Designing for second generation value - future proofing constructions

Lifecycle consideration in terms of environmental impact and total cost of buildings attract increased focus in construction. Here, total cost and environmental impact both involves: erection, operation, maintenance, demolition, and disposal of the building. The mindset of Lean Construction is focusing on eliminating waste and adding costumer value to both the design and build phases. But in this aspect waste and value is only viewed in the first generation owner perspective with fixed usage. Through theoretical considerations this research looks into the change of costumer value. Changes happen, so do changes in usage of buildings. Organisations and structures change, the result is often changed requirements or changed value perceptions. Costumer value is decreased since the owner has a building not fitting the present demands. Hence, there is a need of a construction redesign or in a worst case scenario the building end up unused. If, in the design process thoughts have been put into the “value-lifecycle” including second and even third generation usage, the transformability process of needs from generation to generation could be improved. This way value is kept in the building. Keywords in what could be called Flexible-Value-Design are multiple usage possibilities, flexibility and transformability.