Eroded Urbanism by e herm

ERODED URBANISM

STEPHEN GAGE ERIK HERRMANN

BRIEF

SUPERBLOCKS PRECEDENT TYPOLOGIES NEW GENERIC BLOCK EROSION PERFORMANCE SITES TYPOLOGIES PROGRAM ENVELOPE DOCUMENTATION EPILOGUE

ECOTECTONICS EXCERPTS

12 22 34 42 54 58 66 70 78 92 120

122

THE BRIEF Ecotectonics In the next three decades, over a billion people in the emerging economies will move from the rural milieu to the city. Natural resources will not be able to support those future cities unless true technological and lifestyle revolutions take place. Presently, cities and the built environment consume 70% of global energy and generate nearly 50% of global carbon emissions. And as these quantities grow, so too will the need for architectural responses to environmental concerns. The bridge between natural and artificial ecologies and the networks between human and non-human agents will become critical parts of a new engagement with politics, form, and material. If the discipline of architecture has gravitated historically toward the subject of tectonics, the growing consciousness that a building is a device for environmental regulation is shifting the focus of the discipline from tectonics to ecological and thermodynamic processes. Buildings establish the regime of energy exchange between built and natural environments by virtue of their geometry, materiality, and context. In this observation lies an opportunity to establish relationships between these performances and emerging architectural sensibilities and expressions. The studio will explore these relationships, and aim to relate environmental performance with concerns of a material, tectonic, visual, and spatial nature through a variety of newly available instruments. From the incorporation of new transportation technologies to the integration of landscape design and building technology,

to the use of object-oriented software to model thermodynamic processes in physical structures, we will mobilize a series of new instruments in order to explore an architectural sensibility w 足 hich does not depart from the core of the discipline to date, but seeks to evolve it. Urban Ecosystems We will focus on the urban environment, the domain where the next stage of human habitat will be primarily developed. The urban scale is also where sustainable building technologies can be most efficiently optimized. Addressing the city as an ecosystem populated by a series of new energy-efficient species which have to be adjusted to a new energy-scarce urban environment, will be the general target of this research. The exploration of the city as an ecosystem sets out the frame for an investigation that will inevitably address typology as a fundamental disciplinary question. We will address building populations as a process of speciation driven by form and material organization, producing physical assemblages capable of mediating between top-down typological procedures and bottom-up parametric design in order to increase the degree of differentiation of the building populations. Rather than developing types, the research will aim to develop prototypes that can produce a heterogeneous fabric of diverse buildings. Diversity is one of the characteristics of a resilient ecosystem, as species biodiversity allows ecosystems to adapt to shifting environmental conditions.

ZUIDAS, AMSTERDAM

Architecture as a discipline has traditionally relied on typology or archetype, classifying buildings by their functions. A buildingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s program or essential function becomes tied to an idealized or original form where a common essence is defined by a set of properties shared by the members of a particular class. However, the sensitivity or capacity to affect or be affected is particular to each individual threshold of sensitivity to the environment. Given a typological family, potential phenotypical variations can arise, producing differentiated behavior within a building population and new forms of architectural expression. Can we capture the evolutionary and emergent properties of nature in the artificial to establish a link between nature and the city? Can we incorporate the sensibility and virtues of natural systems into the artificial realm? The ambition of the studio is to explore the technologies of sustainable building through the introduction of life-like qualities in the artificial: to animate matter, sensitize it by designing behavioral patterns that produce physical characteristics and qualities that trigger an emotional response to dynamic forces. Object-Oriented Architecture The research will have a specific technical background that we believe to be particularly relevant to explore the new architectural effects of bridging between natural and artificial ecologies and setting up networks between human and non-human agencies: The object-oriented paradigm is a holistic approach that links material and social processes through new forms of artificial intelligence. Object oriented programming (OOP) produces complex yet

consistent organizations through simple rules of interacting objects that communicate and self-organize into ad-hoc communities. The distinctive feature of object-oriented programs is that they do not distinguish between data structures and coded behavior. They are â&#x20AC;&#x153;flatâ&#x20AC;? networks of actors and objects gathered up into assemblies. They act through simple, local rules, processing sensorial and physical data, figuring heterogeneous yet consistent wholes. These systems react locally to sensed aspects of the world, resolving conflicts generated within the distributed system. The possibility of using object-oriented programming and subsumption architecture to model contemporary urban behavior, while producing its physical organization, is a newly available technology which may offer new possibilities for contemporary political ecologies. In parallel with investigations into OOP, we will develop tools of digital analysis that will provide feedback on the spatial relationships that exist within these communities, and subsequently translate that feedback into new modes graphic representation. Envelopes After a few decades of relentless globalization, we are now entering a stage where the illusion of a border-free world and the utopia of a free-wheeling, free-flowing spatiality has ceased to be the primary goal of spatial and material practices: we must address the fact that the space where we live is not without borders. The building envelope is possibly the oldest and most primitive architectural element. It materializes the separation of the inside and outside, natural and artificial; and it demarcates private from

public and delimits ownership. When it becomes a façade, the envelope operates as a representational device in addition to its crucial environmental and territorial roles. It forms the border, the frontier, the edge, the enclosure and the interface. Particularly at a time when energy and security concerns have replaced an earlier focus on circulation and flow as the contents of architectural expression, the building envelope emerges as architecture’s primary subject. Simultaneously existing as both the architectural surface and its attachments, the envelope is a point of contact, a material link, between architecture and other social, political and economic processes. The building envelope is the single most important contributor to the environmental performance of a building, and it will be the element where the research will focus, both in terms of urban massing, and detailing of the prototypes. Driven by environmental determination, the research aims to produce envelope prototypes capable to perform within the urban proposals developed within the studio. Zuidas Development, Amsterdam We have chosen to locate the studio project in the Zuidas sector of Amsterdam, an area next to Schiphol Airport which is expected to undergo significant expansion in the next decade. With its outstanding accessibility, and with ambitions to perform sustainably and to reinforce the traditional qualities of Amsterdam, Zuidas aspires to become a world-class business and residential development, which will enable Amsterdam, and the Netherlands as a whole, to compete effectively in the international business arena. We will be working on the ‘Zuidas Vision Document’, which sets out the development process for this area. It heralds the transforma tion of Zuidas from a successful commercial district to a fullyfledged urban center in its own right: a mixed-use environment in which the first homes have now been completed and occupied. We will examine the most appropriate organizational structure for the years ahead, which will involve cooperation between public and private sector parties, aiming to integrate the traditional qualities of Amsterdam of compactness, flexibility, ecology and mixed program. Methodology We will be working with the Amsterdam Municipality, who will be sponsoring the studio. The outcome of the studio will be presented in the Rotterdam Architecture Biennale in 2012.

The studio methodology will be divided into two stages: The first stage will address the problem of the organization of the site, taking into account climatic, circulatory, and cultural concerns. This stage will aim to produce a distribution of urban mass across the site and a population of building enclosures that – by virtue of their qualities – will shape the overall urban form and largely determine the environmental performance of the building fabric as a whole. This stage will be done collectively, with different members of the studio taking on responsibility for certain aspects of the design. The exercise will be aided by the development of tools that will produce alternative variations of the project, depending on the parameters considered. The outcome of this exercise will reveal certain classes of envelopes to be located on the site. In the second stage, students working in pairs will develop in detail one of these prototypes, placing particular attention in the design of the envelope, both in terms of materiality and geometry. The studio will be encourage the use of a variety of software, including Rhino, Processing, Grasshopper and Ecotect, and it may require some engagement in programming and scripting. Rapid prototyping and analysis will be two of the required outputs. Studio Travel The group will visit Amsterdam from January 27th to February 5th to participate in a workshop with the Amsterdam Municipality, where a group of specialists from the Zuidas Planning Office and the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment will provide background information and collaborate with the studio. The purpose will be to gather information for the project and engage in workshops with local stakeholders and other designers, including students from the Architectural Association and TU Delft. Students will present their proposals at the end of these workshops, and this will serve as the basis for the projects to be developed during the remainder of the semester. We will also schedule visits to several buildings and urban projects by OMA, MVRDV, West 8 and others, which constitute precedents for high-density urban development in the Netherlands.

