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Building characteristics and energy use of energy-efficient renovated offices
Get PDFChapter 2 presented the physical and psychological satisfaction parameters for user-focused evaluation. In most renovation projects, the façade is a major consideration next to the HVAC system to optimise the performance of the building. Many studies reveal that façade renovation has a large impact on the energy efficiency. The aim of this chapter is to identify the characteristics of renovated offices, such as façade types, HVAC system, and sun shading, and compare the energy performance based on user typologies in renovated and non-renovated office buildings.
Section 3.2 describes an overview of façade renovation strategies based on literature. The renovation strategies are classified into four strategies: passive add-in, replacement, climate skin, and active add-in. Section 3.3 presents the criteria to select case studies. Section 3.4 describes the characteristics of four renovated case studies and one non-renovated case located in the Netherlands. The building information was collected through interviews with architects, a review of project documents, and a field survey. Cross-analysis was used to compare the renovation plan, physical conditions. Energy consumption of each office building was compared by different energy metrics in section 3.5. Section 3.6 discusses the limitation of the renovation projects and suggestions for the future study. The finding from cross-evaluation of case studies are described in section 3.7
Visibility, democratic public space and socially inclusive cities: The presence and changes of Turkish amenities in Amsterdam
Get PDFThis research introduces the concept of visibility as a useful tool to assess the democratic features of public spaces. We understand democratic public spaces as open spaces, which are accessible to all and allow different cultural expressions for individuals and groups. The concept of visibility refers to the visual perception of the observable features of distinctive urban groups in public space, which give evidence of their lived experiences, and how they engage with, shape, and construct public space in everyday life. The main assumption of the study is that the visibility of distinctive urban groups on the street manifests the rights of these groups to participate in the public life of the city, which is a key feature of a democratic public space. Consequently, the presence and changes in the visibility of urban groups in public space is a highly political issue, which raises concerns in relation to just or unjust urban conditions.
Open and democratic public spaces are an asset to achieve socially inclusive cities, recognized as such in academic and policy circles. However, the present political and economic context has turned public spaces into a tool for the branding and marketing of cities. Public space is increasingly designed and geared to attract tourists and higher-income groups, leading to trends toward the commodification of urban development. Such trends discourage the presence in, and uses of, public space by some groups, contributing to the erosion of key features of democratic public spaces.
The urban literature gives useful indications about the observable qualities of democratic public spaces, but their tangible and physical aspects have not been sufficiently studied in the urban design and planning literature. Furthermore, little attention has been given to the precise effects that urban transformations may have on the democratic features of public spaces, or on their implications for the design and planning of socially inclusive cities. Consequently, the main objective of this research is to advance knowledge about the democratic features of public space that promote socially inclusive neighbourhoods and cities.
The approach considers the visibility of commercial and communal amenities as a proxy for the presence and appropriation of public space by immigrant groups through their distinctive signs, languages, and uses. The analysed and documented the recent changes in the visibility of Turkish amenities in the streets of Amsterdam in the context of urban transformations in the period between 2007 and 2016. The methodology of the research included deskwork and fieldwork. The former included theory review and identification of the policy context. The latter included primary data collection about the immigrant amenities’ spatial and social characteristics, mapping of the presence and changes of the amenities in two selected streets, and finally, analyses, synthesis and interpretation of the findings.
Two streets located in the inner-city (Javastraat) and the outskirts (Burgemeester de Vlugtlaan) of Amsterdam were selected as case-study, in base of their location; demographic trends; and type of users. Their empirical examination was useful to appraise and document the presence and changes of Turkish amenities in these streets during the studied period.
There are five major findings in this research. First, visibility can be operationalized by studying the spatial and social characteristics of immigrant amenities in public space. Measuring and documenting the spatial (at city and neighbourhood level) and social (social life of parochial and public realm) characteristics of immigrant amenities, the visibility of culturally distinctive groups in public space can be compared in a synchronic and diachronic way. This constitutes an innovative approach to the empirical assessment of public space, which complements statistical and quantitative approaches to public space. A longitudinal analysis of these changes then offers a better understanding of the relationship of these changes with the corresponding urban policies and trends.
