Responding to COVID-19: Concepts and Ideas

Responding to COVID-19: Concepts and Ideas Fall 2020

For questions and comments please contact: Aleksey Lukyanov-Cherny, Partner aleksey@situ.nyc

Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve pivoted our attention and capabilities to help our community get back on its feet.

Working with schools, libraries, and healthcare facilities, over the past six months, we created scalable solutions that address the pressing challenges every industry is facing: health and safety.

This deck shares that recent work, as well as ideas about the future workplace—how the office is evolving and the values driving this shift.

Top: Prototyping one of our testing booths with medical practitioners Bottom: Tracking police repression in a reconstruction of a Bronx protest

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

CONTENTS

Urban Front Porch

04

Reactivating Community Spaces

07

Walk-Through Testing

09

Education Solutions Collaborative

12

Ideas for the Future Workplace

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Urban Front Porch In collaboration with healthcare & education professionals, we developed a "Front Porch" that re-imagines entrance of a shared office and school building to make space for socially distant queuing and health checks before entering the building. It sends a welcoming message, communicates new safety protocols, and respectfully extends the building’s presence into the public realm.

While this system was designed for the school, the system is applicable to offices as well.

Our work was incorporated into the school’s facility planning guide and toolkit, and was featured in the New York Times. Read more about the project here.

Client: Brooklyn Lab Charter School Collaborators: WXY, Urban Projects Collaborative, Urban Umbrella Location: Brooklyn, NY Date: Summer 2020 Front Porch installation at Jay & Sands Street

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Safer arrival We studied the sidewalk capacity and designed a canopy system to provide shelter as new safety protocols are administered. To streamline the arrival process, we proposed dividing up the student population into cohorts with staggered arrival times.

Canopy Student (6’ Dist.)

Staff (6’ Dist.)

Special Needs Route Student Entry

We organized a demonstration with school staff to get their feedback on the process.

Photo by Urban Umbrella.

Site plan with sheltered queues, two points of entry, and an additional “fast lane” for special needs students.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

A kit-of-parts approach The modular kit-of-parts is easily deployable for a variety of site conditions, quick to install and easily permitted.

Screens & partitions

Barricades

Accessories

Privacy and artwork opportunities; Filtered natural light & student artwork

TraďŹƒc and pedestrian control; Planters, benches, and jersey barriers

Lighting, acoustics, heaters, sanitizing stations and trash cans.

Structure

Greeting station

Signage

Urban Umbrella system

Check-in, temperature check

Mobile and ďŹ xed signage on structure, ground and additional surfaces

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Reactivating Community Spaces Bushwick We developed a range of short-term strategies to help keep patrons and staff safe and adapt to new logistical challenges as libraries begin to open their doors across Brooklyn.

Red Hook Central

When the project began, select branches were open only for book drop-off and online hold pickup—both of which occurred in branch lobbies. The goal of this study was to plan for bringing the public into the ground floor of the library branches for book browsing, reading areas, and reference desk.

New Lots

Flatbush

Bay Ridge

Kings Highway

More on the project here.

Client: Brooklyn Public Library Location: Brooklyn, NY Date: Summer 2020 While our work focused on the first few branches to open, the strategy was designed to be deployable across the borough.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Rethinking interiors Safe circulation is now critical for all building types, and clear wayfinding and behavioral cues will be needed to communicate evolving protocols. We studied ways to encourage social distancing as patrons move through the library interior, including at key touch-points such as reading tables and check-out kiosks.

Staff

Staff access only

Patron

No public access

Patron touch-points

Patron circulation

Drop

Check-out

`

Laptop Loan

Reference

Check-out

We proposed a modular approach that could be deployed quickly and cost-effectively across many library branches.

Drop Drop

Kings Highway Branch reference desk sketch with transaction barriers, signage and wayfinding

Kings Highway Branch circulation plan

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Walk-Through Testing Increased testing capacity has proved critical for the safe reopening of workplaces, universities, and other important institutions worldwide. In collaboration with local testing organizations, hospitals and government agencies, we developed a COVID-19 screening booth to expand testing capacity.

Lightweight and quickly deployable, the booth facilitates safe walk-through testing while better protecting healthcare workers.

Read more about the project here.

Collaborator: ARUP, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, SOMOS Community Care, CORE Response Location: New York, NY Date: Summer 2020 One of the booth prototypes docked with a medical COVID-19 testing tent for a demonstration run. Photo: Keith Sirchio.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Distributed testing sites The modular design can be adapted for dierent testing methods and site conditions. The booths have been installed in building lobbies, sidewalks, parks, and other urban sites. Indoors, it can supplement existing health facilities, and other non-medical locations can also be considered to maximize community reach.

Sample indoor layout: Sta and patient areas are separated using Patient Ports with temporary room dividers

Sample collection from a patient using built-in gloves within the interactive window.

