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Ria Suited Facade
Ria Suited Facade
Student’s Declaration
I hereby certify that the work which is being presented entitled “ SUITABLE
FACADES IN PUNE CLIMATE ”in the subjects of REASEARCH IN ARCHITECTURE II,
in the fulfillment of the partial requirements for the award of degree of Bachelor of
Architecture submitted in the Sinhgad Technical Education Society’s Sinhgad
College of Architecture, Pune, is an authentic record of my own work carried out
during a period from June 2018 to April 2019. The views expressed in this paper
are my own and I am solely responsible for the accuracy and sources of
information and data used.
The matter embodied in this report has not been submitted by me for the
award of any other degree.
Signature of student
(Vandita Bhala)
Research in Architecture
On
Degree of
Bachelor of Architecture
By
(Vandita Bhala)
April 2019
Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................. 5
1.1 Background ..................................................................................................... 5
1.2 Need for study ................................................................................................ 6
1.3 Aim & Objectives, RQ, Scope & Limitation ................................................ 6
1.4 Methodology ................................................................................................... 7
1.5 Chapter summary .......................................................................................... 7
2. Literature Review .................................................................................................. 7
2.1 The important terminologies and issues (related to study) ..................... 8
2.2 Book studies ................................................................................................... 9
2.2.1 Book Case study 1: Suzlon One Earth Global Corporate
Headquarters ............................................................................................................ 9
2.2.2 Book Case study 2: Commerzone Building No.4 .................................... 10
2.2.3 Comparative analysis of Case studies...................................................... 12
3. Data collection and analysis .............................................................................. 13
3.1. Live Case studies ........................................................................................... 13
3.1.1 Live Case study 1: Lokmanya Multipurpose Co-operative Credit
Society ..................................................................................................................... 13
3.1.2 Live Case studies 2: VVIP Circuit House ................................................. 15
3.1.3 Live Case study 3: Collector Office ........................................................... 17
3.1.4 Comparative analysis of Case studies...................................................... 20
4. Analysis ................................................................................................................. 20
4.1. Materials for Facade: ..................................................................................... 20
4.2. Effects: ............................................................................................................. 21
5. Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 23
Reference .................................................................................................................... 23
List of Figures:
Image 1Glass facade night view .................................................................................... 9
Image 2 Glass facade...................................................................................................... 9
Image 3 View of Facade ............................................................................................... 10
Image 4 Elevation showing glass facade ................................................................... 11
Image 5 Glass facade.................................................................................................... 11
Image 6 Third floor plan ................................................................................................ 14
Image 7 Facade treatment............................................................................................ 14
Image 8 Elevation showing facade.............................................................................. 15
Image 9 Facade.............................................................................................................. 16
Image 10 Ground floor plan .......................................................................................... 16
Image 11 Elevation ........................................................................................................ 17
Image 12 Elevation showing facade ........................................................................... 17
Image 13 Facade ........................................................................................................... 17
Image 14 Ground floor plan .......................................................................................... 18
Image 15 Front Elevation .............................................................................................. 18
Image 16 Elevation showing facade ........................................................................... 18
Image 17 Front side elevation ...................................................................................... 19
Image 18 Section ........................................................................................................... 19
List of Tables
Table 1 SGG Nano Olive (KT 455).............................................................................. 10
Table 2 SGG Cool-Lite Titanium Blue (STB 120) ..................................................... 12
Table 3 Differences in book case studies .................................................................. 12
Table 4 Analysis of live case studies .......................................................................... 20
Abstract
One of the most important methods of saving energy in a building is by
carefully designing façade. A façade is optimally one of the best options in managing the
interaction between the outdoors and the internal spaces. It also provides some
architectural flexibility to the design. This research paper will survey the various types of
materials in façade according to the Pune climate, exploring their features and
functioning followed by the case studies.
The paper will then access and analyze recent research and examples to attempt
to reach a conclusion as to whether what kind façade is best suited for Pune region.
Finally, glass façade has been proven to be highly useful and suited in the
climatic region of Pune. The only downside of glass façade is that it has high
maintenance charge. However, it is widely agreed by many papers that glass façade is
more cost effective in the long run. This is because it is long lasting and more durable as
compared to the steel, iron facades etc.
