School of Arts and Media Interior Design BA (Hons) Negotiated Major Project Brief Title:
Innovative Fitness Centre For All Ages Academic Yr
13-14
Level 6
Name
Credits
Duration
KATE JACKSON
40
12 weeks
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Introduction Obesity and physical inactivity is on the rise all over the United Kingdom in both adults and children. The modern generation of children are shunning traditional outdoor games that encouraged physical activity and favoured by previous generation. Instead children are favouring the latest pieces of technology such as computer games which are promoting a more static and secluded lifestyle; examples including escalators instead of stairs, communication through technology, and over reliance of the automobile for transport. This is an issue that strongly needs addressing and if the right implications are put in place, then the population could see a positive change on their health and fitness.
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People are becoming increasingly aware of the what the implications of having poor levels of physical fitness. Gyms currently do not facilitate for both children and adults as they are generally adults only. This creates a barrier and limits the way children can participate in physical activity, this being the case, children will never be able to achieve healthy fitness levels.
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The Concept The brief outlines a proposed fitness centre in which both adults and children can go to take part in physical activity. The concept is to encourage and motivate everyday people to make a conscientious decision in allowing them to become more active by engaging in a lively, exciting environment.
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There will be a specified area of the fitness centre that accommodates both adults and children allowing them to train in the same environment so families can come and exercise together, have fun and bond as a family. The primary advantage to this is that children are encouraged to become more physically active by incorporating games and activities in to their lives with the main focus of being fun rather than work.
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There will be a separate area of the fitness centre designated for adults only which will offer alternative methods of training that differ from the traditional methods to make exercising more exciting rather than being seen as ‘boring’. This will involve various pieces of functional training equipment that is designed to prepare and improve on movements that correlate to the day to day lives of the general population.
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This ground breaking and innovative fitness centre will be based in Manchester City Centre within a construct known as ‘The Hive’. A new modern building which promotes its green credential, an aspect that correlates with the design requirements. The location has been ultimately chosen due to the amount of space that is available, the rooftop outdoor area included, and also because of the sustainable qualities that building has.
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The successful design will be an exciting place for all ages to do physical activity whilst enjoying themselves. It should be visually appealing, encouraging, and inspirational to all different types of people. To appeal to every possible market, the gym needs to be affordable. Sustainability is a must within the fitness centre.
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Site and Surrounding Area The chosen building is an award winning sustainable building called The Hive which is located in the heart of the Northern Quarter in Manchester. It is in walking distance of all major public transport links and has numerous car parking facilities close by (The Hive has a contract agreement with nearby parking for cheaper rates).
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The centre of Manchester is densely populated with residents, workers, tourists, students, etc. Thus meaning there is a strong potential for clientele surrounding The Hive with the total population almost reaching 511,000 people. The Northern Quarter is a unique area within the centre of Manchester that is extremely popular for its quirky bars and restaurants. It is seen as Manchester’s creative area due to the vast amount of independent art shops, clothes shops and cafes there are.
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Building Analysis The Hive is a joint venture between Argent (property development company) and Manchester City Council. The building, designed by 5 Plus Architects - formerly HKR Architects, was completed in early 2010. In the past three years, The Hive has won numerous awards for the huge sustainability element the design achieved. It was awarded with the BREEAM Special Award for Government Sector Achievement supported by Cabinet Office in 2011 and also has a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’ with a EPC rating of B.
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Sustainability is at the heart of The Hive. It has been constructed using recycled and recyclable materials, every detail within the building has been made to the highest level of sustainability possible. There are energy efficient lighting and heating systems throughout the building, as well as self closing taps and leak detection facilities meaning the no water is wasted. There is also and innovative natural ventilation system making it an extremely green and cost effective building. The Hive has indoor space for storing thirty-two bikes, as well as showers and changing rooms to encourage people to cycle on their commute to the building.
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There are a number of companies already occupying the ground, first, second and third floor. This includes Arts Council England, The Studio, ‘The Classroom’ and is also the home of many creative bars and restaurants which are located on the ground floor. From the initial 80,000 sq ft within the building, there is now only 25,000 sq ft available.
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The Hive is constructed with a small open courtyard/walkway in the centre of the building making a quadrangle design, so there is a rectangular centre with no roof. The walkway on the ground floor is surrounded by glass-fronted studios units, and it leads to a communal WIFI enabled area. The fourth floor has an open terrace space in the centre of the floor, so the fourth, fifth and sixth floor are all split to form, in essence, two separate buildings as such.
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The Hive has distinctive floor-to-ceiling windows throughout the building to allow large areas of the building to be internally illuminated by natural light. These windows also provide fantastic views of Manchester’s City Centre. The unoccupied interior spaces have been left as untouched concrete to allow the occupier to specify the exact internal finishes they desire. This starting point cuts initial costs and also reduces wage materials.
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The Vision The vision is to create a communal space that attracts a wide variety of people from various sociological backgrounds resulting in different ages and cultures interacting and motivating each other whilst improving their health and fitness. The design will create an exciting space for adults and children, giving them the option of training together or individually. This will provide an opportunity for families to exercise together setting an example as to how the nation can become more physically active.
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There will be a mix of state-of-the-art equipment along with back-to-basics equipment that will provide an enjoyable and diverse workout environment. High quality design details will be used to enhance The Hive’s building elements and positively engage peoples’ attention by motivating them to exercise. The design will improve the lively atmosphere currently at The Hive and it will compliment their creative community.
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Design Requirements The main elements of the design should consist of an adults only gym and a family orientated gym. There will also be an outdoor area and a changing facility. As the customer walks through the front door, they should be greeted with an inviting reception area that should instantly attract potential customers. The changing facility found in close proximity to the reception area, needs to have an adults area that is separated from a family/child area to ensure child safety. These facilities need to include lockers, male and female toilets, showers and a disabled toilet.
