Reflection Group A: Tran

Course Reflection

This course gave me insight on the architecture, engineering, and construction industry through the lens of different guests’ speakers. These presentations and discussions provided me with an idea of the future for buildings. It made me evaluate my skills and how it could be best used. Additionally, it informed me of what skills are in demands, signaling me to pay attention to what I should be considering on improving on in the job market. One particular presentation on business and client relationships struck me as extremely interesting. It provided to me perhaps with a more jaded perspective, however, the struggles are real. Academics and education provides students with idealized beliefs in creativity, innovation, and how it interfaces with design. However, the stark reality of entering the job market and becoming a slave to clients who are not so concerned with real energy savings (rather sustainability marketing) was a little demoralizing. Nonetheless, I learned that energy savings are tailored to individual buildings and its operations. It taught me that the design process is a small fraction of the bigger picture. It showed me that there should be bigger emphasis on considering building operations and how to improve upon the control system. I thought this was a great segue into the database part of the course. Though it was a bit banal, I think it provided me with technical and theory based knowledge on building a database. It made me think: how can I use this tool to help me design?

The culmination of BIM, sensors, databases, and intelligent buildings has resulted in a design endeavor that goes beyond this course. Upon working on my term project- I realized some missing links and weaknesses of Revit, especially pertaining to mechanical design. Most engineers would think twice before using Revit for load calculations, despite its capabilities. This is largely because it is not reliable. So a lot of mechanical engineers tend to tediously input information from Revit into Trane TRACE to conduct calculations. This process I have realized is extremely fragmented and can be dealt with more efficiently. How exactly? I’m not sure. However, I think course has provided me with some immense building blocks to solve that issue. My future intent is to try and streamline mechanical calculations by extract the necessary ingredients from Revit models. 

Comments:
Comment on Flint's Post 

Comment on Aikin's Post 

B5: Janet Tran Group A

  Relational Database Theory

   

In 1970 a mathematician Edgar F. Codd, published the concept that would allow people to access information from databases without having to know how they are structured. Common relational database software are Microsoft Access and Oracle. 

To understand the basic concepts there are a few key terms to identify. A database can be defined as one that contains one or more tables of information. The rows within a table are referred to as records and the columns are referred to as fields or attributes. A relational database requires two or more related tables. Sometimes in order to increase efficiency and reduce error normalizing data is required. This involves dividing information into multiple tables that are organized differently so that there is not redundant information. Primary keys are values within a field that are composed of all unique values. For instance if a table has fields: student identification number, age, and degree. The primary key in this case is student identification number because there is not repeated value, each student has a unique identification number. When normalizing data the tables are structured as either parent, child, or orphan. When two tables have an unequal relationship, the independent one is referred to as the parent and the dependent one is the called the child. However, if there a record within the child table that does not appear in the parent table, that record is called an orphan. The number of records in one table that can be related to the records of another is table is identified as cardinality. 

The major advantage and use of relational models is its uniformity. All value stored in a table is organized to comply with the same structure. That is each record (row) are formatted the exact same. However, the fields can be unique to each primary key. Additionally, data is only stored once and allows for more efficient storage of information. It also allows for better security since data can be organized into multiple tables. This separation allows one to limit access to certain tables.

Works Cited

[1] http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/reldb/

[2]http://webs.wofford.edu/whisnantdm/Courses/CS101/PDF/Database/Relational_database_concepts.pdf

Student Comments

Comment on Schroeder's post
Comment on Redus' post 

B4: Janet Tran Group A

Term Project Description

My term project will be an individual that will be related to my senior design project. My design project consists of building a new library for Drexel to suit the needs of contemporary students. I will be using Revit to create a 3-dimensional explicit architectural model of my building. This will allow me to easily create sections, elevations, plans, and 3-dimensional interior and exterior views. Additionally, Revit will also be used to document the mechanical system and create schematic design drawings. Since Revit takes much less effort in drafting duct-layouts than CAD software, I anticipate it will allow me to focus more on design and less on drafting. Additionally, upon sizing and selecting equipment I will be using manufacture's download-able families that interface its specifications. Both drawings and schedules will be made using Revit. This should also allow for a more fluid process between selection, design, and documentation.