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
Buildings having facade provide light, climate control and ventilation for rooms. Facades
are the important architectural features of an elevation. Facade is the most strategic part
in a re-qualification plan because it is most visible part of the building. This leads to an
improvement of internal environment and appearance performances. The facade also
exchanges energy with the external environment this increases energy performance. The
facade protects structures and interiors of the building and this contributes to the
extension of the life of the building.
With rapid growth of smart cities in India and keeping in mind the climatic
change taking place everywhere it has become necessary to develop structures that
decrease the energy consumption without increasing the cost of the structure. (Meraj,
2017)
Present situation: Energy efficient design of building facades has so far predominantly
been confined to static rigid forms is present situation in Pune. However attempts have
been made to design environmentally responsive facade. The present paper focuses on
adaptable static facade, in Pune climatic region.
It is said that elevation defines the character of building. The study of facade
creates compatibility between buildings, street, and neighborhood through architectural
elements that add scale and character. (McFarquhar, 2012)
Importance of study of the topic: Since the cost of energy is continuously increasing, it
is need of hour to build energy efficient building. Facades system enables passive energy
Vandita Bhala, Fourth Year B. Arch. (A) 2018-19 5
Suitable Facades in Pune Climate
conservation, i.e. reducing the energy consumption for applications like heating or
cooling, artificial lighting and heat regulation.
Objectives:
Research Questions:
1. What is facade?
3. What are existing materials and technologies based on climate are used in this facade?
4. How the material used in facade affect the interior spaces of building ?
It is an evolving technology, and not much is yet explored in India. There are a
lot of limitations in response to climate, infra, materials, lack of knowledge according to
the Indian context. At initial and construction set up stage, there may be an increase in the
cost but in future it will make the building cost effective. Installation of facade systems
leads to high installation cost and maintenance cost varies according to the system used.
1.4 Methodology
For Objective 1:To study existing materials used for construction of such facade.
To achieve this objective references from various case studies, architectural blogs on
internet with verified sources and observations were considered. This enables us available
materials in entire world along with its ease of availability at desire location for desire
facade.
For Objective 2:To understand the working of control of the internal environments
through a responsive building facade.
To achieve this objective references from various case studies and architectural blogs
were studied. It was concluded from case studies and blogs that in case of static facade
control of internal environment are solely dependent on materials used and procedure of
constructing the facade.
For Objective 3:To understand the type of facade suitable for Pune region.
To achieve this objective references from various case studies and architectural blogs
were studied. From case studies and available research material, it can be inferred that
different facades have different sets of pros and cons in different climatic condition. Out
of available techniques of facade, best suited system will be selected for Pune climate.
2. Literature Review
The idea of “Net Zero Energy Building” laid basic foundation for development of facade
systems. Along with aesthetic aspect of building facade can provide protection from
exterior uncomfortable environment and also ease the process of making comfortable
environment at interior. Facade systems at different location vary adapting to different
climatic conditions. Climate dependent designs of façade are commonly referred as
climatic and passive design. For this purpose scientific approach was set by Olgay in
1963. The work contains may charts, graphs and data revealing relevant information for
design of facade. Three types of climatic regions are discussed namely temperature
climate, tropical humid climate and desert climate. Temperature climate is nothing but
Vandita Bhala, Fourth Year B. Arch. (A) 2018-19 7
Suitable Facades in Pune Climate
European climate where heating in interior is essential, so facade systems are made such
that all available heat from exterior is permitted inside and trapped, thus making energy
consumption for heating lower than non-facade buildings. Tropical humid climates occur
at equatorial regions. The temperature does not vary substantially over daily cycle,
limiting night time cooling unlike desert climates. Here East and West facing facades
must be less glaze, since early morning and late evening sun rays which are at low angle
provide substantial heat gain to interior of building. In desert climate daytime
temperatures exceed more than 400C. While at night temperatures fall drastically.
