Journal | Barlow Motors

ABPL30037 | Architecture Design Studio 4: Fire

Amanda Ngieng | 377998

Designing A Building For Barlow Motors

Journal

Preface

The journal is split into 5 main parts:

The Brief Site Analysis Neon Sign Miniature Golf Hazard The Building

Although “The Building� section comes after the Miniature Golf Hazard, design has already begun since the neon sign.

The journal has been divided in the attempt to reduce clutter, and to organise the information into a more readable format.

This design project was a frustrating one, without a strong concept from the start, and with a lot of changes throughout.

This journal contains my designs throughout the semester, including the discarded ones.

The Brief

The Brief | outline Imagine that A.G. Barlow and A.A. Barlow are alive today and need a new building for Barlow Motors, consisting of a car showroom, a car service centre, a car park, a “bachelor’s apartment” for A.A. Barlow, and a rooftop miniature golf course.

The following brief is a minimum guide only. It does not include circulation, foyers or crush space.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Car showroom, 1800 sq m, including reception area and sales points (desks) on the showroom floor, and 5 offices each 20 sq m Boardroom, 35 sq m Service centre, 900 sq m (show car hoists, workbenches, etc.)

Service centre manager’s office, 20 sq m Staff showers, toilets and locker room Staff lunchroom, 35 sq m Car park for 300 cars (about two-thirds of the car park’s current capacity) Car park manager’s office, 20 sq m Male and female public toilets One-bedroom ‘bachelor’s apartment’ for A.A. Barlow Neon sign Rooftop 9-hole miniature golf course and a coffee shop

The Brief | interpretation To decide on the kind of building the Barlows would like to design, I’ve picked out a few words that can be said to describe them: Innovative Trendsetters Adventurous Spirit In particular the brief asks for a building that reflects the adventurous spirit of the Barlows.

A less complimenting fact about A.G. Barlow was the failures he had - his new car dealership (then called Barlow Motors) failed during the Great Depression, the loss he incurred when setting up a mini golf course, and his suicide. If he was alive today, these aspects of his life might be something he would want to change.

Taken the above into account, I will be designing a building that is futuristic in nature - not only innovative, trendsetting and adventurous, but one that reflects a brighter future for the Barlows; perhaps this time he would be more successful?

The Brief | choosing the brand of cars to sell Rather than choosing a brand, I have decided to choose a particular category instead.

Hybrid cars are still relatively new on the market, consisting of less than 3% of the 13 million cars sold in the U.S. in 2011. http://www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com/hybrid-car-sales-statistics.html

However with gas prices rising, hybrid technology is one that would be well sought after in the future, if it isn’t already. While sales of hybrids are not yet impressive, selling only hybrids seems like something Barlow might risk.

According to a website: Honda and Toyota were the first manufacturers in the market with petrol/electric hybrid technology, but they have since been joined by others, including Ford.

In Australia, we currently have only six hybrid models to choose from: Toyota’s Prius and Camry, the Honda Civic and three Lexus vehicles, including the RX400h SUV. Sales this year will exceed 5000 cars, less than 0.5 per cent of the market.

But more hybrids are coming. Even Porsche, one of the most performance oriented brands in the business, has announced a hybrid version of its Cayenne 4WD and a plug in hybrid sports car. http://www.mynrma.com.au/motoring/buy-sell/buying-advice/green/hybrids.htm

Although there are other developing technology for alternative energy sources (e.g. electricity, hydrogen cell), the technology in that aspect is still not near the immediate future. This is perhaps something that Barlow might anticipate, but for this design project I will just focus on hybrid cars. The company could probably be said to sell cars with alternative energy sources.

Site Analysis

Site Analysis | history “The site is 20-28 La Trobe Street, Melbourne (which is now part of 333 Exhibition Street). For over 100 years, this site has been associated with transport in one form or another, ranging from a horsedrawn coach works to a car park. From 1919 until 1930 Barlow Motors operated on this site. It is ideal for this kind of mixed development because there is car access off La Trobe Street, Mackenzie Street and Grant Lane. Assume a cleared vacant site.�

Site Analysis | dimensions

The dimensions given in the brief is slightly different from that measured from maps and Google Earth; for the site analysis the shape of the site drawn will follow these dimensions.

Drummo

nd St

Site Analysis | ways to access the site

Victoria St

ie St

M

nz acke

t Ln Gran

be o r T a

St

L

Site Plan 1:1000 @ A4

All access points can be used by both pedestrians and vehicles.

The site has two main entrances on the north and south.

Either entrances can be used as the main front of the building, however the following points should be noted: 1 From the north, a striking facade is likely to be more noticeable as compared to the south due to the greater amount of space around it, allowing more focus onto the building. On the south, the facade of the building would be surrounded by many buildings.

North Access Point - Mackenzie St

2 A facade on the north would be in view of people travelling along Mackenzie St, Victoria St, and Drummond St, while the facade on the south would only be seen by people along La Trobe Street. Due to the adjacent buildings around the site, the entrances are out of the view of car drivers most of the time.

3 Due to the nature of the design of the road, despite the fact that the north access is in view of three streets, there is only one possible way for the car to enter (as indicated in the site plan). While there are two ways to access the site from the south, one of them is technically illegal (dotted arrow), even if a site observation shows that cars do that anyway.

