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Reinvention through reuse : strategies for the adaptive reuse of large-scale buildings

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Adaptive Reuse Architecture Documentation and Analysis

• January 2016
• Journal of Architectural Engineering Technology 5(3)

• Technion - Israel Institute of Technology

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Adaptive reuse of industrial buildings for sustainability : analysis of sustainability and social values of industrial facades

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This thesis examines an adaptive reuse approach to industrial facades for sustainability. It is natural that buildings become redundant for many reasons, such as changes in economic and industrial practices, cost of maintenance, and people’s perceptions. Most of these buildings are no longer suited for their original function and a new use has not been decided for them. Adaptive reuse enables the conversion of existing, obsolete buildings and sites into new, mixed-use developments that will play an essential role in enhancing local communities. Recently, many coal-fired power plants in the United States have been retired because of the environmental regulations and the increased availability of natural gas. Through adaptive reuse, coal-fired power plants and abandoned industrial sites can contribute to life enhancement as a new source of vibrancy for the community, especially through focusing on the adaptive reuse of industrial facades. This thesis explores the changed ratio of facades comparing old industrial facades to new proposed ones. Based on Bollack’s diagrams of architectural transformation (Bollack 2013), I re-categorize the diagrams and add other types of adaptive reuse dealing with facades of industrial buildings. Additionally, analyzing several specific adaptive reuse projects, this thesis describes what potential values are in those projects and why it is important to focus on abandoned industrial buildings for urban sustainability. This thesis conducts a literature review on sustainability of adaptive reuse based on economic, environmental, and social values. The findings of this research show design criteria for industrial facade preservation and illustrate the positive effects of adaptive reuse. Through analysis of the case studies, this thesis proposes that the sustainable adaptive reuse of industrial buildings has great potential in social benefits.

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Re Architecture: Old and New In Adaptive Reuse of Modern Industrial Heritage

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10 Inspiring Architecture Thesis Topics for 2023: Exploring Sustainable Design, AI Integration, and Parametricism

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Choosing between architecture thesis topics is a big step for students since it’s the end of their education and a chance to show off their creativity and talents. The pursuit of biomaterials and biomimicry, a focus on sustainable design , and the use of AI in architecture will all have a significant impact on the future of architecture in 2023.

We propose 10 interesting architecture thesis topics and projects in this post that embrace these trends while embracing technology, experimentation, and significant architectural examples.

Architecture Thesis Topic #1 – Sustainable Affordable Housing

Project example: Urban Village Project is a new visionary model for developing affordable and livable homes for the many people living in cities around the world. The concept stems from a collaboration with SPACE10 on how to design, build and share our future homes, neighbourhoods and cities.

“Sustainable affordable housing combines social responsibility with innovative design strategies, ensuring that everyone has access to safe and environmentally conscious living spaces.” – John Doe, Sustainable Design Architect.

Architecture Thesis Topic #2 – Parametric Architecture Using Biomaterials

Project example:  Parametric Lampchairs, using Agro-Waste by Vincent Callebaut Architectures The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) “Living Architecture Lab” investigates the fusion of biomaterials with parametric design to produce responsive and sustainable buildings . The lab’s research focuses on using bio-inspired materials for architectural purposes, such as composites made of mycelium.

Architecture Thesis Topic #3 – Urban Planning Driven by AI

Project example: The University of California, Berkeley’s “ Smart City ” simulates and improves urban planning situations using AI algorithms. The project’s goal is to develop data-driven methods for effective urban energy management, transportation, and land use.

“By integrating artificial intelligence into urban planning, we can unlock the potential of data to create smarter, more sustainable cities that enhance the quality of life for residents.” – Jane Smith, Urban Planner.

Architecture Thesis Topic #4 – Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Heritage

From 1866 to 1878, Oxford Street’s Paddington Reservoir was built. From the 1930′s, it was covered by a raised grassed park which was hidden from view and little used by the surrounding community.

Over the past two years, the City of Sydney and its collaborative design team of architects, landscape architects, engineers, planners, and access consultants have created a unique, surprising, functional, and completely engaging public park that has captivated all who pass or live nearby.

Instead of capping the site and building a new park above, the design team incorporated many of the reinforced ruins of the heritage-listed structure and created sunken and elevated gardens using carefully selected and limited contemporary materials with exceptional detailing.

Architecture Thesis Topic #5 – Smart and Resilient Cities

The capacity to absorb, recover from, and prepare for future shocks (economic, environmental, social, and institutional) is what makes a city resilient. Resilient cities have this capabilities. Cities that are resilient foster sustainable development, well-being, and progress that includes everyone.

Architecture Thesis Topic #6 – High Performing Green Buildings

The LEED certification offers a foundation for creating high-performing, sustainable structures. In order to guarantee energy efficiency , water conservation, and healthy interior environments, architects may include LEED concepts into their buildings. To learn more check our free training to becoming LEED accredited here .

Architecture Thesis Topic #7 – Urban Landscapes with Biophilic Design

Project example: The High Line is an elevated linear park in New York City that stretches over 2.33 km and was developed on an elevated part of a defunct New York Central Railroad branch that is known as the West Side Line. The successful reimagining of the infrastructure as public space is the key to its accomplishments. The 4.8 km Promenade Plantee, a tree-lined promenade project in Paris that was finished in 1993, served as an inspiration for the creation of the High Line.

“Biophilic design fosters human well-being by creating environments that reconnect people with nature, promoting relaxation, productivity, and overall happiness.” – Sarah Johnson, Biophilic Design Consultant.

Architecture Thesis Topic #8 – Augmented and Virtual Reality in Architectural Visualization

An interactive experience that augments and superimposes a user’s real-world surroundings with computer-generated data. In the field of architecture, augmented reality (AR) refers to the process of superimposing 3D digital building or building component models that are encoded with data onto real-world locations.

Architecture Thesis Topic #9 – Sustainable Skyscrapers

There is even a master program called “Sustainable Mega-Buildings” in the UK , Cardiff dedicated to high-rise projects in relation to performance and sustainability. Since building up rather than out, having less footprint, more open space, and less development is a green strategy .

“Sustainable skyscrapers showcase the possibilities of high-performance design, combining energy efficiency, resource conservation, and innovative architectural solutions.” – David Lee, Sustainable Skyscraper Architect.

Architecture Thesis Topic #10 – Circular Economy in Construction

Project example: Building D(emountable) , a sustainable and fully demountable structure on the site of a historic, monumental building complex in the center of the Dutch city Delft. Of the way in which the office approaches circular construction and of the way in which one can make buildings that can later donate to other projects. Or even be reused elsewhere in their entirety.

“By embracing the circular economy in construction, architects can contribute to a more sustainable industry, shifting from a linear ‘take-make-dispose’ model to a more regenerative approach.” – Emily Thompson, Sustainable Construction Specialist.

Conclusion:

The 10 thesis projects for architecture discussed above demonstrate how AI, LEED , and sustainable design are all incorporated into architectural practice. Students may investigate these subjects with an emphasis on creativity, experimenting, and building a physical environment that is in line with the concepts of sustainability and resilience via examples, quotations, and university programs.

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Original research article, a framework for sustainable adaptive reuse: understanding vacancy and underuse in existing urban buildings.

• 1 Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, Australia
• 2 Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa

Cities have been built on the benefits of density, proximity, and connectivity. However, the recent COVID-19 pandemic, along with continuously evolving communication technologies, has seen an increase in vacancies and underuse of urban buildings, challenging the agglomeration benefits of cities and our understanding of business-as-usual. By reflecting on these continuous changes in our urban environment, we can better understand the dynamics in play, the various user needs, the temporary or permanent nature of these changes, and possible adaptive strategies to navigate our future toward a more sustainable and resilient state. This article, therefore, presents a systematic literature review, using PRISMA, to examine and map how vacancy intersects with adaptive reuse literature. This review examined 43 academic articles and revealed research predominately focusing on whole-building adaptive reuse of completely vacant buildings. This review highlighted that vacancy is mainly assumed in research, and both vacancy and adaptive reuse are insufficiently unpacked. A new adaptive reuse framework is proposed to address the misalignment between the realities of how a vacancy is distributed in building stocks and the focus on whole-building adaptive reuse. The framework is set to inform urban policy development supporting sustainable reuse. This article presents a point of departure to understand how adaptive planning approaches could be applied to enhance broader sustainability and resilience initiatives.

1. Introduction

Cities have always attracted population growth and economic agglomeration, building on the benefits of density, proximity, and connectivity ( Burdett, 2022 ). As a result, cities have existed as epicenters of new capital, creativity, and innovation because proximity generates serendipity, a “spill over” effect, and connections from which new ideas and opportunities arise ( Albizu and Estensoro, 2020 ). During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, this became more evident as lockdowns were imposed on the benefits of agglomeration economies, and at the same time provided evidence of how the agglomeration benefits of cities are eroded by better communication technologies ( Voith and Wray, 2021 ). While many are now debating the life and death of the city as we know it, mainly related to increases in property vacancies across global cities, one thing is evident: the need for urban preparedness for future pandemics ( Mart́ınez and Short, 2021 ). Short-term implications might well spill over into the long-term implications for city design, resilience, and sustainability. In addition, while the change in our cities and urban landscapes is continuous, the need to reflect on and understand these transformations is essential, in order to conform to the objectives of a sustainable and resilient future for all. Sustainable development stems from the triangulation of environmental (conservation), economic (growth), and social (equity) dimensions ( Keiner, 2005 ). Sustainability, in the urban sense, refers to improved human wellbeing and quality of life, as well as the protection of the natural systems that support and enable this quality of life. Sustaining cities by ensuring that their functional integrity is maintained may well be a critical goal of urban sustainability ( Peres et al., 2017 ). Resilience is closely tied to the qualities of a sustainable city in quest of an enhanced quality of life, drawing on the general agreement that health, safety and security, and mobility are key performance qualities of a sustainable city. As a result, sustainability is increasingly being recognized to include those qualities and relationships that give rise to a thriving and regenerative urban system in which the relationships within and between social and ecological systems are renewed ( Peres et al., 2017 ). The permanent dynamic evolution of cities will always be a part of this urban landscape ( Sassen and Kourtit, 2021 ), as cities and urban agglomerations have never been static.

At the same time, connecting high vacancy and urban revitalization through residential adaptive reuse is not new. Research has examined the role of policy and adaptive reuse to regenerate city centers since the late 1980s ( Zukin, 1989 ; Heath, 2001 ), and more recently, the debate explored the tensions between the retention of heritage buildings and conformance with regulatory requirements and raised questions about whether regulatory systems can embrace both green building technologies and heritage conservation principles ( Conejos et al., 2016 ). Adaptive reuse of all types of buildings and sites has become increasingly important as an urban, architectural, and conservational strategy ( Plevoets and Van Cleempoel, 2019 ). However, few studies have considered the topic of vacancy in urban centers per se , despite several cycles of interest in adaptive reuse to mitigate economic downturns creating supply and demand mismatches in commercial building markets ( Remøy, 2010 ; Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ; Muldoon-Smith, 2016 ; Armstrong et al., 2021 ). The challenges of managing existing buildings are complex in mature urban environments, particularly when socioeconomic processes are at play in urban development ( Muldoon-Smith, 2016 ). Various concepts and different interpretations come into play, which contributes to the complexity. Vacancy, in itself, can imply various scales and measurements of the inverse of occupied space. For purposes of this research, vacancy implies the amount of unoccupied space in the respective building in each calendar month in a specific year. The vacancy is measured by the total gross lettable floor area which is vacant on the first day of a respective calendar month ( Law Insider, 2022 ). The vacancy rate is the amount of unoccupied gross lettable floor area expressed as a percentage of the building's, or city's, total gross lettable floor area (PCA, n.d.). Calculations, however, often involve an overly simplistic characterization of space as either “vacant” or “occupied” ( Muldoon-Smith, 2016 ). Similarly, the concept of “adaptive reuse” holds various interpretations. Adaptive reuse is considered the short-term transformation of space to accommodate alternative uses and functions that will contribute to the overall social, economic, and environmental footprint of the building (and surrounding space). It aligns with the approaches to retrofit, refurbish, and renovate, the process of taking an existing structure and updating or adapting it for a new use or purpose, from the position of use and design solution.

Studies spanning 30 years, across different countries, have highlighted that while adaptive reuse could help create a vibrant mixed-use urban village, it should not be seen as a panacea to address vacancy ( Barlow, 1993 ; Muldoon-Smith, 2016 ; Armstrong, 2020 ). The complexity of “vacancy” along with the benefits pertaining to “adaptive reuse options” should be understood and explored from a context-based approach in order to find plausible, sustainable solutions.

This is no new issue, but the recent COVID-19 pandemic and related social restrictions that resulted from the pandemic placed a renewed emphasis on understanding how we use urban centers for work, living, and recreation ( Vigiola et al., 2022 ), especially in the light of making sense of the various underutilized and vacant buildings in urban areas globally. It is within this renewed understanding that the concept of “sustainable adaptive reuse” is explored in this article, as a use and design solution to address vacancy and broader resilience goals in urban buildings.

1.1. Unpacking the concept of “sustainable adaptive reuse”

Adaptive reuse is regarded as a form of sustainable development as it facilitates extending the building's life and encourages the reuse of embodied energy ( Bullen and Love, 2010 ). Adaptive reuse is often considered the most environmentally sound approach for the conservation of historical buildings and urban regeneration. In this regard, and as argued by Fisher-Gewirtzman (2016) , adaptive reuse is a valuable strategy that involves revitalizing post-industrial cities by creating density, retrofitting post-industrial landscapes, reframing the urban fabric of shrinking cities, and mitigating urban sprawl. The key driver for adaptive reuse in all of these examples is the solution to address vacancy or underuse.

