Foresight Replacing Hindsight
Virtual Reality Modelling for a New Housing Development.
I don't know who it was who first said that hindsight was a wonderful thing, but I often have severe doubts as to their wisdom, especially when I'm thinking to myself… …
"That paint we bought looked a really nice colour on the side of the tin, but why didn't we buy a match pot to try first, before decorating the whole hall and landing?" or,
"I didn't think I'd need to read the instructions before attempting to put this flat pack wardrobe together" or,
"If I'd backed up my computer files, I wouldn't be retyping this now, trying to remember what I wrote when I was in a far more creative and focussed mood" or,
"Why didn't we build that boundary wall just a little bit higher, so that car headlights don't shine into that tenant's bedroom?"
At a rough guess, I (and probably my family and colleagues) would say that I will never learn the value of hindsight in the first three examples. At least not without somebody to constantly stand over, and probably physically force me, to take the sensible option. The wall around the Park Mill flats in Congleton, however, is a different scenario, thanks to having the opportunity to make use of the latest virtual reality technology in the project design.
Briefly, Park Mill is a project being developed by Cheshire RSL, Templar Housing, which will be brought into Adullam's management as move-on accommodation in late 2001. The building (as its name suggests) is a Nineteenth Century mill in Congleton town centre, which will be converted to provide 12 self-contained flats.
On any social housing development where future tenants are identified, a perfectly normal and totally correct course of action is to involve them in the decision-making processes. This would usually involve discussing the architect's plans, altering floor layouts to make better use of space from the tenant's perspective, planning the landscaping, and choosing colour schemes and styles for kitchens, floor coverings etc. Traditionally, this would usually be done using two dimensional drawings, product samples and colour cards. For Park Mill however, we have taken this approach one stage further with the production of a 3-dimensional interactive computer model of the development. This allows prospective tenants to fly around the building and, at the click of a mouse, take a walk around their flats, making choices as they go.
The virtual model was produced by Andy Dennison of 3d Web Technologies Ltd, based in Carrington, Manchester. The technology used is similar to that employed in flight simulators and other high tech industry. Increasingly, however, the so-called "softer" benefits of creating the vision for new housing developments are being realised. On Park Mill, use of the technology has helped develop a sense of ownership by allowing people to mentally visualise their new home before it has even been built, moving furniture around, checking how a floor covering complements the kitchen units, even checking the views out of windows. On larger scale developments, whole neighbourhoods can be considered, by showing different options for road layouts, house styles and location of facilities, allowing in depth consideration of all the implications of decisions that need to be made.
The Park Mill virtual modelling exercise was done during summer of 2000. Being a move-on development from Adullam's existing Congleton project, we were in the fortunate position of being able to identify future tenants at a very early stage. The actual sessions involved an initial meeting to discuss how the project would work in practice followed by three sessions at Salford University's Business Centre, where the virtual model was projected onto their curved screen to generate maximum realistic effect.
In all we met on three occasions so that the model could continue to be developed following comments from the tenants. Group decisions were made on issues such as security measures, communal areas and landscaping, followed by individual choices in flats. The benefits of using such a system to develop new projects is summed up by the following quote from Adullam Congleton resident, Alan Booker,
"Taking part in the virtual reality project was the difference between actually visiting a place, rather than reading a book about it."
A noticeable knock on benefit was the high degree of co-operation and open, friendly discussion between residents, who will ultimately be neighbours when Park Mill opens, and therefore even before the new housing is let, we are beginning to develop a strong sense of community. As building work on the project progresses, we will be organising site visits for tenants to view progress, and to maintain those links and friendships that have been struck during the virtual reality sessions. As an organisation that works to establish stability in people's lives through setting personal goals, to be able to view the future as the virtual model provides, offers a considerable enhancement to our work, and is something we will strive to replicate and develop on new projects in the future.
And so back to hindsight, and just one of a number of issues discussed and changed at our virtual reality sessions.
Surrounding the development, our original intention was to build a small retaining wall topped by railings, which on paper, we all agreed, looked fine. Only through being able to view the wall and adjoining car park from inside a ground floor flat, did we realise that car headlights from the car park would shine directly through some of the bedroom windows. An extra 3 courses of bricks on the wall, is all that will be needed, to make the lives of the tenants who will live in the ground floor flats, a little bit more comfortable, and ultimately make Park Mill a better place for people to live.
Everybody involved in the Park Mill project has enough experience to know that in any development, some things work well and others "in hindsight" we would do differently next time, and this example is only one small feature of the overall project development. However, we also know that by having the opportunity to visualise a project as close to reality as possible, with people who will actually be living there, we will be thinking less about hindsight, and more about another development where we are sure people will want to live.
(The Virtual Reality aspect of the Park Mill development is the result of a joint partnership between the following organisations: The Housing Corporation Templar Housing McLaren Whitworth and Associates (Architects) Salford University 3-d Web Technology.
To see the interview with one of our Congleton residents about this project, click here.
Contents
Virtual Project
