We recently published a list of must-watch TED talks for archipreneurs, which includes the one delivered by growth specialist and business strategist Knut Haanaes. Looking for reasons why companies fail, Haanaes finds that exploiting what you already have can be bad in the long term, while focusing only on exploration can be bad short term. Innovation and competence both need to be in place in order to successfully run a business today, and avoid becoming obsolete tomorrow.

Many among the most successful architecture firms in the world have long begun to widen the scope of their work, and continue to branch out into various fields outside of what we conventionally see as architecture. Technological innovation, cross-disciplinary partnerships and research collaborations go hand in hand with consistent delivery of successful projects. In fact, while offering reliable, top notch products and services is a great basis for building a successful business, innovation is the aspect that propels these firms forward and allows them to stay ahead of the competition.

1# BIG

By exploring new financing models and experimenting with innovative design solutions and materials, BIG is broadening the scope of architectural practice. Its incubator, called BIG IDEAS, allows innovators to create design prototypes, products and new materials for the AEC industry.

Among the projects being developed under the BIG IDEAS umbrella are an Internet of Things door lock called Friday, prototypes for a life-sized Tesla coil, steam-ring generators, smart building materials and even a Hyperloop high-speed transportation system. Also, the firm rigorously incorporates popular media and new technology in their marketing campaigns, utilizing GoPro videography, augmented reality, comic books, holograms to name a few.

2# Perkins + Will

One of the leading architecture offices in the United States, Perkins + Will, experiments with new technologies to improve healthcare design. They have recently established an in-house incubator program, which allows them to develop and support small research projects through micro-grants.

The firm also created 10 new laboratories that aim to tackle sustainability issues, resilience, the human experience, the design process, and mobility. In order to encourage designers to innovate, Perkins+Will organized an annual competition through which the most promising projects that are further developed within the Innovation Incubator System.

The first Innovation Incubator call-for-submissions resulted in 89 entries from Perkins + Will professionals competing for micro-grants of 40 hours of company-paid time over a six-month period. Nineteen were chosen from across their global offices, and each successfully completed projects, presentations or publications. Since then, the firm has awarded two cohorts of Innovation Incubator participants annually – in spring and fall of each year – funding at least ten projects per class.

3# NBBJ

NBBJ is among the first architecture firms that fully embrace Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR). While a number of firms in the design industry have examined the promise of VR, the firm’s partnership with Visual Vocal marks the first instance of an established design firm incubating a VR startup inside its own offices and developing new tools to improve decision-making.

The initiative is part of NBBJ’s ongoing investment in and development of digital tools. It will pilot the Visual Vocal software on design projects for healthcare, corporate, and urban planning clients. Ultimately the tool will then become available to the greater architecture, engineering, and construction industry.

4# KieranTimberlake

Philadelphia-based design studio, led by architect KieranTimberlake, has embraced innovation by turning their own office into a research lab where they test out various design and technological solutions related to energy efficiency, sustainable design and sensor-driven products for the AEC industry.

Here the team produces full-size prototypes of architectural elements, using their own “home” to create efficient innovative products such weather-tracking software and smart materials. They collect data from their own office to explore natural thermal comfort, as well as mass customization, off-site fabrication and prototyping.

5# Foster + Partners

Foster+Partners have managed to stay ahead of the competition for many years. The practice is on the frontier of innovative design thanks to it is dedicated research and development teams and numerous research collaborations. Their in-house team of researchers is a mix of material specialists, mathematicians, aerospace engineers, architects, artists and acousticians who use state-of-the art technological tools to design.

They were recently asked by the European Space Agency to design a habitat for the Moon. For this project they teamed up with space engineering company Alta and D-Shape, the organization behind the world’s largest 3D printer. The project is an inflatable skeleton structure that can be transported flat-pack style and assembled by robots using local materials like Moon dust to 3D print a protective shell.

While this specific project might seem too out there for those concerned with revenue and business growth, it is useful to notice that this dedication to innovation is also behind the projects such as the Gherkin in London and Hong Kong International Airport.

