Architect and Co-Founder, Cambridge Architectural Research Ltd

William Fawcett is an architect at Cambridge Architectural Research Ltd, with experience in practice, consultancy, research and teaching. He did his undergraduate degree at the Department of Architecture at the University of Cambridge, and stayed on to do his PhD on 'A Mathematical Approach to Adaptability in Buildings' at the Martin Centre.

After 4 years in conventional architectural practice and four years teaching at Hong Kong University Department of Architecture, he was one of the co-founders of Cambridge Architectural Research in 1987. At CAR he has worked with colleagues on a wide range of projects, from UN consultancy missions to North Korea to conservation plans for historic buildings in Britain. A major interest is in functional issues – how well buildings work and how their users perceive them. This leads to design guidance publications, or to briefing studies for specific projects. Design for flexibility is also a particular interest. A study of sustainable refurbishment led to a new approach to whole-life costing for construction, described in New Generation Whole-life Costing (2006).

William Fawcett was appointed to the Chadwick Fellowship in Architecture at Pembroke College, Cambridge, in 2005 to develop the Activity-Space Research initiative at the Martin Centre.