Design Considerations

Design Considerations Architectural Schematic design of the building is prepared as per the requirement of the project and following several discussions with the project authority. The local bylaws and national building codes are adhered to in the design and planning of the facilities. Master plan The Masterplan of the school complex considered overall zoning and block orientation to suit the general site condition considering functional relationship of various spaces . The Masterplan of the complex is envisaged as child friendly environment to facilitate learning and teaching process in an environment friendly approach. Buildings Analysis of space requirement in terms of volume and ergonomics. Close study of educational system and inherent existence of functional relationship within the school. Establishing a spatial modular planning grid system to simplify the structure and achieve economy and efficiency in construction and function Perception of building forms and proportion in terms of vernacular Architecture, purpose it needs to serve and environment friendly built form. Orientation of buildings to harness maximum natural light, heat and air to achieve climate responsive structure and hence energy efficiency. Selection of appropriate building materials to meet the minimalist design approach and maintenance free structure. Consideration of social, cultural, physical environment of the region to achieve harmony with the surrounding. Study of behavioral pattern of users in determining the building scale and architectural form to create free flowing and playful environment within the center. The general approach to the design is focused primarily on simplicity of structure, minimalist design elements, functional planning of space and maximum utilization of localresources and technology. The main design concept to create a holistic design incorporating nature as an intrinsic design element, energy efficiency of the design both in passive and active concept and transform into a comfortable and state of the art school complex in a highly cost – effective manner and environmentally friendly approach. The ultimate physical built-form together with internal environmental quality will help to improve the quality of education and life of the children and faculty. The whole school complex is connected together by semi covered walkways which become the circulation spine. To avoid the erection of large building blocks, various small buildings are planned to serve different functions. This allows an interesting feeling of built mass with open space between different buildings and also enables independent construction activity for each and encourages movement of students for one building to the next. The movement gives them opportunity to pause and enjoy the landscape. The building materials chosen for the built form are natural materials like brick and stone which give the building an institutional appearance, a permanent finish and complementing to the surrounding landscape and environment. The overall area will have lush green environment with varieties of trees, plants and shrubs to revitalize the ecology of the land. The central water body also acts as a water harvesting feature and shall quench the thirst of exotic birds in the surrounding areas and to cater aquatic lives (fishes, birds etc.) as well. Plenty of trees ensure that the open spaces between buildings become pleasant 'hangout' spaces for the students and faculties. Planning principles: Various factors such as physical, social, cultural, environmental and sustainability consideration are intrinsically taken in the planning and design process. Zoning of the land is done to segregate public, semi public and residential areas thereby retaining the functional identity. The circulation to the school, within the school along with the physical needs of the spaces establishes the planning concepts. Careful attention has been paid to the orientation, functional master planning and landscaping. The existence of gradation of the activities from formal to informal, public to private, quiet to the noisy etc. has been carefully analyzed during planning process. The child’s psychology has been given due importance in designing the various element of the building where shape, size and forms are kept simple to relate to the innocence of child. The building has been thought of not as a mundane shelter but as a sacred place to contribute towards character building of children. The following are considered for general planning and designing of the School Building: Functional requirement of space formulated by the project authority. Easy Circulation within the building with respect to the child movement. Use of maximum amount of natural light and ventilation to interior of building. Use of anthropometrical data to obtain the size of furniture, circulation space and rooms. The design follows the prevailing bylaws of Nepal Government and local bylaws Building design ensures compliance with building code, disability discrimination act, operational health and safety standards. Preventive and safety design against fire, earthquake, storms, strong wind, is considered and sufficient areas for rescue operation is provided. The designs are kept very simple and can be understood by local technicians. Construction techniques adopted are also familiar to