HDR’s newest publication, “Data-Driven Design,” is now available. Developed to describe an emerging methodology at the organization, the book illuminates the consulting group’s computational design process and how it connects the built environment with predictive analytics and operational design.

The 60-page book explains how HDR is uniting its consulting services with the design process by leveraging strategy, research and analytics. The book also offers concrete project examples.

“Bringing these services together represents a shift in how we deliver design and consulting services, leading clients to innovative, practical decisions much faster,” says Scott Foral, Managing Principal of HDR’s Consulting Group. “When all of these pieces merge, we are combining art and science for a better understanding of our own work in order to provide the best answers for our clients.”

Calculating travel distance, understanding daylight’s role within a hospital or workplace, real-time cost estimating, prototyping to minimize waste and predicting visibility are just some of the parts in the data-driven design toolkit, and HDR’s consultants have already employed this process on a number of projects from Chicago’s south side to Saudi Arabia’s southern region.

“The translation of data into useful information for our clients is the primary result of a true data-driven practice,” says Matthew Goldsberry, Computational Design Principal at HDR. “Data is an abstract representation of information—it’s our job to find the patterns.”

Visit the Data-Driven Design web page to read an electronic version of the book, or request a hard copy.