Architecture : Public, Commercial, or Industrial Buildings

Building on his pioneering work on the management of technology and innovation in his first book, Managing the Flow of Technology, Thomas J. Allen of MIT has joined with award-winning German architect Gunter Henn of HENN Architekten to produce a book that explores the combined use of two management tools to make the innovation process most effective: organizational structure and physical space. They present research demonstrating how organizational structure and physical space each affect communication among people—in this case, engineers, scientists, and others in technical organizations—and they illustrate how organizations can transform both to increase the transfer of technical knowledge and maximize the “communication for inspiration” that is central to the innovation process. Allen and Henn illustrate their points with discussions of well-known buildings around the world, including Audi’s corporate headquarters, Steelcase’s corporate design center, and the Corning Glass Becker building, as well as several of Gunter Henn’s own projects, including the Skoda automotive factory in the Czech Republic and the Faculty for Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Munich. Allen and Henn then demonstrate the principles developed in their work by discussing in detail one example in which organizational structure and physical space were combined successfully to promote innovation with impressive results: HENN Architekten’s Project House for the BMW Group Research and Innovation Centre in Munich, cited by Business Week (April 24, 2006) in naming BMW one of the world’s most innovative companies. Professor Thomas Allen is the originator of the Allen curve. In the late 1970s, Tom Allen undertook a project to determine how the distance between engineers’ offices coincided with the level of regular technical communication between them. The results of that research, now known as the Allen Curve, revealed a distinct c more...

Price: $46.95

Illustrating actual building design solutions that have been created to improve accessibility for disabled patrons and performers, the 'Journey Sequence' outlines the best examples of design innovation produced in response to new and upcoming legislation.A knowledge of how to design for the disabled can be crucial in winning contracts and having designs accepted. This book shows how the practical implications have already been successfully approached.Covering the whole sequence from parking, to entry, and including details of facilities for the visually and hearing impaired users, advice is given on the methods designers should use in assessing the requirements of disabled people. This is not a publication giving theoretical prescription but rather an illustrated record of achievements in buildings of all sizes where proper access to the disabled has been created. It includes 14 case studies and examples that illustrate the diverse ways that accessibility has been incorporated into arts buildings throughout the UK. This includes Cinemas, Theatres, Concert Halls, Opera Houses, Museums and Libraries. The author team highlights specific design details that are particularly unique, to stimulate the reader and show that creating better accessibility for the disabled both demands and creates innovative design. more...

Price: $96.95

For more than two hundred often turbulent years, Americans have imagined and described Cuba and its relationship to the United States by conjuring up a variety of striking images—Cuba as a woman, a neighbor, a ripe fruit, a child learning to ride a bicycle. One of the foremost historians of Cuba, Louis A. Pérez Jr. offers a revealing history of these metaphorical and depictive motifs and discovers the powerful motives behind such characterizations of the island. Pérez analyzes the dominant images and their political effectiveness as they have persisted and changed since the early nineteenth century. Drawing on texts and visual images produced by Americans ranging from government officials, policy makers, and journalists to travelers, tourists, poets, and lyricists, Pérez argues that metaphor was central to the U.S. imperial project as a way of transforming the pursuit of national self-interest into the lofty, disinterested purpose of moral duty. With particular focus on the pivotal eras of the war of 1898 and the 1959 Cuban revolution, Pérez demonstrates that these descriptions served the foreign policy interests of the United States. As charged and coded modes of persuasion and mediation, these images sanctioned and sustained the moral logic of U.S. power over Cuba. Pérez further argues that the metaphors in service to America's imperial impulses over Cuba were subsequently projected over the world at large. more...

Price: $50.00

This report examines the structure, characteristics, and motivations of major participants in the housing industry to explore how innovation might be accelerated. It identifies options and strategies for the federal government to consider as it attempts to further advance innovation in housing to make homes more affordable, durable, and safe. Housing is the largest component of the nation's physical wealth, representing nearly 20 percent of the nation's gross domestic product. Therefore, innovation in that industry would contribute positively to increase productivity and provide benefits to a broad range of participants, including homebuilders, manufacturers, insurers, regulators, and homeowners. The federal government has been involved in promoting housing innovation for more than three decades , investing in research and showing a willingness to experiment with new ideas and approaches as it works with industry and other participants. In light of this government interest, this report puts forth proposals for federal government action: enhance research activities, strengthen the knowledge base, support the technology innovation pipeline, and improve market linkages. Within these proposals, a number of specific strategies are suggested to illustrate possible government actions. The list of strategies is not exhaustive but if adopted they should allow the government to better leverage what it is already doing by better focusing resources. more...

Price: $9.95

The bible of the industrial storage and distribution industry and the manual of policy and practice. It provides information for those with empty buildings on their hands, those trying to find space for new and/or growing enterprises and those faced with the problem of how to manage multi-tenant, multi-use buildings. An outline of feasibility studies both from the standpoint of users looking for a building and buildings looking for a use is also included. One is matched with the other. The whole process is explained and placed in a legal and planning framework. Allowances for technological change and expansion are outlined as well as an explanation of the significance of various patterns of ownership, tenancy and management that can be adopted. As the container has been universally acepted for use in materials handling, this book is internationally relevant. Preface by George Heery AIA of the Heery Corporation, one of the largest and most successful industrial storage and distribution companies in the US. more...

Price: $185.00