Evaluating a proposed approach for managing collaborative design in the conceptual design phase

This paper evaluates the findings of prior research on managing collaborative design in the conceptual design phase of a building project. The prior research was explorative. It used several building projects in the Netherlands as case studies—De Resident in The Hague, Nieuw Stadshart in Almere, and Oosterdokseiland and Mahler4 in Amsterdam. They were complex projects in which multiple architects from different design firms were involved. The prior research described the characteristics and challenges of collaborative design and presented a descriptive concept for managing collaborative design. In this paper, the design competition of Ground Zero/World Trade Center in New York is used as a case study for evaluating the findings of the prior research. The evaluation has been performed through video observation of the architectural design workshops and using expert opinions from experienced architects, urban designers, architectural supervisors and project managers. The evaluation results in a list of evidence that the description of project characteristics and challenges also applies to other building projects beyond the cases in the Netherlands, and that the descriptive concept is plausible for clarifying the ways for managing collaborative design.