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What role does innovation play in your business? Do you think having an in-house idea incubator is something archipreneurs should consider?

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2016 was an exciting year for architecture trends. While we still haven’t started travelling to space – though we are a step closer thanks to a successful rocket launch and landing SpaceX accomplished earlier this year – technology has been significantly impacting the way we inhabit cities.

Designers have been experimenting with innovative, intelligent building materials, car manufacturers are rolling out self-driving models, and urban infrastructure is relying more on connectivity to optimize everything, from commuting to working. Many among these are long-term architecture trends that have had breakthroughs in the last year, which promise to continue into 2017.

Here are the 7 most significant architecture trends affecting the built environment that will shape the upcoming year.

#1 – Urban Connectivity

Connectivity extends far beyond Internet access. In fact, several companies across the globe are currently working on integrating tech products into urban environments in order to improve transportation, social services, health and public spaces. We have already written about Sidewalk Labs, a “smart-city” company owned by Alphabet Inc., which creates digital products through public-private partnerships to provide ubiquitous connectivity, real-time sensors, precise location services, distributed trust, autonomous systems, and digital actuation and fabrication.

Several incubators targeting urban environments are creating funding opportunities for companies that greatly influence how we live, work and commute. Y Combinator already funded companies like reputable Airbnb, among others, while Impact Engine supports early-stage, tech-focused businesses that change neighborhoods and urban conditions in the Chicago area.

#2 – Autonomous Transportation

Self-driving vehicles are promising to revolutionize the transport industry, which will greatly impact the built environment. Car manufacturers are rolling out models that are already hitting city streets. Last August, Singapore has become the first country in the world to launch a self-driving taxi service, beating Uber by a few days to public road tests. US-based start-up called nuTonomy received permission from the Singapore government to test self-driving cars and start testing with passengers.

Last December, Uber brought a small number of self-driving Volvo luxury SUVs to San Francisco. Another interesting trend – drones – is getting into the transportation race. Chinese drone manufacturer Ehang has created a vehicle capable of autonomously transporting human passengers and their luggage. Aerial drone delivery companies like Flirtey and Matternet are also developing solutions for air traffic. It will be interesting to see what 2017 brings for autonomous transportation.

#3 – Space Sharing

The sharing economy is expanding to include an increasing number of industries. WeWork has come to the forefront of the “space as a service” trend as one of the fastest growing consumers of office space, transforming a real estate business. The company has recently begun testing its first residential offering – WeLive, which brings a “co-living” philosophy into the world of residential real estate. WeLive links tenants with living areas that share kitchens and bathrooms. According to company documents – as Nasdaq reports – WeLive is expected to bring in about 21% of the company’s total revenue by 2018.

Last December, Airbnb has started investing in Home Sharing Clubs – host-led local organizations – around the world, closing out 2016 with 112. The emergence of Club-like organizations is an important trend to watch in 2017.

#4 – AR/VR

Augmented reality and virtual reality are being used in architectural design and real estate with increased frequency. Architecture studios are embracing VR as a way to optimize communication with clients and speed up the design process. This trend is expected to grow in 2017, with firms like NBBJ developing new, immersive solutions. NBBJ has already developed a self-contained venture Visual Vocal to built a VR platform integrated into the firm’s design process. Computing chipmaker NVIDIA conceived a VR demonstration of the completed building powered by NVIDIA products. The VR headset allows Gensler designers to navigate the model of the structure and notice design flaws that could be easily missed in a 2D environment.

According to digi-capital, the virtual and augmented reality industries will be worth $150 billion dollars by 2020. Virtual home experiences are expected to dominate 2017, and can potentially get into architecture schools.

#5 – Entrepreneurship in Architectural Education

Speaking of schools, entrepreneurship seems to be increasingly taught to architecture students. Architecture schools across the world are starting to offer bachelor and master programs in entrepreneurship and real estate development.

The Parsons School of Design offers an undergraduate minor in creative entrepreneurship, while a Penn State-sponsored business accelerator program aims to help student entrepreneurs turn their innovative project into reality. Canada’s Ryerson encourages its students to participate in a variety of projects that allow them to gain skills in architecture that are not taught in class.

