DEMOLITION of BUILDINGS

Post 133 - by Gautam Shah 
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Buildings are demolished to place new structures, destroyed to dispose off the unsafe entities, and deconstructed to preserve or reuse valuable sub-components. Buildings also get devastated by natural calamities (floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, landslides etc.), man-made disasters (fires, explosions, wars, acts of mischief and terror), and through carelessness such as inadequate design, poor maintenance or repairs.

Buildings are conceived to be long-lasting assets. The execution of it takes time, and is a costly affair. A building has uncertainty about it. No one precisely knows how long it will last, and no one can predict how long it will remain functionally relevant and commercially valid. Buildings’ relevance or validity, are also dependent on external factors such as the neighbourhood, politics, styles, and social trends. Buildings are perpetuated so long as the structure is safe, and external services make it inhabitable. Buildings are doctored in may ways, like, restored, renovated, repaired, reformed, conserved, reinforced or retrofitted. These interventions make a building functional for some other purpose, if not the original.

 

 The decision to demolish a building arises out of many considerations. Old buildings are removed, when safety and security are suspect without even waiting for the redevelopment plans or investors being readied. Old buildings are destroyed when there is a prospect of a new activity on the same site for new functions, for larger built-up volume, incorporation of newer technology for use-functions and for services, for implanting a new commercial or social image and for matching with the ethos of a current day neighbourhood. There is some resistance to demolition of public or private buildings with some historical linkage or metaphoric values. These necessitate stake-holders involvement in the process. Buildings being commercially replaced find few such problems.

Flickr image by Colin Davis

 

Demolitions incur costs of scavenging the structure for recyclable components and materials, pulling down a structure, carting away the debris removal, charges for environmentally safe disposal and costs of mitigating the risks. Demolition of buildings with recyclable materials such as wood, metals, stones and bricks, help to recover the cost of demolitions. Similarly buildings with antique components are highly valued. Older buildings are often built with massive materials, taller floor heights, and a new building at the same site is likely to be spatially leaner and minimalistic, and energy efficient, providing great advantage. Demolitions, require attention to several processes. These mandatory processes include permission for destruction, the methods of demolition, schedule, logistics of handling, loading and carting away the debris, recycling the removed material, and safe and adequate disposal of hazardous and other debris. In many localities one may need to indicate who-how the vacant plot will be maintained or used till an approved building system is regenerated.

 The methods of demolition depend on the scale of the building (number of stories, volume, footprint ) complexity of structure (assembled, framed and in-filled or fully integrated), locality, road access, debris carting route and allowable schedules, reaches of the demolition equipment, health hazardous conditions due to noise, vibrations, dust, etc. Building demolition occurs in a very tight schedule. The delaying factors are: scavenging for recyclable components and materials and the removal of the debris and the disposal management. Smaller buildings are pulled down using manual tools, but buildings of low heights and extensive footprints (plinth area) are demolished by ground-based equipment with deeper reach. Tall buildings require floor by floor demolition or use wrecking ball cranes. Buildings with bricks, precast blocks or stone masonry can be demolished in parts, but integrated structures like RCC frameworks, welded steel frames need careful planning about how the parts are destroyed and temporary support systems. Very large buildings are destroyed by implosion techniques so that debris falls within the premises.

Demolitions of large integrated structures are done after careful evaluations such as strength and behaviour of materials at near failure or collapse state, yield deformations, shear ruptures, mass versus weights factors. Demolition of disaster affected remnants of the buildings offer very little interim time for studying the buildings’ system.

Options to demolitions are few. Displacements or relocations of the buildings have been tried, but involve a great expense and risk. Relocation of building is carried out in two basic ways. Buildings are deconstructed and reassembled, or transported as a whole to another location. The first approach requires building to be consisting of separable and re-unite-able parts, whereas the later one requires building to be an integrated entity. In reality buildings are exclusively neither of these.

Debris management is difficult for an individual site owner to handle. Paris once had no local government to handle it. The debris of demolished or falling off buildings was spread out or dumped into near by river or low areas. These resulted in many streets getting buried up to the first floor level. Some of the better options are, to reuse the old buildings, design buildings with greater life-span, and use components and materials that remain separable and recyclable.

 

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INTERIOR DESIGN INTERVENTIONS

Post 132 - by Gautam Shah 

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 Building Engineering was the pioneer field of Design out of which many specialties like Architecture, Civil Engineering and Interior Designing have separated. All these skills deal with buildings using many common materials and techniques. Interior Design as a result has certain affinity to Architecture. In recent years many other design skills like Urban Design, Town Planning, Mass or Public housing, Landscape architecture, etc. have emerged from architecture. In future many other skills may also emerge from Interior Design.

