Spon Press
£49.95
ISBN 0-419-24430-1
In The Architectural Expression of Environmental Control Systems author George Baird examines the way project teams can approach the design and expression of both active and passive thermal environmental control systems in a more creative way. Using case studies from around the world and interviews with the environmental engineers and architects involved, the book illustrates innovative responses to client, site and user requirements.
The author is Associate Professor at the School of Architecture, Victoria University of Wellington. He is a building services engineer by training and was winner of the New Zealand Science and Technology Medal in 1999.
Baird says his aim in writing is to: "inspire more architects, building services engineers and building scientists to take a creative approach to the design and expression of environmental control systems – whether these systems be active or passive, whether they influence overall building form, or design detail."
A large proportion of the publication covers international case studies. These include the Inland Revenue Offices in Nottingham; Glaxo-Wellcome headquarters in London; The RAC regional centre in Bristol; UNSW Red Centre, Sydney, Australia; Menara Umno, Penang, Malaysia; and Hall 26 Hannover Fair, Germany – among others.
The book also includes discussion of issues under the main headings of: thermal environmental control systems and their potential for expression; and recent developments in the expression of thermal environmental control systems. There is also a consideration of the role of the client in requesting and developing low energy buildings. He also notes that early involvement of the engineer is crucial.
Baird acknowledges that one of the main problems in writing for such a diverse audience as architects, services engineers and building scientists is that the book cannot cover all subjects in depth. For the building services reader, there are no schematics of the hvac systems, for example. Baird writes that he has tried to give "an indication of the scale of the systems and how they contributed aesthetically as well as functionally, to the overall design solution."
Source
Building Sustainable Design
