ACADEMIC DESIGN-BUILD PROJECT
PART A
Jay Pritzker Academy... A Cambodian schooL
Students take part in “Design for a Sustainable Future”
MIT students were to design classroom spaces in rural Cambodia (a largely agricultural and uneducated population) ,with natural lighting, no air conditioning, natural ventilation, no glass, and low noise level between classrooms.
The class was primarily grad students and people in the architecture department or building technology. The students and there relative proffessors traveled to Cambodia for 15 days to see how well their building plans would work on location and how a structure could be built from scratch which was a valuable experience for the students.
In school, the students tend to be limited to learning about construction in one or two dimensions. But working on site offers an entirely new understanding of how a building works in all dimensions. Actually trying a design in the field to see if it works gave the students a new and great of experience. Since the students were working with local unskilled laborers, they modified their designs to adapt to local skill sets.
During the project, the 15 students in the class and their three instructors collaborated with a Cambodian architecture firm and people from the local school and even the learners at the school gave them a helping hand.
In Cambodia, the students had to consider the humid, hot climate where temperatures often climb to 100 degrees F, regional taste in design, and the orientation of buildings for cooling.The students had to look at how the environment and limited resources dictate the design of a building.
The usage available materials also led to some creative solutions. The students replaced 30 percent of the concrete with local ash from burning rice husks to make the floor slab. This is similar to Roman concrete, which is made with volcanic ash. The recipe save constrution cost, recycles the ash and makes for a strong concrete, with lower carbon emissions. Hopefully the students will carry on with such creative thinking within a given environmental setting in future projects.
PART B
New Bud Study Hall in Sichuan
The previous academic buildings were destroyed by earthquakes that are very common in this regeon and the people living here were forced to make do with poorly built temporary structures. As for the school, students had to leave as it was destoyed.
The new Study Hall is built to be much better than the previous school in many ways such as energy efficiency and space design, while retaining critical distinguishing features of the first school, such as earthquake resistance, durability and a short construction time of only two weeks.
The design of the building envelope and the separation between the interior/exterior spaces of the building, meets the contemporary standards of many developed countries today. With a simple timber-trellis cladding design, this modern building blends in with the rural ambiance of the village without consuming as much raw timber as the vernacular log constructions commonly found in the village. Thermal insulation materials of about 8cm thick are used to resist cold weather. The vents are well-positioned and the stack effect is manipulated carefully to keep indoor space cool in summer and warm in winter. A wind turbine is used to provide clean energy to power the LED lights installed in the Study Hall, keeping the total energy consumed for lighting to as low as 1.2 KW. Extra space is also reserved for the installation of a solar ground heating system.
This project has been operationing successfully for almost a year no, allowing students from nearby areato complete their 6 year primary education. This eco school prototype integrates an innovative structural system, construction and environmental technologies with compact spatial organizations, thereby drastically raising the building’s overall performance.
This proccess could work in South Africa if the capital for eco friendly systems are put aside by the government.
NewBud Eco-School
The previous academic buildings were destroyed by earthquakes that are very common in this regeon and the people living here were forced to make do with poorly built temporary structures. As for the school, students had to leave as it was destoyed.
The load-bearing part of the school is a light steel frame, which is strengthened by prefabricated panels. These two parts are fused by mechanical fasteners to form a strong but light composite structure rather than chemical ones(to avoid toxic emission and to facilitate maintenance and disassembly in the future). Although the wall is only 16cm thick, the system is able to resist high seismic forces. Under the protection of the outer panel and surface coating, the life of the skeleton is expected to last over 20 years.
The school features high thermal performance, thanks to the use of thermal insulation and storage materials. It also adopts a system where the position and ratio of the doors and windows are carefully designed to ensure that classrooms will be cool in summer and warm in winter. The decentralised opening system brings in enough day-light and natural ventilation. In this way energy consumption energy consuption is reduced.
A solar water heater and an eco-friendly toilet are equipped to improve rural sanitation.
The principle of sustainability is also reflected in the choice of materials. Materials dismantled from the old school are reused as paver, spacer or thermal mass. Some of the stone bases discarded by the villagers are also reused to furnish the courtyard. Besides, no other materials except cement were purchased for construction. Old bricks, stones and tiles are reused in the flooring. This encourages local workers to preserve and develop their crafts, while reducing dependence on industrialised building materials.
South Africa can use definately use this this kind of construction as there are many old unused buildings that we can break up and reuse their materials.
The Green School
Environmentalists and designers John and Cynthia Hardy wanted to motivate communities to live sustainably. Part of that effort was to show people how to build with sustainable materials, namely bamboo.