A building once constructed is initially readied for occupation by the original designer. Buildings last for ages and during the lifespan, must be altered and updated several times. Architects or Building Engineers are unavailable, or have no income incentive for such 'frivolity'. During early middle ages, or perhaps even earlier, low-skilled 'Art -Painters' were hired to paint and decorate old buildings inside and outside. These painters known as building decorators or renovators worked along with their associates, to not only paint but undertake repairs, make furniture and update furnishings. Many crafts-persons like, Iron smiths, Guilders, Glass blowers, Weavers, Embroiders, Rug and Carpet makers, Sculptors, Mural makers, were casually associated with the Decorator, as jobbers and suppliers. Later the Decorator or renovator had a team of hired people who moved from site to site locations. These services for the building were always distinct from the Architecture or Building Engineering. Interior Decorator or renovator was neither a variant, nor subservient to the architect.

Illustrations from the James Shoolbred & Company's 1876 catalogue

The vendors or crafts-persons, creators of complex craft entities worked from their traditional centres. The interior decorator or renovator also worked as a facilitator, scheduling and coordinating the activities at a site. The decorator or renovator even offered comprehensive design solutions with alternatives to the clients. It was a well-documented strategy, serving two basic objectives.

•  It helped creation of a facilitating entity by coordinating skills, materials and objects, from different agencies. 
• It showed the user or client, in advance, the solution, in a representative form -a surrogate.. 

Johan Zacharias Blackstadius (1816-1898)

Once the first objective was achieved without being continuously present on the site, it was possible for the design-in-charge person to devote more time and attention for the second objective. The Interior renovator began to play a very active role of a professional interior designer, rather than being simply a site bound interior contractor.

 

The professional Interior Designer now operated from a Design office or Studio, located in an urban area. The design studio was the place for creating drawings, sketches, other presentations, models, pilots, prototypes, dummies, cartoons (replicas of artwork in full size), samples, etc. It contained samples of materials and catalogues. The studio was a fixed location facility where Interior designer was able to meet clients, suppliers and crafts-persons. 

 

The physical distancing of a studio from the site also detached the Design and Execution aspects of interior practice. In the combined practice of Design+Execution, the need for a documented scheme was not very acute, as decisions immediately turned into actions. In Exclusive Design practice, all decisions had to be formally transmitted through documented design brief as an assignment to the site-based agency.

 

Schematic documentation of design has been a very difficult aspect of business. Amateur Interior Designers (or formally untrained - hobbyists) lack the capacity to document their design intentions, so prefer to work on the site, providing oral instructions to contractors or their workers. Many Interior Designers, even today, where practicable would like to execute their work by themselves. The tradition of combining design + execution persists for many reasons: 

• The Salle des Gardes was built during the reign of Charles IX. Some traces of the original decor remain from the 1570s, including the vaulted ceiling and a frieze of military trophies attributed to Ruggiero d'Ruggieri. In the 19th century Louis Philippe turned the room into a salon and redecorated it with a new parquet floor of exotic woods echoing the design of the ceiling, and a monumental fireplace (1836), which incorporates pieces of ornament from demolished rooms from 15th and early 16th century.
  

1. Interior components require complex details and materials for their sensorial qualities. These are difficult to present through formal design documentation, and must be effected only through personal involvement.
2. Interior designing involves improvisation. The coordinated effect can be achieved, only when components or systems are substantially produced by the designers themselves. 
3. Amateur or untrained interior designers do not have such proficiency.
   

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BLOGS by Gautam Shah on DOORS --some links

Post 131 ⇒  by Gautam Shah

 

Porch at Door 9 of the Royal Albert Hall at night. wikipedia image by Author KlickingKarl

1 BEVELLED GLASS in DOORS and WINDOWS

2 DOORS – INTERIOR and EXTERIOR EXPRESSIONS

3 SLIDING DOORS

4 WIDE DOORS and MULTIPLE DOORS

5 STRUCTURES over DOORS

6 OTHER TYPES of DOORS

7 INTERIOR ILLUMINATION through DOORS

8 DOORS in LITERATURE

9 AWNINGS or SHADING DEVICES

10 NATURE OF OPENINGS

11 OPENINGS in COLONIAL PERIOD of INDIA

12 VENTILATION in TROPICAL BUILDINGS

13 DAY-LIGHTING – in Interior Spaces

14 DOOR HINGES

15 ARCHITECTONIC ELEMENTS over OPENINGS

16 DOOR HEADS

17 OPENINGS and FINISHES

18 GATES and GATEWAYS

19 CLASSES of OPENINGS

20 DOOR and HEARTH

21 TORAN

22 SIZE of a DOOR

23 DOOR SECURITY

25 EXPRESSION of OPENINGS

26 OPENINGS and BARRIER SYSTEMS

27 DOOR CASINGS

 

