SOME RECENT INNOVATIONS IN ARCHITECTURE

1. Biophilic Design:

One of the most disastrous effects of technology, is that it stretches the gulf between us and nature. And nature, simple as it is, is very powerful. The products of technology are very lifeless and rigid and harsh, which nature creates a complete contrats for.

In Singapore, biophilic design has taken center stage. This technology simply involves bringing nature tothe city and buildings by replacing certain aspects of the building such as windows, columns, walls with leaves, flowers, insects and other natural elements.

Research has proven that this innovation is far-reaching and has huge impact on the health, mind and overall life of persons living in Singapore, especially patients whose recoveries have been fast-tracked by being surrounded by nature.The stress levels of such patients have been relatively lower. Also, biophilic design is economical as getting natural materials is way cheaper than purchasing the alternative building materials.

Some of buildings in Singapore that have adopted biophilic design have become tourist sites as they capture the eye of every onlooker. One of these buildings is the Pickering Hotel's "Park Royal" which is responsible for attracting the greater population of the guests at the hotel.

With how much the ecosystem has depleted as a result of our technology and construction processes, biophilic design bridges the gap between environmental preservation and construction technology.

2. Self-healing Concrete:

What would we all do without concrete, literally? The AEC industry thrives on concrete and it is estimated that by the next decade, about five billion metric tons of concrete will be used every year globally.

However, as good as concrete is, it contributes at least 7% to global emissions yearly. Again, concrete cracks pretty fast and is responsible for many accidents and vehicle failures. Therefore, researchers have come up with the idea of concrete that heals itself of cracking caused by chemicals and water. This kind of concrete is derived by including bacteria and other micro organisms into the concrete mix which produce limestone when a crack in the concrete is filled with water, thus plugging the crack before the water and oxygen can reach the steel reinforcements. With this technology, there will be less casualties with concrete on our roads and buildings.

3. Prefabricated Architecture:

Housing has been a major issue in urban areas for a while, but there seemed to be a surge since the pandemic hit the world. Housing prices have skyrocketed and living standards have been raised way higher than it ever was. Prefabricated architecture is a concept that has been around for some time now, and it involves constructing buildings at a particular location which can be moved to the final location after its completion.

However, new technologies have been introduced to prefab architecture to make it more sustainable, accessible and beneficial. Prefab architecture tries to provide alternative solutions to the prevalent housing crisis, yet still putting premium on design and aesthetics.

4. Smart Homes:

We've always known about automated houses for a long time, but with the rise in technological innovations, there would be many more homes completely controlled and manipulated by technology.

Amazon's Alexa has already changed how we previously viewed homes. There will be houses that automatically regulate themselves, turn on heating, turn off lights, detect moods of occupants and play music accordingly.

There is a rising trend of convenience and smart homes provide so much convenience to occupants and makes life really easy.

5. Extended Reality:

Apart from smart homes, researchers have also come up with smart construction. It is the merging of AI, robots and other new technologies with the construction process. Much of the materials used in construction are rigid and stiff, but there has been on-going research on how to use robots and AI to manipulate materials such as clay, timber and concrete to create various complex and multi-functional geometries. With this technology, the result is materials with five times as much strength and yet five times less weight than the common materials.

Some of these materials can store and produce energy by shapeshifting under different energy levels. With 3D scanning, timber can be studied and treated while it is being processed to prevent any biological processes happening to the wood, and thus produce very large and complex buildings. Buildings that utilise these innovations will soon take center stage in a few years from now.

6. Cloud and Mobile Technologies:

The construction industry has embraced the use of apps for better results because of the ease and portability tablets and smartphones provide during the construction process. More and more construction firms now make use of this because it it more cost efficient and provides several benefits. These apps can track and monitor real-time updates on the site and aid communication among key players in the construction. Also cloud technology allows for large chunks of data to be stored easily and also shared to others with just a button click.

Few years from now, and no one will remember what it was like without these technologies.

7. Multi-functional spaces:

Since the lock-down saga when working from home became the norm, our homes are learning to multi- task. Many areas in living spaces now serve more than one function to accommodate our working conditions. The living room could be converted to a work area, the kitchen could also serve as a discussion room, the dining room could host book racks, bedrooms could house work-out equipment, and so on.

The idea behind this is to maximize residential buildings to also accommodate work demands without necessarily needing more space or a customized home office.

8. Photovoltaic Glaze:

This is a fast-rising innovation that has loads of economic benefits. With the Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Glaze (BIPG), conventional builting materials are replaced with this technology on certain parts of the building such as roofs and some walls. They serve as either the principal source or auxiliary source of electricity in buildings.

This technology is cost-efficient because the cost of fitting the BIPG into the building is not nearly as expensive as the cost of the building materials and labour that would have been used to construct the parts of the building now replaced by the technology.

9. 3D Printed Architecture:

One of the major issues of regular construction is waste. The American Institute of Architects believes that at least 30% of America's solid waste stream is contributed by the building industry. This is what 3D printing minimizes.

With this technology, materials needed for a construction project can be printed and then transported to the job site ready for immediate use. This aids faster procuring of materials and saves transportation and storage costs. Again, it lowers the risk of errors and it is very efficient.

10. Floating Architecture:

There is a rising threat of global warming and climate changes, so architects have begun to think into the future to visualise a time when there will be little or no land to build on and houses will be floating on water. This is the idea behind floating architecture - a technology of designing and constructing buildings and structures on water. This is not really abnormal as even at the moment, there are several hotels, cinemas that float on water, so architects have simply brought homes into that number. These homes will be able to tap into the energy of the sun, wind and water to make living easier.

More and more innovations trail the construction industry as the world advances. Soon, the way we have always viewed buildings and houses will change permanently.

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