Output details

Cass Projects Office

DESCRIPTION

CASS Projects is a research and practice based ‘ongoing project’; it has pioneered a research approach that feeds staff and student practice in the form of ‘live projects’.

METHODOLOGY

CASS Projects is RIBA registered and academically located to procure ‘live projects’ that benefit from creative research. Potential beneficiaries commission CASS Projects, which then works between the clients, consultants, users and the design teams (teaching staff and students) to generate the best research framework, delivery mechanism and final outcome.

The overarching research methodology is in two parts. The ‘start up’ research is designed to expose the critical social agenda, identifying the range and relationships of participants, scope and opportunities of resources, and ways to approach the particular project within the ‘live project’ framework. The ‘infrastructure’ research generates the delivery and final outcome mechanisms of projects, scopes their practical and professional implications, and the achievement of the project aims. The individual projects build on this evolving research base of CASS Projects.

CONTRIBUTION TO KNOWLEDGE

CASS Projects research demonstrates how socially engaged projects can be realised through interactive participation and collaboration. The research supports the production of concrete physical and social outcomes that are both original and rigorous in their own terms. Its contribution to knowledge is different to that of normal architectural practice and specialist academic groups; it is unconstrained by commercial demands or professorial models; it can aspire to having a clear sense of social purpose and achieve the highest quality in terms of design and innovation. Widespread interest in ‘live projects’ and their reception testifies to the value of the underlying research.

DISSEMINATION

The portfolio of CASS Projects engages with complex issues relating to health, education, sustainability and culture. Their unique contribution is recognised as a model of enablement. Specific projects are disseminated as appropriate to the project.