Why London?
1. London is home to many of the world’s leading Architects, Architectural Engineers and Designers;
2. A city rich in culture, history and state-of-the-art architecture and design examples;
3. A major transportation-hub with easy access to airline and rail around Europe;
4. An English-speaking destination overseas, allowing for an advanced level of communication with professionals in the study-abroad location;
5. Host to the upcoming 2012 Summer Olympics, London is full of exciting projects under construction! For example, we have plans to tour the new Olympic Aquatics Center designed by Zaha Hadid and engineered by Arup (both firms are headquartered in London).
Why study Emerging Technologies?
We are in the midst of a historical revolution in the professions of architectural design, engineering and construction.
In the mid 1980′s, architects and engineers began using computers to design and communicate their ideas. Since that time, this switch to digital tools is generating new working methods and possibilities for making architecture. From 2001 to 2010 we have seen buildings constructed that are innovative, complex and astonishing by 20th century standards. This the beginning of what is to come.
Early examples of this change are Frank Ghery’s architectural designs of the 1990′s (e.g.; Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Disney Concert Hall in L.A.). A few years later in the new 21st century, 3-D modeling programs abound including Generative Components, Maya and Rhino that have opened up a new world of complex geometry including curvilinear form, scripting and parametric modeling.
Architectural engineers and construction firms have recently embraced digital analysis tools. Arup and Buro Happold (powerful architectural engineering fims based in London) contribute greatly as architects Norman Foster, Zaha Hadid, Renzo Piano and many others demand engineering solutions to complex forms and technological concepts. The highly acclaimed Birds Nest and Water Cube of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics were both engineered by London firms.
As computers get faster, more powerful and more affordable, an entirely new method of design is changing everything again: Building Information Modeling (BIM). BIM models allow architects, engineers and construction teams to build a proposed building in all it’s detail – digitally. A BIM model can be imbedded with information about every surface and object in a building. This new type of digital model and documentation allows for integrated work between design, analysis and construction disciplines and as of 2010 is becoming the new standard for the building industry.
More technological innovations appear every year. Global warming and resulting sustainability goals have created a market for powerful energy-analysis tools and new technical solutions. Acoustic analysis has gone virtual: Arup has developed a listening room where a client can hear accurate acoustical simulations of spaces before they are built. The manufacturing and production industries are now assisting in more architectural projects as the technical software describing these new complex shapes can communicate directly to fabrication machines.
The profession is racing ahead, pushing the limits of these emerging technologies. London, England, original home of the industrial revolution in the late 1800′s, is again at the forefront of change. U.S. firms are keeping up, but many of the best built examples are in Europe and abroad. This is why it is so important to study emerging technologies – Come to London! Learn from leading professionals in the field and return to the U.S. with a specialized knowledge of the technologies that are shaping the future of Architecture, Engineering and Construction.
- Gregory Brooks
UT Faculty Director, ARE377K Emerging Technologies – London Study Abroad
