PROFILE B.Arch. | Sushant School of Art & Architecture, Delhi | 2008-13 Architectural Internship | Shama Dalvi Architects, Auroville | 2011 Junior Architect | Nila-A Architecture & Urban Design, Delhi | 2013-2015 Project Architect | Auroville Design Consultants, Auroville | 2015-2017 Principle Architect | Samanilai , Agra | 2017-Current Assistant Professor | Dayalbagh Educational Institute, Agra | 2017-Current I believe that the need of ecologically and environmentally cognizant design is critical. Growing up in various parts of India has exposed me to the cultural and social nuances of this rich country. As a professional I envision myself creating socially responsible design that aims to improve the quality and livability of cities and habitats.
SELECTED PROJECTS:
Professional Work : • • • • •
Creche – Playspace for children of faculty members at Dayalbagh Educational Institute, 2018 Cluster of Classrooms, Dayalbagh Educational Institute, 2019 Humanscapes – Community Housing for Youth, Auroville Design Consultants, 2016 Auroville Energy Service- Office building, Auroville Design Consultants, 2016 In Service of the Sun : Book on Chamanlal & Shipra Gupta, Auroville Design Consultants, 2016
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Product Design with bamboo and waste agricultural reeds at Dayalbagh Educational Institute, 2020
Academic Work : • • •
Urban Symbiosis – How to make Cities Safer, Thesis Project, 2013 From Waste to Architecture, Dissertation, 2012 Build-Less : Ghitorini Village, Urban Design Proposal, 2012
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Eco-Vernacular Architecture Workshop, Dharmalaya, Bir, 2015
Professional Work Dayalbagh Educational Institute, Development of buildings on campus. Auroville Design Consultants Ar. Suhasini Ayer
*All drawings shown in this segment are made by me, unless otherwise specified noted.
CRECHE DAYALBAGH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE | 2017 Agra, India 6,500 sqft
A cluster of four pentagons nestled together to form a seamless open space for the toddlers of the faculty at the university was designed and executed in entirely in bamboo and earth. Bamboo experts from Bangalore, India came for a week long workshop to induct us to the various joinery details at the inception of the project.
For roof, thatch and for walls, wattle and daub technique of earthen masonry was used. Long sweeping verandah of 2m width wrap around the structure offering it the respite from the harsh summer sun of Agra.
Top Left: Split bamboo purlins being screwed onto the main 4 inch dia round bamboo rafters. Bottom Left: Completed bamboo framework for the roof. A layer of waterproof canvas was laid on top with another set of split bamboo purlins supporting the final thatch layer.
CLUSTER OF CLASSROOMS DAYALBAGH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE | 2019 Agra, India 2,800 sqft
Set of two classrooms of 7.5m by 9.7m each designed in earthen walls and bamboo truss structure was constructed in 2019. The classrooms have sweeping front and back verandah for students to gather around and spend time after classes.
The roofing was done in Mangalore tiles and expansive windows on three sides of the room each and strip roof ventilators give ample natural light and ventilation in the rooms.
Dec ‘18
Jan ‘19
April ‘19
June ‘19
July‘19
July ‘19
PRODUCT DESIGN DAYALBAGH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE | 2020 Agra, India
A tricycle with a navigating handle for the parents to push when the kids don’t want to pedal, with a comfortable footrest, seat with safety belt and two baskets made out of reed sticks was designed out of bamboo. All the main structural elements and the accessories like the collapsible canopy was designed and constructed using 2inch dia round bamboo and split bamboo.
Top left: Suitable green bamboo was cut from the farm since green bamboo is easier to bend in the desired structural form. Top middle: The wheels and the pedals are the only elements in the cycle that aren’t bamboo and have been sourced from a discarded conventional plastic tricycle. Top right: The seat with the backrest was handmade in waste wood pieces.
PRODUCT DESIGN DAYALBAGH EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTE | 2020 Agra, India
A variety of products were designed and handcrafted using the reed sticks from the agricultural farms collected after the mustard harvesting.
Top left: The reed sticks were cleaned, sanded, cut and sorted in piles. Top middle: A layer of VOC free paint was painted over the sticks to increase their longevity . Top right: Hollow waste cardboard tubes sourced from local printer shops were used as the structural support for the reed table and stools.
Top left: Reed baskets with detachable washable lining and handles.