South Access Point - La Trobe St

A little further down the east of Victoria Street it is possible to do a U turn, so access via the north will not be that inconvenient.

4 The south facing part of the site is larger than the northern end, the size of which would be useful if designing the front of the building.

Access via Grant Ln is one-way only, and less obvious to the public. This should only be used for low traffic purposes e.g. as a service road or side entrance for pedestrians.

East Access Point - Grant Ln

Site Analysis | openness and views

A

B

C

The Site Relatively tall buildings impacting on the site

Northern View (6th floor) Building B - Hotel

Building C - Origin

The site is quite land-locked. Surrounded on two sides are relatively tall buildings. However it is quite open on the other sides (north and west) - something that should be noted when locating windows and directing views. It is likely to affect the experience on the roof.

Western View (8th floor)

While the current building on the site has no openings in its western wall, this wall looks out over an existing car park. Assuming that the neighbouring plot of land will never be building any buildings, windows or other openings can be incorporated in the design on this side of the site.

Western side of building As Carlton Gardens is located on the north-east of the site, Through the gap between Buildings A and B the Royal Exhibition Building can be seen. Framing this particular view is something that could be considered in the design on the building.

View through the gap between Buildings A and B (8th floor)

View through the gap between Buildings A and B (4th floor)

Site Analysis | sunlight and overshadowing

8 am

9 am

10 am

11 am

12 pm

1 pm

2 pm

3 pm

4 pm

5 pm

These renders were made in hourly intervals using Rhino, from 8am to 5pm during winter. From the images we can deduce that it is not until 2pm where the entire site gets the sun, and that the northern end of the site gets more sun throughout the day.

Neon Sign

Design Generation | brainstorming

Cars? Movement? Speed? Something that represents speed? Speed of sound, speed of light, flight. These are a series of quick sketches I’ve done when brainstorming.

Design Generation | refining base shape

This is a key sketch that I’ve singled out - the word “Barlow” here was written while the pen was still moving in the rhythm of the sound waves, hence the smooth and narrow font.

Considering the hybrid cars that I’ve chosen for the company to sell, I decided on changing the shape of the sound waves to electric waves.

On the left is an image that I have gotten off a website. These waves were incorporated into the neon sign.

http://jake-weird.blogspot.com.au/2011/01/ optimized-cables-neon-lights-high.html

Neon Sign | refining night appearance

Top: The base shape of the neon sign Middle: Using blue electricity for the sound waves.

Bottom: Varying the colours of the sound waves to better merge it with the words “Barlow Motors�.

Having done these, I was unsure about whether they really represented electricity.

In the lecture on neon signs I was introduced to the idea of moving neon signs. This led to the idea of causing the neon sign to flash like lightning.

Neon Sign | refining night appearance

To make it look like lightning, I broke up the words. A single base line runs through the sign, with some parts of it branching out, like the branches in lightning. For variety, I created eight of these lines.

At each point of time, there is a base line lighted up, with one fading away. This makes the words a little more readable.

The series of images on the left shows the sequence in which the neon sign flashes. To animate it, simply change from one image to another at a fixed tempo.

Unfortunately, although there is now movement in the neon sign, it is still not representing lightning like I wanted it too. I realised that it was too rigid. It changes, yes, but it changes in a fixed pattern. The dimming makes the sign too slow. It should be flashing quickly, irregularly.

To create my desired flashing effect, I quickly ran through introductory tutorials of Adobe Flash Professional CS5, and attempted to create a short video clip of the lines flashing.

This area is the timeline in Adobe flash. There are six rows, each row representing a main line. Each gray bar in the timeline is the period of time at which the main line is visible.

The image shown here is at a point of time when two images overlap.

I reduced the 8 main lines to six, and had each of them flashing at irregular intervals. Occasionally some would overlap, bringing a flash of the word Barlow.

There is no longer an attempt to focus on showing the words. Instead, the electrical aspect of it serves as the sign and is the attention drawing characteristic.

Neon Sign | materials

Front Face: Dark Metallic Blue Finish

Sides and Back: Polished Titanium

In the daytime, rather than looking like electricity, the sign has been designed to look sleek and classy.

The front faces of the words are of a deep metallic blue, and the sides and back are clad in polished titanium.

Neo Blue Neon - Powder/Neo Blue when off, Nice Blue when on

The dark blue face, other than giving a classy appearance, also serve to make the tube less noticeable in the day when they are unlit. At night it will enhance the blue of the neon lights, rather than interfering with their colours.

Neon Sign | in context

Drummond

St

The neon sign in this image is approximately 18m from ground level. It is about 5.4m in height and 17.8 in length.

Victoria St

e St

enzi

Mack

robe La T

St

I decided to place the neon sign on the northern end of the site to make the most of its huge size. Being so large, it would be legible along Victoria and Drummond street for quite a fair distance.

Miniature Golf Hazard

Miniature Golf Hazard | pinball idea (discarded)

When I first started designing a miniature golf hazard, I wanted to create something fun, like a game.

Something that uses the golf ball to do something it was not supposed to be doing, while keeping to my futuristic concept.

So I thought to make a pinball mini golf, one that has a futuristic theme story to it.