Second, immigrant neighbourhoods and their commercial amenities have been significantly affected by the commercial and residential gentrification of innercity immigrant neighbourhoods in Amsterdam. These trends have been the result of a gradual shift from a social democratic towards a liberal welfare regime in the Netherlands since the 1980s, which has strongly influenced successive national and city level urban policies and strategies. Since then, Amsterdam urban renewal and housing policies have evolved significantly from the ‘building for the neighbourhood’ approach towards a market-oriented approach.
Third, the social characteristics of immigrant amenities – related to their capacity to promote social contacts within the immigrant and larger community – are different for commercial and communal amenities. The former are more open, and therefore more visible in public space. The location-related spatial characteristics vary for inner-city/outskirts and main street/back streets locations. Inner city and main street locations are more visible for a broader public. Other spatial characteristics that contribute to a greater visibility of immigrant amenities are high levels of legibility; personalisation; and robustness.
Fourth, the visibility of distinctive urban groups in public space – linked to their participation in public life – is a strong indication of the socio-cultural inclusion of these groups into the society. Taking that into account, the decreasing visibility of Turkish amenities found in Javastraat during the 2007-2016 period has produced a negative impact on the socio-cultural inclusion of Turkish immigrants in Amsterdam.
Fifth, the decreasing visibility of immigrant groups has detrimental consequences for shaping democratic public spaces and for promoting urban justice principles, specifically from the perspectives of diversity and equity. Diverse public spaces welcome urban groups from different social, cultural and economic backgrounds. Equity refers to the accessibility of public spaces – both physically and perceptually – for different groups.
The overall conclusion is that visibility in public space can provide solid evidence of the most important aspects of democratic streets, which are difficult to obtain through conventional statistical methods. Even though this study focused on immigrant amenities (used as a proxy), the conclusions can be broadened to include other distinctive urban groups, such as sexual minorities, and vulnerable groups, as well as other forms of visibility such as festivals, parades and events.
Visibility can be a valuable tool for ex-ante and ex-post evaluations of the democratic character of streets to inform designers, researchers and policy makers about the impact of the proposed or finished interventions. It would be especially valuable in cases of profound neighbourhood transformation processes, which modify the demographic profile of a neighbourhood.
Finally, training and education of designers and planners of public space should incorporate visibility as an important concept to examine the diversity and vitality features of public space, in order to promote democratic streets and more socially inclusive cities. Neighbourhood visions and development plans should take into account the role of the presence of distinctive urban groups in public life to promote the sociocultural inclusion of distinctive urban groups
Securing Healthy Circular Material Flows In The Built Environment: The Case Of Indoor Partitioning
Get PDFDeparting from two problem statements, one concerning circularity in the built environment and one concerning flexibility in the built environment, this dissertation sets out to answer two main research questions: – In an Open Building division of support and infill, to what extent can the infill contribute to sustainable circular material & product flows? – Which qualitative and quantitative criteria and preconditions are central to integrating the notions of user health & well-being, circularity, and flexibility in infill configurations? In view on these research questions, this dissertation revolves around multiple topics and disciplines, addressing material properties, material flows, product design, and user benefits, relating to a specific building component: non-bearing partitioning. The research follows a mixed-method approach, primarily qualitatively driven and supported by quantitative data and tools. Literature studies, workshops and expert consultations are applied throughout the trajectory to derive, test and adjust criteria, guidelines and design concepts. The dissertation is structured around four research chapters (each set-up as a separate academic article), preceded by a general introduction and background sketch, and followed by an overarching evaluation of the findings. The results from the first research chapter (Chapter 3) concern the distinction of various intrinsic and relational properties, as well as an inventory matrix based on building layers and material reutilisation routes. In the next chapter (Chapter 4), a first set of criteria is derived (Circ-Flex I) in order to integrate flexibility, circularity and user benefits. In Chapter 5, criteria are further elaborated, including assessment guidelines that pinpoint health, well-being, and operational performance (Circ- Flex II). The following chapter (Chapter 6) is aimed at design aspects: a design conceptualisation trajectory is laid out, applying design preconditions rooted in the criteria that were shaped in the preceding chapters. Furthermore, a novel flow analysis and modelling method is utilised with respect to secondary raw materials: the Activity-based Spatial Material Flow Analysis (AS-MFA). This stage revolves around materialisation and operational propositions for an innovative partitioning configuration of side-panel and insulation. The innovations are based on renewable material and reversible adhesive technologies.
