School of Future Environments - Huri te Ao

Permanent link for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/10292/13907
AUT is home to a number of renowned research institutes in architecture and creative technologies. The School of Future Environments - Huri te Ao strong industry partnerships and the unique combination of architecture and creative technologies within one school stimulates interdisciplinary research beyond traditional boundaries.

Browse

Recent Submissions

Now showing 1 - 5 of 107
  • Item
    Combating Greenwashing of Construction Products in New Zealand and Australia: A Critical Analysis of Environmental Product Declarations
    (MDPI AG, 2024-11-06) Moshood, Taofeeq Durojaye; Rotimi, James Olabode Bamidele; Rotimi, Funmilayo Ebun
    The construction industry’s increasing environmental impact has led to the widespread adoption of sustainability claims, yet the prevalence of greenwashing—where organizations make misleading environmental claims—threatens genuine sustainable development efforts. Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) have emerged as a potential solution, particularly in the New Zealand and Australia construction sectors, where recent government climate regulations have accelerated their adoption. However, the effectiveness of EPDs in combating greenwashing and their practical implementation remain understudied. This research addresses this gap through a comprehensive analysis of EPDs in construction, employing a systematic literature review of 82 articles from 2010 to 2024 across major databases. Using ATLAS.ti 9 software, this study makes three key contributions: (1) develops a novel framework for evaluating EPD programs and their effectiveness in preventing greenwashing, (2) establishes a standardized methodology for assessing the completeness and accuracy of life cycle assessment information in EPDs, and (3) provides evidence-based recommendations for improving EPD implementation in the construction industry. The findings reveal critical shortcomings in current EPD practices, including inconsistent assessment methodologies and incomplete life cycle data. This study proposes specific reforms to enhance EPD reliability and transparency, offering practical guidelines for industry stakeholders to verify environmental claims. These contributions advance both the theoretical understanding of environmental certification systems and practical implementation of sustainable construction practices by developing regulatory frameworks.
  • Item
    Toward Sustainability and Resilience with Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0
    (Elsevier BV, 2024-10-24) Moshood, TD; Nawanir, G; LEE, CK; Fauzi, MA
    Digitalization and Industry 4.0 concepts promise substantial improvements in productivity and coordination, their adoption across the entire project lifecycle remains sporadic and incomplete in the construction industry. This digital divide not only hampers current performance but also poses a significant barrier to the industry's future competitiveness and sustainability. This study addresses a critical research gap by evaluating the comprehensive integration of digital twin technology from early design through project delivery in construction. Through an extensive literature review, we examine digital twin applications in the built environment and construction sector. Unlike previous studies focused on isolated use cases, our research provides a holistic assessment of digital twin implementation across all project stages. This study identifies key opportunities for digital twin to enhance collaboration, data sharing, and innovation in traditionally fragmented construction processes. The findings reveal that creating and populating digital twin from project inception enables more coordinated information flows and decision-making. This approach facilitates improved asset quality, sustainability outcomes, and stakeholder integration compared to conventional methods. By elucidating the full lifecycle potential of digital twin in construction, this study makes a novel contribution to both research and practice. The study also indicates that digital twin adoption aligns with and enables industry sustainability goals, though further research is needed to quantify these impacts. This work provides a foundation for future studies on optimizing digital twin implementation to transform construction productivity, quality and environmental performance.
  • Item
    Dynamic Performance Investigations of a Full-Scale Unanchored Thin-Walled Steel Fluid Storage Tank via Shake Table Tests
    (2024-10-25) Hosseini, Ehsan; Beskhyroun, Sherif
