The value of a constructed square metre

For us, architecture is about creating long-term effects and measurable, positive value for our client and for society as a whole - socially, environmentally and thus financially.

Every project involves a financial investment and the consumption of resources. And behind that investment, there is always an ambition to achieve a specific effect, but that effect is not necessarily going to materialise just from building something. Based on the latest knowledge, we work systematically and strategically in a close dialogue with the client and users to define and realise the full potential of the individual project and thus the value of each square metre in both the short and long term.

The built environment has a huge potential in terms of preventing and solving many of the challenges that people, organisations and society face today. With a holistic and interdisciplinary approach to architecture, we help our customers and organisations spot and realise that potential
Johanne Mose Entwistle | Partner, antrhopologist and impact manager

The Impact Compass

We have developed a strategic tool that helps your project have impact. We call it the Impact Compass, and we use it to navigate you confidently through the entire process - from the initial definition of the desired impact, where your visions outline whats sort of behaviours and experiences the architecture should help enhance, to the impact-based design of the architecture and the follow-up documentation of the impact once the project is delivered and is up and running.

Impact goals | We translate your vision into a series of clearly defined and documentable impact goals.

Behavior and experience | We define the user behaviour and experience that must be supported in order to meet the impact goals.

Architectural tools | We provide the architecture that supports the desired behaviour and experience.

Revisit | We revisit the project after it has been put into operation, so that we can document its real impact — based on the original impact goals.

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Our work with the Impact Compass is based on our own and external research on how the built environment creates impact — socially, economically and environmentally.
Johanne Mose Entwistle | Associated Partner, Anthropologist and Head of Impact
Bikuben kollegiet København

Services

We offer our customers a wide range of consultancy services, all of them intended to ensure and document the concrete value creation of each individual project. We provide consultancy services on all scales and across all sectors, and we always base our work on the building codes and applicable industry standards.



Value and vision programmes
We help to define the initial visions and frameworks for the individual projects based on concrete goals, ambitions and conditions. For example, value programmes and sustainability programmes.

Analyses, user involvement and assessing needs
We help clients create a clear objective and a strong foundation for each individual project which is carried through in all phases - from the vision phase to when the construction project is completed and to when it is used. Among other things, we offer initial needs analyses, target group analyses and social preliminary analyses.

Social commissioning
We offer tailor-made processes where we use knowledge about how things are used in practice and user behaviour and work strategically to realise the potential off the individual project through an increased focus on the commissioning and the interplay between the users and the buildings. We work with change management throughout the project and prepare the users for how to optimally take advantage of the new construction project in order to ensure value creation both in the long and short run.

Revisiting the site and making evaluations
We revisit the site and make evaluations of newly constructed and commissioned projects which document the effect and value creation of the individual project. This is called a ‘Post Occupancy Evaluation’ or POE and the focus can be on selected objectives or themes. Insights from revisits to the site and evaluations can subsequently be translated into improvements for the specific project.

Capacity building
We help organisations strengthen their internal project development work. With a view towards building internal knowledge in your organisation we can, among other things, advise and train your employees in how they can themselves work in an impact-driven manner and create value through social commissioning and evaluation.

Research

As a society, we need more specific knowledge about how the built environment can be used deliberately and strategically to create positive change for people, organisations and society at large. Therefore, we are, among other things, working with universities and industry PhDs who research in the impactful potential of architecture.

Read more about our research here

Do you want to know more?

  • Johanne Mose Entwistle
    Associated Partner / Head of Impact / Anthropologist
    Aarhus
    jme@aart.dk
    +45 22 50 78 40
  • Nanna Flintholm
    Group Partner / Head of AART+ / Architect MAA
    Copenhagen
    nfl@aart.dk
    +45 41 96 35 42