Urban-Timber Education Centre: Design Book

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The report starts off by looking at the Cape Town urban context and what my urban scheme hopes

and site and how my urban scheme applies there. I talk about my programme and what concerns have lead me to choose this idea on this site and what it hope to achieve on the greater scheme of things. The site and its components are then close-ly analysed before I go into my brief and design intent.

I then explain a detailed linear progression of my ideas and design process and how they begin to manifest themselves in the physical building. The report looks more at the development of single ideas across schemes rather than the develop-ment from a whole scheme to the next.

After the concept developments I talk about the structural process by its self with explicit description of the technology and construction methods used.

The following chapter looks at the various environ-mental responses of the building and other ener-

I end with an analysis of key design ideas that I’ve deeply explored and that have played vital roles in my design development and creation.

ABSTRACT

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The purpose of this report is to show an ac-count of the process I followed to reach the current design. It follows a linear progression of my ideas and how they progressed into the design of an actual building. The report describes the context from the urban scale,

-lenges and opportunities were found and how they were dealt with. It summarizes my thought process and how I engaged on an urban, social and environmental level to the task at hand of creating an integrated and sustainable future urban environment.

INTRODUCTION

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5. SITE AND URBAN FRAME

16. BRIEF DEVELOPMENT

24. DESIGN INTENT

25.DESIGN PROCESS

56. STRUCTURAL CONCERNS

64. E & S

76. DESIGN ANALYSIS

83. THOUGHT PIECE

84.TABLE OF FIGURES

85. APPENDICES

CONTENTS

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URBAN FRAMES I T E

Salt River’s location and urban history has always been one of a mixed use industrial area where diverse people have lived, worked and interacted. It remains an ever changing place with new paradigms constantly coming into play. Its location and close prox-imity to the city around it has allowed it to become an important transport and infrastructural node where the rail and road routes leaving the city di-

Most of the surrounding areas are largely single use industrial or residen-tial, whereas Salt River has been one of the few truly mixed use industrial and residential areas. Its success in the past has come from diverse com-munities forming and creating a ro-bust urban environment where they had easy access to economic oppor-tunity and social spaces.

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URBAN FRAMES I T E

The opportunity created by the busy main roads, the rail system and the integration of industry with residential has allowed the urban context of Salt River to become a diverse hub of ac-tivity within the city context. The proximity of industrial buildings to the city fabric have allowed people to live close to their work, creating an important place of craft for the city. The main roads have become plac-es of diverse economic opportunity, forming important social spaces. The typology of the merchant house has helped in creating robust well es-tablished communities and safe city spaces.The good line on the rail system was once an important part of the indus-

delivered to factories in and around the city. This created a culture of locally produced and crafted goods. Today now that the good line is not functioning, trucks have become the main system of goods transport. Some industries (such as the textile trade) have dwindled as we start importing goods, slowing down the growth of the local industry.

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ISSUES OF TRANSFORMATION

Cape Town has a huge potential to be a great urbanised African city. There is a huge amount of diversity, culture, ingenuity and beauty. The

it to become an inclusive city for all. The current economic systems, agen-das and regulations are preventing our cities from becoming the great African cities of the future that they have the potential to be.

We are still living in apartheid. The city planning that was set in place has not changed, our cities still follow the same structure that was used to divide and segregate us in the past. It has been 2 decades and we have not seen any real transformation taking place. Our society and our gov-ernment blindly follow an exploitative capitalist system. The rich get rich while the poor stay poor. This is why our cities still look the way they do. We spend most of our effort on maintaining the upper class sectors yet so little is done to alleviate the areas that are really in need of upliftment. The solu-tions lie in relieving the binds that tie people to a perpetual disadvantage.

If we can provide sustainable and progressive urban frameworks that are inclusive of everybody and that make an integrated society a primary concern, human ingenuity will take over, people and communities will create the city spaces themselves. It is a balance between giving just

the individual and the community. Thus it is also about a certain amount of decentralization where people are allowed freedom within an equal framework.