The following conclusions are derived from the research:
Circularity in the built environment can only occur if flexibility is fully integrated in the whole building (component) value network, and conversely, flexibility in the built environment increasingly depends on the handling and management of materials designated for healthy, circular applications.
– Infill parts, implemented in an Open Building context, enable multiple short to medium length cycles within the longer service lives of multi-family building structures, following changes in user requirements. As such, this model accommodates more sustainable product and material flows. However, decisive success factors are the attitude of and interplay between actors in the value network, not least the end-user.
– Technical circularity potential of building products and materials resides at the intersection of intrinsic and relational characteristics.
– The differentiation of building layers and parts, in combination with differentiated reutilisation routes, provides leverage for more advanced approaches to circular building strategies, anticipating multiple handling and treatment processes.
– To bring circular building to scale in a socially engaged way, value models need to take account of actors’ shared incentives around flexibility and health, as well as split incentives around circularity.
– Monitoring the operational performance is key for capitalising on the intrinsic health and circularity potential of building components during their service life.
– Research and design exercises into circular building concepts and products benefit reciprocally from data and experience in adjacent disciplines, such as urban planning and waste management, whilst integrating multiple sub-systems associated with value creation in circular models.
– Modifications associated with the innovative partition concepts occur above all in raw material sourcing, manufacturing, reutilisation logistics, and data-sharing, of which the latter should extend to the end-user.
Next to partitioning, the findings can be relevant for other infill components as well, such as: kitchen cabinets, stairs, furniture, and the interior side-sheeting and insulation of walls and ceilings in energy-renovations. Follow-up research and practical efforts should be aimed at the development and testing of products, as well as value propositions regarding ownership: from regular transactions in which ownership shifts to the customer, to more innovative models in which ownership stays with the supplier or shifts to an intermediary actor (e.g. pay-per-use, buy-back or deposit model). Securing healthy circular material flows in the built environment cannot be the objective of one industry, let alone one organisation, but reshuffles whole value networks. This cannot be done without binding agreements and multi‑criteria learning loops. The first emphasises legal frameworks. This is therefore another prime area for future action. The aspect of multi-criteria learning loops, finally, relates to the need for more sophisticated data-exchange, also engaging endusers, which is nowadays rare in housing
Pearl River Delta: Scales, Times, Domains: A Mapping Method for the Exploration of Rapidly Urbanizing Deltas
No full textAn implemented design of an urban area not only imposes long-term conditions on societal processes, but also on natural processes. The urbanization of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) is a highly dynamic process that has interfered with many natural and artificial processes in the complex system. The involved human and natural processes, each with their own scale and speed of change, compose the complex urban delta landscape. The dominance of the efficiency-oriented fast urbanization process and its accompanying infrastructure development have put the deltaic social, cultural, and ecological environments at greater risk. Human activities have caused conflicts of a lack of cooperation with nature and coordination with other human activities during the rapid urbanization. The effectiveness of the related plans and designs depends on their capability to acknowledge and adapt to the nature of urban deltas.
The research aims to provide an understanding of an urbanizing delta in which different scales, times, and domains are related to each other; and to examine how this understanding can be used in a planning and design process in a rapidly urbanizing delta. A mapping method is developed according to the key notions in the understanding of urban deltas, namely its systems, scales, and temporality. The systematic mapping approach was used to organize and analyze both short-term and long-term spatial data during the rapid delta urbanization processes by transforming spatial data via scales, times, and domains. The mapping approach works with insufficient data, which is often the case in a rapidly changing environment, to identify spatial challenges from a longterm perspective.