Right: Pendant lighting and window screen. Bottom left: Table & Stools Bottom middle: Hanging & floor planters.
PRODUCT DESIGN Independently | 2020 Agra, India A range of everyday use products were designed and handcrafted out of bamboo to be showcased and sold at the Agra Green Festival, 2020.
HUMANSCAPES AUROVILLE DESIGN CONSULTANTS | 2016 Auroville, India 27,000 sqft
A collective housing project based on the “co-housing concept” in Auroville on a site of about 2,500 sq.m. with a proposed built-up area of about 1,680 sq.m. over three floor levels. Designed to demonstrate a living and evolving neighborhood that mainstreams sustainable development and an integral lifestyle. The design and planning intends to bench mark energy, waste and water use with solar passive buildings using low embodied building materials and climatic design principles involving everything from community farming to power generation.
Brick Vault
• • • •
Centering – According to the span and radius of the vault a steel centering with truss is made. Leveling – Centering is carefully placed on the beams with spirit level and tube level. Brick Laying – Bricks are laid using cement mortar from both the ends. Finishing : it is finished with a 2cm thick cement screed on top.
Cuddapah Wall
Waste cuddapah stones from Andhra Pradesh were sourced and used as a material for walls. Half normal fired brick wall and half cuddapah stone pieces give the desired width of the wall.
Poured Earth Wall
Poured Earth, an experimental wall material was tested with locally available red soil. The advantage of poured earth wall over rammed earth wall is greater strength and lesser construction time.
AUROVILLE ENERGY SERVICES OFFICE AUROVILLE DESIGN CONSULTANTS | 2016 Auroville, India 5,500 sqft Auroville energy Services is the main office building for the Auroville energy management utility group. Besides focusing on the climatic, energy efficiency, building materials and form aspect of the building, the challenge was to plan for an incremental development over next 10 years in pace with the growing needs of the group in sync with the funding flow. This challenge also needed to address the possibility of putting up temporary buildings with low capital investment with the possibility of adaptive re-use with changing needs.
Caretaker’s house Main Office Building
Parking Workshop & Store
Site Plan Floor Plans Sections
Rammed Earth Wall
Rammed earth wall of 1:4:6 with 1part cement 4 part river sand and 6 part red soil was used in this building. It was done in layers of 10 cms with ramming done to bring it to 7cm thick layers.
Achikal Bricks
Achikal bricks are thin fire burnt bricks. The size of the bricks ensure that the cooking is done deep till the core of the brick. The standard size of this is 18x10x4 cm.
In Service of the Sun AUROVILLE DESIGN CONSULTANTS | 2017 Auroville, India Co-Author In Service of the Sun is a documentation on the glorious journey and contributions of Dr. Chamanlal Gupta and Shipra Gupta, pioneers in Renewable Energy Systems in Auroville. From C.B.R.I., Roorkee to T.E.R.I. to Pondicherry Ashram to Auroville, Dr. Gupta has been instrumental in path breaking innovations in the field of Sustainability.
Academic Work Urban Symbiosis, Making cities safer Architectural Thesis From Waste to Architecture Architectural Dissertation Build Less Urban Design Studio
*All drawings shown in this segment are made by me, unless otherwise specified noted.
URBAN SYMBIOSIS: How to Make Cities Safer. Architectural Thesis | 2013
In light of the horrific rape case that took place in Delhi in December2012, strategies and approaches in which spatial planning and physical design would make cities safer were explored. Developing the site to create accessible public spaces, activating the ‘dead’ streets and creating recreational areas whilst providing ecological respite to the community was the aim of the project. The spaces created cater to varied age groups and are temporal in nature, ensuring activities and ‘eyes on street’ at all times and impart certain flexibility to the design.
DELHI UNIVERSITY SOUTH CAMPUS: Day after day NEWS about cities not being safe for women emerge. The dead roads after hours become the breeding ground for ill behavior and harassment for college students and people living in the residential zone across the DU campus.
Designing out crime doesn’t just rely on cameras. People eyes, ears and confidence in their community can be just important as weapons against anti-social behavior. The main aim should be to build cities for its people, not cars.
INTRODUCING PUBLIC FUNCTIONS FOR NATURAL SURVEILLANCE
DESIGN STRATEGIES Conceptual strategies at Master Plan level and parcel plan level to improve the mix of use, to activate the frontages, to increase the street level activities and to encourage continuous pedestrian networks ensuring eyes on streets and to increase the perceived ownership of public places.
