the HIVE
Sean Lyon
CONTENTS
Form Generation Field Conditions Vortex Study Development Rheotomic Surfaces Optimising Materiality Massing Model Rheotomic Surface Models Final Proposal Structure Environmental Lighting Modules Construction Stair Details Servicing Arrangements Final Drawings Site Plan Basement Plan Ground Floor Plan Second Floor Plan Elevations Isometric Long Section Short Section Section Perspective Facade Details Models Internal Perspectives
FORM GENERATION FIELD CONDITIONS
“The field describes a space of propagation, of effects. It contains no matter or material points, rather functions, vectors and speeds. It describes local relations of difference within fields of celerity,transmission or of careering points, in a word, what Minkowski called the world” Sanford Kwinter La Citta Nuova (1986)
Material energies of the airport site
Intensive properties of a bar magnet made visible
As has been explored in 3.1, material energy was the starting point for the generation of an airport intervention. Studying the natural and artificial energy sources enacting on to the site revealed interesting questions about the nature of boundary, enclosure and territory.
In mathematics and physics, the tools for analysing the inherent energy conditions of a site are scalar and vector fields. Certain properties of matter such as heat, colour, density, pressure and elasticity are intensive (vector) properties: they are not reduced when the matter itself is divided. For example the colour or temperature of an orange isn’t reduced when the orange is sliced in half. On the other hand, its mass and volume is reduced. These are known as extensive (scalar) properties of matter.
Frei Otto’s soap film describes a geometry expressing the intensive properties of the material The material energies of the site are the intensive properties of the airport. Vector field diagrams make these inherent properties visible and tangible to the observer. Reiser + Umemoto note in their manifesto Atlas of Novel Tectonics that intensive material properties should describe the geometry itself. “The most important distinction in our changed notions of architectural design is the shift from geometry as an abstract regulator of the materials of construction to a notion that matter and material behaviours must be implicated in the geometry itself.”
The flow of people across the site is a dominant intensive property of Manchester Airport. An airport is a place of transition, movement and energy. For the form of the airport to respond to the field conditions of the site, these kinetic vectors will be expressed in the material geometry of the building. Rail/Train
Bus/Coach
Car/Taxi
FORM GENERATION VORTEX STUDY
The flow of people, goods, information and ideas is a key concept that will be expressed in the overall form of the building. The form shall be an excitation in the field conditions governed by the vector flows of these factors.
Hurricane as seen from space
The fluidity of movement and circulation pairs well with the fluid dynamics of air, the understanding of which was paramount to the invention of the fixed wind aircraft. In the same way photons and electrons are excitations of an electromagnetic field, and cloud patterns
The Great Red Spot on Jupiter
and vortexes are the emergent result of fluid mechanics, the building will become the physical embodiment of the forces acting on the site. Perhaps the most dramatic and apparent form a fluid system can manifest as
is that of a vortex. They can be destructive (hurricane) and beautiful (the Great Red Spot, Jupiter), and they can be harnessed to achieve flight (vortices formed on wing tips). These excitations of the airspace shall come to represent the turbulences of the site.
Vortices produced on the wing-tips of aeroplanes
Vortex Study https://vimeo.com/162516840
People occupy a building in plan, but they experience it in section. With this in mind, different models of vortices at different magnitudes of power and spin are used to trace various profiles of the main circulation route. Starting with the train station and bus terminal where the majority of visitors arrive, a huge wave crashes onto the site from the direction of the city. As one makes their way through the gallery space and up to the sky-link, the vortex tightens as a response to the faster movement people usually make as traverse a long connecting corridor. This is a phenomenon in fluid dynamics: as a vortex system speeds up, the diameter of it shrinks.