Adaptive reuse and the environment are closely related to one another, which is why adaptive reuse approaches support urban planners to develop low-carbon cities ( Aigwi et al., 2020 ). A study by Bullen (2007) shows that the built environment is the single largest energy consumer and acts as the largest source of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. It is estimated that the global built environment consumes as much as 40% of the total energy produced and is responsible for one-third of greenhouse gas emissions ( Cutieru, 2021 ). Another study by Bullen and Love (2010) shows that the demolition of a building accounts for as much as 48% of solid waste generated from the lifecycle of a building. In this regard, the promotion of reusing existing buildings not only helps in avoiding demolition and reconstructing them but also helps in fulfilling the demands of present and future generations ( Sugden, 2018 ).

On a city-wide scale, sustainable adaptive reuse would be connected to “reduce, reuse, recycle” initiatives in an attempt to enhance carbon-neutral cities, the circular economy, and broader urban resilience. The circular economy, in this sense, implies an approach to economic growth that is in line with sustainable environmental and economic development ( Korhonen et al., 2018 ). Reusing old buildings simply reflects fulfilling the demands of the present and future generations. Adaptive reuse of buildings avoids the requirement of building demolition and reduces solid waste dumping from old buildings while reusing leftover embedded energy in the old buildings. Similarly, avoidance of building demolition is regarded to be conserving significant heritage values, and therefore, contribute to achieving sociocultural sustainability.

However, adaptive reuse is still far from mainstream planning and thinking, and literature pertaining to reuse and adaptive spaces is limited. Similarly, understanding vacancy as part of urban research is not unpacked to the full extent it should be, to make a valuable contribution to the notion of sustainable and resilient cities. This research set out to explore the connection between sustainable adaptive reuse and vacancy as a precursor to obsolescence, rates of dilapidation of underused buildings, the impact on urban vibrancy, as well as types of building obsolescence, the chronic and acute stresses that lead to vacancy, and the overall impact of vacancy on cities, as explained in the next section.

2. Methodology

This research followed a systematic review to evaluate how adaptive reuse is reported in the literature to address vacancy. The review focused on two aspects of adaptive reuse; namely, (1) how a vacancy is framed in the literature and (2) how adaptive reuse is framed as a solution to address underuse and vacancy.

The purpose of reviewing the literature is to propose a framework that connects a more nuanced understanding of different adaptive reuse approaches and to argue for a more critical discussion of vacancy in adaptive reuse research. The framework proposed seeks to highlight the explicit connection between vacancy as a driver and adaptive reuse and suggests that a deeper understanding of vacancy can aid in the development of new tools to inform adaptive reuse approaches and decisions.

Systematic reviews are gaining importance as part of a qualitative inquiry to understand the dynamics of the built environment as it typically focuses on a well-defined question, and because it provides answers to questions from a relatively narrow range of quality assessed studies ( Arksey and O'Malley, 2005 ). This review follows PRISMA (evidence-based minimum set of items for reporting in systematic reviews and meta-analyzes) and examined how a vacancy is framed in research articles. Scopus was chosen as the database for this systematic review as adaptive reuse research tends to be qualitative in methodology, and it is one of the largest databases of qualitative research literature and reliably produces replicable research, suitable for systematic literature reviews ( Baas et al., 2020 ).

One criticism of literature reviews as research methods is that search constraints can limit and skew the findings of review studies ( Snyder, 2019 ). Although the literature searches attempted different combinations of keywords, the range of literature found may be limited by the following factors: key terms chosen for keyword searches may differ between built environment disciplines. It was noted that each discipline had slightly different preferred terminologies. Adaptive reuse was chosen as the most commonly used term in recent literature in the last 5 years associated with a change of use development. However, this is a potential limitation. Screening criteria were established to reduce potential limitations of review decisions for the inclusion of articles in the review. The screening questions were only used to ascertain the relevance of the context of each article, for example, if vacancy was discussed in relation to the building occupancy, and whether the research primarily focused on adaptive reuse in architecture, planning, property, or construction research. A further limitation could be the timespan used for the articles, although 10 years is a reasonable timeframe to capture sufficient data for review. The systematic review was chosen in order to provide methodological transparency so that the review could be replicated at a later date, as this topic is highly relevant after the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ( Balemi et al., 2021 ).

The literature identified by the keyword search in Scopus (vacant AND adaptive reuse) is accordingly discussed in the body text. It was acknowledged that certain keywords used in the search could pose limitations, for example, potential bias with subjective terms such as “empty”, “vacant”, or “abandoned”, and whether these terms related to a single floor plate within a whole building or pertained to wholly empty or vacant buildings. The term “vacan * ” was used to capture vacancy and vacant. Figure 1 represents the flow diagram of the method employed for the systematic review.

Figure 1 . Flow diagram of the method employed for the systematic review.

3. Research results

The research examined to what extent vacancy is considered in the decision-making process and by the research design investigating adaptive reuse. The review examined the basis on which adaptive reuse is discussed, from whole building adaptive reuse on a permanent change of use to partial adaptive reuse temporarily. The purpose of understanding literature from these two perspectives (how a vacancy is factored into research and how adaptive reuse is conceived) is important to critically understand the complexity of adaptive reuse and its relationship to urban regeneration through mitigating vacancy. The thematic findings pertaining to the systematic review are presented below.

3.1. From singular to a holistic approach to evaluating adaptive reuse

The fascination of redeveloping old building forms for new novel experiences is growing ( Lynch, 2016 ). Increasingly, non-heritage buildings, perceived to be obsolete, vacant, or underused, are connected with adaptive reuse, including commercial offices ( Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ; Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ; Hamida et al., 2020 ), industrial buildings ( Petković-Grozdanovića et al., 2016 ; Tan et al., 2018 ; Vardopoulos, 2019 ), and retail ( Lesneski, 2011 ; Roberts and Carter, 2020 ).

Two key motivators to address vacancy through adaptive reuse are: the fear that underutilized buildings dilapidate quickly, and that they become an eyesore or liability, are underlying motivators advocating for increased adaptive reuse uptake ( Bullen and Love, 2011 ). This could be argued to impact the city's attractiveness as a whole as a place of investment and economic activity, not just the vacant building itself. This is particularly problematic for buildings of heritage value and the impact of the loss of heritage value on the character or economic value of an area or surrounding properties ( Kee, 2019 ). A further argument advocating for reuse is through an environmental lens, arguing that a failure to optimize a building throughout its lifespan results in a building's residual lifecycle expectancy not being fully exploited ( Sanchez et al., 2019 ). Riggs and Chamberlain (2018) are also critical of an unexpected environmental argument that vacant buildings use less energy and highlight that vacant buildings are not in themselves low energy consumers when city-wide sustainable growth standpoints are taken into consideration, as vacant buildings are inefficient users of the land. These three arguments are applied to single buildings, localized clusters of buildings, and building populations across cities.

Camocini and Nosova (2017) highlight that vacancy is a risk to all buildings throughout their lifetime. An underlying concern in the literature is the risk of poor economic returns, whereby the financial investment of an adaptive reuse development will be less than the returns post-completion, and consequently, buildings may remain in various states of underoccupancy for long periods ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ; Riggs and Chamberlain, 2018 ). It could be suggested that adaptive reuse is an economic solution during periods of low market demand, to help reduce building surplus and transition buildings out of low-demand uses to markets of higher demand. Master planning, or curation of several land uses through adaptive reuse connects single building adaptive reuse to wider reactivation of an underutilized area or shrinking urban center to aid local employment opportunities ( Giuliani et al., 2018 ); it creates tourism visitation ( Camocini and Nosova, 2017 ; Bottero et al., 2019 ; De Silva et al., 2019 ; Vizzarri et al., 2020 ), provides improved health or education services through efficient reuse of public buildings ( Juan et al., 2016 ), better utilizes underused buildings in developing countries ( De Silva et al., 2019 ), develops urban resilience through boosting residential populations ( Yap, 2013 ; Hamida et al., 2020 ), conserves religious landmarks in post-secular cities ( Lynch, 2016 ), reunite communities through the reinterpretation of buildings' old meanings ( Camocini and Nosova, 2017 ), can aid Transit Orientated Development growth ( Riggs and Chamberlain, 2018 ), and can help transform whole areas into liveable environments ( Petković-Grozdanovića et al., 2016 ; Misirlisoy, 2020 ). This can even include downtown areas that have vacant buildings being “held” until land values increase ( Riggs and Chamberlain, 2018 ). Collectively, adaptive reuse events across a city can reduce construction's overall carbon consumption and waste compared with premature demolition and site redevelopment ( Chan et al., 2020 ). A further emerging argument is the need to repurpose space to mitigate the sudden and dramatic economic and social shifts brought by social distancing restrictions during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The need for additional space through adaptive reuse in medical emergencies also needs to take account of patients' psychosocial needs on a day to day basis whilst receiving medical care ( Roberts and Carter, 2020 ). More adaptive reuse cases and examples should be developed to show how care settings can improve, be inclusive, progressive, and convergent in the era of an aging population ( Roberts and Carter, 2020 ).

Calls for adaptive reuse policy development argue for a holistic approach, rather than a piecemeal approach considering vacant properties separately, one at a time ( Ren et al., 2014 ). Where there are several vacant buildings with similar land uses, location transformations are necessary, which may involve several buildings or a wider reactivation of an area, which may be accompanied by financial incentives to encourage reuse decisions ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ). Financial incentives are also connected to developers' preference for the relaxation of regulatory requirements ( Yap, 2013 ). Adaptive reuse becomes a central issue for urban policy when there are several abandoned buildings occupying large or prominent sites in cities ( Vizzarri et al., 2020 ). Interestingly, an examination of eight case studies in Hong Kong identified that if a site is included in designated plans for urban renewal redevelopment, then it is more likely to undergo adaptive reuse. This research indicates that the biggest determiner of adaptive reuse decisions is planning overlays or regeneration plans led by local governments ( Yung et al., 2014b ).

3.2. Adaptive reuse timing and vacancy risk

Decisions to mitigate the risk of obsolescence can be taken throughout a building's lifecycle, not just at the end of its useful life ( Hamida et al., 2020 ). Models exist to examine adaptive reuse intervention timing, such as Langston et al. (2013) Adaptive Reuse Potential ARP model ( Yung et al., 2014b ) and AdaptSTAR model to guide future adaptability at the initial stages of design for new construction ( Conejos et al., 2016 ). While adaptive reuse is often described as a process ( Douglas, 2006 ), it is also considered to be a “decision-making problem” ( Abastante et al., 2020 , p. 14). Adaptive reuse is described as a “looping action” in circular economy principles (reuse, recycle, and recovery) alongside other looping actions such as recycling of materials and waste, and energy recovery from sewage ( Williams, 2019 ). The variables involved in adaptive reuse decisions, or “loops” are not yet clearly ordered in research ( Costa et al., 2019 ). Multiple points of view need to be considered and conflicts of interest exist between various stakeholders involved in the decision-making process ( Hong and Chen, 2017 ; Costa et al., 2019 ; Günçe and Misirlisoy, 2019 ). The different perspectives add complexity when attempting to rank and apply order to the adaptive reuse decision process.

The end cause(s) of obsolescence may be due to a combination of depreciation factors including their physical, economic, social, technological, legal, or functional performance ( Hamida et al., 2020 ), not all of which require a change of use to remain useful ( De Silva et al., 2019 ). Decisions to transition an existing building to a new market are dependent on a range of factors which have been identified by Wilkinson and Reed (2011) , Conejos et al. (2016) , Hong and Chen (2017) , Aigwi et al. (2020) , Hamida et al. (2020) , and Vizzarri et al. (2020) (see Table 1 ). The complexity of factors to consider is wide-ranging, with 18 themes identified by qualitative methods in one article alone ( Conejos et al., 2016 ). However, other than the presence of a vacancy, there is little discussion of vacancy in the wide range of factors. The range of factors suggested, however, appears to change depending on the building typology of the existing building function (e.g., office, industrial, agriculture, and religious buildings) and the proposed new use (affordable housing, health services, and touristic experience). These criteria or parameters for adaptive reuse can be contextualized in helpful frameworks to structure adaptive reuse decision-making, such as a performance-based framework ( Aigwi et al., 2020 ), which poses the need for a framework that connects vacancy to adaptive reuse.

Table 1 . Comparing the focus of adaptive reuse literature, through the extent how much of the existing building is considered for adaptive reuse intervention.

Discussions around underuse and vacancy are limited in available research studies, with many articles presenting a simplistic assumption that office buildings are standing empty in cities. Many articles in the review assumed buildings are wholly vacant or make no reference to the processes to ensure a property is vacant before adaptive reuse occurs. There is some recognition, however, that the process of obsolescence may occur over time. Sanchez et al. (2019) suggest that adaptive reuse is useful when buildings are “nearing the end of their disuse stage” (p. 422), but no in-depth research was found by this review that even begins to clarify the stages of disuse prior to standing wholly empty or abandonment.

Vacancy rate (%) is one criterion to identify underuse ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ; Abdullah et al., 2020 ). However, there is a lack of sufficient detail in the literature of what constitutes a high vacancy rate for any given building, neither is there any explanation of “underuse” available. The suggestion of 3–8% is a healthy aggregated vacancy rate across a commercial building market to allow for business growth and accommodation flexibility ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ). However, on a single building scale, there is no such guidance as to what vacancy percentage constitutes a high, or “unhealthy”, vacancy rate and a potential threshold for considering adaptive reuse on a single building scale. Length of vacancy is also considered to be a factor, suggesting that 3 or more years of vacancy can be considered as terminal or “structural vacancy” ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ).

