Jeanne Tan
Executive summary
* The global architecture and engineering design group RSP is renowned for its humanity-centered approach and looks for new ways of empowering its team to work more effectively in achieving this mission.
*At RSP Singapore, the architecture team is streamlining its process of developing sustainability strategies and optimizing designs with the help of Autodesk Forma, giving them a competitive edge.
*The team leveraged data-driven insights for the competition design of the Sustainability & Resilience Building at the National University of Singapore, to exceed net zero requirements and create an energy plus building.
People, community, and environment are at the heart of RSP’s designs. This rings especially true for education projects where the global architecture and engineering design group strives to create engaging, innovative, and sustainable spaces for learning. RSP is constantly evolving to enable its multidisciplinary team of 1000 working across 13 markets to continue creating purposeful designs that positively impact people and the world around us. Adopting new technologies helps the team work both more effectively and efficiently in achieving this mission. “RSP Singapore’s digital design strategy focuses on support teams to deliver humanity-centered design using intelligent models and a cloud-first approach that enhances collaboration and automation,” explains Sheik Uduman, head of BIM and digital technologies at RSP Singapore.
At RSP’s Singapore headquarters, the architecture team is streamlining its process of developing sustainability strategies and optimizing designs with the help of Autodesk Forma. “Forma aligns perfectly with our strategy, enabling real-time team contributions from anywhere and offering data interoperability. This flexibility allows designers to use their preferred tools, such as Rhino for complex modeling, and then integrate their work into Forma for analysis,” Uduman says.
Data-driven insights give a competitive edge
The team has been exploring ways to conduct sustainability analyses more easily and quickly from day one; this would ease pressure during tight competition deadlines but also enable access to valuable data not easily available to architects so early on, all of which contributes a competitive edge. Traditionally, most analyses require CFD (computational fluid dynamics) expertise from sustainability consultants, both in-house and external. Uduman: “These tools are often complex with a steep learning curve, are time consuming to use, and require high-performance computing. The analyses were also conducted outside the modelling tool with cumbersome exports and imports that resulted in rework as files needed to be cleaned up.” All these contribute to unwanted delays when teams are racing against the clock.
When testing Forma on a competition proposal recently, the team valued how the software helped them free up more time to refine design and sustainability strategies and communicate this clearly in compelling reports for the client. “In Forma, RSP architects reviewed the sustainability strategies of the design using high-level simulation before consulting specialists for detailed simulation. This process helped reduce design time by having validated options which were then sent to the sustainability consultant for further review,” says Khoo Teik Rong, associate director at RSP Singapore.
“Forma aligns perfectly with our strategy, enabling real-time team contributions from anywhere and offering data interoperability.”
Sheik Uduman, head of BIM and digital technologies at RSP Singapore
Architects can access the analyses functions without needing detailed technical knowledge. Margaret Yoo, senior associate at RSP Singapore: “The easy UI makes the analyses simple to use and we can run them in parallel in the cloud, freeing up local resources. Our teams can quickly read the results and make informed design decisions. Data interoperability with Rhino, Revit, and SketchUp is smooth, and we aim for even better data exchange using built-in tools in Forma.” All in all, the team saved 70% of time on creating volume studies compared to a previous workflow.
Maximizing sustainability outcomes
For a recent competition design for The Sustainability & Resilience Building at the National University of Singapore, the team needed to meet high sustainability demands, especially to achieve BCA Platinum Green Mark Certification. Awarded second place, their entry not only achieved net zero but exceeded it to become energy plus.
The building housed laboratory and learning spaces in a lively, collaborative environment that brought together researchers, students, and visitors. The concept revolved around designing for resilience where energy, climate, water, and landscape strategies were key. “With Singapore’s humid weather, design for outdoor thermal comfort is critical to consider – this requires, for example, rigorous shading and temperature control strategies,” explains Khoo. Mitigating the urban heat island effect was essential – here the team envisioned an urban wetland and forest landscape that both creates a welcoming entrance and functions to keep the outdoor learning spaces cool. Using Forma, the team was able to check that the building volume aligned with prevailing winds and placed water bodies and trees accordingly to maximize evaporative cooling.
Optimizing energy efficiency and integrating renewable energy sources were central to reaching the goal of net zero. Khoo: “We ran the solar energy analysis in Forma to evaluate the potential for solar power generation and estimate the energy output. Using this data helped us optimize the placement of the roof solar panels and the angle of the facade solar panels to maximize energy generation. In the end we achieved a design that generates 6% additional energy: 84% from the roof and 16% from the facade.”
“In the end we achieved a design that generates 6% additional energy.”
Khoo Teik Rong, associate director at RSP Singapore
Solar-paneled louvres doubled as sun shading – to balance the needs for shading and daylight, the team used Forma’s daylight potential analysis to check that the classrooms received good daylight. Additionally, noise analysis insights helped the team implement strategies to mitigate impact from traffic noise. These included adding setbacks, locating communal spaces on the most exposed facades to create a buffer for the laboratory spaces, and careful material selection to improve sound insulation.
The urgency to address the sustainability challenges of today and tomorrow calls for new ways of working from the architecture, engineering, and construction industries. By adopting cutting-edge tools and technologies, RSP leads the way in the industry as it empowers its team to continue designing meaningful spaces for humanity, powered by Forma.