Pgr Proceedings (1)

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Welsh School of

Architecture

Third Research

Student Conference

24 November 2006

PROCEEDINGS

Edited by Judi Loach

wsa


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Proceedings

of the

Second Research Student Conference

held at the

Welsh School of Architecture

Cardiff University

on

24 November 2006

Organised by Dr. Judi Loach,

Katrina Lewis and Dr. Mike Fedeski

Proceedings edited by

Judi Loach,

assisted by Janice Coyle


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Contents

Introduction 3

Ziad Aazam 5

The Social Logic of the Mosque:

A Study in the Relationships between Buildings Interior and its Urban Context

Sabina Fazlic 15

Sustainable High-Rise Urban Living In Cool Temperate Climates: A Survey

Arman Hashemi 29Modern Methods Of Construction (Mmc) In The Uk Housing Industry

Jamal Khodakarami 43

Occupants Thermal Conditions In Iranian Hospitals

Qian Li 51

Environmental Design Strategies For Vernacular Courtyard Dwellings In North China

Nazanin Nasrollahi 61

Perception And Calculation Of Indoor Thermal Comfort In Iranian Ofce Buildings

Alexander Veal 71

The Concept And Operation Of Inuence In Architecture

Postgraduate Research Student Thesis Titles 83


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IntRoDUCtIon

I am pleased to introduce the proceedings from our third Research Student Conference whichtook place on 24th of November 2006.

Included in the proceedings are a number of papers which were presented either as oral

presentations or posters. A range of subject areas are included, covering higher degreeresearch from our Architectural History & Theory and Architectural Science activities.

Our aim is that posters are presented by students in the early years of their degrees and thatoral presentations are made by students in the nal stages. This provides students with a goodexperience of presenting and defending their work to a wider audience.

I would like to thank Dr. Judi Loach, Dr. Mike Fedeski, Katrina Lewis and Janice Coyle fororganising the event and producing the proceedings.


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the soCIal logIC of the MosqUe: a stUDy In the RelatIonshIps

between bUIlDIngs InteRIoR anD Its URban Context

Ziad Aazam

Registered for the degree of PhD

[email protected]

abstRaCt

Each building type is a unique socio-spatial conguration that requires different methods to unpack its

relationships. This paper argues that the congregation mosque, the type chosen for this study, requires a socio-

spatial organisational analysis extending beyond its boundary. Based on formal theories of type that consider thetraditional city as the source of architectural typology (Rossi et al., 1982) and on space syntax idea of interface

(Hillier and Hanson, 1984), this study aims at dening the relationships between this particular building type and

urban morphology. The analysis addresses the questions of whether a relationship can be established between the

mosques internal socio-spatial organisation and the citys local and global structure, and whether or not such a

relationship contributes to our understanding of the phenomena of this building type. The paper concludes that,

contrary to the typical spatial discontinuity between the inside of the mosques boundary and the city, the mosque

shows a high degree of spatial continuity with the citys local structure.

IntRoDUCtIon

This paper is an extension of an investigation that seeks different methods for understandingthe relationship between a particular institution and its building type (Aazam, 2005a, 2005b).Although it is clear that the building becomes an urban element among others at the localand global scales of the city, particular building types remain characteristically strong to thedegree of dening the city itself. Religious and cultural buildings are of this dominant type.Conventionally, any venture beyond the buildings boundaries may be regarded as a crossingover into the realm of urban design and policy. The attempt here is to explore the buildingsrole in the city beyond the connes of its boundaries while maintaining the focus on the

building itself.

The writings of Rossi (1982) and Vidler (1976, 13-6.) advocate the idea that the city itself is oursource of typology, unlike earlier typologies that were based on nature or the machine. Theview of architecture that takes the construction of the city as an embodiment of history, valuesand cultures can be used as a base for a new typology. Vidler stated in his The Third Typology:

We might characterize the fundamental attribute of this third typology as an espousal,not of an abstract nature, nor of a technological utopia, but rather of the traditional cityas the locus of its concern. The city, that is, provides the material for classication, andthe forms of its artifacts provide the basis for re-composition. (Vidler, 1976; 13)

Vidlers concept was motivated by a desire to stress the continuity of form and history againstthe fragmentation produced by the elemental, institutional, and mechanistic typologies of therecent past (Ibid; 14). In such a process of formation, the city becomes integrated with its pastand present as manifested in its physical structure. While such a view takes a formal coherenceof the city as its objective, it fails to address the human aspect, without which the city does notexist in the rst place.

The aim of this paper is based on the view that for a typology based on urban architectureto contribute to its formal cohesion, an understanding of the social cohesion in space has tocomplement such a typology.


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To investigate a particular building type with a possible role in the city, the congregationmosque is chosen as a religious building type. The sample of six mosques and their cities(Figure 1) in this study was selected to be representative of historical continuity andgeographical diversity of the traditional Muslim world.

These cases are explored spatially at the citys global and local levels from the level of thebuilding itself. The exploration raises the questions as to what degree the buildings interior canbe understood in relation to the exterior context and the city at large; and in what way such arelationship can contribute to our understanding of the phenomena of this building type.

DAM: Damascus, SAN: Sanaa, CAI: Cairo, IST: Istanbul, SHJ: Shahjahanabad, XIN: Xian

Figure 1: Satellite images of the 6 mosques in their local context. Google Earth images.

It is assumed in this study that the living traditions which characterise the sample ofhistorical cases continue to demonstrate little deviation in social and spatial organisationfrom their original intent. This historical continuity is indicative of the cases persistencein representing the values of the society. These cases, therefore, render themselves suitable

phenomena for this exploration.

The objective is to nd a general tendency that characterises the buildings performance at thecitys global and local levels. This paper is divided into two parts. The rst part is concernedwith introducing the congregation mosque as an urban element representing an importantinstitution of the Muslim society. The second part analyses the buildings spatial role within

its citys global and local settings.

ConCepts ConCeRnIng the MosqUe type

Ci d mu

Religious scholars have emphasised the presence of the mosque as a condition for a societyto full its Islamic way of life in the city. As Hakim (1986) noted in his study of the relevantIslamic literature, the city should have a congregation mosque, masjid al-jami, in which theFriday sermon was given and in which the citys residents and its surroundings are served.This signicance of the mosque was rst established by the construction of the Prophets

mosque in Madinah. The mosque served as both a place of worship and a community centrefor the city which played an important function in the formation of the new society. Itsrelationship with the city has continued to be signicant.


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Cri c

Some of the mosques spaces can be categorised not only as part of the buildings interiorbut also as part of the buildings and citys local relationships. The gate space is an obviousexample, in that it expresses a threshold between the busy exterior and the quiet interior of themosque. The number of the gates and their locations in any single case are indicative of thedegree of that buildings integration in its urban context.

A less obvious spatial category within this classication is the transition space, which canbe found next to the gate at either the exterior or the interior of the mosque or both. Thisparticular condition shows that the transition space belongs to both the mosque and the street,an indication of a direct integration with the immediate context.

A possible spatial category that the sample reveals is the courtyard of the mosque. Thepossibility of a direct link with the surrounding streets renders this category a candidate for anurban role beyond that of its interior architectural function.

The nal category is the drinking water fountain and public bath facilities, attached to themosque but accessed from the outside. Although this function may not be found attached tothe mosque, it is possible to nd the facilities in a nearby building and within easy access to

and from the mosque. These particular settings extend the range of the mosques functionsoutside that of its boundaries.

Imic d ru

One of the relationships found between the interior and the exterior settings of the mosque isthe orientation to the Qibla. It is the most evident relationship within the citys urban fabric.For the worshippers, from any part of the world, to line up facing the Kabah in Makkah, theQibla wall along with the entire structure has to follow this orientation. In the case of themosque being built in an established context, this process leads to a necessary adjustment ofthe interior walls of the mosque to that of its surroundings. In the case of being built prior to acomplete development of the context, the urban fabric may adjust to the mosques orientation.

There are no specic laws that suggest either where the mosque should be located or whaturban elements should be near the mosque. There are indications in the Islamic rules ofconduct that commercial activities are prohibited within the walls of the mosque. Thefrequency of the rituals performance and peoples need for returning to their profaneactivities suggest a possibility of proximity between mosque and market within the city. It has

been concluded that there is a strong relationship between the mosque and the market in thedenition of the Islamic city (Raymond 1984; Massignon, cited in Raymond 1984; 12).

With laws and rules provided in Islamic traditions or left for consensus, the built environmentbecomes a eld of application for the Muslim society to practise responsibility. The patternof responsibility varies according to the degree of adherence to the traditions or the lack ofunderstanding or control (Akbar, 1988).

nur irc

The concept of interface between inhabitants and visitors refers to space syntax theory ofsocial and spatial organisatipon of buildings (Hillier and Hanson, 1984; Hillier, 1996; Hanson,1998). The nature of the interface as it occurs between inside the boundaries of the mosqueand the surrounding streets outside, however, requires further exploration.

