Significant tension can exist between the goals of architectural research and of architectural and building practice. Worthwhile research involves generating risks its benefits are uncertain and require interpretation in practice as new design approaches or construction methods. In contrast, professional practice generally involves managing building procurement risk. This can encourage participants to resist change and enhance solution reliability, even if this delivers less than optimal performance. Practitioners can be innovative but often only through incremental development, nudging participants along the path to increasingly innovative action. As they do, the capability, capacity and confidence risks associated with novel design solutions need identification, assessment and response. These concepts are discussed in relation to a university-based case study, where researchers joined architectural practitioners in a design team for the design and delivery of a 120-unit student accommodation building. Finished in early 2016, the solution included novel timber-rich prefabrication and assembly techniques.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	innovation, risk, risk management, timber construction, prefabrication, prototyping
Research Division:	Built Environment and Design
Research Group:	Design
Research Field:	Interaction and experience design
Objective Division:	Construction
Objective Group:	Construction design
Objective Field:	Commercial construction design
UTAS Author:	Nolan, G (Professor Gregory Nolan)
ID Code:	128374
Year Published:	2018
Deposited By:	Architecture and Design
Deposited On:	2018-09-16
Last Modified:	2018-11-07
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