The Role of Personal Control in Alleviating Negative Perceptions in the Open-Plan Workplace

Today’s office buildings adopt open-plan settings for collaboration and space efficiency. However, the open plan setting has been intensively criticized for its adverse user experiences, such as noise, privacy loss, and over cooling. The provision of personal control in open-plan work environments is an important means to alleviating the adverse perceptions. This research is to investigate the relationship between the availability of personal controls and the degree of control over the physical environment, as well as their effectiveness in alleviating adverse perceptions in open-plan workplaces. The study combined three systematic occupant survey tools and collected responses from open-plan offices in Shenzhen, China. Specifically, this survey covered 12 personal controls in open-plan workplaces; respondents were asked to report their degree of control over the physical environment and also were required to report if they had adverse perceptions such as sick building syndrome in their offices. The results showed that most of the 12 personal controls supported perceived degree of control over the physical environment but only half of them were negatively associated with adverse perceptions. Non-mechanical controls, such as windows and blinds, were found to be more effective than mechanical controls such as fans and air-conditioning in alleviating adverse perceptions. Conflicts were found between task/desk lights and other personal controls. The research generates important evidence for the interior design of open-plan offices

Planning studio in the 21st century: Educating leaders for a complex world - Final report 2016

Executive summary Context and purpose Urban and environmental planning has a substantial impact on social, economic and environmental welfare and getting it right is a complex challenge facing governments, the private sector and communities around Australia (Australian Government 2011). Over time, the complexity of planning has grown and planners today are asked to address a wide range of pressing problems in a context of constantly changing community preferences and demands. Some of the issues confronting planners include managing and responding to significant population growth, an ageing population and demographic change, urban congestion, transportation of goods and services, ensuring adequate energy and water supplies, adapting to climate change, managing hazards, responding to disasters, preserving natural and cultural heritage and the growing expectation that residents should be consulted on changes to their neighbourhood (Australian Government 2011: XXI). Planning studio pedagogy (a student-centred, collaborative, inquiry-based/problem-based pedagogy based on a real world project) is the unique, valuable learning and teaching method used to educate young planners. Planning studio pedagogy teaches students how to successfully work, in a collaborative way, with the aforementioned wicked, complex issues. It also enables students to become influential leaders in their field. Project aims This project reviewed planning studio learning and teaching and informed the design of an innovative curriculum and planning studio at scale model that was trialled in one of Griffith University’s planning studios, at undergraduate level. The project aims are expressed in a key pedagogical question: How to improve learning and teaching practice for enhanced student and professional outcomes and also address current institutional priorities (large class sizes (60+), retention, student experience/engagement/sense of purpose and workplace readiness)? Project approach The project approach built upon the scholarship of learning and teaching in planning studio pedagogy, and in particularly the Studio Teaching Project (STP) funded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) in 2007-09 (Zehner, Forsyth, et al 2009). The STP lists ten benchmark statements (p. 79) for effective studio practice. These benchmarks were used to guide the design and evaluations of this project. An adaptation of Bloom’s taxonomy (Balsas 2012) provides an appropriate framework for the synthesis of existing scholarship and the design of the pilot studio. This framework is informed by the literature on inquiry-based/problem-based learning. The project included perspectives from Griffith University planning students and staff (particularly those engaged in studio teaching), alumni, professional planners, staff from the Griffith Institute for Higher Education and academics from a range of related disciplines to evaluate current and alternative approaches to studio teaching at scale. A number of workshops and a symposium were held to gain valuable insights, perspectives and experience with tried-and-tested teaching practices as well as emergent practices, thus generating strong student outcomes. The project strategy comprised four stages: 1) Data collection, analysis and contextualisation; 2) Pilot planning studio curriculum and model development; 3) Pilot planning studio curriculum and model implementation, evaluation and revision; and 4) Communication and dissemination of outcomes. Outputs/deliverables/resources Outputs from this project include both scholarship and practical deliverables. Most significantly, the project informed the development of an innovative curriculum and planning studio model for larger class sizes (60+) that aligns with institutional priorities and requirements. Key planning studio documents were produced that guide studio learning and teaching practices across all year levels within the discipline. These documents are disseminated through School and Group learning and teaching committees and discipline workshops. Outputs from this project were also disseminated, and new data collected, through conference presentations and research publications. Impact and findings This planning discipline scoping project has had significant impact on the repositioning of studio-based courses at Griffith University. Studio pedagogy is at the core of the revised Urban and Environmental Planning Programs, with studios comprising 50 per cent of all core courses. This project has established a specific planning studio curriculum framework for the delivery of all planning studios at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. Findings from this project demonstrate that planning studios: • create an engaging, motivating and intellectually stimulating learning experience based on a real world problem or issue; • encourage the spirit of critical inquiry and creative innovation informed by current research and professional practice; and • enhance student engagement and learning through effective curriculum design and pedagogy for large studio classes. In these ways, planning studio pedagogy provides essential benefits for the student experience, retention and professionalisation. It engages with the key goals of the Griffith University Academic Plan 2013-2017: Transforming the Student Experience and the principles which promote excellence in learning and teaching practices: retention, the student experience and workplace readiness