Although main function of facade in tropical regions is to reduce heat gain; adequate
daylight must be provided to building avoiding use of excess artificial lighting. To adapt
thermal shocks in tropical region double skin façade is also a viable option, in which two
layers of facade are oriented such that heat gain is minimized along with providing
adequate daylight. (Napier, 2015)
Facade material selection is a critical task since it results the effectiveness of facade
system according to climatic conditions. Selection criterion must be decided first in order
to check available material at our disposal. Selection criteria are durability, clean ability
and maintainability, material sustainability, climatic compatibility, safety and health,
material availability and its cost effectiveness, functional and thermal performance and
last but not least acoustic resistance. For these criteria to be more effective while in use,
site survey along with previously applied techniques in area must be studied through case
studies. Here apart from architectural field, help from fields such as engineering,
management and economy, archivist is essential. (Nesan & Mohammed, 2015)
Case studies of high performance commercial building facades were studied. From the
following literature solar control facades and day lighting facades are explained for
southern Californian region. Solar control facade permits only specific solar spectrum
using high performance glazing materials. This enables control of solar heat gains as they
used both absorbing and reflecting glazing. Sky-light is redirected such that building
enjoys daylight which is adequate enough. This results in less use of artificial lighting
needed. Double skin facade are also incorporated so as to enable natural ventilation. (Lee,
Selkowitz, Bazjanac, & Kolher, 2002)
Issues – Difficulty in finding relevant case studies, facade material catalog. Some case
studies are personally verified by actually visiting site and having a discussion with
locals.
2.2.1 Book Case study 1: Suzlon One Earth Global Corporate Headquarters
Location – 170/1-8, Keshav Nagar, Hadapsar, Pune, Maharashtra
Year – 2009
The motto of the company, ‘powering a greener tomorrow’, and the architect relied
exclusively on non-toxic and recycled materials. Griha 5 star certification with 8% of its
annual energy generated on site through photo voltaic panels and windmills with a total
incremental cost of about 11%.
No other leed certified buildings with this level of certification and on-site renewable
energy that has achieved this kind of cost efficiency.
Inspiration from large Indian historical campuses like Fatehpur Sikri and Meenakshi
Temple complex in Madurai. This took the shape of a Land Scraper, opposing the idea of
a Skyscraper! It is a counter blast to “the glass box”. (Daily, 2014)
Aluminium louvers act as a protective skin allowing daylight and cross ventilation. Glass
used in this building is SGG Nano Olive (KT 455). (GRIHA, 2019)
SGG Nano
Olive KT
455 39 13 10 0.27 0.31 1.9
Year - 2009
Glass facades use in this building is SGG Cool-Lite Titanium Blue (STB 120) and SGG
Planitherm Pristine White (PLT T). (GRIHA, 2019)
Advanced solar-control
Energy efficiency
Reduces cost of air conditioning
Perfect for display windows (Gobain, 2018)
Natural daylight into the interiors and reducing glare, thereby reducing the need
for any kind of artificial lighting.
SGG Cool-
Lite
Titanium 22 21 29 0.32 0.37 5.2
Blue (STB
120)
Differences – According to the book case studies there are some differences
Materials SGG Nano Olive (KT 455) SGG Cool-Lite Titanium Blue
(STB 120) and SGG
Planitherm Pristine White
(PLT T)
(a) Primary Data - Observations, Photo documentation, live case studies and book case
studies.
(b) Secondary Data - Earlier research, Documents, and to evaluate secondary data
sources and comparing it with the case studies.
As it the qualitative research the analysis can be done in tabular form specifying the
parameters of case studies and differentiating it.
Year - 2016
The strategy is to manipulate the building sectionals, and then this sectional articulation
manifests on the facade through the fenestration and a climate responsive skin.
Vandita Bhala, Fourth Year B. Arch. (A) 2018-19 13
Suitable Facades in Pune Climate
Year - 2014
Function - Circuit house is a government public building which not only accommodates
the VIP authorities but also act as a node for political meetings, discussion and
conferences.
2. Public areas - Conference and meeting hall facilities, dinning, reception, VIP areas etc.
Image 9 Facade
ABOUT BUILDING
Design is based on climate responsive with passive strategies for thermal and
visual comfort along to achieve energy efficient green building.
