What Are The Architecture Challenges Being Faced Today

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With evolving technology, there are new architecture challenges emerging that professionals are bombarded with. Some architecture challenges are new, yet some have always been there and still need to be faced.

Although there has been a lot of technological advancements that actually aim to make our lives easier, yet with they bring with them a lot of obstacles.

Here we emphasize a few setbacks that show us what is going wrong with architecture today and how we can act to improve upon it.

Lack of Specialization

“An architect knows something about everything. An engineer knows everything about one thing.”- Matthew Frederick

You have probably heard this phrase before. Although an architect is considered a jack of all trades, having a specialization makes an architect focus on a narrow range of topics they can excel in.

Focusing on one typology is not only better for branding but also for producing higher quality design and increasing overall efficiency. This means gaining a deep understanding of the client’s needs, whether commercial, social or functional. A superficial approach won’t suffice. A high-quality design should not only respect the site’s local conditions but also satisfy the individual unique requirements of the client.

Obsession with individuality

One of the architecture challenges is that more and more architects are obsessed with making their signature designs and emphasizing their individuality. A lot of architecture merely depends on the idea of standing out from the crowd and making a statement.

Sadly, instead of thinking socially and collectively, architects are considering architecture as an individual personal project. The challenge is for architects to begin to consider the goal of architecture towards the community and urban environments.

The effect of a space is not only limited to the self-centered interests of an architect or client. It affects the quality of the surrounding environment.

Accordingly, no matter how well designed a building is when we evaluate it individually, the impact may damage the surrounding areas. Consequently, we can solve these architecture challenges by an approach of humility, cooperation and a respect for the community’s needs.

Urbanization

Cityscape under magnifier, close-up view, nature background

Why urbanisation is a suburban phenomenon

Undoubtedly, more people are moving to cities and leaving rural areas. In fact, Already 55 percent of the world’s population lives in cities. What’s even more worrying is that the increase is likely to reach 70 to 75 percent in the next 40 years.

Most projects for urban development are usually government based. Why not engage with local communities and go for a participatory approach? Architects should take responsibility for shaping the built environment around us. Accordingly, we need more projects that support rural sites and their infrastructure. Urban designers need to address the needs of these rural communities so they are not marginalized.

Coordination Setbacks

Architects now excel in virtual building modeling as they perform the coordination process even for complex buildings. This means that integration of different models occurs as the architect detects clashes and coordinates the building’s systems together. However, the problem here is that a coordination problem occurs when architects leave contractors or project managers or owners to interfere too much with this procedure.

Architects should not let project managers or contractors take the lead in the design. On the other hand, as architects, we can expand our role. In other words, we can widen our expertise in the field of management.

Sustainability Concerns

Although most architects nowadays claim to be agents of sustainability, the architecture construction industry is the top global consumer of raw materials. One of the most prominent architecture challenges is that the industry generates between 25 to 40 percent of the world’s carbon emissions.

Certainly, architecture challenges are deeply affected by climate change and water management.

A major challenge includes achieving targets for global carbon dioxide emissions reduction. Smart planning and sustainable design could reduce energy consumption and pollution. However, we are in need of a new approach to project management.

Rise of the Image Culture

In a world so concerned with looks, one of the architecture challenges rise. This superficial approach to design is making architecture lose its credibility. Undoubtedly, images claim our attention without uttering a word. Images can persuade, repel, or even deceive us. We can not deny that the aesthetic value of a building gives it a unique character and appeal.

However, the image culture lures architects to design exaggerated, impractical forms just for better branding.

https://www.radiomuseum.org/museum/usa/emp-museum-experience-music-project-and-science-fiction-museum-and-hall-of-fame-seattle/

We also observe this image-oriented design approach in “Blobitecture” also known as “blob architecture”. Let’s not forget the famous quote by Louis Sullivan, “form follows function”. More importantly, let’s remember that restrictions on design requirements can actually enrich creativity rather than limit it.

BIM Tools and Sharing Need Improvement

https://www.autodesk.com/products/revit-family/overview

Although BIM tools have gone a long way in helping the construction industry, there seems to be a lot of challenges. As a result of a survey conducted among architects, they expressed disappointment with current BIM practices. Bad coordination within the different departments does not only delay the work process, it also ruins the sleep cycle of the employees and leads to staff burn out.

Each department has its own different and unique problems.

Accordingly, each discipline should identify exactly what works best for them. Eventually, they concluded that the trick lies in collaboratively choosing a workflow and then sticking to it.

Falling in Love With Ideas

 It is a popular trap in the world of architecture and design. The attachment to an old idea as if it was your baby, the desire to cling onto it and the state of denial when you notice it is not going to work; We have all been there.

Architects tend to become too attached to their designs that they refuse to see the reality of how dysfunctional they are.

Sometimes we can lose sight of the fact that we can still love what we do without falling in love with every single idea that flashes in our minds or comes out on a sketch pad. Remember that the creative process is intense; it can take hours, or weeks, or even months.

Unfortunately, when people get attached to a specific idea, they become “selective” in the feedback that they receive. Therefore, in addition to coming across as overconfident, you will become less effective. In fact, architects that can accept feedback will 100%, always end up with a better end product.

Architecture is about solving problems, and if our designs only make us happy but fail at the problem-solving then we are failing at our mission.

Living in Our Own Bubble

Lack of exposure is one of the architecture challenges that people neglect. This is where we need to get out of our comfort zone. Unfortunately, when architects confine themselves in one place, they do not notice how the world around them is evolving. They can not see that the industry is much larger than it seems.

Moreover, this applies to the scale working in not only one workplace but in one country for your whole life. In this case, you limit yourself to knowing only the practices people use in this location.

On the bright side, there are already some steps architects are taking to fix this gap. In fact, the exchange between cultures is becoming a more common design approach around the world, allowing us to learn from one another. However, we need to see it more within the practicing architecture firms rather than only in the academic field.

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