GIVEN A TYPOLOGICAL FAMILY, POTENTIAL PHENOTYPICAL VARIATIONS CAN ARISE, PRODUCING DIFFERENTIATED BEHAVIOR WITHIN A BUILDING POPULATION AND NEW FORMS OF ARCHITECTURAL EXPRESSION.

ZUIDAS, AMSTERDAM

STUDIO SITE

Amsterdam Zuidas Mahlerplein Superblock development in Zuidas, Amsterdam

SUPERBLOCKS The Site From very early in the studio, the idea of a singular site for this project was challenged. As research into the original Zuidas site persisted, broader questions emerged about the typology of the superblock as a generic unit of development in contemporary urban expansion. We began to consider the characteristics of these superblocks, the fundamental relationships that emerge out of this hyper condition of infrastructure, program and capital density. Precedent Considering the unit of the superblock as the fundamental ecology of our investigation, we broadened our study to include a host of historical and cultural examples, both projected and realized from throughout the history of architecture. Examples from this line of inquiry follow.

Superblock Characteristics Fundamental characteristics of superblocks include (from top left), large-scale footprints, large potential for public space, the consolidation of infrastructure, potential for continuity across the block and dense hybridized program

300 m +

BRASILIA

CHICAGO

BRASILIA

ST.LOUIS

KANGBASHI

HONG KONG CHICAGO

SHENZHEN

BARCELONA SERT 1933 HILBERSEIMER HOCHHAUSSTADT 1924

SUPERBLOCK CITY EXPANSION The superblocks envisioned by early modernist projects sustained portions of the existing civic fabric, while generating large tabular rasa conditions for the expansion of the city. While access to light, air and open space were championed as causes, the resulting proposals failed to reflect the specific ecological or cultural pressures of each specific location. The resulting plans produced little variation or articulation of the individual within the context of the whole and exhausted the landscape with a singular, redundant spatial units. Additionally, a lack of cultural consideration resulted in poorly-bounded, mis-scaled public realms.

PARIS LE CORBUSIER 1935

AMSTERDAM

BARCELONA

MANHATTAN

ZUIDAS

BRASILIA

800 METERS

SEOUL

MOSCOW

Block Scale Comparison Scale drawing of city blocks ranging from traditional urban fabric of Amsterdam to the 800 meter X 800 meter blocks of Beijing, China. Site selections for Eroded Urbanism include Zuidas, Brasilia, Seoul and Moscow (underlined)

BEIJING

CRUCIFORM TOWER PRECEDENT TYPOLOGIES The Cruciform Tower and the Courtyard Analysis of the urban superblock form was extended to the architectural scale with two fundamental typologies: the tower and the courtyard. Specifically, the cruciform tower (a modernist trope) can be seen as a spatial unit nested in a courtyard configuration. The cruciform tower maximizes the envelope of each floor plate and offers flexibility in addressing, allowing the developer to split the floors up into individual commercial spaces or preserving them as continuous floor plates. The courtyard typology ensures a maximized envelope as well, while creating a distinct set of urban spaces. Both typologies respond to the highly-restrictive building code in the Netherlands for commercial space, which requires no work station be place more than 5m from exterior glazing. Additionally, these typologies ensure thin floor plates of under 16m wide, allowing for natural ventilation and day lighting throughout the floors. It became clear that an idealized superblock proposal would include the hybridization of these typologies.

Cruciform Tower Place Ville Marie - IM Pei

Courtyard Complex Jussieu University Complex - Ă&#x2030;douard Albert

PLACE VILLE MARIE TOWER NO.1

COURTYARD

U UNIVERSITY, PARIS, FRANCE

JESSIEU UNIVERSITY AREA/FLOOR 33802 m2 PERIMETER 3653 m

OBJECTS IN A FIELD

RADIANT CITY LE CORBUSIER

24 FLOOR AREA/TOWER 446320 m2

URBAN FABRIC

MIETSKASERNEN BLO BERLIN, GERMANY BUILDING THICKNESS 8.5 m COURTYARD SIZE 24m X 16 m OPEN SPACE 43%

BELLEFONTAINE TOULOUSE, FRANCE BUILDING THICKNESS 8m COURTYARD SIZE 24m X 24m MODULE OPEN SPACE 84%

JUSSIEU UNIVERSITY PARIS, FRANCE BUILDING THICKNESS 18 m COURTYARD SIZE 42m X 33m, 100m X 85m OPEN SPACE 43%

DUTCH FOREN THE HAAG, NET BUILDING THIC 11 m - 13 m COURTYARD S 10.5 m X 14 m OPEN SPACE 18%

UNKNOWN THE HAAG, NETHERLANDS BUILDING THICKNESS 16 m COURTYARD SIZE 28m X 28m OPEN SPACE ~68%

GENERIC PROTOTYPE BUILDING THICKNESS 16 m COURTYARD SIZE 64m X 64m OPEN SPACE 47%

RADIANT CITY LE CORBUSIER FLOOR AREA/TOWER 446320 m2 FAR 4.0 Cruciform Tower GROUND COVERAGE Radiant City - Le Corbusier 5% Courtyard Complex Jussieu University Complex - Édouard Albert

100 m

200 m

.5 km

PLACE VILLE MARIE IM PEIVille Marie Place IM Pei

FLOOR AREA/TOWER Floor Area/Tower 2 6376 6376 m m2 FAR FAR 9.0 9.0 Ground Coverage GROUND COVERAGE 21% 21%

ST. NICHOLAS HOUSING NY PUBLIC HOUSING St. Nicholas Housing

MEI FOO HONG Mei Foo KONG HOUSING

NY Public Housing Authority FLOOR AREA/TOWER Floor Area/Tower 2 2 9394mm 9394 FAR FAR 1.8 1.8 Ground Coverage GROUND COVERAGE 14% 14%

FLOOR AREA/TOWER Floor Area/Tower 2 2 9885 9885 mm FAR FAR 6.88 6.88 Ground Coverage GROUND COVERAGE 48% 48%

Hong Kong Housing

RADIANT CITY Radiant City Corbusier LELe CORBUSIER

Floor Area/Tower 2

446320AREA/TOWER m FLOOR FAR m2 446320 4.0 FAR Ground Coverage 4.0 5% GROUND COVERAGE 5%

100m 100 m

200m 200 m

.5km .5 km

JussieuUNIVERSITY University JUSSIEU PARIS, Paris,FRANCE France BUILDING THICKNESS Floor Plate Dimension 18 m 18 m COURTYARD SIZE 42m X 33m, 100m Courtyard SizeX 85m OPEN SPACE 42m X 33m, 100m X 85m 43% Open Space 43%

GENERIC PROTOTYPE BUILDING THICKNESS Generic Prototype 16 m Floor Plate SIZE Dimension COURTYARD 64m 16 mX 64m OPEN SPACESize Courtyard 47%

64m X 64m Open Space 47%

BELLEFONTAINE TOULOUSE, FRANCE BUILDING THICKNESS 8m COURTYARD SIZE Bellefontaine 24m X 24m MODULE BELLEFONTAINE BELLEFONTAINE OPEN SPACE Toulouse, France TOULOUSE, FRANCE TOULOUSE, FRANCE 84% BUILDING THICKNESS Floor Plate Dimension BUILDING THICKNESS 8m 88 m m COURTYARD SIZE SIZE COURTYARD Courtyard Size 24m X 24m 24mMODULE X 24m MODULE OPEN SPACE OPEN 24m XSPACE 24m Module 84% 84%

