Sustainability, automation, and future proofing have re-shaped how architects approach projects; and how we at Rothelowman can best address the direct needs of our clients.

Rothelowman has long since adopted the best technologies that drive these pillars forward. Our commitment to ensuring we are evolving and advancing our practice in line with these ever-evolving technologies is something we pride ourselves on.

Recently Nikko Sudirman represented Rothelowman as part of the BIM/Digital Technology Practice Leadership Group, at the 2022 Autodesk University (AU) event in New Orleans. During his time there, amongst other things, he was able to explore how we maximise the use of custom tools to better understand low carbon materials and compare the sustainability impact of design ideas.

While we are in the business of creating design led buildings and spaces, we are also conscious of how we can reduce embodied carbon in our designs – what we call ‘Embedded Environmental Accountability’. The coming years will see more and more firms across the country (and world) implement low carbon designs – understanding how to harness the best tools to achieve this outcome will be critical to the ultimate success.

Harnessing technologies  

Nikko Sudirman works to lead our practice to ensure we are leveraging innovative tools that can assist in calculating embodied carbon and Co2 in materials. Tools like OneClick LCA, TallyCAT or EC3 are quick at producing accurate results, and offer an easy user interface.

Maintaining a thorough understanding of these instruments is essential to the firm to be at the forefront of sustainability innovation in Australia and around the world. As a professional collective we are hungry to explore different ways in which we can reduce embodied carbon in our designs, and ultimately deliver more sustainable projects for our clients and within our cities.

39 Hassall St Parramatta – Winning competition design utilising in-house custom tools and Rhino.inside Revit to run Solar Facade studies and Solar Access studies based on ADG guidelines.

Adapt or die

Meeting with such a large group of professionals from around the world at AU made it clear that we aren’t alone in our drive to curate the best custom set of tools to solve unique problems, reduce production waste and increase efficiencies. This is best achieved through employing a programmer or developer to develop custom tools. While everything these days can be streamlined through automation, understanding the tools you use is a significant step that you must invest time and resources in to find what works for your needs and your clients.

The AU event offered attendees the opportunity to study what leaders in the industry are doing and dissect their impact. Therefore, understanding the smartest way to use automation to resolve unique, and not universal problems will become increasingly prevalent.

At the forefront of all development in the industry, is technology; which in itself is ever changing and evolving. This is something firms can no longer ignore. Attending the AU event deepened Rothelowman’s knowledge of how innovative technology solutions can future proof our capabilities, and provided assurance that we are utilising the best technology available to us at this time.

Understanding the importance of future proofing supports our staff and employees in profound ways, strengthening our mission to continue to deliver intelligent and sustainable designs.

Ultimately, automation is the future, at the heart of which will be innovative and sustainable practices. Rothelowman will continue to evolve, embracing the latest technological trends and aligning ourselves with the architecture global industry’s leading practice.