Applied in the PRD, the knowledge of the development of the urban landscape had been inventoried, synthesized, and presented in its own spatial-temporal model using maps. Three types of processes (landscape formation, infrastructure extension, and urbanization) were identified according to their speeds. Spatial interactions were illustratively explained on both the delta scale and local scale from 4000 BC to the present with a time extent ranging from 2000 years to 50 years. The visualization revealed a transition of the regional pattern from a water-based mode to a land-based mode, during which an unawareness of the landscape and a detached urban pattern were developed. The present flooding issue was revealed by identifying the critical threshold signals, namely sudden changes in the spatial pattern of the dike system. Such trends increased the flood risk in the new urban areas on both the delta and regional scales. The mapping approach provided a probable vision of 2080, and a possible alternative vision. The two visions offered both the options of repair and transformation for the discussion of future planning and design. Both empirical and hypothetical mapping were deployed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the delta. Mapping served as a tool with which to not only represent existing knowledge, but also to seek missing knowledge.
The intervention of this mapping framework was applied and evaluated in terms of design, decision-making, and education, and the insights gained were used to discover new possibilities and strategies for the delta. The systematic spatialization approach provided a spatial analysisbased design and planning alternative. In this approach, evidence-based arguments facilitated the cooperation and collaboration of professionals, stakeholders, and the interested public during the planning and design of the delta. During knowledge gathering and the re-mapping process, current stakeholders from different domains were able to collaborate, new stakeholders (the citizens) became involved, and enough awareness of natural processes was created to spur cooperation during the decision-making process. The systematic mapping across scales, time, and domains provided the stakeholders with a new mindset during design and planning, in which they were able to collaborate with each other and develop interventions that could cooperate with the natural process in the rapidly urbanizing delta. The mapping approach also directed possibilities of sustainable planning and design process by generating a circulation among the individual design, collective design, and mass awareness of the PRD. The mapping approach thus served as a vehicle that brought awareness to the spatial relationships, exchange of knowledge, and means of collaboration in both the short term and long term, on both small and large scales, and among different domains and stakeholders.
This study contributes to the knowledge of urban delta planning and design from the following five aspects. (1) It extends the understanding of the differences and mutual influences of the urban and natural dynamics to the highest level by investigating the region with the fastest urbanization process in the past four decades. (2) It provides an approach for the analysis, understanding, and evaluation of the rapid change of urban dynamics on a large scale and with an extreme transition stage. (3) It enables the possibility of achieving a more effective, adaptive, and resilient strategy by providing an understanding of spatial knowledge. For the first time, the complexity and uncertainty of urban deltas and essential relationships (such as natural-human, land-water, and spatialmanagement relationships) on a substantial scale and with a rapid change of speed are explored. Furthermore, (4) this study devises, employs, and tests innovative visualization via multiple spatial and temporal scales. This is required to establish suitable interventions and measures via interactive communication and decision-making during the processes of design, planning, and management with stakeholders. Finally, (5) this study provides an effective data acquisition and analysis method to bypass the issues of data censorship, insufficiency, and inaccuracy in Chinese urban research. In other words, this study provides a strategy to achieve more integrated and resilient delta planning and design. It provides a substantial opportunity via visualization and spatialization to overcome the obstacle of localism among different levels of governments in the decision-making and implementation processes. It also helps to increase public awareness of, and participation in, the planning and design process, which are often lacking in the Chinese context
Anchoring the design process: A framework to make the designerly way of thinking explicit in architectural design education
Get PDFThis thesis proposes a framework to address the design process in design education. Building upon the assumption that teachers, being professional designers, do not discuss the design process in the architectural design studio and do not have a vocabulary to do so, five generic elements or anchor points are defined which represent the basic design skills. The validity of the framework and the assumption is tested respectively in interviews with a variety of designers and in observations of dialogues between teachers and students. In the final test the design process is addressed in the design studio: the first experiences show that students’ understanding and self-efficacy may increase. The five elements enable teachers and students to address the designerly attitude. The way designers reason consist of: (1) experimentation; an experimentation-based way of thinking; how to explore and reflect, (2) the frame of reference; a knowledge-based way of thinking; how to work with common and proven ‘professional’ knowledge, and (3) the guiding theme; a value-based way of thinking; how to take a position in the design process. Next to that, (4) the laboratory is the (visual) language or set of means designers use to think designerly, and (5) the domains are the playing field of the designer, the product aspects s/he should address
A Super Return for Superhero Science and Technology
Get PDFIn 2017, I established the open access journal Superhero Science and Technology to provide researchers with a unique publishing medium to share their scientific findings with a diverse readership. In modern popular culture, superheroes are commonplace thanks to a host of successful TV series and films, and the reinvigorated interest in the source comic books. The high box office figures alone are testament to the popularity of the genre, which looks set to continue with a large number of films and TV series planned for the next decade
De particulier-publieke paradox van de nieuwe open ruimte
Get PDFThe paradox of the new open space in housing ensembles is its ambiguity: it attempts to be both public and private.2 A stranger casually wandering into Mariaplaats, a modern labyrinth of alleys and little squares surrounded by sober reddish-brown walls and paving stones in the historic centre of Utrecht, might register a pleasant feeling of recognition but simultaneously of estrangement. Mariaplaats is reminiscent of the old Dutch hofjes, but this is not charitable housing – and there certainly are no neighbours here, chattering as they hang out the wash. On the contrary, the atmosphere could sooner be described as anonymous and distant. For what and for whom are these little squares intended? Who actually uses them and in what ways?
