Two students from School of Architecture win the I VDR competition

The students of the School of Architecture Leyre Fernández and Miguel Ángel Sosa, 4th year students of design in the accredited specialization of services and 4th year students of Architecture at the University of Navarra, won the first award in a contest organized by the construction company VDR. Both students had to work together to design a web page for a cooperative of the construction company, each one applying the specific knowledge of his Degree. 

The approach of the winning project was to highlight the virtues of closeness, trust in the relationship with the client, and excellence in the development of work: "Our proposal is based on the values of the business VDR, highlighting firstly the human team of character multidisciplinary that makes up the business. Secondly, the guarantee of commitment to the client, seeking the right solution to the difficulties that may arise and aligning with their needs," say the students.

The proposal, a approach multidisciplinary

The students began project with a phase of research, conducting an immersion in both the industry and business in order to offer a proposal that matched their goals, values and needs. During the ideation and prototyping phase of the website, they worked on the strategy from the perspective of Username, which led them to "expand research field to develop a strategy that put Username at the center of the interactions."

"We try to emphasize that architecture should be aimed at people, and as such it should seek to make life more pleasant: its final goal is not to design houses, but homes," explains Miguel Ángel Sosa.

In the case of design services, the main approach was to develop accessibility, interaction and branding through methodologies focused on the experience of Username: "The project has been developed through these methodologies, where once again we have discovered the challenge of analyzing, understanding and adjusting to the ecosystem of work", emphasizes Leyre Fernandez. From an architectural perspective, Miguel Ángel Sosa contributed his knowledge of management and construction in an architectural project , in addition to his skills to bring the client closer to the process of building their home with "a website where the client feels like part of the project, which in the end is also one of the foundations of the cooperative".

"The training of multidisciplinary teams has meant not only to put in value what we have learned, but also to be able to transmit the knowledge of the field of each one; which has helped us to strengthen communication skills, team organization and management of projects, as well as the skills integrated in the development of project", adds Leyre Fernandez.

In this way, project has achieved a synergy between these two disciplines by focusing on the experience of Username. Aitor Acilu, professor of Degree in design at the University of Navarra, emphasizes that "it is a proposal, worked with tenacity and dedication, born from the study of the needs of Username, which anticipates opportunities that make not only the proposed apparent virtual space a reason for design, but also delves into the backstage layers of the service to be offered in order to make more tangible a close and transparent attention for customers of the business. An experience consistent with customer demands".

The final phase of competition was held in October, and the submission of award took place on March 11, 2022 at the School of Architecture of the University of Navarra.