Technical information for architects

The Building Research Station (BRS) financed a research contract at the York Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies to try and improve their means of communication with architects, as it was felt that the results of much building research were not being used. Alternative methods of presenting information in research papers were sent to selected architects' offices. Two interview surveys were conducted, to establish architects' attitudes to and requirements from research information, and to took at the context into which that information fitted: the architect's office. Two postal surveys were also carried out. Broadly, architects want their technical literature to be tailored to their situation. They want the use of architectural convection and language whenever possible. Visually trained themselves, they show a heavy preference for papers with a high content of visual material, particularly in the form of architectural and scaled drawings. Papers should be brief and to the point, and should leave out the experimental orientation which is sometimes the concomitant of conventional research papers. The findings and the design recommendations may be relevant for others needing similar design reference material, such as industrial designers and engineers.