Miniature Golf Hazard | pinball idea (discarded)

Front part of mini golf pinball machine shown in plan

The idea was to have the golf ball represented a sort of monster, and the playing area of the machine to represent a city.

There are numerous paths you can take in here. The player stands at the front of the “machine�, like one would stand in front of the pinball machine. Also like in a pinball machine, the playing area is tilted on an angle, pulling the ball down by gravity so that it will always be pulled towards the player.

The player acts as the pinball fins, hitting the ball back up into the playing area whenever it rolls back down.

Back part of mini golf pinball machine shown in perspective

May be a multiplayer game, where a second person acts as a second flipper, which is typically located halfway up the pinball machine.

The goal is at the hole located at the end of the playing area, under the spaceship (monster goes safely home). Behind the hole is a ditch; so if you miss the hole or hit too hard, the ball will fall into that ditch, and it will be game over (monster gets lost in space).

The little people in the playing area can be run over, and is added as a side goal.

The red area is where a car has crashed, and is an area that must be avoided.

Miniature Golf Hazard | pinball idea (discarded)

Unfortunately, the only possible futuristic theme in this mini golf is the spaceship, which is more fiction than futuristic. The monster is fun, but it does not fit into my concept and it does not relate to Barlow.

The car crash is also questionable.

As much as I would like to play this, it seems to me that it is not one that should be in this design project.

I needed to think of another mini golf hazard, one that fits in better with my design concept.

When I was trying to think of a new idea, I saw a friend drawing a grid on a piece of paper, and got an inspiration.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches

I had a clear basic idea of this new mini golf from the start. It involves digital painting of an image, which will translate into a mini golf hazard via a machine system.

I started by doing a couple of sketches, then refining them as I made images for presentation.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches

One would first begin by using this machine to design the mini golf hazard.

This first step of drawing a path was made to ensure that customers do not forget to make a path for the golf ball to get though.

The top right of the screen shows a live preview of the course, which updates as you paint.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches

The next step involves designing the area around the path.

When I was drawing the image in Photoshop, I found that I liked to use the smudge, sponge and fill tools. As a result I included these tools in the user interface.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches Hypothetically, there would be two main queues in this mini golf hazard - one for drawing the mini golf hazard, and one for actually playing on the mini golf hazard.

To prevent someone from waiting at the drawing screen while waiting to play mini golf, I needed to design a separate interface that loads the design into the physical hazard.

To do so I needed a way for the mini golf on the drawing screen to be saved; in this case, the mini golf ID will allow the mini golf to be stored in a database.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches

This is the archive machine, where the user selects the golf hazard he wants to play on, and loads the image onto the physical mini golf playing area.

Because it is very likely that there would be some people who would not want to design their own mini golf and just wants to play, I allowed for them to have the option to just play hazards already pre-made by other people.

If a user wanted to access a particular golf hazard he had made a few days ago, he can tap to search by ID, input the ID he was given and tap “search�.

Miniature Golf Hazard | description and sketches

The user will be able to see a preview of the mini golf hazard (with pan, orbit and zoom) before confirming a selection.

Tapping “select� will load the mini golf hazard.

The machine will then send the necessary data over to the physical hazard, converting the designed mini golf into an actual playing field.

To make sure that no one tries to load another mini golf hazard while someone is still playing, I designed the interface as shown in the two images on the left.

A golf ball will be dispensed on the left when the physical hazard has finished loading and can be played on.

It is not until the mini golf ball is returned to the machine in the drop hole on the right before a new game can commence.

Miniature Golf Hazard | refining the machinery

For the blocks to move, there must be some kind of mechanism. To design this mechanism, I looked at the scissors lift.

Scissor lift, http://www.genielift.com/en/products/new-equipment/scissor-lifts/ slab-scissor-lifts/gs2632/index.htm

A few quick sketches helped me to visualise how the scissor lift might work.

After a fair bit of time modelling digitally to work out the scissor lift, I managed to figure it out.

For this hazard to be able to work, it is necessary to either recess the entire mini golf into the ground, or to raise it above the ground.

As it would have to be recessed into the ground by 1.2m, I thought it would be a better idea to raise it up. This way it would not interfere with the floor structure.

To get onto the platform, I simply used a series of steps. As it is impossible for the disabled to navigate in the hazard due to lack of space for wheelchair circulation, a ramp for disabled access is not required.

They will still be able to design mini golf hazards.

Miniature Golf Hazard | conclusion

Contrary to the pinball hazard, this hazard links in much better with my design concept. It links in with the idea of technology, with its use of digital painting, touch screens and machinery.

The changing nature of the hazard, and the fact that it involves painting, allows people to be creative and links in with the idea of being innovative.

Overall, I do not think that it is as fun or as challenging as the pinball hazard, however I feel that it is more relevant for this design project. It would also be quite fascinating to watch the hazard change shape to suit your painting.

A particular thing I got out of this mini golf design is a clearer direction to take in the design of my building - the idea of pixels.

Miniature Golf Hazard | plan at 1:50 @ A4

The Building

Research | futuristic style

After the site analysis, all that I know is that I want to design a futuristic style building, to do with the Barlows’ adventurous spirit and innovativeness, about moving towards the future.

But what counts as a futuristic building?