DEVELOPMENT RHEOTOMIC SURFACES Another interesting point of departure for generating forms from field conditions is by looking at electrodynamic systems. The flow of energy between two point charges can be visualised with a flow diagram and the resulting shapes have some interesting properties. First the flow lines emanate away from the point charges and find their way to other points of opposite charge. They bend and flow to their target without intersecting. The equipotential lines are the opposite: they emanate perpendicularly from the point charges and connect with the flow lines at 90°. As the name suggests, these lines measure zones of equal potential energy relative to a point.
Where these diagrams become useful for architects is in the generation of rheotomic surfaces, a term coined by Daniel Piker. As you trace the equipotential lines of a flowing charge and project them upwards with respect to time, a single surface structure emerges. The surface can be navigated without any awkward slopes or gradients, which makes it ideal for circulation.
These surfaces have a great deal of structural integrity. As exploited by Antoni Gaudi, nature prefers double curved surfaces that provide maximum structural performance with minimum embodied energy (see 3.1 STUDY TRIP and 3.1 BIOMIMICRY WORKSHOP). The flow lines too represent the forces of compression and tension, and so provide an excellent roadmap of where to lay supporting beams that perform exactly where they are needed (similar to Pier Luigi Nervi’s waffle slab which we will see later)
Three Point Charges
Surface Generation Many Point Charges
Surface that will be transformed into the final circulation surface Circulation Study https://vimeo.com/162619655
DEVELOPMENT OPTIMISING MATERIALITY
FEA result showing lines of stress concentration
Isostatic lines of a non-regular grid
Train station ceiling.
When simulated using Finite Element Analysis software, the stress lines closely resemble that of Nervi’s slab. The repeated grid of regular columns makes manufacturing the concrete form work much less laborious as the isostatic lines repeat within the structure.
The defining grid of the basement train station is not so regular. A skewed grid follows the lines of the platforms and existing site topology, so when the field diagram is generated there is variance in the form work needed. Nevertheless, with digital fabrication techniques such as CNC milling, mass customisation allows for infinite forms to be milled using design data.
The train station ceiling is thus a physical manifestation of the intensive properties of the material. The columns a spaced no further than 10m apart, the maximum span of reinforced concrete.
DEVELOPMENT MASSING MODEL
DEVELOPMENT RHEOTOMIC SURFACE MODELS
Model of the flow of the field lines with time as being projected upwards
Model of the final circulation surface
Both models are 3D printed
FINAL PROPOSAL STRUCTURE As the form of the HIVE changes as one passes through, so too must the structural strategy. For the exhibition hall and module spaces, a large-span space frame is required. This requires no columns for support and is very lightweight. Towards the junction of the main hall to the skybridge, the space frame becomes narrower and the layers flatten to nearly a single thickness. For a low, long corridor space like the skybridge a one way portal frame make more sense.
Single Layer Frame
As the skybride approaches the terminal, it widens and flattens out. Here a two way span make more structural sense. Again the transition smooth. The walkway that connects to Terminal 3 is a single layer frame that is more compatible with the existing skywalk.
Large Span Space Frame
One Way Portal Frame
Two Way Frame
FINAL PROPOSAL ENVIRONMENT
Warm Days The airflow will follow a similar strategy as employed by the Berlin Free University Library. On warm days vents open to allow for the circulation of air throughout the system: cool air from the train station below ground is drawn up into the space via the stack effect. Openings along the top of the structure passes air currents from the interior too the exterior. Meanwhile, warm air is being stored within the concrete mass, being transferred by water pipes hidden within the skin.
Cold Days On cooler days, the thermal energy stored in the concrete is released into the space, again being transferred by water pipes. Vents within the space frame close off small pockets of air that retain what ever heat they can absorb from the environment. Exterior openings are closed too to prevent warm air leakage and draughts.
LIGHTING ARTIFICIAL
NATURAL
ARTIFICIAL
NATURAL
MODULES CONSTRUCTION
2mm Aluminium Cladding
40mm Insulation
2mm Interior Cladding
Servicing 40mm Steel Square Section Frame
10mm Cross Ties
MODULES STAIR DETAILS
Frame
Aluminium Frame
Complete Module
Stairs
Folded Configuration
1 : 10 100
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1000mm
MODULES SERVICING
Outer form of the modules
Servicing and structure network together to becomes one unit
MODULES SERVICING
Power Data Air Clean Water Grey Water
MODULES ARRANGEMENTS Typical Setup A typical setup where there is a good mix of different units and modules.