747-400F with the nose loading door open wikipedia image by Author Tak

 

MODES OF MEASUREMENTS in DESIGN EXECUTION

Post 130 - by Gautam Shah

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There are two major processes in design execution: Checking the quantity and quality of work. Both of these deal with vast number of items and their variants. The items’ variations persist in procedures like estimating, specification writing, rate quotations, task supervision (productivity of human and machine resources) and billing. The immediate efficiency can occur by reducing the number of items (types).

 Wikipedia image by Author Martinvl

Major job agencies like Public Works Departments, Railways, shippers etc. dictate the job market, and evolve their own 'Game Rules' for measuring and paying for the works. The rules are very practical, as have evolved through years of experience. The rules may vary in minor details from one agency to another, and one geographical region to another. Over the years, however, a common System of Taking Measurements comes into being.

SOME CONSIDERATIONS FOR MODE OF MEASUREMENTS:

▪ Use of Appropriate Technology: Measurement taking must occur with the appropriate technology on hand. A steel fabrication job ideally needs to be paid by weight, but it is not possible to weigh a complex fabricated object on the site. Earthworks on contoured terrain can only be measured in terms of truckloads of soil moved or hours an excavator operates at a site. Intricately shaped and massive concrete structure cannot be measured in volume and must be paid in terms of concrete poured in. Painting work on a complex steel structure cannot be measured in surface area, so is paid per volume of paint applied. Earthworks on a small and remote location are measured in multiple lengths of the pick axe handles (approx. 750 mm), rather than using measure tapes or automatic measuring devices.

 Wikipedia image by Author: Own Work (de:Benutzer:Suricata)

▪ Commercial Value and Frequency of the item: The effort expended in measuring an item also depends on the commercial value and frequency of its occurrence. Items of low commercial value are measured in larger measure modules. An item is considered costly if its labour, material or techniques of installation are rare, or difficult to procure. An item is also costly, if it forms a large component of the total cost of the scheme. Frequently occurring items are measured thoroughly, once, and its product is used as a basis.

▪ Identity in time and Space: An item forms a distinct identity depending on the nature and time of execution. Frames for doors and windows are fitted in masonry, before the plaster work begins, the shutters are installed after the plaster and flooring work, whereas fittings-fixtures hardware, are fixed after painting and polishing work. Here the item is the same, but likely to be paid in parts at different time schedules.

▪ Multiple modes of measurements: Some items require multiple modes of measurements. A design office, supplier, manufacturing workshop, and the site supervisor, all have distinctly different ways of dealing with the same item. For example a flat-coiled spring that is used in a sofa can be readily measured in a linear measure, but real cost can only be estimated in a weight measure, (by which it is purchased). Similarly furnishing fabric may be estimated in square measures (area) but must be resolved into lengths (of woven fabric widths) for purchase. Leather may be estimated in square measure (area), but can be purchased in weight measures only. A designer tends to estimate the item in the form represented in the drawing, whereas the site-in-charge person would estimate the item in terms of its market form.

wikipedia image by Author JKBrooks85

▪ Applying same Mode of Measurement: Some work items are reclassified so that can be measured using the same mode of measurement. RCC slabs are paid in square measures (area), beams and columns paid in linear measures, and other massive works like foundations paid in cubic measures. Such multiplicity of measures can be avoided by awarding all RCC items in volumetric quantity and by separately awarding the form work and casting labour.

▪ Newer Modes of Measurements: Traditional markets do not readily accommodate the changes in tools, technology, or labour inputs that happen over a period. Yet, newer modes of measurements do come up, for example, marble flooring was once made mostly from factory cut pieces. On-site cutting was rare, as it required cutting with a chisel and manual edge-dressing (old technique). Each splitting (cutting with a chisel also required post dressing of two edges) was charged in double lengths. But with small rotary cutting machines (now commonly used) both split edges get a clean (polished) cut in a single effort. Earlier practice of charging marble floor-fixing by square measures, and splitting + edge dressing by length are not commercially valid or viable any longer. Now the marble flooring work is charged through one all-inclusive rate. Often this rate (square measure) also includes providing and laying the substrate as well as polishing the floor. And, in many instances to save the labour of billing etc. a certain percentage for skirting work (which earlier was a linear measure) is added to the floor work (square measure).

