Architectural Engineering Commons^™

Social Sustainability: The Assessment Of Neighbourhood Parks Live Ability In Sharjah City, Rana Helmy A. Elthabwabta

Architectural Engineering Theses

This research aims to assess neighbourhood social sustainability and live ability by investigating the ways in which users perceive neighbourhood spatial design and context. The research applied the social sustainability model to assess and question neighbourhood park live ability in Sharjah City.

Following a qualitative case study approach, the research operationalized social sustainability principles through several tools: survey, field observations and mapping. The conducted analysis was based on a compilation of coded data from the survey consistent with the applied principles of social sustainability.

The research findings confirm variables related to neighbourhood parks spatial context design and people perception. Thus …

The Impact Of Building Form On Energy Consumption In New School Models Of Abu Dhabi, Meriem Rahmani

Architectural Engineering Theses

The high rates of energy consumption by schools are mainly caused by inappropriate designs of architectural forms and limited access to free energy resources that can be provided by natural lighting and ventilation. Optimizing the architectural form with regards to its geometry, aspect ratio, spatial height to depth proportion, form direction, spacing between building masses can help to improve connection to the outdoor environment including daylight, air and outdoor greenery. The optimized form can help not only to save energy but also to create educational environments that are more lively and cheerful; and hence improve students’ performance, health and attitude. …

Improving The Estidama Rating For New Adec Prototype Schools By Renewable Energy Integration Joud Abdalla Al Jumaa Al Dakheel, Joud Abdalla Al Jumaa Al Dakheel

Architectural Engineering Theses

The building sector in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has experienced a tremendous expansion in the last forty years due to population growth and economic development. Presently, the UAE has one of the world’s largest energy consumption per capita, with the building sector accounting for 70% of the consumed energy. In the last decade, the government intensified its efforts to implement stringent environmental regulations and schemes by mandating environmental policies and regulations. It introduced “Estidama”; the local sustainability framework, and the Pearl Building Rating System (PBRS) to promote the development of sustainable buildings. All governmental buildings must achieve …

The Enclaving Of Dubai: An Investigation Of The Factors Governing The Emergence And Spreading Of The Gated Residential Communities In The City, Mahmoud Saeed Al Mansi

Theses

This study attempts to fill a gap within the current existing literature of the worldwide phenomenon of rise and spread of walled communities. The study primarily examines the factors relating to gated residential communities in Dubai, a city that is not covered in the literature of the subject. Specifically, it traces the emergence of gated residential communities in the urban history of Dubai, investigates their magnitude over time, locates them within the city, and investigates the various factors affecting their spread, particularly in the past few decades. To achieve these objectives, a field survey and a qualitative research were conducted …

Towards A Localized Form-Based Code For Abu Dhabi Urban Neighborhoods, Arwa Khalid Sabri

Theses

Form-Based Code (FBC) is a sustainable planning tool that helps realize sustainable urban form and sustainable communities from different perspectives, including mixing of land uses, diversifying housing types, achieving walkability and cycling as well as permitting community involvement in decision making and design processes. It is therefore considered as a comprehensive tool that regulates different planning scales from master plan to individual buildings. Locally, Abu Dhabi Emirate lacks a FBC that could help achieve its sustainability-orientated 2030 vision and thus promote its envisaged sustainable urban identity. This research aims at studying to what extent the present form-related standards and guidelines …

The Impact Of Dubai’S Architectural Wonders On The Daily Indigenous Performance In Light Of Cultural Modernity: A Comparative Case Study Between Burj Khalifa And Burj Al-Arab, Zulfat S. Al Kassim

Theses

In order to decrease the reliance on oil and create more economic opportunities, the UAE has witnessed a development boom over the last few decades in an effort to promote tourism. Dubai specifically has purposefully undergone dramatic architectural evolutions with the aim of transforming the city into a tourist hub and a global attraction. Over the last few years, iconic buildings including Burj Al Arab and Burj Khalifa have been built at different times to become prominent landmarks that promote the city’s global image and combine traditional/local elements in such a way as to form completely new unrecognizable forms i.e. …

A Framework For Guiding The Briefing Process In Public-Private Partnerships In The Uae Construction Industry, Rauda Saeed Ali Saif Al-Saadi

Dissertations

Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is a procurement method that employs a long-term contractual arrangement between public and private sectors with the intention of developing a public facility. A PPP brief must supply information that not only particularizes the project requirements but also specifies its program, risk management, expected performance output and payment mechanism. Many challenges currently face the briefing process of PPP projects in the UAE. A uniform briefing process has not been agreed, because there is no unified tender law or PPP procurement process in the country. The main aim of this research is to develop a framework for guiding …

Impacts Of Climate Change On Urban Development In The Uae: The Case Of Dubai, Zainab Alrustamani Alrustamani

Theses

This thesis investigates the global calls to prepare for climate change impacts, and the role of cities to respond to it under their sustainable living approaches. It explores how the subject of climate change is integrated in the urban development process, highlighting the role of cities as contributors to the phenomenon and part of the solution. The response to climate change impacts was explored in the UAE and the emirate of Dubai. The main objective of this research is to highlight the future vision in action against climate change in the urban development framework of the emirate of Dubai, and …

Water Recycling In Green Buildings: Grey Water Treatment And Reuse Benefits In Al-Wagan Residential Neighborhood In Al-Ain City, Al Dehaim Nassib Suhail Yatba Al Ameri

Theses

Water scarcity is a worldwide problem that called for a wiser and more sustainable resources' management. Grey waste water treatment is considered a widely spread technology that dominates water management in order to substitute the potential deficiencies.

Water use in the last three decades in the UAE has witnessed both a great increase and pressure on groundwater and desalinated water. This consequently has called for continuous, serious and diversified efforts to simultaneously improve the supply and sustain the water use by treatment and recycling. Besides UAE's natural population growth, the demand for water is also expected to increase significantly in …

Comparative Pedestrian Visibility Under Solid State Led Sources, Dana Younis

Theses

One of the important factors in striving towards sustainable urban living is the safety of pedestrians. This safety is influence by many factors, one of which is the ability of drivers to see pedestrians. During the night, pedestrian visibility becomes more difficult, especially on two-way streets, where headlamps of cars from the opposite direction cause glare to drivers. Newer types of headlamps are using LEDs and Xenon which are glarier than older halogen types.

This study is arranged in two parts. The first part of which examines the effect of oncoming car headlamps on pedestrian night time visibility. Detection distance …

Evaluating The Performance Of Urban Public Plazas In Al Ain Downtown In Relation To Physical Characteristics And Social Principles, Merai Ismail Al-Zoubi

Theses

The thesis studies the existing problems of AI Ain Downtown plazas mainly from the physical and social points of view. AI Ain downtown plazas are designed to provide a high level of social life. The main problem of these plazas is that they are used by only a particular social group. This study intends to develop a framework for evaluating and enhancing the urban public spaces in AI Ain city.

The framework is classified into two main dimensions; physical and social. Each dimension has a set of principles that affect the performance of the plaza. A descriptive analysis method is …