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The adults only gym should include state-of-the-art equipment strategically placed within a surrounding that has been carefully considered in terms of visual and practical design that has brand touch points. The family area should be separate from the adults area and should be designed aesthetically with children in mind, thus bright and vibrant colours are a necessity. This area should include innovative, exciting and engaging equipment that is child friendly in order to encourage them to be more physically active. Another essential point that will need to be taken into consideration when deigning the family orientated area, is that it should not only appeal to the needs of children, but their parent counterparts as well. Therefore design aspects should also suffice the needs of the adults, engaging simultaneous physical activity for both parties.
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Ideally, there will be a structure attaching the two halves of the fourth floor together, making the two spaces easily accessible from both sides. This structure must take disabled access in to consideration and must also be visually pleasing to entice the attention to encourage it’s use for mass around the building. Surrounding this tunnel is an immediate outdoor space of which should be fully utilised to increase the capacity of the fitness centre, it has great potential for outdoor sports such as, boot camp training, in which both adults, children and families can use.
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Health and safety issues need to be addressed within the design to minimise possible injuries, as a fitness centre could potentially be a dangerous area if risk assessment are not thoroughly addressed and consequential action taken.
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Ambiance The design should be friendly and inviting to all user groups and ages. It should not be considered intimidating as this will deter new potential customers from using the fitness centre and there needs be a clear divide in adults only zones and family friendly areas so both families and adults feel their corresponding environment resonates well with their expectations from fitness centre. It should have an energetic vibe in the fitness centre to motivate and encourage people to reach their full fitness potential.
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Fixtures and details should be of a high standard to compliment the modern creative design of The Hive building. Also, lighting should be carefully considered to create different atmospherical vibes throughout the fitness centre.
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Sustainability and Green Issues Sustainability is at the heart of The Hive, Manchester. To do this justice, the design of the fitness centre should fully utilise the sustainable elements to keep the carbon footprint low and to stay environmentally friendly.
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The Hive currently has a vast array of sustainable elements within the building, for example, the lighting is energy-efficient and there are self-closing taps with leak detection facilities already in place. However, the design still needs to consider how further improvements could be implemented in order to make the building sustainable.
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Material should either be recycled or recyclable, be ethically sourced and purchased locally where possible. Although the building has a natural ventilation system, the design will still need an air conditioning unit so methods to control the temperature and humidity in an environmentally way should be explored.
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Certain equipment for the gym should be created by reusing old, unwanted items and incorporating it in to the environment.
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Access and Circulation There is access to the fourth, fifth and sixth floor from a staircase and lifts located on the ground floor from both the left side of the building and the right. Unfortunately, having access in to both of the separate buildings would cause a problem in security and safety; so a new design is required to address this issue. The new design should create accessibility into the fitness centre from only one side of the floor. If one side of the access to the fourth to sixth floor is removed, a larger floor space would be formed.
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The current staircase from the fourth to sixth floor would not be appropriate as there are continuous stairs that lead from the ground floor up to the sixth floor, therefore, a new staircase is required that would improve the circulation inside the fitness centre.
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OUTLINE ACTIVITIES:
The project will include the following: • Self-directed negotiated programme of advanced design project work and studies • • • • • •
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Research, information gathering and critical evaluation of material. Synthesis of creative, appropriate and technically competent design ideas Planning and organisation of design work including time management Production (to a high standard) of a body of finalised design work Presentation of appropriate supporting documentation Presentation of design work to a professional standard
STAGES A,B &C - Briefing document / associated research - Concept development drawings & conclusion - Initial sketch scheme drawings - Orthographic plans & sections - Initial sketch visuals SUBMISSION DATE: FRIDAY 21ST FEB 2014
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STAGE D - Scheme design drawings - Developed orthographic plans & sections - Initial sketch models - Initial visualisation work SUBMISSION DATE: FRIDAY 21TH MARCH 2014
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STAGE E - Detail design drawings - Major explanatory section through scheme
- Detail drawings of significant elements within scheme - Specification notes defining materials SUBMISSION DATE: THURSDAY 10TH APRIL 2014
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PRESENTATION - Client presentation orthographic drawings - Finalised visualisations - Finalised models - Explanatory concept diagrams. - All to exhibition quality and standard. SUBMISSION DATE: FRIDAY 9TH MAY 2014 SUBMISSION DEADLINE FOR PROJECT: FRIDAY MAY 9TH 2014 BEFORE 4.00PM
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Negotiated Major Project is designed to allow students to synthesise their experiences on the course through the definition, negotiation and implementation of a self-directed programme of design investigation, research and development leading to the presentation of a major design project. Students are encouraged to identify an issue or set of issues around which to focus their design investigation. The primary responsibility for the implementation of the project lies with the student, who will be assessed on their capacity to undertake a detailed examination of the territory they have identified as being of personal significance.
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Effectively, this Negotiated study provides a framework through which the student is able to demonstrate a capacity to practice and their understanding of the particular contextual circumstances in which they operate.
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MODULE LEARNING OUTCOMES (FROM MS1)
Aims of Module: • • • •
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Facilitate the synthesis of design practice within its contextual framework Provide an opportunity for students to take responsibility for the negotiation, management and implementation of a major project Enable students to produce a coherent body of work culminating in a major project. Enable students to explore possible areas of concern which may be relevant to their practice after graduation.
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On completion of this module the student should be able to: • • • • •
To demonstrate a high level of skills and understanding in relation to their chosen area of design practice To generate, organise and evaluate an extended body of design work To appreciate the role of presentation in the production of meaning To support their design practice in an appropriate and articulate manner. To produce an effective, creative, appropriate, detailed and clearly communicated and presented design solution to a complex brief.
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