 Wikipedia image

▪ New work items: Newer work items require a very different attitude for mode of measurement. Cleaning a site (installations, furniture, furnishings) after the work is over, is a problem, for which no organized labour contractor is available. For this work no traditional mode of measurement practice exists. So a lump sum amount, or a percentage amount over the cost of painting is charged for the job of final cleaning of the site. This is a non-traditional item, but depending on the relevance, a logical solution has been achieved.

▪ Mode of measurement and billing: These two are intimately linked. When all sub items within a bill are dealt in one mode of measurement, and priced by a single or similar rates, the updating, revision or scrutiny becomes easier.

▪ Abstracting the modes of measurements: Mode of measurement of one type is generally transferable into another type (linear to square to cubic) (volume to the mass) (speed to distance and time). RCC slabs can be paid in square or cubic measure. A taxi driver may charge you on per kilometer basis, or on per day travel basis (that may include the cost of waiting). Where, for any reason, such transfers are not possible, permissible or illogical, the mode can be generalized into a neutral denominator like Monetary Value. Such abstracted modes are absolute in nature and provide a common ground for evaluation of many dissimilar entities.

▪ Usefulness of Mode of Measurement: Mode of measurement is a very critical tool for efficient use of resources. Saving (in monetary terms) of 7.5 to 12% can be achieved by efficient mode of measuring and related accounting methods. An efficient and logical measurement practice can reduce the labour and time involved in estimating and billing a job. Reduce the total number (types) of items and number of different rates for them, (by suitable accommodation of minor variations and acceptable methods of generalizations). Eliminate chances of disputes at all levels. In many instances extra items are eliminated, and where such items do appear, a clear basis for their identity is available.

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HUMAN RESOURCES in DESIGN ORGANIZATIONS

Post 129 - by Gautam Shah

 

 Organizations manage their work as projects or jobs. These are divided into smaller lots depending on the skills, resources and other inputs. These are assigned to individuals or smaller groups as distinct roles. Such allocations are never consistent assignments. The chief of the organization or the project leader often offers such assignments to new or untrained or un-experienced persons for two distinct reasons, One, to get fresh ideas, inputs, and Two, to recast a person’s talent. Such recast removes the tedium of repetitions and provides new exposures. The assignments are also diverted from one to another person, to achieve optimum results.

Wikipedia image Sea saw Gimbel by Author Dkirby7518

Jobs are also given out, to infuse new thoughts, work methods, and utilize different resources (plant, equipment, tools, talents). Jobs are presented to a person or a team, as an opportunity, challenge, and incentive. In design organizations personnel are identified in terms of their talents, such as: administrative staff, drafts-persons, cad operators, model makers, designers, job-captions, associates, and so on. In medium to large organizations common pools of human and other resources are formed. Project based team captions or job-based foremen draw their requirements of human and other resources from such pools.

 

Wikipedia image by Author Moxie Sozo

Organization is formed by people of different talents and personality traits that are reflected in their attitude and conduct. Some detest routine work as much as some love methodical procedures. Some are hard-headed realists compared to the idea floaters. These are not exclusive categories, and under appropriate conditions a person takes on other characteristics.

 Wikipedia image by Author Kencf0618

Dream-weavers are prolific generators of ideas and new concepts, but lack the skill to detail them. The dream-weavers are mercurial and have a fear of failure. A dream weaver must be an extrovert otherwise never gets acknowledged. Young age and dreams are synonymous, but an older person may show lack of sincerity.

Technocrats have a talent of visualizing structured entities. For them an entity is conceivable, if only, it is structured and so practicable. Technocrats are fastidious, uncompromising, and hardheaded. A technocrat may get entwined in detailing the parts, and may lose the grasp of the holistic scheme. When projects need a rethink, a technocrat may prove useless.

Exponents enjoy advocating ideas or schemes, without bothering either its authorship or practicability. They feel that the public attention received through the advocacy is the measure of their skill and success. Exponents are good at furthering the idea of a project, where project stack-holders interests are important design considerations.

Wikipedia image Source File:Julian Assange in Ecuadorian Embassy Author  Snapperjack from London, UK.

Patrons are not necessarily resourceful people, but are ready to support any new activity that takes them away from their routine chores, provides a novel experience, and keeps them busy. A person may become a sponsor by virtue of the position and powers to allocate resources. Such people are motivated by strategic gains through various sponsorship.

