eleanor's space

      PLAN VIEW

model photographs of potential design thoughts:

light green: public space/ routes

dark green: urban vertical food production - towers as shown on previous blog comment

yellow: residential, business, retail : mixed development

maximum use of lower plane for public amenity and connectivity.  Development on either side of central park space: one side mixed use, the other vertical farming.  Blue foam represents public use space on all levels, interconnected. 

in order to achieve a sustainable development- it should be self sustaining: 

1. the development can grow sustainably- ie it grows as required
2. materials can be produced (ie grown) on one side- and used to expand the other (both for the expanding structure of the development and sustenance for the residents )
3. the urban agriculture and forestry is likely to be able to support much of London, thereby reducing transportation requirements for food from outside the city
4. the urban agriculture and forestry is predicted to produce multiples more of food per sq.m. as temperatures, UV intake and water requirements will be accurately forecast
5. water storage will be a requirement- look into grey water harvesting
6. reconciling with nature: in that areas of open fields (formerly used to farm), can be given back to nature, with ecological enhancement
7. meat farming may also be possible on levels: where grain produced within the towers can be used to feed the pigs
8. point of distribution (waterloo station) is close-by therefore reducing emissions
9. refer to MRDVR's pig farm

Innovations in Façade Technology
Double-skin façades
As indicated by the term “double-skin” such a façade is intended to mean a system in which two "skins" - two layers of glass - are separated by a significant amount of air space, that is to say, a second glass façade is placed in front of the first. These two sheets of glass act as an insulation between the outside and inside enabling the air to circulate between the cavity of the two facades skin providing good air circulation, thermal and accoustic performance, etc. The type of double-skin façade then determines the type of air circulation. Of course, the most interesting systems are those designed in such a way that in addition to permitting natural air circulation, they also use solar energy, converting it into electrical energy.
Self-cleaning technology
Several approaches have been made in recent years to fight dirt build-up on roofs, facades and windows. Self-cleaning coatings are improving constantly. Window manufacturers can be very demanding when it comes to the quality of the coatings. Not only maintenance of the facades must be minimized by the self-cleaning function, but durability for the lifetime of the facade, optical quality and scratch resistance are equally important. Currently, there exist two main categories of self-clean coatings: hydrophobic and hydrophilic.
Hydrophobic: Hydrophobic coatings repel water and dirt and prevent water drops from drying on the glass pane and leaving ugly stains. The biggest problem of this type of coating is that most hydrophobic coatings do not exhibit enough hydrophobicity (contact angle with water > 1500) for the self-cleaning effect to work. These coatings are often termed easy-clean.
Hydrophilic: It literally means 'attracting water', and is the opposite of 'hydrophobic' (water-repellent). That makes water droplets spread out, across the surface of the glass. Basically, it means water spreads evenly over the surface of the glass to form a thin film that washes away and dries off quickly without leaving unsightly 'drying spots'. Hydrophilic – water attracting - coatings can be photocatalytically active and break-up organic dirt, which can be washed away by the water-sheeting effect on hydrophilic surfaces. Hydrophilic coatings are mechanically much more stable. They face challenges by metal ions from rainwater poisoning their photocatalytic activity over time and some also exhibit a certain colour tint.
Photovoltaic glass
Photovoltaic glass is a special glass with integrated solar cells, to convert solar energy into electricity. This means that the power for an entire building can be produced within the roof and façade areas.
The solar cells are embedded between two glass panes and a special resin is filled between the panes, securely wrapping the solar cells on all sides. Each individual cell has two electrical connections, which are linked to other cells in the module, to form a system which generates a direct electrical current.

Timber tower by Waugh Thistleton

June 17th, 2007

London architects Waugh Thistleton have designed a timber residential tower they say will be the tallest wooden housing block in the world.

The nine-storey building, proposed for Murray Grove in Hackney, London, will be built of cross-laminated timber panels or “jumbo plywood” - a material that the architects’ claim will save 125 tonnes of carbon emissions compared to a concrete structure of similar size.

The pixilated patterns on the facades (above) are based on a painting by Gerhard Richter (below).