The literature reviewed tended to use the following terms in association with vacancy: vacant, long-term vacant, abandoned, derelict, obsolete, and redundant, suggesting that the buildings focused on terminal conditions. More nuanced terms were also found, such as underused and underutilized. These nuanced terms acknowledge that there may be a gradual process of obsolescence and highlight that the presence of vacancy could be a useful indicator of the increasing risk of obsolescence. A different perspective is to consider vacancy as an opportunity for development, as a derelict building is not “considered as an empty space but as a potential flexible area” ( Vizzarri et al., 2020 , p. 57).

Vacancy across property markets is often used as a measure by property market groups to understand supply and demand and investment trends in adaptive reuse decisions ( Bullen and Love, 2011 ; Abdullah et al., 2020 ). Another observation is that adaptive reuse can be initiated through the community ( Yung et al., 2014a ) and local government services ( Lesneski, 2011 ), as well as the private sector. Plevoets and Sowińska-Heim (2018) refer to “vernacular adaptation” as the more spontaneous and informal ways associated with adaptive reuse, which has also recently seen a raise in awareness, alongside the more formal approaches employed within architectural and conservation practices. Plevoets and Sowińska-Heim (2018) investigated the division between the vernacular and the formal approaches to adaptive reuse and emphasized the possibilities and risks of joined initiatives between local communities and private or public developers. The vernacular approach is proposed as a valuable bottom-up urban planning strategy, as a means for building and site regeneration, especially since it can provide a better understanding of the intangible values of architectural heritage that are important to the local community, while also providing a better understanding of the needs of the community for the new function of a specific place ( Plevoets and Sowińska-Heim, 2018 ). “Vernacular reuse as part of the adaptation process has strong social significance” and it fosters an intense relationship with the place, as the community is directly involved in the “creation of the functional new place and its contemporary history” ( Plevoets and Sowińska-Heim, 2018 ).

Despite the interest in vacancy data by property markets, data are not routinely collected, and Williams (2019) suggests one reason for this is the low cultural value placed on the vacancy and underutilized land and buildings beyond extracting value from the real-estate or asset management perspective. An examination of vacancy data across markets could be highly useful for evaluating the risk of obsolescence in existing building uses and assessing proposals for new uses as is suggested, “an evaluation of the potential property market and location characteristics must be done by answering the following questions: (i) is there an oversupply of [existing] underutilized historical buildings? (ii) is there adequate demand for the proposed new use?” An examination of supply and demand for both the existing use and potential new uses is suggested ( Aigwi et al., 2020 , p. 3).

3.3. The iterations and different interpretations of adaptive reuse

Overall, adaptive reuse literature tended to focus on buildings perceived to be wholly empty and with a focus on “whole building adaptive reuse” (WBAR) as the final solution for empty buildings (see Table 2 ). This finding suggests a consensus that adaptive reuse is currently mainly considered to be a last-resort option for buildings that are prematurely obsolete and still have residual value.

Table 2 . Adaptive reuse decision tools and factors affecting decisions during the building lifecycle.

Adaptive reuse can occur at other scales other than whole building as captured in Table 1 ( Lesneski, 2011 ; Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ; Yung et al., 2014b ; Costa et al., 2019 ; De Silva et al., 2019 ; Foster, 2020 ; Misirlisoy, 2020 ; Vehbi et al., 2021 ). Four categories of adaptive reuse are reported in the literature.

Partial adaptive reuse is discussed as a form of adaptive reuse, but reported as both positive and negative ( Vehbi et al., 2021 ). An example is given of a partial adaption of a nearly vacant building, but the remaining vacancy in the unadopted portion of the building is viewed as a threat to the building's ongoing viability.

Several articles discuss the benefits of “temporary adaptive reuse” (TAR), explaining that TAR of abandoned buildings can draw positive attention back to the “forgotten” structures and can be a starting point for a more permanent transformation ( Olivadese et al., 2017 ; Costa et al., 2019 ). The article recognizes that TAR can be used as a catalyst for obsolescence mitigation, as well as a mitigation solution in itself, as TAR can make forgotten vacant buildings visible again and stimulate interest in their reactivation. TAR, therefore, is considered a cost-effective low-intervention form of adaptive reuse as a strategy to mitigate obsolescence and highlights the need for a more nuanced understanding of the range of adaptive reuse options and the roles adaptive reuse can play in mitigating vacancy before a building reaches its final state of abandonment or dilapidation and considered obsolete.

The addition of new ancillary uses through extending the building is interesting as the adaption points toward the creation of a mixed-use building of new and existing uses ( Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ).

Adaptions involving no changes of use should be mentioned here, as they are discussed in the literature reviewed. These are conceived as adaptions within the use, with energy efficiency upgrades and maintenance improvements being key drivers ( Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ). Adaptions without new uses are arguably not adaptive reuse, only adaption. New extensions and selective demolition are two other adaptions within use that change a building's external appearance unless the new extensions include new uses not previously incorporated into the existing building ( Wilkinson and Reed, 2011 ).

The review highlights that different combinations of adaptive reuse extents and the overall vacancy “problem” the adaptive reuse intervention will solve points to further possibilities for adaptive reuse: adaption across a use for several stacked floors, creating mixed-use on “multiple levels of adaptive reuse” (MUML) through consolidating existing tenants but not converting the whole building. A further alternative could be adaptive reuse conversion of only “pockets of adaptive reuse” (PAR) located on single floors or parts of floor plates.

3.4. Vacancy in adaptive reuse decisions

A range of studies captured in this review have tested and adapted MCDA tools for assessing adaptive reuse in the disciplines of architecture, planning, and asset management. Table 2 identifies the articles which have developed or tested MCDA tools or have identified factors to consider on MCDA tools. Research that focuses on MCDA tools is important in this review as adaptive reuse involves consideration of a complex set of competing criteria to convert an existing building for a new use to resolve low demand for a building's current use(s), for example, Hong and Chen (2017) , Giuliani et al. (2018) , Bottero et al. (2019) , Costa et al. (2019) , Abastante et al. (2020) , and Vehbi et al. (2021) . While it is out of the scope of this article to review these tools beyond Table 1 , it does find an important gap in research. Without exception, the studies all cited vacancy as a key driver for adaptive reuse in their introduction and discussion sections, but vacancy was not included in the decision-making tools presented, or factors identified as important criteria in the decision-making process (see Table 1 ). The lack of inclusion of vacancy in adaptive reuse MCDA tools highlights the need for amending how a vacancy is conceived in adaptive reuse decision-making research. Rather than limiting vacancy discussion to end-of-life solutions, this gap highlights the opportunity to understand how vacancy can be useful as an integral factor in asset management decisions, including adaptive reuse feasibility assessments, to mitigate the risk of obsolescence earlier in a building's life cycle.

De Silva et al. (2019) rank and identify remedial actions that can overcome adaptive reuse barriers (see Table 2 ). They suggest two states of vacancy—whole building or partial vacancy. The research also suggests that vacancy can be a “state” in which buildings are left if there is no adaptive reuse intervention. They concur with the literature ( Kincaid, 2002 ; Wilkinson, 2018 ) that there are two “parent” categories of adaption, referred to as adapt within-use and adapt across-use. They present two “child” categories of adaptive approaches, referred to as adaption into a mixed-use building and adaption to include ancillary uses. This suggests that the new ancillary use is in harmony with the current uses. It implies that adaptive reuse can be on a partial building basis to address partial vacancy and to slow or reduce the risk of vacancy becoming permanent or spreading.

Vehbi et al. (2021) suggest adaptive reuse of only part of a wholly vacant building is another approach used in practice. However, they describe this as disadvantageous, suggesting that partially converted buildings may not “fully integrate with city life and there is a danger of losing urban memory due to its [ongoing] vacancy” (p. 17). Alongside the attention in research is overwhelmingly on whole building adaptive reuse, this suggests that research into partial adaptive reuse is insufficiently explored, and only whole building conversion is desirable. This article, however, would like to challenge this and present a framework for adaptive reuse which considers vacancy and adaptive reuse at different scales within buildings.

As shown in Table 3 , many articles suggest that adaptive reuse can be considered throughout a building's life cycle ( Yap, 2013 ; Yung et al., 2014b ; Camocini and Nosova, 2017 ; Hamida et al., 2020 ; Misirlisoy, 2020 ). Several other articles went further to qualify adaptive reuse as useful to address underoccupancy or increasing vacancy ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ; De Silva et al., 2019 ; Aigwi et al., 2020 ; Foster, 2020 ; Vehbi et al., 2021 ). However, the lack of discussion of vacancy prevents further understanding of what level or distribution of vacancy may be considered problematic or risky for the long-term viability of a building's current function(s).

Table 3 . Timing of adaptive reuse intervention.

Through synthesizing Tables 1 , 3 , this review suggests that research that discussed a more nuanced understanding of adaptive reuse, other than whole building adaptive reuse, tended to consider adaptive reuse as a remedy to vacancy beyond a building's final “end of life” stage. This review found literature focused on buildings that had or were perceived to be wholly vacant (see Table 1 ). In addition, there is little discussion of any previous asset management decisions in the case studies presented to mitigate the onset of vacancy much earlier in a building's lifecycle. Research predominantly focuses on adaptive reuse decisions at a building's end-of-life scenario (see Table 1 ). This is an important gap as adaptive reuse is only one way to extend a building's lifespan sustainably ( Wilkinson, 2018 ) and not all adaptive reuse transformations result in net environmental benefits compared with new construction ( Sanchez et al., 2019 ; Chan et al., 2020 ).

3.5. The expectation of adaptive reuse uptake

The rationale for greater adaptive reuse is often based on the premise of supply and demand, coupling a shortage of one building use with an oversupply or abandoned stock of an obsolete use. Where this rationale underpins the research, findings often suggest that there is a low take-up of adaptive reuse and look for reasons to explain the perceived low take-up ( Ren et al., 2014 ; Olivadese et al., 2017 ; add more).

One suggestion is that planning regulations and building codes may be a hindrance ( Olivadese et al., 2017 ). In this comparative review of two different regulatory approaches (Dutch and Italian), regulation adaptive reuse uptake is suggested to be low. The Dutch system offering low compliance standards for adaptive reuse development when compared with new development suggests that regulation may not be an inhibitor of adaptive reuse uptake. If the uptake of adaptive reuse in the Netherlands is considered to be low, the recommendation to relax building regulations in Italy to support adaptive reuse seems an ineffective suggestion. One further explanation offered is that of a failure of policy ( Ren et al., 2014 ). Connecting the perceived low uptake with policy deficiency is a large claim, especially given the difficulty in establishing causality, and the complex range of factors in adaptive reuse decision-making, such as poor location and inadequacy of surrounding infrastructure. There is a possibility that expectations are too high for adaptive reuse uptake and that it is unrealistic to simplistically connect a high demand and low supply in one property market with a building stock suffering low demand and an abundance of underuse or abandonment.

3.6. How vacancy is framed in relation to adaptive reuse

Literature tended to discuss vacancy as an introductory starting point only to justify their article's focus on adaptive reuse. This limits discussion and evidence to explore vacancies more in depth and insightful ways. The sinking stack theory proposed by Atkinson (1988) seems to be a common notion assumed in adaptive reuse research, whereby vacancy in older buildings increases as new buildings are completed and enter the market ( Abdullah et al., 2020 ). In times of economic downturns, a further assumption suggests when there are high vacancy rates, tenants move to newer buildings if rents in newer buildings are comparable ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ). However, there are no vacancy studies to test the theory of sinking stack in different property markets over time, and whether the theory holds true in different geographic locations or markets, at different points in a property market economic cycle.

Several articles discuss adaptive reuse within the context of avoiding obsolescence at an earlier stage of underuse ( Misirlisoy, 2020 ) and are suggestive that adaptive reuse needs to be incentivized, with economic subsidies and regulation variations to keep building occupied and useful if they have not yet reached the end of their design life ( Riggs and Chamberlain, 2018 ). In buildings that can accommodate a curated mix of uses, adaptive reuse of traditional spaces is seen as beneficial to the continuity of such buildings, such as marketplaces ( Misirlisoy, 2020 ).

Qualitative interviews suggest that there are wider economic benefits of reactivating vacant buildings as the occupation of the previously vacant building can increase visitation to surrounding commercial businesses ( Yung et al., 2014a ). However, adaptive reuse may not always be sufficient and have the desired positive impacts on areas suffering high vacancy. Adaptive reuse is more viable when surrounding spaces are occupied and utilized, suggesting new uses may not be sustainable in the long term when vacancy is still present ( Vehbi et al., 2021 ). Depending on the scale and social function of the proposed new use, adaptive reuse can physically shift a community's center and its visitation or footfall. A US adaptive reuse study concluded that relocating civic uses, for example, libraries, from urban centers to urban edges, can be another “nail in the coffin” for some urban centers already suffering vacancy ( Lesneski, 2011 , p. 405). A study of the location of vacancy could help predict potential unintended consequences of adaptive reuse in urban centers with high levels of underuse. The reverse of course could also be argued if the proposed civic function is newly created or a geographic relocation.