MIETSKASERNEN BLOCKS BERLIN, GERMANY BUILDING THICKNESS 8.5 m COURTYARD SIZE Mietskasernen Blocks 24m X 16 m MIETSKASERNEN BLOCKSBLOCKS MIETSKASERNEN OPEN SPACE Berlin, Germany BERLIN, GERMANY BERLIN, GERMANY 43% BUILDING THICKNESS Floor Plate Dimension BUILDING THICKNESS 8.5 mm 8.5 m 8.5 COURTYARD SIZE SIZE COURTYARD Courtyard Size 24m X 16 m X 24m 16 m OPENXSPACE OPEN 24m 16m SPACE 43% 43%

Open Space 43%

Open Space 84%

UNKNOWN THE HAAG, NETHERLANDS BUILDING THICKNESS 16 m COURTYARD SIZE Unknown 28m X 28m UNKNOWN UNKNOWN OPEN SPACE The Haag, Netherlands THE HAAG, HAAG, NETHERLANDS ~68% THENETHERLANDS Floor Plate Dimension BUILDING THICKNESS BUILDING THICKNESS 16 m 16 m m COURTYARD SIZE SIZE COURTYARD Courtyard Size 28m X 28m 28m X 28m OPEN SPACE 28m 28m OPENXSPACE ~68% ~68% Open Space

DUTCH FORENSIC INSTITUTE THE HAAG, NETHERLANDS BUILDING THICKNESS 11 m - 13 m COURTYARD SIZE Dutch Institute 10.5 m XForensic 14 m DUTCH FORENSIC INSTITUTE DUTCH FORENSIC INSTITUTE OPENHaag, SPACE The Netherlands THE THENETHERLANDS HAAG, NETHERLANDS 18% HAAG, Floor Plate Dimension BUILDING THICKNESS BUILDING THICKNESS 11 m - 13 11mm - 13 m 11-13 m COURTYARD SIZE SIZE COURTYARD Courtyard Size 10.5 m X10.5 14 m m X 14 m OPEN SPACE 10.5m X 14mSPACE OPEN 18% 18% Open Space

18%

~68%

0 0

25 25

50 50

100 m 100 m

25 0

50 25

50 100 m100 m

Golden Square Golden Square London London 65 m x 6565 m m x 65 m

LONDON GOLDEN SQUARE 65M X 65M

Urban Square Scale Comparison Studying urban squares in a variety of world cities produced a range for civic squares

Grote Markt Grote Markt Brussels Brussels 60 m x 115 60mm x 115 m

BRUSSELS GROTE MARKET 60M X 115M

Soho Square Soho Square London London 92 m x 9292 m m x 92 m

Grote Markt Brussels 60 m x 115 m

Place des Vosges Paris 120 m x 120 m

Soho Square Grote Markt BrusselsLondon 92 m x 92 m 60 m x 115

LONDON SOHO SQUARE 92M X 92M

Place des Vosges Paris 120 m x 120 m

PARIS PLACE DES VOSGES 120M X 120M

Soho Square London 92 m x 92 m

BRUSSELS

AMSTERDAM

PARIS

LONDON

MADRID

SALAMANCA

CHICAGO

PRAGUE

BOLOGNA

NEW YORK

CAMBRIDGE

MODERNIST SUPERBLOCK

A NEW GENERIC BLOCK The Eroded Urbanism superblock begins with a new generic block typology. An inversion of the traditional city fabric, the generic block utilizes the thin building floor plate as a boundary for a series of linked urban rooms. This continuous fabric can be deployed in a variety of scales to create new districts in urban expansions. The new generic block is embedded with a variety of architectural typologies, including the courtyard building, slab and cruciform tower. Additionally, the new generic block consolidates infrastructure to the exterior of the block, generating large areas unencumbered by vehicles and completely dedicated to the public realm.

TYPICAL SUPERBLOCK

TRA

TRADITIONALTRADITIONAL GRID GRID

TRADITIONAL CITY

PROPOSAL PROPOSAL

NEW GENERIC BLOCK

PUBLIC DOMAIN

VEHICULAR INFRASTRUCTURE VEHICULAR / PEDESTRIAN INFRASTRUCTURE

CRUCIFORM

COURTYARD

EMBEDDED TYPOLOGIES

COURTYARD SIZE

16 m

GENERIC PARAMETERS The new generic superblock is a flexible framework contingent on two primary parameters; the scale of the courtyards and the thickness of the floor plates. A 16m floor plate can be used for most residential and commercial applications, although this plate depth can be expanded to 24m for double-loaded corridor typologies. The scale of the courtyards is derived from urban precedents, which indicate range from 60m to 120m. The tuning of the genericâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s parameters has a parallel in the grouping of slabs in modernist superblocks, such as those proposed by Walter Gropius.

60 m

16 m

24 m

120 m

Scheme by Gropius (1930) Illustrating the relation between building height, sun angle, land use and built density (Radberg 1988:83)

GENERIC CHARACTERISTICS

CENTRAL CORE

CENTRAL CORES

PUBLIC SPACE ENCLOSURE

PUBLIC SPACE- ENCLOSURE

FLOOR PLATE CONTINUITY

LOCAL LOCAL CORE CORE

LOCAL CORES

PUBLIC SPACE CONTINUITY

PUBLIC PUBLIC SPACESPACE- CONTINUITY CONTINUITY

FORCES OF EROSION Beginning with the generic block, forces of erosion are introduced in order to generic site and climate specific types. Early exploration of this concept included several generic tests of erosion rations. These new iterations of the original generic each possess a distinct architectural expression, despite being derived from identical generics. Smaller rations of erosion resulted in more contiguous fabrics, while models with larger erosions proved more volatile and varied in their final spatial articulation.

0% erosion

25% erosion

25%

47% 47% erosion erosion

47%

60% 60% erosion erosion

60%

GENERIC BLOCK

RESISTANCE B

RESISTANCE MAPPING The production of a specific from the generic base block is contingent on both the process of erosion and the resistance of the block to that process.

PRIMARY CORES

The resistances of the generic are generated in order to stabilize the behavior of the block and preserve efficiency of the typology wherever possible. This means preserving cores wherever possible and eroding less efficient floor plate areas first.

PRIMARY COR

ADJACENCIES

TOP LEVEL

TOP LAYER - LOWER RESISTANCE

LOCALIZED CORES

SECONDARY CORES

SITE-BASED COMPOSITE

COMPOSITE W/SITE

THE GENERIC

1. CONSTRUCTION OF GENERIC INITIAL COURTYARD GENERIC GENERATED BY DISTRIBUTION OF STANDARD COURYARDS ACROSS SITE A) HORIZONTAL PLANE B) VERTICAL LIMIT (HEIGHT RESTRICTIONS) COURTYARDS SIZED BETWEEN 96 m and 128 m GOAL FAR + X%

THE EROSION CODE SITE BLOCK SIZE 300 m X 150 m COURTYARD SIZE 96 m X 96 m EROSION SURPLUS +20%

4. LOCATE INITIAL EROSION POINTS A SERIES OF EROSION POINTS ARE LOCATED, CALCULATED TO GENERATE MAXIMUM SOLAR EXPOSURE AND AIR CIRCULATION

2. LOGIC SYSTEM OF GENERIC DERIVED GENERIC MODULE STATUS DETERMINED BY FORMAL PRINCIPLES OF INITIAL FORM

3. SET RESISTANCES INITIAL RESISTANCES ARE CALCULATED FOR EACH MODULE, WEIGHTING CHARACTERISTICS

IDENTIFY CORES IDENTIFY NEIGHBORS IDENTITIFY LEVEL

COMPOSITE VALUE BASED ON ELEVATION STATUS OF NEIGHBORS PROXIMITY TO CORE, ETC.