local workers. Locally available materials are used as far as possible in the design of building respecting the Green Building Technology and addressing the issues of global climate change. All modern amenities, facilit ies and health considerations are accounted in the design. Due stress is given to long term maintenance value and replacement availability. Circulation stairs, visual signage, tactile steps etc are considered in the design for impaired people. The main academic block is grouped into junior and senior section, i.e. Primary and Secondary block, in order to retain the identity of the different age groups while at the same time allowing for considerable interaction. All class-rooms are singly banked along one side of wide corridor which allows good natural light and ventilation to interior of Classrooms and fast evacuation during emergency cases (Approx. with in 3minutes) All class-rooms are provided with 2 nos. of doors for easy and early exit during emergency. The Classroom units are clustered into functional group to differentiate between the Junior and Senior Section that enhances the systematic Education system within the Complex. Natural lights flow abundantly into all rooms through open courtyards and pockets. Adequate numbers of windows are provided on two sides of classroom to ensure good illumination on desks, good natural ventilation and avoiding glare within the room. Adequate toilet facilities for students are conveniently located. Provision of future expansion is thought-of in the master plan, keeping all the functions and beauty intact. Spaces such as the landscaped amphitheatre and visual transparencies between various levels are created to respect the peoples need to interact and there by create a more human environment. References: Time saver’s standards Graphic standards Nepal Building codes British standards Architecture of schools, The New Learning Environments by Mark Dudek Designing the Sustainable School by Alan Ford Structural system Structural design is one of the most important parts of the integrated design by multidisciplinary professional of a building. This is prime concerned about the earthquake safety. It is well known that the Nepal lies in the most vulnerable zone of earthquake prone area which lies in zone "V". Therefore, special attention and consideration should be carried out during structural design of any building in Nepal. There were several major and moderate earthquakes in Nepal. Therefore, every building structure is expected to experience moderate to major earthquakes during its life period. Design of building structure should follow the principles of earthquake resistant design. A well designed earthquake resistant building should be able to: Resist minor earthquake without damage Resist moderate earthquake without structural damage but with some non-structural damage Resist major earthquake without collapse but with some structural as well as non-structural damage. In many structures, it is expected that structural damage caused by even major earthquake could be limited to repairable limit of damage due to proper detailing. This is however, depends upon a number of factors, including the type of construction selected for the structure, building configuration etc. In approaching architectural and structural design, perhaps the most important attribute an architect or engineer can develop in good judgment. During preliminary design process also for this institutional buildings, above things are specially considered. There are many factors responsible for the economic and optimum use of the structural members (foundation, column, beam and slabs) of a building. The major things for the earthquake resistant design of the structures are: a) Design: analysis and RCC design b) Detailings: details of joints, laps, hooks and arrangement of bars c) Supervision: quality of materials and replicate of drawings in the field The configuration of building plays vital role in economic design even in same plinth area. During functional planning of the building, coordination between architect and structural engineer is carried out. Grids in both axes in plan are considered so that complexity due to eccentric loading in design could be minimized so that performance of the structure could be better. Foundations of the footings are considered as isolated, combined and strap from the structural configuration. This will be finalized after soil investigation. Minimum grade of concrete shall be used M20. Reinforcement bar shall be used TOR Steel of grade Fe415 or TMT of grade Fe 500 Following different codes shall be considered as references during design i. NS : 500- 2060 - Seismic Design of Buildings in Nepal ii. NS : 501- 2060 - Ductile Detailing of RC Structure Subjected to Seismic Forces iii. NS : 507- 2060 -Occupancy Loads iv. NS : 508- 2060 -Wind Loads v. NS : 510- 2060 -Site Consideration for Seismic Hazards vi. NS : 511- 2060 -Plain and Reinforced Concrete vii. NS :191-2046 -Cold-twisted deformed bars vii IS 1893 (Part 1):2002 - Criteria for earthquake resistant design of structures viii.IS 4326 : 1993 -Earthquake Resistant Design and Construction of Buildings ix. IS 13920 :1993 -Ductile Detailing of RC Structures Subjected to Seismic Forces x. IS 456 : 2000 -Plain and Reinforced Concrete. xi. IS 800:2007 – Steel Structure xii. IS 883:1984 – Timber xiii. BS Code