To start off with, I did an internet search on futuristic buildings, and looked at their form, colours, and overall aesthetic. A blog titled “From Architecture to Science Fiction - 93 Buildings� contains many relevant buildings. (refer to next page for images) In general, there is a lot of glass used in these buildings. Also, more than half of the images are white buildings, in particular a cool white, i.e. bluish white.

There is also this portrayal of weightlessness.

This inspires me to create a sort of floating city for my design.

Selected images from the blog “From Architecture to Science Fiction - 93 Buildings “, http://www.designyourway.net/blog/inspiration/from-architecture-to-science-fiction-93-buildings/

Research | futuristic style

http://www.evolo.us/architecture/prizma-high-density-urban-housing-in-montenegro-biothing/

http://www.evolo.us/architecture/student-dormitory-createshuman-interaction-through-a-figural-void/

http://www.evolo.us/architecture/sound-sculptures-architecturally-derived-instruments-of-sound/

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hangzhou-waves

Research | robotic car park Robotic car parking was a technology that particularly interested me.

“The Robotic Parking system is environmentally friendly and shows the dedication we have in helping the environment since it eliminates exorbitant high volume of emissions produced by vehicles inside a car park, while circulating when trying to find a space inside the garage. It is an active contribution to combat the effects of Global Warming and I welcome and appreciate the visions of EFT”. - Mr. Royce Monteverdi of Robotic Systems http://www.ameinfo.com/102443.html

It does indeed have a lot of benefits, and will free up the limitations in the design of my building - I would not need to allocate spaces for car circulation in car parks.

In the lecture, there was talk about the Chicago Marina Tower Car Park. I found it particularly interesting that a car park can be seen as dynamic - in this car park, cars are not hidden, and can be seen clearly from ground level. Throughout the day the cars move in and out of the car park, providing visual interest.

Chicago Marina Tower Car Park.

With a robotic car park tower I can achieve the same thing.

Before I can design a robotic car park, I needed to know how it works. The brochure as found in the link http://www. roboticparking.com/downloads/brochures/robotic_parking_brochure_12.pdf gives a very good explanation, including how one might park and retrieve his/her car.

One very important thing that I’ll need in my building is a waiting area. This can be the cafe, perhaps with free wifi or some sort of other entertainment.

But before I can really begin designing the building, I will need to figure out the general layout of the spaces in the building.

PARK YOUR CAR

RETRIEVE YOUR CAR 1. Drive up to the automated parking garage. The Robotic Parking System offers complete design flexibility and can blend with any neighborhood or project.

2. Drive into the convenient parking terminal. Multiple automatic sensors ensure that the car is properly positioned for parking.

Robotic Parking Systems offer better care and safety for vehicles.

6. Enter the well lit and secure ground floor lobby and put the parking card into the kiosk. The Robotic Parking System provides the highest possible level of security for individuals.

7. Screens display the exit terminal where the car can be retrieved. The Robotic Parking System swiftly delivers the car in 3 minutes or less.

3. Get out and lock the car.

There is no need to drive through the garage to find a parking space. Robotic Parking Systems offer a greater level of convenience.

8. The Robotic Parking Systems’ machinery delivers the car facing forward so that it is safe and easy to exit the garage.

4. Take the parking card from the kiosk and walk away. You get premium valet parking without the valet.

9. Get into the car in the exit terminal. It is not necessary to wander around inside the garage to retrieve the car.

5. Robotic Parking Systems does the rest. The car is picked up by the computerized machinery and lifts that will safely place it inside the building on a shelving system. The automated parking garage at Ibn Battuta Gate handles 250 cars per hour with up to 32 cars in motion at any one time.

10. Drive away. The Robotic Parking System makes parking safe and hassle free.

http://www.roboticparking.com/downloads/brochures/robotic_parking_brochure_12.pdf

Design Generation | layout

CAR SHOWROOM

TEST DRIVE ROBOTIC CAR PARK CAR ENTRANCE/ EXIT OF BUILDING

PEDESTRIAN ENTRANCE/ EXIT OF BUILDING CAFE/WAITING ROOM

SERVICE CENTRE RECEPTION

SERVICE CENTRE

The bubble diagram lays out the functions of the space, and points out what spaces have to be next to each other.

With this, I begin laying out my building, with the idea of “a pixellated city” at the back of my mind.

MINI GOLF ROOFTOP

Design Attempt 1 | plans and layout

Lift

Apartment

6th Floor

Outdoor staff private area

Robotic Car Park

Boardroom

5th Floor

Service Centre Robotic Car Park Mini golf (rooftop)

4th Floor

Service Centre Robotic Car Park Showroom

3rd Floor

Lift

Car lifts to showroom and service centre Showroom

Robotic Car Park

Lift

2nd Floor

Outdoor space

Robotic Car Park

Cafe / waiting area for cars

1st Floor

<-

Grant Ln

La Trobe St -> < - Mackenzie St

Ground Floor all plans at 1:500

This series of plans shows the basic layout of my building.

All entries and exits are on the ground floor, where a road runs straight through under the building and can be accessed from both Mackenzie and La Trobe Street.

This draft has many errors and is quite diagrammatic.

Design Attempt 1 | pros and cons

Side Elevation Building appears to be floating

The flexibility of robotic parking allows me to turn the car park into the tower, leaving a lot of space left for the other functions of the building.