The School of Architecture and Planning (SA+P), one of five schools at MIT, launched an entrepreneurship accelerator, DesignX, which allows students to “make the critical leap from project to startup”. DesignX will include a four-month, for-credit accelerator workshop through which participants will get a chance to pitch to outside investors and industry partners.

#6 – Material Innovation

The Multiscale Materials Laboratory at Rice University is working on developing what they call “programmable cement” which can allow designers to control the kinetics of cement to get desired shapes, the morphology and size of the basic building blocks of C-S-H. This way they can self-assemble into microstructures with far greater packing density compared with conventional amorphous C-S-H microstructures.

Another common material that is gaining momentum is timber. Architects are increasingly using this rapidly renewable, carbon sequestering material that environmentally outperforms concrete and steel. In 2016, PLP Architecture and researchers from the University of Cambridge have revealed a concept for London’s first wooden skyscraper, architect Michael Green completed the largest mass-timber building in the United States – a seven-story tower in Minneapolis called T3.

Companies like Solar Roadways and Wattway are developing solar-harvesting road surfaces, while power-generating textiles are being experimented on at the Georgia Institute of Technology. This fabric harvests energy from solar and kinetic sources and is highly flexible, lightweight and consists of widely available, environmentally friendly materials.

 #7 – Sustainability

From energy to transportation and architecture, industries are steadily moving towards sustainable practices. 3D printed buildings, like the world’s first 3D printed office in Dubai, also influence the costs and environmental impact of the AEC industry. Cities are moving toward clean energy and a green economy.

After completing the Vertical Forest tower in Milan, Italy, architect Stefano Boeri has recently announced a similar design to be developed in China. This will be the first project of its kind in Asia.

Malaysia’s Forest City is set to become Southeast Asia’s largest mixed-use green development. Sasaki Associates designed the $40.9 billion master plan as an ecosystem that mimics the natural coastal ecologies of the region.

Urban Renewal and farming Projects are also a path to more sustainable cities. Some of the largest are The Los Angeles River Revitalization, Green Square – Australia’s biggest urban renewal project – while the Chinese megacity of Shanghai is set to realize the Sunqiao Urban Agricultural District.

The post 7 Urban and Architecture Trends to Watch in 2017 appeared first on Archipreneur.

However, some architecture firms are utilizing their high profiles, international success and the influx of talented, young designers to establish in-house research divisions and incubators that support the development of new ideas in the AEC industry. The following five companies are consistent in pushing the envelope and helping architecture adopt some of the latest technologies:

Our top 5 most innovative architecture firms list:

#1 BIG | Bjarke Ingels Group

One of the most renowned architecture firms in the world, BIG, is a great example of architects keeping step with pop culture and new business trends. Both their design and company culture reveals a nimbleness and experimental attitude that allow them to explore different avenues for practicing architecture. BIG’s founder, Bjarke Ingels, is a rare example of an archipreneur attuned to the latest media trends and business strategies. He embraces social media, invests in new enterprises, and implements innovation in his projects.

Recently, BIG teamed up with aerospace organization Rumlaboratorium, the Danish Technical University and artists from realities:united to launch a Kickstarter campaign to design a prototype of a unique steam-ring generator that would be part of the “cleanest power plant in the world.” The initiative shows a readiness to invent and extend their involvement in the construction process to engineering. In 2014, they launched a new division within the company and called it BIG Ideas, which was intended to act as a research and development lab where the firm could create products and new building materials. Several other independent projects are currently underway, many of which are focused on finding new engineering solutions to be incorporated into BIG’s projects.

#2 SHoP Architects

SHoP Architects and SHoP Construction (SC), collectively known as SHoP, are among New York’s 10 largest architecture firms. What makes them stand out among other mainstream architecture firms is their interest in addressing the gap between real estate development, architecture and engineering. A hybrid business model allows them to function as a combination of a real estate development firm, a think tank, and a one-stop shop for clients.

