Managing Building Adaptation: A Sustainable Approach (edX)

This course first introduces you to the challenging management task of redeveloping buildings for future use. Then you will learn how different management tools can be used to convert old buildings for sustainable reuse.
Prior experience with studies or jobs related to the built environment is not essential for this course, but will be a great advantage.
This MOOC is especially relevant for students who are interested in Real Estate, Project Management, Urban Planning, Architecture, Construction, Engineering, and Sustainability.
The course is taught by a multi-disciplinary team of instructors and professors with relevant practical and theoretical experience. You can use the practical knowledge you obtain during this course to tackle many challenges related to the built environment.

What you'll learn

• Understand building adaptation management as a cyclical process;
• Identify various sustainability challenges that occur in building adaptations;
• Distinguish between multiple actor perspectives and interests related to building adaptation;
• Apply project management tools that assist in making decisions about building adaptation;
• Translate design concepts into practical solutions for sustainable building adaptation.

Syllabus

Week 1: Managing building adaptation processes
Introduction to building adaptation, the sustainability and managerial challenges involved, the cyclical development process of real estate, and need for management tools.

Week 2: Urban development management
Introduction to urban development management, dealing with contextual issues for building adaptation, such as sustainability policies, real estate markets and location opportunities.

Week 3: Adaptive reuse management
Introduction to the phenomenon of adaptive reuse, focusing on re-design concepts, highest-and-best-use proposals, and financial viability of transformation.

Week 4 Construction and project management
Introduction to construction and project management, dealing with realising adaption plans, making use of organisational structures and smart planning methods.

Week 5: Housing transformation management
Introduction to housing transformation management, including asset management, maintenance and operations, user preferences, and energy efficiency measures.

Week 6: Recap of managing building adaptation
Conclusion and reflection on lessons learned about managing building adaptation, and the applicability and transferability of results to other institutional contexts.