How can we redesign urban communities to battle future pandemics?

Since forever, disease outbreaks have lead to new developments in urban plan. Heard about the 1800’s Cholera Epidemic? It had led to new plumbing and sewer systems to be implemented along with devising new zoning laws to prevent overcrowding. As the new coronavirus reveals the requirement for more extensive changes over our economy, it may likewise impact how urban communities and structures should have been constructed and what changes could be implemented to prevent future pandemics. The following couple of months is going to be essential in changing the manner in which we consider the design of urban areas.

As we have seen across the globe, many hotels have been converted to hospitals. This means that the buildings should be able to rapidly change to an alternate use on account of an epidemic or any other disaster. It is essential that we consider redesigning public spaces so that it is more convenient to treat it as logistics and treatment centre in a situation like today.

Below are some points to be taken into consideration for future urban planning…

1. Virus Free Travelling

Better design plans could reduce the gatherings where infections could be spread easily. For instance, at air terminals, security screening should be done differently so that travellers aren’t compelled to stand by together in packed lines. New and upgraded air terminals are being designed so as to accommodate better passenger flow and increase security screening lanes. Automated screening lines are the best way to combat the waiting time, individual to-individual contact and congestions. We can see this at the Changi Airport where they had adopted contactless screening for bringing back their citizens.

2. Building have to act as a secret weapon

While it’s difficult to dispose of groups once individuals are on a plane, the greatest hazard originates from sitting close to somebody who is sick. The air on board is very well filtered so infections won’t circulate further. That degree of air quality treatment ought to occur at different spots. There is a great scope to incorporate the same process in other public transportations however it is not done. It ought to be incorporated in the residential buildings too. It is something that we should consider as 90% of the time we stay indoors. Building may then have the ability to act as a secret weapon at the time of pandemics like today.

New innovations in technology is making it more practical to make air a lot of more clean. UV-C light, for instance, can kill infections in air treatment systems while at the same time making equipment last more. Bringing natural air into buildings is additionally significant, as is improving ventilation outside in dense neighbourhood. If you have natural air coming in, it will limit the time that you’re exposed to anything dangerous. Future innovation will have the option to accomplish more—sensors that can identify infections on surfaces in real time and it will also be able to caution the building tenants or trigger air cleaning.

Buildings are additionally starting to install temperature screening at the entrances to distinguish individuals who may be sick. China and a few different nations are at present estimating inhabitants’ temperatures prior entering a building utilizing an infrared thermometer, or using thermal imaging. This was immediately installed to minimize the spread of COVID-19. This can’t a positive test for COVID-19 or different infections, yet the two innovations can be directed remotely so as to limit the danger of disease or the need to wear masks or other protective gear.

3. Hospitals Designed for Epidemics

Hospitals, obviously, can likewise be better intended to deal with outbreaks of infectious diseases. Inside, negative pressure zones that limit the spread of the infection can be turned on in most of the places at the hospitals. Emergency clinic rooms can likewise change, “If someone unexpectedly becomes extremely sick then there should be a way to quickly transform a general or acute care room into a critical care ICU room. Medical clinics and facilities should have the ability to add tele-health centres where it simpler for doctors and specialists to treat patients remotely and maintain a strategic distance from the potential spread of an infection.

4. Role of Parks in terms of letting cities breathe

It is required to progressively add open air space to its building designs, even in super-tall structures. Access to open air space is significant. An enormous level of Americans are Vitamin D deficient, and a few examinations have connected higher Vitamin D levels to acute danger of respiratory tract contamination.

Also, simple access to parks urges individuals to invest time outside. Parks additionally urge individuals to exercise, and they reduce air contamination. Polluted air is connected to medical issues, for example, asthma, hypertension, and diabetes, which are all related with a higher risk for patients with the new coronavirus.

5. Hand washing facility everywhere

Some changes in the cities could be really basic such as deploying hand washing facilities everywhere. Many cities as of late rolled out hand washing stations at transport stops and began requesting that riders to wash their hands before boarding. The portable sinks are likewise set up at retail locations, banks, and eateries. While the U.S. has planned something similar close to homeless network of people, it’s conceivable to envision that this sort of arrangement could get permanent at places like public transport points. Some hospitals have hand washing sinks at every floor near the elevators where you have to deliberately wash hands before you enter the floor for hygiene purposes. Such arrangements should be made everywhere.

Conclusion

None of these design changes are going to reduce the need for commitment to respond and test much quickly in case of coronavirus outbreak. As the environment keeps changing, cities getting denser, it is vital for the urban cities to consider design changes. Architectural BIM Services makes 3D visualization and construction of the urban cities easy and achievable. Previous outbreaks along with the current coronavirus outbreak has led to many design changes for the wellbeing of the society.