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15:30   Adaptable Futures II Chair: Almudena Fuster 15:30 20 mins OPEN BUILDING AND ROLE OF CRAFTMANSHIP IN ANCIENT CHINA - A HISTORICAL LITERATURE INTERPRETATION OF CONSTRUCTION Yingying Jiang, Beisi Jia Abstract: The open building, although a new term of architecture that appeared at the end of the 20th century, is not a new concept as far as traditional Chinese architecture is concerned. Traditional Chinese construction can be technically divided into several levels, including the main structure and infill construction elements. The technical independence of these levels has been proven to have large flexibility and adaptability, and has allowed changes and improvements in structure space and function through generations. This paper discusses the relationship between the main building structures, infill elements, and space through examples in ancient China. It then describes the roles of owners, users, and craftsmen via examples from historical records. In studying these examples, this paper concludes that the craftsmen in ancient China are not merely involved in the period of construction but also in the whole period of use. Thus, the relationship between craftsmen and owners or users can continue for generations in some cases. Finally, this paper suggests one possible strategy for the building industry and technology in the context of sustainable development. 15:50 20 mins INVESTING IN POSSIBILITIES Wiechert Schenk, Hilde Remøy, Peter De Jong Abstract: Transformation of office buildings into housing or other functions is a possible way of dealing with structurally vacant office buildings, albeit previous research shows that there are many obstacles to be thrived. Most of the obstacles consider technical, functional and legal aspects of transformation, finally influencing the financial feasibility of transformation projects negatively. Although in the Netherlands several successful transformations of offices into housing were completed, transformations do not take place on a large scale. In addition to the location characteristics, the main reasons are the estimated financial non-feasibility, caused by high costs of acquiring the existing structure and high transformation costs. Hence, when developing new office buildings it seems logical to already consider a second use and anticipate upon future programmatic transformation. Designing and developing adaptability has been opted for during the last 40 years, but is still not very popular in the development of neither offices nor housing. Is it possible to anticipate future programmatic change? To which extent will anticipation on future possibilities influence building costs? Are real estate investors willing to invest in buildings with alternative future possibilities? By reviewing existing studies we gather information about the building costs of transformations and the possible changes to allow for enhanced future adaptability. Henceforth, we study the building and transformation design and costs for new office buildings by design, focusing on two standard office building types, the tower and the slab, using the cost-model Parap. As a final step, we discuss the willingness to invest in future adaptability and the investors’ social responsibility in a sustainability context by reviewing our research results in a focus group interview with real estate investors. 16:10 20 mins USER INVOLVEMENT IN THE DESIGN PROCESS OF MULTIFUNCTIONAL BUILDINGS K. Oijevaar, M. Jovanovic, Ad den Otter Abstract: Nowadays user involvement in design processes often is lacking due to the growing number of parties and specialists that participate. As easy as it used to be in former times for architects to get users involved, as difficult it became nowadays. Lacking user involvement might cause function and performance problems afterwards. Based on user involvement problems a Dutch architectural design firm faced a research project was started by the authors. The goal of the project was to explore the most effective and efficient way of user involvement in the design of multifunctional schools. These are also known as broad schools. The outcomes showed that for adequate user involvement specific forms of involvement are needed. The findings also show that a flexible system which adjusts itself to the different phases and tasks is needed. Based on this, a tool has been developed for the architectural firm. This opens the possibility for quick observations and decisions to involve users in a specific phase of the design. By using the tool, the architects get an overview on the needed type of user involvement, the frequency of the involvement and the type of user involvement for the next phase. The outcomes and the tool developed have been discussed by a panel of Dutch experts. The paper finalizes with conclusions and recommendations for further research. 16:30 20 mins A PARADIGM SHIFT TOWARDS IN WHOLE LIFE ANALYSIS FOR ADAPTABLE BUILDINGS Anupa Manewa, Christine Pasquire, Alistair Gibb, Robert Schmidt Abstract: Economic evaluation is a significant consideration in the initiation of a facility. This evaluation process should take into account all costs, benefits and performance associated with a facility in its through life cycle. There are a number of techniques available for economic evaluation, however, the practical application is poor in most of the techniques. Whole Life Analysis (WLA) is identified as a comprehensive approach for economic evaluation. At present there is a growing trend towards designing buildings to be more adaptable within the UK property market. Hence, economic evaluation of adaptable buildings needs to be undertaken as early as possible for appropriate long term decisions. This paper examines the paradigm shift required for a WLA approach for adaptable buildings while identifying the benefits and barriers of its practical application. A comprehensive literature review was undertaken to analyse how WLA could be used as a decision support technique for adaptable buildings. Literature reveals WLA as one of the best decision support techniques for use in the building industry, and it seems logical to adopt it for adaptable buildings. However, detailed economic evaluation remains an untapped area within adaptable buildings. Being involved in the ‘Adaptable Futures’ research project at Loughborough University, the authors have blended their thoughts with available literature and attempt to identify how important in undertaking WLA is for an adaptable facility while identifying the barriers of current applications. Stakeholder input is crucial towards the betterment of WLA particularly concerning its understanding and application in adaptable buildings. 16:50 20 mins BUILDING COSTS FOR CONVERTING OFFICE BUILDINGS; UNDERSTANDING BUILDING COSTS BY MODELLING Roderik Mackay, Hilde Remøy, Peter de Jong Abstract: Converting office buildings into residential buildings is a way of solving the problems of both an office space surplus and a housing space shortage. In actual practice, however, conversions are not that manageable. Along with other problems and uncertainties, such as high book values of office buildings and the fact that most office buildings are located on mono-functional office parks, insufficient knowledge of building costs is misused as a key argument for not converting office buildings into residential buildings. In this study, we developed a building cost model for conversion projects, based on 18 completed conversions from offices into dwellings, all located in the Netherlands. This article describes the modelling of the building costs of conversion by splitting them into relevant variables and a statistical approach to demonstrate the correlation between the variables. The elaborated case studies have shown interesting figures with regard to the effect of specific building elements on total building costs of conversion, although the results were found to be insignificant when testing the model. We consider this a modelling problem and, in ongoing and future studies, we will consider different modelling approaches by re-using the input that we assembled in this study.