Appendix 1 Floor Area Conventions and NM“ Building

Efficiency

FLOOR AREA MEASUREMENT CONVENTIONS

The floor area is one of the most important concepts of cost and economic
performance analysis for buildings. This is in part mere tradition; we are used to
referring to the size of buildings in terms of their floor area. As such it is
arbitrary—~other countries use building volume rather than floor area for the
same purpose. However, having been widely accepted as a convention it is now
most convenient because many related matters are dealt within the same way,
ranging from regulations to construction cost data; all are expressed in terms of
floor area or variables related to floor area. In the early stages of planning for a
building-feasibility analysis, programming, schematic design—not much more
than the approximate building size is known. Therefore, most of the forms of cost
estimating and performance analysis at these stages use floor area as the
conceptual unit of reference. It is important to understand the meaning of the
various terms related to this concept ' and how they are measured and used:
Total Floor Am . or Gross Floor Area, Net Leasable Area, Net Assignable area, and
Net Usable Floor Area, as well as the Floor Area Ratio and the Net-to-Gross Ratio
or Efficiency Ratio ~ Various institutions such as the American Institute
91‘Architects (AIA) and the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA)
have issued standards for I measuring the Various distinguished . '_ The purpose
of such Standards is to ensure calculations, concerning the allowable budding
mass 'on the site or the areas of the building actually, occupied and used by
tenants and made in consistent and comparable manner.

TOTAL Floor Area, GrossFloor Area, Architectural Area

The terms Total Floor Area (TFA), gross floor area, and architectural area refer to
'a measure of the building size in terms of floor area, as measured from
(permanent) outside finished surface to outside finished surface of the building It
includes all areas occupied by walls, columns, stairs, ducts, and shafts, whether
they can be physically occupied by people or not AIA document different parts of
buildings should be counted in the TFA or architectural area for . the purpose of
estimating overall size and, from that, expected cost. it distinguishes regular floor
space from parts of the building that are not fully enclosed, or are not complete
floors:

Some of these standards differ from each other, and also with respect to the
application of the terms to different building types. The important tasks for
designers are to make sure that the project will be equal or better than the
average expected efficiency level for the building type in question and to select
the most efficient from a set of alternative schemes. The first task must use
standard definitions; for the second, the consistent application of one definition
to all comparable , schemes

is the critical issue. 1 Total Floor Area, Gross Floor Area, Architectural Area The
terms Total FIDOI Area (TFA), gross floor area, and architectural area refer to a
measure of the building size in terms of flour area, as measured from
(permanent) outside finished surface to outside finished surface of the building It
includes all areas occupied by walls, columns, stairs, ducts, and shafts, whether
they can be physically occupied by people or not. AIA document Dl01 specifies
how different parts of buildings should he wanted tn the TFA or architectural area
for . ' the purpose of estimating overall size and, from that, ' : 3 expected cost. It
distinguishes regular floor space from aim of the building that are tactfully
enclosed, or are ' not complete floors.
Typical floors, mechanical spaces , basements, subbasements, balconies in inside
spaces, bulkheads and penthouse areas, enclosed entrances ,, duct spaces,
interstitial areas higher than 6 feet count in full.

Open terraces, pipe and interstitial spaces less than 6.

h regard to the project budget The design-build approach remedies this by 05mg
8 commanding dimmer team (design-build team) that gives the client a final
contract at the outset The team then proceeds with the planning and
construction work as in the fast-track approach. Both approaches require that the
contractor be brought in early in the planning process, both work best with
standardized construction methods or building systems, and both leave the client
with some uncertainty as to the final product at the time when the crucial
decision to proceed with the communion must be made. They require that the
owner have a higher degree of trust and confidence in the architect and the
contractor than would be necessary if all the work were carefully specified and
documented in working drawings prior to signing of the contract. In times of high
interest and high inflation rates, the initial cost savings due to the reduction in
delivery time may be well worth the potential drawbacks.

