For my steel structural system, I took the same approach to framing as I did to the practice exercise but tried to customize it as much as possible to fit the needs of my project. I started off with a basic grid system that aligned with the footprint and interior walls of my design and then placed columns (wider to be more conservative with my structural estimates) at key intersection points. When I placed my beams, I thought logically about where certain intersections would fall and if they were logical (i.e., was there a column in the middle of a key artery) to decide whether to keep/remove them. I repeated this process for all of the levels of my building.
Some key points that I designed around were my stairways and atrium. To accommodate for these spaces, I increased the beam width and span to distribute the load that would have been carried by a column. I hope that my conservative thickness choices and attempts to distribute loads efficiently were effective.
At this stage, I am also adding increased level of detail for my roof and atrium. I’ve decided where my PVs will be located vs. where I will have green roofs that will be interactive with the public. I am also working on better aligning my atrium/roof cutouts to make sure that the skylight system flows naturally while also making sense with the floorplan.