Here there is a sort of courtyard in the middle of the building.

Massing Model

The mini golf course is located on the roof and is designed such that the floor level varies - this is to create more of a city look.

In a feedback session however, it was brought to my attention that the robotic car system is apparently quite complicated, even if I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t really think so myself. Talking to a few people, I realised that it was quite difficult for me to explain it too.

Not wanting to have a repeat of my miniature golf (where I had to create a whole series of diagrams to explain the interface) I decided to drop the idea of robotic car parking.

Design Attempt 2 | switching to traditional car park 31-18

Designing for vehicles

With the robotic car system gone, it is necessary to rework my plans.

A traditional car park requires a lot of space, and I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to create a tower as I felt no one would ever want to drive up more than ten stories to park their car.

b echelon parking at 45° (other angles can be used): 32.0 m2 per car or 28.0 m2 where interlocking in adjacent rows

a in-line parking 27.0 m2 per car against kerb, 32.6 m2per car against wall

The Metric Handbook gives a few different types of ramps for use in a c head-on parking, 26.5 m car park.

31.38 Basic parking dimensions. Large European parking or American bay or stall 5.8 2.8, allow 33 m per car, including

2

per car

2

half the clear zone but no access gangways

31.39 Types of multi-storey car parks

Wherever public or private parking facilities are provided,

manoevring of wheelchairs for transfer, and any kerbs should be

appropriate arrangements for disabled people, whether drivers or ramped.

Looking atbe these, I found the passengers, should made. Disabled parking baysthat should be as close as possible to the place that the user needs to go, and 8 LOADING AND UNLOADING car park system (circled in red) that preferably under visual supervision to discourage misuse by others. 31.40 to 31.45 show requirements for loading, unloading and Bays should by be atthe least 800 mm wider than is used existing carstandard, parktoispermit still parking large vehicles. the most efficient for such a narrow site. As I was thinking of going for a pixellated aesthetic, the squarish nature of the ramp also fits in well with my concept.

For this car park system to work well, it is best placed at the southern end of the site, where it is wider.

Design Attempt 2 | redesigning b echelon parking at 45° (other angles can be used): 22.1 m2 per car or 19.2 m2 where interlocking in adjacent rows

I started by drawing out the plans for the new design, roughly allocating the required amount of space for the different functions.

As I no longer wanted customers to use the a robotic car system, the car service centre has to be at a more accessible location; for this reason I decided on putting it on the northern end of the site, right under the showroom. This means that people will be able to drive straight into the service centre from the lower ground entrance at La Trobe Street.

2

c head-on parking, 18.8 m for perEuropean car Basic parking dimensions 2 parking lot.

Strangely this is different from 4.8 2.4, allow 24 m per car, including half the the American one, but as I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think it is particularly important which I take for the design project, I picked the one that is more convenient for me.

The showroom centre is now accessible at the ground floor at Mackenzie Street.

After laying out the spaces of the functions, I focused on the space for the car park.

Following the Metric Handbook, and considering the amount of space I had on the site, I decided on a 5m x 3m car park lot, with a 7m clear zone. This makes it 47 cars per floor, which means I will require approximately 7 floors of car park.

Massing Model It is no longer a floating pixellated city - it is only a pixellated city now.

Basement

LG

G

L1

L2

L3

Above Car Park

Above Minigofl

Design Attempt 2 | robotic car lift system

Although I am no longer using a robotic car parking system, I am still using the system for another function: as a car storage.

This will still let me create a mini tower in my building. I want to use this mini tower with its wall of cars to act as a sign - telling people that the building is about cars.

To explain how this works, I decided on generating a series of diagrams, rather than playing a video.

1

2

1

6 3

6

2

7

4

7 3

8

5

8 4

9 Robotic system parks the car into the robotic car storage

5

10

9

Parking the car onto the rotating platform and transporting the car up into the robotic storage.

10

Design Attempt 2 | changing location of mini golf

With the plans roughly laid out, I started modelling it in 3D to resolve the vertical circulation spaces.

Mini golf area (in red) sits awkwardly on top of car park.

Very quickly I found out that the mini golf on top of the car park does not fit very well, especially if I wanted a flat ground for the mini golf.

The car park ramp really confused me.

I decided to move the mini golf over to the northern end of the site.

From the site analysis it has been determined that the northern end of the site gets more sun throughout the day; so the mini golf should have been on the northern end of the site in the first place. It was only on the south because I wanted it to be high up, on top of the car park.

Model after figuring out circulation

Design Attempt 2 | adding details

After making the necessary changes, I went continued working on the plans, adding details.

