To benefit the built environment

LTH conducts research in all areas associated with the concept of built environment – design, architecture, surveying, infrastructure, energy-smart technology and transport. This width promotes an exchange of perspectives and enhances the quality of research in all the above mentioned fields.

Researchers are looking for solutions for the housing and workplaces of tomorrow – they are experts on everything from zero-energy buildings to climate-smart concrete. They provide assessments on materials and structures that stand the test of time and show how construction processes can be improved. Particular areas of expertise entails how we can build in an energy-efficient, damp proof and fireproof way – and how lighting and architecture affects people.

Among LTH’s researchers, there are those investigating how rising sea levels, increased wind exposure and torrential rain impacts the built environment. They explore measures needed in order to prevent cities from being flooded and coastal areas from being engulfed by the sea, but also how to plan and build cities to increase their adaptive capacity to a changing climate.

At LTH we have civil engineers who focus on the design of roads, public transport systems and cycling infrastructure – as well as safe traffic environments for the elderly and the disabled. There are architects researching the flexible spaces of the future, and surveyors with in-depth knowledge on the conflicts of interests associated with the use of land.

A number of researchers are adopting new approaches in trying to create sustainable and attractive environments in cities that are becoming increasingly densified, while others are examining how digital processes and new production methods are changing architecture and the architect’s role.

There are also computer scientists at LTH who are ensuring that connected units in the smart city network works properly and can be secured against hacking.