Why is it important to accurately model the land features of your project site with a toposurface?
- What aspects of a building design are most affected by the terrain features?
It is very important to know what the surrounding land features will look like, both for aesthetic reasons and for construction purposes. The topography will affect how the foundation of the building is constructed, and will influence weatherproofing procedures. If part of the building is below grade, it will need to be reinforced and waterproofed appropriately.
When designing a project...
- Should the building adapt to the terrain?
- Or, should you adapt the terrain to the building?
As modifying large amounts of terrain is difficult, for small scale projects it makes much more sense to adapt the design of the building to the surrounding terrain. This is not only easier and cheaper, but results in a much more pleasing visual aesthetic, blending the natural and built worlds together.
What considerations affect a project team's decision-making when deciding the floor-to-floor height to use in a multi-story building?
- From a real estate developer's perspective?
- From a designer's perspective?
- From an engineer's perspective?
- From a builder's perspective?
- From an owner's perspective?
What are the advantages of stacking the levels of a multi-story building vertically?
- Can you share an interesting example of a building that doesn’t vertically stack (where the floor plates change their shaped radically between the floor levels)?
- What were the advantages or reasons for non-vertical stacking?
Stacking levels vertically is the most straightforward course of action from a design, engineering, and construction perspective, which is why most buildings are constructed this way. A very radical departure from this method is Habitat 67 in Montreal. The reason of construction for this unique design was probably experimentation, wanting a bold design, and aesthetic choice.
Why do stairs follow specific proportions with a set relationship between the tread length and riser height?
- How can building modeling help prevent the mistakes that often occur when designing and installing stairs?