 The usefulness of Revit is that is provides and explicit 3-dimensional representation of the building. More traditional software such as AutoCAD is a mere drafting tool that has dimensional limitations. Creating a Revit model forces think about coordination and how the various building systems interact. Although I am not the architect this exercise will allow me to think and take the architectural design into consideration in order to integrate my mechanical design in a more thoughtful way. In addition, it gets me to think about the other systems such as the structural, electrical, and plumbing. 

This project will extend beyond schematic design because I will be providing zone-by-zone load calculations and identify each specific area’s load and system type applications. Unlike the structural system the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system is most likely going to consist of at least more than one type of system. I also intend on beginning ductwork layouts of the building, which is a step more in the design development process rather than the schematic design phase. Though I am not creating an intelligent building, I think these exercises will help advance my skills in the use of Revit. Having never taking a course specifically focused on this program I want to take the opportunity to develop this skill, largely because it becoming an industry standard skill. Once, I am able to establish a fundamental knowledge base it will allow me to really explore other plugin features that are more advanced, such as energy analysis and load calculations. From my understanding most mechanical engineers do not perform calculations in Revit due to its limitations. However, I want to explore this limitation in the future and see how I can use Revit to streamline the design process and make it more efficient.

Student Blog Comments

Comment on AJ Kuzniarowicz's Post

Comment on Mohammed Alqallaf's Post

A3: Group A Janet Tran

BIM and the Future

           I think that something that has always been and will continue to be a problem with the usage of Revit is the complexity of models out pacing available computing power. With so many disciplines involved in the design process from architect, electrical engineers, mechanical engineer, plumbers, telecommunications, security, to structural engineer, it becomes quite an extensive linked file. However, a potential emerging solution to this predication is cloud computing. Cloud computing is essentially just renting processing power and storage space on a virtual server at a remote datacenter, which can be accessed via the Internet. This will ultimately result in the need for more datacenters and will create a growing market for the construction of such commercial buildings. Companies such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Autodesk (itself) have already made this technology available.

            As Revit becomes more useful and beneficial to the owner and contractor, it has also become burdensome for designers. It is becoming a new industry standard to execute design utilizing Revit in order to prevent crashes and is especially useful for MEP coordination. However, it requires a certain learning curve where people will become less efficient documenting the design as it requires learning new software. Consequently, the already low designers fee will be squeezed even more tightly, while inexperienced employees transition. As Huw Roberts suggested it would become more important that employees not just be a good designer (engineer, architect, contractor, etc.), but also technologically literate. This could be problematic for unwilling-to-learn employees, as their old jobs start to shift toward new expectations and responsibilities. Furthermore, there have been liability claims against architects who willingly choose not to use Revit software because they did not want to pay for thousand dollars upgrades. Lawyers argue that designers are being negligent for using widely known Revit products that could help prevent design defects.

            Others forms of BIM software use in mechanical design are Trane TRACE 700, EQuest, Ecotect, etc. As Huw Roberts said in class professions are going to rely less on people’s knowledge and more on technology such as BIM. However, I would argue that only a qualified engineer, who also understands the fundamentals, would be able to analyze the output meaningfully. In essence, you need to understand the fundamentals to understand whether the results are even valid. It seems an over-reliance on software can pose future issues.  

References

[1] http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=17136545

[2] http://constructionlawva.com/bim-and-revit-way-to-future/

[3] http://www.hetnationaalbimplatform.nl/files/pages/294_benefits-and-barriers-of-building-information-modelling.pdf

Comments

Comment on Derek Zaccheo's post 

Comment on William Whitesell's post 

B1: Group A- Janet Tran

            Artificial intelligence has a wide range of applications; however, the common motive among all is to create a system that “do[es] well things that humans do poorly or don’t like to do.” There are various near term factors that dictate how quickly artificial intelligence will permeate a particular field/industry. Mainly, with any type of new technology, capital is required. As professor Mitchell mentioned, the architecture and construction industry is lagging behind aviation. This fact is partly due to little cash flowing into the research and development of new methods for construction. Additionally, the long-term future of AI will evaluated based on how economically valuable it is and its ease of use.