    Theoretical models proposed in the literature and seismic design codes make the basis of analysis and the design procedures of fluid storage tanks. These models are derived based on many simplified and approximate assumptions. Under realistic conditions, however, different factors cause violation of these assumptions, causing the fluid flow and fluid–structure interaction (FSI) to diverge from theories. In this research work, 38 swept-sine tests and 63 seismic ground motions were applied to a full-scale highly flexible unanchored thin-walled stainless steel fluid tank. The experimental natural frequencies of the system for three different aspect ratios of 2.1, 2.8, and 3.5 were calculated and compared with the theoretical ones. Damping ratios for different modes were calculated using the half-power bandwidth analysis. Experimental results revealed discrepancies between the theoretical and experimentally detected natural frequencies, especially for the convective mode. Closer matches were found for the aspect ratios of 2.8 and 3.5, for the impulsive mode. Acceleration amplification factors at different heights of the shell were calculated which showed a nonlinear behaviour with a descending trend from the base to the mid-height and then an ascending one towards the fluid surface. Maximum acceleration amplification factor occurred at the surface of the fluid. The axial strains around the base are maximum and decrease bi-linearly towards the upper heights of the shell. Effects of the input excitation frequency content over the structural responses of the system were examined. Frequency characteristics of the input excitation considerably affected the maximum acceleration amplification factors and axial strains in the shell.
  • Item
    Plants of Place: Justice Through (Re)Planting Aotearoa New Zealand’s Urban Natural Heritage
    (UCL Press, 2023-05-31) Rodgers, M; Mercier, OR; Kiddle, R; Pedersen Zari, M
    Climate change has led to urgent calls for environmental action and justice, which is likely to include increased urban vegetation. The benefits of this planting could go beyond ecological and climate benefits to contribute to decolonisation and environmental and spatial justice and build on the well-documented links between ecological and human wellbeing. In Aotearoa New Zealand, past and ongoing injustices resulting from colonisation have disconnected Māori (the Indigenous people) from their land. Māori see themselves reflected in the landscape and te taiao (the natural world). The process of colonisation has mostly erased natural heritage, intrinsic to Māori identity, from urban areas. Many plants in urban areas represent colonial identity rather than this natural heritage, and many of the native plants that have been planted originate from other parts of the country. Through reviewing the literature, this article argues for research that determines the benefits of urban planting design prioritising plants that naturally occurred in the past, termed here ‘plants of place’, in public places. In settler colonial countries, where it is an accepted practice to acknowledge built and predominantly colonial heritage, making pre-colonial natural heritage visible can have many co-benefits. It has the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation, decolonisation efforts, spatial justice and environmental justice. Celebrating natural heritage and planting ‘plants of place’ can contribute in some part to righting past injustices and preparing for a changing future.
  • Item
    Digital Twin Technology for Sustainable Urban Development: A Review of Its Potential Impact on SDG 11 in New Zealand
    (Elsevier BV, 2024-10-13) Patel, UR; Ghaffarianhoseini, A; Ghaffarian Hoseini, A; Burgess, A
    The rapid rate of urbanization and increased infrastructural complexities significantly affects achieving the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 11 (SDG 11). Digital Twin Technology (DTT) has emerged as a promising and transformative tool, yet there is a lack of comprehensive understanding of its potential impact on SDG 11 within the New Zealand (NZ) context. This research examines how DTT can advance SDG11 by analysing its application, benefits, challenges, and implications within the NZ context. The novelty of this study lies in its use of a mixed-method approach as it integrates NZ specific trend analysis, keyword analysis, and an interrelationship network diagram. This comprehensive methodology employed provides a unique understanding on how DTT advancement can be adapted to NZ's urban landscape. The findings highlight critical challenges, including data integration, cross sector collaboration, and governance barriers which hinder widespread adoption. The study underscores the importance of Knowledge Sharing and Transfer (KS&T) to translate insights into local actions effectively. In addition, the interrelationship network diagram highlights the need for a holistic approach towards DTT implementation in the context of urban sustainability. These insights can play a fundamental role for guiding policymakers and shaping urban development strategies both in NZ and globally.
Items in these collections are protected by the Copyright Act 1994 (New Zealand). These works may be consulted by you, provided you comply with the provisions of the Act and the following conditions of use:
  • Any use you make of these works must be for research or private study purposes only, and you may not make them available to any other person.
  • Authors control the copyright of their works. You will recognise the author’s right to be identified as the author of the work, and due acknowledgement will be made to the author where appropriate.
  • You will obtain the author’s permission before publishing any material from the work.