NO. OF NEIGHBORS 4

NO. OF NEIGHBORS 2

PROXIMITY TO CORE 0, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3

CORE: TRUE

CORE: FALSE

RESISTANCE = 1/DIST + R

5. EROSION LOOP EROSION GROWS FROM INITIAL POINTS. GENERIC RESISTANCES ARE RECALCULATED EACH TIME GENERIC IS ERODED - TWO LINKED RECURSIVE PROCESSES

5. MODEL CHECK - FAR GOA TERMINATES LOOP FINAL ERODED SPECIFIC CAN BE EVALUATED AGAINST OTHER ITERATIONS FOR OTHER PERFORMANCE / AESTHETICBASED CRITERIA

IF (FAR < 4.50) { END }

THE SPECIFIC

AS THE GENERIC BLOCK ERODES, NEW AREAS OF EFFICIENCY ARE GENERATED. RESISTANCES ARE REMAPPED EACH GENERATION IN A RECURSIVE, RESPONSIVE PROCECESS. 48

THE BLOCK IS LEARNING.

FERRIS

PIRANESI’S ROME

NEW YORK ZONING

FORCES OF EROSION Forces of erosion can be found throughout architecture, from the zoning envelopes rendered by Hugh Ferris to the search for authenticity in the Roman ruins of Piranesi. These are top-down forces, generally exposing resiliency based on location or materiality. Bottom-up forces include the excavations necessary for the continuity of the public realm, such as the apertures at the ground plane of the Karl Marx Hof. Additionally, the articulation of envelopes for the inclusion of exterior spaces and planted surfaces suggest new territories articulated by erosion.

KARL MARX HOF

PERFORMANCE The process of erosion deployed on the generic model attempts to reduce the total occlusion of sunlight by the built form, maximizing solar exposure for the courtyards. Each subsequent generation increases the solar radiation to the ground plane.

BRASILIA

POTENTIAL SITES

FAR

Following the development of the new generic superblock and the erosion code, three sites of varying scales, program mixes and FARs were selected for testing the new type.

BUILT SPAC RESIDE COMM

BRASILIA FAR 1.19 Surface Use Infrastructure 12% Green Space 69% Building Footprint 19% Building Space Residential 55% Commercial/Public 45%

SURFACE U INFRAS GREEN BUILD

MOSCOW FAR

1.0

SURFACE USE INFRASTRUCTURE GREEN SPACE BUILDING FOOTPRINT

20% 64% 16%

BUILT SPACE RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL/PUBLIC

80% 20%

MOSCOW

FAR 1.0 Surface Use Infrastructure 20% Green Space 64% Building Footprint 16% Building Space Residential 80% Commercial/Public 20%

SEOUL FAR

3.2

SURFACE USE INFRASTRUCTURE GREEN SPACE BUILDING FOOTPRINT

40% 31% 29%

BUILT SPACE RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL/PUBLIC

60% 40%

SEOUL

FAR 3.2 Surface Use Infrastructure 40% Green Space 31% Building Footprint 29% Building Space Residential 60% Commercial/Public 40%

MOSCOW

BRASILIA

Seoul and Brasilia While the speculative sites host similarly-scaled generic blocks, they generate radically different results due to contingencies fo site access, program balance, FAR and climate.

104 m (max length)

Studio

1-Bedroom

Studio

1-Bedroom

Studio

2-Bedroom

Studio 34 m2

1-Bedroom

3-Bedroom

1-bedroom 69 m2

2-bedroom 104 m2

Studio 34 m2

1-bedroom 69 m2

2-bedroom 104 m2

1-bedroom 69 m2

104 m2

3-bedroom 156 m2

2-bedroom 104 m2

3-bedroom 156 m2

TYPOLOGIES

Open Office

3-bedroom

The new generic 156 m2superblock floor plate is designed to support both commercial and residential program with great efficiency. Constructed on a 8m X 8m module, these 16m wide floor plates can be infilled with a series of generic programmatic modules, operating as slab, cruciform or courtyard typologies.

Open Office

PrivateOpen Office Office

Conference

Lounge

Residential: Double Loaded 24 m

3-Bedroom

1-be 1-Bedroom

1-Bedroom

Studio

2-Bedroom

3-Bedroom

1-Bedroom

104 m (max length)

Studio

1-Bedroom

Studio

1-Bedroom

Studio

2-Bedroom

1-Bedroom

3-Bedroom

2-bed 10

3-be 1

16 m

Office: Large Floorplate

16 m

56 m (max length)

max length)

PROGRAM FLEXIBILITY Flexibility of program is key to the new generic superblock. Large, more continuous, slab-like floor plates are principally for commercial use, while smaller, more eroded regions are filled with residential program. The flexibility of the generic floor plate allows for a responsive mix of program, with floor plates that share both eroded and continuos traits able to sustain either program type.

PROGRAM MIX

RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL RETAIL

PROGRAM MIX

88 m 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

PENTHOUSE LEVELS

RESIDENTIAL LEVELS

COMMERCIAL LEVELS

RETAIL LEVELS

40 m RESIDENTIAL LEVELS

RETAIL LEVEL

60 m PENTHOUSE LEVELS

RESIDENTIAL LEVELS

COMMERCIAL LEVELS

RETAIL LEVEL

15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

40 m COMMERCIAL LEVELS

RETAIL LEVEL

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

36 m RESIDENTIAL LEVELS

20 m RESIDENTIAL LEVELS

5 4 3 2 1 0

COMMERCIAL LEVELS

RETAIL LEVELS

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

THE ENVELOPE While the Eroded Urbanism project is a prototype deployable on urban superblocks throughout the world, intial envelope development focused on the Zuidas site in Amsterdam propsed in the studio brief. The envelope development followed two fundamental tenets: 1) The envelope system must be flexible, capable of supporting the performance and cultural requirements of both commercial and residential program so that the superblock may behave as flexible entity responsive to potentially volitale market-based demands. 2) The envelope system should allow for access to the exterior and create a series of balconies that support continuity of plant life and other species across the site. Additionally, the envelope system provides ample natural light and ventilation for the support of these passive strategies.

RFORMANCE

RESIDENTIAL INDIVIDUAL, PRIVATE BALCONIES SMALL BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO HIGH LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS PART

FACADE PERFORMANCE SMALL COMMERCIAL SHARED, SEMI-PRIVATE BALCONIES MEDIUM BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO MEDIUM LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS PART / WHOLE

LARGE COMMERCIAL SHARED BALCONIES LARGE BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO LOW LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS WHOLE

2 PM

10 AM

12 PM

PLAN ORIENTATION - THERMAL HEAT GAIN LAG

12 PM

FACADE PERFORMANCE

RESIDENTIAL INDIVIDUAL, PRIVATE BALCONIES SMALL BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO HIGH LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS PART

SMALL COMMERCIAL SHARED, SEMI-PRIVATE BALCONIES MEDIUM BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO MEDIUM LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS PART / WHOLE

LARGE COMMERCIAL SHARED BALCONIES LARGE BALCONIES FACADE/FLOOR RATIO LOW LOW INTERNAL HEAT LOAD LEGIBLE AS WHOLE

PLAN O

16 M

ROTATION DATUM

COMMERCIAL

RESIDENTIAL

Elevation Modules Modules of 2, 4, 8 and 16 meters have been developed for the articulation of the facade. The nesting of these differentiated sizes results in balconies distributed across the facade. Residential areas are embedded with smaller units, resulting in frequent, small balconies. Large commercial spaces are filled with larger bays, resulting in consolidated, shared balconies.

