Starting from the first sketches of a project, it is essential that the project's design restrictions are well defined. This will guide the project, making it more suitable for its location, owners, and local conditions. Among common restrictions, keeping the project cost low is perhaps the most ubiquitous. We spoke with the VAGA team, an office based in São Paulo, about the challenges and possibilities that working with a tight budget imposes:

To initiate change of any kind, one must first be aware of the problem at hand. In the construction industry –which is responsible for 39% of global greenhouse gas emissions and countless other environmental impacts– mastering and understanding the numbers related to its processes is extremely important. But assessing the impact of a product or a material is much more complex than one might think. It includes the exhaustive collection of data about its inputs (for example, the raw materials, energy, and water used) and outputs (such as emissions and waste) associated with each stage of the life cycle. This allows for the quantification of the embodied carbon and other environmental impacts, the identification of where performance can be improved, and provides real numbers for a comprehensive and unified comparison between materials and products.

The Whole Building Life Cycle Assessment (wbLCA) method studies the totality of products present in a building, providing valuable information for decision-making related to the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and eventual demolition or reuse of a building. In other words, it refers to the totality of the LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) for all of the building's components. Recently, the National Research Council of Canada, in collaboration with the Athena Sustainable Materials Institute, released the national guidelines for wbLCA, which reflect what is practiced in North America. The aim is to harmonize the practice and to aid interpretation and compliance with relevant standards, with the guidelines being updated periodically as it evolves, enabling the calculation of reliable baselines or benchmarks, supporting LCA-based compliance schemes and assisting in the development and use of wbLCA software.

Pretentious as it may sound, we can say with certainty that bamboo is one of the most promising materials for the future of the construction industry. Neil Thomas, principal engineer at atelier one, says that if we were to design an ideal building material, it would look a lot like bamboo. This is because it grows very fast, is present in many countries around the world, has a highly efficient cross-section, and has impressive load-bearing strength. But beyond its structural use in its raw form, bamboo is also a material that allows a high level of processing and can be laminated for flooring, fixtures and, as we will see in this article, for Structural Engineered Bamboo (SEB) structures, which are very similar to Engineered Wood. We spoke with Luke D. Schuette, founder and CEO of ReNüTeq Solutions, LLC, a company in St. Louis, Missouri, that has been working with this structural material technology.

Stabilized Aluminum Foam is a unique looking material that combines the aesthetics of aluminum (its texture, shades and brightness) with a spongy, porous appearance. It is produced by injecting air into a cast aluminum alloy with stabilizing agents, which after curing, creates a porous and lightweight, yet highly resistant and rigid cellular structure. Because of its mechanical and thermal properties, it is particularly useful in applications in various industries, such as automotive, aerospace and marine, especially for energy absorption, thermal insulation, and sound dampening.

The world's oldest stained glass window (which is still standing) is conventionally believed to be in Augsburg Cathedral in the German state of Bavaria. Depicting the prophets David, Jonah, Daniel, Moses and Hosea, it is estimated to be nearly 1,000 years old, having undergone significant bombing during World War II. Long before that, however, mankind had been working with glass, and while today we have thin frames with crystalline sheets and a variety of properties, we had to come a long way to get here. In this article we will tell you a little about the evolution of glass windows and the technologies and possibilities that we have today.

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Through shapes, colors, and the elements on their facades, many architects have sought to bring a sense of movement to works that are otherwise physically static. Santiago Calatrava, Jean Nouvel, and Frank Gehry are only a few of the masters who managed to provide a dynamic effect to motionless structures, highlighting the work in context using formal strategies borrowed from the plastic arts. In other cases, however, architects have also opted for physically kinetic structures that could bring a unique aesthetic or functional dimension to the work.

Everyone who has ever built anything—a model, a birdhouse, or small pieces of furniture—has a clear sense of the amount of things that can go wrong during the construction process. A screw that is impossible to tighten fully, a warped wooden board, an inattention or a miscalculation that can frustrate plans instantly. When we transport these small inconveniences to a building scale, with countless processes and many different people involved, we know how complex a work can become and how many things can get out of control, taking more and more time and requiring more and more resources to finish. And when we talk about a building that needs to float, be completely self-sufficient, and, after fulfilling its useful life, be completely reused—could you imagine the technical challenges of building something like this?

The aquatic environment has always fascinated dreamers and researchers. Around 1960, in the midst of the fierce space race of the Cold War, French explorer Jacques Cousteau developed equipment such as the Aqualung to unravel the depths of the sea, which remained as unexplored as outer space itself. He even stated that in 10 years we could occupy the seabed as “aquanauts” or “oceanautas,” where it would be possible to spend long periods extracting mineral resources and even growing food. Sixty years later, the seabed is still reserved for few, and mankind has been more concerned with plastic in the oceans and rising sea levels than colonizing the ocean floor. But being close to a body of water continues to attract most people. Whether out of interest or in response to risks of flooding and over-population, some have turned to utopian proposals and floating architecture, examples of which have been featured in the ArchDaily project archive. But what are the fundamental differences between building houses on land versus on water, and how do these buildings remain on the surface rather than sinking?

