School of Art, Design and Architecture
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Item Open Access Examining the Impact of Multilevel Courtyards in Hot-Dry and Humid Climates(MDPI, 2025-05-08) Chidiadi, Eleazar; Taki, AhmadUrbanisation has significantly transformed human settlements, presenting sustainability challenges, particularly in hot-dry and humid climates. The urban heat island effect and increased energy consumption exacerbate reliance on mechanical cooling and fossil fuels. As climate change escalates, developing sustainable architectural solutions that improve thermal performance and energy efficiency becomes crucial. This study examines the effects of various multilevel courtyard designs on building performance in Abuja, Nigeria, highlighting gaps in applying traditional principles to these models. A mixed-method approach, combining quantitative and qualitative techniques, assesses user perceptions, thermal performance, energy efficiency, and daylighting in multilevel courtyards. Findings indicate that optimised multilevel courtyard configurations yield a 2.15 °C reduction in temperature, enhancing indoor thermal comfort and improving natural ventilation. Users favour multilevel courtyard housing; however, challenges include inadequate daylighting on lower levels and the need for shading solutions. Compressed earth blocks exhibit better thermal performance, reducing peak temperatures by 1.19 °C compared to hollow concrete blocks. Guidelines for architects and urban planners are provided, as well as recommendations for future research on policy incentives to promote multilevel courtyard models.Item Metadata only Non-visual effects of lighting characteristics on workers in industrial workplaces.(Springer, 2025-07) Abdelwahab, Sahar; Mayhoub, Mohammed; Abdelfattah, Dalia; Eldars, Zakaria; Labib, RaniaWhile the impact of lighting environment on comfort has been thoroughly investigated, its impact on human physiology and behaviors is yet to be fully understood. Since the recent discovery of the new class of photoreceptors in the mammalian retina, it has become evident that light is crucial for controlling non-image formation (NIF) processes like circadian rhythms, alertness, well-being, and mood, all of which have an impact on a user's overall comfort. This can be crucial for the indoor working environment, considering also the category of industrial workers which is overlooked in scientific research despite its importance to ensure improved performance and productivity. Therefore, this paper aims to understand the effect of lighting characteristics, duration of exposure to lighting, and timing on the non-visual functions of workers in industrial workplaces. A field study was conducted in three industrial buildings to measure lighting characteristics in winter and summer during different time intervals. Simultaneously, the workers' self-evaluations of five non-visual functions, namely comfort, mood, alertness and satisfaction, were recorded and statistically analyzed. The results also revealed evident effects of both horizontal and vertical lighting, as well as color temperature, on the comfort, mood, and subjective alertness of workers.Item Open Access A study of the temporal and spatial evolution trends of urban flood resilience in the Pearl River Delta, China(Emerald, 2025-03-31) Xu, Wenping; Han, Pan; Proverbs, David; Guo, XinruPurpose In view of the increasing threat of flooding across the world and specifically the vulnerability of the Pearl River Delta region to these risks, this study undertakes a spatial and temporal evolution of flood risk in the region, including an assessment of urban flood resilience. Design/methodology/approach By combining the pressure-state-response (PSR) model and the nature-economy-society-infrastructure (NESI) framework, an urban flood resilience index system is constructed. The order relation analysis method, Criteria Importance Through Intercriteria Correlation method and the VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija Kompromisno Resenje evaluation method, they were then combined to quantify urban flood resilience and reveal the hierarchical relationships that exist between key factors. Using ArcGIS software, the resilience levels of each city are dynamically tracked and compared to reveal the trends in flood resilience over a three-year period. Findings The results show that annual precipitation and impervious areas are the key factors impacting environmental pressure, while the sewage treatment rate is found to be the key response measure. The cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen were shown to have maintained high flood resilience indexes (FRI), while Zhaoqing City was the weakest. Flood resilience levels across the Pearl River Delta were found to vary significantly, with the central and southern cities having higher levels than those in the eastern and western regions. Originality/value This study constructs a new