Travelling Studio (Guwahati, India) (ABPL90114)

Travelling studios are working laboratories for design thought and production and involve the exploration of complex, real-life issues. They expose students to unfamiliar cultures, places and people, and stimulate their ability to think creatively and solve problems.

These studios aim to bring together students from architecture, urban design, landscape and planning streams and encourage an interdisciplinary focus.

Pre-trip briefings or seminars will precede the travel component of the studio. The studio will incur travel costs, in addition to tuition fees. Faculty subsidies may be available.

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SPECIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT TRAVELLING STUDIO (GUWAHATI, INDIA)

The subject (25 points) will focus on investigation of the construction industry with an emphasis on understanding and evaluation of some of the ongoing public schemes around affordable housing, strategic selection of design alternatives, construction technologies, construction materials, construction methods, regulations, governance and control in the Smart Villages initiatives in Assam, India. As part of the current collaborative project between the University of Melbourne, Assam Engineering College Guwahati and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, students will be able to work on devising design solutions to numerous problems within the scope of the subject. In this subject, students will require to critically analyse some of key issues associated with rural housing and construction.

Some of the key areas of focus will include understanding, investigation and appreciation of:
- Houses, house design and community
- Housing and sustainability in rural housing
- History, tradition and local contexts
- Design, construction and performance
- Technology and construction techniques
- Building envelops, aesthetics and appearance
- Risks, vulnerability and resilience in rural housing - Costs of construction and delivery
- Maintenance and refurbishments
- Construction wastes and circular economy
- Skills, scalability and growth
- Construction and governance
These issues will be investigated and assessed focusing on construction projects in both Melbourne and Assam. As a result of India’s economic boom, a huge number of capital projects are currently underway across the sector. Study of these projects will allow students to compare or contrast the construction management processes across both countries and thereby contribute to body of knowledge in the construction management and rural development. Consisting of a seminar component and a travel component, the subject will expose students to unfamiliar cultures, places and people, thus stimulating ability to reflect critically on both Australian and Indian construction environments.

The key objectives of the subjects include:
- Understand the challenges and opportunities associated with the construction of low cost, affordable and smart houses under the auspice of Smart Villages research initiatives - To investigate and evaluate design alternatives for construction of sustainable houses for Smart Villages - To observe and record building industry operations in non-Australian contexts, and provide an international perspective in construction.
- Appreciate and understand the role and significance of construction management and built environment professions in the Smart Villages initiatives. - To enable comparisons of construction markets, technologies and processes, alternative construction materials and construction methods in different countries and regions.
- To help students understand contingent relationships between design selection, construction technologies and processes in relation to the local versus national cultures.
- To gauge the impact of cultural drivers within construction context.
-To encourage students to identify and engage critically with issues of geographic specificity in construction.

APPROXIMATE COSTS
Flights: $1600
Accommodation: $520 (13 nights, up to $40/night)
Local Travel: $100
Living expenses (meals and incidentals): $330 (11 days, $30/day)

Note: Prices listed are subject to change. Participating students will receive a one-off subsidy of $800 from the Faculty utilised towards student’s accommodation costs and may be eligible to receive a one off payment of up to $1,000 from Melbourne Global Mobility (conditions apply).

CREDIT
This travelling studio can be taken as a multidisciplinary elective in any of the following courses:

• Master of Construction Management
• Master of Architecture
• Master of Landscape Architecture
• Master of Property
• Master of Urban Planning

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For additional information about this studio: http://edsc.unimelb.edu.au/travelling-studios