            My opinion is that the use of artificial intelligence and robots in the construction industry can greatly reduce building costs. The obvious reason is that, human labor can either be reduce or eliminated completely. However, the social and economic implications are not without concern. Construction is a very costly business largely due to the risks that are involved. Human casualties have always been a topic of concern, especially as building designs continue to push the limits. The top four fatal causes (2012) were 36% falls, 10% being struck by objects, 9% electrocution, and 2% being caught between objects. In the future robots could be implemented in ways that reduce human risk and improve safety. Workers compensation costs can be reduced, if robots replace unsafe human labor.

            We already see AI in the form of computing between networks in contemporary architecture. As energy becomes a more pressing crisis, I believe the continued development of building automation system (BAS) will accelerate. Building automation systems are implements to allow the building to operate in response to its environment. No longer do the various building systems operate in a steady state. These logic based control systems allow the building to become transient. For example window-shading devices propagate depending on occupant needs. Energy consumption can be minimized while also meeting cooling and heating demands. I think the future of AI in relation to solving society’s energy issues lies in logic based computer software. The way in which a building operates most efficiently is dependent on a series of cost-benefit decisions. Since the architectural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, etc. systems are all integrated. Therefore, improving the performance of one may sequentially compromises others. The future of high performance buildings will exploit artificial intelligence, computer software, and sensors to allow the building to operate autonomously. I see the future of buildings as a transient living structure able to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of various sequences of operations in real time for an improved net efficiency. The basis of computer software is to facilitate the building operation, which involves loops of various if-then statements; finally to arrive at a position of most optimal performance. The reason computer software is because, though humans have the logic, it is necessary that these large volume decisions be made very quickly. The issues that BAS systems seek to deal with are dependent on owner needs. ASHRAE has outlined various topics as shown below.

BAS computer software and control systems can address these issues. Studies suggest that computer software and human service used in conjunction can potentially solve the world's problems. The idea is that humans are better than machines at specific tasks that are apart of the large picture solution. With computer intelligence micro-tasks can be assigned to a large source of humans power among a large network and then reframed and stitched back together to arrive at an answer or solution. Though this may not solve climate change, disease, or geopolitical conflicts, the concept of sourcing human computation can create a new unprecedented flexible collaborative environment.  Additionally, of course with the growing need of computing power and data storage, this will result in the growth of data centers. 

[1] Article: Evolution, Sociobiology, and the Future of Artificial Intelligence 
Author: Waltz, David

[2] http://ehstoday.com/construction/fatal-four-safety-construction-industry-infographic

[3] http://ashraeny.org/wp-content/uploads/February-2015-Building-Automation-Systems.pdf

[4] http://www.kurzweilai.net/can-human-machine-superintelligence-solve-the-worlds-most-dire-problems

Student Comments

Comment on Redus' blog post

Comment on Shield's blog post

Comment on Schroeder's blog post

Week 1 videos

What changed between the first and second?

There seemed to be a large difference between the first and second in terms of the fluidity of the motion. The first structure relied on precise movements, whereas the second flowed in relation to both the ropes and the other drones. The second structure also showed greater promise for teamwork, with both drones working in close proximity of each other. These three improvements combine to create a more feasible building process, however it did lean heavily on human constructed elements.

What implications does this have for the future of our industry?

• Speed up time 
• React to environment
• More feasible structure
• Safer, possibility of creating tethers for harnesses
• Can work at great heights 
• Inspection work, not necessarily construction

An Introduction by Janet Tran

I am a 5-year Architectural Engineering student concentrating in mechanical/HVAC system design. My academic interest involves understanding solar heat gains of buildings. As energy becomes more of a social and political issue, I find it important to apply my expertise to contribute to finding solutions.

I wish to learn what the types of building intelligence already exists and continue to develop. I hope to use this knowledge inspire ideas in the development of an envelope that is responsive to its transient environment.

Intelligent buildings are defined as a a living structure in which logic is embedded within, so that it is able to produce output given defined inputs. 

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