combined method for assessing urban flood resilience, which is suitable for quickly and accurately assessing the short-term spatial and temporal evolution trend of urban flood resilience.Item Metadata only 'Grand Little Ambassadors': Schoolboy Football in Mid-Twentieth Century England and Wales(Informa, 2025-03-28) Taylor, MatthewThis article examines the history and experiences of schools’ football for boys in England and Wales from around the 1920s to the 1960s. It argues that its significance has been marginalized in previous accounts, with little research undertaken beyond small sections in general studies of the grassroots and non-professional game. The article explores three facets of the schoolboy game: its link to community and local identity; its problematic relations with professional soccer; and the experiences of those who played. It argues not only that schools’ football occupied a hitherto underappreciated position in the administration, politics and culture of the game but that playing football for school and representative school teams also became a source of deep satisfaction and meaning for those involved. As such, it contends that the significance of schoolboy football extends beyond the history of sport, incorporating elements of the interconnected histories of childhood, youth and emotions.Item Open Access Examining Energy Efficiency and Retrofit in Historic Buildings in the UK(MDPI, 2025-03-27) Sevim, Yasemin Erol; Taki, Ahmad; Abuzeinab, AmalThe energy efficiency potential of a considerable number of Europe’s historical buildings is noteworthy. However, policymakers often express concerns about energy retrofits that may compromise the integrity of these structures and their surroundings. On the contrary, various strategies exist for enhancing energy efficiency in historic buildings without compromising their architectural constraints. The main aim of this study is to examine energy efficiency and retrofit strategies for historic commercial buildings in the UK. The case study that was selected is a historical building constructed in 1865 for the Water Works Company in the UK, whose function has changed through the years. The research methodology employed a combination of techniques that incorporated literature reviews, a case study, semi-structured interviews, and dynamic thermal simulations. For the purpose of obtaining reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases and consumption of energy, the energy performance of five different retrofit treatment methods that have the smallest damaging effect on historical significance was examined. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of integrating advanced building performance strategies, including wall enhancements, the optimisation of HVAC systems, and the implementation of minimally intrusive photovoltaic solutions. These interventions collectively contributed to achieving remarkable reductions in energy consumption, with electricity usage reduced by 100% and natural gas consumption decreased by 88.2%. Applying retrofit strategies reduced CO2 emissions by approximately 95% from 20,493.51 kg to 1274.76 kg per year. The findings underscore that, despite the considerable potential for enhancing energy efficiency in historic structures, there exists an extensive absence of understanding among homeowners concerning accessible regulations, grants, and practical energy-saving measures.Item Open Access Sculpture on the Lawn 2025(Orange County Arts and Cultural Affairs, Florida, USA, 2025-01-16) Dean, Lionel T.; Bannon, John; Badia, Manuel Ferreiro; Hartley, MaxwellThis output is the selection of a 3D printed public art sculpture for Sculpture on The Lawn, Orlando, Florida, USA. Sculpture on the Lawn is an annual one-year exhibition for works of public art. Four pieces are selected each year in an international open competition. The piece is 3D printed in recycled plastic which has then been wrapped in a structural skin of glass reinforced plastic, GRP, aka fiberglass. It is the result of experiments in ‘democratic’ open-source technologies that would be accessible to the independent arts practitioner. The piece, The Blue Mulberry, was installed in downtown Orlando in January 2025.Item Embargo A new approach to evaluating urban flood risk: the case of Guangdong Province in China(Taylor and Francis, 2025-03-14) Xu, Wenping; Han, Pan; Proverbs, DavidIn light of frequent flood risks in Guangdong Province and the lack of recent research, this study developed a four-dimensional assessment system with 16 indicators covering disaster risk, environmental sensitivity, vulnerability of disaster-bearing bodies, and disaster prevention capabilities. Weights were assigned using the ANP and EWM, and flood risks in 21 prefecture-level cities were ranked using the TOPSIS method. Risk maps were generated with ArcGIS. Results reveal uneven flood risk distribution, with high-risk areas concentrated in the Pearl River Delta, western, and northern