Convergence

CHAPTER 3ANALYTICS AND MODELS

The way you want to make a city today is one that creates convergence. It’s probably the most important thing architecture can do. —Bruce Kuwabara¹

What does it mean that there is a noticeable convergence between analytics and models? That digital building models have the capacity to be more than 3D virtual representations of buildings? That virtual models increasingly incorporate a feedback loop—through simulation, analysis, and optimization—that not only informs designers but can also influence design outcomes? In this chapter, we’ll look at some of the ways in which analytics and models are converging and what that means for design and construction.

One example of convergence between analytics and modeling is in the design phase: Based on the design criteria, a model can be set up to turn green when the designer is working within the constraints and to turn red when she exceeds them. Here, it is important to note that the data and analytics don’t require separate data visualization. The model itself serves as the data viz in real time. In doing so, the data—and subsequent analytics—not only inform the design and designer, but over time improve the designer’s ability to design within parameters, design criteria, and predetermined constraints.

INTEGRATED ANALYTICS

Yun Kyu Yi, Assistant Professor at University of Pennsylvania School of Design, acknowledges that there are trade-offs when using one modeling method over another. For example, is ...