The performance of formal prayers ve times during the day suggests a high frequency ofmovement to and from the mosque. High frequency of visits suggests a high possibility ofencounter among the inhabitants close to the mosques district in the city and the visitorswho come from outside this part. The nature of this interface may change depending on

the frequency of the visits. High frequency suggests a familiarity with the inhabitants, themosque and its area which may change the visitors behaviour to that of an inhabitant-likebehaviour. Therefore, the capacity of the mosques spaces to facilitate the transition between


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the interior of the mosque, its immediate exterior and the streets in its proximity is critical inunderstanding the nature of the interface.

analysIs

The analysis looks at the relationship between the building and the city at both local andglobal levels in terms of spatial conguration, dened here as relations that take into accountother relations (Hillier, 1996). This type of analysis is based on space syntax theories andmethods dened in Hillier and Hansons The Social Logic of Space (1984). This syntacticanalysis of space extends the knowledge observed from the cases to further dene the conceptof interface with relation to the mosque. The cases were selected for the mosques historical

prominence, regardless of their cities syntactic properties. They are also representative of theformal building typology as classied by Frishman (1994) and Ardalan (1980; 1983).

The mosque building types are: the hypostyle with dome feature and courtyard type,represented by the mosques of Damascus, Sanaa, Cairo; the central dome type, represented

by the mosque of Istanbul; the hypostyle with domical vaulting and an extensive courtyard

type, represented by the mosque of Shahjahanabad; and the detached pavilion within a walledgarden enclosure type, represented by the mosque of Xian.

The mosques selected are: the Great Mosque of Damascus, Syria, 8th century; the GreatMosque in Sanaa, Yemen, 7th-17th century; Al-Azhar Mosque of Cairo, Egypt, 10th century;Fatih Mosque of Istanbul, Turkey, 15th century; the Friday Mosque of Shahjahanabad, India,17th century; and the Great Mosque of Xian, China, 14th century.

The mosques and their cities are both referred to, in the analysis, by abbreviations, asfollows: Damascus, DAM; Sanaa, SAN; Cairo, CAI; Istanbul, IST; Shahjahanabad (OldDelhi), SHJ; and Xian, XIN. Except for CAI and IST, the cases represent the only, the largestor the oldest congregation mosque in the city. The analysis uses both Depthmap (Turner,2000-2006) and Mindwalk (Figueiredo, 2002) software for the axial analysis and Depthmap

for the visibility analysis.

lci mu

The investigation proceeds to nd the local position of the mosque within the global structureof the dened historical part of the city. The purpose is to see whether or not the mosque islocated within or outside the integration core of the city structure, and what implication thathas on the expected natural movement of people to and from the mosques location.

DAM: Damascus, SAN: Sanaa, CAI: Cairo, IST: Istanbul, SHJ: Shahjahanabad, XIN: XianFigure 2: Axial lines of 6 cities show the global integration of the 5% and w25% most integrated lines of the system.


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The axial lines of the six cities (Figure 2) show the global integration of the 5% and 25% mostglobally integrated lines of the system. A close examination of the 5% most integrated linesreveals that at least one axial line passes near the mosque in all the cases except for XIN. Theanalysis is also carried out for the city, with the inclusion of the axial lines that pass throughthe interior of the mosque spaces. This experimental approach is based on the assumption that

specic spaces of the mosque, such as the gates, transitions, courtyard and some rows of theprayer area, may also behave like the streets. It is possible then to enter the mosque throughone gate and pass right across the courtyard to exit through another into the neighbouringstreet. The 25% most globally integrated lines show a complete surrounding of the exterior aswell as the interior of the mosque.

The analysis looks also at both axial measures of the city without the building (Figure 3) andwith it (Figure 4). The results show a slight increase in the global integration (Int_Rn) withthe buildings axial lines included, except for XIN, where the results show a decrease in theglobal integration.

It can be concluded from such a brief exploration that, in this sample, the natural movementinuenced by the structure of the city has a high possibility of being near and around the

mosque. This tendency in the sample indicates that the mosque, considered as a formalbuilding, is located in the integration core. A further consideration of the possibility of thebuilding to act as a passage connecting the sides of the surrounding urban context showsanother slight tendency to contribute positively to the global integration of the city.

Ci K_R C I_R I_R3 MD tD

1: DAM 768 2.641 0.929 1.393 8.925 6845

2: SAN 996 3.046 0.560 1.454 14.401 14329

3: CAI 1741 3.155 0.734 1.542 12.557 21850

4: IST 2639 4.301 1.086 2.066 9.533 25148

5: SHJ 2394 2.528 0.636 1.254 15.051 36032

6: XIN 296 3.899 1.526 2.023 4.862 1434Min 296 2.528 0.560 1.254 4.862 1434

Mean 1472 3.262 0.912 1.622 10.888 17606

Max 2639 4.301 1.526 2.066 15.051 36032

SD 937 0.702 0.358 0.341 3.859 12669K_Rn = total number of lines, Conn = Connectivity, Int_Rn = Global

Integration, Int_R3 = Local Integration, MD = Mean Depth, TD = Total Depth

Figure 3: Axial measures without the building axial lines.

Ci K_R C I_R I_R3 MD tD

1: DAM 784 2.714 0.936 1.411 8.892 6962

2: SAN 1032 3.097 0.565 1.478 14.385 14831

3: CAI 1776 3.180 0.738 1.559 12.525 222324: IST 2654 4.304 1.089 2.066 9.522 25263

5: SHJ 2441 2.545 0.644 1.267 14.928 36441

6: XIN 331 3.825 1.391 1.989 5.388 1778

Min 331 2.545 0.565 1.267 5.388 1778

Mean 1503 3.278 0.894 1.628 10.940 17918

Max 2654 4.304 1.391 2.066 14.928 36441

SD 937 0.671 0.310 0.324 3.669 12694

Figure 4: Axial measures with the building axial lines.

A further analysis of the location of the mosque relative to the integration core of the city is to

consider the number of steps, or topological turns, it takes to move from the most integratedline in the integrated core to the mosque. This step depth analysis (Figure 5) shows a mean of2 step depth to reach the exterior and 4 step depth to reach the interiors most integrated line


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from the most integrated line in the system. This measure is way below the step depth meanof the means in the sample systems. The most indicative case of this tendency is SHJ, where1 step depth indicates that the exterior line passing in front of the mosque is actually the mostintegrated line in the system.

Mu liM M erir Irir

1: DAM 17 5 2 4

2: SAN 20 11 4 6

3: CAI 18 8 4 7

4: IST 16 6 2 3

5: SHJ 22 10 1 2

6: XIN 8 4 2 5

Min 8 4 1 2

Mean 17 7 3 5

Max 22 11 4 7

SD 5 3 1 2

Figure 5: Step Depth from the most integrated line.

The results from above conrm further the possible natural movement expected, as aninuence of the city structure, around and to the interior of the mosque. This can result inmore visitors reaching this part of the city and mixing with the inhabitants. It also indicatesthe degree of the societys investment in locating the mosque in the city.


Figure 6: A comparison between the Visibility Graph Analysis for the cases with the building and without it

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The above conclusion, suggested by the lines of movement within the system, establishes

the location of the mosque in the integration core as a strong tendency in the sample. Thisintegration core is further investigated using the visibility graph analysis. A catchment area of500 by 500 metres (Figure 6), dening the integration core of the system, is analysed visually


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using Depthmap. The objective is to examine the extent to which the mosque acts as an urbanelement visually. It explores the relationship between the buildings interior and exterior.

When the system is analysed visually without the buildings interior it considers the mosqueas a solid object with closed gates, similar to the other buildings around it. When the systemis analysed with the gates open, the analysis reads the interior of the mosque as part of theurban open spaces. This exploration is based on the assumption that the interior of the mosqueallows a through movement free of control. Its visual integration, however, is decisive indetermining the degree of such movement.

K-V C V_I MD K-V C V_I MD

1: DAM 12724 308 3.399 4.416 1: DAM 16290 579 4.156 3.918

2: SAN 18239 188 1.817 7.583 2: SAN 19232 193 1.835 7.554

3: CAI 13152 751 2.954 5.313 3: CAI 15486 683 3.128 5.106

4: IST 24244 1919 6.224 3.034 4: IST 25386 1860 6.246 3.039

5: SHJ 18458 295 1.851 7.749 5: SHJ 22474 1088 5.265 3.366

6: XIN 10212 1419 5.041 3.463 6: XIN 12754 1198 3.883 4.185

Min 10212 188 1.817 3.034 Min 12754 193 1.835 3.039

Mean 16172 813 3.548 5.260 Mean 18604 933 4.085 4.528

Max 24244 1919 6.224 7.749 Max 25386 1860 6.246 7.554

SD 5122 708 1.768 2.025 SD 4705 581 1.555 1.646

K_Vn = total number of visual points, Conn = Connectivity V_Integ = Visual Integration, MD = Visual Mean Depth

Figure 7: Visibility graph analysis at 2 meter grid

without the building (gates closed).

Figure 8: Visibility graph analysis at 2 meter grid

with the building (gates opened).

