Essay: Design Criteria in Architecture

Aesthetics
Global Competitiveness
Intricate planning of spaces with the consideration of accessibility, circulation, flexibility, segregation, comfort and design of the building in consideration of aesthetics, daylighting and ventilation, sustainability and temperature or humidity. The Philippine research institute for archaeology and anthropology will also feature laboratories with the necessary equipment’s for surveying, mapping, analysis, data gathering, etc.
Temperature or Humidity
The research institute is composed of different laboratories with their own kind of research. With this temperature or humidity needs to be controlled for storage of archaeological and anthropological or ethnographical collections.
Accessibility
Accessibility in a research institute is a must, from the design of services and environment for persons with disabilities in compliance with the BP 344 or the Accessibility Law of the Philippines to the easy access of laboratory personnel or staff to corresponding spaces. Private and public access should also be considered.
According to the National Academy Press on Laboratory Design, construction and renovation (2000) access to research laboratories, teaching laboratories and support areas have to accommodate people and also large, bulky and potentially hazardous materials.
Circulation
The relationship of spaces and the way people move and interact from one place to another is an important factor for a research and learning center. The process or how the work flow inside an anthropological and archaeological laboratory, the relationship of each corresponding archaeology and anthropology laboratories, the relationship of laboratories and classroom and or other spaces.
Flexibility
Maximizing flexibility has always been a key consideration in designing laboratory buildings. It gives the ability to expand easily, to readily accommodate reconfigurations and other changes and to permit a variety of uses. The flexibility engineering system where in it provides flexible engineering services like supply and exhaust air, water, electricity, voice/data, vacuum systems that are extremely important to most laboratories. The engineering systems may need to be designed to enable fume hoods to be removed or added, to allow the space to be changed from a lab environment to an office and then back again, or to allow maintenance of the controls outside the lab. (Watch, D., 2012)
Segregation
The handling and storage of materials and equipment found in laboratories and support areas carries high risk of exposure to illness and injury. The segregation of laboratories and non — laboratory activities or areas is important.
Daylighting and Ventilation
Making good use of natural lighting in a building can improve the overall attitude, satisfaction and well-being of its occupants. This can be achieved by using low-e (low emissivity) glass windows. “The glass is simply a windowpane coated in microscopic layers of metallic oxides. The coating appears invisible to the naked eye, allowing as much natural light into the house as possible. However, though transparent, this coating also protects your home from unwanted Ultra violet rays.” (Dickinson, M., n.d) and natural ventilation can be a cost effective alternative to mechanical ventilation with air conditioning. In order to maximize the use of natural ventilation, passive cooling techniques will be incorporated. An example would be the Buoyancy-driven stack ventilation or displacement ventilation (DV). According to Geetha, N.B and Velraj, R. (2012) it relies on density differences to draw cool, outdoor air in at low ventilation openings and exhausts. A chimney or atrium is frequently used to generate sufficient buoyancy forces to achieve the needed flow. However, even the smallest wind will induce pressure distributions on the building envelope that will also act to drive the airflow. Proper ventilation is important to avoid cross contamination in laboratories is essential in design.
Safety and Security
Laboratory work in archaeology and anthropology requires basic precautions to protect the health and safety of the user. The presence of fire alarms and first — aid kits are a must and the security of the users inside the laboratories, classrooms and other areas as well as the artifacts/collections to prevent theft or loss.
Comfort
“Laboratory safety has to be balanced with worker comfort. Comfort primarily is concerned with maintaining appropriate temperatures and air velocities. Ease of use of the laboratory equipment is also a factor in worker comfort. Laboratory equipment and layout must allow staff to perform necessary tasks with minimal additional effort.” (TSI Incorporated, 2014)
According to Astarini, S. (2015, August 09) it is discovered that in general, employees experience 4% reduction in performance at cooler temperatures, and 6% at warmer temperatures (compared to each area’s average condition). In the Asian region, the range of these temperatures may vary but the key here is “comfort” — something that can be optimized through proper façade, HVAC system installation and operationalization, as well as greenery in the vicinity. The more comfort a building provides, the more staying power it offers to the tenants and better productivity it is translating into.
Sustainability
Sustainability or sustainable architecture is a must when it comes to designing or planning a buildings. Not only it will benefit the users but also the one who owns the building and especially the environment. Sustainable architecture attempts to minimize the negative environmental impacts of a building by the use of energy efficient methods or techniques, the right materials, and sustainable energy.
According to TSI Incorporated (2014), Laboratories are normally designed as once-through systems, without recirculation. Conditioning, supplying and exhausting the large volumes of air used in laboratories consumes sizeable quantities of energy. Laboratories must be designed so that energy efficiency gains do not reduce safety and comfort. “Materials, energy and water are the three main resources required to construct and run buildings. A sustainable building design approach has to consider these three resources in terms of their depletion and the environmental and social impacts associated with their use.” (Sassi, P., 2006)