Design Technology in Contemporary Practice

How do design practices use different types of technology in their day-to-day processes for … ideation/exploration/communication/documentation/collaboration/fabrication and more? How do they manage technology and associated staff resources on an organisational level?

Research associated to this project reflects on how the world’s most renowned architecture practices use technology to support design and delivery of their projects.

Design Technology has only recently been established as a distinct stream within architectural practice, with tangible connections both to Information Technology as well as the creative design process. Research associated to this topic highlights the diversity of approaches applied by the world’s leading designers to support their characteristic design with matching technologies to push the architectural profession in unchartered territories.

One key aspect of the research focuses on the cultural significance of Design Technology. How is Design Technology changing contemporary practice, and how does it get positioned on an organisational level. The associated research delves into specifics on how to set up a relevant Design Technology support infrastructure and grow capability within a design firm. Key Design Technology related activities get analysed, as well as the way they unfold throughout the stages of a architectural projects.

The other key element of the research is dedicated to exploring how Design Technology gets applied in progressive practice.  How does it get positioned within the world’s leading architectural studios? The research thereby draws on a series of practice-based interviews with global design leaders and their Design Technology champions. Via studio-based reports, the research aims to de-mystify the interplay between lead designer and design technologists and demonstrate how Design Technology helps to realise complex designs and to turn them into architectural masterpieces.

The research is currently being consolidated into a book of the same title with Routledge. Once published, it will offer both academics as well as practitioners a unique insight into the changing role of Design Technology and the way it transforms contemporary practice.

Outputs:

Holzer, D. Design Technology in Contemporary Practice. Routledge Publishers, UK (forthcoming early 2022)

Project Contact:

Dominik Holzer, Associate Professor in Digital Architectural Design

Holzer_Book
Design Technology in Contemporary Practice. Routledge Publishers, UK (forthcoming early 2022)