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Foster + Partners has designed a general-purpose prototype face visor that can be cleaned and reused to aid in the fight against COVID-19. The firm's hope is to encourage both designers and large scale manufacturers to investigate the potential of digital and laser cutting machines as an... View full entry
New York City officials are starting to lay contingency plans if deaths from the coronavirus outbreak begin to overwhelm the capacity of morgues: temporarily burying the dead on public land.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Monday that the city would consider temporary burials if the deaths from the coronavirus outbreak exceed the space available in city and hospital morgues, but it had not reached that point.
— The New York Times
A report from The New York Times highlights a recently proposed contingency plan that could utilize existing public cemetery facilities on Hart Island in The Bronx as temporary burial sites to help meet the city’s growing need for morgue and funerary spaces in the wake of the COVID... View full entry
The UAE has officially proposed that the World Expo 2020 Dubai be moved. They have put forward a potential start date of October 1, 2021, in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
The request was made in a letter addressed to Dimitri S. Kerkentzes, secretary general of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE).
— Esquire Middle East
After hinting at a potential one-year delay of the Expo 2020 Dubai last week in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the UAE government has now reportedly proposed the new start date of October 1, 2021 and end date of March 31, 2022. The Bureau International des Expositions confirmed that it... View full entry
One developer who spoke anonymously to discuss a sensitive issue, said he was uncomfortable requiring construction workers to leave their homes and come to sites that can be crowded and unsanitary. Others are trying to strike a balance between business interests, housing needs and public health. — The New York Times
The New York Times reporter C. J.Hughes surveys how a recent executive order calling for a halt in most construction projects from New York’s Governor Andrew Cuomo has been interpreted across project sites in New York City. The order carves out exceptions for “essential” building... View full entry
What will happen to home-sharing in the wake of coronavirus? It’s one of many questions about the fate of pre-pandemic sharing-economy juggernauts like Airbnb.
[...] with tourism on hold, national economies staggered, and public attitudes about shared space very much in question, the prospects for that industry are now murky.
— CityLab
Feargus O'Sullivan on the consequences of the short-term rental market's collapse, with particular focus on the industry's dominating player, Airbnb. In the aftermath of a worldwide wave of coronavirus-related booking cancellations, some apartments are reportedly returning to the local... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects Los Angeles (AIA |LA) chapter has been asked by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti to aid the city in its efforts to expand the growing #OperationPPE initiative that has taken root in the city. Initiated by a team led by University of Southern California... View full entry
For most architecture students, faculty, and staff around the world, working from home has become the new normal since campuses closed in response to the sweeping pandemic several weeks ago. Archinect wanted to find out how things had been going so far for the architectural academic community and... View full entry
This week, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced that work on the plan to convert the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan into a 2,500-bed temporary hospital has been completed. The temporary hospital facility is one of four sites currently under construction... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is currently assembling a database containing information on the health care facilities, both traditional and temporary, and the design professionals around the world mobilizing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week, AIA announced the... View full entry
Online courses, activities, and programming have increased as the globe adjusts to this "new normal" of social distancing measures and safety precautions amid the current pandemic. However, museums across the globe have shifted their efforts towards bringing art to the homes of millions of... View full entry
Toronto-based LuxMea Studio has combined artificial intelligence (AI), computational design, and 3D printing to develop the Nuo 3D Mask. The mask is custom tailored to each user with the help of AI to fit any head shape. On its Kickstarter page, the team writes: "[We] started to wonder, what if... View full entry
Architecture firms Weber Thompson of Seattle and MZA of Bellevue are helping supply face shields and goggles to fight the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic locally.
Over a two-week period, Weber Thompson plans to print 100 bands — the rigid plastic piece to which the clear face shield attaches to protect the wearer. The bands will be delivered to Seattle Makers, which will attach them and distribute the shields.
— Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce
According to the Seattle DJC, the group's goal is to provide 5,000 shields for "local hospitals, essential businesses and facilities, homeless shelter workers, and others fighting COVID-19. Weber Thompson is using their 3D printer to create the bands for the face shields, each takes... View full entry
California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued renewed guidance instructing that the state’s construction sites can remain open for the time being as long as social distancing guidelines are being followed. Politico reports that Newsom reiterated his intention to keep the state’s... View full entry
Across the country, design communities have mobilized to assist in the effort to fill supply gaps in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers operating on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, Archinect reported on efforts at Princeton, Cornell, and... View full entry
Across the globe, industries are doing the best they can to respond to the global COVID-19 pandemic that is affecting millions of people daily. The architecture and design industry has stepped into action by providing aid and continuous assistant through the PPE fabrication and collaboration with... View full entry
