The Design Process in Architecture

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The Design Process in Architecture

• Mr. Shaibu Bala Garba

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What is Design?

• Design is-
• Optimum solution to the sum of the true needs of
  a particular circumstance (Matchett,1968)
• To initiate change in man-made things (Jones,
  1968)
• The Performing of a complicated act of faith
  (Jones, 1966)
• Creation and organization of form elements in a
  work of art (Ching, 1997)

I guess we will not benefit much in trying to
define what design really is!
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What is Architectural Design?

• Design the context Architecture is simply the
  activity of generating proposals that change
  something that already exist into something that
  is better
• It is a three part process
• Initial state
• A method or process of transformation
• An imagined future state

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Some Notes on Design

• Design Problems
• Problems can never be comprehensively stated
• Design problems require subjective (personal)
  Interpretation
• Design Problems tend to be organized
  hierarchically, meaning you could increase or
  decrease the scope of the problem by for instance
  designing a door, instead of a door handle

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Some Notes on Design

• Design Solutions
• There are an inexhaustible number of different
  solutions to any design problem
• There are no optimal (or perfect) solutions to
  design problems- solutions usually compromise on
  one or more important objectives
• We, therefore, have only acceptable solutions to
  design problems

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Some Notes on Design

• The Design Process
• The process operates in a loop and is endless
• There is no any defined correct process of design
• The design process involves finding as well as
  solving problems- a designer must be able to
  subjectively define the problem he is solving
• Design involves subjective (personal) value
  judgment
• Design is a prescriptive activity

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The Design Process in Architecture

• Design in the context of architectural education
  is a 4 step process
• Analysis or Initiation and preparation
• Synthesis or Proposals generation
• Proposal evaluation and selection
• Proposal Presentation

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The design process is not a straight forward
process that moves from step 1 through to 4. The
process is usually iterative, in that you finish
one step and move to the next step, only to
discover that you missing some information and
have to go back to previous steps
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Step 1 Analysis or Initiation and preparation

• This stage is concerned with collecting
  information on the design problem at hand
• The information to be collected covers the
  following
• Building program- spaces, sizes and their
  function
• Building type study, including collecting
  information on similar existing building types
• Information on the site, local climate, social
  and cultural factors and available construction
  technologies
• Information on legal and code requirements
• The information collected should enable the
  identification of the important considerations in
  designing the problem at hand
• The important consideration will then serve as a
  performance specification or objectives for the
  project and will provide the means to evaluate
  any design proposal

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Step 2 Synthesis or Proposal generation

• Synthesis means bringing together
• In this stage the variety of issues in design
  have to be brought together in a design that
  meets the design criteria or objectives
• These consideration include client preferences,
  program requirements, site conditions, context
  (physical and social), preferences of the design,
  etc
• Each element is usually first analyzed alone to
  determine its possibilities
• These are then layered together to generate a
  proposal
• A concept is usually the element that ties up all
  the numerous considerations

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One of the first necessary steps in design is to
take the spaces in the program and study the
requirements for the design of the individual
spaces
Step 2 Program Analysis
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Step 2 Program Analysis
Checking the sizes of spaces
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Step 2 Program Analysis
Checking that areas will fit to site
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Step 2 Relationship Diagram
Establishes the need for connection between the
various spaces in a program
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It is possible to study the need for various
types of connection or communication
Step 2 Relationship Diagram
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Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
Shows relationship between spaces
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Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
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Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
Distortion of connection to begin to identify
possible arrangements
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Generating more concrete arrangements and also
taking into account room sizes
Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
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Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
Another example
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Step 2 Bubble Diagrams
Bubbles drawn to scale
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Site is another place to begin the search for a
design proposal
Identifying the most suitable site for building
Step 2 Site Analysis
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Addresses views, wind direction, sun direction,
access, slope, etc
Step 2 Site Analysis
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Analysis may yield a potential site arrangement
Step 2 Site Planning and Concept
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Studies of existing building types can generate
images for you to assist you in developing your
proposals. Studies may be of similar building
types or of applicable construction system
Step 2 Case Studies
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Step 2 Conceptual Images
Conceptual images help in catalyzing the
generation of ideas
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A good design environment should have all the
analysis and synthesis data displayed openly
Step 2 An Ideal Design Environment
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Concept The thing that ties it all up

• Concept is what ties up all the various issues
  that is generated in the synthesis stage
• A concept could come at any stage of the design
  process

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Concept can come from many sources There is no
one place or right way to derive a concept
Concept
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You may also need to develop many concepts for
any design exercise The concept address some of
the elements that is studied in the analysis
stage such as building role, functional
clustering, arrangement on site, circulation,
zoning, room layouts, building form etc
Concept
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Step 3 Proposal Evaluation and Selection

• It is possible during the synthesis stage to
  generate one or more design alternatives
• Step 3 is the stage where these alternatives are
  evaluated to check how they solve the design
  problem or meet the objectives or criteria that
  were developed in stage 1
• The selected designed is further refined to
  address any shortcoming
• It is the set for the last stage

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Step 4 Proposal Presentation

• Solving a design problem is only one half of the
  design task in architecture
• The next step is to effectively communicate that
  solution to the client
• There are certain basic requirements for a good
  presentation
• The Presentation should present the central idea
  of the design- what we may call its spirit
• It should have a logical and comprehensible
  arrangement of integrated graphics and verbal
  information, with constant scale/format/medium/tec
  hnique
• Should have continuity from one sheet to another
• Should present information efficiently by using
  minimum number of sheet required

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Good presentation has to integrate graphics and
text very well Text should as much as possible be
linked to graphic elements
Presentation
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You should also have a consistent way of
arranging you drawings on the sheet
Presentation
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A grid may help in the layout of drawings
Presentation
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Step 4 Proposal Presentation
The best way for preparing for a presentation is
to prepare a mock-up of the presentation before
starting the final work The mock-up should
address the choice of size of paper, scale of
presentation, medium of rendering and arrangement
of sheets
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A Note on Design Evaluation

• Before considering how design is evaluated, let
  us first define what architecture is
• Architecture is
• Space
• Structure
• And Enclosure
• Experienced through
• Movement in Space-Time
• Achieved by Means of
• Technology
• Accommodating
• A program
• Compatible with
• It context

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A Note on Design Evaluation

• Architectural form can be ordered in 3-ways
• Physical ordering
• Form and space- solids and voids, interior and
  exterior
• Perceptual Ordering
• Sensory perception and recognition of the
  physical elements by experiencing them
  sequentially in time
• Conceptual
• Comprehension of the ordered or disordered
  relationship among a buildings element and
  systems, and responding to the meaning they evoke

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A Note on Design Evaluation

• All the issues raised in the above definition of
  architecture play a significant role in the
  assessment of design projects
• In our specific case, the following criteria is
  going to be given to the jury members to evaluate
  your project
• Program analysis
• Site analysis and design
• Space organization
• Form Organization
• Technical Considerations
• Project completion
• Presentation