STRATEGY PLAN Conceptual strategies at Master Plan level: • to create opportunities for natural surveillance, • to integrate the public realm • to diversify the use in a particular area • To introduce the concept of ‘Third Places’ where people gather easily, inexpensively, regularly and pleasurably, leading to the diversity and intricacies for mutual support and symbiosis.
MASTER PLAN
PARCEL A
PARCEL A
PARCEL B
PARCEL B
PARCEL C
FROM WASTE TO ARCHITECTURE Architectural Dissertation | 2012
In the current times when the need of recycle and reuse increases manifold as on an average 31,500,000,000 pounds waste piles on everyday, ways in which construction industry can assist in reutilizing waste from all industries were explored. A three part process was adapted. • In part one, physical, chemical and thermal properties of different discarded materials were studied, and its probable use as an alternate raw material was validated. •
In part two, the work of various architects and designers overseas and in India, pioneering in the reuse and recycling of discards from garbage, was analyzed.
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In part three, a conventional building was studied from foundation to final finishes and at each stage alternate techniques using these materials were justified.
Material Study Material Extraction
Material Processing
Manufacturing
Distribution
Consumption
Disposal
Waste Management
Fig. 1.1 Product life cycle; Linear Waste Stream System
Various tests were conducted • Thermal study : Burning material at 350 deg Celsius and noting the gases released • Binding property : aggregate heated and waste added to see the coats. Compressive strength of blocks formed was checked. • Separation test : Waste coated blocks soaked in water, stripping was checked. • Penetration test, Ductility, Flash & fire point, Water absorption etc. were checked with waste aggregate.
Manufacturing
Material Extraction
Fig 1.4 Closed Loop System
Distribution
UNIT Tensile strength
psi
400,000
Flexural modulus
psi
0.7
ft-lbs/in of notch
175
°F
230
°F
0.10
%
3.9
Izod impact (notched) Disposal
Consumption
Heat deflection temperature @ 264 psi Maximum continuous service temperature in air Water absorption (immersion 24 hours) Coefficient of linear thermal expansion
In India, on an average, we produce 2 kg of garbage per day per person! That means on an average 2,440,000,000 kg of waste/day!! And that is just the waste we produce from our households!! For every 1 garbage can we put out on the curb, 70 garbage cans were made upstream just to make the junk in that 1 can!!
PETE
in/in/°Fx1 400,000 0-5
General Characteristics: • • • • • • •
Strong and stiff Excellent chemical resistance Resistant to many CIP (clean in place) wash-down solutions Low moisture absorption Low thermal expansion Excellent wear characteristics, even in wet environments Stain resistance
Precedent Research MATERIAL
Tire
ASSEMBLY
FEATURES
Resilient tires are used in foundations Stacking and and external load ramming earth bearing walls. For internal partition walls.
Aluminum can
Glass bottles
Stacking
Embedding
Embedded in partition walls and external walls.
COMMENTS Thermal mass concept is tapped upon.
4 tied together to make can brick or individually stacked with rebars. For diffused light inside internal rooms and bathrooms.
Material Transformation Each element of a typical building from foundation to roofing was examined and alternative techniques using plastic waste was explored. For Instance, Insulation Two main forms of plastic waste are commonly present, plastic bottles and foil-type plastics, such as grocery bags and large fiber bags. Bottles without residues can be used directly as insulation material because they contain air. It is the air that provides the insulation.
BUILD LESS, Ghitorni Village URBAN DESIGN PROPOSAL | 2012 The sprawling Ghitorini village lies next to the high speed metro corridor on one edge and the rapidly depleting forests on the southern ridge if Aravali hills on the other edge. At the time where growing urbanization is taxing the natural resources, methods to create a healthy, independent, ecologically sound environment that sustains itself was explored. The intervention was sought to be cohesive and coherent with an atmosphere that facilitates the existing population and caters to the estimated influx. An integrated urban center encompassing a holistic development of the area complete with residential, commercial and recreational fabric was envisioned.
GREEN ACTIVE SPINE
THE COUNTRY HOME – VILLAGE INTERFACE
Eco-Vernacular Architecture Workshop - Dharmalaya, Bir | 2015 Earthen masonry techniques of adobe bricks, cob walls, earth bag construction, bamboo chajjra flooring and mud plaster were explored. Theoretical and practical sessions were enriching.