398 EAAE no 35 Teaching and Experimenting with Architectural Design: Advances in Technology and Changes in Pedagogy
phase of project, if by then few alterations can be made without compromising the
solution?
This cost estimation has to be present in all the stages of project, enabling thus
grounded decisions, allowing one to modify solutions in time. This assessment, in
real time, necessarily demands a database associated to the model, and also implies
that this model has to be developed simultaneously with the project, thus making
the model the project itself. This integration presents resistances and difficulties
that have to be taken into account.
This is a short list of pros and cons on using the virtual model in architectural edu-
cation:
Pros:
- Compels students to think tri-dimensionally. The model does not allow designers
to take refuge in floor plans or elevations. - Compels students to take materials and construction techniques into account.
Being a reality simulation, it is not possible to create abstract surfaces, without
physical sustentation. - Compels students to solve all problems. Because of the intrinsic honesty of the
model, it is not possible for students to hide from problems of difficult resolution.
For instance, it is not possible to fuddle sections, because they are automatically
generated by the model. - Compels the student to co-ordinate all elements. The pupil needs to have a clear
notion over the way elements of a building are relate. - Focuses student’s effort on the problem solving. Technical drawings, quantity
takeoffs and renderings are automatic, allowing them to use the time usually
intended for drawing in search of design solutions. - Allows for more efficient communication. The model is an excellent vehicle of
information, which permits teachers to verify the solutions from many angles. - Allows students to visualize the final result. Considering that academic work rarely
gets build, this represents a clear advantage over the traditional method.
Cons:
- It requires managing a complex tool, with a steep learning curve.
- As long as students are not proficient with the software, it adds increased dif-
ficulty to the design process. - There is an added danger that students opt for inferior design solutions, being
easier to model. - It requires an increasing characterization of materials and construction techniques,
sometimes out of timing with the project. - It requires an advanced knowledge of the contents of various projects and con-
struction planning, many times absent of the normal architectural course cur-
riculum. - It compels teachers of other chairs to understand about B.I.M., in order to make
the most of this methodology.