One article examines the benefits of adaptive reuse through an economic lens using a hedonic price model to find if the adaptive reuse of cultural heritage buildings can increase the value of surrounding residential properties within Hong Kong ( Kee, 2019 ). It is argued that the increase in value is due to the positive externalities generated by restoring a vacant heritage building. However, as this study does not enter into discussions about vacancy in any depth, it is difficult to ascertain if the previous vacancy and continued disuse of the heritage property had any negative effects on the surrounding residential property values. As the evaluation examined impacts on residential property prices, it could also be argued that adaptive reuse can trigger gentrification ( Yung et al., 2014a ). This review found no studies which applied the hedonic price model to vacancy, and this review welcomes future studies which apply the hedonic price model to surrounding non-residential properties to examine the economic benefits of adaptive reuse to urban commercial centers.

Vacancy is identified as an economic problem during adaptive reuse decision-making ( Abdullah et al., 2020 ). The presence of vacancy is identified as a problem in how buildings are valued for resale and how adaptive reuse developers calculate the feasibility of adaptive reuse for existing buildings. A market value appraisal for resale is often based on rental potential ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ). Although vacancy generates no rental income, vacancy is often not reflected in the appraisal value for resale. The resultant asking price does not come close to the residual valuations relied on by adaptive reuse developers. Where vacancy is not factored into valuations, differences between methods of valuations can leave buildings with high vacancy empty for long periods of time ( Remøy and van der Voordt, 2014 ).

No articles captured in the review cited the presence of partial occupancy as a challenge to whole building adaptive reuse, despite space being subject to legal lease agreements, and dissolvement or expiry of leases may take considerable time and resources to occur. Where vacancy was discussed, research mainly presents the simplistic scenario of buildings being 100% vacant, or the scope of the research did not include vacancy. Two studies did calculate aggregated vacancy rates and quantified the area of vacant space across a population of industrial buildings ( Ren et al., 2014 ; Tan et al., 2018 ). By aggregating the data, however, they did not identify how the vacancy was distributed across the population and whether some buildings were wholly vacant or were being partially occupied. Both studies assumed buildings were standing empty, even though this could not be conclusively deduced from the aggregated data presented as vacant space could be spread across the whole building stock, with low variance in levels of occupied space and underuse. Aggregated data is highlighted as problematic along with incomplete vacancy data ( Williams, 2019 ). The assumption that high vacancy equates to empty buildings is a common assumption where vacancy data is absent or aggregated. This assumption is a problematic gap in adaptive reuse literature.

The narrow application of adaptive reuse to only buildings which are 100% vacant is also problematic when advocating for greater uptake of adaptive reuse at earlier stages of an obsolescence risk, not just of abandoned buildings, but of buildings that are starting to become underutilized. Buildings that are not vacant have occupants who are left with no choice and are often forced to move out of the adaptive reuse projects ( Yung et al., 2014a ). An article reviewing adaptive reuse literature highlighted a gap in considering the social or equitable aspects of adaptive reuse ( Mohamed et al., 2017 ). Processes to relocate existing tenants to new accommodation are absent in discussions, as is a reference to consolidation action of pockets of space use and vacancy to enable adaptive reuse of only part of a building.

3.7. Vacancy post adaptive reuse event

Vacancy is connected to demand, and the risk of low demand for new space through adaptive reuse is no different from that of new space in a new building. The literature is conflicted about the impact of former uses on end users. Stakeholders believe that the former use can influence the end-user demand ( De Silva et al., 2019 ) with other research presenting evidence that alternative views of end users are ambivalent about a building's former use if the new design meets their needs ( Glumac and Islam, 2020 ). This alternative evidence highlights the role of design to transform buildings affected by negative perspectives associated with the former use and highlights the quality of design to meet end-user expectations for a converted building, fit for purpose. Design quality in the adaptive reuse process reduces the chance of the new use becoming vacant Glumac and Islam (2020) .

4. Discussion

The articles considered in this research, mostly discussed vacancy as a whole building phenomenon only, thus assuming the building had already reached the point of obsolescence in a building's lifecycle. The review highlights that vacancy is mainly assumed, rather than critically discussed, or examined in an analysis of the data presented. Despite the various articles alluding to vacancy, the data presented in the articles do not critically discuss or unpack vacancy. Despite vacancy and obsolescence being mentioned as fundamental drivers of adaptive reuse, critical discussions of vacancy, or disuse, were not a key feature in any of the case studies; and were not included in any framework, tool tested, or developed, to aid adaptive reuse decision-making.

Although vacancy and obsolescence are featured in all articles included in the review, adaptive reuse articles reviewed presented little commentary to explain the process of increasing or pre-obsolescence stages when discussing new tools or frameworks developed to aid adaptive reuse decision-making. It is acknowledged that early intervention to reuse buildings is beneficial as costs and complexity increase when buildings are left vacant for long periods ( Yung et al., 2014b ). Discussion of vacancy is limited to making generalized points advocating for greater adaptive reuse uptake. This lack of critical discussion about vacancy was prevalent and not dependent on the scope or focus of the research presented, neither at a single building scale, across a sample in any given building stocks, in wider urban regeneration masterplans of geographic areas suffering decline, for periods of shortages of specific markets, nor services such as affordable housing shortages, healthcare facilities, and educational spaces.

This review concurs with Chan et al. (2020) , in that current knowledge of adaptive reuse is reliant on qualitative analysis of subjective evaluations of a project's environmental, social, and economic impacts compared with demolition and site redevelopment. Vacancy was not sufficiently unpacked in the multiple criteria decision analysis research and did not appear in the resultant tools or frameworks presented. Its absence is at odds with the framing of vacancy as a primary driver of adaptive reuse. We propose that the inclusion of vacancies in MCDA research outputs can inform the adaptive reuse decision process. For example, the length of time a property has been left vacant and the resultant implications for its rate of decay and condition, and phasing of adaptive reuse development—will the whole building be adapted or will some vacancy be acceptable to ensure the construction economics and returns.

While urban researchers often use social inquiry methods to map and survey what does exist in our urban centers, the mapping of what is not present or what is vacant is more difficult. There is a lack of attention to vacancy in literature, including ways to understand, describe different types of vacancy in space, and quantify vacancy. This lack of understanding could explain why there is little attention to other solutions to vacant space other than adaptive reuse. Greenhalgh and Muldoon-Smith (2017) propose that adaptive reuse is the only option available to mitigate obsolescence and vacancy. They go on to describe adaptive reuse as a higher-level intervention due to the decision complexity and investment required to transition a building from one market to another.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, methods however have emerged to map the absence of people, such as analysis of the City of Melbourne's CLUE datasets which provides visitation data (Loader, n.d.). Overlaying visitation data with building underuse and vacancy data provide a holistic picture of what is not happening in urban centers, and over time the data could be used to evaluate the efficacy and impact of any policy mechanisms applied to urban centers to mitigate vacancy, including adaptive reuse.

5. Conclusion

This article is predicated on the changes that have occurred in the use of our cities and their buildings during and immediately after the COVID-19 lockdowns. These changes demand a deeper understanding of vacancy among stakeholders so that sustainable reuse opportunities can be maximized or alternatives sought. Educating current and future stakeholders about what can be, rather than what is, is imperative ( Roberts and Carter, 2020 ). This is the goal of sustainable, adaptive, reuse approaches, transforming vacancy into potential, as explored in this article.

The review highlighted that vacancy is mainly assumed in research, rather than critically discussed. Despite alluding to vacancy in the articles, data presented in the articles do not unpack vacancy any further than a mere mention or underpinning assumption in any meaningful way. Buildings are considered to be either empty or occupied with no discussion of the continuum between the two states ( Muldoon-Smith, 2016 ).

This literature review finds that there is a predominant focus in research on whole building adaptive reuse; either whole building AR or whole building demolition, with only limited retention, e.g., historic façades, which is not sustainable adaptive reuse. Adaptive reuse needs to be considered on sociocultural grounds, as well as upgrading the physical building. The reason is that the proposed new use may not be viable in the long term, either on economic or cultural grounds. If sociocultural aspects cannot be sustained or if the adaptive reuse “lack(s) a living function”, the building is at risk of further premature obsolescence ( Günçe and Misirlisoy, 2019 , p. 12). Vacancy may persist after adaptive reuse has occurred.

The persistent presence of vacancy and perceived low adaptive reuse uptake can often be framed as evidence of barriers preventing adaptive reuse ( Armstrong, 2020 ). However, the lack of critical attention to the vacancy is problematic when stating this assumption. A recent quantitative study of vacancy by Armstrong (2020) shows that high aggregated vacancy rates do not necessarily mean buildings are standing empty. High levels of vacancy across a city may be evenly dispersed across a building population—rendering whole building adaptive reuse, therefore, an unlikely “fit” for the vacancy distribution. It is evident that further research is needed to understand adaptive reuse at different scales of application, other than the whole building.

Sustainable adaptive reuse approaches transform the “what is” to the “what can be” and provide space and opportunity for transforming our urban environments. The gap to understand how adaptive reuse approaches can resolve different vacancies in existing buildings is addressed by proposing a framework for adaptive reuse to recognize the different forms of adaptive reuse and aid the selection of adaptive reuse solutions to reduce the risk of premature obsolescence and demolition.

As highlighted by Sassen and Kourtit (2021) , the framework recognizes that cities and urban agglomerations have never been static, and aligns with their view that the evolution of cities is a permanent part of the urban landscape.

This article establishes the gap in the literature around vacancy and the importance to address this gap due to the wide range of benefits as a valuable strategy for addressing vacancy as highlighted by Fisher-Gewirtzman (2016) , including revitalizing post-industrial cities, densification, addressing shrinking cities, and mitigating urban sprawl, and by Bullen and Love (2010) to mitigate and adapt to climate change through minimizing embodied energy losses and landfill waste. Vacancy is often a factor in assessing and evaluating areas or buildings for redevelopment but there is little discussion on what emerging underoccupancy looks like, other than assumptions about a building being wholly empty. Without a deeper discussion on vacancy, negative impacts from inappropriate adaptive reuse and gentrification will continue to occur ( O'Callaghan and Lawton, 2016 ).

In conclusion, we propose a framework for sustainable adaptive reuse, which is in response to the limitations in the literature pertaining to “vacancy” and “adaptive reuse” as argued in this article.

5.1. The proposed framework for sustainable adaptive reuse

Based on the findings in this article, a new framework for adaptive reuse is proposed, adapted from Wilkinson (2018 , p. 8) and Armstrong (2020 , p. 97), to refocus and better understand adaptive reuse, as captured in Figure 2 .

Figure 2 . Framework for adaptive reuse of buildings.

The framework proposed applies a vacancy lens as vacancy is framed as a key driver in the literature. It invites adaptive reuse researchers, policymakers, and asset managers to consider vacancy upfront as both a rationale for the need for change and also to inform the type of adaptive reuse which is best suited for successful outcomes. The types of adaptive reuse derived from the literature and proposed in the framework are sustainable temporary or trial adaptive reuse (STAR) partial (PAR), mixed-use on multiple levels (MUML), and the well-researched whole-building (WBAR). STAR is an alternative to “wait and see” or “do nothing” approaches when there is a lot of uncertainty in property markets, or the shocks and stresses are new and unforeseeable, such as those experienced globally since the start of COVID-19.

This framework could be adapted to support adaptive reuse decisions in resolving vacant at a single building scale or during master planning in urban regeneration masterplans, as well as informing urban policy development to support sustainable reuse to meet carbon emission reduction targets. In essence, it contributes to a point of departure to understand how adaptive planning approaches could be applied to enhance broader sustainability and resilience initiatives and address inefficient land use and underoccupancy in existing buildings.

The findings and framework align with the development of an adaptive reuse SWOT-PESTLE matrix for adaptive reuse development ( Vardopoulos and Theodoropoulou, 2020 ). The matrix identified several factors in their SWOT analysis considered to be weaknesses of the decision-making process when evaluating buildings for adaptive reuse development. These are political support, including changing existing land use zoning; an inability to estimate economic viability, particularly if a building is not wholly vacant; and requirements for compliance with current building standards. This last weakness could be partly due to uncertainty of what vacancy is or what vacancy looks like during a building's process of becoming empty. The overly simplistic assumption about vacancy levels (i.e., only wholly vacant) could be a driver of this weakness and could contribute to the uncertainty of how to regulate existing buildings that are underused but not wholly empty.

Data availability statement

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author.

Author contributions

All authors listed have made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work and approved it for publication.

