Building design tool used for early-stage feasibility studies and sustainable design
Web-based generative design tool Digital Blue Foam (DBF) has launched, following an investment of over two million US dollars over the last couple of years.
The DBF platform is an early-stage building design tool made for architects, planners, developers, and educators. It brings together software, artificial intelligence (AI) and data, and aims to make sustainable building design accessible.
The DBF AI currently includes real-time Daylight Autonomy Score, Solar Radiation Simulation, Instant Shadow Study, Wind Score, and Sun Path Animation. According to the company, these inputs allow a designer to validate a design in real-time without the use of expensive and complex software while designing a net-zero Co2 building.
DBF also features a proprietary neighbourhood scoring system to automate descriptive spatial metrics of neighborhood quality based on geo-location.
The technology supports the “15-minute city” planning strategy, which places amenities and services within a 15-minute walk of residents, a critical sustainability metric. It covers residential, office, health, institutions, public facilities, commerce, markets, restaurants, transportation, and utilities.
“Buildings are the fabric of cities, and sustainably designed buildings are a necessity today,” said Digital Blue Foam co-founder Camiel Weijenberg.
“The built environment is responsible for 40% of global Co2 emissions. Climate change is the existential challenge of this generation, and cities cannot continue to be designed as they still are. We need to adapt and change our ways, fast!
“Our software integrates the core elements of the design process – data collection, 3D modeling, sustainability validation, city score, project comparison, and drawing production – within a single online tool. The tool syncs to various Building Information Modelling (BIM) software like Archicad, Revit, Rhino3D, SketchUp.”
Takenaka Corporation, one of Japan’s five largest and oldest construction companies, is an early Digital Blue Foam user.
According to DBF, Takenaka has accelerated project design delivery by 750% and one large project that would traditionally take four years has been reduced to just one year. Takenaka now has over 20 teams and 500 users on the DBF platform, including architects, BIM managers, real- estate developers, and construction managers across Takenaka subsidiaries.