Contemporary architecture of this building has been derived from vernacular
ethos.
Shaded courtyard is a highly contemporary version of the 'old chowk' of
traditional Wadas of Pune.
Allowing plenty of natural ventilation.
Transition spaces play a key role in achieving thermal and visual comfort. (Daily,
Arch daily, 2017)
Image 11 Elevation
Image 13 Facade
Site contained some old stone structures and 197 fully grown trees.
New collector’s office is designed incorporating the stone and some of the
architectural features from the old structures.
Main stress was given on preserving the existing old trees and the flora-fauna
without depleting the established Eco-system while constructing the new
structure. (Archdaily, 2019)
Structure - G + 5floors
The design started with the evolution of three masses - Office wing A and B, and
a parking building set apart from each other to create a semi-open plaza and
fourth mass - Wing C is designed on top of these three masses.
All wings are connected to each other by bridges at various levels.
Each of the office wings is designed with a central courtyard.
Image 18 Section
4. Analysis
4.1. Materials for Facade:
Considering material selection during design phase aspect aids optimizing maintenance
cost, as many case studies revealed that maintenance cost of facade incorporated building
is 50% of that of construction. It is inevitable minimize maintenance cost which is often
overlooked previously by architectures. Defective or poor quality of materials leads to
major defect in post construction service. Thus along with required results, an architect
must find balanced solution between cost of material, its quality, compatibility with
climate in city which building is based, building technique and maintenance cost,
depending on plan description. Although availability of material is also an important
issue, because in case of damage to installed façade, during repair, materials must be
available as easily as possible, considering previously discussed parameters.
Thermal performance deals with ability of materials to sustain high temperature as well
as temperature fluctuations. Temperature fluctuations considered is on both daily and
seasonal temperature cycles (implying climatic compatibility of material). Thus materials
used in different city to construct facade may vary; for instance Mumbai has hot and
humid climate whereas in Pune humidity level aren’t high as that of Mumbai, hence exact
same facade cannot be implicated in both cities. More than half of India is located at
Vandita Bhala, Fourth Year B. Arch. (A) 2018-19 20
Suitable Facades in Pune Climate
equatorial region; hence facade must minimize energy consumed for cooling the building,
while having sunlight so that excess energy won’t be consumed in electrical lighting.
i) Durability
ii) Material sustainability
iii) Compatibility
iv) Safety and health
v) Material economy and availability
vi) Functional and thermal performance
UV resistible and anti-corrosive properties for facade are important in Indian terrain,
since due to humidity and pollution rate, facade lacking these properties is subjected to
failure.
Materials used for cladding of facades are stainless steel, glass, cor-ten, aluminium,
copper, brass and bronze. Stainless steel offers high sustainability along with adequate
corrosive resistance where as aluminum offers high strength to weight ratio making
cladding weight effective and this material has high anti-corrosive properties also can be
enhanced using pattern painting aluminum but due to low thermal resistance, this coating
isn’t preferred in climates having high temperatures or high temperature fluctuations.
These metal wall panels or cladding are expensive to install but offer high degree of
durability and also gives modern and expensive aesthetic look. Ceramic cladding or
masonry veneer also offers high durability and flexibility with low costs compared to
metal panels. Although they have high self-weight and detailing is also difficult. Fibre
cement is also a viable option where cost and ease of installation are prioritized. These
are lightweight than masonry but aren’t as durable as that of metal panels and masonry
veneer. Glass is most favored material in India, since they provide excellent thermal,
acoustic insulation, solar control and fire protection. It can be bent, insulated, toughened
and laminated making it favorable for installation. It can also give good aesthetic look to
buildings, but its con being the maintenance and requirement of periodic cleaning.
Laminated glass with calculated glaze percentage, Fiber cement layers on walls with
wooden cladding on them not only gives energy efficient results but also is cost effective
and offer better aesthetic looks. Wooden cladding can be replaced by metal panel or
multi-layered metal glass or metal ceramic cladding for harsh, dusty, humid and polluted
environments. Although cladding materials are discussed, required thickness of materials,
for it to be effective, is also necessary. The order size according to supplier is needed to
be considered. Wooden cladding is generally effective for ply thickness more than 15 mm
in Indian terrain.
