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INDUSTRY news<br />
BANGLADESH HOSPITAL WINS TOP RIBA PRIZE<br />
The Royal Institute of British<br />
Architects (RIBA) has<br />
named Friendship Hospital in<br />
Bangladesh designed by<br />
Kashef Chowdhury/URBANA<br />
as winner of the RIBA International<br />
Prize 2021, the global<br />
accolade for design excellence<br />
and social impact.<br />
The remote community hospital<br />
was commissioned by the<br />
NGO, Friendship, and provides<br />
a medical lifeline for thousands<br />
of people from Satkhira, an<br />
area of the coast that was<br />
heavily affected by a major<br />
cyclone in 2007. The hospital<br />
was described by the Grand<br />
Jury as embodying an "architecture<br />
of humanity" and as an<br />
"exemplar of innovative architecture<br />
that addresses critical<br />
global issues - unequal access<br />
to healthcare and the crushing<br />
impact of climate breakdown<br />
on vulnerable communities."<br />
Situated in the southern<br />
region of Bangladesh, the project<br />
faced demanding environmental<br />
conditions due to rising<br />
sea levels impacted by climate<br />
change. Saltwater has<br />
encroached inland, forcing all<br />
adjoining agricultural lands to<br />
be converted into shrimp cultivation<br />
ponds. The innovative<br />
design looks to respond to<br />
these conditions by incorporating<br />
a canal that collects rainwater<br />
- an essential resource<br />
and tool to prevent waterlogging<br />
as the saline groundwater<br />
is unusable for most practical<br />
purposes and draining is<br />
needed from increasingly<br />
incessant rains. This water<br />
channel also helps with microclimatic<br />
cooling in the increasingly<br />
hot summers.<br />
The design creates an uplifting<br />
and inviting experience for<br />
visitors, patients and healthcare<br />
professionals and a<br />
peaceful environment consistent<br />
with health and healing.<br />
Architect Kashef Chowdhury<br />
said: "In a sublimely important<br />
moment, RIBA and the jurors<br />
have identified a project from<br />
the global periphery to bring to<br />
the centre of architectural discourse<br />
and be the subject of<br />
one of the most important<br />
global awards. I am encouraged<br />
that this may inspire<br />
more of us to commit, not in<br />
spite of, but because of limitations<br />
of resources and means,<br />
to an architecture of care both<br />
for humanity and for nature, to<br />
rise collectively to the urgencies<br />
that we face today on a<br />
planetary scale."<br />
www.architecture.com<br />
COUNTING THE COST OF BIODIVERSITY<br />
Built on the Bentley iTwin<br />
platform, EarthCam 4D<br />
from EarthCam enables virtual<br />
design and construction (VDC)<br />
teams to overlay and synch<br />
live imagery with their digital<br />
twins. An intuitive timeline<br />
allows users to scroll backward<br />
and forward in time to<br />
view live imagery in relation to<br />
their 4D models.<br />
EarthCam 4D augments<br />
Bentley Systems' SYNCHRO<br />
The National Federation of<br />
Builders (NFB) is urging that<br />
AI should be harnessed to work<br />
out biodiversity net gain for<br />
sites of 50 homes or less. The<br />
call follows the government's<br />
consultation on restoring ecological<br />
loss during housing<br />
construction and delivering a<br />
ten per cent boost on biodiversity<br />
post-development.<br />
NFB head of housing and<br />
planning Rico Wojtulewicz said:<br />
"On small sites of up to 50<br />
homes, we need an automated<br />
calculation process which takes<br />
into account local species and<br />
accepts onsite solutions, such<br />
as building in biodiversity to the<br />
fabric of buildings, site design<br />
and even gardens, where a<br />
management plan is attached."<br />
The trade body has said this<br />
would reduce costs, prevent<br />
delays, and enable environmental<br />
assessments to be<br />
done coherently. The government<br />
wants developers to use<br />
Defra's biodiversity metric to<br />
produce a plan on biodiversity<br />
net gain to submit to councils<br />
when applying for planning<br />
permission. The NFB believes<br />
this could add tens of thousands<br />
of pounds to smaller<br />
development costs, and has<br />
collaborated with environmental<br />
consultants Joe's Blooms to<br />
use an automated system for<br />
small sites. Mr Wojtulewicz said<br />
the current proposals for creating<br />
onsite habitats such as<br />
trees and ponds should also<br />
include design features that<br />
add to biodiversity.<br />
The consultation closes on the<br />
5th April with the new regulations<br />
expected to be incorporated in<br />
planning policy by end of 2023.<br />
www.builders.org.uk<br />
EARTHCAM 4D BRINGS DITIGAL TWINS TO LIFE<br />
4D models with high-resolution<br />
photos from multiple cameras<br />
throughout the jobsite,<br />
overlaid in precise alignment.<br />
Viewers can zoom in and out,<br />
and the associated live<br />
images remain synched.<br />
Unique transparency/opacity<br />
and model colour adjustments<br />
enable new and powerful ways<br />
to compare and contrast models<br />
with reality over time.<br />
www.earthcam.net<br />
6<br />
<strong>Jan</strong>uary/<strong>Feb</strong>ruary <strong>2022</strong>
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