Chongqing international circus city

The design grows out of the rich culture of circus and the rugged dynamic topography of Chongqing. The site for this project is nestled on the banks of the mighty Yangzte, China's longest river: a vast sweeping watery ribbon carving its way through the mountainous terrain. This swirling sinuous environmental thread replicates in nature the tweisting ribbons circling the gyrating circus gymnast. The project grows from intertwining these swirling parallel conceptions of 'ribbon'. A multi-layered envelope of glass and steel ribbons creates a dome like enclosure that wraps itself around the dynamic performing heart of the circus. The main auditorium and stage area are accommodated in this space. Key public elements and facilities are located adjacent to the new riverfront boulevard maximising the positive relationship with this attractive landscape zone. Service and support areas are located along the southern boundary. Key Statistics; Client: Chongqing Broadcast Bureau Developer: Chongqing Real Estate Site: 3.3 Ha Development: Total G.F.A.: 36,800m2 Project Cost: Total Investment: RMB 300 Million (A$48 million) Other competition participants were BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group (Denmark)/arquitectonica (USA)/Beijing Architectural Design Institute/East China Architectural Design Institute/China Architectural Design Academy

Genshanmen urban centre and transport interchange

This project is the result of a collaborative design process involving QUT School of Design, and AREN Consulting and ZIAD (Zheijiang Provincial Institute of Architectural Design and Research). This project is the submission prepared by the above partnership for an invited international design competition, promoted by Hangzhou City, China. ---------- This major urban design and architecture project is for a large transport oriented development on the new Hangzhou Subway system. The development, covering several city blocks, includes the provision of residential, retail, education, commercial, and transport infrastructure; integrated with rail, bus and ferry systems. ---------- The design strategies are based on the development or artificial land forms; the cutting of new canals, raising of the ground plane, and metaphoric reference to the Yellow Mountains (explored in the detail of the central ‘ridge’ of built form). Further to this, the project explores the integration of sustainable technologies and philosophies with large scale building projects in a subtropical context

Binjiang urban centre and transport interchange

This project is the result of a collaborative design process involving QUT School of Design, and AREN Consulting and ZIAD (Zheijiang Provincial Institute of Architectural Design and Research). This major urban initiative explores new standards for multi-function urban centres. The sophisticated integration of transit interchange with retail, commercial and residential functions provides a dramatic mix of social activities. The large site is formed into a raised and terraced urban garden, with the transit centre and retail shopping precinct housed below this landscaped roof. Towering above this ‘hill’ are five building blocks housing the commercial and residential accommodations. These environmentally low-impact buildings are topped with a high-tech greenhouse roof or photovoltaic cells

The spatial dimensions of neighbourhood: how older people define it

This paper seeks to develop our understanding of neighbourhood boundaries, as defined by older people. Using interview and mapping methods, research revealed the significance of three factors. built-form pattern, spatial distribution of the social networks and personal attributes. as contributing to how older people define their neighbourhood boundaries. Research findings highlighted discrepancies between residents' perceived neighbourhood boundaries and the statistical unit used as the neighbourhood proxy in most neighbourhood-related research. The findings suggested that the statistical information about the neighbourhood effects on older people does not necessarily reflect the lived experience of older people in their perceived neighbourhood

Digital characterization of the surface texture of chinese classical garden rockery based on point cloud visualization: small-rock mountain retreat

Abstract The Rockery is often a key element of a Classical Chinese Garden. It’s exquisite detailed physical characteristics a major contributor to artistic value, aesthetic appeal, and the carrier of historical and cultural heritage values. Poets and scholars have often described the beauty of these places in classical gardens in qualitative terms but lacked the quantitative tools to provide replicable metric descriptions. The highly complex forms and surfaces, irregularity, and fragility of garden rockeries has challenged authors to accurately describe the characteristics of these qualities using traditional methods and tools. This article presents a new method of digital characterization approach based on laser scanning and point cloud visualization, which can quantitatively detect and represent the pattern of rockery surface textures. It offers a replicable accurate quantitative descriptor of the Classical Chinese rockery. The Small-Rock Mountain Retreat, a nationally protected rockery garden in China, has been used as a case study. It contains original historic elements and more recently restored areas. Two characteristics of rockery surfaces, including the well-proportioned density and space, and the proper contrast between solid and void, were analyzed by examining four attributes: (1) surface complexity; (2) contour curvature; (3) shape variation; and (4) the interweaving of lightness and darkness. The findings demonstrate that, despite some similarities between the restored portion of the rockery and the historical remnants, there are variances in the richness of the details and the balanced distribution of shape change. The digital characterization approach introduced in this article offers a new perspective for recording and in turn safeguarding Chinese garden rockeries and other irregular cultural heritage objects

Sub-tropical high-density, low rise residential buildings: Case Study 3

The case study 3 team viewed the mitigation of noise and air pollution generated in the transport corridor that borders the study site to be a paramount driver of the urban design solution. These key urban planning strategies were adopted: * Spatial separation from transport corridor pollution source. A linear green zone and environmental buffer was proposed adjacent to the transport corridor to mitigate the environmental noise and air quality impacts of the corridor, and to offer residents opportunities for recreation * Open space forming the key structural principle for neighbourhood design. A significant open space system underpins the planning and manages surface water flows. * Urban blocks running on east-west axis. The open space rationale emphasises an east-west pattern for local streets. Street alignment allows for predominantly north-south facing terrace type buildings which both face the street and overlook the green courtyard formed by the perimeter buildings. The results of the ESD assessment of the typologies conclude that the design will achieve good outcomes through: * Lower than average construction costs compared with other similar projects * Thermal comfort; A good balance between daylight access and solar gains is achieved * The energy rating achieved for the units is 8.5 stars