical experiments to obtain a better understanding of the behavior…
01.01.09
Choosing The Right Green Building Rating System
This paper is based on a technical report that was intended to provide the University of British Columbia's (UBC) Sustainability Office with a potential strategy to move the Point Grey…
01.01.09
Clinical Processes Informing the Design of the Emergency Department
Operational and space inefficiencies are the most common reasons facilities renovate and/or expand their emergency departments. This case study uses event planning, which evaluates…
01.01.09
Context Based Design of Double Skin Facades
This research focuses on investigation of context based design for double skin facades, particularly focusing on climatic considerations during the design process. Double skin…
01.01.09
Tech Lab Annual Report 2009
Tech Lab is an on-going program of Perkins+Will's Excellence in Execution Initiative to advance the performance of project designs, to improve design decision-making and documentation,…
01.01.09
Building Commissioning
Building performance monitoring has a great potential to reduce energy usage through improved operation and maintenance. Enhanced functioning, lower energy costs, better indoor air…
11.07.08
Information Technology + Architectural Practice: Knowledge Modeling Approach and BIM
This paper presents recent developments in information technologies and their impact on architectural design. It presents a practical technique for knowledge-based information modeling…
11.07.08
Toward a Better Urban Life: Integration of Cities and Tall Buildings
Ali, Mir (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Aksamija, Ajla (Tech Lab, Perkins+Will), (2008). "Toward a Better Urban Life: Integration of Cities and Tall Buildings", The…
07.02.08
The LEED Guide: From Green Chemistry Curriculum to Laboratory Design
The American Chemical Society Green Chemistry Institute describes green chemistry as the "design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use and generation of…
03.07.05
Harnessing the Power of the University Brand
The following is excerpted from a Perkins+Will Branded Environments white paper presentation at the American Marketing Association's Symposium on Marketing in Higher Education in San…
