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ARCH 2700 STRUCTURES I Professor Dustin Albright Fall 2018

T A B L E OF C O N T E N T S

PROJECT EXERCISES

OTHER

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01 02 03 04 05 06

FORM

p.4

STRUCTURE

p.6

BRIDGES

p.8

TOWERS

p.12

LOAD TRACING

p.14

LEE 3 VISIT

p. 18

TENSILE STRUCTURES

p. 20

COURSE SUMMARY

p. 22 3

01

FORM Form is a word with many meanings. In fact, the word form is easily subjective, causing the meaning of form to change depending on its context. When I think of form in regards to architecture, I’m always brought back to the mantra many architects abide by, “Form follows function.” In other words, the shape a building (or object) takes must directly relate to its function. It is a simple, yet effective quote by Louis Sullivan that has changed the way designers everywhere built the foundation of their designs. Though there’s no denying Sullivan makes a lot of sense in those words, my personal interpretation of form is very simple. I have concluded that form in the contextual confines of architecture is a fancy way of saying ‘to build’ or is merely a synonym of shape.

Materials: paper

The shape of an object can be distorted, changing its form. In relation to the model, I chose to use paper—a flat sheet of paper. When paper is folded, each crease creates a memory on the page. By using that tactic, one can change the form of any sheet of paper. With a simple crease pattern, a flat sheet of paper can transform into an object completely different than its In collaboration with Jake Nixon initial form.

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01

STRUCTURE No matter how you slice it, the word structure will always relate to the arrangement of something.

Structure is everywhere. It’s in the buildings you live in, the cars you drive, the furniture you sit on, the essays you write, and even your own body. Without structure, a student’s paper wouldn’t make any sense, the legs on a chair would collapse as you sit on it, and buildings would fall to the wind. Structure is the glue that binds it all together.

Materials: 1/8” wooden square dowels

When I think of structure, I immediately think of a building—whether it’s a house or a skyscraper, structure is essential for both. Because of this, my partner and I chose to construct a very minimalistic adaptation of a house. This model represents that even the simplest of structures can add to the form of a building as well as the building’s ability to stand on its own. Our choice in wooden dowels was not without reason. The wooden dowels display the simple fact that wood is easily accessible/available to most people in a variety of scales.

In collaboration with Jake Nixon

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02

BRIDGES

Horizontal Structure

The task was to create a horizontal structure that spans a distance of 24� or more. The challenge was to create a horizontal structure that will abstain the weight forces that would soon be working against it. My partner and I, we approached these objectives by keeping the respective list of requirements in mind: graceful, strength, and efficiency. In our approach, we took the list and the order it was arranged in quite literally. We decided to obtain our design by following that exact order. By using the method of a Baltimore truss, we were able to achieve the strength and beauty that we were striving for. The efficiency relied on our careful use of materials as well as our craft.

Materials: 1/8� wooden square dowels

In collaboration with Jake Nixon

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Point Loads

Follow Up

Destructive Testing

Though our bridge held a considerable amount of weight, it proved to be inefficient compared to the class’s most efficient bridge. It was one of the heaviest bridges due to the excessive use of dowels for the decking. What led to our bridge’s ultimate failure was the inconsistency of some of the dowels along the foundation of the frame. Luckily, this type of failure was ductile. Therefore, there were signs of breakage before the final collapse.

Materials: Point Load

7”

Point Load

14”

Pre-Devastation

In collaboration with Jake Nixon

Free Span

10

21” Length

24”

Live Loads Added

Dead Load

186 grams/0.41006 lbs

Failure

Breaking Point

11 weights (20,175 grams/45 lbs)

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03

TOWERS

Vertical Structure For this project, we attemped to understand the means of what makes a vertical structure resist the unpredictable as well as the predictable. In this case, the predictable is wind which was represented by placing bean bags along the side of the tower as it lays on its side. By doing this, our structure’s efficiency and its ability to resist deflection was tested.

Our tower was designed based on a diagrid pattern of trusses not only for the sake of aesthetics, but for the reputation that known diagrid structures have in reality.

