DESIGN VIII .

High-Rise Building MODULE

ND
NO. 2
A.Y. 2018 - 2019 2 Semester

HIGH-RISE
BUILDING
Types of High-Rise Buildings
There are different types of high-rise buildings classified according to their primary use.
1. Office buildings - a structure designed for the conduct of business, generally divided into
individual offices and offering space for rent or lease.
2. Hotel buildings - an all-inclusive designation for facilities that provide comfortable lodging and
generally, but not always food, beverage, entertainment, a business environment, and other
‘away from home’ services.
3. Residential and apartment buildings - contains separate residences where a person may live or
regularly stay. Each residence contains independent cooking and bathroom facilities and may be
known as an apartment, a residence, a tenement, or a condominium. An apartment building is a
building containing more than one dwelling unit.
4. Mixed-use buildings - may contain offices, commercial and recreational facilities, apartments,
residences, and hotel rooms in separate sections of the same building.

Classification of High-Rise Building According to Height

According to Emporis standard of building classication
EMPORIS – is a global provider of building data. It manages a worldwide database on construction data and
commercial real estate information. https://www.emporis.com
1. LOW-RISE BUILDING – an enclosed structure whose architectural height is below 35 meters and
which is divided at regular intervals into occupiable levels. It encompasses all regular multi-
storey buildings which are enclosed, which are below the height of a high-rise and which are not
entirely undergound.
2. HIGH-RISE BUILDING – a structure whose architectural height is between 35 to 100 meters.
3. SKYSCRAPER – a multi-storey building whose architectural height is at least 100 meters. It is a
continuously habitable high-rise building that has over 40 floors and is taller than approximately
150 m. Skyscrapers may host commercial offices or residential space, or both.
a. SUPERTALL - buildings above a height of 300 meters.
b. MEGATALL - while skyscrapers reaching beyond 600 meters

DESIGNING A HIGH-RISE BUILDING

A structure must be designed to carry gravity, wind and equipment; resist high or low tempratures
and vibrations; protect against explosions; and abosrb noises. Adding to this, the human factor
means considering rentable spaces, owner needs, aesthetics, cost, safety and comfort.

Demands for High-Rise Building

 Scarcity of land in urban area
 Increasing demands for residential and business space
 Economical growth
 Technological advancement
 Innovation in structural system
 Desire for aesthetic in urban setting
 Concept of city skylines
 Cultural significance and prestige
 Human aspiration to build higher

Basic Design Considerations

1. FUNCTION – determines the type, size, and location of spaces to be provided. Some implications
of building function include:
 Daylight – determines how much amount of natural light penetrates the interior of the
building. It suggests the type of building skin or enclosure that can be provided to present
the most desirable interior environment suitable with the building’s function.
 Storey Height – higher ceiling heights are used as a method to naturally light and ventilate
areas of a building with a deep floor plan. It creates a sense of spaciousness within smaller
rooms ang allow flexibility for future changes of use. Where there is the potential for uses
other than residential, the floor to floor height must be higher than 3.00m to accommodate
the increase in service requirements.

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DESIGN VIII . High-Rise Building MODULE
ND
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A.Y. 2018 - 2019 2 Semester

 Vertical Transportation – when planning for a design of vertical transportation on high-rise

buildings, a variety of factors must be considered such as client requirements, occupancy
levels for different types of developments, elevator cabin capacity, waiting times and ways
to maximize the space in the building, without compromising the elevator efficiency, cost-
effectiveness and energy consumption.
 Loads – the structural design of high-rise buildings must consider the variety of occupancy
levels which might span retail, offices, hotels and apartments. In a residential building, for
example, in addition to the people themselves, furniture movement, cargo delivery and
equipment must be taken into account.
2. Building height, proportion, symmetry, form,scale and shape
3. MATERIALS – the applicability of building materials vary depending on several factors that
include natural elements (wind, rain, and snow), location of the structure in relation with the
seismic characteristic of the area and the function of the building.
4. Zoning of spaces
5. Accessibility
6. Setback requirements
7. Shadows
8. Parking

Structural and Safety Considerations

WIND – consideration on the variation of wind velocity with height, turbulence, behavior and wind
classifications (prevailing wind, seasonal wind and local wind) that will affect the form and
orientation of the structure.
LOADS
 Gravity loads – dead loads, live loads
 Lateral loads – wind loads, seismic loads
 Special load cases – impact loads, blast loads

MATERIALS – include reinforced concrete, steel, glass, cladding and other materials used as
building enclosure. Other factors to consider in choosing materials include: local market
preference/availability; project height/size; building form; design considerations; site
location/access; and speed of construction.
FIRE SAFETY – accesibility to and number of fire exits and provision of fire suppression and
detection systems that promotes fire prevention and safety in the occurrence of fire.

