Architecture Weekly | 19th May 2012

Architectural drawing Approach

Architecttural drawing is a subject taught in Architecture as well as Civil Engineering colleges. Hence, it is important for students to pay special attention to the subject since it requires concentration and dedication to achieve excellence in this particular subject.

This article is about past art, Contemporary art and architecture, importance of learning fundamentals of architectural/engineering drawing and the distractions to be avoided in order to excel.

Site Planning guide

Site planning is an important aspect of Architectural design. It is important that designers are completely aware of all the factors that are to be taken into consideration while designing.

This article has been written in order to explain various factors that are essentially to be considered while taking up Site planning. The site planning considerations that have been discussed in the article are as follows:

• Environmental factors
• Identification of site and its preparation
• Natural factors which include Geology, topography, Hydrography, soil, Vegetation, Wild life etc.
• Climatic factors
• Cultural factors
• Existing land use

Site Documentation and Site Analysis

The importance of Site documentation and site analysis cannot be denied. It is the role of any designer to perform a complete detailed documentation and analysis of the site before designing and construction.

The article has been written in order to address various aspects to be considered while analyzing the surroundings of the site. It also addresses important requirements to be incorporated in site planning in order achieve a greener environment. The important design features that are to be necessarily incorporated in your zoning layout are also mentioned.

It is a must for every architect/engineer or a designer to have complete knowledge of site documentation and site analysis.

Designing Old age homes

The purpose and construction of Old age homes has been discussed in the introduction of the article. The kind of homes that are to be designed for Old people that is for the senior citizens of our country has to be given special attention to.

 Basically, this is a design guide for designing old age homes which includes discussion on different categories of Old age homes, Location of old age homes, design concept, necessity of working staff at old age homes, medical care facilties to be provided, Recreational facilities in an Old Age Home and the most important and basic space requirements have been listed out.

Forest Landscaping

This is something not many of you must have heard of. You must be wondering as to why do we do need to work on landscape design of a forest.

 Well, the answer lies here. Many of the positive visual effects of forest management has been overlooked. People fail to realize that the woodlands produce remarkable amenities in great measure. Understanding the importance of forests is very important and being able to manage them is even more important. Integration of design arts with the principles of forest management is very much needed today. This article is more like a design guide of Forest landscaping. It provides an interesting perspective to look at forest landscaping and design.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

New concept of High Speed Rail Development

Concept of Elimination of High Speed Train Stations | Revolutionary or a total failure?

Yesterday, I was searching for some information on High Speed Railways development. HSR is an upcoming field in which rapid development is taking place.

I came across a very interesting article on “A new concept of rail travel”.

Boarding a Moving train – the core concept

Sounds really fascinating, isn’t it?

A British designer Paul Priestman came up with this new idea of boarding a moving train. According to him, this is the futuristic solution of speeding up rail travel. He is proposing the idea of MOVING PLATFORMS. He wants to completely eliminate the need for stations and not make any changes in the engines or tracks. According to his concept, Passengers would cross between the tram and train without either vehicle stopping. He does not want the passengers to get down on the stations and wait for the trains to come rather he wants complete integration of Tram – train crossing so that passengers can travel seamlessly and reach their destinations without having to stop at any intermediate station and wait for another train to come…

The image shows the Train-tram connectivity concept which will in future eliminate the need for train stations (This image has been taken from "edition.cnn.com" for reference and education purpose)

Sounds really cool…! But is it really possible? Forget about the possibilities. Technology can make everything possible. But the right question to ask would be; is it really feasible to do so??

Would it be as wonderful as it sounds? It is truly a very debatable concept.

A reason why Moving Platforms concept could fail

I would not deny the creativity of the concept but of course I would definitely question its feasibility. We can do so many better things than evolving a concept that will increase the burden on our economy. In United States of America, the rail stations are in a complete state of despair. So, wouldn’t it be great if we could work towards renovating and rehabilitation of stations. It would be more cost effective as well as it will help preserve the Architectural style of the past.

For example, Buffalo Central Terminal Station

Apart from just the rehabilitation concept, why can we not work on improving our railway network and standard of construction?

The concept is completely mechanical. One has to realize that we are heading towards peak oil and I personally feel the peak oil has already come. We should be looking at minimizing the use of resources but the “Moving Platforms concept” is not in favour of that.

For this concept to be successful, it will require billions of dollars. Inspite of spending so much on the project, it will still not be a perfect one.

