MEDIUM INDUSTRIAL GREENFIELD SITE, A MANUFACTURING FACILITY FOR THE NEW MODE OF TRANSPORTATION WILL BE BUILT HERE.
FORM FOLLOWS MOBILITY THE SPACE BETWEEN BULDINGS IS THE ARCHITECTURAL PROBLEM OF OUR TIME. A NEW MODE OF TRANSPORTATION IS NEEDED TO REGENERATE SPACES FOR PEOPLE.
SITE SELECTION + PROGRAM ABSTRACT 5000 Summerdale Avenue is located in close proximity to existing rapid transportation terminals in Northeast Philadelphia. The site is zoned medium industrial and sits adjacent to the residential neighborhood od Summerdale. The program for the building includes receiving and distribution spaces for raw material, process bays for the manufacturing of the new mode, administrative spaces, and a social corridor. Emphasis will be given to quality of light and air in an industrial space to support worker well being.
Wuppertal Suspension Railway, Germany 1903 Suspension type systems, where the vehicle hangs below the track, have the most potential for eliminating elevated boarding platforms. The concept of a suspended railway is not new. But these vehicles are large and heavy so they require heavy support structures. Their service frequency is nowhere equivalent to the automobile and the elevated boarding platforms are centralized.
West Virginia University PRT, U.S. 1975 Since opening the system has offered on-time service rates significantly better than the bus service it replaced... and it eliminated the gridlock of vehicles in the city. Each PRT car seats 8 passengers and travels up to 30 MPH. Like the prior precedent this mode has elevated boarding platforms and a heavy structure to support the vehicle and self-weight of the track. Again, these design factors limit widespread adoption.
Skytran /NASA PRT, U.S. 1991 - current By allowing express traffic to bypass the boarding platform, high frequency of service is possible. The vehicles are lightweight and so the supporting structure is also relatively lightweight. Like the other precedents the Skytran system fixes vehicles to the track so this still requires a grade separated platform. Unfortunately this vehicle type forces passengers to sit -- unlike conventional public modes that allow passengers to stand.
MOBILITY CASE STUDIES This project had three components; a manufacturing building, the street space, and a new mode of transportation. These case studies focus on modes of transportation. Transit technology precedents inform how street space can be reclaimed from cars. After designing a new mode, understanding how it is assembled, and how it impacts the use of the space between buildings, the manufacturing facility is designed.
PROCESS DRAWINGS AND MODELS Inspired by the historical growth of a cities in relation to transit technology it occured to me that the design of a new mode could regenerate the spaces between buildings to enable human potential. Car dependency must be reduced to take the next social evolutionary step towards a knowledge economy.
The horizontal elevator
Eliminate elevated boarding platforms
Early model considering scale
Wireframe, boxfish bio-inspired
Parts of a new mode
1/4� model, photo resin print
Clay site model
DESIGN REVIEW This presentation showed how the scale of the new mode was based on integration with existing legacy rights of way, such as subway tunnels. A video clip of the new model showed how the S-curved walls and leading edge shapes were informed by fluid dynamic stability of the Boxfish.
ALIGNMENT ANALYSIS Comparisons for typical residential track alignments were discussed with the jury. The aerial space above the street in a residential neighborhood would be more likely to cause sightline and noise distubance. The alley path was decided for development. Jury recommended focusing on the boarding area, possibly at end of block.
DESIGN REVIEW The Barcelona Blocks precedent was discussed and how it can be integrated in the neighborhood adjacent to the manufacturing depot. Finally, a massing of the manufacturing facility showed the major program components, and a 1 mile test track for the new mode considered connections to Frankford Transportation Center.
TECHNICAL REVIEW A new massing for the manufacturing facility shows how the various program components relate to each other. Web based visual mapping, Kumu, is used to define and detail the relationships of spaces within each component.
SITE PLAN The site plan is modeled in consideration of various circulation paths for people and heavy delivery vehicles.
STRUCTURE Structural elements are modeled to provide a 116’ clear span across the receiving and process bays. Connections are detailed.
FINAL REVIEW The architectural principle that Form Follows Mobility is explained in relationship to the regeneration of spaces for people.
NEW MODE ASSEMBLY The parts assembly sequence concludes with a demonstration of accessibility and how the new mode accomadates various seating and standing configurations.
SITE ACCESS The site is shown adjacent to the Roosevelt Boulevard. The various points of vehicle access are described.
SITE PLAN The topography and final massing adjustments are explained. A new bus stop is designed for workers.
BUILDING MOMENTS Stepping off the bus to the front plaza you are invited under the track of the new mode, between the administrative buildings, and onto the occupied rooftop.
WORKERS COURTYARD The space between process bays is where the worker can find fresh air and light. The ebb and flow of social life and the adaptive knowledge economy passes with night and day.
STREET DIAGRAMS The architectural principle that Form Follows Mobility is illustrated at the scale of a typical intersection in a series of diagrams.
RECLAIMED STREET While the new model of transportation operates in the previously unoccupied aerial right of way of the alley, the intersection of Bridge Street and Summerdale Avenue is regenerated for people.