Abigail Andrews Design Journal Entry - Module 12 Wrap Up

Overview

• Key / Essential / Unique Design Features that you explored in your project.
• I designed a transit museum that is modeled to be a reverse pyramid that has a subterranean unit. I think the design of a reverse pyramid is interesting and unique compared to many modern buildings (as this is brutalist). I am unsure at the structural success of the building.
• I wanted my building to have a low EUI ✅, low carbon emissions (✅-ish, I did not compute the CO2 output but assume with a low EUI & an all electric building emissions are minimized), and way finding (not sure if this was successful -see floorpan module- I don’t think my floor plan is hard to navigate but I also don’t think it is particularly easy to. My building is largely open space. Perhaps way finding is the task of the architect.
• Your Big Successes -- what worked very well and what features you're most proud to share as examples to inspire others.
• I am very proud of my green roof, my HVAC design, and my enevelope. I am ecstatic that my building could reach arch 2030 without major design changes. I would like my building to have roof access and see that as the natural next step.
• An all electric building! My goal was to have no gas in the building and I designed as such, however the air handling unit sizing was harder than expected due to this and was more or less a pain to design so it would not be visible. However, I did it an am very excited for the work!
• 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.
• I had to change my building type in the middle of the quarter because I realized the energy demand of a transit center was near impossible to model for architecture 2030.
• I wanted my building to be mass timber with redwood. However, mass timber has a much lower thermal resistance than many other types of wood and impacted my envelope design more than expected.
• Lessons Learned -- what sage words of advice would you share with other students who are embarking on a similar project.
• Plan well and ahead- especially with the structural elements and HVAC. I was disappointed to see my structural element changing my design plans and wish that could be removed. However, I am happy with the final design choices I made.

Video Presentation / Tour of Your Project Features

Design Journal Entries