4.2. Effects:
Advantages:
Disadvantages:
1) Maintenance:
It is important to maintain facade systems periodically so that they will perform as
expected in design phase. Glass facade systems require periodic cleaning, thus
making it important factor during design since, if cleaning and maintenance costs
are more than gains received from reducing energy consumption and aesthetic
views, installing them won’t be profitable and lead to unnecessary expenses.
2) Effect on outdoor climate:
Facade systems are selective permeable systems which allow only part of incident
radiation to enter into interior. The remainder is reflected back into exterior
environment. This leads to rise in normal exterior conditions; sometimes further
leading to drastic climatic changes. However environmental impacts of these
systems are infinitesimally small, high number of facade installed system
concentrated in an area can make sever environmental impact.
3) High installation cost and material availability:
This con is most familiar with glass facade systems. Since glass used has specific
glaze percentage and varied refractive index, manufacturing of such glass is
expensive. Mass production is not an option, because facade system requirements
change according climate and environment in which it is to be installed. During
case of damage to facade systems due to natural or man-made, same material
must be available for repair or at least viable replacement should be available,
though varying material costs with respect to time can make it worse.
5. Conclusion
After carefully study available case studies analysis of facade materials and
climatic aspects of Pune it can be concluded that glass facades systems is best suited for
the climate.The only downside of glass facade is that it has high maintenance charge.
However, it is concluded that glass facade is more cost effective in the long run. This is
because it is long lasting and more durable as compared to the steel, iron facades etc. In
addition, it provides other benefits that cannot be found in steel and iron facades. One of
it is that glass facade helps to create a more comfortable and eco-friendly environment
which in turn, saves the building’s energy resources.
Even wooden or aluminium cladding offer best possible and cost effective
solution in the region. Aluminium cladding is mostly used in regions having high
pollution, as aluminium has high anti-corrosive properties.
Reference
Archdaily. (2019, February 3). Arch daily. Retrieved February 14, 2019, from Arch daily:
https://www.archdaily.com/910545/collector-office-in-pune-sunil-patil-and-associates
Archdaily. (2016, June 16). Archdaily. Retrieved January 19, 2019, from Arch daily:
https://www.archdaily.com/789611/lokmanya-multipurpose-co-operative-credit-society-
thirdspace-architecture-studio
Daily, A. (2014, January 14). Arch daily. Retrieved February 10, 2019, from Arch daily:
https://www.archdaily.com/466958/suzlon-one-earth-global-corporate-headquarters-
christopher-benninger
Daily, A. (2017, March 2). Arch daily. Retrieved January 20, 2019, from Arch daily:
https://www.archdaily.com/806407/vvip-circuit-house-i-sunil-patil-and-associates
Gobain, S. (2018, December 3). High performing glass solution. Retrieved February 10,
2019, from Saint Gobain Glass: https://in.saint-gobain-glass.com/en-in/sgg-cool-lite
Gobian, S. (2018, Decenber 3). High performing glass solution. Retrieved February 10,
2019, from Saint Gobain Glass: https://in.saint-gobain-glass.com/en-in/sgg-planitherm
GRIHA. (2019, January 20). Green Building in India. (SGG) Retrieved February 12,
2019, from A Saint Gobin Glass Initiatve: http://greenbuildinglocator.in.saint-gobain-
glass.com
Lee, E. S., Selkowitz, S., Bazjanac, V., & Kolher, C. (2002, January 10). High-
performance commercial building facade. ResearchGate .
Meraj, H. (2017, January 24). Intelligent building facades. Retrieved September 2, 2018,
from Intelligent building facades: http://www.slideshare.net/hamzaaaaaah/intelligent-
building-facades-71334931
Napier, J. (2015, January 9). Climates Based Facade Design for Business Buildings with
Examples from Central London. Architectural journal,Department of Architecture,
University of Lincoln , 16-18.
Nesan, L., & Mohammed, M. A. (2015, August 10). Facade material selection criteria for
optimising building maintainability. ResearchGate .