regions, influenced by multiple factors. Vulnerability and disaster prevention capabilities were identified as critical considerations. The study verifies the feasibility of the method, offering a scientific basis for flood risk management in Guangdong and supporting sustainable urban development.Item Metadata only Introduction(Rowman and Littlefield International, 2024-12) Hay, Marie; Leach, MartinItem Metadata only ‘Dwelling Poetically’ in the Dance Studio: The Poetry in the Prose of Being(Rowman and Littlefield, 2024-12) Leach, MartinItem Metadata only From Heidegger to Performance(Rowman and Littlefield, 2024-12) Hay, Marie; Leach, MartinItem Open Access The Institutionalisation of Medical Photography, Public Funding and the Medical Reform in Parisian Hospitals (1878-1913)(Taylor and Francis, 2025-02-06) Pichel, BeatrizWhile historians of photography and medicine have rarely engaged with the financial aspects of medical photography, funding strategies had a key role in the early development of this practice. The subventions provided by the French welfare organisation Assistance Publique and approved by the Paris city council between 1879 and 1913 enabled the institutionalisation of photography in Parisian hospitals. During the first period (ca. 1879–98), the Assistance Publique funded photography as part of the growing hospital museum collections. During the second period (ca. 1898–1913), funding to laboratories and radiography departments resulted in the multiplication and diversification of photography. Reading medical photography through the analysis of financial records demonstrates that the reformers’ trust in photography as a technology of modernisation turned individual and scattered uses of photography into an institutional medical activity. This analysis helps identify the extent of medical photography in Parisian hospitals and explains why only some institutions such as La Salpêtrière were able to produce large quantities of photographs. Exploring medical photography from a funding point of view shows the medical, political and financial reasons that facilitated the institutionalisation of photography in Parisian hospitals and provides new methodological opportunities for the study of medical photography away from the visual.Item Open Access Endangered, Imperfect, Renegade and Re-imagined Tassels and Passementerie(The Textile Society, 2025-02-07) Gaukrodger-Cowan, SallyItem Open Access How design thinking and pedagogy can innovate in teaching through creative technologies(Quality Insights Conference 2024, QAA, 2024-02-22) Rowan, N.A presentation of a number of projects illustrating how design thinking and pedagogy can innovate in teaching through creative technologies, including work with partner institutions.Item Open Access Shared Experiential Learning in a Time of Isolation(De Montfort University, 2021-02-05) Rowan, N.We are looking to re-establish our project club in this period of isolation in order to allow students to interact with staff in a shared environment without talking about modules or University work. One of the best things about our programmes was the shared studio environment and the incidental learning that took place there. With the help of my Front Runner – Amy Everall, we are looking at ways to recreate this online in a digital space and we would like to share the outcomes of this at the conference.Item Open Access Repairing a Shell - Gallery exhibition(De Montfort University, 2024-05-07) Rowan, N.This project began with a tortoise that had been caught in a house fire and required a prosthetic shell to aid its recovery. Working with partners at the University of Nottingham, CT scan data from the animal was processed into printable files. This data was then used to generate a series of vacuum formed shells to assess the fit required to accommodate bandaging material. Speed was essential in this workflow as the patient’s dressings needed changing regularly and the 3D data required updating to match. Once the initial healing was satisfactorily complete, the vacuum forming served as a mould for a longer-term carbon fiber prosthetic, which was given to the owner. Following on from this project 3D data and the prints from multiple have been used to assist in the training of veterinary students and the understanding of anatomy.Item Open Access Unravelling the Role of Digital Partnering in Successful Construction Digitalisation – An Empirical Investigation(Sciendo, 2025-01-10) Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando; Aghimien, Douglas; Aigbavboa, C.; Oke, A.This study explores the concept of digital partnering among construction organisations, focusing on the essential factors that contribute to successful partnerships and their impact on achieving digital transformation. To gather quantitative data, a survey was conducted with construction professionals engaged in projects throughout South Africa. The data analysis employed a comprehensive six-step methodology, including