We believed that if we followed this strategy for our model, our use of materials would be proved efficient as the dead load worked to resist the forces of the wind load.

Materials: 1/8” wooden square dowels mdf board

The height of the tower is calculated at 24” without the 3/4” base. Along the span of the tower, there is cross bracing every 4”. The dowels of the cross bracing are continuous rather than having a break in one of the dowels. We were able to do this by doubling up on dowels along the frame. This added to our tower’s In collaboration with Jake Nixon strength.

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4”

24”

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04

LOAD TRACING In exercise 4, we were expected to construct a model that should only slightly differ from the rest of the class.

This exercise challenges us to understand the assembly of structural framing and challenges us to approach the development of the model in our own way.

Materials: 1/8” wooden square dowels 1/4” wooden square dowels wire mdf board chip board

When building this model, my partner and I were faced with our own challenges. We chose to tie the structural members of the primary framing together using wire.

Our initial thought in choosing wire over something such as string was that wire would be able to weave the same way that string does, but it would hold its form better and there would be no risk of fraying.

Though the wires wrapped around the connections are unsightly, they serve a greater purpose— they function as insurance for the dowels. For example, we drilled into the dowels in order to tie the structure together, in doing so, there was high stress in many areas, increasing the risk of the wood splitting.

In collaboration with Jake Nixon

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Joist Decking

Follow Up During the follow up, we learned of the load triangulation that could be added with the use of cross bracing. String was used as cross bracing between each bay. The string was only applied to one corner of the model to demonstrate the importance of cross bracing. The corner with cross bracing was able to remain vertical and stiff when force was applied while its opposing side shifted with the force. To prevent twisting due to torsion, cross bracing must be applied to the opposite corner as well in order to provide balance within the structure.

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Beam

Column Foundation

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05

LEE 3 VISIT It is known as “The Building that Teaches”. Lee III’s exposed structure gives its architecture students a glimpse into the fundamentals of steel structural systems which they must create in their projects each semester.

Lee III is a steel structure with a large spanning roof that arches over it. Visible in Lee III’s glass façade are a series of vertical members known as steel columns which receive axial loads. Its main structure also consists of girders that lie atop the walls which is where more steel columns remain unexposed. Attached to the girders are steel beams which receive transverse loads.

These beams carry the load of the decking and the concrete that is poured on top of it.

Materials:

Because of the wide range that the roof spans, another set of columns, known as tree columns, are strategically placed. The columns have arms that expand to receive point loads from the beams and bring them back to the columns. Sticking out from the arms are flanges to prevent twisting and ultimately torsion. Whenever there is a point load, it is ideal to have a web stiffener toIn collaboration with Jake Nixon keep the load from buckling. Beneath the columns are a set of spread footings that help the vertical member stay vertical and control building movements.

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TENSILE STRUCTURES The process that led to my structure’s final form was a series of trial and error. Though I wanted to design something unique, I wanted the structure to have purposeful geometry. To help me visualize what area I would be working with, I built my boundaries within my 1’x1’ base. These boundaries were executed using a wireframe method. This allowed me to play around with the possibilities.

Materials: 1/4” wooden circular dowels nylon fabric wire mdf board

By testing different sizes of fabric, I was able to understand what size it needed to be in order for it to stretch enough to form a catenary curve that was absent of any wrinkles. The tensile structure is actually 3 tensile structures in one. All 3 take a catenary form as the curves were developed through tension caused by stretching the fabric.

In collaboration with Jake Nixon

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COURSE SUMMARY A driving factor in what makes architecture work is the structure that is carefully and personally designed for each building. Predating this course, I was given a glimpse into architectural tectonics, the art of construction, but I never learned about the details behind these methods. I had a hard time wrapping my head around when to use trusses, beams, and girders last semester when I was first introduced to the challenge of drafting a wall section for my Atlanta Museum of Art. In Structures I, I was finally able to understand the fundamentals of different structure types because of the hands on approach of learning. Through a series of exercises, we were able to design our own structures and perform different types of tests on them. This course helped me tremendously in understanding how to accurately apply structure to my designs in studio, and will continue to help me evolve my designs in the future.

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Thank you

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