THE ROLE OF SMART ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS IN REDUCING THE PANDEMIC EFFECT IN RESIDENTIAL COMPOUNDS

Authors

Christina Najem, Master student, Faculty Architecture- Design & Built Environment, Beirut Arab University, Beirut, LebanonFollow
Marwan Halabi, Associate Professor, Faculty of Architecture- Design & Built Environment, Beirut Arab University, Beirut, LebanonFollow
Hiba Mohsen, Associate Professor, Faculty of Architecture- Design & Built Environment, Beirut Arab University, Beirut, LebanonFollow
Maged Youssef, Associate Professor, Faculty of Architecture- Design & Built Environment, Beirut Arab University, Beirut, LebanonFollow

English Title

THE ROLE OF SMART ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS IN REDUCING THE PANDEMIC EFFECT IN RESIDENTIAL COMPOUNDS

Keywords

Pandemic, smart architectural elements, residential compounds, pandemic architecture, new normal

Disciplines

Architecture | Life Sciences | Medicine and Health Sciences | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Abstract

Pandemic is an episode of an illness that happens over a wide geographic zone, (for example, different nations or countries) and regularly influences a huge extent of the population, which is in our case a virus called COVID-19. The problem or the gap lies in the houses and type of residents we have now, that aren’t adaptable and flexible enough to survive a pandemic while focusing on social distancing, safe living, and many other decisions, all the while keeping the human interaction alive. Therefore, the main aim of this research is to propose guidelines on how new smart architectural elements can help reduce the effect of the pandemic in residential compounds and create a quasi-utopian living. The research therefore will depend on a scientific methodology through analyzing different literature reviews to create a theoretical base. Then, the derived parameters will be used to inspect a case study on a site in Achrafieh, a part of the residential area of the city which is an affected area from Beirut’s Port explosion. Data will be collected from site visits, photographs, and interviews. This site will be visualized to be an experimental location for a residential compound controlled by smart architectural elements such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Automation, the use of sensors, during a pandemic. As a conclusion, it is important to go smart on the level of architectural elements, especially through such a pandemic, which should be considered as a design potential and a good risk to take, and not a threat.

Recommended Citation

Najem, Christina; Halabi, Marwan; Mohsen, Hiba; and Youssef, Maged (2021) "THE ROLE OF SMART ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS IN REDUCING THE PANDEMIC EFFECT IN RESIDENTIAL COMPOUNDS," BAU Journal - Health and Wellbeing: Vol. 3: Iss. 3, Article 7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.54729/2789-8288.1145