Cafe A raised cafe allows for views over the exhibition space for visitors waiting for connections Retail Mixed use units provide landside retail spaces Reception / Ticket Desk Located near station entrance and airport access Meeting Room Again raised above the main level, facing the exhibition space to impress visitors Workshops / MakerSpaces Large units with extra servicing for air extraction and power usage Service Module Above the workshops to provide extra servicing not needed by other units Access Lift
Processional Setup An multi-layered axial layout that guides visitors along the length of the space. This could be useful for temporary exhibits or during diplomatic visits.
Observation Deck A place for visitors to overlook the space Exhibition Spaces Open ended units can be used for curated spaces such as temporary travelling exhibits Removable Barriers Enclosed Units Could be used to display larger items yet block visitors from interacting with them Open MakerSpaces Open units used to exhibit the workshops and engage visitors Offices / Staff Rooms Closed to the public and where station staff have their facilities Reception / Ticket Desk Located near station entrance and airport access
Courtyard Setup Creating a completely enclosed space with viewing platforms and towers would be ideal for exhibiting larger items or hosting events.
Access Stairs / Lift Access to raised viewing level. Here the public can view from a distance whatever event is being held in the courtyard Observation Tower A space with a greater view of the courtyard and the exhibition space Courtyard Central space that could either be public or private. Can host artwork, pavilions, exhibitions, performances, public talks or tournaments Cafe / Retail Observation Glazed units can be used as an inward looking window Courtyard Entrance Hollow modules provide suspended walkways as well as being the threshold into the courtyard. Can be open or ticketed
Labyrinthine Setup A more engaging setup where visitors are encouraged to explore the multi-level mazelike space. Overhead walkways, hidden rooms and aedicules entice the occupants to wander and get lost. This setup would be more ideal for when people are visiting Manchester for a major event, such as festivals, conventions or even if Manchester were to host a World Expo. Observation Spaces Overlooking the labyrinth as well as the permanent exhibition space too Public Lift Important to arrange the modules such that disabled access is still maintained Overhead Walkways Toilets Clusters Programmes can be grouped together into clusters or islands and accessed via the walkways Storage Block Can be used structurally to support overhanging corners
1 : 1000 10
50
100m
SITE PLAN
1 : 250 1
5
10m
BASEMENT PLAN
1 : 250 1
5
10m
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
1 : 250 1
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10m
SECOND FLOOR PLAN
1 : 500 1
5
10m
1 : 500 1
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10m
FRONT ELEVATION
REAR ELEVATION
1:2
50
10m
5m
ISOMETRIC
1 : 250 1
5
10m
LONG SECTION
1 : 100 1
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10m
SHORT SECTION
SECTION PERSPECTIVE
2mm Translucent ETFE Foil 2mm Transparent ETFE Foil 15mm Air Gap Hollow Steel Space Frame Member with threaded holes Steel Outer Layer Fixing Screw Rubber Sealant
Aluminium Sheet 65mm Solid Insulation Space Frame Fixing M30 Shear Bolt
Rainwater Gutter Cast In-Situ Concrete
1:5 10
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1000mm
FAÇADE DETAIL
SECTION MODEL 1:100
FAÇADE MODEL 1:20
This 1:20 facade model demonstrates how the space frame structure works. Almost everything was 3D printed as each of the nodal joints were different. To achieve this, a custom Grasshopper algorithm was developed. A network of lines representing the frame members are fed into the script and the 3D geometry is generated, ready to be printed. Variables such as node size, screw diameter, beam diameter ratio and printer tolerances are all present in the script and so theoretically it can be used on a 1:1 scale.
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