How do you propose to change the entire rail network of a country?? If someone can answer me that satisfactorily, then I shall be really proud of your intelligence. Even if you are able to establish this concept and design a rail network for a mini-city; how expensive would it for the government to run it? How expensive would it be for the travellers? That is something very important and should be taken into consideration. If travelling by trains is going to be more expensive than travelling by aeroplane, it is obvious that it is going to be a total failure.

So, give it a thought and let me know your opinions about the new concept of Rail Development.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Restoration Architecture and Design

Architectural Restoration and Design

It is an Architecture design theory which deals with the process of reviving the material, historical design integrity of the heritage structure.

Restoration of the structure will help in prolonging the life of the structure and also make it functionally usable for the future. This can only be done through planned interventions.

The aim of Restoration Architects is to revive the age old Architecture and make it functional to be used in the future.

The external facade of the historic structure is the functional value of the structure which is very important to be restored to maintain the aesthetical integrity of the structure.

Krnov Castle | Before restoration

What is the first thing to be done when working on “restoration of a structure”?

Assessment of the building is to be done in terms of its historical significance as well the structural technology used in those days.

Why is “Building Assessment” important?

Every heritage building has its own historical importance, its own character. Studying the character of the building makes the designer get involved into designing. It helps strengthening the imagination of the designer to achieve the results.

The knowledge of the life of the building is essential with architectural point of view. If the life of the building is studied carefully, you would get a complete idea of its features and problems of the building.

Krnov Castle | After restoration

After carefully studying the life of the building, the architect becomes very well aware of all the existing problems with the structure as well as the problems that could occur while carrying out restoration procedure.

The decision of carrying out restoration of the building is a very sensitive one. All aspects of construction have to be taken into consideration along with the artistic and contextual aspects.

Sometimes, in cases of structures which are very ancient and the deterioration has reached a premium level, it is preferred to leave the structure without intervening with its original structural system since the structure might not be able to withstand the restoration treatment and might lose its visual significance.

Is Restoration Architecture different from that of mainstream Architecture?

Restoration Architecture is different from the mainstream Architecture only in terms of dealing with the design process.

Restoration is reviving the old structure whereas Building Architecture is all about creating new structures. The methodologies of both are different from one another and hence cannot be compared. Comparing one of them and calling one prestigious would not be right on an Architect’s part.

However, it should be understood that restoration architecture is a small part of the mainstream architecture. Sometimes it is treated as a specialized field. It all depends on an Architect’s interests. One who is fond of restoration, conservation theories that teach you how you can conserve and preserve age old architecture and would like to pursue a career in it, preferably go for restoration Architecture.

This was our brief introduction to “Restoration Architecture”.

I am always elated to see your responses to our articles. Every comment sent by you is personally read and answered by me. Do share your views. It would benefit not only you but everyone going through the article and your comments.

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Types of Columns | Architectural Details

 Different types of Columns

In our previous article, we discussed “Different types of Arches“. 

In this article, we will move on with our discussion on three basic columns types in brief. The whole idea of writing this article is to make you aware of the basic column types.

Different column types are as follows:

Doric columns

Doric column from the Greek Architectural style is the oldest column style of Ancient times. These types of columns could be found on the Parthenon, Athens, Greece. The column has fluted sides with a smooth rounded top which is called capital with no separate base.

Doric order of the Pantheon

Ionic columns

These columns can be distinguished because of their prominent feature – scroll-shaped ornaments at the capital. The ionic column’s capital resembles a ram’s horns and the column rests on a rounded base.

Ionic order

Corinthian column

Corinthian column design has been inspired from the Egyptian column capitals shaped like inverted bells and decorated with olive laurel or acanthus leaves.

Corinthian Order

Egyptian Columns

Egyptian columns resemble the shape of a lotus flower. These columns taper out at the top and are ornamented with palm-like leaves near the capital making it look like a lotus flower.

egyptian column

Romanesque Columns

Romanesque columns have been used by an American architect while designing homes in Romanesque style in mid 1800s. It was his initiative to revive the ancient Romanesque architecture. These columns often rest on massive trapezoid shaped bases or piers and are decorated with flowers and leaves.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Types of Arches | Architectural Details

 Six basic arch styles | Building Construction

A roman arch which is also known as a semi-circular arch. It forms a semi-circle. It is generally made of brick masonry.

Semi-circular arch or Roman Arch

Segmental Arch

A Syrian arch which is also known as a Segmental arch. It forms a partial curve since it has a small rise in the centre and is semi-elliptical across the top.