By comparing the visibility results without the buildings interior (Figure 7) and those with it(Figure 8), the results show an increase in visual integration (V_Int) throughout the system,

except for XIN. This suggests that the mosque plays a signicant role in bringing the systemtogether visually. It also suggests that in cases where the difference is positive, the mosque

plays an urban role and acts as an urban element similar to that of the piazza at the heart of atown. Where the difference is negative, as in XIN, it is observed that this mosques interioris isolated visually from the rest of the urban context. These architectural settings in relationto the exterior seem to produce little visual integrations; XIN has fewer gates open to theexterior.

The cases in this sample show that there are many ways of demonstrating this urbancontribution. The number, placement and relationships of critical spaces such as the gates,transitions and courtyards can contribute positively to the visual integration. By consideringthe cases of SHJ and DAM, the two most diverse cases in terms of architectural forms, andthe highest in rank order in terms of the positive difference between the VGA measures of

integration with and without the building (SHJ 3.41 and DAM 0.76), one can see how thepositive contribution is achieved through the architectural manipulation of visual eld, wherethe visibility extends beyond the mosques boundaries (Figure 9). This visual eld, or isovist,is an area of all the points that can be seen from a point or combination of points in space.It can be thought of as a beam of light covering a space while casting its shadow wheneverobstructed by objects.

In the case of SHJ, the high platform on which the mosque is located, its centrality, locationof the staircase, the gates location at that particular end of the road and the fact that the gateslead immediately to a large courtyard all contributed greatly to the positive integration.

The case of DAM case is less of an object sitting in an urban space (as it was the case ofthe SHJ). It is physically semi-detached from its context, with spaces opened up in front of

the gates. The context is dense around the mosque, allowing the courtyard to behave like anurban piazza with a possibility of isovists linking its two exterior sides visually. This formalconguration allows it to contribute to the visual integration positively.


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Figure 9: The sample of various architectural forms contributing differently to the positive visual integration

through their different isovists.

ConClUsIon

This brief exploration suggests that there are tendencies in this sample which conrm theview that the congregation mosque is not a merely building, whose boundaries enclose itsinterior spaces, but rather an active urban element, which contributes to the citys global andlocal spatial integration. Yet the analysis of these diverse cases in the sample shows a fewcases where the mosque is less active as an urban element.

In view of Islamic traditions, the patterns of responsibility for integrating that builtenvironment containing the mosque seem to be consistent throughout those parts of theMuslim world where an understanding of those traditions is at its highest. Where lesscomprehension or less control over the shaping of the built environment prevails, lessintegration is shown, as in the case of XIN. This, however, should not make this case lessfunctional as a mosque.

In the light of these results, the interface relationship between visitors and inhabitants seemsto suggest less control, more possibilities for encounter, copresence and a tendency towardssocial cohesion.

The social cohesion experienced in the most active cases is not only due to the degree ofadherence to Islamic traditions in social practice but also to the spatial cohesion of the mosqueexperience itself at the level of the building and the city. Such spatial cohesion is in itself

a degree of embodiment of Islamic laws and intents by the society. It can be said that thehigher the embodiment of these traditions, the higher the built environment integration of themosque; and the higher this spatial integration, the higher the social cohesion.

Finally, these ndings across diverse traditional cases lead to the conclusion that suchknowledge is needed to understand the concept of interface between people as well as

between the elements of the built environment itself. These relationships, as represented intraditional settings, can therefore provide clues for better urban designs and policies.

RefeRenCes

Aazam, Z. (2005a) The Social Logic of the Mosque: A Typological Study. In Loach, J. (Ed.)Proceedings of the Second Research Student Conference. Welsh School of Architecture,


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Cardiff University.

Aazam, Z. (2005b) To, around and from the Centre: How the Kabah Continues to Integratethe Society and Its Rituals. In Van Nes, A. (Ed.) Space Syntax 5th InternationalSymposium. Delft, the Netherlands, Delft University of technology.

Akbar, J. (1988) Crisis in the Built Environment : The Case of the Muslim City, Singapore,

Concept Media.Ardalan, N. (1980) The Visual Language of Symbolic Form: A Preliminary Study of Mosque

Architecture. In Katz, J. G. (Ed.)Architecture as Symbol and Self-Identity. Philadelphia:Aga Khan Award for Architecture.

Ardalan, N. (1983) On Mosque Architecture. In Holod, R., Rastorfer, D (Ed.)Architectureand Community,New York, Aperture.

Figueiredo, L. (2002)Mindwalk, Version 1.0, Space Syntax Software, Available at: http://www.mindwalk.com.br

Frishman, M., Khan, H.-U. & Al-Asad, M. (1994) The Mosque : History, ArchitecturalDevelopment & Regional Diversity, London, Thames and Hudson.

Hakim, B. S. (1986)Arabic-Islamic Cities : Building and Planning Principles, London,Kegan Paul International.

Hanson, J. (1998)Decoding Homes and Houses, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Hillier, B. (1996) Space Is the Machine : A Congurational Theory of Architecture,Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Hillier, B. & Hanson, J. (1984) The Social Logic of Space, Cambridge, Cambridge UniversityPress.

Raymond, A. (1984) The Great Arab Cities in the 16th - 18th Centuries: An Introduction,New York and London, New York Unievrsity Press.

Rossi, A., Eisenman, P. (1982) The Architecture of the City, Cambridge, Mass. ; London,

Published by [i.e. for] the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts andthe Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies by MIT.

Turner, A. (2000-2006) Ucl Depthmap, VR Centre for the Built Environment, Available athttp://www.vr.ucl.ac.uk/depthmap

Vidler, A. (1976) The Third Typology. Reprinted in Hays, K. M. (Ed.) 1998. OppositionsReader: Selected Readings from a Journal for Ideas and Criticism in Architecture 1973-1984,p. 13-6. New York, Princeton Architectural Press.

Cardiff University.

Aazam, Z. (2005b) To, around and from the Centre: How the Kabah Continues to Integratethe Society and Its Rituals. In Van Nes, A. (Ed.) Space Syntax 5th International

Symposium. Delft, the Netherlands, Delft University of technology.Akbar, J. (1988) Crisis in the Built Environment : The Case of the Muslim City, Singapore,

Concept Media.

Ardalan, N. (1980) The Visual Language of Symbolic Form: A Preliminary Study of MosqueArchitecture. In Katz, J. G. (Ed.) Architecture as Symbol and Self-Identity. Philadelphia:Aga Khan Award for Architecture.

Ardalan, N. (1983) On Mosque Architecture. In Holod, R., Rastorfer, D (Ed.) Architecture andCommunity, New York, Aperture.

Figueiredo, L. (2002) Mindwalk, Version 1.0, Space Syntax Software, Available at: http://www.mindwalk.com.br

Frishman, M., Khan, H.-U. & Al-Asad, M. (1994) The Mosque : History, ArchitecturalDevelopment & Regional Diversity, London, Thames and Hudson.


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Hakim, B. S. (1986) Arabic-Islamic Cities : Building and Planning Principles, London, KeganPaul International.

Hanson, J. (1998) Decoding Homes and Houses, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Hillier, B. (1996) Space Is the Machine : A Congurational Theory of Architecture,Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Hillier, B. & Hanson, J. (1984) The Social Logic of Space, Cambridge, Cambridge UniversityPress.

Raymond, A. (1984) The Great Arab Cities in the 16th - 18th Centuries: An Introduction, NewYork and London, New York Unievrsity Press.

Rossi, A., Eisenman, P. (1982) The Architecture of the City, Cambridge, Mass. ; London,Published by [i.e. for] the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts andthe Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies by MIT.

Turner, A. (2000-2006) Ucl Depthmap, VR Centre for the Built Environment, Available athttp://www.vr.ucl.ac.uk/depthmap

Vidler, A. (1976) The Third Typology. Reprinted in Hays, K. M. (Ed.) 1998. Oppositions

Reader: Selected Readings from a Journal for Ideas and Criticism in Architecture1973-1984, p. 13-6. New York, Princeton Architectural Press.


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sUstaInable hIgh-RIse URban lIVIng In Cool teMpeRate ClIMates:

a sURVey

Sabina Fazlic


Sponsored by Overseas Research Students Award

abstRaCt

This study focuses on the emergence of sustainable high-rise urban living in the cool temperate climates

of Europe and North America. It looks at the development of the residential tower worldwide as well as

contemporary practice in its design. Case studies are presented in two prominent cities, New York and

London, in order to illustrate the different approaches to sustainable towers. The conclusion then proposes

a new hierarchy for the contemporary tower.

IntRoDUCtIon

Urbanisation and climate change are two of the factors influencing skyscraperdevelopment, the first directing a way towards the residential high-rise and the secondto the sustainable tower. This paper will focus on the combination of the two in the cooltemperate climates of Europe and North America.

This paper derives from a literature review for a larger study whose aim is to create adesign framework for sustainable skyscrapers in the cool temperate climate. It begins

with a more general analysis of high-rise living, which is divided into two sections,one focusing on its history and the other on current practice. A section then describesinternational approaches in residential tower design, followed by a more specificdiscussion about sustainable approaches in Europe and North America. It then looksat proposed, planned and completed sustainable green skyscrapers in New York andLondon.

