Open Collections

Sewasew, Yishak Tsehay

University of British Columbia

This thesis explored the application of digital tools for urban heritage conservation using the historic port city of Massawa as a case study. The digital applications considered include heritage building and 3D city modeling with Historic Building Information Modeling (HBIM) principles, digital inventory, environmental comfort assessment, and design applications. The thesis first explored challenges and best practices along with prospects in heritage conservation to focus on resolving particular aspects of challenges or capitalize on trends of good practices. This was integrated using current best practice applications in heritage conservation, such as HBIM. This research develops an alternative HBIM development method for inaccessible heritage sites without requiring modern data acquisition and processing tools. Unlike prior methods, which mostly assume site accessibility for conducting a study, availability of expensive cutting-edge technologies, and particular expertise for data acquisition and processing, the proposed method relies on simple steps using an image. The results of the proposed modeling indicate feasibility of creating HBIM from images with a higher degree of precision. The result was extended to develop a 3D city model of Massawa, comprising four classes of models. This justifies the possibility of developing detailed 3D city models with limited resources, sidestepping the need for cutting-edge tools and associated costs. The 3D city model, in its current state, is proposed to be used in several applications. Digital inventory, environmental comfort assessment, and design applications were considered. The concept of Built Heritage Passport for cultural heritage management was introduced and illustrated in four passport layers to assist cultural heritage management, sustainable urban heritage conservation, and promoting circular economy. It aims to provide a comprehensive, efficient, accessible, and easy-to-use built heritage inventory for a multitude of applications. Environmental comfort assessment was also conducted focusing on pedestrian-level wind environment. The effects of the urban fabric, modeling details, and evolution of urban form on wind micro-climate were studied. Design application was finally illustrated based on the results of this thesis and other studies and recommendations for Massawa. Overall, the thesis presented easy-to-use modeling, management, and assessment for local authorities in urban heritage conservation.

Text

2024-08-01

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/88838

Civil Engineering

University of British Columbia

UBCO

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/