Model with added details

Design Attempt 2 | adding details

5-30

Buildings and movement

Design basics: Buildings and movement

5.90 Passing between two items of furniture, one table height lower, the other higher on the wall

apted for easy gripping 5.59 Enclosed shower with tray, and activity space adequate for drying. A nearby dressing space is presumed

an be manipulated by small and arthritic fingers. not recommended, however, as in extreme cases be modified to provide similar facility. Under a , it is now obligatory in new installations for the he right and the hot on the left, unless there are s otherwise: this is in order to assist visually Tops should be boldly colour-coded.

mmon to install showers which are more ecoand energy use than bathtubs. Disabled people find it easier to shower than to get in and out of

5.86 Lockers: a type 1a with hat shelf; b type 1b with hat shelf and vertical divider. Not available in A, B or C; c type 2, two tier; d type 3, three, four, five or six tier

5.91 Passing between the wall and tall furniture

5.60 Unenclosed shower without tray, and activity space for drying and dressing

with and without trays and enclosures, are not altogether suitable for disabled people installed with the rim level with the floor and ckboard. Continental practice of an impervious m floor laid to fall to a gulley has not been wed in the UK, although this can be ideal for A shower installation specifically designed for bled person is shown in 5.61. The compartment ated, with a fold-away seat and with pegs for y side, divided from the wet with a shower r supply should be automatically controlled to en 35 and 49 C. The shower head should be on le hose, with a variety of positions available for

s and swimming pools, showers are provided in 5.63. recommends 900 mm2 as the minimum size for e, but most of the shower trays and enclosures between 700 and 800 mm2.

shower with tray, and activity space. This is for de of the tray, and to facilitate initial drying A nearby area of 1100 900 will be needed for ressing

5.87 Cross-section of lockers with seats

5.92 Watching television. Most people prefer to sit a distance more than eight times the height of the picture

5.61 Plan of shower room for elderly or disabled person, showing seats and aids

5.93 Dressing in front of wardrobe

5.88 Lockers with coat rail, hat and shoe racks

5.62 Range of unenclosed showers, activity and circulation spaces

Information on showers (Metric Handbook)

5.89 Passing items of furniture, each table height or lower

Information on lockers (Metric Handbook)

5.94 Making single bed

The Metric Handbook was very helpful in terms of giving dimensions. With these dimensions I designed the internal layout of the building components.

I am unsure of what staff showers and lockers are used for, but I am assuming that the lockers are for people to put things in when they shower (similar to those found at public swimming pools), and the showers are for the staff who work at the service centre.

In the case that the lockers might be used by staff whether they shower or not, I made sure to provide plenty of lockers.

I considered making the toilets gender free, but since there were plenty of space in the basement, and people would generally be uncomfortable with gender free toilets (in particularly gender free shower rooms), I decided against doing so.

Basement (staff area)

Design Attempt 2 | adding details

To add details to the service centre, I had to research on what a service centre does, for I have never been to one.

Basically I found out that one would generally go to a reception area to ask for advice and quotes about servicing their car, before sending the car in for servicing.

I also looked at plans of service centres that I could find, and found that they had large spaces allocated for the storage of parts.

As the plan (on the right) from fentonmill.com only had service hoists and workbenches in the service area, I did the same in my plan.

LG (service centre)

Possible interior of the storage in service centre http://www.montel.com/en/markets/industrial/aerospace/service-center

Service Centre Plan, http://www.fentonmill.com/auto_service_center.htm

Design Attempt 2 | adding details

As I found when 3D modelling, the showroom has to be raised 1m above ground level to allow the service centre to have a ceiling height of 4m.

These heights are very important for the staircases in my building to work. I want my service centre, showrooms and cafe to be spacious. The carpark, because of its ramps, has a fixed floor to floor height of 3m. Providing 500mm for floor structure, that will be a floor to ceiling height of 2.5m, which is too low for my liking to use in the showrooms.

As the landings of my fire stairs are at 1.5m intervals, the next floor to floor height I can use for the northern end of the site is 4.5m, which works fine.

For the entry into the building I decided on a long ramp. This serves to allow access for wheelchairs and prams, as well as for showcase cars to get into the showroom on the ground floor.

Ground (showroom)

L1 (showroom)

Possible circular glass lift and staircase combination http://www.shutterpoint.com/Photos-ViewPhoto. cfm?id=120251

It was difficult to fit in the office space.

As I was running out of space on the showroom floors, I moved the offices one floor up, next to the cafe. I designed these spaces around the circular lift.

L2 (cafe & public toilets)

Design Attempt 2 | facade generation

During my research on pixellated buildings, I found the Frog Queen building. Having already decided to do a decorated shed for my building, this building fascinated me, inspiring me to design my facade in a similar manner.

Frog Queen, http://www.curbly.com/users/diy-maven/posts/7366-pixelated-building

First I had to find icons that were to do with cars, preferably hybrid cars. So I searched for a logo that represented hybrid cars.

http://www.greenly.com.au/green-living/how-green-are-hybrid-cars/

After drawing these, I looked back at the original building, and realised it probably wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t work. The way the facade works is to have a uniform, repeated shape; the illusion works in the same way as how a black and white printer prints - dots at different densities. In the case of the Frog Queen, the shape is the circle.

In the end I decided on road signs. Modelling it in Rhino, I was pleased to see that it was working.

I decided to make the back of the facade blocks that protrude at varying amounts - this is just to add visual interest within the building.

Design Attempt 2 | facade generation (discarded)

I then modelled this facade digitally onto the southern facade to view the effect.

The result was quite disappointing to me.

It does look pixellated, which is great, but it reminds me way too much of the tiled toilet walls.

Disliking this too much to keep it despite the work thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gone in, I looked for another way to achieve a pixellated facade.

