JACOSALEM, John Paul M.

Arch 171

2013 -14795
STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS: UPCA Building 2

The building that I was in was the UP College of Architecture Building 2. It houses the
Administrative office, the Research arm of the college, library, faculty rooms, cafeteria,
maintenance units and various classrooms.
It differs from the UPCA Building 1 in terms of its use. The Building 1 is used for the
studio classes and as a gathering space for the College during big events. As such, it has
large, open spaces. For that, it utilizes steel construction in order to support the long span of
the building.
The UPCA Building 2 was a building redesigned for adaptive re-use by Arch. Nicolo
Del Castillo. It was formerly the burnt down building of the Campus Maintenance Office (CMO).
It is a two-storey rectangular building with an atrium/quadrangle in the middle. It was built on
sloping land, the back portion of the building containing two storeys while the front having only
one. As such it utilizes retaining walls to hold the earth on the upper portion of the lot. These
retaining walls also serve as plant boxes and has ledges for seating.
It employs the conventional reinforced concrete (RC) construction throughout the
structure. Its second floor however, does not use a concrete slab as floor framing. Building 2
utilizes pre-fabricated joists in place of RC beams. This allows for faster construction. The
joists are very deep and yet thin compared to the usual RC beams. Its depth increases its
strength despite it being thin. The cross section of the joists also shows it having a tapered
bottom part. This strategic location of the concentration of the material enables to
manufacturer of the joists to save on material without compromising the structural integrity of
its product.
Around the quadrangle are wide walkways for the users. These hallways are covered
by the overhang of the roof. The overhangs, measuring at around 2.5 meters, are possible
because of the steel trusses supporting it. The steel trusses act and are shaped similar to
cantilever beams, with the tip being small and the base (connected to the walls) being deep
in order to support the loads on the roof. Steel trusses are also used throughout the whole
building.
Save for some cracks in the connections between the different structural elements of
Building 2, it is still safe for the continued use of the UP Arki community.