Search result: Catalogue data in Autumn Semester 2024

Integrated Building Systems Master Information
Main Courses
Specialised Courses
NumberTitleTypeECTSHoursLecturers
052-0731-24LGlobal Housing Issues, Challenges and Strategies: Reconstruction After Conflicts & Natural Disasters Information W2 credits2VJ. E. Duyne Barenstein
AbstractCan architecture, urban design and planning contribute to housing reconstruction after conflicts and natural disasters? Answers to this question will be provided by researchers and socially engaged architects from Europe, Asia and Latin America through the presentation of concrete case studies and projects.
Learning objectiveThe current war in Ukraine and the recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria are dramatic reminders about the plight of the millions of people rendered homeless by manmade and natural disasters. Reconstruction after such tragic events requires the support of a large number of architects, urban planners and other built environment professionals with a thorough understanding of the specific issues and challenges entailed in working for and with affected communities. Based on concrete examples and extensive international field experience, the elective course will introduce students to the advantages and risk of different reconstruction approaches, with a specific focus on the links between housing reconstruction policies and community empowerment. A selected number of guest speakers from different countries will present concrete community-driven reconstruction initiatives from across the globe. The elective course aims at raising awareness among students about the complexity of housing reconstruction after disasters and is oriented in particular to those interested in a professional career in the humanitarian sector. The detailed program and recommend readings will be presented at the beginning of the course.
Content• General introduction: reconstruction approaches after conflicts and natural disasters
• Housing culture and post-tsunami reconstruction in Tamil Nadu, India
• Patterns of adaptation to culturally inadequate post-disaster housing
• Reconstruction challenges in rural and urban settings
• Housing reconstruction in rural and urban Nepal after the 2015 earthquake
• Rebuilding communities and schools in Haiti
• Learnings from postwar reconstruction in Kosovo
• Bottom-up housing initiatives in ongoing conflicts: the case of Ukraine
• Humanitarian planning: tackling emergency shelter needs.
• Housing initiatives in temporary camps
Lecture notesA course overview including lecture summaries is made available to inscribed students prior the start of the semester.
LiteratureA bibliography will be made available to inscribed students prior the start of the semester.
CompetenciesCompetencies
Method-specific CompetenciesAnalytical Competenciesfostered
Problem-solvingfostered
Social CompetenciesCommunicationfostered
Sensitivity to Diversityfostered
Personal CompetenciesAdaptability and Flexibilityfostered
Critical Thinkingfostered
Integrity and Work Ethicsfostered
Project Courses
NumberTitleTypeECTSHoursLecturers
066-0425-00LIntegrated Design MIBS Information Restricted registration - show details O6 credits3V + 3UA. Schlüter, M. Meshkin Kiya, Z. Shi
AbstractDuring the integrated design studio students work on a selected integrated architectural / urban design project, considering both energy- and climate systems (HVAC) as well architectural and urban design in a specific site context. The objective is to follow an integrated design process to achieve synergistic solutions.
Learning objectiveThe integrated design studio enables students to identify site specific energy demand and potentials, develop integrated energy and climate systems on both the urban and building scale and evaluate their interactions and impact on building design and operation. Retrieving relevant concepts and technologies of energy and HVAC systems, students are able to develop and compare integrated concepts using appropriate methods and digital toolsets and present them to a mixed audience using drawings, renderings and reports.
ContentDuring the studio students will work in groups on a contemporary integrated design project (urban and / or building scale) executing an integrated design process from the analysis of site potentials, the identification of demands, the development of an urban scale energy concept and a matching building energy- and HVAC-systems concept. Input lectures from academics and professionals will highlight specific topics relevant to the task. The projects will be presented by the student groups and discussed with internal and external reviewers at midterm and at the final presentations.
Lecture notesSkripts are specific to the design task and distributed at the beginning of the course.
LiteratureA literature list will be distributed at the beginning of the course.
Prerequisites / NoticeStudents must have successfully passed the first year of MIBS studies.
101-0531-00LDigital Creativity for Circular Construction Restricted registration - show details
All students who register go on a waiting list until 11.09.2024. To register:
1. Enroll before 05.09.2024
2. Send a short motivation letter (max. 300 words) and a 1-page CV to cea-course@ibi.baug.ethz.ch by 05.09.2024
3. MIBS students: This course is mandatory and there is no need to send your application documents

