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One of a kind : how can feng shui design principles respond and contribute to a safe and supportive care environment for people with dementia?
No full textIn 2001, there were 48,000 dementia sufferers in New Zealand. This figure increased to 62,000 in 2016 and it is estimated that it will reach 170,000 by the year 2050.
Dementia is a progressive disease that leads to gradual changes and an eventual deterioration in memory due to the physical deterioration of the brain tissue, which impacts the individual’s ability to think, behave, and to perform everyday activities. Currently, unfortunately an effective cure is yet to be discovered.
In the past, patients would normally end up in hospital facilities and be treated in the medical model of care, which is lacking in personalisation, maximising individual wellbeing, and social aspects, discourages independence and affects the health of the special care setting.
Feng Shui has made a significant contribution to design in the Eastern world for centuries and emphasises that harmony between nature and the surroundings enhance human health. It is the primary objective of this research project to investigate how well Feng Shui can help to improve existing conditions and maximise a person’s wellbeing and independence and contribute to architecture to create an ideal care environment for dementia in the urban environment.
The focus is to design a dementia facility, a place that prioritises dementia patients to not just live but living as safe and harmonious lives as possible. This is done by incorporating the Feng Shui principles of Yin and Yang, and the five elements, Bagua, Chi, Box within the box principle, the Feng Shui garden, and the ideal Feng Shui Site; which help create a safe, caring and supportive environment, enforce their personhood, encourage social interaction, privacy, connection with nature for health benefits and reduce the impact of dementia.
The research starts off on the siting principles of Feng Shui that can help to design a safe and supportive care facility for people with dementia. This is followed by research in the field of dementia and the effect of dementia on the interpretation of spaces. The project demonstrates the Feng Shui principles’ response to dementia needs. The complex meets dementia needs, and then the design of individual units suit the individual dementia patient’s needs.
Site: Madeira Lane, Grafto
Human form, architectural tools & unorthodox spaces
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
“How do representations of the human figure used as design tools in architecture affect the form of architecture and, hence, the behaviours that form produces?”
ABSTRACT:
This project considers how representations of the human figure are used as design tools, and how these design tools affect our architecture. Artists, architects, and theorists have identified the physical characteristics of the human body and utilised them as tools throughout history. Leonardo Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man represents the natural order of the body through a detailed drawing. Such illustrations are essential in our architectural environment. They represent fundamental characteristics that can be applied to our built environment and teach us about the functional movement of the body in the spaces we design. This project identifies the constraints arising from the use of such a functionalist approach. It then explores the opportunities available to a designer who uses an expanded repertoire of tools to represent the body.
Architecture affects the behaviours of its occupants, and those behaviours affect their mental and physical wellbeing. The representations of the human form seen in Neufert’s Architects’ Data and Le Corbusier’s Le Modulor prioritise functional efficiency and aim to produce a rational architecture that caters to the user and their immediate needs. As a result, interactions with such a rational form becomes habitual and mundane.
The project further explores design tools generated through analysing the movement of dancers in Oskar Schlemmer’s Triadic Ballet, a valuable theoretical performance that embodies the principles of Bauhaus. The design process has produced an architecture that encourages its users to break with habitual behaviours and enjoy a more enriched experience.
The recent shift of the Architecture programme from Building 001 to the smaller Building 048 has left students and teaching staff with limited space for critiques, meetings and study. The grassy slope in front of B048 would be an ideal location for a new multi-use space that could support all these activities while demonstrating a method that produces an enriched architecture
Customer service gaps : a case study of small automotive service centres in Auckland, New Zealand
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
How deep is the customer service gap in the automotive after-market service industry in New Zealand?
ABSTRACT:
Auckland New Zealand has 1,791 automotive repair workshops, of which the majority are owner operated and employ few people. The presentation will describe a research project undertaken to investigate the gap between current customer service and good customer service practices which can lead to improved business outcomes. The research was initiated by the authors in response to data collected by groups of students as part of their study in a level 6 course in a degree programme. Twenty-six reports from a seven-year period were used to extract data. Qualitative methodology was used to analyse data as the reports were diverse and complex, and often subjective. The research revealed gaps between customer expectations and the service that the workshops provided. Key findings included workshop employees having the dual role of technicians as well as customer care, and that most workshops studied did not have dedicated space for customers to wait in, therefore exposing them to the operation of the workshop. The exposure of the customers leaves the person conducting the business of the workshop open for litigation and penalties which may impact on the economic viability of the business. Recommendations for industry stakeholders include training of staff who face customers, creating a safe waiting area and keeping customers out of harm’s way. A recommendation is also made that the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment conduct regular compliance checks of these small service providers to eliminate malpractices and create a safe work environment.
