The month of April transitioned us to embrace virtual meetings, events, and remote learning. One silver lining this month was witnessing architects and students mobilize to help offset PPE supplies. Understanding ways to navigate through the pandemic from an academic and professional perspective was already challenging. Firms also grappled over signs of a recession and troublesome financial aid. Deans and Chairs prepared for academia's remote transition, and unemployment continued to loom over the industry.

However, during the end of March and all of April, Archinect decided to stop and listen to our community. We reached out, spoke to students and professionals, and created opportunities for people to share how they were doing as#WFH and quarantine continued.

↑ #OperationPPE puts architects to work 3d-printing protective equipment for frontline medical workers

While the world adjusted to working from home, rising COVID-19 cases made it apparent that medical equipment such as PPE's and ventilators was in short supply. Architects and students from all over the US went to work and put their building skills to use as they filled supply gaps thanks to 3D printing. Architecture schools used their fabrication labs and soon turned them into face shield and face mask production centers to help offset the lack of PPE supplies.

↑ Is architecture heading toward an unemployment crisis?

Aiming to provide some answers as architects prepared to navigate through heavy pandemic months, Archinect stayed ontop of employment and unemployment figures as jobs across the country were facing a big hit due to the pandemic. Sadly, as the US Department of Labor reports filed in "the wake of the COVID-19-induced economic shutdown."

↑ How architecture students and educators are optimizing their work environments at home

Everyone was forced to adjust this month and that meant a rise in remote learning and working. In April Archinect reached out to its readers via the ongoing survey How is your school dealing with the coronavirus outbreak? Previously we ran surveys to ask how everyone was grappling with the pandemic and the changes it was bringing from an emotional and interpersonal perspective. 

↑ Creating "an Architecture Out of Constraints, Ordering Systems, and Rules" with WOJR

Constraints seemed to be the appropriate word to describe the early months of COVID in the US. Hoping to gain more insight and learn what firms are doing Archinect connected with William O'Brien, Jr. leader of the six-person office WOKR for our Studio Snapshot series. O'Brien Jr. sheds a light on the firm's growth and how it was adjusting to the challenges 2020 was bringing. "Up until a few weeks ago, the world was moving forward with aspirations for outward growth. Right now, we are looking to endure everything and come out improved. It’s a time to focus ourselves around our intellectual project and the culture of the office."

↑ Architecture Firm Owners Share Their PPP Woes

Continuing to listen and provide a voice to professionals within the industry Archinect sent out another survey, Archinect’s COVID-19 Economic Relief Survey, to learn how firms and firm leaders were working through the PPP. However, despite the emergency economic aid package and Small Business Administration-backed loan initiatives, "the botched roll-out" of financial aid was not enough to help firm owners.

↑ School of Architecture Deans React to Covid Archinect 3-Part series

Architectural Academia was in for a major shift as in-person classes were canceled and remote learning methods were applied throughout schools across the US. Archinect spoke with the Deans and Chairs from twelve schools of architecture to learn what their plans were for their students and faculty this year. Broken into a 3-part series, our team dove into topics such as the pandemic's impact end of the year activities (graduation and final reviews), how the pandemic will impact architectural education, and the institution's responses to the COVID-19 crisis overall.

↑ Archinect Sessions #151 - Quarantine Check-In

At the heart of our site is the community. Our goal is to listen, interact, and provide resources and information to our community of architects, students, and professionals in the industry. For this month's Archinect Sessions podcast, Paul, Donna, and Ken catch up and share their own stories and perspectives on what they were experiencing during these turbulent months of the pandemic and recession. They also shared what they had been observing as well as discussions they've been having with other architects and practitioners in the field.