SUMMARY OBSERVATIONS

The building delivery process, as described by its sequence of steps, activities, and
the made by the various participants, can influence not only the economies of the
building but also the economic objectives of the parties involved and thus the
analysis techniques that should be used to investigate the appropriateness of
design solutions. in each particular mutation, then, the probable process and
understood. A few main observations can be made. t program filling economic
Viability should be cm again; feasibility analysis should accompany the entire pro.
at each m- . 352; time that the WW "“131 {even to a previous the: because its
assumptions have prayed to inadequate. or because assumption

it is also likely to cost the Irresponsible party credibility and reputation. . Care
should be taken, therefore. to arrange the process in as straightforward a manner
as possible, en. surfing that the analysis at each step will result in reliable
assumptions to serve as the basis for the next steps, avoiding the need to go back
to a previous stage. in other words, the delivery process must be considered as
part of the design problem ;tt must itself be carefully planned.

time and money. it is also likely to cost the Irresponsible party credibility and
reputation. . Care should be taken, therefore. to arrange the process in as
straightforward a manner as possible, surfing that the analysis at each step will
result in reliable assumptions to serve as the basis for the next steps, avoiding the
need to go back to a previous stage. in other words, the delivery process_ must
be considered as part of the design problem ; must itself be carefully planned

this. Both have complex. 193:8th review end 1mm! processes with severe
budget ones :,

of aware of the particular conditions. For example

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aw; MW 7. , t performed in:

FAST TRACK AND DESIGN –BUILD PROJECT DELIVERY

Both have complex. 193:8th review end 1mm! processes with severe budget ones
:3 anti, but the pm different in each

n ways that may appear inexplicable to those who are

particular conditions. For example l @MGQQQ,W8DIS fort the remain»? m0f 33%
governs only, 90 that construction can begin ’ initial cost (perhaps through
legislative action), with the while other, parts still are being designed and smith. . ’
, Operation and maintenance of the buildings . This results in an overall reduction
of the delivery time ' coming an entirely different budget. This arrange-. The
drawback is that no final ' trade-offs between the initial ,7 Cost figure be
established when construction starts, long-term

90 that construction can begin ’ initial cost (perhaps through legislative action),
with the while other, parts still are being designed and smith. . ’,first Operation
and maintainance of the buildings . This results in an overall reduction of the
delivery time ' 'coming an entirely different budget. This arranged the incentive
for planners to planning and construction activity. The drawback is that no final '
trade-offs between the initial ,7 Cost figure can be established when construction
starts, long-term

INTRODUCTION

. To understand there difference and the proper application of various techniques

to their problem, we must understand the process and the nature of decisions
made by the various panic: at each or Here we look at the sequence of steps that
constitute the process by which buildings are planned. Designed constructed,
used, and ultimately disposed of. We discuss the activities that occur at each
stage of this process, the participants in the process. and the decisions {or which
they are responsible. Finally, we explore some options for modifying the
traditional delivery process to improve its economic performance. The building
delivery process is narrow/1y defined at the sequence of activities epidemic)!
followed by various participants including the owner and the architect/designer
for the purpose of planning, and implementing a building construction, project
However, to evaluate the the phases, future modification, expansion. remodeling,
and ultimate disposal through sale.
NET USABLE AREA
permanent inside walls such as act corridor walls or any walls malls office stairs
or fire elevator sham, and the like. However, structural elements ! as columns or
structurally necessary pilasters inside this area and areas of nonpermanent,
nonstructural partitions (such as the tenant may install) are not subtracted. ‘Ihe
net usable area does not include shared (public) corridors restrooms, storage
areas, janitors’ closets, and so on. In principle, when several terms share an office
floor, the usable area is equal to the notable or leasable area (NLA). If a single
tenant occupies an entire floor, the elevator lobby, restrooms, closets, and so on,
will be for the tenant’s exclusive use; in case the rentable ma is different from the
usable area and includes the areas Often, however, the rentable are will in
appropriate percentage of common corridors, rest rooms, lobbies, and so on,
even where several tenants share these s

USE OF FLOOR AREA BASED INDICATORS AND MEASURES

lower NGR will have the lower TF the lower initial cost. A “(1&me Building
elliciency as measured by the Net Ratio or m inverse .the Groom-Net Ratio.
refers to the amount of space that must be built in the building as a whole (TFA)
in order to provide the amount of space (net usable area or net usable area) for
which the owner will receive rental income, or which actually produces the use
value of the building, The difference between the TFA and the NLA is the “non
rentable” area or service area. The cost of the building, and the relationship
between cost and rental income, will be ' favorable if the NGR is high (close to 1);
it will be the more unfavorable the more the NGR drops below 1. Because this
relationship is almost always quite direct and close, the NGR can be used as a
reliable perform ance indicator during the design process. The designer will not
have to calculate the initial cost for each new design concept; it is sufficient to
check the NGR to see if it is better or worse than preceding solutions. If the NGR
does not improve, it is not worthwhile to further pursue the scheme. Standard
expectation levels of the NGR are further used at the feasibility analysis and worn:
stage to estimate the TFA, given the s