Here residential high-rise refers specifically to any residential building twelve storeysand over, while tall building, skyscraper and tower can be used interchangeably tomean any building of that height. The term sustainable here means any approach thatutilises the widely-encompassing definition of sustainability, that of the Rio de JaneiroEarth Summit of 1992 as meeting the needs of the present without compromisingthe ability of future generations to meet their own needs, but here environmentally

sustainable specifically refers to the environmental aspect of sustainable design.

DIsCUssIon anD analysIs

hir hi-Ri livi

Compared with other building types, the residential skyscraper has undergone greatchanges and experienced rapid growth since its beginnings nearly a century ago. Aswith commercial skyscrapers, these changes were an outcome of land economy, urbantransportation, finance, investment opportunities and advances in technology such asthe structural frame and lift (Ali 1995, 144-5). The early history of this development isreviewed by Goldberger (Goldberger 1981) in his chronology of the skyscraper, and themore recent history by Binder (Binder 2002) in his overview of recent and contemporaryresidential towers. This section draws on these two works.


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Georges Binder states that the rst towers designed for residential purposes appeared inNew York (Binder 2002). The Ritz Tower, completed in 1926, was the rst building destinedfor sky-high living, a luxury 41-storey apartment hotel. Within a few years, a series ofother residential towers emerged in the city, and the building types popularity had spreadworldwide. Buenos Aires became home to the 110-metre-high Kavanagh building in 1936 andParis to the Tour Peret in 1949. These early residential high-rises followed the style of their

commercial contemporaries, a style that would change drastically after the early 1950s whenthe rst glass skyscrapers appeared (Binder 2002, 8).

The architectural debate over approaches to the design of tower buildings is discussed in PaulGoldbergers The Skyscraper (Goldberger 1981). He identies at this early stage two verydifferent ideologies in relation to skyscraper design, which are exemplied by the towers ofChicago and New York. Although not exclusive, the approaches do in fact represent the citiesoverall preference. Diagram 1 interprets this distinction, using terms derived from Goldberger.

Chicago, home of the great theorists of the skyscraper, Louis Sullivan and John WellbornRoot, symbolised a theoretical approach based on the expression of technological innovation.Chicago needed to rebuild quickly after the Great Fire of 1871 and the lack of tradition, botharchitectural and cultural, allowed for greater experimentation. This created a style inuenced

by the demands of commerce, which insured a changing skyscraper image but one that wasalways derived from contemporary technology. In other words, the architects of Chicagowere convinced that a new technology of the skyscraper would create a new architecture(Goldberger 1981, 17).

By contrast, the architects of New Yorks skyscrapers looked to Europe for historical andvisual references. The towers there lacked the expression of technological innovationand in fact purposely hid their structure and technology, whilst showing no preferencefor any particular style. As Goldberger states, referring to architects, their commitmentwas increasingly to visual pleasure, by any means obtainable (Goldberger 1981, 63). Hisdescription of the towers of that time is as follows:

They symbolized at once the power of technology and the power of historyor, to put it another

way, they expressed the belief of their corporate owners and tenants that an adaptation of the new

technology did not have to mean an abandonment of tradition. They were buildings for ownersand members of the publicwho wanted all the glory of the past along with all the promise

of the future, for those who wished, in an architectural sense, to have their cake and eat it, too.

(Goldberger 1981, 37)

However, it is worth noting that both cities towers shared a prerequisite of environmentaldesign. The earlier skyscrapers, both residential and commercial, had no option but toconsider the local climate, due to both technological and nancial constraints. Thereforeelements today considered bioclimatic, such as narrow oor plates, were then consideredstandard, as such a feature had been the only feasible solution for the provision of lightingand ventilation. However, this dependence on climate nearly vanished in the mid-twentiethcentury as fuel prices became cheaper and technology more advanced.


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Returning to the stylistic options for skyscrapers, in 1951 Chicago highlighted its innovativecharacter with the completion of Mies van der Rohes 26-storey 860-880 Lake Shore DriveApartments. This was not his rst residential high-rise in the city, but its glass faade greatlyinuenced the whole of residential high-rise construction and modern architecture in general.That is not to say that concrete residential high-rises ceased to be built: in fact, some ofthe most memorable residential towers of the period were of concrete. I. M. Pei designed

a number of such buildings throughout the United States in the 1960s and Chicagos mostfamous twin towers, Marina City, were completed during the decade. However, the glassmodel, and particularly the glass-wall image, continued to gain inuence throughout thecentury and would dominate skyscraper design by its end (Binder 2002).

From the 1950s onwards, residential towers continued to grow rapidly in both number andsize. Chicago and New York were once again the world leaders. The Lake Point Tower,the John Hancock Center and the twin Commonwealth Fullerton Apartments became iconsof the former, while the Galleria signalled the future direction of the latters approach.Although Modernism ourished in both cities during this period, Goldberger argues thiswas mainly out of economic necessity rather than any other inclination. Nonetheless, evenwith a Modernist style the cities differing attitudes were apparent, as was shown by SOMsLever House in New York and SOMs Inland Steel Building in Chicago. Lever House,

Goldberger states,for all it Modernist credentials, still seems somewhat theatrical in comparison with Inland Steel;

its abstractions are more those of pure visual pleasure, of pure composition, while Inland Steels

abstractions are based more directly on an expression of use and structure. (Goldberger 1981, 107-8).

Also of note in this period is that New York, now with an established tradition of skyscraperdesign, became less reliant on visual reference from European history and instead it looked atitself for a more local reference, one based on urban values, as is represented by Diagram 2.

These two cities were not alone in their residential high-rise pursuits, as European citiesalso modernised their image with a number of residential and mixed-use towers: Brusselswith the 30-storey Centre International Rogier, Paris with the Tour Totem, 46-storeyDfense 2000 and 30-storey Trois Tours, Madrid with the 25-storey Torres Blancas and

London with the Trellick Tower and 38-40-storey Barbican Towers. Outside Europe,the 25-storey Blues Point Tower indicated Sydneys interests, as did the 32-storey SouthAmerican Copan apartment building in So Paolo and the Ashiyahama Seaside Town, aresidential high-rise city, in Japan (Binder 2002).

What was becoming apparent by 1980 was that the Modernist box was no longer apractical option. As Goldberger points out, not only was it no longer the clean andexhilarating structure that would serve as a clarion call to a new age but becameimpracticable, as it was generally inefcient from the standpoint of energy, and it was notas marketable from the viewpoint of real estate operations either. Just as economics hadled to Modernisms success, Goldberger states, it was once again economics that turnedarchitects away from it (Goldberger 1981, 139-40). He then describes the emerging periodof the time, described as a short-lived phase of stylistic concern that attempted to regress

to the architecture of visual stimulation of the 1920s. More of a New York preoccupationthan that of Chicago, the postmodern tower again focused on history, but this time witha connection to the city. Speaking during that period, Goldberger claimed: one sensestoday that history is being used not as part of the art of composing a tower, but almost inopposition to it, as in A.T.&T., where the historical elements seem out of kilter with the

buildings mass (Goldberger 1981, 157).

Despite this brief fascination with historical reference, and in contrast to Goldbergersexpectations at the time, Modernism has remained the main stylistic preference amongstarchitects. Here it is useful to refer to Hugh Pearmans generalised denition of modern as adesire to express contemporary society in buildings it occupies, while acknowledging that thelast quarter of a century has witnessed an increasing plurality of approaches (Pearman 1998, 18).

What follows in the next section is an overview of some of these changing practices, derivedfrom Binder again, but also from more recent, sometimes primary, sources.


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Curr prcic

The enormous transformations of the 1990s and 2000s are directly related to world populationgures. In 1999 the earth was home to 6 billion people, and this number is projected to riseto 8.5 billion by 2025, with over half living in urban settlements (Rogers 1999). Despite thefact that urbanisation is a global trend, it is the countries of the East that have extensivelyutilised high-rise living as a solution to the limited amount of urban space. However, therapidly changing business structure in the West is changing the function of skyscrapers. Thegrowth of personal computers, advances in telecommunications and more uid companystructures are changing the nature of ofce space and forcing architects to diversify the usesof tall buildings (Yeang 1996). This includes the provision of residential space, raising the

possibility that the future of Europe and North America could resemble the rapid and varieddevelopments of Asia. It is worth examining the situations in Asia and Oceania, as well as inthe Middle East, before examining Europe and the Americas more specically.

Currently, one cannot imagine the residential tall building without referring to Hong Kong.Until the 1980s, the buildings there were most impressive for their size and their congurationinto clusters, but recent projects, including the 207-metre-high Summit and designs for newtowers in Kowloon, have become architecturally more varied and remarkable. Other cities in

China have embraced high-rise living as well, Shanghai setting an example with a 1.6 million-square-metre COSCO Brilliant City residential project. Beijing and Singapore have continuedtheir residential expansion vertically with a steady number of new and proposed towers.However, the image of 30 or more similar 50-storey clustered towers remains representativeof the region and characterises the future growth of its neighbouring cities (Binder 2002).