STRUCTURAL SYSTEMS
1. SHEAR WALL SYSTEM – a type of rigid frame construction that is in steel or concrete providing
greater lateral rigidity. It is a wall where the entire material of the wall is employed in the
resistance of both horizontal and lateral loads. For high-rise buildings, as the size of the
structure increases, so does the size of the supporting wall. Shear walls tend to be used only in
conjunction with other support system.
2. RIGID FRAME STRUCTURE – rigid means ability to resist the deformation. Rigid frame structures
can be defined as the structures in which beams and columns are made monolithically and act
collectively to resist the moments which are generating due to applied load.
3. BRACED SYSTEM – lateral forces are resisted by axial bracing and columns. It is considerd to be
more efficient than a rigid frame.
4. HYBRID SYSTEM – combination of two or more basic structural forms either by direct
combination or by adopting different forms in different parts of the structure.
5. TRUSSED TUBE – interconnect all exterior columns to form a rigid box, which can resist lateral
shears by axial in its members rather than through flexure. Introducing a minimum number of
diagonals on each façade and making the diagonal intersect at the same point at the corner
column. The façade diagonalization serves to equalize the gravity loads of the exterior columns
that give a significant impact on the exterior architecture.
6. BUNDLED FRAME TUBE – the concept allows for wider column spacing in the tubular walls. The
spacing which make it possible to place interior frame lines without seriously compromising
interior space planning.
7. FRAMED TUBE - a three dimensional space structure composed of three, four, or possibly
more frames, braced frames, or shear walls, joined at or near their edges to form a vertical
tube-like structural system capable of resisting lateral forces in any direction by cantilevering
from the foundation.

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Shear Wall System Rigid Frame Structure Braced System

BUILDING SAFETY
Compliance with regulated building and fire codes, and construction that is built in accordance with
approved planning entitlements.

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
Structural Integrity
 LOADS – a high-rise must be able to handle a much bigger load than a regular building.
Calculations related to the design of the building, its-weight bearing capacity, and the overall
load capacity of the structure is usually done multiple times before the project is started
 High-rise structures often use steel reinforcement inside concrete with the addition of steel
pilings in the foundations that add strength and load capacity.

Fire Resistance
 MATERIALS - certain concrete additives, insulation and interior materials are not used in the
construction of high-rise due to their combustible properties that may increase the risk of fire in
the structure.
 COMPARTMENTS – a thick layer of concrete and steel reinforcement separates each floor so that
fire can be contained and easily controlled in each compartment.
 ENTRANCE AND EXITS – to mitigate further fire safety risks; accessibility to entrances and fire
exits is highly planned for faster fire containment and suppression, and evacuation. Along with a
capable fire control system that includes sprinklers and multiple sources of water boosting the
building’s ability to withstand fire.

Fire Detection and Fire Protection Systems

 ALARMS AND DETECTORS – include smoke and heat detectors, manual pull stations and fire
alarms that serve as signals in the early detection of fire.
 SPRINKLER SYSTEM – the strategy should include how reliable the water supply is, whether the
exiting strategy will defend-in-place of full evacuation, whether the sprinkler system should
contain the fire or provide enhanced protection because of delayed response times and what the
local response capability for fighting fires in tall buildings.

4 TYPES OF SPRINKLER SYSTEMS

1. PRE-ACTION – fire sprinkler system filled with air and water is allowed to pass through when
the smoke alarm or detector goes off. It can be set to prevent water from spouting incase of
a false alarm or mechanical failure.
2. DRY PIPE – use pressurized air in pipe which exits before water escapes. This causes a
minute delay in water discharge but is ideal for buildings with low temperatures so the pipe
do not freeze.
3. WET PIPE – water allows for a quick reaction to a fire and is the most common type of
sprinkler installed in buildings. It is cost efficient and low maintenance.
4. DELUGE – it needs a heat detector like a pre-action system. It is good when flammable
liquids are spread across the floor.

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DESIGN VIII . High-Rise Building MODULE
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A.Y. 2018 - 2019 2 Semester

WATER SUPPLY IN HIGH RISE CONSTRUCTION

Water source and water flow must be considered in designing a fire safety scheme to identify the
capacity of the system to efficiently suppress fire. The water supply equipment as a part of fire
protection system will include the gravity tanks, fire pumps, the city water mains and other different
components.