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Are you sitting comfortably right now? OK, I'll wait a few seconds so that you can adjust your posture and we can continue the text. As much as we all know that our backs should be upright, shoulders back and glutes against the back of the chair, as soon as we stop paying attention, we tend to let our body slide down the chair until our spine takes the shape of a big question mark. This can lead to various posture and circulation problems, chronic pain, and increased fatigue after a long day, week, month, or years of work. But know that you're not alone, and it's not (necessarily) your fault. What elements make a chair comfortable? How can they help you maintain a proper posture for longer? Is it possible to have design and comfort in the same product? In this article we will try to answer these questions and show some examples from the Architonic catalog.

A metal façade introduces a visually appealing architectural element on top of a built insulation system, such as a vapor barrier, insulation board, and structural supports. Known for their versatility, durability and elegant, clean finishes, metal claddings can be used for both roofing and walls to deliver a long-lasting and eye-catching finished product made from natural materials such as aluminum, copper, zinc and steel. Regardless of which system is used to fix the panels (concealed clip system or exposed fastener system), a façade can be made from a variety of profiles and colors for unlimited design options.

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In October, the ArchDaily team spoke with Henry Glogau during his stay in London, where he was working on a number of projects. At only 26 years old, his resume includes an impressive amount of international awards, which he has received for the relevance of his work to issues both so basic and urgent for humanity: access to potable water, sanitation and quality of life. Born in New Zealand, Henry moved to Copenhagen in 2018 to study at the Royal Danish Academy and for the past two years has been working at the 3XN GXN office as an architect in their innovation unit, alongside a multidisciplinary team. Below, read the conversation we had about some of his projects, his beliefs about the role of architecture, and his views on our responsibility to the planet.

There are many challenges when working with renovations: adapting spaces that were not necessarily designed for a particular program, adding new uses for rooms and modernizing the building in order to make it compatible with contemporary demands. This was the case of Mobio Arquitetura's project for the headquarters of a solar energy fintech company, which sought to value the memory of the historic building while adding a new layer of contemporary and technological infrastructure designed for the comfort, usability and productive coexistence of the new occupants. The office has been selected among the five winners of the 2022 Shaw Contract Design Awards "Best of Globe".

Representing the values of a company, without falling into obviousness and clichés, is quite a challenge for architects. This was the case for Rezen and Templewell, who were commissioned to design the headquarters for IGO, a leading exploration and mining company based in South Perth, Australia. Contrary to the obvious "brutality and harshness" that immediately comes to mind when we think of this extractive activity, the project seeks its antithesis: a space designed for the people who work there, exploring textures, sober palettes, and pleasant surfaces. The office has been selected among the five winners of the 2022 Shaw Contract Design Awards "Best of Globe".

Taking a shower goes far beyond the act of sanitizing. For many, it is the place where the best ideas and epiphanies emerge. Others turn the shower into a stage, rehearsing lines and allowing themselves to sing or pretend to receive an award. Showering can also reduce stress, as well as improve mood and body function: studies show that a shower can activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is basically a network of nerves that relaxes the body after periods of stress or danger.

Cities concentrate opportunities and exchanges, culture and business, while, at the same time are a key contributor to climate change. They are highly complex organisms, with multiple actors involved, that bring to light underlying social interests and conflicts present in society. In 2007, the world's urban population surpassed the rural and this difference has been increasing ever since. According to the 2018 Revision of World Urbanization Prospects report, 55% of the world's current population lives in urban areas, rising to 68% by 2050. This will represent an increase of 2.5 billion people in urban areas, with almost 90% of this increase occurring in Asia and Africa. The Smart Sustainable Cities: Reconnaissance Study also points out that urban centers account for 67% of global energy demand, emit 70% of greenhouse gases and, on top of it all, buildings consume 40% of all energy worldwide. The prospect of a mostly urban world, along with the alarming onset of climate change, both raise challenges regarding living conditions in the coming decades and centuries, and all the implications that will accompany these changes.

"Life, space, buildings - in that order". This phrase, from the Danish urban architect Jan Gehl, sums up the changes that Copenhagen has undergone in the last 50 years. Currently known as one of the cities with the highest levels of quality of life satisfaction, the way its public spaces and buildings were and are designed have inspired architects, government authorities and urban planners around the world. What we see today, however, is the result of courageous decision-making, much observation and, above all, designs that put people first. Copenhagen will be the UNESCO-UIA World Capital of Architecture in 2023 as well as host of the UIA World Congress of Architects due to its strong legacy in innovative architecture and urban development, along with its concerted efforts in matters of climate, sustainability solutions and livability.