MANAGING MARGINS: OVERDESIGN IN HOSPITAL BUILDING SERVICES. (May 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jones, D. A.; Eckert, C.; Garthwaite, P.
• Is Part Of: Proceedings of the Design Society: DESIGN Conference. Volume 1(2020)
• Page Start: 215
• Page End: 224
• Publication Date: 2020-05
• Subjects: design process -- decision making -- energy efficiency -- overdesign; Engineering design -- Congresses; Industrial design -- Congresses; 620.0042
• DOI: 10.1017/dsd.2020.151
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2633-7762

Abstract

Abstract: The capacity of building services in many hospitals exceeds the requirements by significant amounts. Oversizing of building services has a direct impact on building efficiency and operational costs, ultimately impacting upon patient care, by diverting much needed funding. A key factor leading to the oversizing is the excessive and uncoordinated application of design margins across various project stages. Based on a hospital case study, this paper analyses the reasons for the overdesign of a replacement cooling system and raises the importance of managing margins activity to avoid overdesign.