Jin Young Song Recognized by AIANYS for Prefab Apartment Remodel Concept

Buffalo School architecture professor Jin Young Song's design concept for “Prefabricated Apartment Remodeling Type” (or P-A-R-T) has been recognized with an AIA New York State citation in the category of "Unbuilt Young."

The award was presented at the AIANYS annual conference in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., earlier this fall.

In the words of the jury: "A systems approach for modifying apartment blocks is especially innovative and challenging for this building type, and the designer’s revitalization proposal would be appropriate worldwide. The strategy provides possibilities for adding a refreshing variety, complexity, flexibility, sustainability and richness in a building type that would otherwise be relatively plain, low performance or un-inspired."

Amid continued trends in rapid urbanization, residential towers in many Asian cities have bloomed vigorously in recent decades. As one example, nearly two in three residents in South Korea live in such tower blocks. As these buildings age, urban leaders face the prospect of rehabilitating and improving a significant swath of its built fabric.

With its cost efficiency and reduced construction time, P-A-R-T allows residents to choose from a variety of program modules, including an extended living room, office, kid’s play area, library or studio, and remain in their homes while the connection is installed.The project, which has received research sponsorship from Hyundai Engineering and Construction, one of the world’s leading construction groups, has also involved collaboration with the global firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM). As part of the AIANYS conference, Song and SOM engineer Bonghwan Kim delivered a seminar on the project as an example of academic-practice research partnerships in the pursuit of sustainable methods of apartment rehabilitation.

Jin Young Song's research and practice - Buffalo/Seoul-based Dioinno Architecture – investigate the parametric design of dynamic facade systems and the socio-cultural importance of the building facade. Among Song’s current research is ZEAF, or Zero Energy Adaptive Facade, a prototype which imitates the leaves of a tree in its dappling and diffusion of natural light and has received funding from the NYS Council of the Arts.