Facade: Program - Terrace Gradient

RESIDENTIAL

MIXED

LARGE COMMERCIAL

FACADE COMPONENTS

GLASS

GLAZING

BALCONIES BALCONIES - PLANTING - PLANTING AND AND WATER WATER FILTRATION FILTRATION

PLANTING AND WATER FILTRATION

BRICK BRICK - THERMAL - THERMAL HEAT HEAT LOAD LOAD

CERAMICS AND THERMAL HEAT LOAD

LIGHT 25% dark, 75% light

25%

Inverse English Bond

MEDIUM 75% dark, 25% light

50%

English Bond

MEDIUM 75% dark, 25% light English Bond

MEDIUM

DARK

75% dark, 25% light

95% dark, 5% light

English Bond

Monk Bond

DARK 95% dark, 5% light Monk Bond

75%

DARK 95% dark, 5% light Monk Bond

Elevation Pattern Mapping In order to generate a reading of the erosion process in the facade, a super graphic of winter solar radiation pattern is mapped on the final form, then approximated through a pixelization routine that reduces the gradient to three values. These values are then matched with panels with varied coloration derived from different bond patterns. Areas with maximum solar exposure are lightened in order to bounce light into the courtyards. Darker regions allow the form to maximize thermal heat gain in areas with less exposure,

Bignonia Capreolata Crossvine Late Spring and Summer

Parthenocissus Tricuspidata Flowering Plant - Ornamental Highly Phototropic, Grows Down Early Summer

Celastrus Scandens American Bittersweet Mid Fall

Actinidia Kolomitka Woody Vine Extremely Hearty Winter, Early Spring

Plant Mapping In order to generate a differentiated reading of the courtyards throughout the seasons, native species are identified which bloom throughout the year. The species listed above offer a planting cycle that staggers blooming throughout the year.

100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

111

112

113

114

115

116

117

118

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EPILOGUE The recent obsession in architecture with the aesthetics of approximation is reflected in our work, but we see our urban prototype as distinct from Metabolist tradition championed in many contemporary works. The heroic forms of Metabolism are based almost exclusively in the act of aggregation, the grouping of individual modules of space structurally and aesthetically arranged as clusters. Eroded Urbanism explores the articulation of the approximate, but through a process of erosion, allowing a tension to emerge between a new generic typology of efficiency and a modulated, articulated whole of cohesive performance, spatial and experiential variety. Our project exists at the middle-ground between top-down comprehensive master planning and bottom-up, site and market specific development. The project and its processes create a new, cohesive and varied whole capable of shifting use and performance based on evolving needs. It is not wholly one thing or another.

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ECOTECTONICS BLOG The following section contains chronologically-organized excerpts from the Ecotectonics Blog, a blog sustained as an important part of the studio methodology. These pages offer insight into the development of the project, particularly the focus of reconciling simultaneous goals of typological inventiveness, ecological performance and most importantly, a broader architectural position.

123

ECOTECTONICS

AMSTERDAM - CLIMATE Key Characteristics: -Moderate temperature throughout year -Mid-to-high humidity -Low wind speed, primarily from the west -Frequently overcast skies Potential Consequences/Opportunities: -Moderate heating as primary concern; cooling irrelevant -Maximize sunlight in open spaces -Ventilation effective through much of the year -Low solid to void ratio (potential for many glazed openings)

SUPERBLOCK STRATEGY

TRADITIONAL BLOCK

CONVENTIONAL SUPERBLOCK

DISPLACEMENT OF PUBLIC REALM

124

INTER-RELATED CONCERNS Multi-level

PROGRAM ENERGY

-Ratio/Mix -Proximity -Unit of repetition

TERRAIN PUBLIC

Ventilation/ Micro-climate

-# of levels -Scale of space -Interconnectivity -Public/Private gradient -Open/Closed/Covered -Exposure to sunlight

Vegetation

ENVELOPE CLIMATE

-% Open/Closed -Operability -Orientation -Shading mechanism 4

PROGRAM

TERRAIN

ENVELOPE

RESIDENTIAL

COMMERCIAL -Intensive clustering of different programs

-Multiple ground planes

-Vegetative system as envelope layer

-Leads to potential symbiotic energy relationships

-Leads to new public realms that break down traditional hierarchies

-Leads to regulation of light & ventilation

-Suggests multiple public ground planes

-Suggests potential multi-function vegetative system as unifier

-Suggests small floor plates & micro-regulation with the potential for programmatic clustering

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ECOTECTONICS

-% Open/Closed -Operability -Orientation -Shading mechanism

PARAMETRIC TESTS

PROGRAM ENERGY

TERRAIN PUBLIC TERRAIN PUBLIC

PROGRAM ENERGY

TERRAIN PUBLIC PROGRAM ENERGY

ENVELOPE CLIMATE

ENVELOPE CLIMATE ENVELOPE CLIMATE

Determining Parameters:

-Program ratio -Program adjacency

-Number of levels -Size of platforms -Exposure to sunlight

-Orientation (solar) -Percentage glass

Analyze result for:

Analyze result for: Analyze result for:

-Resultant public realm -Ventilation & solar -Water absorption

-Program adjacencies -Resultant public realm

-Program adjacencies -Ventilation & solar -Water absorption

TWO TYPOLOGIES

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VERTICAL “TOWER” TYPOLOGY

HORIZONTAL “PLINTH” TYPOLOGY

PROGRAM

Residential, Commercial

Retail, Commercial, Cultural, Research (Gathering)

PLATE

Narrow Floor Plate

Large Floor Plate

CREATION OF PUBLIC SPACE

Limited

High Potential

VERTICAL CIRCULATION

Heavy Vertical Circulation

Some Vertical Circulation

VENTILATION

Good Ventilation Performance

Poor Ventilation Performance

NATURAL LIGHT

Good Access to Natural Light

Limited Access to Natural Light

ORIENTATION

Specific

Neutral

FACADE TO CORE

Low

High

ENVELOPE / FLOOR RATIO

High

Low

STRATEGIES PUBLIC SPACE In a mixed-use development of the programmatic complexity suggested by the Zuidas brief, the new superblocks will host commercial, cultural and research programs that are best suited for spaces of horizontal or plinth typologies. Our proposal, rather than deploying these spaces on the ground level, stratifies them to interrupt and break down the scale of the vertical typologies or towers deployed on the site, thereby mediating the super scale of the block and creating new ground planes that break down traditional hierarchies of public/private space found in existing developments. The public realm extends into a stratified fabric of a scale and form complementary to existing town fabrics.

ENERGY PERFORMANCE STRATEGIES / PARAMETERS

PUBLIC SPACE PERFORMANCE STRATEGIES / PARAMETERS

PERFORMANCE Creating a type of symbiotic relationship between the typologies which allows each type to infiltrate the other to maximize the inherent performance advantages of each. EXAMPLE (VENTILATION): The commercial spaces in the horizontal slabs would traditionally employ a mechanically-assisted system in order to ventilate the space. This same commercial space in a hybrid condition would employ vertical stack ventilation via the vertical typology intersecting it.

