Architecture Commons^™

Top Tips For Domestic Refurbishment, Joseph Little

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1) It stands to reason that insulating a wall should not affect its strength or longevity, nor should it result in a buildup of moisture (inter-stitial condensation) or mould. However the Industry is currently gripped with a desire to insulate to the highest standard (U-value) at the lowest financial cost, as quickly as possible, with little thought of these issues. An appropriate, robust solution must take the original wall, the occupant’s health, the room’s function and even the building’s location into account.

The Curious Matter Of Time And Space: A Conversation Between Michael Warren And Noel J. Brady, Noel Brady

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Interview between Michael Warren (Artist/Sculptor) and Noel J Brady, with specific discussion on the issue of gravity and presence.

Projected Costs Of A Grid-Connected Domestic Pv System Under Different Scenarios In Ireland, Using Measured Data From A Trial Installation, Lacour Ayompe, Aidan Duffy, Sarah Mccormack, Michael Conlon

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This paper presents results of a study of projected costs for a grid-connected PV system for domestic application in Ireland. The study is based on results from a 1.72kWpPV system installed on a flat rooftop in Dublin, Ireland. During its first year of operation a total of 885.1kWh/kWp of electricity was generated with a performance ratio of 81.5%. The scenarios employed in this study consider: a range of capital costs; cost dynamics based on a PV module learning rate of 2+/-75%; projections for global annual installed PV capacity under an advanced and moderate market growth conditions; domestic electricity cost growth …

Breaking The Mould 5 : Comparative Simulation Of Internal Insulation Systems, Joseph Little

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In the last edition of Construct Ireland ‘Breaking the Mould IV’ established the standard that should be used to evaluate thermal upgrades of single leaf walls, described steps to physically prepare the wall, explained some of the mechanisms that affect the likelihood of mould and gave criteria for judging the simulations outputs. The next step is to simulate a number of permutations of typical internal insulation systems using WUFI Pro under IS EN 15026.

Breaking The Mould 4 : Condensation Risk Analysis – The Standards And The Issues, Joseph Little

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The ‘Breaking the Mould’ series of articles was written to explore the range of issues associated with upgrading single leaf walls with a focus on occupant and building health as much as energy, just as the Home Energy Saving Scheme was launched. A year on from the first article the need for greater understanding and clear guidance for the Industry is greater than ever. This is because the Government’s ‘Energy Demand Reduction Target’ (EDRT), under the 2006 EU ‘Energy Services Directive’, is bringing energy utilities (e.g. ESB, Bord Gáis) into the refurbishment market.

Assessment Formats: Student Preferences And Perceptions, Mairéad Seymour, Shannon Chance

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This paper provides a student perspective on the variety of forms of design critique available to educators. In architecture and landscape architecture, the design jury remains the dominant format for providing feedback to students. In recent years this format has come under scrutiny and its effectiveness called into question. However, little research has been done into the variety of alternative or supplemental formats available to educators. This paper explores an array of techniques that the authors have employed in design studio courses (which include techniques suggested by students in Webster’s 2007 article in the Journal of Architectural Education). These include …

Resistance: Contemporary Architecture:Sustaining Identity 2, Jim Roche

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Economic globalisation has facilitated a glut of ‘spectacle’ works of architecture worldwide that often fail to celebrate the genius loci of places or the divergence of human culture. With the current crisis in world capitalism causing a meltdown in the mad rush to overbuild our physical environment it is pertinent to consider once again that architecture can actually contribute to a broader existential understanding.

A recent one-day conference at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London posited such a proposition. Curated by the Finnish writer and theorist, Juhani Pallasmaa and moderated by Jonathan Glancy, the Architecture and Design Editor of …

The Thinking Hand: Book Review, Jim Roche

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In this new book Juhani Pallasmaa continues his phenomenological exploration begun in ‘The Eyes of the Skin (2005)’, with the ‘Thinking Hand’ here proffered as a metaphor for his contention that all our senses, have innate imbedded crucial skills which help us perform the most basic daily tasks – and to create inspired works of art and architecture.