Us as architects have the ability to see the potential of not only our city spaces but also our societal constructs. We have the power to create powerful utopian visions and therefore I believe we also have inherent re-sponsibilities to make real change towards a better world.

URBAN DESIGN

Image showing the density dispesal of cape town com-

Image showing the segregation of racial communities as

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URBAN DESIGN DENSIFICATION

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up to a general density of 4-7 storeys in and around the CBD. According to the 2011 census there are only 6000 people living in the CBD and a total of 31 200 people living in the city bowl. Considering Cape Town has a total population of 3.7mil this represents 0.8% of the total popula-tion(1).

-vice delivery as well as sustainable economic, social and recreational activity. A denser city means less travel for goods and people and more access to opportunity.For density to be successful it requires diversity. People need easy access to economic oppor-tunity such as industry and business. In the Salt River context I propose a mix of uses where eco-nomically locations such as edges of main roads and rail lines become places of larger urban activity and past that the edge blurs into smaller residential activity.Civic space is also an important aspect to city life. People need to be able to interact with their city and each other in a personal way. Thus my urban proposal looks at and tries to integrate possible locations for civic structures.

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URBAN DESIGN DENSIFICATION

The map on the right is the com-bination of my investigation on how to improve the current urban condition. In my belief the cities of the future will grow out of the old cities. There will be no starting over. We must work with the existing paradigms, push and pull, change it where we can, in order for us to cheaply and effectively create our dream cities of the future.

All the potential already exists, it is about investigating and challeng-ing the status quo in order for us to

the future.

My urban proposal talks about how we can diversify the area with a mix of uses while substantially increasing the density. The key is to try and provide all the necessities of societal daily life within a tight knit urban frame. This is the step to sustainability as well as resilience.

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DENSIFICATIONURBAN DESIGN

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S I T E SURROUNDING CONTEXT

with old rail infrastructure that was used to serve the adjacent factory. The Salt River train station is right next to the site and across the road are

-veloped.

The site has access to the rail infra-structure on the northern side and to the street on the southern side. There is a large pedestrian bridge to the west of the site which holds a lot of potential in creating a public space integrated into my building. The street is also a My Citi bus route.

The area currently experiences a large amount of thoroughfare of pe-destrians crossing the rail lines, coming from and going to the train station. With the other new public square and other development taking place in this area, it will form into a public, transport and industrial hub.

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With the proposal of the new public square just south of my site it will be possible to transform this area into a truly dense urban precinct. Buildings around the square will be able to easi-ly rise 4-7 story’s, making use of a pub-lic ground plane, retail and business sections and residential opportunity.

The access to the rail infrastructure, main road, the train station and the pedestrian thorough fare will make this a feasible hub of development for investors and the city looking to build urban environments.

The square will also open up access through the existing park, creating an opportunity for a well-used green urban space

S I T E SITE CONTEXT AND URBAN PROPOSAL

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The site lies within an interchange of three different types of movement. The rail servicing public transport and possibly goods delivery, the roads for vehicular movement and the pedes-trian route for the public travelling to or past the train station.

My site is in a key location to make use of all three of these opportunities. The goods line if reinstated can pro-vide material and resource delivery to the back of the building. The ramp and pedestrian route can provide multi-storey public access and inter-action. The street gives the building an opportunity to interact with the city interface and the daily occurrences of public life.

The building is in the perfect space to become a micro hub of civic, eco-nomic and residential activity.

S I T E MOVEMENT CONDITIONS

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S I T E VISTAS

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S I T E SITE CONDITIONS

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Sustainability plan:(Adapted from British sustainability plan 2009)Respecting environmental limitsMonitoring our use and pressure on the environment, resources and biodiversity to maintain a constant balance and ensure continuity for the futureEnsuring a functional, just and cohesive societyUnderstanding the diverse needs of culture and people to promote human health, social cohesion and to obtain equal opportunity for cur-rent and future generations.Creating a sustainable economyAn economy that is strong and stable, providing equal balanced op-portunity for all. Maintaining the sustainability and constancy of social and environmental capital to ensure future continuity and develop-ment.Promoting collective governanceEngaging people’s responsibility to participate and contribute in all levels of society with their creative diverse energy.Development through rational science and responsibility

-ing into account uncertainty and maintaining responsible moral values.

