Comments on: SITEOPS: Applying Optimization Technology to Site Design http://aecbytes.com/blog/2008/03/31/siteops-applying-optimization-technology-to-site-design/ A forum for AECbytes readers Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:00:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.2 by: Michael Jarosz http://aecbytes.com/blog/2008/03/31/siteops-applying-optimization-technology-to-site-design/#comment-18236 Tue, 01 Apr 2008 14:10:28 +0000 http://aecbytes.com/blog/2008/03/31/siteops-applying-optimization-technology-to-site-design/#comment-18236 Back when I was in architecture school, there were only mainframes. But I had a course in using computers in architecture nevertheless. My big project was using well known procedures (in mathematical circles anyway) to optimize sites and buildings. The math techniques are known as linear programming, integer programming and the transportation method. You can google these terms. The zoning constraints of NYC are a classic linear programming problem; space planning is an integer program and site design optimization can be solved by the transportation method. I never persued these concepts beyond the classroom, but I am not suprised, given the computing power available today, that someone else has discovered that architecture can make good use of these techniques. I venture to guess that SITEOPS is a front end to one of these operations management algorithms. A lot of research and development has gone into operations research since I was in school. Incidentally, programs can be found free or at a low cost around the web. Back when I was in architecture school, there were only mainframes. But I had a course in using computers in architecture nevertheless. My big project was using well known procedures (in mathematical circles anyway) to optimize sites and buildings. The math techniques are known as linear programming, integer programming and the transportation method. You can google these terms. The zoning constraints of NYC are a classic linear programming problem; space planning is an integer program and site design optimization can be solved by the transportation method.

I never persued these concepts beyond the classroom, but I am not suprised, given the computing power available today, that someone else has discovered that architecture can make good use of these techniques.

I venture to guess that SITEOPS is a front end to one of these operations management algorithms. A lot of research and development has gone into operations research since I was in school. Incidentally, programs can be found free or at a low cost around the web.

]]>