Managing An Unstable Housing Market, Brendan Williams, Brian Hughes, Declan Redmond

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Abstract
In this paper it is intended to place the recent experience of the Irish housing market in the context of economic and property market cycles, how these interact over a property cycle and lessons from recent policy experience including interventions in the housing area. In spatial terms the current
housing market can be seen as the result of an ad-hoc development led urban growth pattern which contributed to a dispersed development pattern with problems in oversupply. It is clear that alternative options exist to this approach and that evidence based management systems in terms of planning, development and financial …

Loosening The Ties That Bind: Grangegorman Masterplan, Noel Brady

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Interview with James Mary O'Connor, Architect and Masterplanner with Moore Rubel Yudell designers of the Masterplan for DIT at Grangegroman, Dublin

Breaking The Mould 3, Joseph Little

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This article is the third in a series looking at thermal upgrades to single-leaf walls of existing houses. The theme for this article was intended to be an analysis of various drylining options for brick and rubble-built walls of older properties. That will follow. The following events forced a change in focus.

Breaking The Mould 2 : An Analysis Of Single-Leaf Insulation Upgrades, Joseph Little

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This article is the second in a series looking at thermal upgrades to single-leaf walls of existing houses. It compares a range of ways of upgrading masonry single-leaf walls, particularly the ubiquitous hollow block wall, and the impact of those decisions on moisture content, wind- and airtightness, cost and heating. Future articles will look at various drylining approaches for a range of walls including brick walls of various widths.

Breaking The Mould 1 : A Study Of Condensation In Single-Leaf Concrete Wall Upgrades, Joseph Little

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This article is the first of a series looking at upgrade options and issues associated with single-leaf walls of existing houses. This article will focus on insulated drylined concrete block walls of the ubiquitous housing estate house. This will include the findings of software that dynamically models moisture movement through the wall over several years. The article following this will look at a range of options for replacing existing drylining or installing drylining where it never was before, be that for a solid block wall of a 1950s house or a solid brick wall of an 1850s house.

Heat Transfer Correlations For Low Approach Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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The experimental performance of an open industrial scale cooling tower, utilising small approach temperature differences (1–3 K), for rejection of heat at the low water temperatures (11–20 °C) typical of chilled ceilings and other sensible air–water heat dissipation systems in buildings, is examined. The study was carried out under temperate maritime climatic conditions (3–18 °C wet-bulb temperature range). Initially a theoretical analysis of the process at typical conditions for this climate was conducted, which indicated that a water to air (L/G) mass flow rate ratio of less than 1.0 was required for effective operation. Consequently for these low L/G ratios, …

In Transit - Transition Movement Inspires Dramatic Carbon Cuts In House Refurb, Joseph Little

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Drawing on the ‘Energy Descent Action Plan’ he developed at Kinsale, Rob Hopkins and his team launched Transition Town Totnes (in the UK) one and a half years ago. 64 recognised transition communities and 600 other groups (and counting) are now in communication with Rob’s team to launch their versions of this initiative in their communities worldwide.¹ The Transition Ireland Network is coordinated by Davie Philip of Cultivate and several transition initiatives are underway here.

Frame It - Thoughts On Education, Reducing Carbon And Vapour, Joseph Little, Robbie Cousins

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Joseph Little believes timber frame can be the backbone of a new generation of low-carbon, energy-efficient housing, and be used as an intelligent response to Climate Change and fuel prices. But he tells Robbie Cousins that timber frame manufacturers, suppliers and architects need to gear-up and work more closely together if the true potential of this vision is to be realised.