The presentation reflects on the nature of student research in the workplace, referencing the underpinning values of Kaitiakitanga (Guardianship of knowledge) and Mahi Kotahitanga (Cooperation) which guided the project
Review of digital technologies to improve productivity of New Zealand construction industry
No full textThe New Zealand construction industry continues to face pressures to improve productivity and lower construction costs. With the need to build more houses and infrastructure, quicker, to high quality and on time, there is a need to upscale the use of advanced technologies. Going digital is a solution that can transform the construction industry by improving productivity measures. The objectives of this paper are to:
1 Identify the availability of transformative technologies and their potential impact on productivity improvement across the construction life cycle and,
2. To investigate the benefits and barriers to technology-uptake in New Zealand construction.
This paper is a review of digital technologies that analyzes their impact on productivity across the construction life cycle. As a basis for analysis, the digital technologies are isolated into three key productivity improvement functions:
(1) Ubiquitous Digital Access,
(2) Whole Building Whole-of-Life (WBWOL) decision\ making, and
(3) Cost Reduction Engineering.
This study is a literature-based theoretical exploration, aimed at signifying digitization as a function of productivity performance in the New Zealand construction industry. From a practical perspective, clients and contractors may be convinced to invest in digital technologies, increasing or accelerating uptake and more fully realizing the benefits digital technologies could add to productivity performance, growth and long-term success. This study may provide useful information for researchers regarding the development of case studies by analyzing organizations that implement technological innovations, their successful actions/processes, barriers overcoming actions, and sources of new ideas
Agar Agar : a practice and theory of cultural hybridity in contemporary art
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
What can auto-ethnography and the concepts of Agar Agar and hybridity contribute to a contemporary art practice?
ABSTRACT:
The purpose of this research is to explore the ideas of Agar Agar and cultural hybridity within a practice-based and auto-ethnographic approach in contemporary art. Painting and artistic practice provide me with the means to work through and understand experiences of fluidity, difference and cultural identity within the context of New Zealand. The project and resulting body of creative work provide an answer to the question: What can auto-ethnography and the concepts of Agar Agar and hybridity contribute to a contemporary painting practice
Forecasting accuracy of Holt-Winters Exponential Smoothing : evidence from New Zealand.
No full textFinancial time series is volatile, dynamic, nonlinear, nonparametric, and chaotic. Accurate forecasting of stock market prices and indices is always challenging and complex endeavour in time series analysis. Accurate predictions of stock market price movements could bring benefits to different types of investors and other stakeholders to make the right trading strategies.
Adopting a technical analysis perspective, this study examines the predictive power of Holt-Winters Exponential Smoothing (HWES) methodology by testing the models on the New Zealand stock market (S&P/NZX50) Index. Daily time-series data ranging from January 2009 to December 2017 are used in this study. The forecasting performance of the investigated models is evaluated using the root mean square error (RMSE], mean absolute error (MAE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE).
Employing HWES on the undifferenced S&P/NZX50 Index (model 1) and HWES on the differenced S&P/NZX50 Index (model 2) we find that model 1 is the superior predictive algorithm for the experimental dataset. When the tested models are evaluated overtime of the sample period we find the supportive evidence to our original findings. The evaluated HWES models could be employed effectively to predict the time series of other stock markets or the same index for diverse periods (windows) if substantiate algorithm training is carried out
He kāinga rua : a home away from home
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
How can Māori students be better supported through purpose-built housing?
SUB-QUESTIONS:
How has colonisation impacted Māori education outcomes?
What are the barriers and challenges Māori students continue to face and what are their needs for success?
How can indigenous architecture improve Māori student experiences of tertiary education?
WHAKARĀPOPOTO (ABSTRACT)
Māori professionals play a fundamental role in the growing aspirations of our communities. From health and wellbeing to economic and social development, it is evident that having Māori representation in all professional industries is essential in developing a truly bi-cultural society in Aotearoa.
For generations Māori have been marginalised within a Eurocentric education system creating various disparities and unequal opportunities for Māori. Treaty settlements and unrelenting Māori leadership have ensured a modest but significant Māori presence within tertiary education. Additionally, the increase in Māori student support programmes and initiatives has had a considerable impact on the number of Māori enrolling and completing tertiary qualifications. However, despite these positive steps forward, Māori continue to be under represented and face various hardships that inhibit their ability to complete tertiary study. This includes a lack of appropriate support, role models, housing and money
This research examines these barriers to study through a historical exploration of Māori education and accommodation and interviews with current and past. Māori students. It also recognises the impact of preceding support schemes such as the trade training hostels which provided space for Māori in what had become a dominantly Pākehā world. Whilst these hostels were architecturally colonial and, in some ways, proposed as a means of racial assimilation, they ultimately created comradery, safety and a sense of belonging for Māori away from their homelands. Furthermore, the hostels highlighted the positive effect secure housing can have on a student’s ability to succeed and grow.