Please only register for the course if you really intend to participate on all course dates (see course catalog), otherwise, you will deprive someone else of a place.
W8 credits7.5PC. De Wolf
AbstractThe course is about digital innovation towards a circular economy in the built environment. How can we bring together two worlds that are often too distinct: low-impact construction and digital innovation? Bringing digital tools already used in other sectors into the construction sector, students will learn about circular construction (e.g., reuse of materials) through hands-on learning practices.
Learning objectiveIn the fall semester 2024 we will focus on applying artificial intelligence (AI) and extended reality (XR) to the circular design workflow and. The course will be taught at the Kunsthalle Zurich as part of an exhibition.
By the end of this course, students will be able to use augmented computational design enabling circular construction, with a view to environmental implications. They will be able to assess the challenges and opportunities of low-carbon, circular construction and evaluate possible solutions using digital technologies to enable a circular built environment (more specifically, with reused building materials). To achieve this, they need to be able to do the following:

1. Apply circular principles using recovered building materials.
2. Compare different digital technologies applied in circular construction (e.g., LiDARscanning, drone imagery, photogrammetry, computational design, AI, computer vision, XR, LCA tools etc.)
3. Understand the potential and limitations of AI for circular construction, e.g. use machine learning to detect and digitize materials (computer vision) or to support creativity in the early design phases of circular construction (generative AI).
4. Communicate the importance and urgency of circular construction.
5. Assess the environmental impact implications of their design and technology decisions through a preliminary Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
ContentStudents will receive an introduction to circular principles by experts from the building industry and visit of (de-)construction sites where circular construction is exemplified. They will explore how to use digital technologies such as LiDAR scanning, photogrammetry, scan-to-BIM,computer vision, computational design, digital fabrication, blockchain technology and learn about the design implications using reclaimed building materials. This course is meant as an overview/introduction of many digital technologies that could be useful for circularity and gives the tools to students to further study the technologies they are most interested in on their own. Creativity in writing, filmmaking, design, construction, etc. is expected from the students. This course will give the tools to students to learn more on LCA if they wish to deepen their knowledge further.
Lecture notesLanguage: English
Courses are on Tuesday afternoons in Kunsthalle or a room at ETH, but also require out-of-the-semester work and significant homework and site visits outside of class hours.
LiteratureÇetin, S., De Wolf, C., Bocken, N. (2022) "Circular Digital Built Environment: An Emerging Framework." Sustainability - Circular Economy in the Digital Age special issue, 13, 6348, DOI: 10.3390/su13116348 De Wolf, C. (2022) "4 promising digital technologies for circular construction." World Economic Forum, September 13, Link
Raghu, D., Marengo, M., Markopoulou, A., Neri, I., Chronis, A., and De Wolf, C. (2022) "Enabling Component Reuse from Existing Buildings. Using Google Street View and Machine Learning to Enhance Building Databases." The Association of Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia (CAADRIA), Sydney, AU, April 5-9.
Gorden, M., Batallé, A., De Wolf, C., Sollazo, A., Dubor, A., Wang, T. (2022) "Automating Building Element Detection for Deconstruction Planning and Material Reuse: A Case Study" Automation in Construction.
Prerequisites / NoticeInterest in Digitalisation and Construction. Flexibility: This is a hands-on course, where students explore digital technologies and opportunities/challenges of reuse. Flexibility (e.g. adapting to unforeseen circumstances), responsibility (e.g. arriving on time for safety briefing), and spontaneity (e.g. finding innovative solutions) is expected from the students to adapt to the contingencies from demolition and construction sites with reused materials. The course is mandatory for MIBS students. If you are a first year MIBS student, please do not apply, you are automatically accepted. All other students from other departments should apply. Please only register for the course if you really intend to participate on all course dates (see course catalog). Please only register for the course if you are willing to send us a letter of motivation and really intend to participate; otherwise, you will deprive someone else of a place. All non-MIBS students who register go onto a waiting list until 11.09.2024 and up to 25 of them will be selected by the lecturer.
To register:
1. Enroll before 05.09.2024.
2. Send a short letter of motivation (max. 300 words) and a 1-page CV to cea-course@ibi.baug.ethz.ch by 05.09.2024.