Newcomers who stroll around the ‘country estate’ of Zwanenwoud in Heerenveen will enjoy the French formal garden layout of the grounds and the castle-like silhouettes bordering the large green, but at the same time feel slightly confused: Is this a public park? A private garden for the residents of the adjacent villas? Or is it the other way around, and are passers-by invited to look at the residents on their terraces?
A visitor who enters the raised central court of De Grote Hof in Ypenburg most likely will gaze in amazement at the impressive space – it’s as if one is entering a courtyard like that of the Louvre – and at the same time might feel some hesitancy when confronted with the intimacy of a Sunday morning breakfast enjoyed by a group of residents under the colonnade.
Such paradoxical experiences are what make these spaces so fascinating. Moreover, the architectural solutions for these ambiguities turn out to be exceptionally ingenious and never twice the same. Mariaplaats is a small inner-city project with many different inner spaces and a variety of housing types built in high density; Zwanenwoud comprises a large area of land and dwellings that are few in number, and De Grote Hof is an isolated enclave of both low-priced and expensive homes.
As was stated in the introductory essay, this ambiguous new open space in the city is the result of several lengthy historical developments and contemporary issues, including the Dutch tradition of dwellings that directly border the street and a rising demand for urbanity and new public domain. These two central issues are in fact two sides of the same coin. And in the case of these ensembles they lead to new interpretations for housing (private life) and the public domain (public life). The old meanings of these categories shift and lose their unequivocalness.
The new open space brings urban life into the traditional perimeter block through visual links with the city and by permitting entry to other users, such as casual passers-by. These new public residential domains can contribute to a differentiation of public space that ranges in scale from voyeuristic intimacy to mass manifestations.
To further an interpretation of this paradox of the private-public character of the new open space, we will investigate a series of projects that show the range of the new open space as we have encountered it thus far, with the intention of coming up with tools with which to designate the new open space as a task for designers. Furthermore, an analysis of these projects will put forward arguments for a discussion about the significance of the new open space for both residents and the city. This investigation, which reflects several years of design and research projects within the Chair of Architecture and Dwelling at Delft University of Technology, approaches the complex subject of housing and city from an architectural perspective.
The projects will be examined on the basis of their urban design and architectural characteristics in terms of the new open space. The urban design aspects involve the relation between the complex and the city and its location in the network of public spaces, including the organization of routes. For the architectural aspects, our analysis focuses on the form and expression of the new open space and on the articulation of private and/or public characteristics within the complex.De paradox van de nieuwe open ruimte binnen het woonensemble is haar dubbelzinnige karakter: ze wil zowel publiek als particulier zijn.2 Een toevallig bezoek aan Mariaplaats, een moderne doolhof van stegen en pleintjes, begrensd door strenge roodbruine muren en plaveisels in de oude binnenstad van Utrecht, biedt misschien een aangenaam gevoel van herkenning, maar tegelijkertijd van vervreemding. De herinnering aan oud- Hollandse hofjes dient zich aan, maar het gaat hier niet om armenhuisjes en er heerst zeker geen sfeer van keuvelende en was-ophangende buurvrouwen. Integendeel, de sfeer is eerder anoniem en afstandelijk. Van wie, of voor wie, zijn deze pleintjes bestemd? Wie maakt er gebruik van en wat voor gebruik wordt ervan gemaakt?