Elsewhere in Asia, the growing economic power of countries and cities has led to theintroduction of both stand-alone residential towers and urban designs that incorporate anumber of skyscrapers. Manila has the 52-storey Pacic Plaza Towers as well as the RockwellCenter with its 39- and 46-storey Rizal Towers. Japan has the 55-storey Elsa Tower 55 inKawaguchi City as well as the Atago Green Hills development with its 157-metre-high ForestTower. Seoul has the 69-storey Tower Palace III as well as the 66-storey Tower Palace I in theTower Palace project. The list of such projects covers nearly all major Asian cities, including

Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta (Binder 2002).In Australia, residential high-rises such as the Horizon have been built in Sydney, whileMelbourne is the home of the 36-storey Republic Tower and the tallest residential

building in the world, the 297-metre-high Eureka Tower. Here, high-rise living has alreadybeen established, whereas in the Middle East it is just emerging. Cities with no historyof skyscrapers, such as Dubai and Riyadh, are quickly embracing residential towers,including the 300-metre-high Kingdom Centre (Binder 2002). Worth noting here is that theunprecedented growth of Asian skyscrapers very much reects the similar vertical expansionof Chicago a century ago. Drivers such as land economy and population density are alsoapparent in Asia, and to a certain extent in the Middle East as well, but this time at greaterspeed and size. The continent now faces a similar dilemma that the two American cities faced,whether to design by visual reference to the past or to seek new forms through technology.

In contrast to most of the East, in Europe and the Americas residential towers are constructedon an individual basis rather than as part of urban clusters. Europe, in particular, has seenthe revival of the classic Modernist residential high-rise, a 25- to 35- storey tower, but thishas also been complemented by an increased interest in mixed-use and super-tall residentialtowers. The Netherlands began the urban living trend on the continent in the early 1990s,

particularly in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, partly because of the destruction during World WarII and partly because of the emergence of secondary cities. Rotterdam has taken the lead inresidential skyscraper construction and some of its notable towers include the 102-metre-highSchielandtoren and De Hoge Heren and the (as yet) projected De Rotterdam (Binder 2002).

Spain has also joined the revival, with projects throughout the country. In Barcelona,Diagonal Mar, a mixed-use development, includes two 22-storey residential towers andanother eight such towers are to be added. In Benidorm, the 41-storey Neguri Gane joinsthe existing concrete tower blocks. Sweden, particularly Malm, has shown interest in

buildings of a greater height, such as the 54-storey residential Turning Torso and the proposed


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85-storey mixed-use Scandinavian Tower. Moscow also has a number of residential high-risescompleted and under construction, most of them resembling the wedding cake decoration ofthe Gothic seven sisters of Stalin period (Binder 2002). This citys rate of population growthis second only to London in Europe, and around three-quarters of these buildings are meantfor residential purposes (Emporis 2005). Furthermore, it has constantly proposed some ofthe continents tallest towers (Strauss 2004). Europe, like Asia, also has a debate in terms of

reference, with some cities, like Malm, preferring a more theoretical approach while others,like Moscow, favour a more visual one.

The United Kingdom, however, has acted as a leader in the experimental, theoretical approachto skyscraper design as well as a mirror to the current revival of the European residentialtall building. The Lumiere Tower in Leeds, the Beetham Tower in Manchester, and the NewStreet Station Towers in Birmingham are just some of the dozensof proposals currently under consideration across the country,and most cities here have a residential high-rise planning policyto facilitate their approval. London is facing a shortage ofhousing and prominent architects such as Foster, Rogers, Pianoand Grimshaw have proposed towers to remedy the problem.Already, two-thirds of towers built in London are for residential

purposes, and unlike the citys ofce towers, which often standempty, remain in demand. This has also led to the refurbishmentof neglected towers originally intended for social housing andconsideration of the social mix of all new buildings (Emporis2005). Londons towers, along with those of New York, will beexamined in greater depth later

In the southern half of the Americas, a series of residentialskyscrapers has been proposed in Panama City and Buenos Aires,while in the northernmost part, in Canada, even greater attentionhas been given to the type. Vancouver and Toronto are its mostactive cities, with the latters residential towers accounting for upto 80% of all skyscrapers constructed (Emporis 2005). Vancouver

has an unusually Eastern approach to high-rise cluster design,with projects such as the Quayside Marina Neighborhood, thePalisades and the Residences on Georgia.

Nonetheless, Chicago and New York continue to dominate residential skyscraper design in theAmericas, despite the surge in new residential towers in cities such as Miami (Binder 2002).Both cities share architects specialising in tall buildings, including DeStefano and Partners,Lucien Lagrange Architects, Solomon Cordwell Buenz & Associates and Skidmore, Owings& Merrill in Chicago, and Costas Kondylis & Partners, Schuman Lichtenstein Claman EfronArchitects and Frank Williams & Associates in New York. The Trump Tower, now nearingcompletion in Chicago, is to be that citys second-tallest building, highlighting the boom inresidential skyscraper construction that has characterised the last decade. Also proposed isChicagos tallest, and Americas second tallest, residential building, 340 on the Park (Figure

1). This tower is designed to be the rst residential high-rise in the city to meet the U.S. GreenBuilding Councils LEED certication standards, through the use of winter gardens, energy-efcient heating and cooling systems, rainwater collection systems and other sustainableapproaches (340 on the Park, 2007). This nal example of current construction also reects thegrowing concern among architects regarding the environmental impact of skyscrapers, althoughvery few completed towers demonstrate this attitude.

arc Ridi tr

Alongside the variation in conditions and approaches according to country, there is a universaldiversity of approaches to skyscraper design worldwide. In his survey of contemporaryskyscrapers, Eric Hweler (Hweler 2003) acknowledges the rapid changes in the design ofskyscraper within the last two decades:

In the last twenty years, architectural design trends have come full circle: architects embraced

postmodernisms historical referentiality as a rejection of modernisms stark abstractions, only then

Figure 1: 340 on the Park

(340 on the Park)


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to reject postmodernisms whimsical historical appropriations and embrace minimalisms rened

lines, and once again to a recuperation of the structural expression of the building technology.

(Hweler 2003, 10)

He then categorises the recent, divergent design strategies into seven types (Figure 2 and Diagram3), which are applicable to residential as well as commercial skyscrapers. These types of strategyare symbolic, rather than climatic, approaches to skyscraper design. They are not presentedas a set of exclusive classes, but are nonetheless helpful in illustrating the ways in whichcontemporary designers approach the creation of a skyscrapers form. Furthermore, they form theonly recent, accessible system to categorise skyscrapers on their design approach, rather than theirstructural organisation, and therefore relate best to the purpose of this paper. The characteristicsand shortcomings of these seven strategies as given by Hweler are as follows.

The rst strategy - global/local - responds to the universality of the skyscraper withsymbolism derived from the site and culture. It is a regionalist, nostalgic approach, and isexemplied by the Petronas Towers of Kuala Lumpur. From plan to detail, the towers areimplanted with local and Islamic imagery. However, in focusing on the outward image, theyoffer little insight into the role of the skyscraper in either a local and global context.

The high-tech approach expresses materials and systems and embraces the parts over

the whole. It portrays an aesthetics of assembly as is seen in Hongkong Shanghai BankHeadquarters, but this building also demonstrates one of its downfalls, the oversimplicationin imagery of the actual assembly.

The third strategy - monolithic - emphasises the scalelessness of the skyscraper and offers asculptural simplicity in order to stand out from their context. The London Bridge Tower is onesuch project, due to its dramatic pyramidal shape. The main failure with this type is that in a

way it continues the monotonous internationalist style, criticised for its role in the destructionof urban fabric.

The kinetic approach relies on the process of movement and transformation, on freezeframe images of moments of rotating, shearing, slipping and torquing. The Turning Torso ofMalm demonstrates the complexity of such structures, but the origins of the motion and its

ties to the locality are vague.

Figure 2: Hwelers categories


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The fth - or scenographic - strategy is dramatic in its attempt to take part in the urbantheatre. Such skyscrapers are quickly recognised by their spires, crowns, mask facades, andunexpected forms. An example can be seen in the extravagant imagery of Burj Al Arab in Dubai.

The mediatic strategy relates to the city less as it relies on the technology of animatedscreens and their hyper-presence creates an architecture of landmarks and built spectacle.The Tour Sans Fins, with its variety of transparencies and lights, emphasises this approach,

but, as is the case with kinetic towers, the source and purpose of the image can be puzzling.

Adherents of Hwelers last strategy - the ecological tower - do not differ from the rest interms of appearance as much as in their design principles. Their attempts to conserve and

produce energy, minimise negative impacts on surroundings and develop a range of recyclingstrategies give rise to an assortment of building forms, which is why the London BridgeTower can also belong to this category while remaining Monolithic. The SEG ApartmentTower (Vienna, 2000) demonstrates this approach, with its angular geometry acting as aclimate faade that provides atrium spaces and thermal buffers. When the effects of climatechange and occupant health, as well as issues with local/global context, are taken intoaccount, this is the only strategy that attempts to resolve these challenges in a creative andeffective manner.