PUBLIC SPACE DIRECT LIGHT EXPOSURE

HEAT GAIN EXCHANGE CYCLE

OFFICE

RESIDENTIAL

POTENTIAL PARAMETERS Ratio of Horizontal / Vertical Space Ventilation Requirements / Program Air Flow Efficiency Program Distribution

PUBLIC SPACE CIRCULATION

COMMERCIAL

HYBRID

VENTILATION

INTUITIVE SCHEME ANALYSIS

229.000 m 134.000 m 57.000 m 420.000 m

Horizontal Typology (Plinth) Space Vertical Typology (Tower) Space Elevated Horizontal Public Space (Above Ground) TOTAL

13.6% 31.9%

54.5%

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ECOTECTONICS

FAR = 7.75

INTUITION X

128

INTUITION X

INTUITION X - SKIN

INTUITION X - SOLAR FORM FINDING INTERATIONS

INTUITION PERFORMANCE 01 SKETCH STUDY

INTUITION 01 - SOUTH FACADE EAST - WEST TOWER ORIENTATION FAR 6.2

INTUITION 01 - SOUTH FACADE NORTH - SOUTH TOWER ORIENTATION FAR 6.2

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ECOTECTONICS

EXPERIMENTS

FORM-FINDING SOLAR FEEDBACK EXPERIMENT TEST

SPHERES

CELLULAR

A- Vertical & Horizontal Typologies

130

A- Nested Scales

A- Layered Clusters

A- Vertical & Horizontal Typologies Basic Typologies: -Large horizontal bars for broad range of public & commercial programs, with public space on roof -Vertical tower elements for smaller-scale residential & office programs Optimize for: FAR Distance between buildings Sun Exposure Ground Floor Open Space Terraced Open Space Potential Advantages: -Mix of public & private space at multiple levels -Utilize advantage of different typologies for mutual gain -Close mixing of program types Potential Concerns: -Success of public access &programs at upper levels -E-W orientation of tower blocks -Differentiating residential & commercial access

A- Nested Scales

Basic Typologies: -larger floorplate superstructure towers, some connected, some independent for broad public & commercial programs -smaller floorplate elements off of the main network for residential & office programs Optimize for: FAR Distance between buildings Sun Exposure Ground Floor Open Space Potential Advantages: -Generous network of open space at grade -Utilize advantage of different typologies for mutual gain -Close mixing of program types -Small semi-public terraces at upper levels Potential Concerns: -Success of public access &programs at upper levels -Highly articulated envelope (high surface area:volume)

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ECOTECTONICS

Type 1- East-West Single Loaded Slab 14 x 52 floor plate (728 m2) Core to side 2 primary orientations: east or west exposure 2 exposures for each unit

Type 2- East-West Double Loaded Slab 24 x 52 floor plate (1248 m2) Core to side, within envelope

Type 3- North-South Single Loaded Slab 14 x 52 floor plate (728 m2) Core to side South exposure

Type 4- Centralized Tower 32 x 32 floor plate (1024 m2) Core in center 2 variable exposures for each unit

Development Goals

Development Goals 1. Explore public urban form as a potential driver for tower organization. 2. Organize the towers not as discrete objects, but as a linked fabric, maximizing flexibility, shared resources, structural rigidity and opportunities for new forms of circulation. 3. Develop the project organization through a systematic approach and investigating potential assemblages through simple generic types. 4. Research the envelope for its potential performance and its relationship to terrace spaces.

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System Organization

1. TYPICAL TOWER

2. TERRACE SLOPE

3. HYBRID CONNECTIONS

4. HYBRID CHAIN

PARAMETERS SITE GEOMETRY FAR SUN EXPOSURE STRUCTURAL CO-DEPENDENC (A-FRAME) EVELOPE CIRCULATION

5. CONTINUOUS HYBRID FABRIC

6. SITE SPECIFIC DEPLOYMENT

Characteristics

1. OPEN VS. CLOSED GROUND PLANE

4. RESIDENTIAL / COMMERICAL PARALLEL CIRCULATION

2. POTENTIAL SHARED SPACES - LIFTED

3. POTENTIAL SHARED SPACES - GROUND

TRADITIONAL VERTICAL ACCESS

PARALLEL CIRCULATION LOOP

PROBLEMATIC SHARED ENTRIES

INDIVIDUAL ENTRY POINTS

PROBLEMATIC SHARED CIRCULATION

DEDIATED CIRCULATION

LIMITED FLEXIBILITY

COMPLETE FLEXIBILITY

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ECOTECTONICS

Solar Deformation

SOLAR - TERRACES

PARAMETRIC SYSTEM DISTORTION

Aggregation on Site

SITE PLAN

SYSTEM ITERATIONS - FLEXIBLE PLANNING

PHASING

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ROOF PLAN

Context/Introduction

1.1

ECOFYS >>> U-VALUES FOR BETTER ENERGY PERFORMANCE OF BUILDINGS

Share of heat in total energy use

Total energy use in the Netherlands amounted to 3232 PJ in 2006. This energy was used for the production of electricity and heat, as a fuel for transport and as feedstock. City PJ, which is nearly 40%, Country Almost 1224 was used for heating (see Figure 1.1.).HDD Heat supply is the largest energy user inPoland the Netherlands. Conservation, increasing Gdansk 4004 sustainability of energy and efficient use of fossil fuels for heat supply thus have a large Faro Portugal 805 impact on total energy consumption and CO2 emissions. Lisbon Portugal 846

CDD 12 489

Climate: Heating & Cooling

Figure 1 Porto Total domestic energy use forPortugal 2006 (3232 PJprim) distributed into deployment of energy carriers Constanta Romania

Bucarest

Romania

Division total domestic energy use (in PJprim)

Novi Sad

Serbia

Belgrade

875 Serbia

553

Bratislava

Slovakia

Lucenec

Slovakia

581

Source:

1247

147

2702

298

3051

273

2712

332

2753

279

3152

150

50% Industry

1789

505

Ljubliana

Slovenia

3165

137

Seville

Spain

931

908

1024

627

Education 22%

20% Commercia/Public

Spain

Barcelona Electricity

Heat

Spain

1156

516

Raw materials Santander

Transport fuels Spain

1428

167

Madrid

Spain

1860

596

Salamanca SenterNovem

Spain

2596

179

Goteborg

Sweden

4010

Stockholm

Sweden

4210

Statistics Netherlands (CBS) in consultation with the Expertise Centre for Heat

Distribution of heat demand according to sector

Umea Sweden 5747 In order to establish the potential for sustainable heating and cooling it is also important Luleathe distribution of heat demand Sweden 5943 to establish into sectors. In their energy statistics, CBS Heating Degree Days (Statistics Netherlands) only reports on final energy use of the various energy carriers Kiruna Sweden 7076 such as natural gas, coal and oil to end users and the supply of heat from GenevaThe Energy research Centre Switzerland 3000 cogeneration. of the Netherlands (ECN) has calculated final heat demand for various sectorsSwitzerland by adopting assumptions on the average Zürich 3413 efficiency of conversion into heat (see Appendix A). Amsterdam The Netherlands 3039

Cooling Degree Days

156 77

Hospitals 81%

United Kingdom

2699

United Kingdom

2800

Cardiff

United Kingdom

2812

Manchester

United Kingdom

3073

Belfast

United Kingdom

3353

WP1 Report

EIE/04/135/S07.38652

Offices 58%

London

Shops 47%

Plymouth

Double Skin Facades United Kingdom Edinburgh

Residential 6%

3532 25% Households 99

Slovenia

1224

Air Conditioning Systems

410

Koper

Valencia

1.2

“Best Practice for Double Skin Façades”

3393

Newcastle

United Kingdom

3470

Birmingham

United Kingdom

3518

Fig. 4 Section showing constructive elements through the façade

Typical double skin facade

1. Full Height Ventilated Flue vs. Single Storey Ventilated Façade The advantages of the single-storey ventilated façade are that it is generally simpler solution in terms of construction, fire Double glazed facades becomes apart from an architectural expression also a part ofathe separation, and noise transfer between floors. A single storey technological systems of the building. A demand on a holistic approach and collaboration façade is more suitable for naturally ventilated buildings as between participators becomes more significant than in a traditional building system where air is available for occupants at each floor level. the façade usually acts a passive part of the building. In an outer wall withfresh, two cool layers the In contrast, a full façade becomes an active climatic screen, that can be used in the energy system of the height ventilated flue would have solar heat build up over a number of floors, which may mean that building and improve the indoor climate, increase the use of daylight, solar shade and temperatures at the top of the flue are too excessive to be decrease noise in exposed areas. If the traditional façade gives the architect a freedom of used for natural ventilation to the occupied space.