Arrangers are expert manipulators, and keenly look for a chance to jump into any difficult situation to manage it. As a risk taker they collect lots of benefits, and very fast.

Conservatives are very over careful by personality. Conservatism is due to a struggle less life or due to old age lethargy. They detest change, but if instrumental of causing even minor innovation, take a great pride.

 

 

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SOUND and SMALL SPACES

Post 128 - by Gautam Shah
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Acoustical properties of small rooms differ considerably from large spaces such as the auditoriums, concert halls, cathedrals, lecture halls, hospital wards, etc. Some of the most important elements that differentiate the quality of sounds are volume and depth or width of the space. In an average space original sound travels more or less straight to the listener, whereas the reflected sound must travel towards an edge or boundary, and then get bounced back to the listener. Such delayed reflections heard along with the original source sound cause of enrichment of sound and in some cases irritant echoes.

Size and Shape of a room affect the sound perception in a room. ‘In a room with parallel walls (almost all rooms), the sound gets a caught bouncing back and forth between the walls. Some sound waves are cancelled by their own reflections while others are reinforced’. Room with slightly askew walls, drastically reduces the redundant reflections between walls. Ancient Greeks found that rooms with the ratios of 2.62: 1.62:1 sounded universally good.

When an original audio source is recognized, one turns the head to that source. Head turning helps in tuning the source and also for eyes to locate the original source. Such audio source location and its visual perception create a psychological sense of adequacy. In very large volume spaces the original sound may become feeble at the peripheral areas, allowing a surface bounced sounds to dominate the listening.

•  In a large room, first-arrival times of the early reflected sound are typically on the order of 50-80 ms after the direct sound.

• For small rooms, the first-arrival times of the early reflected sound are few ms after the direct sound.

 Reflections often obscure the true source of a sound and reduce intelligibility. This effect is more pronounced in small rooms than larger ones because the walls are closer together, and so the reflections are stronger in strength, but not delayed enough to produce sonority. The strength of the reflections depends on the density and rigidity of the edge surfaces. Indeed, the worst environment for a home studio is a basement because cement walls are more rigid than partition or thin body walls. Thick walls around small space rooms improve the acoustic isolation, but thin partitions allow lower frequencies to pass through to get absorbed within the body or expended in vibrating the thin body mass.

Felix Mendelssohn's Leipzig study

In the natural world without walls or ceilings, the First Significant Reflection will always come from the ground. We subconsciously use the FSR to determine distance from an object. For example a person speaking to a listener from 2' distance, the initial sound will arrive about 2ms while the FSR will be about 11ms. Thus effective FSR is 9ms (11-2=9ms) to the listener. If the speaker is 10' away, the FSR will be about 5ms from the listener's perspective.

 

Singing in a bathroom sounds lively, but only to the person in the bathroom, because the reverberated sound seems to be richer, and fuller. A bathroom also offers a very private space for uninhibited behaviour.

Singing for self > Miranda sings Wikipedia pic Attribution: Gage Skidmore

Small rooms like a bathroom have small sizes, and smaller volumes. Such spaces include an inner sanctorum of temples, confession booths, personal prayer rooms, private offices kitchens, study rooms, store rooms and telephone kiosks. These rooms are used for personal meditation, prayers, recitation, singing, self-talk or person to person (one to one) voice communication (directly or through telephony).

 

Beyond the two qualitative characteristics of small spaces such as smaller size and smaller volume, it is the Nature of furnishings that affects the feel for sound. A bathroom like space is bereft of any soft surfaces, whereas study rooms are over furnished to make them cozy. Heavy furnishings, draperies, thick walls form a sound absorbent environment. Here the richness of the reflected sound is lost.

 

Small spaces allow multiple reflections from architectural boundaries and enrich the sound of one's voice. Small rooms often provide the ‘acoustic intimacy’ but do not have ‘acoustic grandeur’ of very large spaces. Large rooms have distinctive reflections which help us comprehend our location, the direction and distance of objects etc. In large rooms there are likely to be few surfaces that are horizontally askew, vertically inclined and surface quality wise irregular so some blurring of the reflections is inevitable.

Chamber music

A highly isolated space (cut off through high insulation) cuts-off the low frequency ‘interference’ of outside noises like traffic, wind, rustles of the leaves, etc. The internal low frequency noises of the room cannot be suppressed in absence of absence of background noises. As a result sounds our own body movement, rustling sounds of clothes or book pages, fan or air conditioner’s hiss etc. are over emphasized and become disturbing.

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