Zo zal de wandelaar over het ‘landgoed’ Zwanenwoud in Heerenveen genieten van de Franse, formele tuinaanleg van de parterre en van de kasteelachtige silhouetten die de groene ruimte omzomen, maar tegelijkertijd wordt hij ook in verwarring gebracht: is dit een openbaar park of een tuin voor de bewoners van de aanliggende villa’s, of zijn omgekeerd de bewoners op hun terrassen bedoeld om bekeken te worden door de passanten?
Een bezoeker die het verhoogde dek van De Grote Hof in Ypenburg betreedt, zal allicht met bewondering rondkijken in de indrukwekkende ruimte - alsof men een binnenplaats als die van het Louvre betreedt - en tegelijk voelt hij misschien enige schroom tegenover de intimiteit van een zondagochtendontbijt van bewoners onder de colonnade.
Het is deze paradoxale ervaring die deze ruimten zo fascinerend maakt. Architectonische oplossingen voor deze dubbelzinnigheden blijken bovendien bijzonder vernuftig en steeds anders te zijn. Mariaplaats is een klein, binnenstedelijk project met veel verschillende binnenruimten en met veel woningtypen in een hoge dichtheid, Zwanenwoud betreft een groot grondoppervlak en weinig, identieke woningen, en De Grote Hof is een geïsoleerde enclave van zowel goedkope als dure woningen.
Zoals in het introducerende essay is uiteengezet, is deze nieuwe, dubbelzinnige open ruimte in de stad de uitkomst van een aantal lange, historische ontwikkelingen en actuele vraagstellingen, waaronder de Hollandse traditie van het wonen aan de straat en de vraag naar stedelijkheid en nieuw, publiek domein. Deze twee hoofdkwesties zijn in feite twee kanten van één medaille en ze krijgen in deze ensembles een nieuw moment. Ze zijn nieuwe interpretaties van het wonen (het particuliere) en van het openbare leven (het publieke), waarbij de oude betekenissen van deze categorieën verschuiven en hun eenduidigheid verliezen.
De nieuwe open ruimte brengt de ervaring van de stad binnen het traditionele bouwblok door visuele verbindingen en het toelaten van andere gebruikers, zoals toevallige passanten. Naast de onbepaaldheid van de doorgaande straat vormt de nieuwe open ruimte veelal een ‘plek’, of verblijfsruimte, die autovrij is en een bepaalde identiteit heeft. Deze nieuwe, openbare woondomeinen dragen zo bij aan een differentiatie van de openbare ruimte tot een stedelijk landschap van verschillen, vanaf de kleinste schaal van voyeuristische intimiteit tot de grootste schaal van massamanifestaties.
Om de paradox van het particulier-publieke karakter van de nieuwe open ruimte te duiden, gaan we hier nader in op de reeks ensembles die de reikwijdte toont van de nieuwe open ruimte, zoals wij die tot nu toe hebben aangetroffen. Het is de bedoeling instrumenten aan te dragen, waarmee de nieuwe open ruimte als ontwerpopgave kan worden benoemd.
Verder draagt een analyse van deze projecten argumenten aan voor een gesprek over de betekenis van de nieuwe open ruimte voor het wonen en voor de stad. Met dit onderzoek, dat de weerslag is van enkele jaren ontwerp- en onderzoekprojecten binnen de leerstoel Woningbouw aan de TU Delft, wordt het complexe onderwerp van het wonen en de stad benaderd vanuit een architectonisch perspectief.