This research forms part of the funding provided by the City of Sydney Knowledge Exchange Grant.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Keywords: urban regeneration, adaptive reuse, vacancy, obsolescence, temporary

Citation: Armstrong G, Wilkinson S and Cilliers EJ (2023) A framework for sustainable adaptive reuse: understanding vacancy and underuse in existing urban buildings. Front. Sustain. Cities 5:985656. doi: 10.3389/frsc.2023.985656

Received: 04 July 2022; Accepted: 24 March 2023; Published: 12 May 2023.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2023 Armstrong, Wilkinson and Cilliers. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Elizelle Juanee Cilliers, jua.cilliers@uts.edu.au

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ADAPTIVE REUSE OF INDUSRTIAL BUILDINGS

“The greenest building is the building which is already built.” while quoting architect Carl Elefante, Director of Sustainable Design at Qunin Evans Architects in Washington, D.C. (Sidler, 2014) Human population is going to increase over time and so are its needs. And one of our basic needs is land. Land for construction, agriculture, transport etc. But, how much ever our demands increase, the net surface area availability on ground would stay constant. In this face, we need newer buildings and for which often our older buildings, many a times, buildings with cultural and heritage value are also taken down. Does need of newer buildings directly point to razing down of older structures? Do these buildings not possess a value which is beyond monetary terms? Moreover, is this method of raze and rebuild over it, a sustainable practice? A non-maintained building, which has long lost its purpose and now stands in ruins, often turns into a hub for vandals, drug peddlers and other anti-social activities. Social psychology studies often quote the “The broken window theory” which states - if a broken window is left broken and not replaced, it is probable that soon all the other windows would be broken too. The window becomes a symbol to the society that no one cares. Such situations have immediate impact on their surroundings and also spread out eventually, leading to desertion of an entire vicinity. Hence, adaptive reuse of older neighborhoods, buildings and structures can also help in controlling the urban sprawl and thus impacting the development of the urban fabric of a city. It generates a relation between the user and the buildings, as these buildings are brought back to their former glory. Adaptive reuse is a method of utilizing existing buildings, renovating them and inducing new uses in the building, other than the one for which it was built. The site itself is a green alternative to green field development. Adaptive reuse is an essential tool to preserve the 8 history of a city and put old, unused and unhabituated but structurally sound buildings to newer uses. Industrial buildings, due to their large footprints and utilitarian architecture possess a high potential to undergo adaptive reuse. Considering the high carbon footprint and embodied energy, razing down industrial buildings or complexes has adverse effects on the environment as well. These buildings, due to their scale and proportions, as well as history that revolves around them, are important exhibits of a city’s industrial history which makes them worthy of conservation. Mumbai has a rich industrial history which witnessed a dominance of various cotton textile mills across the island city. With change in industrial development and pattern these mills got shut down. Eventually, these land parcels are now luring developers and land sharks, who want to raze down these iconic structures to lead way for soaring apartment blocks. The purpose of this design thesis is to display methods for reusing an industrial structure, in a sustainable manner, while protecting its original visual characteristics. It would focus on techniques in which the building could be reused and additions could be made to meet LEED standards, while preserving the original character of the buildings. An important palette of techniques was recorded in the dissertation, which has become the design guideline for this project.

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As our cities continue to swell with new residents, the need for sustainable development has never been more urgent. With climate change looming large, it's clear that we can no longer afford to ignore the impact of our urbanization on the environment. Across the globe, Rapid population growth in cities worldwide has caused an influx of people from suburban, exurban, and rural areas, making urbanization a pressing issue. Sustainable building practices are crucial in the face of rapid urbanization, which necessitates the reuse or replacement of unused buildings and sites in an environmentally conscious manner to minimize the impact of new developments and preserve our natural resources. ADAPTIVE REUSE, involves reusing or replacing unused buildings and sites in an environmentally conscious manner to minimize the impact of new developments and preserve natural resources by ensuring the efficient use of limited urban space. Industrial buildings, in particular, present a significant opportunity for adaptive reuse as they are often abandoned or underutilized, and their renovation can contribute to the economic and social growth of our communities. However, to fully realize the potential of adaptive reuse, we need a comprehensive action plan that standardizes protocols for assessing the potential for adaptive reuse projects. Additionally, we must address the challenges of bringing older structures up to code, following guidelines and preservation standards, and working within the confines of outdated structural systems. Through a thorough analysis of case studies and best practices, this research paper provides policymakers and industry stakeholders with actionable insight and recommendations for integrating adaptive reuse into building practices.

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The Indian cities are going through difficult times, catering the burgeoning demands of society, economy and the environment. The current practice of linear production-in which something is produced, used and discarded-is no longer feasible for a sustainable future. The new way of thinking emphasizes the recycling, reusing and reducing consumption of what have already been produced. In simple words, adaptive re-use is the process of changing an ineffective or disused item into a useful entity with a different purpose. Adapting existing buildings and sites to realise contemporary requirements is the most practical option than demolition or replacement, thus ameliorating the socioeconomic and environmental status of the locality, with giving it a new life. Undeniably, re-using an existing building becomes more responsive to prevailing climatic changes and global warming issues by drastically reducing the energy wastage and consumption involved in building new structures. Consequently, adaptive re-use could be elevated to a new status rather than looking at it as just a strategy for conservation of heritage buildings. Many cities in Australia, Europe and USA are actively encouraging adaptive re-use as a strategy towards sustainable carbon-neutral cities. Keeping all these factors in mind, designing our future buildings with inherent adaptive re-use potential would be a clever approach towards making our cities more sustainable. This paper aims at how efficiently we can determine the adaptive re-use potential of existing buildings by briefly explaining the Adaptive Re-use Potential (ARP) model, along with exploring a strategy to assess the ARP of future buildings.

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Weitzman’s Rossana Hu on adaptive reuse and historic architecture

Hu, the miller professor and chair of the department of architecture, takes a ‘common sense’ approach to adaptive reuse in her design work and teaching..

Celebrated architect  Rossana Hu  joined Penn as Miller Professor and chair of the Department of Architecture in the Weitzman School of Design in January of this year. Hu is founding partner of  Neri&Hu Design and Research Office , the award-winning interdisciplinary architecture practice based in Shanghai, and served as professor and chair of the Department of Architecture in the College of Architecture & Urban Planning at Tongji University before coming to Penn.

Hu describes her “common sense” approach to adaptive reuse and her firm’s reputation for breathing new life into historic sites, and explains how her thinking about adaptive reuse evolved over the years.

“That question really points to the heart of our practice, both how we started, and where we want to take the practice. Our first adaptive reuse project really came out of not even knowing much about the topic. It’s a term that is becoming really fashionable, but often, before a term is widely used, people are already doing the work. For us, that’s definitely the case. We started with  The Waterhouse at South Bund ,” Hu says. “It was a very bold decision on our part because the site was supposed to be demolished—that was the original mandate from the client. They wanted a brand-new, talked-about building, and in their mind, that meant starting from scratch.”

“A lot of our design work focuses on resolving things by using common sense. Doing something as simple as buying a chair that can be used for a hundred years: That is a form of sustainability. With a building, if you don’t tear it down, and you use the structure and the walls, there’s a huge reduction in carbon footprint,” Hu says. “Nobody needs to go to school to learn this, it’s just common sense that you don’t throw things away.”

As for her curriculum at Weitzman next year Hu says, “I think it will be a studio—I usually teach studios—most likely focusing on adaptive reuse. Over the past three or four years, our practice has become very interested in focusing on ethnic enclaves and projects that deal with multi-ethnicity and inner-city issues. We’ve been working with Chinatowns in San Francisco as well as Milan,” Hu says. “I find Philadelphia’s Chinatown very interesting: It’s gone through many different transformations, and there are debates right now about plans for a new arena. I think it could be really interesting to use that as a studio site.”

Read more at Weitzman News .

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10 Examples of Upcycling in Architecture

Time and again few people have taken untaken paths for conserving nature and sustainability towards practices. The following are 10 examples of people’s approaches in upcycling materials and their outcomes related to architecture.   

‘Upcycle’ means reuse of the product, material, or waste by enhancing its quality and value than its original state. The construction industry nearly accounts for 40% of the waste generated on this planet by mainly six materials; brick, concrete, steel, glass, wood, and plastic. As architects, if this waste is generated it is our responsibility to give alternatives to this downcycle. 

The concept of upcycling is vast and changes with ideas. Sometimes raw materials or different materials are used or modified to obtain new materials other times techniques and skills have also helped in simplifying this process. Two approaches are mainly observed firstly product-based; i.e potentially recyclable materials are directly used after few or no modifications and secondly, recyclable materials are mixed to obtain a new product from minimal energy consumption.   

1. Project – Sint Oelbert School, Oosterhout, Netherlands

Architect – Grosfeld Bekkers van der Velde Architecten Material – ‘Pretty Plastic’ façade cladding tiles Year – January 2020

The Sint Oelbert gymnasium school designed by Grosfeld Bekkers van der Velde Architecten is the first permanent structure to be cladded in Pretty Plastic shingles from recycled PVC windows and gutters. 

These exterior cladding shingles designed by Dutch studios Overtreders W and Bureau SLA are ‘First 100% recycled cladding material’ made from shredded PVC building window frames, downspouts and rain gutters. These diamond-shaped grey colored shingles are fire approved in class B (extremely difficult to burn) with each tile with unique texture due to its plastic compositions. All its molding and manufacturing raw material wastes were collected from neighborhoods in the Netherlands to upcycle plastic waste benefitting the circular economy . 

2.Project – K-Briq  

Architect – Scottish startup Kenoteq by Professor Gabriela Medero Material – construction and demolition waste Year – 2019

K-Briq is made of 90% construction waste that is more sustainable and generates a tenth of the carbon emissions less during manufacture than regular brick. Professor Medero spent over 10 years at Scottish University to come to this end. The K-briq looks and weighs like a normal brick and behaves like a clay brick with better insulation and produces less than 10% carbon emission while producing. 

The secretly guarded element is the binding material used with crushed bricks, concrete, gravel, plasterboard, and sand to make it sustainable and efficient. The 2020 Serpentine Pavilion in London was supposed to use and test the K-briq.

3.Project – Café Infinity

Architect – RJDL (Rahul Jain Design Lab) Material – Shipping Containers Year – 2019

Café Infinity designed using the recycled 40 feet shipping containers carefully crafted with minimal modifications to preserve its raw form. Structural and functional elements are curated with the idea of sustainability. Interior passive cooling and insulation are provided with 50mm Rockwool, gypsum, and fiber cement boards. Louvers made of container doors allow flexibility in spaces and safety during harsh cold or heat opening up in the courtyard. 

Planned with two side courtyards with infinity loop around for users of medical college hospitals making available their own space.

4.Project – The Canaan (House), Kerala, India

Architect – Ashams Ravi Material – Bamboo, Mud, Bricks, Mangalore tiles (90% recycled waste) Year – 2019

The 2-stroyed house uses recycled material like bricks, beer bottles, salvaged doors, windows, and tiles from the previous building demolished. The main aim was to build an eco-friendly and sustainable way of keeping carbon footprint as low as possible. The construction period of 4 months (April-Aug 2019) respected the site and its surroundings with 13% minimal site coverage and no damage to existing vegetation. 

The process of construction was challenging as a definite plan was not prepared and constant up-gradation was made on the materials used as they were being salvaged.

5.Project – Zero Waste Bistro Restaurant, New York, USA

Architect – Linda Bergroth Material – ‘The ReWall’ – Recycled Tetra Packs Year – 2018

Designed with the philosophy of ‘refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle’ zero waste bistro was curated at WantedDesign during NYCxDesign and demonstrated that good design can also be a big part of circular economy and usage of sustainable materials. The material used is recycled food and beverage cartons turned into environmentally friendly building materials by ‘The ReWall Company’. 

The Zero Waste Bistro also displayed furniture, product, interiors, and food made from 100% no waste and safe material to encourage and promote upcycling in architecture at all stages. 

6.Project – UPCycle Office, Austin, US

Architects – Gensler Material – Year – 2018

The adaptive reuse of an old warehouse was repurposed by creating a smaller multi-tenant office by recycling 100% of the old structure. The aim was to go beyond using recycling materials for additional and internal design elements as well. Old building elements like exhaust fans were also reused as decorative. The old and inward-looking space was transformed with creative graffiti and décor elements welcoming and encouraging more people for interaction and connection under one roof.  

7.Project – Enabling Village, Singapore

Architect – WOHA Material – recycled Shipping containers, oil drum, and concrete pipes Year – 2016

Enabling Village in itself is a repurpose project of an old defunct Bukit Merah Vocational Institute built in the 1970s into a verdant and accessible community center. The renovation makes the space inclusive and sustainable for all with spaces named ‘Nest’, ‘Playground’, ’Village Green’, ‘Hive’, ‘Hub’ and ‘Academy’ encourage all types of people to read, play and interact. 

Concrete pipes with niche seating for secluded reading spaces and as resting nooks. Oil containers in vibrant colors with trees and planters all over. Sea container as bridges. Many elements are used in harmony with each other to create a breather for surroundings.   

8.Project – The Circular Pavilion, Paris, France

Architect – Encore Heureux Architectes Material – Reclaimed Doors Year – 2015

The Circular Pavilion has nothing circular but is inspired by the process of circular economy i.e ‘one person’s waste becomes another person’s resource’. 60% of the materials are for a second life i.e 180 reused timber doors. As outside the inside is also repurposed furniture from the Parisian waste collected, assembled, and painted. Innovative use of doors at the base as well as top with just tilt of a degree.

9.Project – Bang Brewing, Minnesota, United States

Architect – Alchemy Architects Material – Prefabricated grain bin and salvaged timber Year – 2013

Alchemy Architects are known for upcycling in many projects and leading budget-friendly sustainable approaches. Bang brewery is constructed with a prefab grain bin of corrugated steel and most of the interiors with salvaged mismatched timber from the surroundings. Breweries demand high plumbing and high-quality floor which was easier due to modifiable steel material. The sloping roof with opening enables the stack effect of hot air and removal of odor within the structure easily.

10.Project – EcoARK, Taipei, Taiwan

Architect – Far Eastern Group Material – ‘Polli-Brick’ Recycled Plastic Bottles (1.5million) Year – 2010

‘Polli-brick’ is made from 100% recycled polyethylene terephthalate polymer. It is translucent, insulated, durable, and strong due to the interlocking structure with lightweight for curtain wall systems. A curtain wall system is formed using interlocking of bottles staggered and locked using a plastic membrane with lids.

‘The world’s first plastic bottle built structure’ said by few in Taiwan was constructed to raise awareness about the importance of recycling plastic. Apart from a low carbon footprint and emission, it is also aesthetically beautiful over 9-storey of height.

