Parametric Urban Design from Concept to Practice

Abstract

Little research has been made into the application of parametric urban design approaches to urban design in practice. On the part of urban design practitioners, lack of knowledge of parametric design, time constraints and a focus on day-to-day operations contribute to this situation. And on the part of parametric design researchers, lack of understanding of practice workflows, project types and media output types also contribute. The limited interaction between academia and practice in itself constitutes a barrier to changing the situation. This paper presents some first results from a research project aiming to overcome this barrier. The research design involves a theoretical framework for parameterising site design on the level of site layout, building forms and facade schemas. It also involves an analysis of typical workflows from urban design practice, as well as of the types of media which are typically used to present urban design projects.

Post-conflict reconstruction in the Middle East and North Africa region: A bidirectional parametric urban design approach

“…At the district scale, the natural landscape and topography determine factors such as convection, solar orientation and waterways, all of which impact natural and passive cooling, 23 and promote disaster risk management. The orientation of the urban grid may also contribute to passive cooling, provided it is aligned with prevailing summer winds.…”

“…A homogeneous street network of broad and straight connected streets promotes vehicular traffic over pedestrian traffic, whereas a hierarchical street network with broad and straight connecting streets and narrower and more windy local streets in combination with an appropriate land-use distribution promotes a differentiation of modes of transportation from vehicular to pedestrian. 23 In combination, a sustainable urban structure is likely to be one of dispersed concentration of highly integrated local neighbourhoods interspersed with green areas.…”

“…Narrow streets may provide shade, and trees and other vegetation may provide cooling through evaporation. 23…”

“…While a high floor area ratio of the building mass may provide a viable density for the provision of local services, open spaces allow for vegetation which, in turn, may provide a more comfortable living environment due to shading, cooling and filtering of air particles. 23 Green spaces need not all be recreational such as parks and plazas but may be productive in the form of urban gardening and farming and can additionally be spaces in which communities can come together.…”