2.2.1

Collaboration

expression, double-glazed facade and the design of its building demands collaboration with engineers and suppliers. This cooperation will affect the architecture in many ways. It is essential that full height flues utilised in naturally 2.2.2

ventilated buildings are used solely for exhaust air, cross ventilating from opening windows on other façades. In this configuration, the flue is acting in a similar manner to an atrium and the exhaust louvres normally required to extend

Light

The natural daylight and its positive effects on humans have always been a main ingredient to above the roof level in order to ensure that hot air does not in architecture. The treatment of the light affects the experience of space and inner clock of re-circulate to the highest floor level. The principle of this is humans: Alert and awake, tired and drowsy. Set design and well being. Shadows, reflection, similar to ensuring a smoke layer in an atrium. The full height dazzle, colour of light and distribution. Everything affects and should take flue part. does, however, have the aesthetic advantage of not requiring louvres at each floor level.

Optimum double skin façade flue widths are 200 to 400mm for single-storey flues, which require all sections of the internal skin to be openable for maintenance. Full height ventilated flues are of the order of 800 to 1200mm, and an access platform for maintenance can be provided, with less opening required to the inner skin, and less disruption to the internal space, during maintenance.

Chairama Spa / Bogota / Mazzanti & Mesa

Double glazed units are best suited to be positioned to the external skin for naturally ventilated solutions, whereas hybrid / mechanical schemes can be achieved with a single glazed external skin.

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1-6 Recent examples of double skin façades in office buildings in Dublin 1,2,4,5 Riverside One, Scott Tallon Walker Architects 3,6 Riverside Two, KMD Architecture Photos by Dennis Gilbert

While the above mechanically ventilated/ hybrid configurations are most popular world-wide, it is also often possible in most building applications in Ireland to utilise a double skin façade with an entirely naturally ventilated building, due to the moderate climate. The benefits of a full naturally ventilated system are energy consumption, increased fuel costs, and the cost saving of mechanical plant, as well as carbon emissions, and low energy credentials. There are also comfort issues as many people prefer naturally ventilated spaces, provided the ventilation is controllable and overheating is not a problem.

Cooper Union / Morphosis

2. External Skin - Double Glazed or Single Glazed Using a single glazed external skin can create a very transparent external appearance, particularly when using low iron glazing. Blinds and solar shading devices (preferably controllable) can then be placed within the cavity and the solar gain on the blinds can be removed by ventilating the cavity. Openable windows into the flue as a means of providing natural ventilation must be carefully considered, as there is a risk of warm air from the occupied areas causing condensation on the cold external glazed skin. By placing the double glazed units on the external face, condensation can be avoided.

Galleria Centercity / Korea / UNStudio

3. Double Skin Façades with Air Conditioning/ Mechanical Ventilation vs Naturally Ventilated Systems The double skin façade can also be used in conjunction with an air conditioned or mechanically ventilated building. In this instance, the primary purpose of the double façade is to reduce solar heat gains and subsequently air conditioning cooling loads. The external flue can be used either as a stand-alone system for removing solar heat gains by natural convection (with the building sealed from the façade) or used as a return air path for the mechanical ventilation network, which has the advantage of the heat trapped in the double skin flue being available for heat reclaim at central plant.

Another option is to provide a mixed mode system. This has two meanings; either that the building is partially naturally ventilated/partially air conditioned, or that the building operates with natural ventilation in spring/autumn, and with air conditioning in summer. However, regardless of preferred system, it must be noted that in order to achieve successful operation, occupant users need to play a role in operating and maintaining the systems, and their effectiveness, will often depend on a combination of user control and a sophisticated Building Control System. Note: Graphs courtesy of IN2 Engineering Design Partnership. Acoustic data courtesy of AWN Consulting Engineering. Cost data courtesy of KSN.

Siamese Towers / Santiago / Alejandro Aravena

135

ECOTECTONICS

Planted Facades

Vigo Harbor / Nouvel 1 Central Park / Sydney / Nouvel

Study: plants within double skin facade

Consorcio Building / Chile / Enrique Brown

Facade System Potentials

136

-Variable infill inner layer

-Sealed inner layer

-Solid/Punched inner layer

-Sealed outer layer

-Operable/moveable membrane outer layer

-open screen membrane outer layer

Facade System Potentials Outer Layer Potentials:

Typical Section

Planted screen of varying density

Hybrid plant screen & glazed system

Operable glazed screen

WHEN TRANSLATED TO A HYPER SCALE, TRADITIONAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGIES FACE TWO FUNDAMENTAL CHALLENGES: 1. SOLAR EXPOSURE - IN ORDER TO PRESERVE SOLAR EXPOSURE, A LARGE-SCALE COURTYARD MUST EXPAND ITS FOOTPRINT TO MAINTAIN A PROPER ASPECT RATIO 2. VENTILATION - HIGH COURTYARDS CAN OCCLUDE BREEZES, PREVENTING NATURAL VENTILATION FROM OCCURING ADDITIONALLY, COURTYARD TYPOLOGIES RESULT IN UNEQUAL DISTRIBUTION OF LIGHT, WITH UPPER FLOORS RECIEVING MAXIMUM EXPOSURE AND LOWER FLOORS AND CORNER UNITS HAVING LITTLE TO NONE. THE SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY ATTEMPTS TO MAINTAIN THE CONNECTIVITY AND URBAN FORM OF A TRADITIONAL COURTYARD, WHILE ADDRESSING THESE TWO CHALLENGES.

TYPICAL COURTYARD

SLOPED/TERRACED COURTYARD

TYPE

ELEVATION ANALYSIS

GROUND PLAN ANALYSIS

137

ECOTECTONICS

UTILIZING COURTYARD FABRICS OF EQUAL FAR, COURTYARD SIZE AND FLOOR PLATE WIDTH, WE DEMONSTRATE HOW THE SLOPE/TERRACED TYPOLOGY GENERATES MORE EXTERIOR SKIN SOLAR RADIATION.

TYPICAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

UNROLLED COURTYARD - SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY

THE SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY CREATES A SERIES OF URBAN PATHS AT THE GROUND PLANE FRAMED BY SLOPING SETS OF TOWERS (SEE DASHED) THROUGH THE LIFTING AND ANGLING OF TOWERS OFF THE GROUND PLANE, THESE PATHS RECIEVE ADDITIONAL SOLAR RADIATION AND OFFER CIRCULATION ACROSS THE BLOCK

TYPICAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

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UNROLLED COURTYARD - TYPICAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGY

A TRADITIONAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGY NEEDS TO BE LOWER IN ORDER TO AVOID OCCLUDING MOVEMENT OF AIR... THE SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY CREATES A SERIES OF PATHS FOR AIR MOVEMENT ACROSS THE SITE, GENERATING A CONSISTENT SOURCE FOR NATURAL VENTILATION AT BOTH UPPER AND LOWER LEVELS

TYPICAL COURTYARD TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

SLOPED/TERRACED TYPOLOGY - FAR 6.0

In-Progress Facade Study Performance Criteria: Facade System Potentials

Basic Types:

-A differentiated system that visually & performatively distinguishes between residential & commercial program and can adapt over time for both programmatic change and seasonal adjustment

Open / Solid

Facade System Potentials Solid / Solid

-Multi-scalar: changeable/varying micro-scale within macro ordering framework -Enhance thermal performance throughout the year by capturing solar heat to insulate/provide heating to the building -Maximize natural ventilation in the warmer months as a natural cooling mechanism -Utilize planting as a flexible element to regulate: heat gain in summer, privacy, overall temperature control, facade protection -Variable infill inner layer