De projecten zijn bekeken op hun stedenbouwkundige en architectonische kenmerken. Bij de stedenbouwkundige kenmerken gaat het om de relatie tussen het ensemble en de stad, en de plek van het ensemble in het netwerk van openbare ruimten, inclusief de organisatie van routes. Bij de architectonische aspecten van de nieuwe open ruimte richt de analyse zich op de vorm en expressie van de ruimte, en op de articulatie van particuliere, dan wel publieke eigenschappen van het ensemble
Redactioneel
No full textForty years after the first oil crisis and the Club of Rome’s controversial report Limits to Growth, environmental awareness and sustainability are starting to become an integral part of construction practice. The new shortages of energy and raw materials precipitated by the rise of new economic superpowers like China are partly responsible. In addition, the United Nations climate conferences and Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth have helped make the public at large aware of the negative repercussions of our way of life.
Construction is responsible for about 20 per cent of total carbon dioxide emissions and 30 per cent of energy demand; this ranks it alongside the chemical and transport industries among the biggest polluters. Sustainability is therefore one of the most significant issues for designers and architects, as well as a challenging field for innovation and research. Yet simple solutions are not easily available. A wide range of approaches are now being demonstrated in practice, from the idealistic-holistic and politically engaged to the pragmatic and commercial. At times these approaches complement each other; at times they frankly conflict.
Take for instance the much-discussed Cradle-to-Cradle philosophy of American architect William McDonough and German chemist Michael Braungart. Energy supplies, remarkably enough, are not an issue within Cradle-to- Cradle thinking as long as this energy is generated sustainably and the cycle of material flows are well organized without exhausting natural sources. Superuse, the name given by the 2012Architecten bureau to its approach to material recycling in architecture, is paradoxically at odds with the Cradle-to-Cradle concept. From McDonough and Braungart’s perspective, such an inventive form of recycling begins at the wrong end of the system and Superuse is nothing more than a further degradation of materials in the various cycles of reuse. There are many other conflicting approaches: in counterpoint to Danish architect Bjarke Ingels of BIG, who advocates a new hedonistic architecture that, free of Protestant guilt, exploits the opportunities of reuse and energy management to the utmost, we find the international movements of eco-village and Transition Towns, which propagate new definitions of social responsibility through alternative lifestyles and forms of good governance.
In order to demonstrate the various basic principles and possibilities of a sustainable architecture of housing, this issue of DASH is devoted to the eco house. As architectural design is the focus, the discussion primarily concentrates on architectural invention rather than on the application and integration of today’s highly advanced (and often expensive) technological remedies, such as climate-control installations. The house by Carlos Weeber in Curaçao is one of the most evident demonstrations – a comfortably interior climate is achieved without the use of air conditioning, but through principles of cross-ventilation, shade and natural cooling. The organization of the interior climate by dividing the home into zones produces special typologies that are characteristic of the eco house, from the hippie architecture of Earthship and Dome to cosy, middle-class conservatories in the back garden.Veertig jaar na de eerste oliecrisis en het geruchtmakende rapport ‘Grenzen aan de Groei’ van de Club van Rome beginnen milieubewustzijn en duurzaamheid een integraal onderdeel van de bouwpraktijk uit te maken. De nieuwe schaarste aan energie en grondstoffen ontstaan door de opkomst van nieuwe economische grootmachten als China is daar mede debet aan. Bovendien hielpen de klimaatconferenties van de VN en de film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ van Al Gore het grote publiek bewust te maken van de negatieve gevolgen van onze leefwijze.
De bouw is verantwoordelijk voor zo’n 20 procent van de totale kooldioxide-uitstoot en 30 procent van de energievraag en behoort samen met de sectoren van de chemie en het transport tot de grootste vervuilers. Duurzaamheid behoort daarmee tot de belangrijkste vraagstukken voor ontwerpers en architecten en is een uitdagend veld voor vernieuwing en onderzoek. Nochtans zijn eenduidige oplossingen niet zomaar voorhanden. De praktijk laat inmiddels een brede waaier aan benaderingen zien, van idealistisch-holistisch en politiek geëngageerd tot pragmatisch en commercieel. Soms vullen deze benaderingen elkaar aan, soms zijn ze ronduit tegenstrijdig.
