5   Academic and research projects in the field of integrated building systems

 

 

5.1    "A System of Residence Space Construction"

 

In October 1985 L. Virirakis and G. Bourkas presented in the Department of Architecture of NTUA their diploma project having title "A System of Residence Space Construction", supervised by professor S. Charalambides. This project, which evolved from a preceding undergraduate project where also the students S. Micha and V. Papadimitrou participated, concerns the design of an industrial building construction system consistent with the principles of compositional variability, coherence of the urban space, as well as management of both the architectural composition and the construction by the users. The particular system provides technical infrastructure adapt to a building paradigm quite different from central planning. This paradigm concerns social activities either developed in different historical conditions (e.g. vernacular housing and urban development) or considered as underground in the current historical situation (e.g. spontaneous housing as a result of user action).

Considering their work after many years, the designers found it consistent with current approaches to "system engineering" (e.g. Bar-Yam, 2003), as well as the desired features of integrated building systems. Under this point of view, they organized a new presentation by combining the original material with some elements of complex systems theory. This presentation stresses the implementation of the developmental paradigm, as well as the programming of emergent properties. A concise report on the historical framework, an easy to understand description of the mathematical-geometrical model on which the system is based, as well as the interpretation of the model in elementary, architectural and urban scale are also included.

 

The presentation, which has the form of a lecture that includes photographs, drawings, as well as schematic animations, is available here in PowerPoint files.

 

 Downloads :        Use Powerpoint Viewer '2003 to see the PPS files

-

Introduction: Two different paradigms of built space production

Section_1_EN.pps (1421 KB)

-

Geometric aspects of variability

Section_2_EN.pps (421 KB)

-

From Geometry to Architecture and Construction

Section_3_EN.pps (308 KB)

-

Emergent Construction and System Integration

Section_4_EN.pps (1846 KB)

-

Integration at the urban and the architectural scale

Section_5_EN.pps (2450 KB)

 

 

 

 

All files of the presentation (zipped)

All_Sections_EN.zip (5266KB)

 

A concise presentation is also available in the Visual Guide.

Construction element scale

 

Architectural scale

 

Urban scale

 

 

 

5.2    "Sustainable Architecture: The awarded study of Athens' Olympic Village by D. Papanikolaou as a case study"

 

In July 2005, S. Makropoulou and J. Piniros presented in the Department of Architecture of NTUA a graduate lecture having title "Sustainable Architecture: The awarded study of Athens' Olympic Village by D. Papanikolaou as a case study". The first part of the lecture describes principles, concepts, as well as general methods of "sustainable design", while the second part presents the awarded study of Athens' Olympic Village, designed by D. Papanikolaou, as a case study. This study, awarded by one of the three equivalent major awards in the international contest of 2000, is based on an integrated building system. Due to the size of the project, all the principle features of integrated building, from the scale of the structural elements up to the urban scale, as well as the implementation of principles of sustainable design, become clear. The presentation is based on a text composed by the designer in the context of candidacy in the contest.

The text of the lecture, backed by drawings, as well as computer images, are available here as a PDF file:

 

Sustainable_Olympic_Village.pdf      (2329 KB. Text in Greek; to be translated in English)

 

The awarded study of the Olympic Village is also concisely described in the Visual Guide.

Urban Units

 

Bioclimatic Corridor

 

 

 

 

5.3    "Some thoughts concerning the approach of Dimitris Papanikolaou to the design, the construction, and the usage of the built space"

 

This is a text, written by L. Virirakis, which concerns integrated building through the approach of the architect Dimitris Papanikolaou. The text does not refer to particular projects, but attempts to correlate holistic design-construction-usage concepts introduced by the architect with concepts of sustainable design, integrated building, as well as complex systems. The particular holistic approach constitutes basis of the systems Urbankit and ERTEK, as well as the awarded study of Athens' Olympic Village designed by the architect.

The text is available here as a PDF file:

 

Papanikolaou.PDF (400 KB. Text in Greek; to be translated in English)

Electromechanical Skeleton

 

 

HOME