Collaborators: Kunsthalle Zürich, ETH AI Center, Design++
CompetenciesCompetencies
Subject-specific CompetenciesConcepts and Theoriesassessed
Techniques and Technologiesassessed
Method-specific CompetenciesAnalytical Competenciesassessed
Decision-makingassessed
Media and Digital Technologiesassessed
Problem-solvingassessed
Project Managementassessed
Social CompetenciesCommunicationassessed
Cooperation and Teamworkassessed
Customer Orientationassessed
Leadership and Responsibilityassessed
Self-presentation and Social Influence assessed
Sensitivity to Diversityassessed
Negotiationassessed
Personal CompetenciesAdaptability and Flexibilityassessed
Creative Thinkingassessed
Critical Thinkingassessed
Integrity and Work Ethicsassessed
Self-awareness and Self-reflection assessed
Self-direction and Self-management assessed
Semester Project
NumberTitleTypeECTSHoursLecturers
066-0431-00LSemester Project MIBS Information Restricted registration - show details
The semester project can commence only after the first year of coursework is completed.
O6 credits13ASupervisors
AbstractThe semester project focuses in solving specific research questions in the field of integrated building systems.
Learning objectiveThe semester project is designed to train students in solving specific research questions in the field of integrated building systems. The goal is to apply acquired knowledge which is gained throughout the first year of the master's program. The semester project is advised by a professor who is affiliated with one of the partner departments of the Master program "Integrated building systems".
ContentThe semester project is designed to train students in solving specific research questions in the field of integrated building systems. The goal is to apply acquired knowledge which is gained throughout the first year of the master's program. The semester project is advised by a professor who is affiliated with one of the partner departments of the Master program "Integrated building systems".
Science in Perspective
» see Science in Perspective: Language Courses ETH/UZH
» see Science in Perspective: Type A: Enhancement of Reflection Capability
» Recommended Science in Perspective (Type B) for D-ARCH
Master's Thesis
NumberTitleTypeECTSHoursLecturers
066-0434-00LMaster's Thesis Restricted registration - show details
Only students who fulfill the following criteria are allowed to begin with their master thesis:
a. successful completion of the bachelor programme;
b. fulfilling of any additional requirements necessary to gain admission to the master programme.

Master thesis are supervised and reviewed by one or several professors and possibly by other persons at the same time. At least one professor has to be a member of a department involved in the study programme (article 2). This regulation is also valid for master thesis taking place outside ETH Zurich.
O30 credits40DProfessors
AbstractA 6-months Master thesis completes the Master's program of Integrated Building Systems. With the thesis project students are expected to demonstrate their ability to independent and structured scientific thinking.
Learning objectiveA 6-months Master thesis completes the Master's program of Integrated Building Systems. With the thesis project students are expected to demonstrate their ability to independent and structured scientific thinking.
ContentA 6-months Master thesis completes the Master's program of Integrated Building Systems. With the thesis project students are expected to demonstrate their ability to independent and structured scientific thinking. The thesis can be performed either at ETH Zurich, an industrial enterprise, or in a research institution, but has to be advised by one or more professors affiliated with the Master program "Integrated building systems".
The responsible supervisor defines the topic in consultation with the student, together with the scope of work, criteria of assessment, and dates of beginning and delivery of the work.
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