Physical separation of medical practitioners from patients signiďŹ cantly reduces PPE usage.

Photos: Keith Sirchio.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Understanding throughput Arup developed this in-progress pedestrian model of the testing facility, using the “proximity analysis” feature from the MassMotion development team to indicate where and how long people break social distancing.

This analysis is used both to understand the potential throughput of patients and to refine the queuing approach and overall flow to maximize social distancing and patient comfort.

First model layout: Higher probability of close encounters

Pedestrian model of a testing site with 8 booths and 4 registration stations. Watch the full animation and its alternate view.

Updated model layout

Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Education Solutions Collaborative Schools at all levels—from primary school to higher ed—are facing the overwhelming challenge of how to educate effectively during the pandemic.

In order to ease the burden, we teamed up with a select group of design, technology, engineering and construction experts to help institutions create successful and safetydriven strategies for in-person and remote learning in the year ahead.

More information here.

Collaborator: Colliers Project Leaders, Infinite Consulting Corp., JFK&M Consulting Group, TEECOM, Via Collective, WXY Location: Tri-state Area Date: Ongoing One of the Collaborative’s offerings is a Solutions Report, which details comprehensive solutions tailored to each institution’s situation.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Project team The Collaborative is made up of leaders from different industries and the approach is tailored to an institutions unique site and approach to back to school planning. Working together, the specific knowledge and proven experience of each team members is applied to a campus’s complex challenges in a holistic way.

Team Leadership Jessica Moreno, Associate Director Colliers Project Leaders

Travis Williams, Senior Estimator Infinite Consulting Group

Michael Jacob, Partner JFK&M Consulting Group LLC

Basar Girit, Partner SITU

Maria Gonzalez, Principal, Senior Consultant TEECOM

Katie Osborn, Principal and Wayfinding Strategist Via Collective

Adam Lubinsky, Principal WXY

Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Focused on core operational questions

Arrival Do major circulation paths allow for social distancing?

How do we manage and track visitors to our campus?

How can we keep track of overall building occupancy levels during the pandemic?

Will reduced elevator capacity impact staffing or schedule for special needs students or others?

Infrastructure

Education Delivery

Wellness

Is our school building{s} HVAC system compliant with CDC guidelines?

How can technology help remote students feel more engaged during the classroom sessions?

When a building occupant gets sick, how do we get them proper care while preserving the health of those around them?

Will our existing Wi-Fi network support the intended AV, security, and device connectivity needs?

How do we create outdoor learning spaces and anticipate the usage of non-traditional classrooms?

How do we make bathrooms and entryways a contactless experience?

How can we adapt non-traditional learning spaces — like gyms, auditoriums, and libraries — to serve the core educational curriculum?

What additional accommodations must be made for students with special needs?

Construction

What type of other wellness spaces are needed for mental health/guidance and other illness or injury?

Where should we locate these space(s) on our campus?

Any requirements for contractor labor? Open shop vs prevailing wage vs union?

Is there a capital budget, grant or raised funds for these solutions?

Who are the other project stakeholders to be considered?

What times are allowable for noisy work? What are the neighborhood sensitivities?

Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Ideas for the Future Workplace As more and more organizations begin to reopen their physical workplaces, it is becoming clear that the pandemic will have lasting effects on the nature, purpose and design of these spaces, beyond immediate health and distancing protocols.

If partial work-from-home persists, what role will the office play? Who will come into the office, and what will they want to do there?

How can organizations and developers plan ahead, stay competitive and thrive in this new environment?

WORKSPACE

OUTDOOR MEETING

FRONT PORCH CAFE

ENTRY

VISITOR MEETING SUITE

Location: New York, NY Date: Ongoing The building is extended onto the sidewalk with a flexible, multi-use “front porch,” creating dynamic outdoor spaces.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Problem set

Pre-COVID

Near term

Long-term

?

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Values for a future workplace

The oďŹƒce is where employees go to experience and participate in company culture.

Culture ORGANIZATION-WIDE

Community

With partial work-from-home, social programming will be in greater demand. How can the workplace support its communities?

Collaboration

Creative work requires face-to-face collaboration.

How can workspaces support more eective teamwork and communication?

If employees can work from anywhere, what are the right tools and settings that workplaces can provide to support productive work?

Choice INDIVIDUAL-SPECIFIC

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Future program demands PERSONAL

COUNSELING

CHILDCARE SENIOR CARE POP-UP RETAIL

DOCTOR VISIT

VOTING

GRAB-AND-GO

FARMERS MARKET COMMUNITY GARDEN

PUBLIC WIFI

CONCERT

EXHIBITION

BIKE REPAIR

MEDITATION

SILENT DISCO

LIBRARY

NATURE WALK

GROUP FITNESS CLASS

INDIVIDUAL

Social amenities will be more in demand— satisfying employees’ need for a sense of community and strengthening company culture.