Five people with individual backgrounds in design, construction, business, marketing and development founded the firm in 1996. The team was led by Gregg Pasquarelli, who had previously worked as an investment banker on Wall Street. They first experimented with trading fees for equity on their Porter House project, and went on to develop several other projects, as well as their own, and collaborating with other architects.

SHoP is a trailblazer when it comes to redefining the way architecture is practiced. They are rethinking the role of architects in the project development process and looking for ways to get more autonomy, better pay, and innovative design projects off the ground, all while cutting construction costs through smart fabrication.

#3 Perkins + Will

Perkins + Will is one of the United States’ leading architecture firms in healthcare design, delivering buildings that focus on better patient experience and high performance. Their new in-house Innovation Incubator program aims to “foster, through micro-grants of money and time, a culture of innovation, creativity and experimentation by supporting small research projects proposed by individuals.” So far the program has awarded more than 150 groups of participants with the most innovative proposals.

The firm also formed 10 laboratories this year, which are focused on sustainability issues, resilience, the human experience, the design process, and mobility. Their annual design competition encourages talented designers to experiment. Design solutions selected through the contest are often further developed through the Innovation Incubator system.

#4 NBBJ

One of the first architecture offices to fully embrace Virtual Reality (VR), Seattle-based NBBJ, developed its self-contained venture Visual Vocal to build a VR platform integrated into the firm’s design process. By using VR, NBBJ hopes to speed up collaboration and communication between designers and allow them to make decisions based on client feedback. The new productivity tool will allow architects to build VR versions of 3D models that can be explored on a smartphone.

Together with mobile and cloud-based solutions, VR is expected to replace conventional communication such as email. The team, led by John San Giovanni and Sean House, raised $500,000 for Visual Vocal, which will be developed as a tool not only for architecture but also for other industries. Future plans for these platforms include solutions for working in the aerospace industry, product design, and biotech.

#5 HOK

Recently, HOK partnered with the Biomimcry Guild in order to foster bio-inspired innovation in the field of architecture. The partnership began in 2004 and the two companies have collaborated on several projects since, including HOK’s proposal for the “City of the Future” competition in 2008.

“We believe biomimicry will not only help us significantly reduce the environmental impact of our projects, but also has the potential to help define a whole new sustainable standard for our profession,” said HOK Sustainable Design Director, Mary Ann Lazarus, “Because biomimicry addresses critical environmental issues at the habitat scale, it gives us lessons on how to achieve significant results even restorative outcomes at all scales.”

HOK is also a great example of an architecture firm embracing new media tools, as one of the most active users of social media in the architectural industry. The firm launched Life at HOK in 2008 as a supplementary resource to the company’s main site. It is an employee-authored blog, dedicated to showing the processes behind their projects and office culture. HOK employees from around the country post different types of content, such as links to YouTube videos, Facebook profiles and Flickr images. The site aggregates several social media platforms and encourages feedback and interaction with and between its users.

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These five most innovative architecture firms are consistently showing a readiness to adopt new design and communication tools, design strategies, and business models. This attitude allows them to remain flexible and absorb various cultural and technological shifts instead of simply trying to keep up with the world. Which other architecture firms do you find innovative?

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Computer graphics have come a long way since Ivan Sutherland’s Sketchpad. Sutherland’s vision of entire environments being controlled and generated by computers has become more of a reality in the last decade. Gadgets such as head-mounted displays, data gloves, virtual reality controllers, and motion trackers are all promising to become as commonly used as smartphones. While skeptics question the true groundbreaking potential of VR, the adoption rate of this new technology seems to be on the rise.

Analyst firm Gartner has been keeping a close eye on emerging technologies for over 20 years. Their annual Hype Cycle research method visualizes the dynamics whereby new technologies emerge and develop. The chart predicts the evolution of emerging technologies in the IT and communication industries, separating the hype from industry drivers that actually evaluate their maturity, as well as commercial and business applicability.