Air Movement
Studies have shown that fire is not the primary cause of death in previous building fire cases. That
main cause of death is actually smoke. Occupants are more likely to die of asphyxiation than of fire.
This shows another risk that high-rise buildings must mitigate: poor air movement and
circulation.

 AIR VENTILATION SYSTEMS - operates normally under normal load, but a more powerful
circulation fan (or fans) activates as soon as a fire alarm is triggered. The entire air ventilation
system can be designed to keep smoke up and away from occupants in the event of a fire and
risk of contamination.
 AIR PROCESSING UNIT – for high-rise buildings additional support that can be added to the
HVAC system that helps maintain a healthy oxygen level and clean the interior air from foreign
particles that can be harmful to the occupants.

Evacuation
 MULTIPLE STAIRWAYS AND EMERGENCY EXITS - positioned in different areas of the building
depending on the estimated number of occupants and the number of floors the building has.
These should be easily accessed for evacuation.
 In modern high-rise buildings, when the fire alarms of specific zones are activated, primary
stairwells are pressurized. In old buildings, under a fire emergency, one of the stairwells will
behave like a smoke tower.
 EVACUATION STRATEGIES FOR HIGH-RISE BUILDINGS
a. Defend-in-Place – remaining in place within the protected zones of the bilding. Might be
used in case of chemical or biological incident, or an explosion, which has occurred outside
of a building.
b. Delayed Evacuation – takes full advantage of temporay holding places, typically known as an
area of refuge or area of rescue assistance, where occupants can remain in relative safety,
albeit near the fire area, for a period before evacuating the building, either by themselves or
with assistance from emergency responders or others.
c. Evacuation of Individuals with Disabilities – an area of rescue assistance is an area, which
has direct access to an exit, where people who are unable to use stairs may remain
temporarily in safety to await further instructions or assistance during emergency
evacuation.
d. Partial or Zoned Evacuation – provides immediate, general evacuation of the areas of the
building nearest the fire incident. A partial evacuation may be appropriate when the building
fire protetion features assure the occupants away from the evacuation zone will be protected
from the effects of the fire for a reasonable time.
e. Total Evacuation – involves evacuation of all building occupants at once from a building to
an outside area of refuge or safety.

INTELLIGENT BUILDING
- Intelligent building is any building that provides a responsive, effective and supportive
environment within which the organization can achieve its business objectives.
- One which provides a productive and cost-effective environment through optimization of its four
basic elements including structures, systems, services and management and the
interrelationships between them.
- One that creates an environment which take full advantage of the efficiency of the building’s
occupants, while at the same time enabling a competent management resources with the least
possible life-time costs of hardware and facilities.
- A multidisciplinary effort to integrate and optimize the building structures, systems and services
and management in order to create a productive, cost effective and environmentally apporved
environment for the building occupants.

 COMMUNICATION AND CONNECTIVITY - supports wired and wireless networks and applications.
It also facilitates person-to-person, person-to-machine and machine-to-machine
communications within the building and with the outside world using a state of the art
intelligent, flexible, wired and wireless platform. The platform supports wired LAN, Wi-Fi, in-

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building wireless, audio/visual, sensors, lighting and building management applications.

Buildings are also becoming cloud connected as an essential part of smart grids and smart cities.

The intelligence of Intelligent Buildings can be classified according to the following:

1. Environmental friendliness – sustainable design for energy and water conservation;
effective waste disposal; zero pollution.
2. Space utilization and flexibility.
3. Value-giving quality for economic whole lifetime costs.
4. Human health and well-being.
5. Working efficiency and effectiveness.
6. Safety and security measures – fire, earthquake, disaster, and structural damages.
7. Culture; meeting client expectations.
8. Effective innovative technology.
9. Construction and management processes.
10. Health and sanitation.

Intelligent Buildings should respond to all three key components of systems, performances, and
services and has to have following components:
1. Smartness and Technology Awareness
 Utilization of advanced embedded systems for building components.
 Incorporation of intelligent technologies and economic principles.
 Intertwined with advanced sensors and artificial intelligence.
 Application of building systems and technological integrations.
 Application of up-to-date adaptable and interoperable building control systems.
 In line with innovative future technologies and upgrades.
2. Economic and Cost Efficiency
 Consideration of economic repercussions, lifecycle analysis, and cost effectiveness.
 Consideration of enhanced productivity and effectiveness of environments.
 Application of efficient management of resources.
 Application of integrated facility management.
 Consideration of cost/time saving strategies.
3. Personal and Social Sensitivity
 Consideration of the requirements and expectations of occupants and/or users.
 Consideration of comfort, convenience, safety and security.
 Adaptable to ever-expanding and changing human needs.
 Responsive to social and technological changes.
 Responsive to the needs for communication and globalization.
 Consideration of well-being, emotional satisfaction, and enhanced creativity of users.
 Use of self-support of user activity.
4. Environmental Responsiveness
 Application of ecologically sustainable design.
 Utilization of renewable energy sources, energy efficient strategies, and conservation
techniques.
 Application of energy management systems.

