Thorsten Schuetze

This paper discusses the most important policies and regulations supporting the decentralized management, harvesting and utilization of rainwater in Germany, where such measures have been increasingly applied during the last few decades. The development and implementation of specific policies and regulations contributed significantly to that trend. They also work as incentives for the development of advanced technologies and businesses as well as the widespread and growing implementation of meas

This paper examines the planning paradigm shift related to the contested “urban renaissance” mega-project in Downtown Seoul (Korea). Similar to other global cities, over the last few decades, different mega-projects have been successfully implemented in Seoul. These projects have been considered engines for urban renewals and transformation. This paper builds on the analysis of the failure and re-framing planning strategy for the Green Corridor (GC) mega-project, part of the “Urban Renaissance M

Urbanized delta areas worldwide share a growing tendency of exposure to water stress induced by the effects of climate change and anthropogenic factors, threatening the operation of infrastructure systems and future urban development. The important synergistic impacts coexisting with freshwater scarcity are increasing urbanization rates, subsiding soils, saltwater intrusion in aquifers and rivers, coastal erosion, and increased flooding. Innovative design strategies and concepts for the integrat

The construction and service of urban infrastructure systems and buildings involves immense resource consumption. Cities are responsible for the largest component of global energy, water, and food consumption as well as related sewage and organic waste production. Due to ongoing global urbanization, in which the largest sector of the global population lives in cities which are already built, global level strategies need to be developed that facilitate both the sustainable construction of new cit

This paper discusses the potential of water savings at property, household and urban levels, through the application of environmentally sound technologies (ESTs), as well as their quantification using the software Wise Water. Household centered measures are identified that allow for significant reduction of drinking water consumption with comparatively small effort, and without limitation of comfort. Furthermore, a method for the estimation of water recycling, for rainwater harvesting and for th

Poor Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) adversely affects the performance and health of building users. Building users are an important source of information regarding IEQ and its influence on users’ wellbeing and productivity. This paper discusses the analysis and evaluation of IEQ in lecture halls of two public Architectural Campus Buildings (ACB) in Karachi, Pakistan. The method of this research is divided into three parts: (i) An analysis of local climate conditions, (ii) An on-site survey o

The integration of photovoltaic (PV) generators in the envelope of a building by means of building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) offers an immense potential, both in market development and the production of renewable electric energy that is close to the point of electricity consumption. In Germany, for example, by integrating photovoltaics in buildings up to 50% of the electricity demand can be covered. The political support of BIPV would contribute to the development and installation of BIPV

Electric appliances for cooling and lighting are responsible for most of the increase in electricity consumption in Karachi, Pakistan. This study aims to investigate the impact of passive energy efficiency measures (PEEMs) on the potential reduction of indoor temperature and cooling energy demand of an architectural campus building (ACB) in Karachi, Pakistan. PEEMs focus on the building envelope’s design and construction, which is a key factor of influence on a building’s cooling energy demand.

Apartments in South Korea have high maintenance costs and an average lifetime of 25 years due to poor construction qualities. The common apartment redevelopment strategy is completely demolishing the neighborhoods and then replacing them with new buildings. However, this research discusses the framework for the refurbishment of an existing building in Seoul using Building Information Modeling (BIM) and parametric tools. The virtual model of an exemplary existing building is constructed in a BIM

More than 60% of housing in South Korea consists of mass constructed apartment neighborhoods. Due to poor quality construction materials and components, the average operative life of apartment buildings is 20 years. The rapid degradation and low maintenance condition of transparent and semi-opaque components, as well as the limited daylight access in the standard apartment layout, are cause for the lower visual comfort of occupants. This research analyzes the improvement in visual comfort for th

The objective of this study was to illustrate the urban flood resilience and sustainability improvement potential by integration of decentralized water management systems in sustainable urban regeneration projects. This paper discusses sustainable and resilient urban regeneration potentials using the example of an industrial compound (ICs) conversion in Seoul, South Korea. Urban flood vulnerability has been a concern globally due to land use changes, limited capacity of existing stormwater manag

This paper examines the integration of sustainability principles into architectural education programs at South Korean Universities that have been accredited by the Korea Architectural Accrediting Board (KAAB). Accreditation requires the successful implementation of 30 so-called Student Performance Criteria (SPCs). Similar to recent improvements to international architectural education, different principles of sustainability have been successfully implemented by the KAAB. This paper identifies e