One needs to provide for basic sanitation facilities for the labourers during construction, follow government regulations, get approvals from various boards, especially the environment board that has very stringent rules about the construction methodology, debris disposal, provision for solar panels for electricity, a sewage treatment plant for wastewater recycling and reuse in gardening or flushing. There are a lot of regulations that promote using green plantations in a building. For example, you have new regulations where it is encouraged to create flower beds all around parking areas, which was not allowed earlier for the fear of misuse.
The new innovations and technology in construction materials and methodology have reduced construction time. In lay terms, the time gap between casting the next slab on every floor has come down to about a week to ten days now. The building construction speed has become so fast that it just changes the dynamics of the entire economy, where people can get the handover much faster.
Also, architecture is not rigid anymore. It is not restricted to 90 degrees but has adopted a 360-degree approach, which means you don’t look at design as a rectangle or a typical geometrical form. This happened because of the advancement in software, which lets your mind imagine shapes and forms which are normally not conceivable to the human mind. We now have the kind of software, using which architects are exploring designs which are completely organic, with no fixed geometry.
This has led to a change in architecture.
There is an interface between technological advancement and its adoption by the architecture and construction industry. Architects now think of different designs and with the support of technology, the construction industry is able to make those structures that have irregular geometry. Also, because of this progress, we now have different kinds of materials, like GRC and materials in metal, etc., with which you can design unique shapes.
I think architecture philosophy and the thought process has completely changed over time. Though architecture will always be about creativity, but it is so much more now. Earlier, architecture was very simply about coming out with an innovative design or thinking out of the box. But today, architecture is not just about creating something unique; it is also about a human-centric approach; it is a profession that touches everybody’s lives. When architecture or a building design touches people’s lives, they feel interconnected with what is built around them and makes lives more fulfilling.