While Hweler acknowledges that some buildings may belong to more than one category,he nonetheless maintains a linear, unconnected structure. However, a more thorough andconnected view is obtained by combining his categories with those of Goldbergers two-

branch structure (Diagram 4). The high-tech strategy clearly falls under the theoreticalapproach because of its evident technological reference. The kinetic strategy also relies


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on the symbolism of technology in order to demonstrate the highly complex structureof its buildings. The mediatic approach also displays the screen technology that makesits buildings stand out, and therefore again belongs to the theoretical approach. On theother hand, the other strategies are less dependent on technology and more reliant on theirrelationship with the local context for their character. The global/local strategy is the classicexample of a visual approach, whereas the monolithic strategy, like the postmodern style,

relies on the city in order to oppose its order. The scenographic strategy also aims to have arelationship with its locality, and so also belongs to the visual approach.

All that remains is the ecological approach, which can be either theoretical, as in the case ofNew York, or visual, as in London.

What follows is a review of current buildings, constructed or proposed, in those two citieswhich belong to this strategy. The sources it draws on are mostly primary, and usually written

by the designers and promoters of the buildings. It follows that the claims made for theecological performance of the buildings reviewed have not been independently veried, anddo no more than illustrate intention.

The ecological approach has a variety of benets, including those related to health, economyand environment. It can be claimed, for example, that this is the only approach to alleviate

the effects of rapid urbanisation and the climate change that follows. An examination ofthese issues is outside the scope of this essay. What will be examined here, however, is thediversity of this approach and its inclusion of Hwelers other categories.

n yrk Ci

New York City, the USAs business capital, is also that countrys capital for commercialtowers. According to data from Emporis (Emporis 2005), there are over 5,500 constructedskyscrapers in the city, about two hundred of them over 150 metres high. Over 3,500residential towers exist, nearly forty over 150 metres high. It leads the nation in skyscrapersustainability, with new commercial landmarks such as the Conde Nast Building, HearstMagazine Tower, Reuters Building, New York Times Tower, and Bank of America Tower allincorporating green criteria. Two residential sustainable towers stand out as well, the Solaire

and the Helena.

The ambitions of the Solaire (Figure 3) can be understood from its website, which quotes itsarchitect, Cesar Pelli, as calling it Americas rst environmentally friendly residential high-rise. The website makes the following claims:

The building employs both active and passive designmethods. In terms of active methods, daylight ismaximised through the use of high ceilings andlarge windows, which are generally oor-to-ceilingheight. The lobby has large windows as well, facingthe surrounding park area. The most distinctive

passive design feature of the building is its use of

vegetation and stormwater. About 75% of the openroof area, and 57% of the site area, is vegetatedby plants chosen for their visual interest, droughttolerance, wind resistance, and adaptability toshallow soil. These shrubs, perennials and bamboosutilise a water retention layer underneath them,which captures nearly 70% of rainwater for theiruse. The water that is not needed then ows down tothe stormwater retention system, designed to retain10,000 gallons, located in a tank in the basement. Asediment basin and treatment system is within thistank, and water retained there is reused for irrigationof the roof and park. The principle behind this roofstructure is the reduction of the urban heat islandeffect (The Solaire homepage 2007).

Figure 3: The Solaire (The Solaire)


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In terms of active methods, it has a centralised HVACsystem fuelled by natural gas, free of ozone-depletingrefrigerants and chosen for its energy efciency. A gas-red chiller is used to reduce the electric load, especiallyduring peak demand periods when the New York City

power grid cannot meet requirements and users generally

rely on supplemental power provided by highly pollutinggenerators. Photovoltaic panels are placed on the towerswest faade and clipped to the roof. Consisting of 3,400square feet, they exploit the intensity and position of thesun in the summer months. Overall, they are expectedto generate 5% of the buildings energy at peak loading

performance and estimated to have a payback period ofabout four years (The Solaire homepage 2007).

Additionally, more than two-thirds of the buildingmaterials were manufactured within a 500-mile radius ofthe building and 50% of these materials were to containraw resources from the local area. Furthermore, 19% of

materials used contain recycled matter and contain noformaldehyde and low, or no, VOCs. The photovoltaiccells were prepared from 100% recycled material and low-emission, low-VOC materials were specied for indoorobjects and nishes. Less than 20% of residential units are

provided with basement parking spaces, and the buildingowners have contracted with ZipCar to offer on-demand access to hybrid-technology vehicles.Provision has been made for electric vehicle charging and storage has been made available for

bicycles (The Solaire homepage 2007).

All in all, according to Zukowski (Zukowski 2000), the Solaire consumes 35% less energy,reduces peak demand for electricity by 65% and requires 50% less potable water thanexpected of its type. The Solaire, with all its environmental technology, nonetheless belongs

in the global/local category. It was not designed to stand out from its surroundings, as itsfaade is rather conventional and its technology is hidden. This visual building refers to thecity and is a typical example of New Yorks reference to itself.

The Helena (Figure 4), designed by Fox and Fowle Architects, and completed in 2005, is themost recent addition to the citys growing number of residential towers. The ambitions of thisdesign can also be ascertained from its website.

The 122-metre-high, 37-storey tower represents itself as environmentally green andemphasises ve approaches that make it so. The rst is reduced energy use through solar

panels, Energy Star-rated appliances, high-performance windows, occupancy sensors, etc. Thesite stresses that 50% of its purchased energy is generated by wind power and that waste heat

provides all the buildings hot water needs. The second is its reduced pollution objective,

resulting from the reduction of material transportation distances, containment of pollutants, useof co-generation micro turbines, and promotion of alternative forms of transportation. Reducedwater use includes rooftop vegetation and recycled water use for cooling towers and reducedwaste is the effect of recycling of materials, specication of renewable material sources andrecycling of construction debris. The nal approach is healthier living, which is achieved bythe reduction of pollutants and increase of ventilation(The Helena homepage 2007).

This building, like the Solaire, is visual in that it does not display its technology or attempt topresent a green aesthetic, but in this case its large size and dened volumes place it in themonolithic category.

ld

London, historically dened by a spread of low-rise buildings interspersed with landmarks,nonetheless has had a recent boom in skyscraper construction. According to data fromEmporis (Emporis 2005), it has around 1,700 tall buildings, 33 of them over 150 metres

Fig 4: The Helena (The Helena)


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high. About 850 residential towers exist, but none of them reaching 150 metres. Londonhas had success with sustainable towers in general, most notably with the completion of 30St. Mary Axe. Other ofce buildings that employ the green approach include the proposedCitygate Ecotower and the approved Leadenhall Building and Columbus Tower. Mixed-usetowers have also gained attractiveness, and the approved London Bridge Tower and proposedSkyZED towers demonstrate that sustainability has its role there as well.

London has yet to see a completed sustainable residential tower, but the moment isapproaching as the Vauxhall Tower (Figure 5) has gained approval. BroadwayMalyans building would be the tallest residential tower in the UnitedKingdom and one of the tallest in Europe, with 48 residential oors. Interms of sustainability, the achievements would be just as unprecedented. Itsmost prominent element will be an 11.4-metre-high wind turbine that wouldgenerate enough electricity to power the towers normal lighting (Emporis2005). When combined with the low-e triple glazing and ventilated blinds,it will require only 30% of the gas and electricity of a conventional building(Smith 2001)and CO2 emissions will be between a half and two-thirds of theusual towers. At its base, it will draw water from the London Aquifer anduse heat pump technology to remove warmth from the water in order to heat

the apartments in the winter (Emporis 2005). Unlike all but St. Mary Axe,sustainability plays an important role in the buildings original form, bringingit closer to the bioclimatic ideal. Although it does display a monolith form,the emphasis here is on the wind turbine at the crown, a technological focusthat places it in the theoretical group.

Another tower with a focus on wind turbine technology is the visionarySkyhouse (Figure 6). Designed by Marks Bareld Architects, it is intendedas a prototype residential bioclimatic tower for no specic site. Even thoughthe shape does not therefore result from the microclimate, its form evolvesfrom its energy-saving aim. Its three oval components meet at an open centrethat incorporates helical wind turbines to generate power (Pearman 2004).Its glass surfaces include photovoltaic cells to add to the power supply

(Pearman 2004), and the renewable energy would be provided to communalareas such as the heated swimming pool (Sustaining: Tower Blocks 2007).Furthermore, recycling systems, high insulation and a low heat demand add

to its environmental credentials.

However, unlike most new residential towers of London, a quarterof its apartments would be reserved for key workers in the city,such as nurses and teachers (Finch 2000). The apartments and

penthouses on the higher levels would be set aside for residentswho can afford them, but the very tops of the buildings would beturned into gardens or other open places for all to share. Alongsidethe rooftops, because of its compact three-hundred-square-metresize, the tower would leave 65% of a hectare urban plot as green

space (Pearman 2004). Research was undertaken into what peoplewanted in high-rise residences: space, light, security, concierge,health club, access to transport links, laundry, shops, moderndesign and excellent views. Parking was included as well, whichgoes against the trend of building at public transport intersections(Marks Bareld 2005). Other facilities provided include crchesand libraries at ground and top levels (Pearman 2004).It ismeant to appeal mostly to the younger market, but the elderly areexpected to benet from its design and urban location as well.

