Scenario You are part of a design team for a small building contractor tasked with assessing a residential house construction project, your focus will be
The post Construction Technology first appeared on COMPLIANT PAPERS.
Scenario
You are part of a design team for a small building contractor tasked with assessing a residential
house construction project, your focus will be to look at construction methods and materials.
Your client is an individual who is looking for a high level of sustainable technologies to be
incorporated in their project, to achieve low embodied energy, high levels of insulation and good
airtightness, energy efficiency, low maintenance and a long service period.
The project consists of detached house to be built on soft clay, which is classed as a high shrinkable
clay soil, the building is not expected to exceed 30kN/m. Although, soil type has been established,
please state your assumed local climate conditions as this will influence your assessment of
methods and materials.
Task
Your assessment will take the form of a technical report and will be aimed at a client with some
basic knowledge of standard construction methods. The technical report should contain an
introduction, some titled sections for discussion topics with illustrations, tables for comparison and
conclusions.
a. For each of the four primary elements (listed below), pick two methods of construction
(including the materials) that would be the most sustainable in the long term, compare and
contrast these and recommend one:
• Foundation type
• Structural ground floor
• Structural external walls
• Roof structure.
Note, there will be a number of construction methods that can be used for each element,
however, you need to look at and compare two methods which you deem to be the most
suitable and then choose one which you want to recommend.
For each element, focus on methods and materials that are appropriate for your country
(local climatic conditions). Clearly describe the technology, and provide justification for your
recommended choice, explaining how it satisfies key performance criteria and why it is best
suited to local circumstances.
b. Outline which building services system would give the best balance between energy
efficiency, running costs and carbon dioxide emissions. Your discussion should focus on
one specific item, from the following:
• Cooling and ventilation systems; or
• Space heating systems; or
• Hot water systems
Provide at least one illustration with annotation for each of the following five drawings
(sketches) of the report. These illustrations should be in the appropriate discussion topic of
your technical report and include (as a minimum):
• a composite sketch or suitable illustration (with annotations) of the foundation; and
• a composite sketch or suitable illustration (with annotations) of the ground floor with
footings and Damp Proof Course (DPC) and Damp Proof Membrane (DPM); and
• a composite sketch or suitable illustration (with annotations) of the exterior structural
wall; and
• a composite sketch or suitable illustration (with annotations) of the roof with eaves
(fascia and soffit) and wall plate detail; and
• a schematic diagram related to the building services outlined.
d. Provide a brief ‘Conclusions’ section that highlights the common themes you have used
throughout the technical report, linking these themes to each element discussed.
The post Construction Technology first appeared on COMPLIANT PAPERS.
