Editorial

Citation

Finch, E. (2007), "Editorial", Facilities, Vol. 25 No. 9/10. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.2007.06925iaa.001

Editorial

This issue includes an exciting area of research explored by Alalouch and Aspinall in the area of space syntax analysis. This area of research has received much attention by planning researchers and is now starting to receive attention at the more localised facilities management level. The application area considered in the paper is that of hospital ward design, which has been the subject of much discussion since the days of Florence Nightingale, given its impact on the well-being of patients. In this particular study, the subject of privacy is explored in relation to spatial location. As the authors suggest, this research opens up many new avenues in relation to visibility and three-dimensional simulations. The findings from the paper suggest that patients choose preferred locations in a hospital wards based on particular spatial properties.

The paper by Uotila and Skogster also has a strong spatial emphasis, examining the way in which tracking devices can be used to inform store designers. The research paper suggests that varying levels of “granularity” may be appropriate in terms of tracking localisation when informing store design decisions.

The paper by Wu et al. explores the issue of accessibility: an area that has received some attention in previous papers that have appeared in Facilities. The paper itself develops a method for prioritising the relevant building accessibility criteria, thus enabling an overall rating of building design solutions in a quantitative form. Such a tool will inevitably draw the attention of many design consultants who are increasingly aware of compliance needs in this area.

Edward Finch