FLOOR AREA MEASUREMENT CONVENTIONS

The floor area is one of the most important concepts of cost and economic
performance analysis for buildings. This is in part mere tradition; we are used to
referring to the size of buildings in terms of their floor area. As such it is arbitrary
other countries use building volume rather than floor area for the same purpose.
However, having been widely accepted as a convention it is now most convenient
because many related matters are dealt with in the same way, ranging from
regulations to construction cost data; all are expressed in terms of floor area or
variables related to floor area. In t .2 early stages of planning for a building
feasibility analysis, programming schematic design—not much more than the
approximate building size is known. Therefore, most of the forms of cost
estimating and performance analysis at these stages use floor area as the
conceptual unit of reference. It is important to understand the meaning of the
various terms related to this concept ' and how they are measured and used:
Total Floor Area . or Gross Floor Area, Net Leasable Area, Net Assignable area,
and Net Usable Floor Area, as well as the Floor Area Ratio and the Net-to-Gross
Ratio or Efficiency Ratio. ‘ Various institutions such as the American Institute of
Architects (AIA) and the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) have
issued standards for measuring the various types of floor areas distinguished in
buildings. The purpose of such standards is to ensure that calculations concerning
the allowable building mass on a site or the areas of the building actually ' » f
occupied and used by tenants (for which rent) are made in ;a consistent and
comparable manner.
Standard Efficiency Expectations for Diflerent Building Types
Based on experience with many examples of various building types, standard
expected levels for the NGR have been established that can guide the
programmer and the designer in many decisions during early development stages.
For example, office buildings usually are expected to achieve an NOR of 0.75 to
0.80 to be considered sufficiently efficient; apartments from 0.67 to 0.80; hotels
at least 0.62 to 0.70; schools 0.55 to 0.70, depending on the type; hospitals 0.55
to 0.67. These standards must be used judiciously. For example, the .NGR for an
office building that features mainly many small offices for single occupants will be
lower than that for a building with large open office landscape type spaces, as the
latter can be much deeper than the small offices. Using the same standard NGR
expectation for both would be quite inappropriate

SIGN DECISIONS INFLUENCING EFFICIENCY

There are a few (almost obvious) design rules of thumb that can be applied to
building efficiency and design decisions One such rule is that because circulation
W (hallways. corridors) are responsible for a significant fraction of non rentable
space in building, spammed by corridor should be as deep
Some of these standards differ from each other, and also with respect to the
application of the terms to different building types. The important tasks for
designers are to make sure that the project will be equal or better than the
average expected efficiency level for the building type in question and to select
the most efficient from a set of alternative schemes. The first task must use
standard definitions; for the second, the consistent application of one definition
to all comparable schemes is the critical issue

BUILDING DELIVERY PROCESS

THE MAIN PHASES OF BUILDING DELIVERY PROCESS
RECURRING QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES
w linear feet to the length of the cell, involving a few linear feet of wall and a few
square feet of floor and ceiling area, which makes the cost per inmate
significantly l

depth to corridor width ratio—but not noticeably narrower, as there are

constraints' in furnishing hotel rooms preventing that. Thus the unintended
results was that the overall floor area was increased, raising the total cost. As a
consequence of making the rooms deeper, the unproductive circulation area
inside the rooms was increased; the rooms lost appeal instead ‘ organizing value.
This kind reasoning is not always as easy to spot as it is in this example. The lesson
is to avoid uncritical reliance on a single performance or measure, always
double—checking results from different points of View. In this case, checking the
allowable area per room for each scheme, together with

less net area per floor, Clearly does not makes , solution more efficient. " A
fallacy sometimes encountered in connection with the effort to make a design
scheme more as. based on the correct, observation that efficiency is related to
the ratio of the depth of served spaces Mm; a hotel room—to the width of the
corridor serving than. For example, in the process of modifying solution A in figure
A l-3, an alternative proposal may be solution B. Checking the NGR, it might look
as though B is 1hr: better scheme because its NGR is higher. However, rite higher
NGR has been achieved