What are the principal advantages of creating a conceptual design model using masses before diving into the detailed design and building element modeling?
A conceptual design model using masses allows us to create an abstract representation of what a building looks like, providing an opportunity to quickly and effectively explore different aspects of the building, such as size, types of structures/form, and performance analyses of a building before spending the time to model it in detail. The analyses available in Forma, in particular, help indicate what changes we should make to our design to best fit our desired parameters and the tradeoffs.
Should all buildings be modeled first using conceptual masses?
When is it needed/appropriate? And when not?
For example, should you create a conceptual mass model of a small house?
No, we don't need to model all buildings using conceptual masses first. It's most needed/appropriate to use conceptual masses when you're creating buildings similar to our Module 6 brief, which are multi-story, large scale designs, and/or including more complex shapes. For these types of buildings, it's critical to understand the context in which your building is being modeled, and how that context will impact your design (e.g., sun hours, solar energy, microclimate). For smaller or simpler buildings, like a small house, you don't necessarily need to use conceptual masses if you're not exploring different forms that require this type of analyses.