Sustainable buildingWe must promote building to smaller and denser footprints while de-

should be done holistically and kept local while taking into considera-tion the life cycles of materials as well as the building as a whole. Cost

(Keeler. M, Burke. B, (2009), Integrated Design for Sustainable Building, New Jersey, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.)

BRIEF DEVELOPMENT

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Natural resourcesThis is capital that we draw from the environment around us. They can be re-newable or not and it is our responsibility to maintain sustainable use and reuse of these resources. We must assess their value to human and natural environ-

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renewability. Human and natural capital must be assigned value and its man-agement must be incorporated into general business practice. This can further secure future sustainability while increasing economic growth.

• Reducing the amount of raw materials used• Products that minimise impacts of new construction and renovation• Flexibility and adaptability using reusable components• Designing for deconstruction• Using prefabricated components• Understanding a materials durability and its life cycle• Packaging and excess materials and their impact/recyclability• Waste produced from manufacturing and closed loop possibilities• Recycled content of materials• Location of material production relative to construction site• Water and its proximity and availability • Virgin and non-renewable resources are best avoided• Reuse of materials where we salvage and repurpose current content• Renewability whereby we can easily restore the materials we harvest• Bio based materials that are created from agricultural waste• Low maintenance materials and cleaning products

• Disassembly of smaller components for repurpose and reuse

DEVELOPMENTBRIEF

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Brief proposal My urban goals seek to create sustainable urban

suit smaller sections of communities and contexts. This played a huge role in my choice of brief as I needed to ask myself how we can apply this type of thinking on a multitude of scales.

As the global population rapidly urbanises, the infra-structural needs of cities are growing at an unprece-dented rate. Acording to UNEP (20090 buildings are responsible for over 40% of global energy consump-tion as well as one third of global greenhouse gas emissions in developed and developing countries (2). We need to critically asses our ckurrent methods- they are undoubtedly unsustainable. Buildings are long term investments and thus implementing sustainable solutions now will have long term impacts economic and environmental health. Governments need to be prioritising the long term sustainability of the building sector. The materials, techniques and mind-sets we

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I propose we begin immediately implementing oth-er possible methods of building as well as thinking as there are alternatives long term sustainable solutions. Thus my design will be based on researching and implementing new ways of building with sustainable building materials

DEVELOPMENTBRIEF

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PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENTBRIEF

My Material ProposalMy research and goals for sustainability have lead me to further develop materials that aid in a reversal pro-cess of the damage we have caused to the planet thus far. The building industry has the highest impact on the earth at large out of any other single industry. Rethink-ing certain elements in this industry will help to have a greater and lasting change in our imperative move towards sustainability. By changing the way we think of certain things such as material properties, buildings lifecycles and the construction process, we can make a shift from destroying the planet to regenerating the planet. The urban context is the most important area that needs to undergo a shift in consciousness. Our cit-ies can become a part of the natural world rather than a parasite.As you will see in further pages my idea is to develop wood as a large scale urban structural material and then to hybridise this with recycled waste materials such as plastic and rubber. The materials should all be able to be recycled and reused again and again, thus re-ducing the amount of raw material harvesting. Wood will essentially form the bulk of the materials and then

developed for the building envelope

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PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENTBRIEF

WoodWood is a completely renewable resource provided that I is harvested and grown sus-

-er when building with wood. Wood is recyclable, durable, has a low embodied energy,

In large scale timber, wood is engineered into composite structures such as Cross lami-nated timber panels (CLT) or glue-laminated timber beams and columns which provide

grow and be replaced faster. This manufacturing process does consume more energy and the adhesives used can be toxic. Engineered wood can also be harder to recycle (Konig 2010).