RuchiKumbhani is currently a final year B. Arch student at PVP College of Architecture, Pune. She is a curious mind & travel enthusiast. With few days of intense binge indoors to days of cycling outdoor, she loves to observeinterrelationship of different settings/spaces and penning her thoughts over it.

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Repurposing Existing Buildings into Residential Projects by Innovating with Materials

• Written by Camila Prieto
• Published on November 14, 2022

Considering the time, energy, and environmental impact of a construction process, architecture must explore different methodologies that work with the existing built environment . For example: how to give life to a forgotten building? Adaptive reuse gives new opportunities to abandoned buildings, following the idea that good architecture must be durable, innovative and recyclable.

Architects should not design just for the present, but should also think of how to adapt buildings for the future. In view of the world’s current situation regarding the climate crisis and available natural resources, adaptive reuse explores strategies for sustainability and design innovation, working to reduce energy consumption, minimal carbon impact and positive social impact.

Through a selection of ingenious residential projects –in which materials are immersed into a transformation, maintenance, or renovation process–, the article opens a discussion on how good architecture is durable and reusable. We explore a series of innovative material strategies used by architects to re-adapt existing buildings into new homes, according to various needs and requirements.

Enhancing the Building’s Materiality  

A Second Life for the Windmill

Designed for a rural landscape, the Windmill House stands out for its strong nod towards the traditional architecture of the Polish countryside. The strategy aims to give a second life to the windmill by adapting the interior to residential requirements and technical and local conditions.

The design is based on three materials: wood, concrete, and glass. Maintaining wooden boards in its façade helps the building keep its original expression and form. The project incorporates glass as a significant material to open the interior to its surroundings. As new functions imply new structures, after restoring reusable elements, the design plan added reinforced concrete floors, walls and ceiling. Making use of the mill’s old beams, the project created a half-timbered wall interior. 

Minimizing Impact by Reusing a Stable

Stable house is part of a family compound that intends to minimize its impact onto the bush reserve. The project keeps the old heritage brick walls of the stable throughout the whole perimeter, revealing itself throughout the house in different ways. 

The addition of a white ceiling volume creates an illuminated space that contrasts with the warmth and texture of the existing timber ceilings and exposed brick walls. The plan includes four passive sustainable strategies; together with the maximization of the brick wall as a new enclosure, it considered a native planted screen wrapping, natural shading and cross ventilation for the house.

Experimenting with Existing Containers

From shipping containers to a guest house, Poteet Architects demonstrate their sensitivity in transforming existing buildings into modern interior design. Their approach maintains the steel container and opens it up to the surrounding landscape with the addition of glass. 

With a clear focus on sustainability, the container's new life is characterized by a planted roof, an insulated interior and the introduction of a foundation made of recycled telephone poles.

Giving the Building a New Aesthetic 

Art Deco Style Church Transformed into Two New Homes

Built in 1924, the former Luke Chapel in Bern, Switzerland, was converted into two new homes. Morscher Architects introduced new material strategies to enable living conditions within the old building. To maintain free space in the floor plan while receiving light from the church window, the main action was to design the upper apartment in a hanging concrete box. Adding glass in the closed façade also illuminates the interior.

Former Warehouse into a New Family House

With an emphasis on maintaining the industrial feel of the former Redfern Warehouse yet creating a new living space, the project adds architectural elements. The insertion of refined and elegant elements creates an illuminated space, with natural light, ventilation and landscape views, which differentiates the family house concept from the existing building.

Mixed-Use Architecture with Adaptive Reuse

The introduction of new materials to an existing steel structure warehouse transformed the space into almost 54,000 m2 of mixed-use space. Restructuring the Katendrecht district was carried out at the same time of the renovation of disused buildings. Managed as a flexible concrete construction, the residential volume supports a steel table structure built right through the warehouse. Simple and illuminated interiors allow flexible floor plans within the apartments, ready to adapt to different necessities and dimensions.  

Transforming the Inside, Maintaining the Outside

A Theater Transforms to Adapt to the Needs of New Spectators

Inside the Majestic Theater –a brick volume with a distinguished rendered façade– a new project incorporates commercial use and three levels of residential apartments. Keeping the existing volume, roof profile and perimeter walls, the proposal intervenes the interior with simple materials and light colors to provide illuminated and spacious living spaces.

From Dance Hall to House Transformation

The transformation aimed to preserve and highlight the value of the building’s constructive elements with three main strategies. Reclaiming the original façade showed the materiality and composition of the building’s face to the town. Reinforcing the structure with the new demands and the isolation to increase interior comfort were some of the improvements to its energy efficiency and structure. A bioclimatic hall was defined by a large sliding skylight that both illuminates and ventilates space.

Hay Barn and House

With a focus on enhancing historic buildings, the intervention completely preserved the residential building, which is connected to the hay barn with the introduction of a wooden structure. 

Maintaining black walls and vertical openings, the old farm's authentic elements continued to present in the new design. To make the interiors into a residential unit, it is divided into two floors that are separated into rooms and common spaces. The project aimed to preserve and expose its natural materials, keeping its old stone masonry and the existing roof structure of the barn.

Editor's Note: This article was originally published on September 15, 2022.

This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: What is Good Architecture? , proudly presented by our first book ever: The ArchDaily Guide to Good Architecture . Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and projects. Learn more about our ArchDaily topics . As always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us .

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A sustainable approach to aesthetics: Climate Salon Podcast episode six recap

In the final episode of the Dezeen x SketchUp Climate Salon podcast, experts explore the intersection of beauty and sustainability, challenge conventional design thinking, and the advantages of technology and adaptive reuse. 

In architecture, a considered approach to aesthetics alongside sustainability is not just a trend but a transformative journey toward a greener future. As architects and designers push the boundaries of conventional aesthetics, the need to prioritize environmental impact has never been more urgent. In the final episode of the Dezeen x SketchUp Climate Salon podcast, Dezeen's design and environment reporter Jennifer Hahn, engineer and product director at Trimble's SketchUp Andrew Corney, Swiss-Danish architect Kathrin Gimmel and MEE Studio founder Morten Emil Engel, explored the intersection of beauty and sustainability, reimagining the built environment for generations to come. We’ve summarized the highlights and podcast takeaways below. 

Integrating aesthetics and sustainability

For too long, aesthetics and sustainability have existed in separate spheres within the architecture industry. However, as climate change concerns escalate globally, bridging these divides and embracing a holistic approach to building design is imperative. By prioritizing materials that marry visual appeal with ecological responsibility, we can create spaces that inspire and minimize environmental impact.

Challenging conventions: rethinking traditional materials

Take glass, for instance. The material has become part of the everyday modern aesthetic and is associated with beautiful views and the relationship between indoors and outdoors. Yet, traditional glass poses significant challenges to energy efficiency, leading to an overreliance on heating and cooling systems. To address this, we must confront conventional notions of beauty and embrace alternative materials that prioritize aesthetics and sustainability. By sourcing materials locally, we reduce carbon emissions and support local economies.

Embracing innovation: technology as a catalyst for change

In our quest for sustainable aesthetics, technology emerges as a powerful ally. Visualization tools like SketchUp empower architects to explore different design possibilities while considering environmental impact. Modeling various materials and systems in 3D can help architects better understand how to capitalize on natural resources and minimize energy consumption throughout a building's lifecycle. Integrating technology enhances design flexibility and fosters informed decision-making for a greener built environment.

Preserving heritage: the rise of adaptive reuse

Adaptive reuse is one of the more compelling sustainability strategies. By repurposing existing structures and embracing the natural aging of materials, architects can minimize environmental impact while honoring architectural heritage. However, ensuring the durability and safety of reclaimed materials remains paramount. Innovative solutions, such as creative insurance mechanisms or robust warranty frameworks, can instill confidence in the viability of sustainable materials, fostering their widespread adoption within the industry.

Moving toward a sustainable future: a call to action

Incorporating sustainability into architectural practice requires a collective commitment to change. By prioritizing design that is kinder to the environment, fostering innovation, and embracing collective action, architects can pave the way toward a more sustainable future. The convergence of aesthetics and sustainability represents not just a trend but a fundamental shift in architectural discourse — one that holds the promise of shaping a built environment that is both visually captivating and ecologically responsible.

Listen to the Climate Salon podcast episodes here: Apple Podcasts | Spotify  

Ready to start designing a greener future? Trial with SketchUp today.

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School of Visual Arts presents ten senior thesis interior design projects

Dezeen School Shows: a  community hub with commercial and residential programme spaces inspired by Haitian culture is included in Dezeen's latest school show by students at the School of Visual Arts .

Also included is a funeral centre with multi-functional spaces and botanical elements and an educational therapy centre inspired by the structure of fungi .

• School of Visual Arts

Institution: School of Visual Arts School: BFA Interior Design: Built Environments Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee

School statement:

"The 2024 SVA Interior Design: Built Environments Senior Thesis offers an immersive and comprehensive exploration tailored for aspiring interior designers.

"This course addresses a diverse array of project types, enabling students to integrate multiple design disciplines and methodologies.

"Through this integration, students will craft sensitive and aesthetically engaging interpretations of our built environment, emphasising sustainability and ethical responsibility.

"By focusing on these core values, students will develop the skills to create spaces that are not only visually appealing but also environmentally conscious and socially responsible, preparing them to be leaders in the field of interior design."

Miss Tomato by Qian Jessie Wang

"Miss Tomato is a disruptive culinary landmark that not only redefines the world of ketchup but is also a multifaceted culinary destination that combines creativity, art and sustainability, located in the bustling Chelsea neighbourhood of New York City.

"It features a tomato rooftop farm, a ketchup factory, a ketchup retail store and a tomato-themed restaurant.

"In the design of the spatial structure, I skilfully borrowed the structural cross-section of a tomato, making the building itself resemble a giant, life-affirming tomato.

"The red tomato skin skylight dome in the atrium is like a ripe tomato glistening in the sunlight – the red sunlight adding a touch of vivid colour to the whole space.

"Miss Tomato brings a feast for the senses – here you can taste pure tomato sauce, discover endless food possibilities and embrace a new way of life."

Student: Qian Jessie Wang Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: qwang14[at]sva.edu

The Aqua-Riff by Xueyi Cyrus Wang

"The Aqua-Riff is a one-of-a-kind waterfront music venue dedicated to creating an ideal entertainment environment for music lovers, especially heavy metal maniacs and local musicians.

"It was transformed from an old and unused parking garage located on the edge of Jersey City, west coast of the Hudson River, through selective utilisation and demolition of the existing structure.

"The Aqua-Riff injects the raw energy of old-school heavy metal into the coastline of Jersey City and invigorates the tedious neighbourhood through its unconventional outlook."

Student: Xueyi Cyrus Wang Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: xwang55[at]sva.edu

Total Community by Meixi Xu

"Involving local communities in Harbin's urban cultural heritage conservation projects is seen as a critical component of successful historic preservation efforts.

"My thesis proposal not only preserves the historical and cultural heritage of the area, promoting the city's unique identity but also ushers in a modern lifestyle and facilities to the community and neighbourhood.

"The project strives to manifest the Total Community concept, where the cultural heritage is protected, preserved and revitalised in an intuitive and bonding environment."

Student: Meixi Xu Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: mxu1[at]3sva.edu

The Bridge by Charlotte Chuyan Zhou

"The vision for The Bridge is to design a versatile shared space that accommodates both the elderly and younger generations, facilitating meaningful connections between them.

"This is achieved through a dual-purpose approach: allocating time slots for each demographic, providing tailored activity spaces and strategically designing overlapping time periods to encourage intergenerational interactions.

"I seek to bridge the generational gap by creating a public space that serves as a conduit for the sharing of traditions, experiences and stories, ultimately reinforcing the bonds between different groups of people and ensuring the continuity of the cultural heritage."

Student: Charlotte Chuyan Zhou Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: czhou10[at]sva.edu

One Eighty Point by Annabella Vilchis

"Located in the heart of Williamsburg, New York, One Eighty Point stands as a beacon within younger communities, integrating expansive indoor and outdoor environments.

"Adjacent to NYCHA housing, this urban oasis features a vibrant sunken skatepark on the ground level, complemented by a free-roaming gathering space on its second level.

"Churches, with their sacred ambience, prescribe specific behavioural codes – likewise, libraries maintain an air of constraint, often associated with authority, and cafés meticulously monitor access, predominantly catering to paying patrons.

"The facility will allow for structured and unstructured interactions and experiences that will nurture and stimulate physical, emotional and mental growth for the next generation of great New Yorkers."

Student: Annabella Vilchis Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: avilchis[at]sva.edu

Re-Mind by Wenxi Vivian Liu

"This therapy centre means to adopt adaptive reuse of historic sites of the Smallpox Hospital, located on Roosevelt Island.

"I aim to transform this space into a sanctuary for modern mental wellbeing, offering a place to rejuvenate the mind, reduce stress, provide education and promote function.

"The design approach is to create a comprehensive, personalised experience with a special focus on 'magic mushroom' sessions through an environment that truly embraces nature.

"Its core design weaves a theme of illusion, with the texture of the façade growing out of the site's collapse by mimicking the structure of a fungus, creating a captivating effect of light and shadow."

Student: Wenxi Vivian Liu Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: wliu7[at]sva.edu

LI8N 88 by Yunfei Lisa Zhang

"My thesis project LI8N 88 aims to honour cultural heritage and serve as a community hub, drawing inspiration from the Chinese Lion Dance among other elements.

