Climate Design of Buildings and Cities

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• The relationship between urban design, architecture, engineering and sustainability to develop a holistic approach. [SM7M, SM9M]
• The set-up of a scoping study for a selected topic including targets to achieve the goals of the study. [EA6M, D9M, D10M]
• The development of an urban sustainability concept integrating the various issues required to create a sustainable community. [SM7M, SM9M, D10M]

Subject Specific Practical Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Research appropriate technologies for your scoping study. [G1]
• Develop clear and concise presentation material to convey your design and engineering ideas. [G1, G4]
• Demonstrate the ability to present and defend a projected urban development concept in a team. [G1, G4]
• Write and illustrate a scoping study with appropriate graphs. [G1]

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Concept and design development. [G1]
• Oral presentation. [G1, G4]
• Team work. [P11m, G4]
• Plan and organise both time and resources. [P11m, G4]

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Analyse the principles and evaluate the constraints to achieve more sustainable communities. [EA7M, D9M, D10M, D11M, EL11M, P10m]
• Formulate an integrated design / engineering concept and evaluate the solution in response to given requirements. [EA7M, D10M, D11M, P12M, P9m]
• Analyse a design task. [EA6M]

This module links the design of buildings and urban environments to the wider context of achieving sustainable communities and neighbourhoods. It will comprise the following:

1. Discussion of human comfort as a basis for the active shaping of the living environment with buildings and cities. Critical assessment of the changes in human requirements in relation to societal conditions.

2. Design principles to achieve contemporary climatic design looking at building design, urban organisation, material choice, structural design, thermal mass etc.

3. Design principles to achieve sustainable communities.

4. An introduction to energy systems in buildings and on community scale looking at principles, function and applications, advantages and disadvantages of individual systems. Discussion of how energy systems contribute to design and shaping of an urban environment.

5. Transportation in the urban environment.

6. Urban masterplanning and urban design policies.

7. Discussion of the impacts of population migration and the emergence of megacities. Critical evaluation of the potential of eco-cities. Examples include Masdar and Dongtan.

8. Urban microclimate and urban heat islands.

9. Issues of design philosophy, e.g. How green to go? What can people accept?

10. Discussion of how to establish design priorities and implementation phases to achieve sustainability targets.

The course will comprise of lectures and seminar units related to the topics given above. Seminar units will include impromptu design tasks on selected problems. This will be complemented by a 3 day workshop related to the [P1] assessment.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.