Pixellated toilet wall, http://www. apartmenttherapy.com/tile-vault-elcardenal-palmas-64030

Design Attempt 3 | redesign

Looking through buildings with the pixellated style, another building caught my interest. This is the Pixellated building of DnB NOR headquarters.

It changed the direction my thoughts was taking. Originally I thought of only creating a flat, pixellated facade. Now I am thinking of constructing the building out of cubes to get the pixellated effect.

Not only does this create a good, pixellated facade, it will also serve to organise the space within the building; in particular the showroom space, which I had problems designing before.

This, however, meant that the entire northern end of my building has to be redesigned.

And it is already the end of week 9!

Pixellated building of DnB NOR headquarters by MVRDV, http://cobagonzo.blogspot.com.au/2012/01/pixelated-building-of-dnb-nor.html

Design Attempt 3 | redesign

Here the northern end of the building has been redesigned. It is entirely made of cubes, with an open top.

It is at this stage where I had redesigned the plans of the interior. However there is so little change to the plans from now until the final (apart from making them presentable) that the plans will be discussed later on in the journal, using the final plans.

It was with this image that I got the suggestion from my tutor: why not make the building look unfinished?

That was the best suggestion she could have given me. I was at a design block after getting here, and it helped me to move on. Making it look unfinished ties in nicely to my original idea of progression.

Design Attempt 3 | facade generation

With making it look unfinished in mind, I set about designing the car park facade.

The idea is to make it look like it is still forming.

First I tried to create the idea of movement, of something forming, by making the squares get increasingly denser.

I wanted to create openings in the facade, so I made the squares get smaller on the denser end, so that it now looks like smaller squares merging into larger squares.

I then moved the squares randomly, and played around with the density of the squares until I got a form I was satisfied with.

Design Attempt 3 | car park columns

Making the building look unfinished also gave me the idea to change the completeness of a column depending on floor level.

The columns look increasingly unfinished towards the upper floors as there are less concrete covering the exaggerated steel structure.

Fun fact: the exposed number of rows of horizontal bars coincide with the floor level of the car park.

Design Attempt 3 | the form

I find the final form quite satisfactory. The building is finally pulling itself together.

Design Attempt 3 | refining windows

I wanted to make the windows look more full on the outside, i.e. with a thinner border. For this, I recessed the floor slab and modified the ceiling.

To make the windows look pixellated, the glazing will be set at different opacities.

This will also serve to regulate sunlight and heat in the building, preventing it from becoming a greenhouse.

These are the elevations; they show how the different opacities of the glass make the building look more pixellated.

Design Attempt 3 | basement plan

A

The basement plan was kept pretty much the same as the one in design attempt two, apart from the added sofa.

FIRE STAIRS

STAFF LUNCHROOM

STAFF SHOWERS

STAFF LOCKERS

A

Basement Plan

Design Attempt 3 | lower ground floor plan

A

With scale cars in the plan, I realised that my car hoists were too small before, and had to be enlarged.

More details were added into the plan, such as the reception desk and storage shelves.

WORKBENCH

SERVICE CENTRE

CAR HOIST

FIRE STAIRS

OFFICE

SERVICE CENTRE MANAGER

RECEPTION

OFFICE CAR PARK MANAGER

TEST CARS

FIRE STAIRS

CAR PARK ENTRY LA TROBE ST

CAR PARK EXIT

PEDESTRIAN ACCESS

LA TROBE ST

LA TROBE ST

A

Lower Ground Plan

Design Attempt 3 | showrooms

A

A

OFFICE

POINT OF SALE

MAIN STAIRS

MAIN STAIRS

SHOWROOM

SHOWROOM

OFFICE RECEPTION

FIRE STAIRS

FIRE STAIRS

PEDESTRIAN ACCESS GRANT LANE

FIRE STAIRS

A

FIRE STAIRS

A

Ground Plan

1st Floor Plan

A

Here there is a big change as compared to design attempt 2. The interior has be reworked such that it reflects the cube aesthetic of the facade. Showcase cars are slotted into pockets.

OFFICE

Unlike the previous attempts, offices are now integrated into the showroom. This takes up more space of the showroom, and so an extra floor of showroom has been added.

MAIN STAIRS SHOWROOM

OFFICE

OFFICE

FIRE STAIRS

FIRE STAIRS

A

2nd Floor Plan

Design Attempt 3 | cafe

A

The cafe and public toilets have been completely redesigned as well to fit into the cube modules.

KITCHEN CAFE

Now with more space without offices, I can add in more tables and chairs; the cafe before was quite small. It now has 108 seats. The kitchen has been altered to be large enough to accommodate that many seats, based on the formula of 0.4m2 per seat as was given in the Metric Handbook.

MAIN STAIRS

PUBLIC TOILETS

FIRE STAIRS

STORAGE

FIRE STAIRS

A

3rd Floor Plan

In large hotels, a central food production and dishwashing area may be located to serve a number of alternative restaurants directly or by circulation to more remote outlets such as in room service and banquet serveries.

4.02 Goods access For sizes of vehicles, see Chapter 30 of this Handbook. Typical delivery arrangements are:

and 1500 mm high. Space may be required for co return to suppliers, 17.15.