Today the limits of building with wood are constantly being pushed further, we have the technology to use it on a large scale as a viable renewable material. The demand for new infrastructure is growing. If we continue to use the technology of the previous centu-ry, the state of the environment and human health will only get worse. I feel that chang-ing our ways now is of utmost important. Building with wood is not going to be our saving grace but it is a sure way to begin the reversal process that we need to in order to main-tain natural balance. Wood naturally produced carbon negative material. When a tree grows it essentially uses water and energy from the sun to capture and transform carbon from the atmos-phere into a solid organic material. It has an amazing ability to reverse the damaging presence of carbon in the atmosphere and turn it into something useful and valuable to us. As wood technology develops and the perceptions of people change, we can start employing a material like this on a large urban scale to truly have an impact on global sustainability.

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Investors: government and private companiesPrimary users: craftsman; students and researchersSecondary users: general public

In my view the building and its programme could be taken on by either the local government, a private company such as Cape Pine or a combination of both. I feel that it would be best for a company such as Cape Pine to take it on and then for it to be subsidised and regulated by the government in order to prevent it from becoming a capitalist enterprise. This would be a way for government to start tackling the expected rapid urbanisation in a sustainable way that is appropriate and feasible in the Cape Town context.The building would be run as a multifunctional centre where education; research; retail and living can take place.

Vital functions: cleaning; administration; maintenance; security and man-agementEducation: public interaction; student participation and research; appren-tice craftsmanResearch: scientists; engineers; craftsman and studentsRetail: informal traders and craftsmanLiving: part time researchers/engineers/craftsman/students; families of train-ees and apprentices; employees and permanent staff

The building and its functions would be subsidised by the government and

research generated by it would lead to new opportunities on larger scales. There would be revenue opportunities for the building in the form of the café, the retail workshops, markets, space letting as well as the apartments.Craftsman and students would be able to develop new skill sets, further de-veloping their careers as well as providing important services to society.Educational courses, workshops and public interaction would be mostly free and fairly available.

ROLE PLAYERSBRIEF

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OLD SA FACTORTY TYPOLOGIESBRIEF

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ACCOMODATION PROGRAMMEBRIEF

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Design intent

• Sustainable building technology for growing needs of future urbani-sation

• Creating and growing industrial opportunity

• Diverse, mixed use urban environ-ments (industrial/retail/residential)

• Upgrading urban infrastructure with a move towards human ori-ented design

• Mixed use typologies that break down the divides of rail infrastruc-ture

• Preserving cultural value• Public interaction and displays of

sustainability• Hub of socialist learning and devel-

opment• Diverse economic opportunity• Development of public space that

is safe and pleasant• Engaging the street• Building becomes a continuation

of public space: ramp and street merge into building

DESIGN INTENTBRIEF

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DESIGN PROCESS CONCEPT- FLUIDITY AND MOTION

The RAMPThe ramp caught my attention the second I saw the site. It was a mathematical-ly designed, concrete machine designed purely to get people up and over the

railway context. It was also a public space in desperate need of upliftment. As

an existing empty infrastructural frame. It ties in with my broader ideas of urban frame works as well as my buildings programme of timber frames.

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CONCEPT- FLUIDITY AND MOTIONPROCESS

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CONCEPT- FRAME AND INFILLPROCESS

• responsible political and communal framework

• allowance for change and adaptability

• transport infrastructure, ser-vices, regulations, building parts

• human ingenuity• cultural identity and diver-

sity• the individual amoungst

the collective• tradition, culture, skills, tal-

lents, ambition, creativity, ingenuity, passion

• sustainable urban environ-ments

• cities integrated with natu-ral systems

• decentralised contribu-tionalism

• collective cohesion

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INCRIMENTAL HOUSING; FRAMES, INFILL; MODULATIONPROCESS

housing Chilie-

er shack Khayalitsha

modulated housing Nagasaki-

fabricated modular housing

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PROCESS INCRIMENTAL HOUSING; FRAMES, INFILL; MODULATION

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31


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• nollie map to explore public move-ment