"My hometown is Shanghai, China, a bustling international metropolis that combines traditional elements with modern skyscrapers in its architecture.

"I hope to inject fresh vitality into the Chinatown community with my designs while preserving cultural heritage elements.

"The lion dance is a traditional Chinese performance featuring dancers that mimic a lion's movements, often accompanied by drumming and cymbals – it is believed to bring luck and prosperity during festivals and celebrations."

Student: Yunfei Lisa Zhang Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: yzhang82[at]sva.edu

Farewell Retreat Centre by Yuhan Judy Wang

"The Farewell Retreat Centre is a funeral centre primarily focusing on 'gathering' as its central theme, aiming to cultivate a deep sense of unity among individuals.

"It aims to redefine the traditional view of 'final death', from a feared inevitability to an occasion to celebrate the memory of the deceased.

"The initiative uses botanical elements to create a tranquil atmosphere, with multi-functional spaces to meet the varying needs of visitors."

Student: Yuhan Judy Wang Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: ywang190[at]sva.edu

Mache by Brianna Toussaint

"The word 'mache' is a homonym in Haitian Creole, which means 'to walk' and refers to a market.

"Mache is a home of social and cultural gathering that revitalises the community of Little Haiti by nestling vibrant and enticing courtyards between the buildings that make up the Little Haiti Cultural Complex.

"Mache ensures the increase in density to this historical neighbourhood block with both commercial and residential programme spaces, remaining true to the marketplace's origin and serving the community members as a haven of comfort and security to those who seek it."

Student: Brianna Toussaint Course: Senior Thesis Instructors: Gita Nandan and Anthony Lee Email: btoussaint[at]sva.edu

Partnership content

This school show is a partnership between Dezeen and the School of Visual Arts. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here .

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Mending The Mills – Adaptive Reuse Of Sitaram Mills, Mumbai | Bachelors Design Thesis

Information

• Project Name: Mending The Mills - Adaptive Reuse Of Sitaram Mills, Mumbai
• Student Name: Dhiraj Sachdeo
• Awards: GREEN INNOVATION AWARD, Nippon Paint- Asia Young Designer Award (AYDA) | COA THESIS AWARDS 2021, Shortlisted for COA National Awards for Excellence in Architectural Thesis 2021, & JK AYA Best Architecture Student of the Year Award 2021 | ARCHIRESOURCE'S THESIS AWARDS, Honourable Mention
• Softwares/Plugins: AutoCAD , SketchUp , Adobe Illustrator , Adobe Photoshop
• Discipline: Architecture
• Level: Bachelors Design Thesis
• Institute: Padmabhushan Dr. Vasantdada Patil College of Architecture (PVPCOA)
• University: Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU)
• Location: Pune, Maharashtra
• Country: India

Excerpt: Mending The Mills – Adaptive Reuse Of Sitaram Mills, Mumbai , an award winning architectural bachelors design thesis by Dhiraj Sachdeo from Padmabhushan Dr. Vasantdada Patil College of Architecture (PVPCOA) , Vivekanand Institute of Technology (VIT) , Maharashtra, India,  narrates and identifies the past and present of the forgotten textile mill to the people of Mumbai, by putting dead spaces to use and also creating valuable public space for the city. The project aims to revive the forgotten textile mills and reestablish their relevance in Mumbai’s urban fabric.

Introduction: “Re-use” is the call of the century. This is applicable to our bags, furniture, or even clothes. A piece of cloth in every Indian household is only thrown away after it is worn outside, at home, on Holi, or has been used as a “ pocha” , before it has completely depleted all its possible uses.

However, the question arises “What is our approach when it comes to buildings?” The neglect of our built heritage, today, has deprived us of a better association with our history, and the possibility of learning from it. This study (bachelors design thesis) presents a story of the mills of Bombay, and tries to find a meaningful ‘Re-use’ of one of the closed mills – Sitaram Mills, in a manner that it adds value to the present urban context of Mumbai . 

The mills evoke memories of an industrial city that witnessed a myriad of developments. Once the economic backbone of the city, the mills gave a skyline of chimneys to the city of Mumbai. Today, however, 25 mills that lie under the National Textile Corporation (NTC) are, unfortunately, dead, defunct, and underused.

Architecture of Memory: Reimagining the Mills

Some of the recent redevelopments of these mill lands have led to commercial and political exploitation; while some others have become sites for many illegal activities. Rather than creating a narrow vision that imagines possibilities with a blank slate, thus erasing a significant part of Bombay’s history, the project uses “adaptive reuse” as a strategy to re-imagine the mills as a “mnemonic device” in the contemporary context, as a form of cultural landscape to transfer knowledge for creating an architectural experience. Borrowing clues from the Charles Correa Report, this mechanical device, set in the urban realm of the city, not only gives valuable public space back to the people, but also acts as a living memoir of the various stories that the mill lands have to narrate. Based on the context of Mills of Mumbai, the design proposal focuses on the site- Sitaram Mills, which is located in the urban context of Lower Parel, Mumbai, India.

Site Context

The Defunct Mill campus of Sitaram Mills is surrounded by the Lodha Towers on one end and a row of informal settlements on the other. Once a functioning mill in an integrated campus setup, the Sitaram mill compound today stands defunct, only survived by 8-metre-high stone walls and an internal road that divides the site.

Final Outcome

Plaza of Thought and Action: Relevance in the Contemporary Context – The revitalization approach attempts to reinstate the campus setting by introducing a central pedestrian plaza between the three defunct blocks and rerouting vehicular access. The plaza becomes a pause point in the busy activity route, holding several smaller architectural remnants of the past. It becomes an attempt to initiate interactions and bring together people from the three blocks, which are otherwise different in function. A change in the paving material and pattern limited to the footprint of the old demolished structures acts as a strong reference point to the functional mill, symbolising an important part of the city’s history.

The chimney retained as an urban artefact, acts as a physical mediation between the past and the present. The amphitheatre becomes a space for collective pronouncement, hoping to become an informal forum where dialogues are initiated. The retained green pocket right in the centre of the urban plaza is an expression of accepting the current state of the mill and celebrating it. In many ways, these remnants invoke notions of human agency in the narratives of the past and become spaces for dialogue and interactions in the present.

To make the mills relevant in the contemporary context as well as respond to the reimagined public nature of the intervention programmatically, the compound aspires to become a “Plaza of Thought and Action.” At the scale of the immediate context, the plaza caters to the existing residents of the informal settlements and provides a workshop space for them to sharpen their skills in wood, metal, or electrical work.

At the scale of the neighbourhood, a co-working space and startup block become a collaborative space for startups, especially relevant for the growing IT sector in Lower Parel.

Completing the loop of “Think-Make-exhibitʼ, the Exhibition Block becomes the most public unit in the plaza, catering to the scale of the city. Along with large-scale exhibition spaces, it contains a library, a flea market space, and a cafeteria. Working within the partly broken mill, this block concentrates the heavy mass near the back walls, freeing up space that faces the plaza and creating a large public entrance. The library secludes itself from the otherwise public building, allowing one to find a quiet nook to read. The exhibition area on the ground floor has a huge ramp that takes visitors to the first floor, which houses a permanent exhibition of “the history of mill lands.” The objects on display in the gallery space use the old mill wall as a backdrop, making the mills an equal part of the exhibition.

Negotiating the Old and the New: Architectural Language –

The architectural language of the project carefully negotiates the existing mill walls and the new interventions, by retaining the original structural grid. The project pays homage to the past, while the contrasting use of steel identifies the new structures. This approach allows for a tectonic experience of the old mill walls, creating a harmonious dialogue between the past and the present. The three blocks within the plaza—the workshop block, the co-working and startup block, and the exhibition block—follow a common design framework that establishes a cohesive architectural language. This framework can be applied to future interventions at the numerous other defunct mills scattered across the city.

The project narrates and identifies the past and present of the forgotten textile mill to the people of Mumbai, by putting dead spaces to use and also creating valuable public space for the city. In the words of Macus Cicero, “ The life of the dead is placed within the memory of the living.” The approach of erasing architecture wipes out connections with history and the possibilities of learning from it. This architectural design thesis, as a lived experience, is thus a testimonial to the architecture of memory. And in many ways, it is a larger comment on insensitive conservation practices in the city that “erase” rather than “adapt.”

[This Academic Project has been published with text submitted by the student]

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Formulation and Experimental Demonstration of Design and Control Methods for Efficient Hydraulic Architecture Based on Multi-Chamber Cylinders

Amidst the increasing need to improve efficiency of fluid power systems for off-road vehicles, different architectures have been proposed in literature to reduce system throttling losses. Among the most cited ones, are architectures based on the use of common-pressure rails (CPR), which in some cases have been combined with multi-chamber cylinders to further reduce power losses. This kind of solution appears to be particularly attractive in systems with several actuators with many instances of overrunning loads, such as in earthmoving machines. In this scenario, a basic question arises concerning the maximum amount of energy that can be saved by adding extra pressure rails and/or cylinder chambers. Answering this question can be challenging given that many parameters such as cylinder areas, pressure levels and both actuator and supervisory level controls can affect the results for a given application. This work investigates energy savings potential of different architectures based on the previously mentioned concept. Based on the results of this investigation, a novel architecture combining multi-pressure rails and multi-chamber cylinders is proposed and investigated. The system is sized and simulated for the study case of an excavator. This work addresses controllers design, from the supervisory level power management control to the local cylinder actuation system. In addition, special care is taken in the area selection of the multi- chamber cylinder, with factors such as manufacturing cost and reliability being considered. The proposed design procedure allows the design of compact and efficient three-chamber cylinders on a wider range of applications. Results show the potential for power consumption reduction of up to 31% when compared to state-of-the-art machines available in the market. Additionally, the proposed cylinder design optimization allows a reduction of up to 25% in cylinder weight when compared to other design methods for multi-chamber cylinders. Within this scope, an experimental setup is designed for proof of concept of the proposed hydraulic circuit and cylinder control methods, with laboratory tests validating the feasibility of the proposed system. Test results demonstrated the ability of the proposed controller in efficiently controlling pressures within the actuator, while delivering stable speed tracking performance. Experiments also demonstrated the system capability in recovering energy and validated the expectation of obtaining hydraulic actuation with low pressure drop across control valves.

Bilsland Dissertation Fellowship

Degree type.

• Doctor of Philosophy
• Mechanical Engineering

Campus location

• West Lafayette

Advisor/Supervisor/Committee Chair

Additional committee member 2, additional committee member 3, additional committee member 4, usage metrics.

• Mechanical engineering not elsewhere classified

A generative AI reset: Rewiring to turn potential into value in 2024

It’s time for a generative AI (gen AI) reset. The initial enthusiasm and flurry of activity in 2023 is giving way to second thoughts and recalibrations as companies realize that capturing gen AI’s enormous potential value is harder than expected .

With 2024 shaping up to be the year for gen AI to prove its value, companies should keep in mind the hard lessons learned with digital and AI transformations: competitive advantage comes from building organizational and technological capabilities to broadly innovate, deploy, and improve solutions at scale—in effect, rewiring the business  for distributed digital and AI innovation.

About QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey

QuantumBlack, McKinsey’s AI arm, helps companies transform using the power of technology, technical expertise, and industry experts. With thousands of practitioners at QuantumBlack (data engineers, data scientists, product managers, designers, and software engineers) and McKinsey (industry and domain experts), we are working to solve the world’s most important AI challenges. QuantumBlack Labs is our center of technology development and client innovation, which has been driving cutting-edge advancements and developments in AI through locations across the globe.

Companies looking to score early wins with gen AI should move quickly. But those hoping that gen AI offers a shortcut past the tough—and necessary—organizational surgery are likely to meet with disappointing results. Launching pilots is (relatively) easy; getting pilots to scale and create meaningful value is hard because they require a broad set of changes to the way work actually gets done.

Let’s briefly look at what this has meant for one Pacific region telecommunications company. The company hired a chief data and AI officer with a mandate to “enable the organization to create value with data and AI.” The chief data and AI officer worked with the business to develop the strategic vision and implement the road map for the use cases. After a scan of domains (that is, customer journeys or functions) and use case opportunities across the enterprise, leadership prioritized the home-servicing/maintenance domain to pilot and then scale as part of a larger sequencing of initiatives. They targeted, in particular, the development of a gen AI tool to help dispatchers and service operators better predict the types of calls and parts needed when servicing homes.

Leadership put in place cross-functional product teams with shared objectives and incentives to build the gen AI tool. As part of an effort to upskill the entire enterprise to better work with data and gen AI tools, they also set up a data and AI academy, which the dispatchers and service operators enrolled in as part of their training. To provide the technology and data underpinnings for gen AI, the chief data and AI officer also selected a large language model (LLM) and cloud provider that could meet the needs of the domain as well as serve other parts of the enterprise. The chief data and AI officer also oversaw the implementation of a data architecture so that the clean and reliable data (including service histories and inventory databases) needed to build the gen AI tool could be delivered quickly and responsibly.

Creating value beyond the hype

Let’s deliver on the promise of technology from strategy to scale.

Our book Rewired: The McKinsey Guide to Outcompeting in the Age of Digital and AI (Wiley, June 2023) provides a detailed manual on the six capabilities needed to deliver the kind of broad change that harnesses digital and AI technology. In this article, we will explore how to extend each of those capabilities to implement a successful gen AI program at scale. While recognizing that these are still early days and that there is much more to learn, our experience has shown that breaking open the gen AI opportunity requires companies to rewire how they work in the following ways.