Joseph Little’s chief bugbear is poor construction standards & details on site and the core of this issue is how the knowledge set of architects and builders and how standards are controlled. The seeds of this idea may have …

Proposal For Using A Studio Format To Enhance Institutional Advancement, Shannon Chance

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Universities today need to become quicker on their toes. They must continually scan the environment and seize emerging opportunities – and institutional advancement must lead this effort. An unfortunate number of institutional advancement operations are ill equipped for the task at hand. Many suffer from high staff turnover and overly hierarchical systems that refl ect excessive fragmentation and compartmentalization. They inadvertently perpetuate stifl ing and unnecessary bureaucracy. Organizing advancement efforts around the metaphor of the design studio or creative workshop promises to (a) pool talent, (b) cultivate collaboration, and (c) align diverse but related interests in order to promote fruitful …

Ando: Inside Out, Noel Brady

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Review of lecture by Tadao Ando Architect

Auf Der Suche Nach Einer Authentischen Architektur; Ein Gespräch Mit Glenn Murcutt Und Juhani Pallasmaa, Noel Brady

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The article is a record of a conversation on architectural ethics between the author and Glenn Murcutt and Juhani Pallasmaa.

A Review Of Fiscal Measures To Benefit Heritage Conservation, Tracy Pickerill, Rob Pickard

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This research paper explores to use of fiscal incentives for heritage conservation in a range of countries in Western Europe (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom) and North America (Canada and USA), to see how they are used and how effective they are.

The main incentives are:

• Income tax deductions and credits for costs incurred in heritage conservation activity;
• Income tax credits for the provision of social housing in heritage buildings;
• Property tax exemption, abatement or freeze for heritage buildings;
• Value added (sales) tax concessions or rebates relating to heritage conservation activity;
• Use of …

Reconciliation: The Search For An Authentic Architecture, Noel Brady

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Glenn Murcutt and Juhani Pallasmaa in conversation with author discussing various architectural concepts and ideas

Baugruppe - Lessons From Freiburg On Cooperative Housing : Lessons From Freiburg On Cooperative Housing, Joseph Little

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Creating Sustainable Communities in the UK and Ireland

The Genesis of Quartier Vauban

Thermal Effectiveness Characteristics Of Low Approach Indirect Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

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Meteorological enthalpy analysis of temperate and maritime climates above latitude 45°N suggests that the water-side evaporative cooling technique has considerable unrealised potential with contemporary “high temperature” building cooling systems—such as chilled ceilings and displacement ventilation. As low approach conditions are the key to exploiting the cooling potential of the ambient air, thermal performance at such conditions needs to be investigated. To address the research issues, an industrial scale test rig, based on a low approach open cooling tower and plate heat exchanger and designed to maximise evaporative cooling potential, has been constructed. The thermal effectiveness of such systems (as a …

Winy Maas, Noel Brady

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Interview with Winy Maas, Architect with MVRDV Architects.

Improving Access To Housing For People With Disabilities., Myles Keaveney

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No abstract provided.

Lost In Translation: Words And Buildings, Noel Brady

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Review of book; Words & buildings - a vocabulary of modern architecture, by Adrian Forty

David Chipperfield: Questions Of Meaning, Noel Brady

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Interview with David Chipperfield Architect

The Mayne Event: All Things Are Possible, Noel Brady

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Interview with Thom Mayne Architect of Morphosis Architects.

Smart Growth: A Buffer Zone Between Decentrist And Centrist Theory?, Dorothy Stewart, Lorcan Sirr, Ruth Kelly

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The context for planning at the turn of the 19th century, in a newly industrialized world, was based on the need to find solutions to overcrowding and dire urban conditions. Planning decisions made in the post-World War II period were primarily motivated by the desire to reconstruct war torn cities. The forces of influence for planning and development in modern advanced capitalist societies are arguably set within the context of sustainable development. Many developed countries have witnessed a dramatic change in their territorial structures. Urban centres are extending into rural areas and surrounding hinterland, where large tracts of land are …

Villa Le Lac: Une Petite Maison, Noel Brady

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An exploration of the small villa, Une Petit Maison by le Corbusier, outling the basis for its design and execution and place in its landscape.