Waugh Thistleton are also the designers of a residential tower with a helical wind turbine that will generate 15% of the building’s electricity.
Below is a press release from the architects:

–

Waugh Thistleton has submitted an entirely timber tower for planning in Hackney, London. To be constructed entirely in timber, the nine-storey high-rise is set to be the tallest timber residential building in the world. Comprising both private and affordable housing, the scheme will comprise of twenty-nine apartments each with their own balcony. The tower has been commissioned by house builder Telford Homes and is scheduled to start on site in the autumn.

The building has been designed using a cross-laminated timber panel system. The system has been pioneered by manufacturers KLH of Austria and is akin to jumbo plywood, arriving on site in panels up to 9m in length. This will be the first building in the world of this height to construct not only load-bearing walls and floor slabs but also stair and lift cores entirely from timber.

Each of the panels is prefabricated including cutouts for windows and doors. As the panels arrive on site they are immediately craned into position, dramatically reducing the time on site. The entire nine-story structure will be up and built within nine weeks.

Timber absorbs carbon throughout its natural life and continues to store that carbon when cut. The fabric of the Murray Grove tower will store over 181 tonnes of carbon. Additionally, by not using a reinforced concrete frame, a further 125 tonnes of carbon are saved from entering the atmosphere. This is equivalent to 21 years of carbon emissions from a building of this size.

The concept for the façade is inspired by the work of artist Gerhard Richter. Recording the changing light and shadows formed on the vacant site by surrounding buildings and trees, the pattern was captured through a sun-path animation. The resulting image was pixellated and blurred, then picked up and wrapped around the
building.

The exterior cladding forming this pixilated image is made up of over 5,000 individual panels across the building in three shades: white, grey and black. The 1200×150mm panels are manufactured by Eternit and made up of 70% waste timber.
Each of the twenty-nine apartments will have their own internal balcony and with the deep-set windows these will appear as the ‘missing pieces’ on the façade; an additional punctuated rhythm over the abstract image of the façade.

Project Facts:

Address: Murray Grove, London
Client: Telford Homes
Budget: £3 Million
Stage: Planning Submission, May 2007

Project Team:

Architect: Waugh Thistleton: Sophie Goldhill, Chris Gray, Kirsten Haggart, Andrew Waugh
Structural Engineer: Techniker: Megan Yates
Mechanical Engineer: Michael Popper & Associates; Nick Walker
Planning Consultant: CMA; Tim Gaskell

Date: September 24, 2007

Pioneers: ECONIC DESIGNERS

Econic Design may not sound familiar, yet, but it is a pioneering direction for architecture and design of the future. It takes the point of view of “Ecology + Icon = Econic” and aims to construct buildings that are not only environmentally friendly, but actually contribute to the city experience and quality of life. Inspired by Brazilian tribes, Econic Design goes further than just energy efficiency and sustainability, and explores energy generating materials!

Econic Design is still in the experimental stage and being work-shopped at University of Pennsylvania School of Design and in Rio. Club Of Pioneers will be following it's evolution and host a discussion where pioneers and students can exchange ideas.
As an introduction, here is an interview with Econic Design facilitator and Club of Pioneers member Matthias Hollwich.

What is your personal background and work?

I am an architect - born, raised, and educated in Munich.
I call the basis of everything I do in my architectural praxis “concept engineering and space shaping”. It's a way to affect architecture in a more substantial way than to just design according to a client brief. Most recently I have worked with the Bauhaus Foundation in Dessau and started my own company that recently moved from Amsterdam to New York – HollwichKushner.

Can you talk more about the Econic Design course ?

The University of Pennsylvania is a hot breeding grounds for new direction and talents in architectural design. I call it an Ivy League underdog (maybe because of it being in Philadelphia) - the university does not have the “star power” of Harvard or Columbia – but has a unique diverse faculty, cross departmental collaborations (biology meets structural engineering and architectural design) and a progressive open minded and curious group of students. It has the perfect DNA for inventiveness. The class I am teaching is a “classic” 3rd year design studio with a “non classic” syllabus. The studio task is the design of an Econic Building located in Rio de Janeiro.
Ecology + Icon = Econic.

What was your incentive and what do you hope to achieve?

Architecture is mainly developed from a program with specific dimensions packaged into an experience and a good looking envelope. A contemporary and responsible architect will infuse sustainable ideas and try to minimize the impact of the building on our environment.

