Structural Adaptation and Reuse of Building
1. Introduction
Structural adaptation is performed for a building due to several reasons such as ease of maintenance, adaptation, reconstruction, preservation and restoration. An existing building will be considered in this report and proposals will be given about refurbishment options. Benefits of using two approaches will be discussed methodologically in order to give a comprehensive view about the feasibility of the project. Viability of the project will also be discussed along with necessary calculations. Scope of further appraisal in the structure will be added in this report for providing suitable recommendation to the imaginary client considered in the report.
2. Structural Description of the existing building
The building considered for this project is an office building in the town of Sheffield, UK. It has an area of 1500 sq. ft and is presently used for conducting business of a company. According to Load and Resistance Factor Design, load combination of foundation wall has been calculated. It has been found that the complete capacity of the space cannot be used due to some limitations in structural design. Dead loads, live loads and soil lateral loads are considered and it has been found that changes in structures should be adopted to ensure its higher functionality (Beckmann, 2004).
3. Proposal 1
3.1 Discussion of the proposed reasons and extent of refurbishment
Structural adaptation can be of many types and particular types of adaptation are used to serve different purposes in construction projects. For instance, refurbishment methods are applied in this building in order to makeover the structure to ensure “Change in Function”. Change in function is necessary in order to improve the efficiency of the building. Structural adaptation will be used to increase the utility of the office space, considering an option of vertical expansion for increasing floor area (Douglas, 2006).
Structural implications of adding vertical loads to the building will be a significant area to consider for this building. Structural adaptations are proposed to add more space which needs to be supported by a combination of existing and new columns. This becomes one of the major reasons to implement structural changes in the building. It will also help in improving the evacuation system of employees if any fire breaks out in the office area. According to Gold and Martin (1999), lateral seismic load calculations will be easier due to such structural changes done to the existing structure of the building to improve the structural viability.
3.2 Description of considered adaptation option
The structural adaptation option considered for this building is refurbishment to ensure “Change in Function”. This adaptation technique will first identify areas of low functionality, that is, identification of such structural areas that can be used in more efficient ways to increase functionality (Dong and Frangopol, 2017). Identification of such areas will help to figure out methods on improving the efficiency of the space by being able to accommodate more employees or machineries. Adaptation will be carried out under three main categories – Small Scale, Medium Scale and Large Scale Adaptation.
In small scale adaptation, upgradation of the building will be done such as replacement of doors and windows and changing of floorings, re-roofings and others. Such changes will increase the openings and opportunities to use the existing structure in a better way. However, in medium scale adaptation, major changes will be made to the structure for improving its functionality. For instance, better thermal insulation systems may be installed in order to increase the efficiency of the office space. Roofing facilities may be updated to create more openings in the existing and modified structures. Large scale adaptation will also be conducted if necessary for changing the utility of the existing building (Urban and Goldyn, 2020). It will consist of extensive remodelling of structures and adding new building extensions to the existing structures.
4. Proposal 2
4.1 Discussion of the proposed reasons and extent of refurbishment
The proposed structural adaptation used here is refurbishment based on the “Change in Capacity” of a structure. It will involve making necessary changes to the structure that are compliant with the standard code and regulations laid down for buildings. Spatial modifications will be carried out for increasing the stability factor of the building, improving evacuation facilities and thermal efficiency of the building (Hurlimann et al. 2018). Potential low capacity areas will be identified in the office space and spatial modifications will be made in order to utilise the space for maximum accommodation.
Refurbishment will help to provide a makeover to the existing office building and proposed approach focuses mainly to utilise the structures for creating more usable space. It will add spatial elements for better thermal insulation of the whole building, space for elevators and increased cabin space for employees. Cabin and cubicle designs will be reorganised for providing effective accommodation to the staff members, resulting in an increase of overall working space. One prime reason for refurbishment is also that it will increase the life of the products used in the structure, providing greater stability to the building (Hopkinson et al. 2018).
4.2 Description of considered adaptation option
The adaptation methods used in the approach of “Change in Capacity” will be focussing on changing the capacity of the existing building as well as making some essential structural changes to provide additional capacity for an alternative use within the building. Changes to be made to the existing structure will be primarily small and medium scale in nature such as improving the air conditioning system of the office building and others. Medium scale changes will be done in order to increase the utilisation of the full capacity of the office building (Asman et al. 2019).
In order to provide additional capacity, additional structures will be required to be added to the existing one. More rooms will be added and passageways will be created to increase the ease of use. Added space in the existing office area will give the employees a sense of more openness and can be used accordingly. Partitions and redesigning of cubicles will also be created for effective utilisation of spaces in the office building. Such increase in effective utilisation of space will lead to meet the sustainability objective of the organisation by adding features of environmental enhancements in the newly created spaces (Badarnah, 2017).
5. Technical Viability Calculation
Material requirements, labour requirements and marketing requirements have been included in this section to prepare a basic overview of technical viability of the project. Material Requirement includes consideration of difference of gross requirement and available inventory in order to calculate the necessary requirement (Caniato and Gasparella, 2019).
Figure 2: Material Requirement Planning flowchart
(Source: Caniato and Gasparella, 2019)
Labour requirement has been found by dividing regular time production required by production per worker. As per the scope of the project, the number of workers required to complete the project using “Change in Capacity” will be 50.
A Marketing Requirement Document has been produced that will ensure the need of marketing of the structural adaptation and informing the customer about specific needs of adaptation. Functionality of the project has been added to increase the efficiency of the project to meet the customer needs (Lacey et al. 2018).
The location of the proposed building to be structurally adapted is Sheffield. Hence, construction materials will be easily brought from the source to the construction. This facility also increases the economic viability of the project due to low transportation and shipping costs.
6. Scope of further structural appraisal
Two proposals have been given in order to make necessary structural changes to the building considered in the project. However, there remains opportunities for further structural changes to improve the functionality of the building. Initially, the building can use connectors between the building segments in order to facilitate faster movement of employees and products within the organisation. Redesign of roof structures is recommended to install solar panels on the roof to meet the increasing power demand of the office. Structural changes may also be made to give further stability to the building during an earthquake (Beckmann, 2004).
Structural adaptation can be made for easy installation and maintenance of electrical conduit systems. Such facilities will improve the efficiency of the structure, providing less interference of construction works while the office is operational. Further structural changes may also be done in load and stress bearing capabilities of the building that provides greater stability to the existing buildings (Gold and Martin, 1999). It is recommended that the building adapts its structure that is more weather-resistant and the effectiveness of sustainability is increased.
7. Conclusion
Based on the above discussion, it can be concluded that the report presents two proposals for structural adaptation of the considered building. Two approaches have been thoroughly studied and compared in order to get a comprehensive view about effectiveness of each approach. Description shows the steps of proceeding with each approach taken into consideration. Small scale, medium scale and large scale facilities are discussed in order to make the client aware of the operations to be done and costs involved in the project. Recommendations have also been given to the client for further structural changes that may be done in existing structure in future.
References
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