SOCIAL RETAIL

INDIVIDUAL WORKOUT

DRY CLEANING

MAKER LAB GAME NIGHT

COFFEE BREAK

HOTEL

RECORDING STUDIO

SOCIAL CLUB

COMMUNAL

If employees come to the physical office less frequently, an all-in-one office-amenity destination can help employees make the most of their time and support work-life integration and personal wellness.

MENTORSHIP CONTINUING EDUCATION

FOCUSED WORK

TEAM LUNCH

TEAM SPORTS

JOB TRAINING CATERING

COLLABORATION

VIDEO CONFERENCE

MEETING

LECTURE CONVENTION

PROFESSIONAL In an urban office building, amenities can be distributed throughout the building near the core for easy access.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Dynamic ground floor The ground floor is a great place to offer public and semi-public programming. Wayfinding and messaging are an important part of the ground floor experience, communicating protocols and reflecting the building culture.

Flexible furniture system and wayfinding support a dynamic, multi-functional, welcoming public lobby at the Brooklyn Museum. Photo: John Muggenborg.

Photo © Matt Marquez ℅ MTWTF

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Work-life integrated campus Campus settings provide an ideal setting to oer a variety of amenities and foster a sense of community. In this project, a gradient of programming—from the busy communal amenity courtyard at the center of the campus, through the meeting spaces, to the private workspaces at the upper levels— provides a rich array of programming in a single destination.

The upper-level pergola connects the amenity spaces.

Aerial view of the central courtyard, with spaces for F&B, meeting and socializing. Rendering by West 8.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Pop-up outdoor workspaces With a persistent interest in health and wellness, opportunities for outdoor workspaces will continue to be in demand. In addition to functional considerations like shade, lighting, power, wiďŹ , heat, etc., outdoor structures also oer an opportunity to express company culture and values.

This prefabricated Solar Canopy has been installed in nearly 100 locations around NYC.

Flexible construction systems produce adaptive, engaging spaces for work and socializing.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Rethinking the open office Even before the pandemic, there was evidence that the open office was not working well, proving distracting for focused work, and even discouraging face-to-face interaction among colleagues. Partial work-from-home provides an opportunity to rethink the open office—providing a variety of more appropriate settings for focused work (nooks, perches, private offices and pods) and outfitting larger, more open spaces with the tools necessary for productive collaborative work.

Pre-COVID workspace with individual desks

GUARDRAIL

GUARDRAIL WITH ACOUSTIC PANEL

STORAGE / LOCKER

TEAM DIVIDER

MOBILE POD

Future post-desk collaborative workspace

TEAM POD

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NEIGHBORHOOD DIVIDER

FULL-HEIGHT SCREEN

FULL-HEIGHT GLASS PARTITION

Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Rethinking the open office Zones of collaboration and focus

Collaboration—given the right set of tools and infrastructure, teams can use open office space for effective team work. Photos: John Muggenborg.

Focus—a variety of settings (pods, nooks, labs, etc.) for focused work provides individuals with choices to suit how they work best.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Transformative spaces The pandemic has demonstrated the need for exible spaces that can continue to evolve over time, as program needs change.

In this project for the Brooklyn Public Library, we took a nimble yet performance-driven approach to update library facilities for new uses. We developed a kit-of-parts approach to increase the exibility and impact of library community rooms across the borough, while minimizing the need for sta involvement to facilitate the changes in program.

This same approach can be used for workplaces to provide high-performing collaboration spaces that teams can easily adapt to meet their needs.

Mobile screens and furniture, overhead infrastructure grid, tunable lighting, and acoustic curtains and ceiling panels enable this community room at the Flatbush branch library to host a variety of programs. Photo: John Muggenborg.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Sustaining culture A major draw to return to work will be participation in company culture. Within the physical workspace, culture can permeate every part of the office—from the types of spaces and tools that are used, to the artifacts and objects on display, to the way the space makes employees feel.

Office design represents an opportunity for organizations to put their values into practice— to promote and cultivate their cultural aspirations.

The post-COVID office will be a place where individuals can feel they are part of a larger team, doing meaningful work together.

Mobile, adjustable-height tables and reconfigurable lighting enable this presentation area to transform into a gathering space for company-wide Thanksgiving dinner. Left: Photo: John Muggenborg.

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020

Thank you!

SITU is an unconventional architecture practice that uses design, research and fabrication for creative and social impact.

Working collaboratively while providing individual capabilities and services, our three divisions keep prototyping, research and development, and hands-on craft elemental to our creative process.

Please let us know about the challenges your organization is facing as the reopening process unfolds. We are here to serve as a thoughtpartner as you navigate these issues.

Aleksey Lukyanov-Cherny, Partner aleksey@situ.nyc

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Responding to COVID-19 | Concepts and Ideas | Fall 2020