Covering the entire life cycle of a tall building from its design and construction to its finance and operations, the 4th Annual Tall Buildings conference aims to expound on the commercial aspects of tall buildings whilst retaining its strength in focusing on selected case studies featuring the latest in design and engineering these mega-structures of the future.
Ross Donaldson is Woods Bagot Joint Group Managing Director and is based in Hong Kong, where in recent years his abilities have been translated to the national and international arena with his leadership of the company's design competition winning tertiary education projects in the Middle East and Asia, major recent projects in Australia and education projects in China.
After graduating from the University of Western Australia with first class honours in 1974 Ross attended The Bartlett University College, London where he gained a Master of Science in Social Theory and Planning.
He has a reputation as both an innovative, award winning architect and as a leading practitioner in urban design and master planning.
Ross leads the companies significant investment strategy in the development of a model for Zero Emissions Architecture.
Tall buildings have always been symbolic of a city's economic and financial strength. Despite the economic woes that have plagued the world recently, tall building construction has proceeded at an unprecedented pace. According to the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, 2010 will see over 100 buildings 200m or taller completed, with over half of these in the Asia Pacific and 30% in China alone.
However with the construction of so many tall buildings, there has been an increased scrutiny on their commercial and financial viability, not to mention the sustainability aspect in their construction. It has become increasingly important for architects, engineers and developers to create thriving communities within the Tall Building environment that incorporates the best in technological advances, engineering skill and commercial know-how in order to ensure that these massive skyscrapers are sustainable both to the environment and to the people who live in them.
In his presentation at the 4th Annual China Tall Buildings Conference Ross examined the crucial need for Zero carbon emission developments in tall buildings.
He spoke about Zero Emissions Design (ZERO-E) and how the next generation of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and parametrics integration is being applied to this leading research project in partnership with Buro Happold.
Ross discussed the futuristic emissions modelling technology that has been developed for the ZERO-E project with inspiring work by David Mans from the New York studio (sample images below). David's work includes, for example, writing code to integrate Ecotect analysis software with Revit.
Titled "The integration of parametric applications and BIM technology for optimised sustainability performance in high rise mixed use developments", Ross' presentation looked at:
- Innovative practices and technologies for the design of high-rise structures: Building Information Modelling (BIM) and simulation software solutions
- Achieving better coordination between stakeholders: BIM solutions for complex projects
- Exploring the power and benefits of the BIM and future potential applications for Tall Buildings focussing on energy efficiency and Zero Emissions.