Hurst Park housing design competition: environmental design review

This study expands on an environmental design report in partial fulfillment of the writers’ M.Phil in environmental design in architecture. The scope of this study is to review how environmental issues enter into the creative process of an environmental design assignment. The assignment integrates within the design process physical and software tools. The study proposes that core environmental guidelines are generative in the design process and environmental tools function best as assessment, validation and fine-tuning of that process

Daylight in window design

This paper expands on a case study of a Ralph Erskine University building located in Cambridge, UK. It explores the relationship between daylight, visual perception and window design. The scope of this paper is to serve as a reminder that window design has an important influence in the quality and use of architectural space. The paper suggests that through an articulated use of window types the designer has the opportunity to extend the control on the function and perception of a space. The conclusion shows examples of this articulation and proposes an integration of the effects of window design at the onset of the design process

Photovoltaic design integration at Battery Park City, New York

This paper is a study of the photovoltaic (PV) systems in the buildings’ design of the Battery Park City (BPC) residential development, in New York. The BPC development is the first in the US to mandate, through the 2000 Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) guidelines, the use of PV as renewable energy generation system in its individual buildings. The scope of this study is to show how PV is integrated in the BPC buildings’ design process, and what can be learned for future PV applications. The study draws directly from the design decision making sources, investigating on the concerns and suggestions of the BPC architects, PV installers and real estate developers. It attempts to contrast a theoretical approach that sees PV as a technology to domesticate in architecture and bring, through grounded research, PV industry closer to the architectural design process. The findings of the study suggest that while stringent environmental mandates help, in the short term, to kick-start the use of PV systems in buildings, it is the recognition of the PV’s primary role as energy provider, its assimilation in the building industry, and its use in a less confining building program that allows for its evolution in architecture

Aesthetic vision and sustainability in The New York Times Building ceramic rod facade

This study investigates the implications of the New York Times Building aesthetic vision in respect to its sustainability goals; namely: to enhance the NYT work environment through the effective management of daylight, offsetting the building’s lighting and cooling energy demands. The study focuses on the role of the ceramic rod façade and concentrates on its implications on the building’s energy demands. The study makes a case for aesthetics informing the building’s sustainability goals and pushing for innovative solutions to sustainable architecture

Spencer Street Station

Construction site interview materia

Bank of America

on-site video interviews relevant to paper entitled PV Design Integration at Battery Park City, New Yor

Digital video interviews, Battery Park City, New York, NY

These video clips accompany as reference the following article: Medio, Simone (2013) Photovoltaic design integration at Battery Park City, New York, Buildings 3(1) [Submitted]. They were filmed in New York City in 2007/2009, and consist of interviews and discussions with the following people: Susan Kaplan, Battery Park City Authority; Anthony Pereira, altPOWER; David Hess, Pelli Clark Pelli Architects; Barry McCormick, EE&K Architects; Bhaskar Srivastava, Ismael Leyva Architects; and Rick Kearns, Handel Architects. To view the video clips, click on each file name

New York Times Building

Construction site intervie

The unresolved rooftop

This study is prompted by the observation that an overwhelming number of buildings in the world have rooftops that are architecturally irresolute, under designed, uncharacterised; in one word: unresolved. In those instances, the level of design resolution of the rooftop is insignificant when compared to its corresponding facade. There is an evident, sudden drop in design tension and architectural investigation. Has this condition perpetuated through time, and is this trend continuing? What alternatives are there to the unresolved rooftop? This study seeks to explore the topic of the unresolved rooftop in architectural design, defining its features and origins and providing evidence of its visibility and presence in the world. It associates the design of the unresolved rooftop to the flat rooftop of the modernist era, and proposes it as a recurring theme and opportunity in contemporary architectural design. The study limits itself by suggesting three areas of investigation into the persistence of the unresolved rooftop in design practice and education and provides examples of counter-trends with the scope to stimulate a greater awareness of the unresolved rooftop and to promote change

Design forces and agents of change in the flat unresolved rooftop

When we look at buildings from above, we are likely to see a landscape of asphalt, gravel, or concrete-clad flat rooftops. In that instance, there is a clear, immediate drop in design tension between the building’s façade and its corresponding rooftop. In most cases, flat rooftops are situated in the back-alley of buildings, prone to the allocation of mechanical systems or adapted to open air roof gardens in need of shelter. The roof, however, is arguably at the heart of architectural design with the potential for generating technologically innovative and evolved architecture. This paper builds on a study previously conducted by the author entitled “The Unresolved Rooftop” and expands on the relationship between the building’s design process and the level of rooftop design investigation. The aim of this paper is to foster a disengagement of the unresolved rooftop in the design process and to reinstate full design investigation at rooftop level. The paper uses a qualitative and quantitative research methodology; it considers key elements of the design process (i.e. design program, contextual investigation, and technological integration) and attempts to bring forth and question the design forces that impinge on the resilience of the unresolved rooftop and individuate design-led agents of change