• courtyard of bridge becomes one space with internal atrium

• modulation becomes bulk of building• main access into building• functions on the street vs functions

on the rail line: public/private; open/closed

• street coming into building vs building going into railways


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• ordering space heirachy• spatial integration of ramp to build-

ing• early structural order• access• open; semi enclosed and closed

spcae

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TALL WOODPRECEDENT

world. 5 storey pergoda in japan 711AD-

nonDesign

wood concept building frame

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SITE MOVEMENTPROCESS

Site

Investigating the movement on and around the site it’s found that once the pub-lic square is open people will be moving through the park from main road to the rail station. The idea is that my building opens up from the square and works with

ramp through the square. The ramp is used as an en-trance way into the building and the façade of the build-ing is a continuation of the

-jacent site. The timber frame will work with the movement

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FIRST PROPOSALPROCESS

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RAMP- WERDMULLER STUDYPROCESS

-enbogaardt

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CIRCULATIONPROCESS

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CIRCULATIONPROCESS

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ENTRANCE AND MOVEMENTPROCESS

Looking at public movement through the site, the ramp and the building, my immedi-

I moved away from cuves due to the inter-nal room spaces and the geometry created with the timber grid. It became an explora-tion of the ‘Ladder of interconnection’ seen in Aldo van Eyck’s Amsterdam Orphanage.

spaces while creating smaller aclove break away spaces that people can inhabit, either those who work there everyday or peo-ple passing though to take a break. I also worked on creating the same effect of a curve using a regular grid on the same order as the structural grid of the building

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PROCESS ENTRANCE AND MOVEMENT

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VERTICAL SPATIAL HEIRACHYPROCESS

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SECOND PROPOSALPROCESS

• stepping circulation to create pause and chill space

• circulation cores allow restrict-ed vertical access; rams allow public access

•go up, creating an internal auditorium

• programme becomes more

up

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GROUND FLOOR ECOLOGYPROCESS

Ground Floor

• market space follows ramp geometry and leads into building

• entrance from courtyard of ramp

• cafe connects ramp court-yard to street

• smaller workshops can open onto street and can become carpenter shops

• large workshop connects rail to street

•of movement

• array of movement and pause spaces

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VERTICAL HEIRACHYPROCESS

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VERTICAL HEIRACHYPROCESS

•level so that the atrium opens out, allowing natural light in from the roof into all the rooms and work-shops. The atrium can also double as a large auditorium for confer-ences and demonstrations

• the building becomes more pri-vate on each level with free pub-

-ference space on the third and

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VERTICAL PROGRAMMEPROCESS

• a dynamic programme with spaces and functions

adaptability• a selection of potentially

interactive programmes allows for a coherent com-munal centre

• timber workshop, retail outlets face the street and also connect back into the atrium of the building

• workshops and rail yard storage spaces face onto the rail infrastructure

• classrooms and public

allow for a changing 24hr programme

• a mixture of classrooms and workshops on the upper levels for a variety of train-ing opportunities

•

down into the atrium that can be divided and en-closed with partition walls

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found in the commute of pedestrians to and from the train station. This is also manifested in the machine but plastic quality of the concrete ramp. It works purely for movement.

The building and the ramp sit in a certain duality. The building has a very

construction methods of the timber frame and the modulated grid meant for pause and learning.

picked up again in the roof which overhangs towards the public square

then wraps up the side of the build-ing and becomes the façade for the apartments.

FLUIDITYPROCESS

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PUBLIC GESTUREPROCESS

The roof overhang towards the pro-posed public square mirrors the way the ramp lifts up towards the square. This created a certain public gesture that is a marker of the entrance to the building through the ramp. This can be seen in the Hans Niehaus gallery, how the roof over hang onto the street is a public gesture of entrance. The roof also form a kind of blanket

-ing.