mean item scoring, Kruskal- Wallis H-Test, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and multiple linear regression (MLR). The findings from the EFA indicated that the effectiveness of digital partnering hinges on three critical elements: a supportive partnering environment, trust and mutual understanding, and management support. The MLR analysis further validated these factors as crucial for attaining digitally transformed construction organisations. Given the competitive and often adversarial nature of the construction industry in developing countries like South Africa, the study recommends that organisations pursue collaborative partnerships both within and outside the industry to facilitate digital transformation. This can be achieved by fostering an environment that nurtures trust, understanding, and strong management support for developing digital capabilities through collaboration. The study offers empirical insights into the key factors necessary for successful digital partnering, an area that has been largely overlooked in discussions surrounding construction digitalisation.Item Open Access A Learning Journey, modules, pathways and CPD(2020-09-11) Rowan, N.For learners entering University they know they have a passion for their subject and are hungry to learn, however their journey is not always clear and the pathways to knowledge can be closed within modules or levels. Throughout the University knowledge can be siloed which may stop learners making intuitive leaps between modules and fully grasping the interconnected nature of their programmes. As for programmes with pathways, it is not always clear what a pathway will entail until the learner is already committed to that journey and other pathways may start to appear more appealing. Through a CAI sabbatical I aimed to create a Blackboard Community that encapsulates a learners journey on our programmes in Product Design and allow the learner to access key materials and skills in a single place without the barriers of module or level. The aims of this project were: • To place all core knowledge in a single easily accessible place • To allow learners to openly see and interact with materials from all levels of their study at a point that it interests them Additional benefits to this resource have been: • This resource can be used proactively to inspire students with material which may not be on their core module. In my area we have 3 programmes that share a number of core modules with specialisations. This has allowed students to view non-core materials. • This resource can be used retrospectively, to further support students who have struggled in an LO in a specific assessment. On our mark sheets we have produced a formula which looks at a student’s grade for a specific LO and it that drops below a threshold a comment can be added to their feedback saying “I note you have struggled with X please find additional resources on that topic here X’Item Open Access Mark Smart(2020-09-11) Rowan, N.Feedback, feedforward, encouraging, honest, prompt, ignored, sweated over, dismissed. These are some of adjectives we as staff can use to describe our interaction with the marking process, but does it need to be like this? We know being given 15 minutes to mark a submission is not a sustainable period to surmise a student’s efforts particularly when we are moving to an assessment reduction in a post CORVID environment. But can there be another way? This work was developed through necessity by looking radically at how we marked work in Product Design and how our students interacted with the given marks and feedback: Through consultation with Student Representative, Academic Peers and end experts in Teaching and learning we looked at the language of how we described work and tried to simplify it to make it clearer to students and staff what we were saying. We looked at the order of the information given to students, as many staff were dismayed that the feedback they had spent time and effort crafting was all too often ignored. Placing the important information first, the feedforward, and moving the classic post-mortem to the end. We looked at gaining additional functionality from this work, that would benefit both the staff and students and proposed an additional tool. And we looked at speed, how could we speed up the necessities of the marking process in order to concentrate the time we have on providing valuable feedforward to our students to help them improve in the future. To this end I would like to present our Marking Descriptors and proposed Mark Sheet.Item Metadata only Introducing students to a physical space digitally(2021-07-22) Rowan, N.This presentation was given to the ALN, Action Learning Network and was a summary of multiple initiatives taken in and around 2020 / 21 to allow students to remotely engage with digital spaces physically.Item Open Access Artifacts Live: A legacy in Leather(De Montfort University, 2024) Proctor, Gillian