Our vision is to use F.R.A.C to develop our Platform Approach to designing homes, offices, hospitals, schools and other buildings in a new and innovative way, with a kit of parts approach delivered using robotic technology.. We have already prototyped the robotic manufacture of components from our Platform system and our aim is not only to realise construction projects through robotic technology, but also to share our learnings with the industry and to make the building blocks of F.R.A.C available under open source license during 2020.. Read more about P-DFMA.How can we balance COVID-19, climate change and our energy bills?.
However simplified, this is still construction, and the process still involves big data.However, the digital library can mobilise this wealth of data available.
No longer overwhelming, it becomes easy to manage and utilise.Designers can consider the most complex and vast strands of data and options immediately and simultaneously..This data helps designers plan for the fullest range of complex requirements at the earliest stages, from safety to stakeholder requirements, from operations to maintenance, from re-use and net zero to wider sustainability goals..
Platforms enable designers to consider, share and integrate all pertinent data in the earliest design concepts, locking this value in to the DNA of the design, delivery and operation..Reduced handoffs for reduced risk.
Embedding pertinent data in a digital library avoids continual calculations from first principles and sequential issuing.
Instead, compliance is pre-baked into the design through rule sets and parameters that are agreed up front by multiple engineers.For a pharmaceutical plant that needs to satisfy uncertain demand in an emerging market, this could entail seeing the capacity of the production equipment, its utilisation, the labour required to operate it, and the flexibility of the equipment to produce either different or more products..
In each case the representation is driven by what client and stakeholders need to see to satisfy themselves that the proposed solution meets their needs, but also to inform the wider team to decide what the next design iteration needs to look like to create an even better and more detailed solution.. At the end of this process, we have not simply a good design but also a transparent account of how expert knowledge and stakeholder requirements steered the decision-making process.This not only gives our clients the confidence that they have got the right solution, but ensures they understand why this design is preferable over all others.
We maximise understanding, efficiency and value.. An approach that feeds back into the business.This process reflects our experience and research on design, thinking and deciding.