The Green School is built by PT Bambu, is located on a sustainable campus straddling both sides of the Ayung River in Sibang Kaja, Bali, within a lush jungle with native plants and trees growing alongside sustainable organic gardens. The campus is powered by a number of alternative energy sources, including a bamboo sawdust hot water and cooking system, a hydro-powered vortex generator and solar panels.
Campus buildings include classrooms, gym, assembly spaces, faculty housing, offices, cafes and bathrooms. A range of architecturally significant spaces from large multi-storey communal gathering places to much smaller classrooms are a feature of the campus.
Local bamboo, grown using sustainable methods, is used in innovative and experimental ways that demonstrate its architectural possibilities.
Unfortuanately i dont think this desesign will work in South Africa as we do not have the same weather conditions and local insects would eat the bamboo. Perhaps a local but simillar plant can be used as a replacement.
PART C
The Bottle School
In Guatemala, it all began with Architect Illac Diaz, who wanted to help the town of San Pablo rebuild their crumbling school. With no resources for concrete, Diaz and the village set about finding creative ideas with local resources.The people in the town of San Pablo, Philippines, have nearly exhausted all the available supply of plastic bottles at the dump.
Trashed plastic bottles formed the interior of the school's walls. The bottles were stuffed with discarded plastic and chips bags to give them strength, and wrapped together into blocks by using chicken wire. A thin coat of cement and paint as a finish.
Finding the material to stuff 6,000 bottles required for building the school was really not that easy. Each student had to find and fill at least 20 bottles with chips and plastic bags. The process took many months and in the meanwhile, the kids cleaned up the ditches and hillsides so thoroughly that they started running out of garbage and even started to go to neighboring villages.
Glass bottles form the windows while flattened tetrapack juice cases make the school’s roof. PVC pipes inserted between the bottles serve as air vents, and reduce the need for electric fans inside the classroom. Architect Illac Diaz is the person behind this amazing project which includes a plan to build 8 classrooms and a library.
We realise that solid walsl do not need to be expensive to build and so new spaces can be considered without fear of cost.
The Green School
The Green School is built by PT Bambu, is located on a sustainable campus straddling both sides of the Ayung River in Sibang Kaja, Bali, within a lush jungle with native plants and trees growing alongside sustainable organic gardens. The campus is powered by a number of alternative energy sources, including a bamboo sawdust hot water and cooking system, a hydro-powered vortex generator and solar panels.
Campus buildings include classrooms, gym, assembly spaces, faculty housing, offices, cafes and bathrooms. A range of architecturally significant spaces from large multi-storey communal gathering places to much smaller classrooms are a feature of the campus.
Local bamboo, grown using sustainable methods, is used in innovative and experimental ways that demonstrate its architectural possibilities.
Unfortuanately i dont think this desesign will work in South Africa as we do not have the same weather conditions and local insects would eat the bamboo. Perhaps a local but simillar plant can be used as a replacement.
PART C
The Bottle School
In Guatemala, it all began with Architect Illac Diaz, who wanted to help the town of San Pablo rebuild their crumbling school. With no resources for concrete, Diaz and the village set about finding creative ideas with local resources.The people in the town of San Pablo, Philippines, have nearly exhausted all the available supply of plastic bottles at the dump.
Trashed plastic bottles formed the interior of the school's walls. The bottles were stuffed with discarded plastic and chips bags to give them strength, and wrapped together into blocks by using chicken wire. A thin coat of cement and paint as a finish.
Finding the material to stuff 6,000 bottles required for building the school was really not that easy. Each student had to find and fill at least 20 bottles with chips and plastic bags. The process took many months and in the meanwhile, the kids cleaned up the ditches and hillsides so thoroughly that they started running out of garbage and even started to go to neighboring villages.
Glass bottles form the windows while flattened tetrapack juice cases make the school’s roof. PVC pipes inserted between the bottles serve as air vents, and reduce the need for electric fans inside the classroom. Architect Illac Diaz is the person behind this amazing project which includes a plan to build 8 classrooms and a library.
We realise that solid walsl do not need to be expensive to build and so new spaces can be considered without fear of cost.
Bottle School - San Pablo Philippines
Masterstudents of Bergen School of Architecture
With a simple structural body, the building consists of a closed room for computer-learning, and an open room for English teaching. Solid walls and the opportunity to close off completely make the computer-room safe in terms of burglary. The open room connects with the outside, is spatial with a tall ceiling and transparent walls embracing the light.
A framework of reinforced concrete makes a permanent bearing structure in the closed room. The framing allows for cheaper more temporary materials as in-fillings. They used sandbags in the east and north facade, where they functions as thermal mass in the winter, while an extension of the roof prevents sun exposure during summer. The shaded south facade has a glass-bottle wall for letting in light and keeping dust out. Bottles made a good alternative to expensive windows.
