Computers in Your Subject Area

How are computers being used in the teaching of your subject area? As an introduction, a brief overview is given of the current role of computers in the subject areas of Architecture, Planning, Property Management and Building C onstruction.		Overview
		Architecture Town Planning Property Management Building Construction

Overview

Architecture Computers are now finding a valuable role in architectural education supporting many areas of teaching, including design, performance analysis, information searching and presentation. Architect ural education has been slow in the uptake of IT compared with many other disciplines and seemless integration of IT into courses is the exception rather than the rule, perhaps due to the studio based nature of traditional teaching. However it is now pois ed ready to utilise new technology, particularly the use of multimedia and computer based teaching and learning packages. In Professional Practice computers have now assumed a prominent role in architectural design. This change has been partly brought about by economic pressures to improve the efficiency of design practice, but there has also been a move to aid the design pr ocess in order to produce better design work. We are in addition seeing significant developments that will have far reaching implications for the future, particularly in graphics, visualisation and communication. These innovations are occurring at a rapid rate and are imposing increasing pressure on design professionals. A re-orientation of skills and thus education, is required in order to acquire and manage computer resources. The use of computers also demands technical competence, an awareness of advan ces in the field and an innovative spirit to harness the technology. If designers are to lead rather than follow developments then they need to acquire specialist knowledge and general understanding of computers and their impact, expertise in the selectio n and management of computer aided-design systems, and skills in the design and implementation of computer programs and systems. Thus teaching of architecture in universities must also respond to the needs of the profession for which they are being trained. Higher Education must fulfil a role of training architects, engineers and other design professionals in IT, not only computer- aided design consultants, system managers, researchers and educators.

Overview

Town Planning Computers are routinely used in Town Planning practice and education. The increased use made of computers in local authority planning departments for a wide range of functions extending from complex applications such as GIS to more simple database system s or wordprocessing, has required graduates from planning schools to have a good grounding in a range of computer applications. All planning schools include computing as part of their professionally recognised courses. However, the use of computers is par ticularly marked in quantitative and research methods which include forecasting, projection and models of urban and land-use change, demographic modelling, spatial interaction modelling and so forth. The extent to which resources and approaches are adopt ed is dependent upon available facilities. The traditional use of computers in planning has been for analysis, forecasting and evaluation, from a data or modelling perspective. The emergence of networking and online data sources is changing the field dramatically. Many modelling simulations are no w emerging, among which GIS tutorials feature prominently. Indeed, the general availability of geographic information systems (GIS) has resulted in a spread of GIS courses in planning schools. Largely used in education for teaching skills in visualisati on of social phenomena, needs analysis and basic spatial analysis, GIS have also proved extremely useful for collecting, maintaining, analysing and displaying spatially related information in a range of public and private sector applications. Computer graphics and animation play an important role in visual presentation. The analysis of social and economic data for urban and regional planning requires results to be presented visually to facilitate easy comprehension. Computer models also provid e considerable assistance to urban planners, particularly as a mechanism for investigating the impacts of policy change. Large three dimensional computer models are increasingly used in urban planning and design to construct visualizations of urban areas as an assembly of buildings and other objects and surfaces. Visual simulation technology is adopted in the modelling, display, exploration and evaluation of alternative physical environments. Recent developments have seen the integration of urban geograph ical information systems with CAD-type 3D modelling with the increased convergence of visualisation-based and analytical computer modelling, in plan production and presentation. Aside from the traditional range of planner’s tools, other technologies such as expert systems, group decision support systems and virtual reality modelling are in use, for example in planning law in the case of expert systems, or for building design in t he case of VR models. Future utilisation of new media in terms of multimedia presentations, interactivity, vivid graphics, animations and video clips, provide new opportunities for the exploration of planning problems and improvement in the decision makin g process.

Overview

Property Management Property Management can be described as the “after sales” service, although it is probably more accurately defined to include all the activities which take place during the post-construction period. The quality and the nature of the management of this pro perty and the management of the information regarding the property is, therefore, both vitally important and on-going. The functions incorporated within property management are much broader than the day-to-day management of a building. From the physical completion of a building, management begins with the activities involved in finding an occupier. Agency requires relia ble information and its dissemination over many media, including advertising on the World Wide Web for the broadest coverage of potential occupiers (whether tenants or owner-occupiers). During the lifetime of a building, the management function includes dealing with rent reviews, lease renewals, contractual obligations, rating and taxation issues. Computer programs are available to ensure that all these functions are integrated within o ne system, thereby saving time and duplication of information. Where many similar properties are managed, the standardisation of such systems leads to a dramatic reduction in time and the potential for errors. However, it is not enough merely to deal wit h the day-to-day management of such valuable assets as property. It is necessary to review the nature of property as an investment. There are many packages available to support the valuation of such assets. As well as standard spreadsheet packages, the re are specific development and investment appraisal programs which enable the valuer to ensure that optimum use is made of both the site and building, until such time as redevelopment is appropriate. The use of expert systems to value property for mortgage purposes and for council house “right to buy” purposes is not new, and research is progressing into the production of valuation packages which allow the valuer to use programs “in the field” so as to improve speed and accuracy. For some organisations who are responsible for property e.g. local authorities, the size of their holdings is so vast that computer-based terriers are widespread. There is software available to merely incorporate property details, which can then be link ed to a day-to-day management package. There are also packages which enable the production of personalised terrier and management systems. Research into computer-assisted teaching and learning packages for valuation is resulting in the development of hypertext-based programs for the education of a mass audience. However this is a very new development within the property-based sector. The range of relevant software is expanding as the property profession realises the potential uses which are available and as the awareness of the professionals increases so does the demand for computer-literate employees.

Overview

Building Construction The range of computer use in all kinds of construction activities is vast and increasing all the time. The construction industry has for a number of years been using CAD systems to help design buildings and elements within them. As such, most students of construction and associated disciplines are now at least conversant with the technology. However, computer-based packages are becoming available for a greater variety of applications specifically associated with the construction process as opposed to the design and prediction software familiarly used by those involved in the design of buildin gs. There has been an explosion of specific software packages that are designed to help provide financial control of construction projects. These range from measurement and bills of quantities, sometimes linked to CAD, to estimation and costing. The increased use of technology also allows a greater degree of collaboration between members of the construction team. Those building professionals involved with the construction process are also increasingly using standard software such as spreadsheets for a range of management activities, especially the control of resources. From the 1970’s onwards, project and construction management has made use of computer based management systems in order to control the complexities of construction projects. Since that time, the development of user friendly software to forecast, plan and organise complex operations has resulted in the widespread use of computer systems in all aspects of construction management. At site level, computer technology is employed to ensure accuracy, quality, communication and control, for example in the form of hand held modems, surveying instruments and theodolites. In addition, GIS is now being used for a whole range of construction applications ranging from marketing to purchasing and personnel functions. Educationally, the development of multimedia computer simulations will enhance student appreciation of the building process to a far greater extent.

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