The provisions that influences the condition of Intelligent Building: (H Chow & T
Leung, 2005) are established from the following slopes:
• GREEN BUILDING - integrates the friendly use of environmentally components in a building,
such as energy consumption by ventilation, lighting, air conditioning, etc.
• LAYOUT OF THE SPACE - includes groups of elements of Architectural Design, Parking
and Transportation, Interior Architectural Design Flexibility.
• COMFORT - it consists of several groups of elements of Architectural Design, Lifts
Systems, Washbasins and Provisions of Appliances, Thermal Comfort, Ventilation and Air
Conditioning, Lighting, Access, Acoustics, Color, Entertainment Facilities, etc.
• EFFICIENCY OF WORK (own office buildings and services) - includes several groups of
Architectural Design elements, Lifts and Stairs, Appliances and Restrooms, Thermal
• CULTURAL ELEMENTS - considered as the "soft" side of an intelligent building. They include
entertainment facilities, privacy requirements, colors, interior decorating, food and
beverage control, exterior landscape and view, interior plants, religious facilitation,
culture based interior design, promotion activity, etc.
• HIGH TECHNOLOGY IMAGE - groups of elements are broadband internet, electrical
services, office automation, electronic installations, intelligent artificial control, web page,

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direct lines, telephone arrangements, fiber optic network, building services automation,
mobile phone coverage, installations advanced parking, etc.
 SECURITY AND STRUCTURE - include earthquake monitoring, structural monitoring, terrorist
attack precaution plan, fire protection, electrical safety, lift reliability, public notices,
escape plan, essential electrical power, preventive maintenance of building systems,
indoor air quality, security management system, risk management, safety and crowd
control, etc.
• BUILDING MANAGEMENT - including operation and maintenance of construction services,
high technology, security and surveillance, controls, management planning,
• HEALTHY BUILDING - It is particularly interesting in the evaluation of residential buildings.
The groups of elements include drinking water and washing system, drainage, toilet, parking
and elevator ventilation, smell, cleaning, waste management, pest control, filtration in
swimming pools, etc.

BENEFITS OF AN INTELLIGENT BUILDING

1. Energy Savings
2. Reducing cost of changing occupancy configuration
3. Improving end user/employee productivity in the workplace
4. Maintaining a comfortable, safe and secure environment at all times for those who work within

REFERENCES:
Matias Peluffo. (2015). Defining Today’s Intelligent Building
https://www.commscope.com/Blog/Defining-Todays-Intelligent-Building/

Engr. Mustafa Mazin Elsayed A. High-Rise Building Structure System Types

http://publications.lib.chalmers.se/records/fulltext/245349/245349.pdf

https://www.emporis.com

Roberts Emily. (2019) Safety Considerations for the Construction of High-Rise Buildings
https://livinspaces.net/interviews-and-articles/safety-considerations-for-the-construction-of-high-rise-buildings/

Arjun Neenu. (2017). Fire and Safety Features of High-Rise Buildings and Structures
https://theconstructor.org/construction/fire-safety-features-high-rise-buildings-structures/17381/

Mishra Gopal. (2017). High Rise Structures

https://theconstructor.org/structural-engg/high-rise-structures/5/

Amirhosein Ghaffarianhoseini,Umberto Berardi,Husam AlWaer,Seongju Chang,Edward Halawa,

Ali Ghaffarianhoseini &Derek Clements-Croome. (2016). What is an intelligent building? Analysis of recent
interpretations from an international perspective
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00038628.2015.1079164

Rizo Maestre, Carlos & Mora Lizán, Francisco. (2017). Intelligent Buildings: Considerations for its Design using
Multi-agent Systems.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320015943_Intelligent_Buildings_Considerations_for_its_Design_usin
g_Multiagent_Systems

Omar Osama. (2018) Beirut Lebanon. Intelligent Building, definitions, factors and evaluation criteria of selection.
Faculty of Architecture, Design and Built Environment, Beirut Arab University, Beirut Lebanon
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110016818300887

(2014). 4 Types Of Sprinkler Systems

https://www.fireline.com/blog/4-types-fire-sprinkler-systems/

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