The Hype Cycle usually includes five key phases of a technology’s life cycle:

• The first, known as the Innovation Trigger, marks the kickoff of a technology breakthrough followed by hype generated by the mass media. At this time, no significant usable products or commercial viability can be seen.
• The second stage, the Peak of Inflated Expectations, relates to early success stories and publicity. At this point, the curve starts to decline with the beginning of negative press coverage.
• In the third phase, the Trough of Disillusionment, interest in the initial breakthrough wanes as experiments and implementations fail.
• When the second and third generation products are launched and combined with a set of offered services, the technology reaches the Slope of Enlightenment. This is the stage in which new practices start developing pilots before they reach a high-growth adoption phase.
• When/if the technology reaches the Plateau of Productivity, mainstream adoption will take off; this is also the time when investments pay off.

Gartner’s findings built on data collected up until 2015 show that virtual reality has reached the Slope of Enlightenment, together with autonomous field vehicles and enterprise 3D printing. The Hype Cycle chart shows that it’s probably going to take another 5 to 10 years for virtual reality to go mainstream. In the short term, the development of VR is expected to continue and, according to tech experts, will be mostly driven by the gaming industry.

When it comes to architecture, five years ago it was easy to dismiss VR as another passing fad, but now it seems that VR may be here to stay. Though mainstream architecture firms are not known for their readiness to invest in new technologies, VR seems to be gathering momentum. Firms are starting to use VR both internally, as part of their design processes, as well as externally, in communication with clients.

CGarchitect’s Jeff Mottle claims that the future of the technology in architecture and ArchViz lies in its potential to provide scale and presence: “Two things that also neatly sum up what we feel when we experience architecture in the real world. This ability to experience a space we can’t visit, or one that does not yet exist, is the basis of nearly everything professionals in the field of architectural visualization do on a daily basis, so really VR is quite complementary and takes what we do to another level.”

One of the most important questions to ask when it comes to the future of VR is whether its evolution will be driven by pursuits for visual fidelity (image quality) or commercialization. Mottle believes that the technology is likely to develop in both directions, and stresses interactivity as its most important aspect for adding value. In the foreseeable future, the consumer space will play a crucial role in the evolution of the tool, but the high price tag seems the largest obstacle in a more widespread use of VR in architecture offices.

A recent survey conducted by CGarchitect, which focused on the architectural visualization industry, shows a rising adoption of VR in the last year. Around 69% of surveyed professionals are already using VR/AR/MR in their workflow or are planning to use it in the next two years. Though the survey included a relatively small number of respondents, its results provide a useful cross section of the industry and show an enthusiasm with which architects are welcoming VR.

Seattle-based NBBJ is one of the architecture firms that has had the most success in keeping step with technology. NBBJ developed their self-contained venture Visual Vocal to build a VR platform that was integrated into the firm’s design process. By using VR, NBBJ hopes to speed up collaboration and communication between designers and allow them to make decisions based on fast client feedback. The new productivity tool will allow architects to build VR versions of 3D models that can be explored on a smartphone.

Together with mobile and cloud-based solutions, VR is expected to replace conventional communication such as email. The team, led by John San Giovanni and Sean House, raised $500,000 for Visual Vocal, which will not only be developed as a solution for architecture, but for other industries as well. Future plans for the platform includes creating solutions for the aerospace industry, product design, and biotech.

For its new corporate headquarters in California, computer chip maker NVIDIA demonstrated VR’s potential on a completed building powered by NVIDIA products. The VR headsets allowed Gensler designers to navigate structural models and notice design flaws that might otherwise be missed in 2D environments. They also provided a more realistic view of how much light would enter the interior, and bounce off reflective surfaces or be absorbed.

While we’re waiting to see if VR assumes a more significant role in the architectural design process, those focused on creating architecture-related products might consider using VR to boost their marketing efforts. Global brands are already using VR to attract new customers. According to a new survey conducted by Greenlight Insights | Market Insights for Virtual & Augmented Reality, people are more likely to buy a product from a brand that uses VR, as this makes them appear more forward-thinking. The survey shows that 53% of responders are more likely to purchase products from brands that use VR than those that still haven’t adopted the technology.

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Do you think virtual reality has a future in architecture? How will it affect the way we design buildings and communicate with clients?

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