A methodological framework for adaptive reuse integrating structural and spatial coordination: Evidence from the Xiaoxihu Historic Block, Nanjing, China

Adaptive reuse stands as a core strategy for sustainable urban regeneration, with spatial transformation and structural alternation as its inherently intertwined core components. Practical renewal projects are plagued by a critical bottleneck in interdisciplinary collaboration between architecture and structural engineering: the two disciplines operate independently with disparate technical systems, lacking a unified cognitive foundation and collaborative mechanism. This study develops a Collaborative Matrix, an integrated cognitive and operational framework that aligns spatial transformation aspirations with structural alteration strategies. The framework is first validated via a morphological typology atlas mapping representative built cases, then further tested through empirical application to the renewal project of Xiaoxihu Historic Block, Nanjing, China. The study establishes a shared methodological framework and linguistic system for interdisciplinary collaborative design, laying a solid foundation for cross-professional synergy in adaptive reuse practice.