Design Journal Entry - Module 12 Wrap Up

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Your Name

Eliana Stern

Journal Entry For

Module 12 - Sharing Your Project

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Created

Mar 17, 2025 4:57 AM

Last Edited

Mar 18, 2025 8:42 PM

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Eliana Nomi Stern

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https://pin.it/7idDoFsqa

Overview

Replace this text with your reflections on your design journey through class from a higher level and share your insights about the entire experience. What were:

Key / Essential / Unique Design Features that you explored in your project.

Circular building form and large, open-plan layout for lobby and exhibition spaces to allow for intuitive movement/flow through the building. This circular massing was inspired by the Guggenheim Museum, with a goal of creating natural, flowing pathways through key programmed spaces.

Green infrastructure integration, particularly the interactive/educational green roof on level 3 with the potential to become a blue-green roof in future iterations, contributing to passive cooling and urban flood mitigation.

Triple-glazed curtain panel system to allow for maximum daylight in exhibition spaces, with shading elements to mitigate large cooling loads in the summer

Layout with exhibition spaces/gift shop/cafe placed along the south-facing curtain wall to maximize daylight, and spaces requiring minimal daylight (utilities, storage, restrooms) placed along the northern perimeter

Your Big Successes -- what worked very well and what features you're most proud to share as examples to inspire others.

My final design maximizes natural light through the south-facing curtain panel system, while also maintaining strong solar energy potential to reduce the external energy demand
The decentralized HVAC system provides flexibility for distinct spaces/zones, acknowledging the different needs of different spaces, e.g. office vs. exhibition spaces
The consistent placement of restrooms across levels streamlined the plumbing layout, minimizing complexity in the hot/cold/sanitary water conveyance systems

Your Big Challenges -- what aspects of the project created the biggest challenges and what would you do differently (in hindsight) to avoid or overcome these challenges.

Integrating the structural, HVAC, and plumbing systems into the curved building form was difficult due to the 90º connections required for ductwork and piping, and I had to make a lot of iterative adjustments to ensure model coordination and efficient system placement. I would have looked into MEP requirements earlier in the design process to reduce the amount of rework required in the structural and mechanical models.
The emphasis on daylighting and high ceilings in the first two levels led to high cooling demands, representing a key tradeoff in energy performance and desired aesthetic/architectural features. I would have run more comprehensive energy simulations when designing the architectural model to ensure that my architectural goals didn’t come at the cost of more energy-efficient spaces and systems.

Lessons Learned -- what sage words of advice would you share with other students who are embarking on a similar project.

While I tried to do some conceptual forward-thinking when designing my initial models (specifically architectural and structural), this was very high-level as I didn’t have a super strong grasp on the requirements for the future systems (specifically HVAC and plumbing). For future students, I would start off with a high level list of priorities/requirements for each of the models in alignment with overall project goals. For example, prioritizing a mechanical core in the architectural design to allow for a centralized HVAC system in the mechanical model, prioritizing stacked restrooms in the architectural design to minimize the complexity of the plumbing model, or ensuring ample room for ductwork when designing the structural system. Some more focused and specific early considerations when designing the architectural and structural models would have helped a lot with MEP system integration later on.