Why is it important to accurately model the land features of your project site with a toposurface?
It is imperative to model the land features of your project site with a toposurface so your design can accurately depict the real house and the terrain around it. With an accurate toposurface, the designer is able to get the best measurements and dimensions as possible, which saves a lot of time in the future while constructing.
- What aspects of a building design are most affected by the terrain features?
When designing a project...
- Should the building adapt to the terrain?
When designing a building, you should adapt the building to the terrain. A terrain is usually set in place, so it is very challenging to completely rearrange it. Therefore, creating a design that compensates for the terrain is much easier than vice versa. Disrupting the natural terrain too much can cause foundational issues.
- Or, should you adapt the terrain to the building?
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?
Stacking levels is advantageous for the designer because it saves a lot of time and energy. Since the walls are stacked on top of each other, a lot of support is already there so you don't need to strategize a hundred different ways to support the second floor. Overall, stacking levels gives you a sturdy, strong foundation.
- 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?
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?