All in all, this project is unique in linking the bioclimaticapproach with social inclusiveness, which is something that greencampaigners stress but which skyscraper designers and investorshave been evading. Nonetheless what is most apparent in its formis its focus on the generation of wind power - the technology - so Figure 6: Skyhouse (Skyhouse)

Figure 5:

Vauxhall

Tower (Emporis,2005)


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this tower belongs to the theoretical category.

The nal two projects that will be considered are proposals by Ken Yeang that failed tomaterialise. These towers are nonetheless included because of their comprehensive ecologicalapproach. The rst project proposed by Yeang in London, Bishopsgate Towers (Figure 7),consists of two residential 65-storey skyscrapers and a 50-storey ofce and hotel with aconvention centre. The residential towers are made up of apartments forming a fan shapeon the northern and southern sides, while an internal atrium, surrounded by a continuouslandscaped ramp, spirals through the building. The various residences are meant for bothsocial/subsidised (35%) and market-rate (65%) accommodation, and each apartment is

provided with a planted front and back garden. A vertical and horizontal zoning diagramacts as a vertical land use pattern, determining the location of mixed-use facilities, includingcommunal gardens (Richards 2001, 223).

Yeangs ecological method is fully employed here,most notably his passive low energy responses.The sunpath of the site and the conditions of thesummer and winter windrose determine the overallform of the building. Solar gain is maximised in

winter and mid-seasons and solar shading is takenadvantage of in summer months. Lift cores areplaced on the northeast and west facades to providea buffer of solar protection in the summer. Duringthe winter months, the low-angle sun penetrates theatrium and southeast-orientated residences receivemaximum solar gain. The faade utilises a multi-layered external wall to control solar radiation intothe individual gardens and apartments. A mesh-screen windbreaker element reduces the inow of strong winds and adjustable, insulatedshutter doors conserve the heat at night. Internal shutters and large double-glazed windowsassist the design, as do landscaping and planting, which act as a wind buffer and summer-time protection against solar radiation. The ventilation strategy utilises these elements to

encourage natural ventilation in the summer and mid-season months and to minimise energylosses during the winter by changing to a mechanically assisted ventilation system. South-facing photovoltaic panels act also as a rain-screen. Rainwater catchment scallops and a roof-catchment pan are introduced and small wind turbines are considered (Richards 2001).

All in all, the Bishopsgate Towers are unique in thatorientation, not views or form, are the starting points for thedesign. When combined with a comprehensive list of greenfeatures and mix of uses, they present the most socially andecologically sustainable proposal for London thus far.

Yeangs second London proposal consists of three towers,one thirty storeys tall and the others twelve, that contribute

to a 180-acre regeneration project for Elephant andCastle (Figure 8).In most ways, they closely resemble theBishopsgate Towers in conguration, orientation, faadedesign and landscaping. Here as well the lifts and stairs aremore compact, sky pods have been added, and a majorinternal garden has been incorporated. The main differenceis the lack of a spiralling ramp, which is replaced by regularoor intervals (Richards 2001). These towers attempted tocreate a zero CO2 emissions energy supply and use materialsthat have low embodied energy and come from sustainableresources (Towers in Europe 2007).The aim of both projectsis to resolve three major issues: Social Sustainability,Environmental Sustainability, and a Passive Low EnergyResponse (Richards 2001).

Both the Bishopsgate Towers and Elephant and Castle

Figure 7: Bishopsgate Towers (Richards,2001)

Figure 8: Elephant and Castle Eco-

Towers (Richards,2001)


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Eco-Towers are buildingswhose main aim is to besustainable. Their imageryreects Yeangs search fora green aesthetic, whichrelates to the way in which

the building functions.As such, Hweler sayswith reference to Yeangstowers, they communicatetheir functions through anexpressive architecturallanguage, which dramatisesthe buildings internalworking (Hweler 2003,182). When compared withhis description of a high-tech tower as one that

communicates to the publicthat the building is thelogical outcome of a rationalsystem of construction(Hweler 2003, 34), Yeangsresidential high-rises clearly

belong to that category.

ConClUsIons

As seen in the preceding casestudies, varying approaches

within cities and between continents reect the infancy and inclusiveness of the ecologicalapproach to residential towers. When the expected climate change is taken into consideration,the environmentally sustainable approach is likely to be a prerequisite in the design of future

buildings. Therefore, as had been the case in the early skyscrapers of Chicago and New York,the environment will have to become a priority rather than a style. Due to its inclusivenessand importance, the ecological approach today will have to move up the hierarchy to becomean obligatory criterion for all of Hwelers other design strategies, which can then be dividedinto Goldbergers theoretical and visual groups (Diagram 5). In this manner, the link betweenearly skyscrapers, all in a way sustainable, and the current, non-sustainable styles can bedeveloped.

RefeRenCes

340 on the Park. Home page. http://www.340ontheparkchicago.com. January 2007.

Ali, Mir M. chairman, and Paul J. Armstrong, ed.Architecture of Tall Buildings. Council onTall Buildings and Urban Habitat Committee 30 (Architecture). New York: McGraw-Hill,1995.

Binder, Georges ed. Sky High Living: contemporary high-rise apartment buildings and mixed-use buildings. Mulgrave, Vic.: Images, 2002.

Emporis. May 2005.http://www.emporis.com.

Finch, Paul. Renzo Piano goes sky high with Europes tallest building. The ArchitectsJournal. Vol. 212, No. 3 (20 July 2000): 11.


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Goldberger, Paul. The Skyscraper. London: Allan Lane, 1981.

Hweler, Eric.Skyscraper: designsoftherecentpastand forthenear future. London:

Thames & Hudson, 2003.

Pearman, Hugh. Contemporary World Architecture. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 1998.

Pearman, Hugh. The only way is up. The Sunday Times Magazine, May 2, 2004.

Richards, Ivor. T.R. Hamzah & Yeang: ecology of the sky.Mulgrave, Victoria: Images, 2001.

Marks Bareld Architects. Skyhouse. http://www.marksbareld.com/project.php?projectid=8.May 2005.

Smith, Jonathan. News: 49-storey ecotower proposed for London. 21 December 2001.Emporis. May 2005.

Strauss, Julius. Moscows heritage is swept away as mayor reaches for the sky. Telegraph.19 October 2004.

Sustaining: Tower Blocks. http://www.sustainingtowers.org/SOA-present.htm. January 2007.

The Helena homepage. http://www.thehelena.com/ January 2007.

The Solaire homepage. www.thesolaire.com. January 2007.

Rogers, Richard George, Great Britain UrbanTask Force. Towards an Urban Renaissance. London: Taylor & Francis, 1999.

Towers in Europe. Sustainable Towers. http://www.battlemccarthy.com/Sustainable%20Towers%20Website/sustainable_towers_in_Europe.htm. January 2007.

Yeang, Ken. The Skyscraper Bioclimatically Considered: a design primer. London: AcademyEditions, 1996.

Zukowski, John and Martha Thorne, ed. Skyscrapers: The New Millennium. Munich; London:Prestel, 2000.


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MoDeRn MethoDs of ConstRUCtIon (MMC) In the UK hoUsIng

InDUstRy

Arman Hashemi


Sponsored by Ministry of Science, Research and Technology of Iran(Jondishapour University)

abstRaCt

This paper aims to study the feasibility of applying Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the UK housing

industry in order to overcome the current shortcomings and scarcity in UK housing supply. In this paper the

current housing situation and the common modern methods of construction in the UK are studied and the

advantages and disadvantages of such building methods are briey discussed.

MethoDology

The papers methodology is a qualitative and quantitative data analysis in which recentrelevant literature published by the UK government and research bodies, and also datacollected from various conferences and universities, are studied. The results of this study will

be discussed in order to answer the questions posed in it.

IntRoDUCtIon

Applying Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) to affordable housing has beenconsidered by the UK government during the twentieth century for various reasons, such ashigh demand, skilled labour shortage, high building cost, etc (Parliamentary Ofce of Scienceand Technology 2003, 1). It seems that in the twenty-rst century almost the same reasonshave led the government to encourage developers and architects to apply MMC in housing.

Various factors are involved in considering MMC as a potential solution to the UK housingscarcity, amongst which high cost, as a historical challenge, can be mentioned. Otherconcerns, such as environmental and planning issues, have now been added to the twentiethcenturys concerns.

This paper intends to explain briey the current situation of the UK construction industry andto answer two key questions as follows:

What is MMC?

Can MMC be respected as a potential answer to the current UK housing shortage?

To answer the rst question, the denition of MMC and some common MMC buildingmethods will be explained briey, and to answer the second question the context and someadvantages and disadvantages of MMC will be discussed.

t ckrud MMC

Prefabricated housing came under consideration in the UK due to the high demand resultingfrom the two World Wars and 1960s slum clearance. During the twentieth century about


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a million prefabricated homes were built, which led to a negative public attitude towardsprefabrication, due to the low quality of design (Ashworth et al. 1997, 100-102), materials andbuilding skills (Parliamentary Ofce of Science and Technology 2003, 1).

