The Transforming Places, Practices, and Pedagogies Collaborative (TP3C) is a research unit within the School of Architecture at the University of Utah, dedicated to conducting architectural research. Our mission is to develop new knowledge, tools, processes, and spur innovation in architecture. We engage in cutting-edge, interdisciplinary research that addresses current challenges in architecture. We strive to bridge the gap between architectural profession and research, and engage with the industry and other partners in collaborative research projects.
News and Publications
DRS 2024: Editorial on Reimagining Care Through Evidence
“Reimagining Care through Evidence: Design Research, Patient Centered Solutions, and a Culture of Care for Healthy Societies” outlines a session at the Design Research Society 2024 Conference, exploring patient-centered evidence-based design in healthcare as a model of recovery, resistance, reflection, and reimagination. We were particularly interested in works of practice, scholarship, and research that put […]
Read MoreUser-Centric Renovation Design Strategies of Traditional Offices for Supporting Hybrid Work: Engaging Employees through Research
“User-Centric Renovation Design Strategies of Traditional Offices for Supporting Hybrid Work: Engaging Employees through Research” investigated renovation strategies of office spaces to post-pandemic, hybrid working environments with an emphasis on user inclusion in the holistic design process – from pre-design inquiry, design synthesis and development, and final design validation. The goal was to determine renovation strategies […]
Read MoreTP3C Research Featured by Building Design + Construction
TP3C’s research on intelligent facades has been featured by the Building Design + Construction network. An article “Could ‘smart’ building facades heat and cool buildings?” discusses the development, testing and benefits of active facade systems that integrate thermoelectric materials. Thermoelectric materials are smart materials that can produce a temperature gradient when electricity is applied, exploiting […]
Read MoreSuncica Milosevic presents at EDRA 2024
Suncica Milosevic presented TP3C research on user-centric and adaptive retrofit design principles at the Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) 55: Human-Centric Environments Conference, held in Portland, Oregon (June 19-22, 2024). The jointly authored paper with Prof. Ajla Aksamija, titled “User-Centric Renovation Design Strategies of Traditional Offices for Supporting Hybrid Work: Engaging Employees through Research,” described […]
Read MoreInnovations in Architecture: Research, Design and Technology
“Innovations in Architecture: Research, Design and Technology” is an invited review paper, presented as part of a keynote presentation. Architectural designers are currently faced with many challenges—technological changes, environmental and economic impacts, necessity to innovate and raise the bar in building performance, and the paradigm shift in architecture with the wider adoption of advanced computational […]
Read MoreBuilding Information Modeling-Based Building Energy Modeling: Assessment of Workflows and Tools
“Building Information Modeling-Based Building Energy Modeling: Assessment of Workflows and Tools” investigated interoperability between computational design and energy modeling tools. Integration of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Building Energy Modeling (BEM) has potential to provide streamlined and accurate building energy predictions, steering architects towards sustainable building design. Yet, integration and interoperability between BIM and BEM […]
Read MoreNew Project on Energy-Efficient Retrofits of Multi-Family Residential Buildings in Utah
TP3C is teaming up with FunForm and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to investigate energy-efficient retrofits of existing multi-family residential buildings in Utah. The project focuses on an existing residential complex in Murray, built in 1960’s, and eight units within this development. The overall goal is to investigate how modular design/construction and automation can be […]
Read MoreAjla Aksamija to Keynote an International Conference
Ajla Aksamija will be a keynote speaker for the STEPGRAD 2024: Contemporary Theory and Practice in Construction XVI conference, organized by the Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy in Banjaluka, Bosnia and Herzegovina (June 12 and 13, 2024). Her presentation will focus on innovations in architecture, and relationships between architectural design, research, and advanced […]
Read MoreCoStar Impact Awards
Ajla Aksamija participated as a judge for the 2024 CoStar Impact Awards, Salt Lake region. The CoStar Impact Awards recognize exemplary commercial real estate transactions and projects completed in 2023 with significant influence in neighborhoods across various regions in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The winners of the 2024 CoStar Impact Awards […]
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