Using a Kaupapa Māori framework, the data gathered through these methods has been analysed to answer the question; how can Māori students be better supported through purpose-built housing? The design solution is a residential building that offers a holistic, supportive environment for Māori students to not only live and learn but thrive. It considers Māori ways of living, the diversity of Māori students, and the need to feel grounded and supported when away from home. The aim of this research is to create space for Māori in tertiary education and work towards mitigating the various negative impacts of colonisation
A regenerative manifesto
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
How can a regenerative methodology be applied to the design of an architectural school to influence a positive environmental change in the wider industry?
SCOPE & LIMITATIONS:
This project is an exploration of how a regenerative methodology can be applied to architectural education in order to provide a facility which sparks a change to a more sustainable and resilient industry of the built environment. Exploring regenerative theories and frameworks throughout a design process is the main subject of the research. The Mount Albert campus of Unitec Institute of Technology provides the context for this investigation. The real-world redesign and development of the campus is not the cause or focus of the project and does not reflect Unitec’s intent for the site. Instead, the campus acts as a canvas upon which the research can shape its exploration in a real-world context.
While exploration into the cultural processes and history of the site is essential for this project, the cultural considerations are based on research and existing resources instead of personal collaboration with mana whenua. This is because the research prioritises regenerative research to generate a new methodology for design. A real- world project requires intensive collaboration with local iwi, as well as the wider communities and stakeholders of the place.
While the research considers the programme and educational systems in architecture, this is in response to the regenerative methodology and is not a driver of the research. Throughout the project, the highest priority is given to generating a theoretical outcome for a resilient, inspirational and regenerative design outcome
Teaching and supervising talanoa research methodology
No full textThis presentation explores the scope of Talanoa research methodology as taught in the Master of Applied Practice (MAP) –Social Practice at Unitec.
Context
Talanoa methodology
Values of talanoa (Pan-Pacific)
Principles of talanoa research
Talona as methodology and method
The scope of talona methodology
Reference
Oranga tonutanga : sustained Māori wellbeing
No full textRESEARCH QUESTION:
How can a wellbeing facility promote urban Māori Identity and wellbeing?
Sub questions:
How has colonisation and urbanisation impacted Māori Wellbeing and
architecture?
What are the determinants of Māori wellbeing?
How can a wellbeing facility reflect Māori health approaches, and facilitate the sustained wellbeing of urban Māori?
ABSTRACT:
Colonisation has left devastating effects on the Indigenous people of Aotearoa, and although much time has passed, the effects and systems of colonisation still remain. Justified by the colonisers ‘noble’ intentions, Māori have been discriminated against and forced to assimilate into a foreign system that does not take into account their unique history, cultural beliefs, or practices. This has resulted in the overall suppression of Māori culture, language and identity; which has seen a further decline due to the effects of urbanisation. Statistical analysis and research have highlighted the negative impact of this on Māori wellbeing and identity, the health sector being a significant contributor.
Research has identified a secure cultural identity as a necessary pre-requisite in improving Māori wellbeing. Despite this, healthcare approaches remain predominantly western driven. Operating on a ‘one size fits all’ basis, these approaches deny Māori identity, worldviews and voices, and as a result, perpetuate the continued disempowerment of Māori communities. This growing realisation has seen the establishment of Kaupapa Māori driven health services and units. However, these continue to be housed in western building typologies that do not reflect, and often times conflict with Māori tikanga, identity, and practices.
This research acknowledges the colonial history of NZ, and the detrimental effects this has had, and continues to have on Māori wellbeing today. This approach seeks to analyse and validate traditional and modern Māori health approaches, in correlation to Māori identity. Due to the significant effects of urbanisation, and high concentration of Māori in Tāmaki Makaurau, there will be a specific focus on urban Māori.
Utilising a Kaupapa Māori approach, this research examines the two fields of Māori architecture and wellbeing to answer the question: How can a Wellbeing facility promote Urban Māori Identity and Wellbeing? The solution is a purpose-built Māori wellbeing facility centred on Māori health approaches, that supports the sustained wellbeing of Māori, and reflects the community and place it is designed for. Based at the marae, the wellbeing facility will reconnect urban Māori to Te Ao Māori, empower the autonomy of Māori communities, and support marae in providing their community programmes.
Site: Manurewa Marae, Auckland