Multi- and interdisciplinary design of urban infrastructure development

Abstract

Due to the environmental crisis, there is a need for a more conscious and integrating design process within the field of urban infrastructure development. Through cooperation between civil engineering and spatial design resilience of the built environment can be increased. Delft University of Technology investigates interdisciplinary design as a method and incorporates this into its MSc-level education of students in the faculties of civil engineering and architecture. The focus of the research was on the reconstruction projects after disasters like hurricanes and tsunamis. By way of surveys of the participating students, the effectiveness of the interdisciplinary design methods used, and the interpretation of the terms multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary are revealed. From survey results about understanding of multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary it can be concluded that interdisciplinary design should entail a conscious and orchestrated process in which the disciplines present their ideas within a shared value system before systematic integration. The challenges are at personal and cognitive levels, an open attitude is necessary to be able to perceive and react, process and understand, retrieve information. Only then decisions on – and production of – appropriate responses come out of co-creation between engineering within the spatial design process.