CADDManager on April 12th, 2011

I just returned from Australia where I spoke at the Building Designers Association of Australia’s National Conference in Adelaide, South Australia. My buddy, Bill Adams of AUGI, invited me to speak at the two day event.  Check out Bill’s website.

Bill and Karen (with Jedi the cat)

 

Lynn Allen, of Autodesk, also presented along with Elrond Burrell from the UK.  The theme was Building with Nature – Building Design in a Changing Environment.

Many speakers addressed the impact of climate changes and natural resource depletion and the need for buildings to respond.  Buildings that are energy efficient and respectful of their environments are needed and so much more can be done.

I spoke on the cycle of Software enabling design and Design pushing software.  We see that creative designers push harder on software and that software responds by becoming more responsive.  Software also enables designers to generate their creative designs in a more productive way.

Speakers also discussed reduce carbon footprints and reductions in energy use.  How building owners and homeowners could reduce their electricity use via changes in habits (turn off that light if not in active use) or unplugging non used appliances like large screen TV’s that have standby power loads.  Larger discussions included residential solar power additions and the troubles of getting the right information to make informed decisions.

The event closed with an Awards Ceremony showcasing top designs in many categories.  You can see the 2010 winners here – http://www.bdasa.com.au/index.php/gallery/design-excellence-awards .  The 2011 winners are not online yet (as far as I know).

Many thanks to the Australian hosts and their generous hospitality and friendliness.  I also saw some kangaroos in the wild – very nice.

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