Segmental or Syrian Arch

Flattened Gothic Arches

Flattened Gothic arches are also known as Tudor arches. Tudor arches have a low rise because of which they are named as flattened gothic arches. Gothic arches are generally narrower than the flattened gothic arches.

Tudor arch or Flattened Gothic Arch

Flat arches

Flat arches are also known as straight arches. As the name itself suggests, the arch spans straight across the opening without any curvation.

Flat Arch

Gothic Arches

Gothic arches are narrow arches with a pointed opening. It was considered to be a more sinuous and elegant successor to the roman arch style. Gothic arches have been used in cathedrals of the Middle ages across Europe.

Gothic arch

Horseshoe Arches

A Moorish arches are also called Horseshoe arches. The arch resembles the look of a horseshoe magnet. The curved arch line extends beyond the semi-circular line of the arch.

Horseshoe Arch or Moorish Arch

In our next article, we will discuss different types of columns.

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Journey from Ancient to Modern Architecture!

Architecture | Ancient and Modern World!

Architecture is a science itself. Although, it does not fall under the category of sciences, it can still be called as “Architectural Science”.

Architecture is something that cannot be learnt or memorized… You have to feel it to understand the essence of design.

Designing in a specific architectural style gives a special meaning and feel to the space/structure/place (town, city etc).

Something that is so intriguing about Architecture is the fact that the lines, shapes and forms you draw on paper are actually transformed into a live structure on the ground.

What could be more fascinating than this particular fact!

When a kid makes a craft model by following the instructions from a craft book, he feels tremendously happy about his creation.

From the above example, if we are to replace the kid with an Architect and the craft model of paper replaced with the real structure on earth; how much more amazing does that sound!

 Have a look at the video below. It covers the wide range of Ancient and Modern Architectural styles…

Also, check out the other video on Amazing Structures.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Design elements to focus on in Cafeteria Design

How to design a Cafeteria? | Architectural Design

In our previous article “Guide to design of Cafeteria“, we had a stepwise discussion as to how you should proceed with the design project of Cafeteria.

In this article, we will discuss all the possible design considerations you could take to make the Cafeteria design interesting.

Creation of a cool and peaceful environment. Cafeteria is a place where people come to relax and have a small chat with their friends. The soft music in the background is good enough to serve the purpose. It is completely unnecessary to give it a dramatic disco effect or have loud music.

Try and create thematic interiors. It could be anything. It all depends on how far creative you can get.

Contemporary theme for Cafeteria Design

For example:

Contemporary theme

To incorporate this theme, you will have to have modern furniture design, funky colours used, paintings on the walls of the cafe that would depict a sense of modernism when a person steps in; also instead of just having 2D painting on the walls, you could go for 3D art work which is more intriguing and brings some life to the interior space.arrangement of tables and chairs, ceiling design, design pillars in the cafe to give a contemporary look etc.

Choice of a good colour scheme is very important in this case. It makes a whole lot of difference to the feel of the space.

Choice of themes could differ from place to place.

For example:

If the Cafeteria is to be designed for school kids, the thematic approach will differ from what you might choose for a cafeteria design for a Corporate Office.

Along with the change in thematic approach, you would also have to take care of using an appropriate colour scheme.

It is important for a designer to consider maximum utilization of space in the cafeteria. For this reason, it is essential that the columns to be placed in the interiors of the cafeteria have to be avoided as much as possible.

To make it possible, it is the role of an Architect to explain the design in detail the Civil engineer or Structural designer.

The Civil/Structural engineer will look after this. It is his job. But it is important that you understand the structural details too.

(You can discuss the use of deep beams, coffered slab etc in order to achieve uninterrupted span length.)

Instead of just having tables and chairs in the seating area, try making the seating area a little more pleasing and inviting.

Create visual barrier walls and planters to seggregate small sections in the cafe instead of using full length walls or no walls at all. This will help in easy and comfortable interation.

This idea would be applicable for cafeteria in schools, colleges or Offices.

The most important design element is efficient circulation throughout the cafe. The movement of people in the cafe should not create any kind of chaos and confusion.

This will only spoil the reputation of the cafeteria.

In our succeeding articles, we will also study as to how you should be making circulation charts on a casestudy.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Cafeteria Design Guide | Architectural Design

Design considerations for a Cafeteria | Architectural Design Guide

We all know what a Cafeteria is like.

It is a hangout place where we all have tea, coffee and some snacks. That is all that the place provides.

Why is it important to know the function of the structure you are designing?

At the beginning of your Architectural course, you might not be very well versed with understanding the importance of  studying the function of the structure before you would want to design it.