The trusses give a natural ventilation gap for cooling, and an inner-roof of cheap locally bought straw-mats filter hot air out.The whole construction is done in a demonstrational manner so that it is easily understood and can be carried out by the people of Chimundo. As a result, the building is in itself educational.
St. Micheals Primary School
Academic Design/Build Project
A project was given to us, the second year architectural students of CPUT, to not only improve but also to add on to St. Michael’s primary school in Grabou.
Constraints were, as with any project, prevalent and abundant. The project’s completion time was less than two weeks, materials and tools needed to be sponsored and transport to the site needed to be organized.
We focused on several areas of the site with the main one being the pergola roof cover that provided the learners with a new outside space to play or have classes that could be experienced differently in the fresh air.
The entire project was a huge learning experience, and right away the first thing I leant was that setting out takes a LONG time. Getting materials into the work area, studying plans/designs, checking that everything was accounted for and measuring points for the trenches was a big job on its own! When it came to measuring John (one of our supervisors) made us check, recheck and then check again. One of the first tools I had to work with was the spirit level and throughout the project I never really put it down. We even used the theorem of Pythagoras in determining right angles which was abit weird because I never thought I’d see that again after high school.
Thankfully no major changes had to be done to the existing building aside from trimming the magnolia tree that grew in the way of the proposed pergola, cutting some copper electrical pipes (that I got to do myself), and relocate some plants and an outside tap.
While the beams were being sanded in the hall by one group, another bunch of us were outside “in the trenches” so to speak. Digging holes for the foundations seemed easy enough but ended up proving to be another tedious task as all the holes needed to be exactly the same and clear of any roots and stones which were carefully removed.
Occasionally joining the team in the hall I also learnt about sanding and belt sanding like letting the belt sander float rather than pressing down and hand sanding with the grain instead of against it. It was also shown to us that the edges of the beams should be rounded as round edges are stronger than sharp ones. The beams were then painted with an oil based paint which would seal the pores in the wood. Like the sanding, painting was to be done with the grain for a neat and uniform finish.
After the trenches were dug we placed the gum poles into position and filled them up with compacted fill at 150mm layers and finally a 75mm concrete slab. As the concrete didn’t dry immediately each pole had to be held up and supported by planks that we positioned to form a tripod type of assembly. This held the poles secure at their 90° angle.
While holes were being drilled for the freshly painted rafters I found my services were required at the fire place. The existing fire place faced inside and our design required it to be turned inside out to face the outside. This involved breaking through the wall which I enjoyed. Later into the project I assisted in positioning of the rocks for the floor of the fire place and filling the gaps with compacted sand and concrete which came together beautifully.
Getting back to the pergola I helped with the last few holes that needed drilling and learnt about doing and checking measurements with just a clear flexible pipe and some water which we referred to simply as “water measure”. And we water measured every height we could find.
After all the holes were drilled I was put in charge of cutting the bolt thread which really cool because I’ve never used a grinder before. But there wasn’t much time for questions and so I just gave it a try. I found it rather easy and didn’t injure myself or anybody else.
After about four days into the project the roof sheets were cleaned and the beams were cut to size with an angle grinder. It was time for the pergola to actually take shape and the rafters and connector blocks were mounted to the gum poles. This took about two days because those beams were quite heavy and each one needed to be taken down at least once to remeasure heights.
During the pergola construction I took time out to observe the other teams and their perspective tasks. I learnt about using rocks and compacted fill as foundation for the lower stair case which was very smart as we were on a shortage of concrete and building in this way is much friendlier to the environment.
After all the rafters on the pergola were installed the final covering being the corrugated sheeting needed to be installed. After measuring spans of the sheets we realized that an electrical pipe on the existing building stood in the way and had to be removed. I got to use the grinder for this once more but found the grinding disk seriously damaged. Apparently someone tried using it to cut wood. Just another thing I learnt on site; never cut wood with a grinding disk!
The corrugated sheeting was finally being installed and nailed into higher rafters.. This gave the sheeting a pleasant “floating” appearance.
After all the construction was completed the site had to be cleared and leveled so we go to work with our spaded knocking down any bumps and humps we could see. The reason for this was so that we could have a flat surface for the bark chips that we had to spade out and spread over the area under the pergola which complimented the structure and added to its presence on the site.
The entire experience was totally awesome and unbelievably educational at the same time. From how to cut steel to making compost, we learnt so much. The fact that our hard work made a difference in those learners school life makes it that much better. I look forward to doing something like this soon in the future.