-mont

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FACADE DEVELOPMENTPROCESS

station road elevation

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PROCESS FACADE DEVELOPMENT: SOUTH

Module FacadeWith the large timber buildings, the struc-ture must be largely covered and inter-nal in order for it to resist weathering. The façade is then an exterior protection applied to the frame. From my early ideas of modulation I have worked on ordered

façade (as well as interior walls) to be interchanged as needed.

Partition walls can be replaced and altered with doors, windows and curtain walls. The façade can be interchanged with any kind of waterproof cladding that will essentially clip onto the structural

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The façade module changes slightly on the eastern façade to account for the eastern sun angles. Here vertical mullions in the cur-tain walls are employed to shade the interi-ors of the building. The modules below show variations of window and doors based on 2 and 3m module variations

PROCESS FACADE DEVELOPMENT: EAST

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With the structural timber frame I chose to use a system of double beams and columns. This allows

the space beyond the actual connection.The timber glulam beams and columns have an in-

The biggest issues came with creating the grid. The beams easily have a span of up to 9m. My largest

of interior spaces but the timber grid has to follow an almost completely orthogonal grid due to the column to beam connections.

-ondary support. The primary support is exposed

regs.The walls all follow a modulated system that works

-ability where the building can become an ex-periment for its own technology. As they develop new modules they can play with and change the

walls and facades. Doors and windows can also be interchanged as per need. The modules would be prefabricated in factory conditions which would

would then just clip into the exposed timber frames on the inside using standard connection details.

STRUCTURAL CONCERNS: FRAMEPROCESS

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STRUCTURAL CONCERNS: PLAN DETAILSPROCESS

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PROCESS STRUCTURAL CONCERNS: COLUMNS/WALLS/FLOORS

Double columns

The double coulms system runs on an or-thoganal grid that sit on concrete pad footings.

ramp

Floors

The atrium steps back on each

light into all rooms of the building. In some places

cantlever off the frame, other plac-

frame separate.

Walls

The walls follow a 1m modular syatem that attatches to the

are made strong enough to sup-port the partition walls at any one place. Lift shafts are made of a double box CLT pannel system

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PROCESS STRUCTURAL CONCERNS: COLUMN TO BEAM

The double system will work with two smaller beams in one direction and then a single deeper beam in the op-posite direction.

The column to beam joints will work with steel saddle connections. There will be groves cut into each of the beams where they will slot in and then the saddles will be bolted on to secure the connections.

The ends of the beams extend past the joint and be cut at an angle to express the connection.

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PROCESS STRUCTURAL CONCERNS: ROOF

The initial idea for my roof came from the kinetic -

id form that could move into an array of curves made of various size triangles that followed the golden rule. It gave me the idea to have a curv-ing saw tooth roof that would vault over the inter-nal space of the building.The idea was that the internal columns would branch out, supporting the truss’ for the roof with a tree column typology.

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Each column will have 4 branches coming off it diagonally attached with steel saddle connec-tions. The branches would connect to steel triangle trusses that would run parallel to the openings. This would create a kind of timber space frame which would inherently be laterally braced. There would be smaller timber trusses to which the roof sheeting would connect running perpendicular between the steel trusses.

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The timber branches will be connected to the steel trusses using pin joints to allow for movement between the two materials. Unlike its drawn in the detail below, the smaller timber trusses connecting the steel trusses will continue from the top point of one steel truss to the bottom point of the next steel truss. This will ensure a rigidity across the entire roof. Also unlike the drawing below, the timber branches com-ing from the column will all connect to the bottom bar of the steel truss, further ensuring rigidity.

