Simulating the collaborative design process through a multidisciplinary capstone project

Abstract

This paper highlights the results of a newly redesigned capstone course, incorporating objectives and priorities as defined by the department's various discipline-specific advisory boards. Six technology disciplines (Architecture, Civil Engineering, Construction Management, HVACR, Environmental and Mechanical) worked together to research, design and document a highly energy efficient building. Three student teams were formed, providing very different solutions to the design challenge. The focal point of this paper is to summarize the simulation of workforce dynamics and how to work more closely with advisory board members. An important aspect of the assignment was Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), requiring students of diverse disciplines to work together to formulate a feasible solution. Professors worked with students to foster a sense of community that allowed cross-disciplinary collaboration, including hosting a visiting lecturer who specializes in IPD who worked with both faculty and students prior to the start of the project. Technology allowing for group communication was employed by the teams and monitored by faculty throughout the course. Building Information Modeling (BIM) was a cornerstone of the challenge, driving students to explore new technologies of modeling and construction. Autodesk's Revit, a component-driven building modeling program, was the design software of choice. Revit models were coupled with energy analysis, estimating, rendering, and other design programs. A designated server on campus was established to allow for work sharing and information management. While students used technology specific to their disciplines, information and decisions were compiled to allow access by the team and client. The project guidelines mandated the inclusion of green technologies, including renewable energy. Net Zero Energy, which requires designers to balance a building's energy consumption with its ability to generate power, required team's diligence in their IPD effort. Layering on top of the various discipline-specific and IPD priorities was a goal to explore the pedagogy of technology. Students matriculating in the current technological environment face significant impact on their productivity, communication and research activities as a result of technology, some positive and some negative. As a result, a goal was to explore the use of technology and pedagogical theory to help guide the capstone effort. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2010.