Cafeteria in a Corporate Office

So remember, UNDERSTAND and ANALYZE THE FUNCTION AND CIRCULATION BEFORE YOU DESIGN!

Step by step guide to designing a cafeteria:

Here, we will discuss the detailed steps to be followed in order to design a cafeteria.

Step One:

Visit a cafeteria. Are you finding it strange?? Well, you are bound to find it weird since you have visited the cafeteria like a thousand times.

But, this time when you visit the cafeteria, perceive it with an Architect’s point of view.

For now, you are an architecture student but you will soon become an Architect.

Alright now, let’s come to the point.

On your visit to a cafeteria, you have to do the following things:

1. Study and jot down the spaces in the Cafeteria

Here is the list of some of the important spaces of a cafeteria that you might see around:

• Seating area – enclosed space
• Seating area – semi-enclosed space
• Kitchen
• Counter area (where you would have the display of various snacks you would like to have.)
• A refrigerator (for ice-creams and cold drinks)
• A store room (very important)
• A decorated entrance foyer
• Some natural and artificial plantations to make the interior space look greener and livelier.

2. Approximate calculation of spaces you just jotted down.

3. Analyze the number of persons that can fit in the cafeteria at a time and then divide it with the approximate area you have calculated for different spaces.

For example:

Seating area = 6m x 10m = 60sqm

Number of persons that can be accommodated = 50

Area per person = 60/50 = 1.2sqm

Seating style = round tables with 5 chairs each.

(Also, try to figure out if better arrangement of chairs could have made a difference. Try to be creative.)

4. Talk to the owner of the cafeteria and ask him if the area provided in the kitchen and store is sufficient to run the cafeteria with ease.

 If he is of the opinion that the space is sufficient enough for the efficient functioning of the cafeteria; then you can calculate area per person for every space in the cafeteria.

For example:

Kitchen = 3mx4m = 12sqm

Store = 3mx3m = 9sqm

Area per person (Kitchen) = 12/50 = 0.24sqm

Area per person (Store) = 0.18sqm

Also, try to make a circulation map. This will give you an idea as to how different spaces have been connected together.

How will calculating “Area per person” help in designing the cafeteria?

By calculating the area per person, you can design the cafeteria for as many people as you want.

For example:

Area per person for Kitchen of a Cafeteria = 0.24sqm

For 100 persons, the area will be = 0.24 x 100 = 24sqm

That means, to serve a crowd of 100 persons at a time, the area of the cafeteria required to be designed will be 24sqm.

Similar calculations have to be done for other spaces in the cafeteria.

Step two:

Study of one more cafeteria in a similar fashion has to be done.

Comparative study always helps. You could study and analyze the design elements used in the cafe apart from studying the functionality and circulation of spaces.

Calculate the areas in the same way as we have discussed above and perform a comparative analysis of the two casestudies.

This is a foolproof method to design in the right way to serve the right purpose.

Step three:

Shapes and Forms for Cafeteria Design

Cafeteria is a non-formal space. Hence, you can use your wild imagination to design the cafeteria. You can experiment with organic forms, rectangular boxes or any other geometrical figures in plan and elevation.

Preferably, try to keep the plan simple and experiment with the exterior of the structure. That makes more sense. Keeping the plan simple will help you keep up the efficiency of the function of the Cafeteria.

Other factors to be taken into consideration:

• Colour scheme
• Artificial lighting
• Natural lighting and Ventilation
• Green spaces
• Use of different materials
• Use of different wall finishes to create a dramatic visual effect

Also, check out:
Design ideas for Cafeteria Design 

So, with this we come to the end of the discussion on the “Design of a Cafeteria”.

Do leave a comment if you have liked the article and you are welcome if would like to share your point of view in design. 

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Passenger Information Displays | HSR Station Design

Design of Passenger Information Display

Stations are well equipped with Information systems. They are also referred to as a Passenger System (PIS) or Passenger Information Display. These information systems are essential since they guide the passengers on the station. They inform the passengers of where the trains are going.

The most common complaint of the passengers on the station is the lack of accurate information. This gets the passengers really frustrated and results in a spoilt experience.

It is very important to train the staff members of the ways to use the latest system so that they have all the latest information and data required which would help them answer the questions of the passengers satisfactorily.

When any staff member is asked a question about the train arrivals, departures or any other information, the staff member should be able to give apt and accurate reply. If he is not aware and does not have the latest information, he would start guessing. And nothing is more annoying than this to the passengers.