4.04 Preparation areas Kitchen areas and layout are determined by: sizes of equipment and benches • The • Space for working access and circulation

Some typical dimensions are: goods: weekly or fortnightly • Dry Frozen goods; weekly top and sink rim height: 870–900 mm • Vegetables and fresh fruit: twice weekly • Work Wall bench width: 600–750 mm • Perishable foods: daily • Refuse and waste removal: depends on size and contract: weekly • • Table IV Typical food production areas per restaurant seat Type of restaurant Example

Kitchen area (m2 per seat)

Type of food prepared

Fine dining 80 seats

0.9

choice menu, fresh food Cooked to order

Speciality food/ethnic 80 seats

0.7

a la carte menu, Cooked to order

Midmarket restaurant Themed 100 seats

0.6

limited menu part convenience food

Cafeteria 140 seats

0.4

cooked and cold choices part convenience food

Popular restaurant 100 seats

0.4

standard menu convenience food

Fast food/takeaway 50 seats

0.8–1.0

System production high volume sales

Note: Preparation, cooking and dishwashing take up about 50% of the total kitchen areas. Storage, service and staff facilities the remainder.

Table for calculating kitchen size (Metric Handbook)

17-6

Restaurants and foodservice facilities

Key information for redesigning layout of tables (Metric Handbook)

17.5 Minimum space between tables to allow for seating, access and circulation

a Limits for maximum reach for men and w

b Convenient reach for heavy or frequently

17.15 Heights for storage shelving

Design Attempt 3 | miniature golf course

A

A

HOLE 4

HOLE 8 HOLE 7

HOLE 3

HOLE 6

HOLE 2 MINIATURE GOLF COURSE

HOLE 9 MINIATURE GOLF COURSE

RECEPTION

MAIN STAIRS

MAIN STAIRS

HOLE 1

HOLE 5

FIRE STAIRS

FIRE STAIRS

GARAGE

BOARDROOM LIVING STORAGE

BACHELOR’S APARTMENT WIR

DINING

BEDROOM KITCHEN

BALCONY

FIRE STAIRS

A

A

4th Floor Plan

5th Floor Plan

Looking through all the miniature golf hazards on the LMS, I picked out hazards that conform to either the idea of technology, or has the cube aesthetic, or both.

HOLE 1 FLOATING PLANE

BY NATHAN SU

Because the formats of the plans are all quite different, I decided to only put the silhouette of the hazards in the plans, and provide a perspective separately.

I saw at least two pinball machines :D

HOLE 2 THE GRID

BY NATHAN SU

HOLE 5 MOVING PLANES

BY WIEBE DE BOER

HOLE 3 MIRRORED CUBE

BY NATHAN SU

HOLE 6 LIGHT OF THE CITY

BY THEODORE TONG

HOLE 4 CREATE YOUR OWN

BY AMANDA NGIENG

HOLE 7 CANYON

BY MAX UMBACH

FINISH

START

HOLE 8 MOTHERBOARD

BY GERARD TURNBULL

HOLE 9 ADAPTATION

BY VICTOR WONG

Design Attempt 3 |robotic car storage plan

A

A robotic car storage plan has been included as I thought it was an important part of the building.

ROBOTIC CAR STORAGE

A

Robotic Car Storage Plan

Design Attempt 3 | refining showroom interior

Before I can make renders of the showroom, I had to figure out how the lights look like in the interior, as well as the actual opacity of the glass.

Through multiple renderings I am able to get the right lighting and the effect I desire.

Design Attempt 3 | section

As my building is split into different functions per floor, and is quite straightforward in terms of planning, I have decided to do only one section for the building.

The section cuts though the centre staircase linking the northern and southern end of the site, and shows how the staircase works with the floors of different elevations.

Since I am only making one section, I decided to make a perspective section, which will be able to show more information about the building.

I modelled roughly all the furniture that can be seen in the building so as to differentiate the spaces better in the section; most of these furniture can be already found in the plans.

I decided against colouring the glazing for the sake of clarity.

The Physical Model

I used laser cutting for my physical model.

The physical model, in my case was made more as a presentation model rather than to explore design possibilities. Regardless, while I was remodelling the entire building to suit material dimensions, I found certain errors within the building such as unwanted gaps and missing structure, and could fix them in my plans.

For the sake of the presentation model, I avoided labelling the model directly, and instead labelled the pieces on a digital copy of the pieces.

The first time doing such and intensive job using laser cutting, I found that the machine is not as accurate as I thought it would be. As a result, my car park is about 6mm narrower than it should be. It is good that this ended up not too obvious when the model is put together.

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The Physical Model

The model can be taken apart in levels, and also be divided in half overall, separating the northern and southern ends of the site.

With labels, the model is able to explain the layout of the spaces quite well. Unfortunately cutting out holes for the windows would make the model too fragile, so the windows look like walls in the model, which can be misdirecting.

Post Presentation

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Apart from looking unfinished, what part of your building represents progression?â&#x20AC;?

That was a difficult question I got during the critique.

My building is more monumental than anything - more like a representation. It is a decorated shed, with a facade over a functional interior.

But I was told that my design should not stop at the facade. I do not think that it did, but I must admit my concept did not shape the interior very much (should it?), apart from the grid layout and aesthetic. ...

One thing that I would have liked to include in the design is to make it possible for the opacity of the glazing to change. This can be controlled manually, or change automatically depending on the amount of sunlight.