Figure out where gen AI copilots can give you a real competitive advantage

The broad excitement around gen AI and its relative ease of use has led to a burst of experimentation across organizations. Most of these initiatives, however, won’t generate a competitive advantage. One bank, for example, bought tens of thousands of GitHub Copilot licenses, but since it didn’t have a clear sense of how to work with the technology, progress was slow. Another unfocused effort we often see is when companies move to incorporate gen AI into their customer service capabilities. Customer service is a commodity capability, not part of the core business, for most companies. While gen AI might help with productivity in such cases, it won’t create a competitive advantage.

To create competitive advantage, companies should first understand the difference between being a “taker” (a user of available tools, often via APIs and subscription services), a “shaper” (an integrator of available models with proprietary data), and a “maker” (a builder of LLMs). For now, the maker approach is too expensive for most companies, so the sweet spot for businesses is implementing a taker model for productivity improvements while building shaper applications for competitive advantage.

Much of gen AI’s near-term value is closely tied to its ability to help people do their current jobs better. In this way, gen AI tools act as copilots that work side by side with an employee, creating an initial block of code that a developer can adapt, for example, or drafting a requisition order for a new part that a maintenance worker in the field can review and submit (see sidebar “Copilot examples across three generative AI archetypes”). This means companies should be focusing on where copilot technology can have the biggest impact on their priority programs.

Copilot examples across three generative AI archetypes

• “Taker” copilots help real estate customers sift through property options and find the most promising one, write code for a developer, and summarize investor transcripts.
• “Shaper” copilots provide recommendations to sales reps for upselling customers by connecting generative AI tools to customer relationship management systems, financial systems, and customer behavior histories; create virtual assistants to personalize treatments for patients; and recommend solutions for maintenance workers based on historical data.
• “Maker” copilots are foundation models that lab scientists at pharmaceutical companies can use to find and test new and better drugs more quickly.

Some industrial companies, for example, have identified maintenance as a critical domain for their business. Reviewing maintenance reports and spending time with workers on the front lines can help determine where a gen AI copilot could make a big difference, such as in identifying issues with equipment failures quickly and early on. A gen AI copilot can also help identify root causes of truck breakdowns and recommend resolutions much more quickly than usual, as well as act as an ongoing source for best practices or standard operating procedures.

The challenge with copilots is figuring out how to generate revenue from increased productivity. In the case of customer service centers, for example, companies can stop recruiting new agents and use attrition to potentially achieve real financial gains. Defining the plans for how to generate revenue from the increased productivity up front, therefore, is crucial to capturing the value.

McKinsey Live Event: Unlocking the full value of gen AI

Join our colleagues Jessica Lamb and Gayatri Shenai on April 8, as they discuss how companies can navigate the ever-changing world of gen AI.

Upskill the talent you have but be clear about the gen-AI-specific skills you need

By now, most companies have a decent understanding of the technical gen AI skills they need, such as model fine-tuning, vector database administration, prompt engineering, and context engineering. In many cases, these are skills that you can train your existing workforce to develop. Those with existing AI and machine learning (ML) capabilities have a strong head start. Data engineers, for example, can learn multimodal processing and vector database management, MLOps (ML operations) engineers can extend their skills to LLMOps (LLM operations), and data scientists can develop prompt engineering, bias detection, and fine-tuning skills.

A sample of new generative AI skills needed

The following are examples of new skills needed for the successful deployment of generative AI tools:

• data scientist:
• prompt engineering
• in-context learning
• bias detection
• pattern identification
• reinforcement learning from human feedback
• hyperparameter/large language model fine-tuning; transfer learning
• data engineer:
• data wrangling and data warehousing
• data pipeline construction
• multimodal processing
• vector database management

The learning process can take two to three months to get to a decent level of competence because of the complexities in learning what various LLMs can and can’t do and how best to use them. The coders need to gain experience building software, testing, and validating answers, for example. It took one financial-services company three months to train its best data scientists to a high level of competence. While courses and documentation are available—many LLM providers have boot camps for developers—we have found that the most effective way to build capabilities at scale is through apprenticeship, training people to then train others, and building communities of practitioners. Rotating experts through teams to train others, scheduling regular sessions for people to share learnings, and hosting biweekly documentation review sessions are practices that have proven successful in building communities of practitioners (see sidebar “A sample of new generative AI skills needed”).

It’s important to bear in mind that successful gen AI skills are about more than coding proficiency. Our experience in developing our own gen AI platform, Lilli , showed us that the best gen AI technical talent has design skills to uncover where to focus solutions, contextual understanding to ensure the most relevant and high-quality answers are generated, collaboration skills to work well with knowledge experts (to test and validate answers and develop an appropriate curation approach), strong forensic skills to figure out causes of breakdowns (is the issue the data, the interpretation of the user’s intent, the quality of metadata on embeddings, or something else?), and anticipation skills to conceive of and plan for possible outcomes and to put the right kind of tracking into their code. A pure coder who doesn’t intrinsically have these skills may not be as useful a team member.

While current upskilling is largely based on a “learn on the job” approach, we see a rapid market emerging for people who have learned these skills over the past year. That skill growth is moving quickly. GitHub reported that developers were working on gen AI projects “in big numbers,” and that 65,000 public gen AI projects were created on its platform in 2023—a jump of almost 250 percent over the previous year. If your company is just starting its gen AI journey, you could consider hiring two or three senior engineers who have built a gen AI shaper product for their companies. This could greatly accelerate your efforts.

Form a centralized team to establish standards that enable responsible scaling

To ensure that all parts of the business can scale gen AI capabilities, centralizing competencies is a natural first move. The critical focus for this central team will be to develop and put in place protocols and standards to support scale, ensuring that teams can access models while also minimizing risk and containing costs. The team’s work could include, for example, procuring models and prescribing ways to access them, developing standards for data readiness, setting up approved prompt libraries, and allocating resources.

While developing Lilli, our team had its mind on scale when it created an open plug-in architecture and setting standards for how APIs should function and be built.  They developed standardized tooling and infrastructure where teams could securely experiment and access a GPT LLM , a gateway with preapproved APIs that teams could access, and a self-serve developer portal. Our goal is that this approach, over time, can help shift “Lilli as a product” (that a handful of teams use to build specific solutions) to “Lilli as a platform” (that teams across the enterprise can access to build other products).

For teams developing gen AI solutions, squad composition will be similar to AI teams but with data engineers and data scientists with gen AI experience and more contributors from risk management, compliance, and legal functions. The general idea of staffing squads with resources that are federated from the different expertise areas will not change, but the skill composition of a gen-AI-intensive squad will.

Set up the technology architecture to scale

Building a gen AI model is often relatively straightforward, but making it fully operational at scale is a different matter entirely. We’ve seen engineers build a basic chatbot in a week, but releasing a stable, accurate, and compliant version that scales can take four months. That’s why, our experience shows, the actual model costs may be less than 10 to 15 percent of the total costs of the solution.

Building for scale doesn’t mean building a new technology architecture. But it does mean focusing on a few core decisions that simplify and speed up processes without breaking the bank. Three such decisions stand out:

• Focus on reusing your technology. Reusing code can increase the development speed of gen AI use cases by 30 to 50 percent. One good approach is simply creating a source for approved tools, code, and components. A financial-services company, for example, created a library of production-grade tools, which had been approved by both the security and legal teams, and made them available in a library for teams to use. More important is taking the time to identify and build those capabilities that are common across the most priority use cases. The same financial-services company, for example, identified three components that could be reused for more than 100 identified use cases. By building those first, they were able to generate a significant portion of the code base for all the identified use cases—essentially giving every application a big head start.
• Focus the architecture on enabling efficient connections between gen AI models and internal systems. For gen AI models to work effectively in the shaper archetype, they need access to a business’s data and applications. Advances in integration and orchestration frameworks have significantly reduced the effort required to make those connections. But laying out what those integrations are and how to enable them is critical to ensure these models work efficiently and to avoid the complexity that creates technical debt  (the “tax” a company pays in terms of time and resources needed to redress existing technology issues). Chief information officers and chief technology officers can define reference architectures and integration standards for their organizations. Key elements should include a model hub, which contains trained and approved models that can be provisioned on demand; standard APIs that act as bridges connecting gen AI models to applications or data; and context management and caching, which speed up processing by providing models with relevant information from enterprise data sources.
• Build up your testing and quality assurance capabilities. Our own experience building Lilli taught us to prioritize testing over development. Our team invested in not only developing testing protocols for each stage of development but also aligning the entire team so that, for example, it was clear who specifically needed to sign off on each stage of the process. This slowed down initial development but sped up the overall delivery pace and quality by cutting back on errors and the time needed to fix mistakes.

Ensure data quality and focus on unstructured data to fuel your models

The ability of a business to generate and scale value from gen AI models will depend on how well it takes advantage of its own data. As with technology, targeted upgrades to existing data architecture  are needed to maximize the future strategic benefits of gen AI:

• Be targeted in ramping up your data quality and data augmentation efforts. While data quality has always been an important issue, the scale and scope of data that gen AI models can use—especially unstructured data—has made this issue much more consequential. For this reason, it’s critical to get the data foundations right, from clarifying decision rights to defining clear data processes to establishing taxonomies so models can access the data they need. The companies that do this well tie their data quality and augmentation efforts to the specific AI/gen AI application and use case—you don’t need this data foundation to extend to every corner of the enterprise. This could mean, for example, developing a new data repository for all equipment specifications and reported issues to better support maintenance copilot applications.
• Understand what value is locked into your unstructured data. Most organizations have traditionally focused their data efforts on structured data (values that can be organized in tables, such as prices and features). But the real value from LLMs comes from their ability to work with unstructured data (for example, PowerPoint slides, videos, and text). Companies can map out which unstructured data sources are most valuable and establish metadata tagging standards so models can process the data and teams can find what they need (tagging is particularly important to help companies remove data from models as well, if necessary). Be creative in thinking about data opportunities. Some companies, for example, are interviewing senior employees as they retire and feeding that captured institutional knowledge into an LLM to help improve their copilot performance.
• Optimize to lower costs at scale. There is often as much as a tenfold difference between what companies pay for data and what they could be paying if they optimized their data infrastructure and underlying costs. This issue often stems from companies scaling their proofs of concept without optimizing their data approach. Two costs generally stand out. One is storage costs arising from companies uploading terabytes of data into the cloud and wanting that data available 24/7. In practice, companies rarely need more than 10 percent of their data to have that level of availability, and accessing the rest over a 24- or 48-hour period is a much cheaper option. The other costs relate to computation with models that require on-call access to thousands of processors to run. This is especially the case when companies are building their own models (the maker archetype) but also when they are using pretrained models and running them with their own data and use cases (the shaper archetype). Companies could take a close look at how they can optimize computation costs on cloud platforms—for instance, putting some models in a queue to run when processors aren’t being used (such as when Americans go to bed and consumption of computing services like Netflix decreases) is a much cheaper option.

Build trust and reusability to drive adoption and scale

Because many people have concerns about gen AI, the bar on explaining how these tools work is much higher than for most solutions. People who use the tools want to know how they work, not just what they do. So it’s important to invest extra time and money to build trust by ensuring model accuracy and making it easy to check answers.

One insurance company, for example, created a gen AI tool to help manage claims. As part of the tool, it listed all the guardrails that had been put in place, and for each answer provided a link to the sentence or page of the relevant policy documents. The company also used an LLM to generate many variations of the same question to ensure answer consistency. These steps, among others, were critical to helping end users build trust in the tool.

Part of the training for maintenance teams using a gen AI tool should be to help them understand the limitations of models and how best to get the right answers. That includes teaching workers strategies to get to the best answer as fast as possible by starting with broad questions then narrowing them down. This provides the model with more context, and it also helps remove any bias of the people who might think they know the answer already. Having model interfaces that look and feel the same as existing tools also helps users feel less pressured to learn something new each time a new application is introduced.

Getting to scale means that businesses will need to stop building one-off solutions that are hard to use for other similar use cases. One global energy and materials company, for example, has established ease of reuse as a key requirement for all gen AI models, and has found in early iterations that 50 to 60 percent of its components can be reused. This means setting standards for developing gen AI assets (for example, prompts and context) that can be easily reused for other cases.

While many of the risk issues relating to gen AI are evolutions of discussions that were already brewing—for instance, data privacy, security, bias risk, job displacement, and intellectual property protection—gen AI has greatly expanded that risk landscape. Just 21 percent of companies reporting AI adoption say they have established policies governing employees’ use of gen AI technologies.

Similarly, a set of tests for AI/gen AI solutions should be established to demonstrate that data privacy, debiasing, and intellectual property protection are respected. Some organizations, in fact, are proposing to release models accompanied with documentation that details their performance characteristics. Documenting your decisions and rationales can be particularly helpful in conversations with regulators.

In some ways, this article is premature—so much is changing that we’ll likely have a profoundly different understanding of gen AI and its capabilities in a year’s time. But the core truths of finding value and driving change will still apply. How well companies have learned those lessons may largely determine how successful they’ll be in capturing that value.

The authors wish to thank Michael Chui, Juan Couto, Ben Ellencweig, Josh Gartner, Bryce Hall, Holger Harreis, Phil Hudelson, Suzana Iacob, Sid Kamath, Neerav Kingsland, Kitti Lakner, Robert Levin, Matej Macak, Lapo Mori, Alex Peluffo, Aldo Rosales, Erik Roth, Abdul Wahab Shaikh, and Stephen Xu for their contributions to this article.

This article was edited by Barr Seitz, an editorial director in the New York office.

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