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SOLAR SHADINGE & S

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SOLAR SHADINGE & S

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NATURAL VENTILATIONE & S

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NATURAL VENTILATIONE & S

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E & S NATURAL VENTILATION

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ALTERNATIVE ENERGYE & S

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ALTERNATIVE ENERGYE & S

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RAIN WATER COLLECTION AND RECYCLINGE & S

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PRECEDENTE & S

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PRECEDENTE & S

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E & S

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SUSTAINABLE MATERIAL USEE & S

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SEQUENCE CHAINDESIGN ANALYSIS

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MOVEMENTDESIGN ANALYSIS

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Studying the site movement condi-tions as well as anticipating the future changes in reaction to new infra-structure informed a great deal of my design. There were a lot of movement

-tem has its own rigid route that con-nects my building all across the city.

plastic and changes predictably but erratically over time.


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FLUID DUALITY

An interesting dialectic plays out between the con-crete plasticity of the ramp and the orthogonality of the timber frame. They intersect and create places of similar but emotively different movement. The building becomes an alternative route, it becomes a slower, more interactive journey. The machine curves of the concrete direct movement creating a journey with a destination, beginning and end, whereas the orthog-onality of the timber building, the right angles, create various places of experience, they allow for a route that its self is a destination and can be experienced through interaction of chosen pauses.

DESIGN ANALYSIS

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FLUID DUALITYDESIGN ANALYSIS

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FLUID DUALITY

With the roof I was allowed to break away from the orthogonality of the frame and intuitively the ramp in-spired a relative motion. The roof became another ex-

on columns about the building, similar to the ramp that

public gesture towards the future public square, much the same way that the ramp rises up in the same di-rection.

DESIGN ANALYSIS

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The process for this building has been an incredibly inter-esting and meaningful process of my own individual values and experience. I’ve let the journey take me where it needs

-ically on any preconceptions I might have all the way from programme to form.The building, its programme and the intent of the project were extremely strong drivers. I knew what I wanted to achieve, it was based on utopian ideals of societal and environmental harmony rooted it into the context and reality. What motivates me is the hope for a better world. I look around and I see so much possibility, so much we can do now to shift our current instability towards a future of resilience and peace. The South African context has so much potential. Our culture is rich with tradition and human ingenuity, our land diverse and beautiful. We have all the ingredients to become the enlightened African cities and societies of the future. The challenges we face are immense but they offer great opportunities and possibility for creative solutions.My ideas are at once pragmatic and humanistic. The choice for timber was a logical one for a number of rea-sons: it is the most sustainable building material we have access to, its qualities are desirable and friendly to humans, and we have not begun to explore its full potential on an urban scale. Our energy needs to be put into creating the sustainable cities of the future, urbanisation is a reality and will actually be the best way for our societies to reconnect to natural harmony. With this said, it is imperative that our cities develop in the right way. With tall wood technology

believe this is a way we can start to reverse man made damage on the planet while at the same time progress-ing the state of the built environment.Although my intent was pragmatic about creating sus-tainable future urban environments for people, it was the same factors that effected my buildings design on smaller and smaller scales. It was an interesting process as I let myself be inspired by the day to day qualities of people and their lives, the site and its history, and the potential of future possibility.In the end I am happy with what I have achieved thus far. I understand the architect cannot predict or the fu-ture nor can we dictate the direction things must follow. So much is achieved by everyday people living their lives and creating the world around them (This is something I hope to explore and understand more in the years to

adaptability was an issue from the beginning. I am also happy with how I have addressed the urban scheme and how my buildings role relates to the bigger unity of my urban scheme. I feel that I have made a good attempt to create a social building that responds to people and their different circumstances. In the end I do not see this building as a solution to a perfect future but I see it as an example of something that can become a social and political catalyst in altering our current unsustainable per-ceptions. People will take the lead and communities must

this building seeks to create a platform for the public to empower themselves and take control of their own future.

THOUGHT PIECE

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TABLE OF FIGURES

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APPENDICES

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2: DESIGN PROPOSAL 11: DESIGN PROPOSAL 1

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2: DESIGN PROPOSAL 21: DESIGN PROPOSAL 2

2: URBAN DESIGN

3: ‘UTEC’ FINAL DRAWINGS

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Urban-Timber Education Centre: Design Book

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