The Ronan Point gas explosion in 1968 (Figure 1), when a tower block completely collapsedbecause of an explosion in one oor, was when the use of prefabrication in the UK wasquestioned seriously (Burnett 1978, 302).

Figure 1: Ronan Point Gas Explosion

Source: http://apps.newham.gov.uk/History_canningtown/images/pic47.jpg 06 Jan 2007

Currently the majority of UK houses are built by traditional methods (brick and block);however, MMC has been applied more during the last few years, due to high demand andskills shortage (Parliamentary Ofce of Science and Technology 2003, 1).

It seems that history is repeating itself as the drivers behind applying MMC are still the same:need for faster construction, shortage of skilled labour, high demand, high building costs andthe need to control them. However, it now seems more difcult for the UK government to

encourage the public and developers to use MMC as a result of the memory of unsuccessfulattempts previously. Moreover, the higher costs of MMC compared with traditional methodsremains a challenge facing developers and architects. Such issues will be discussed in thefollowing sections.

Dmd cd u

New housing supply has sunk to its lowest rate since 1945. Currently housing supply in theUK is 175,000 per year. It is estimated that 3 million new houses will be needed by the year2016, which means 230,000 houses per year. This is mainly due to changing lifestyles as more

people live on their own. There are currently about 30 house building factories in the UK,

which can produce 30,000 MMC houses per year. This stands for 17% of the current need, butproduction can be increased by applying some modications (Parliamentary Ofce of Scienceand Technology 2003, 1-2).


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Housing demand will increase to 3.8 million by the year 2021 (Bgenholm et al. 2001, 2).The governments housing bureau is encouraging use of MMC by insisting that 25% of its

budget for social housing (one million pounds over the next 25 years) (Bgenholm et al.2001, 2) must be in developments which apply some kind of MMC (Burwood et al., 2005; 15;Parliamentary Ofce of Science and Technology 2003, 1: National Audit Ofce 2005, 3).

Figure 2 shows UK offsite output in year 2005. Currently OSC (Off Site Construction)accounts for 2-3 billion out of 106 billion of the construction industry as a whole. It isaimed to increase this gure by 100% by 2010, with a further tenfold increase by 2020, whichmeans 40-60 billion by 2020 (Ogden R. 2006, 16-18).

Figure 2 : UK Offsite Output 2005

Source: Goss M., Spotlight on off-site, Spotlight on Off-site Conference., Cardiff, 20 September 2006

Denition of MMCMMC has been described by various names, such as pre-fabrication, off-site productionand off-site manufacturing (OSM). But while all OSM is MMC, not all MMC is OSM(Burwood et al. 2005, 99).

CABE (The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment) has explained MMCas really meaning enhancement of quality, reduction of on-site time, improvement of on-sitesafety and addressing the skilled labour shortage (CABE 2004, 5).

The Barker 33 Cross-Industry Group report, in 2005, describes MMC as both improvedproduct and process: Modern methods of construction are about better products andprocesses. They aim to improve business efciency, quality, customer satisfaction,environmental performance, sustainability and the predictability of delivery timescales.

Modern methods of construction are, therefore, more broadly based than a particular focuson product. They engage people and process to seek improvement in the delivery andperformance of construction. (Barker 33 Cross-Industry Group 2005, 6). Therefore, MMCmust be seen not as an end in itself, but as a means to achieving:

Greater business efciency

Enhanced design and quality

Improved customer satisfaction

Enhanced building performance

Increased housing supply meeting the aspirations of the market as a whole (open market,social and affordable)

Enhanced environmental performance with reduced impact (Barker 33 Cross-IndustryGroup 2006, 6)


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It is important to bear in mind that MMC cannot be a replacement for traditional methodsof construction and it should be only seen as a complementary source of construction besideconventional methods. In a report of BURA (British Urban Regeneration Association),MMC has also been explained as a process, not only a method of construction. It remainsthe case that MMC should be seen as an evolution not revolution in the construction industry(Burwood et al. 2005, 28).

MMC uidi md

MMC can be divided into ve main building methods (CABE 2004, 22; Ross 2005, 5;National Audit Ofce 2005; Burwood et al. 2005, 10; Goodier et al. 2005; Ely 2004, 23):

Volumetric system

Hybrid system (semi volumetric)

Panel system (open & closed)

Sub-assemblies and components

Site based methods

1. Vumric m:

This system is also known as Modular construction (Burwood et al. 2005, 10). In avolumetric system, three-dimensional units are completed in a factory and then aretransported to site for assembly (Ross 2005, 6; National Audit Ofce 2005, 3). In this systemabout 85-90% of the process is completed in the factory (Burwood et al. 2005, 10).

Figure 3 : Volumetric Building Method

Source: http://www.diesis.it/ufcistampa/img/1331-4SOLTAG-12-H.jpg& http://www.diesis.it/ufcistampa/

img/1331-4SOLTAG-12-H.jpg 06 Jan 2007

2. p m:

Panel systems include walls, oors and roofs, which are made from at, pre-engineered panelsand are assembled on site. Panel systems can be divided into two main categories, of Openand Closed systems. In open systems structural components are taken to site where the rest of

work is done on site and in closed system which is more complex and different componentssuch as windows, doors, internal nishes, external cladding, insulation etc can be tted infactory (Burwood et al. 2005, 10; Ely 2005; National Audit Ofce 2005, 3; Ross 2005, 9).


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Figure 4: Panel system

Source: Hague, N., Jabsip, Spotlight on Off-site Conference, Cardiff, 20 September 2006

3. hrid m:

This system is also known as the semi-volumetric system. In this system panelised andvolumetric systems are combined, with the volumetric system frequently being used inkitchens and bathrooms and other highly serviced places. The volumetric systems for kitchens

and bathrooms are also known as pods (Burwood et al. 2005, 10; Ely 2005; National AuditOfce 2005, 3; Ross 2005, 17).

Figure 5: Pods

Source: http://mocoloco.com/archives/002730.php 06 Dec 2006

Figure 6: Sub-assemblies and components

Source: http://celcon.co.uk/ Celcon Flooring System 06 Dec 2006


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4. su-mi d cm:

Sub-assemblies and components mainly include oor or roof cassettes and pre-castfoundations which are made in factory (Burwood et al. 2005, 10; National Audit Ofce 2005,3; Ross 2005, 17).

5. si d md:

As is obvious from the name, these methods are site based. These methods apply traditionalbuilding methods and components in an innovative way. Examples of such methods are:Tunnel-form (cast in-situ concrete where heated steel modules are applied), and thin jointmasonry (Burwood et al. 2005, 10; Ely 2005; Ross 2005, 22).

Figure 7: Tunnel-form systemSource: IBS Digest, a quarterly promotional publication on industrial building system, Jan-Mar 2005, pp. 15-16

em

In this section some recent examples of UK buildings and competitions, which have appliedMMC in their projects, are described.

1. t DfM cmii

The UK government has been trying to encourage architects and developers to apply MMCin their projects through participation in different competitions and the implementation of

best practice since the mid-20th century, and especially during post-World War reconstruction

(Vale 1995, 154-160).Design for Manufacture (DFM) is the latest such competition which was announced in 2005to prove the feasibility of building a house to a budget of 60,000. There are some lessonslearnt from the competition which relate to the aim of this paper which are as follows: Qualitycan be improvemed without increasing the costs, higher density can be acheived with housesnot just ats, houses can be modied to suit different lifestyles and requirements in long-term, greater value for money is achievable by reducing the cost without affecting the sizeand quality, MMC does not mean only one house type and MMC is sustainable (EnglishPartnerships 2006, 6-7).

2. gric Miium Vi

Greenwich Millennium Village, situated in the southeast London, is another example ofapplying MMC. Two key issues in this 250 million project are sustainability and innovation.


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The project started in 1999 and will provide 1,377 homes, 1,079 apartments and 298 houses(www.architectureweek.com, 2006). In this project waste has been reduced by 56% andenergy will be saved by 65% over its life time; however, this is not only because of applyingMMC, as waste has mainly been reduced by modifying on-site operations and energy savinghas mainly been achieved by applying an efcient local combined heat and power (CHP)generator (Parliamentary Ofce of Science and Technology 2003, 4).

Figure 8 : 60K House

Source: English partnerships, Department for Communities and local government, 2006, LESSONS LEARNT,

Design for Manufacture (the challenge to build a quality home for 60K), p. 28 & http://moblog.co.uk/blogs/75/moblog_1d1579a5a1d0b.jpg 06 Dec 2006

Figure 9: some views of Greenwich Millennium Village

Source: The Author

MMC dv & rrir

Almost all sources reviewed assert more or less similar advantages and barriers for MMC

(Bgenholm et al. 2001; Burwood et al 2005; FMB 2004; Goss 2006; Harris 2006; NationalAudit Ofce 2005; Pan et al. 2006; Parliamentary Ofce of Science and Technology 2003.).

Advantages claimed for MMC are as follows:

Improved speed

Improv

Documents

Pgr Proceedings (1)