Where and how should the Information Displays be placed?

The placement of the information displays plays a very important role in the efficient functioning of the Train stations.

They should be placed in public areas for easy visibility by passengers. Care should be taken to make sure that the visibility of the displays is not affected by the changing weather conditions of the place.

Types of Information:

There are two types of information. They are as follows:

1. Constant information
2. Instant Information

Constant information is one which shows information regarding the services and fares available and is not subject to change regularly.

Instant information is one which describes the time, arrival time, departure time, destinations served by the train, the point on the station where the train will stop etc

Instant information displays change from time to time (daily, minute to minute)

We can find real fine examples of efficiency in the placement of Information displays in Paris, France RER stations. The information board is hung over the platform. It shows all the stations served by the approaching train. It also shows current time and train length. It has been found to be very effective.

Bi-directional signalling

Bi-directional signalling allows the train to travel along either line at normal speed and be under full control of fixed signals. When the either of the tracks is under maintenance due to engineering repairs, this system serves as an excellent way to deal with the problem.

If we are looking at using “Bi-directional signalling”, the need for having accurate and easily variable information displays becomes a must.

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Architecture Student Chronicles

Technological Revolution in Interior and Architectural Design

Influence of Technology on Architecture

The changes in economic conditions and the advancement in technology have resulted in changing the lifestyle of the people considerably. People seemed to have changed their way of living, the way they entertain themselves, spend their money, interact at work etc. This condition is not only evident in a particular country as such but this change is coming globally.

Today, interior designing is revising its design rules and principles. People are going for multi-functional furniture units, compact places to live in. This does not mean that they don’t love variety anymore. It is just that they want to make everything flexible enough to be used and converted as required. The advancement in technology has indeed brought a huge change in the field of design.

Let us discuss all that we are seeing today and also the reason for this transformation.

Increasingly less defined spaces

If we are to look into this particular aspect, we would notice that the way spaces were designed earlier with a specific purpose of its space allocation (rigid planning) has changed. People are now preferring flexible planning i.e. multi-functional spaces. This is more evident in the west since this trend is not very pronounced in Asia. In India and China, people are still conservative about planning their private spaces.

Multifunctional Spaces | Increasingly less defined spaces

How did this multi-functionality trend develop?

Earlier, economic crisis that struck Europe led to the decrease in the incomes of the people. People began living at homes since they did not have offices to attend. Lifestyle started changing. People started preferring eating at home since it was less costly, entertaining themselves and just being. This brought the need for more investment into the living spaces. This “OPENNESS CONCEPT” began with the concept of having an open kitchen. Now, if we look at the interiors of the homes today, we can call them “Open Homes”.

“Areas that were strictly separated are now blending into one another”.

People are now multi-tasking at home too. They are sending emails, surfing the internet, holding conference calls (video or Audio chat) since AV (audio-visual) rooms are getting common in the homes too.

Apart from having lesser walls in the house for division of various spaces such as Living room, Dining room, Kitchen etc; people are also opting for multi-functional furniture units which has made designing even more exciting.

Technology is a huge player in this field. Technology has evolved infinite number of possibilities to accommodate the many technical objects which have become part of the necessities of everyday life from hydraulics to tuck away televisions when not in use, to charging stations for mobiles and computers.

“The smaller the better is the key here”.

This same notion is also being used in products. The products are getting smaller and smaller in size with respect to the flexibility required to move the products as well as smaller storage places. People are opting for products that require less storage space. Products such as mobiles, laptops have become very handy. Desks and worktops have shrinked in size to accommodate smaller computers Storage systems are lit by LEDs and need to store far smaller CDs and other devices such as pen drives.

Multifunctional Furniture

The notion of “Smaller being better” has brought about these gizmo centric products which are futuristic in its design.

Multifunctional Furniture | Modifyable furniture

Changes in the choice of lighting design

Today, people are opting for eco-friendly lighting products. LED has gained lot of impetus. LED technology has set its footprints on the wet sands of Eco-friendly Design.

People and designers both are opting for LED lighting products instead of other conventional lighting products. Despite of LED lights being expensive, it has gained its own importance in the design industry. LED lights have innumerable variants the designers could choose from. OLED is gaining lot of popularity among designers.

Let us now wait and wait how the changing technology will bring about the changes in the perspective of Designing.

With this, we come to the end of our discussion on “Changing trends in Interior Architecture”.

It would great if you could all share your views and ideas about the changes that we are able to experience around. As Architectural designers, it is very important to be aware of every change that has an impact on the Architectural design.

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