-Sealed inner layer

-Sealed outer layer

-Operable/moveable membrane outer layer

-Solid/Punched inner layer

Unitized

-open screen membrane outer layer

-Variable infill inner layer

Hybrid

-Sealed outer layer

-Sealed inner layer

-Operable/moveable me outer layer

Next steps: -More systematic exploration of the basic types (at right), especially performance capabilities & precedents -Choose a system that maximizes performance goals & explore it further -Adapting/varying basic layered system to different facade exposures, as well as differences between base & top

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ECOTECTONICS Option 4 (Unitized) Outer: Individualized projecting boxes with individualized planted trellis Performance: -Trellis density customizable by inhabitant to control sun exposure -Projecting boxes provide increased surface area for heat gain/insulation

PROGRAM

LEVELS 11 - 26

RETAIL 5%

AMENITIES/PUBLIC/COMMERCIAL 13%

LEVELS 5 - 10

LEVELS 1 -4

RESIDENTIAL 43%

140

OFFICE 39%

PUBLIC NETWORK

NETWORK OF SHARED TERRACES / COURTYARDS

GROUND FLOOR

RESIDENTIAL COURT

141

PROGRAM

LEVELS 11 - 26

RETAIL 5%

AMENITIES/PUBLIC/COMMERCIAL 13%

LEVELS 5 - 10

LEVELS 1 -4

RESIDENTIAL 43%

142

OFFICE 39%

PUBLIC NETWORK

NETWORK OF SHARED TERRACES / COURTYARDS

GROUND FLOOR

RESIDENTIAL COURT

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ECOTECTONICS

ENVELOPE RESIDENTIAL

COMMERCIAL A

COMMERCIAL B

RETAIL

PROGRAM FLEXIBILITY RETAIL

RESIDENTIAL

BALCONIES

ENVELOPE 2

11 X 2 m

+30%

COMMERCIAL

RESIDENTIAL

RETAIL

RESIDENTIAL

COMMERCIAL RETAIL

RESIDENTIAL

COMMERCIAL

1X8m 2 X 3 m2 2 4X2m 2

1 X 16 m 2 2X8m

+19% COMMERCIAL A

+10% COMMERCIAL B

RETAIL COMMERCIAL

RETAIL

144

PROGRAM DISTRIBUTION Residential

MAX BAY LENGTH

Commercial

32 m

16 m

145

ECOTECTONICS

ORGANIZATION Floor plates expand towards tower bases

RESIDENTIAL / COMMERCIAL (FLEXIBLE) 70mX14m SHARED LOBBY / COMMERICAL PLINTH 70mX14m Intersecting FOOTPRINT EXPANDED TO 32m

COMMERCIAL / RETAIL BASE Varied

ISOLATED FRAGMENT

-Residential concentrated around edges with best views & highest sun exposure -Commercial concentrated in center where towers combine into larger floorplates -Larger residential units facing south with best views -Smaller studio units in east-west orientation

Diagrammatic Upper Floor Plan

146

Diagrammatic Section

ENVELOPE OPTION 1- SYSTEM POTENTIAL PROGRAM DISTRIBUTION

COMMERICAL INTERNAL HEAT LOADS

HIGH

TRELLIS DENSITY

HIGH

BALCONIES RATIO

LOW

VISIBILITY REQUIREMENT

LIMITED

RESIDENTIAL INTERNAL HEAT LOADS

LOW

TRELLIS DENSITY

LOW

BALCONIES RATIO

HIGH

VISIBILITY REQUIREMENT

SEMI

COMMERCIAL INTERNAL HEAT LOADS

HIGH

TRELLIS DENSITY

HIGH

BALCONIES RATIO

LOW

VISIBILITY REQUIREMENT

SEMI

-Inner layer (right) is a unitized system that regulates microscale needs of the tennants by allowing a flexible zone of terraces or extended enclosed space -This layer can be changed flexibly over time based on a series of movable fins

RETAIL INTERNAL HEAT LOADS

HIGH

TRELLIS DENSITY

LOW

BALCONIES RATIO

LOW

VISIBILITY REQUIREMENT

HIGH

-Outer layer (left) is a unifying trellis screen, which is planted, and regulates large-scale program requirements by the filtering of daylight & heat gain -This leads to a basic programmatic zoning that can be flexibly tweaked through the interaction of these two layers

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ECOTECTONICS

OPTION 1- SYSTEM

BASIC MODULE -Concrete shelf with a moveable fin

TERRACE CONFIGURATION -Open exterior terrace (residential & commercial)

ENCLOSED CONFIGURATION -Extension of main enclosed space (residential & commercial)

fin thickness

trellis density

balcony depth TRELLIS SCREEN -Continuous component in front of unitized system behind

PARAMETERS Further variation within basic system

OPTION 2

FACADE AREA

BALCONIES

+34%

2 X 5m

PARTS

1 X 13m2

WHOLE

+24째

THESE DIAGRAMS EXPLORE THE POTENTIAL BENEFIITS AND PARAMETERS OF A ROTATED PIXEL SYSTEM.

148

LEGIBILITY

OPTION 1

OPTION TION 2 COMMERICAL

RESIDENTIAL

DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTING THESE INITIAL STUDIES EXPLORE THE GRAIN OF THE VOLUMES AND LEGIBILITY OF PART TO WHOLE

COMMERCIAL

RETAIL

MATERIAL SHIFT THESE INITIAL STUDIES EXPLORE THE GRAIN OF THE VOLUMES AND LEGIBILITY OF PART TO WHOLE

149

ECOTECTONICS

Facade Study B

INTERIOR COURTYARD - MATERIALITY AND VEGETATION STUDIES WE PLAN TO USE THIS BASE MODEL AND RENDERING TO EXPLORE EXPANDING THE RETAIL TYPOLOGIES AND THE GROUND TYPOLOGIES OF THE COURTYARD

CORNER RENDERED STUDY - SPRING

150

CORNER RENDERED STUDY - WINTER

Courtyard Study Organization Typologies

These studies start to explore the different possibilities for the character and organization of the courtyards. First, there are a series of abstract organization typologies which speak to basic strategies within the courtyard itself. Second, we look at 3 overall strategies for a comprehensive treatment of the courtyards as a system. Each of these strategies has quite different implications in terms of character of the courts and their relationship with the facade system. Finally, there is a series of quick tests of different formal and historical ideas. The purpose of these is not to represent actual proposals, but to start to understand the scale weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re operating with as well as starting to compare and contrast the different organizations, etc. Some of them are quite rhetorical, while others are more formally based. Which of the 3 overall strategies we decide to pursue will have an impact on which, if any, of these tests we decide to explore further.

Centralized

Informal

Field /Grid

Path

Linear

Field / Points

Gradient / Grain

Focal Points / Objects

Compartmentalized

MOSCOW BLOCK SIZE

400 m X 400 m

A LIVE DEMO OF THE TYPOLOGY CAN BE VIEWED AT THE LINK BELOW: http://erikwherrmann.com/KML/moscow.html

151

ERODED URBANISM IS A PROJECT OF THE SPRING 2012 STUDIO OF PROFESSOR ALEJANDRO ZAERA-POLO AT THE YALE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, THE SCHOOL’S INAUGURAL NORMAN FOSTER CHAIR OF ARCHITECTURE, ASSISTED BY RYAN WELCH. THE PROJECT WAS DESIGNED BY STEPHEN GAGE (M.ARCH I, 2012) AND ERIK HERRMANN (M.ARCH II, 2012) FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT ECOTECTONICS.WORDPRESS.COM

STEPHEN.GAGE@YALE.EDU STEPHENGAGE.NET ERIK.W.HERRMANN@GMAIL.COM ERIKWHERRMANN.COM