CIFECENTER FOR INTEGRATED FACILITY ENGINEERING Application of Design Scenarios Methodology to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Transparent Parametric Design Spaces

Quality designs generally emerge from a conceptual design process that generates and communicates large design spaces of objectives, alternatives, impacts, and values. Parametric modeling is a popular means for generating large alternative spaces but it is difficult to use effectively when the other spaces are not well generated. We apply a framework for measuring design space clarity and quality to traditional nonparametric practice, and to two applications of parametric modeling, on high-rise projects. The framework reveals deficiencies in both the quality and clarity of the design spaces that building designers are able to construct using traditional and parametric methods. We describe a fourth industry case study illustrating the application of a formal methodology called Design Scenarios developed to address these shortcomings. The case studies illustrate the potential for significant impact that parametric modeling can have on the overall conceptual design process performance, particularly when supported by methodologies to better generate and communicate design spaces.