Neem bijvoorbeeld de veelbesproken Cradle to Cradle filosofie van de Amerikaanse architect William McDonough en de Duitse chemicus Michael Braungart. Energievoorziening is opvallend genoeg geen issue binnen het Cradle to Cradle denken zolang die energie maar duurzaam wordt opgewekt en de cycli van materiaalstromen maar goed georganiseerd zijn zonder de natuurlijke bronnen uit te putten. Superuse, de geuzennaam die het bureau 2012Architecten aan zijn benadering van materiaalrecyclage in de architectuur heeft gegeven, staat paradoxalerwijs haaks op het concept van Cradle to Cradle. Vanuit het perspectief van McDonough en Braungart begint een dergelijke inventieve vorm van recycleren aan de verkeerde kant van het systeem en is Superuse niet meer dan een verder degraderen van materialen in de verschillende cycli van hergebruik. Zo zijn er nog vele andere tegengestelde benaderingen te noteren: tegenover de Deense architect Bjarke Ingels van BIG, die pleit voor een nieuwe hedonistische architectuur die vrij van een protestants schuldgevoel de kansen van hergebruik en nieuw energiemanagement maximaal uitbuit, staan de internationale bewegingen van ecodorpen en Transition Towns die nieuwe definities van sociale verantwoordelijkheid propageren met alternatieve leefstijlen en vormen van maatschappelijk beheer.
Om de verschillende basisprincipes en mogelijkheden van een duurzame architectuur van het wonen te demonstreren is deze uitgave van DASH gewijd aan het ecohuis. Omdat het architectonisch ontwerp centraal staat, is een focus op architectonische inventie het eerste uitgangspunt, en niet de toepassing en integratie van de tegenwoordig zo geavanceerde (en vaak dure) technologische hulpmiddelen als klimaatinstallaties. Het huis van Carlos Weeber op Curaçao is hiervan een van de meest evidente demonstraties – zonder gebruik van airconditioning, maar met principes van dwarsventilatie, zonwering en natuurlijke koeling wordt een aangenaam binnenklimaat gerealiseerd. De organisatie van het binnenklimaat door middel van zonering van de woning leidt tot speciale typologieën die karakteristiek zijn voor het ecohuis, van de hippie-architectuur van Earthship en Dome tot en met knusse, burgerlijke serres in de achtertuin
The Architecture Competition: A Beauty Contest or a Learning Opportunity? The French case in the light of European Experiences
Get PDFThe architecture competition is a high point of interaction between very diverse actors, architecture specialists or not. However, is it really an opportunity for exchange and shared learning? Based on surveys conducted in France and in several European countries on behalf of the French Ministry of Culture, this contribution aims to identify the conditions that foster the interactions inherent to competitions, the possible scope of these exchanges and the rationale behind them. When the competition is a chosen procedure, it is most often perceived as a moment of generating ideas that opens a professional debate and also addresses the general public. When it is mandatory, the competition is guided by another logic: that of ensuring the fairness and transparency of the joint choice of a project and a service provider as well as the legality of the contract concluded with the latter. Depending on the place given by decision-makers to this legal and contractual dimension, the nature and scope of the debates around the competition vary widely. If the legalistic approach dominates, it tends to limit interactions. However if the contracting authority adopts a more open approach to the competition, from programming to the dissemination and capitalisation of its results, it can make a real process of collective deliberation and favour the growth of shared competence
Competition Juries as Intercultural Spaces: Between Evaluation, Experience, and Judgement
Get PDFIn this article, design competitions, as they are practiced in Canada, are understood as devices that allow the study of interdisciplinary and intercultural dimensions of architecture. From the construction of the brief to the selection of the winning project, competitions are exemplary platforms for communicating design values. For example, competitor project proposals, which comprise many qualities, including constructive, material, and even political, represent the priorities of each design team, in the form of a place. Jurors debate each of these qualities through their own expertise. In their search for excellence, the competition jury is then an exemplar contact zone. By examining the various documents produced in this process, we can uncover the value systems of the many stakeholders. Observations of jury deliberations and analyses of jury reports can help expose how the diversity of jurors influences the selection of the winning project. Furthermore, in a contemporary context where environmental design is at the forefront, this diversity is especially interesting to study. An environmental expert’s evaluation of quantitative eco-measurements is very different from an architect’s judgment of spatial qualities and experiences. The focus of this article is to understand how such a variety of jurors influences the competition outcome
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