When I was in Rio this spring I heard about Brazilian tribes, living in the rainforest. They settled in areas of weak vegetation and started to plant new flora, and nurtured the grounds. Once the plants prospered they moved on, looking for the next weak spot. The whole attitude was about an active responsibility to nature. Whether it was a fairytale or real it inspired me to ask the question How can we, as architects, design buildings that have a positive effect on the surroundings?” In the same way rainforests are being used as equity for CO2 trading, architecture might also become valuable and equity in itself.

In the Econic Studio I aim to develop with my students
buildings that are initiators for a new consciousness in society where the design is based on ecological findings that turn into an attractor and infrastructure for ecological knowledge generation and communication. A building that is in tune with its urban and natural context generating clean air and providing its surrounding with energy rather than abusing the context and poisoning it by burning fuel and wasting material.

Explain the relationship between theory and practice?

I call myself an “Experimentalist” and this is also how the studio is structured. Very often you can see in architecture a lot of theories being developed but than the translation into spatial artefacts is lacking. In the studio the students are already developing spatial concept models. Parallel to this they are researching aspects of sustainability, references and inspiration in nature, key ecological projects from the last years etc. Over time the experimental models, the research and site-specific aspects will merge into one consistent entity that we will retroactively theorize at the end.

What will happen in Rio?

In Rio we will visit the site, which is located in the heart of Rio de Janeiro at the location of the former art academy and embedded in a dense urban context. The urban location requires an integrated response to renew its urban environment and therefore site presence
and analyses is crucial. We will also visit the rainforest and buildings from Oscar Niemeyer. On two days we will have “white room workshops” where we invite guests for a workshop in which everybody infuses knowledge, critique, and suggestions into the concepts. Rio is also the moment where the students need to commit to one specific concept direction and bring all the different parts together into one cohesive entity. Of course we will also embed ourselves into local culture and hopefully participate in a samba event!

Why is it important for designers to think about sustainability and follow through with it after the “green” trend has passed?

I think it is not a question of thinking about sustainability or not. It is pure math that if we do not apply sustainable ideas, humanity will have a very tough time in the future. The world will recover in one way or another and reinvent itself – but we humans are the ones who are truly in danger. To me it is interesting that during my education as an architect in Germany 16 years ago sustainability was key and all our designs had be ecological enhanced. It was state of the art – but in the US and many other countries that sentiment awoke just a few years ago and many applied methods and technologies are still lacking.

With adding formal language to ecology I hope to raise awareness – but also allow the design discipline to expand its vocabulary with a reason-based output. We can almost repeat Mies van der Rohe's message of
“Form follows function” but the term function has vastly expanded including providing “sustainable performance” and a “green marketing message”. In the future I wish that sustainability – or even better, regenerative ideas - are part of any architectural project globally
and new progressive spatial configurations, programmatic fusions and formalistic expressions evolve.

What are your personal thoughts on Econic Design?

To me Econic Design is a vision that sets goals but also triggers curiosity and creativity. I told my students that the studio is not calling for a building that is ecological in every sense, but for ways of thinking that show a range of potential. Ideas and solutions are to establish a speculative vision for the future. I can imagine Simulated Ecosystems, Adapted nature, Living technologies, Added eco-machines, Growing structure, Pollinating energy, Materials as nutrients, and many more directions that are initiated by the Econic idea.

Can you mention other projects that are pioneering in their design?

The exciting aspect of today is that many creative people work with sustainable ideas in one way or another. In architecture where we had Modernism, Postmodernism, and Deconstructivism I can see an "Ecologicalism" unfolding.
People or works of creativity I like for one
or another reason are:
Sir Norman Foster for the Hearst Tower and others, Marcel Kalberer and the Arena Salix, Oppenheimer Architecture and Cormiami building, Cloud 9 and Morphorest, Herzog & de Meuron - their Beijing Stadium, Janine Benyus for Biomimicry, Rem Koolhaas - A Creative power head), Toyota (Prius), Mayor Bloomberg and his Green City Plan, MVRDV(Expo 2000 Pavillion), Al Gore and Live earth, Germany
(has had an ecological drive for years), Books by J Scott Turner (How design emerges from life itself)
and Kenny Ausubel (Natures Operating Instructions ) and many others including Mother Earth.

all images courtesy of M Hollwich