ArcK: research in architecture and interior architecture

A student assignment can be conducted at very low cost. One of the advantages is that students are typically out-of-the-box thinkers. Combined with the expertise of the teacher, this provides good ground for innovative ideas. For our students it is interesting to work with real-life challenges. Of course the project must fit the academic curriculum and project ideas should be raised well in advance. A specific form of a student assignment is a bachelor’s or master’s thesis.

• Who is involved: student, teacher
• Timing: depends on the project, early application is necessary
• Price: very cheap

Academic consultancy is a key way to share our state-of-the-art knowledge. Questions for a consultancy project can be raised anytime and we will make a tailor-made offer. Subsidies are possible, such as the VLAIO “KMO portefeuille”. Depending on the size of the project, we will apply our general terms for academic consultancy or arrange a collaboration agreement

• Who is involved: researcher (student)
• Timing: depends on the project, short term application possible
• Price: price offer, subsidies are possible

A joint Ph.D. project can be set up between our university and your organization. This creates an ecosystem for Ph.D. students to explore regional and global challenges in close collaboration with social or economic actors. Unlike academic consultancy that usually starts from existing knowhow and expertise, Ph.D. research typically involves novel and innovative research. A Ph.D. project has a duration of two times two years. There are special funding channels that co-finance a Ph.D. project in collaboration with an external organization, for example VLAIO Baekeland.

• Who is involved: ph.D. student, scientific promoter, industrial promotor
• Timing: 2 times 2 year, dependent on funding channel
• Price: Baekeland, VLAIO, Civic PhD UHasselt

A research project is often executed in close collaboration with one or more external actors and is (co-)financed by a third party (e.g. FWO research fund Flanders, VLAIO, H2020, etc.). The role and input of your organization depends on several factors such as the research questions, the project type and funding channel. The application date is directly related to the call of the funding channel. Research projects have a duration of 2 to 5 years.

• Who is involved: researcher(s)
• Timing: 2-5 years, application date dependent on call
• Price: different funding channels

A license can grant you access to our innovative and science-based tools and platforms, to strengthen your market position. The conditions (timing, fee and scope of the license) will be arranged in a mutual agreement. Currently, we have a few interesting technology offers (see the section below “collaboration opportunities”).

• target audience: building clients and architects

The Comfort Tool is science based and aims to encourage Belgian citizens to renovate or build their houses more energy efficiently, with attention to Universal Design and lifelong living. The Comfort Tool supports building clients in improving the comfort in their dwelling, now and in the future, based on their needs and wishes. It supports them in asking the right questions to other parties involved in the building process: architects, contractors and real estate agents.

The Comfort Tool is developed at the Faculty of Architecture and Arts in the context of the research project ‘Proeftuin Mutatie +’, financed by the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO). It is available free of charge via https://www.comforttool.be/.

• target audience: governments, citizens and citizen collectives, spatial planning -, design -, architectural - and engineering firms,…

The team of Spatial Capacity Building has plenty of experience in developing and facilitating participatory design processes. We developed multiple tools and platforms to enter into dialogue with a multitude of stakeholders (local governments, communities, citizens, enterprises, design offices, etc.). All our tools differentiate depending on the context within which they were developed.

• ‘De Andere Ruimte’ (‘The Other Space’): https://deandereruimte.bmks.be/ 
  
  “De Andere Ruimte” is an app to mark routes and spaces and to collect and make an inventory of stories of the environment. The data and stories can subsequently be shared with other stakeholders.
  
  
  
  
  
• ‘map-it’: http://www.map-it.be/
  
  MAP-it is developed to support groups in quickly drawing an action plan for a (neighborhood) project. It is a low-tech toolkit that visually maps values, objectives, actors, projects and instruments and subsequently facilitates a conversation with others. It is especially suited for groups with a high diversity of expertise, background and knowledge.
  
  
  
  
  
• ‘Participatie Studio’ (‘participation studio’): https://participatiestudio.be/
  
  The ‘Participatie Studio’ is a learning environment where participants learn from previous participation steps to subsequently plan new steps. The tool consists of a series of exercises and terms that focus on questions such as ‘how do I give direction to a participation process?’ or ‘how do I strengthen the participation culture of an organization?’ 
  
  

• target audience: retail designers and consultants, retailers

The Retail Design Lab, an expertise center of ArcK, conducts research on the factors that influence the design of experience-oriented stores. Based on scientific research, multiple tools are developed that support designers and retailers in creating more experience-oriented stores.

There are also tools supporting designers in selecting materials from an experience point of view and that also have a low impact on the environment.

You can find the tools on https://www.retaildesignlab.be/en/tools

• target audience: tourist accommodations, suppliers for tourist accommodations

Universal Design (UD) or ‘Design for All’ is a design strategy that states that everything that we design should be usable by as many people as possible, and should support this diverse group of people in the best possible way without stigmatising anyone. UD is a central concept in the development of ‘inclusive tourism’ or ‘tourism for all’. Tourist accommodations and suppliers for tourist accommodations experience difficulties in applying the existing UD knowledge into practice, despite the large potential of UD.

In collaboration with the PXL University College, researchers of ‘Designing for More’ developed a UD scan that helps tourist accommodations and suppliers to increase their insight into the (economic) opportunities of inclusive tourism. The UD Quick scan is designed to inspire suppliers of tourist accommodation in their transition to a UD business plan. The UD Scan for tourist accommodations is very extensive and should be conducted in collaboration with the UD project team.

For more information please visit https://www.udwoonlabo.be/portfolio-items/tools-en-publicaties/ or contact our business developer.

• target audience: architects, engineers, contractors, building clients

How is hemp lime applied in a building construction? What is its expected hygrothermal performance in practice? Which factors should be considered when designing a building in hemp lime? How should the building details be conceptualized?

The results of a two-year research project into the characteristics and application of hemp lime in Flanders are bundled in two practical guides comprising design and construction guidelines and examples in practice. They are available at this website.