PRIYANGA JAYAVEERAN

INTERIOR AND FURNITURE DESIGN (2017 – 2021)

UA1721218

STUDY OF ZERO-ENERGY BUILDING –

FOR CHILDREN ACTIVITY CENTRE
TO FOCUS ON PASSIVE DESIGN STRATEGIES
SELF – SPONSORED PROJECT

PROJECT INTRODUCTION
Children spend a major part of their lives in schools, during their vital development years.
During this time of crucial and essential growth, children tend to learn, hold on to values, and
develop habits/behavioral patterns which will be carried throughout their lives. Thus, schools
must provide children with a space for creative and design thinking from an early age, it
should be an origin of inspiration, and a beginning for developing a sense of responsibility
and awareness. The pathway to the goal begins with teaching students and helping them to
explore their abilities in a healthy and sustainable environment.
If we were equipped with design thinking and values of sustainability, sustainable principles
earlier, during our schooling, the global crisis faced now, the alarming rate in which the
resources are depleting could have been a different situation. Today, with the rise in the
levels of global warming, carbon dioxide emissions, there is a need to improve the energy
efficiency of buildings. A shift in the way of living from what we practice today to more
green and sustainable living is an effective strategy for improving the quality of living.
Building green should not be a choice, it should be a commitment for future generations.
Building green should not be restriction just for residences it should be the standard for all
construction.
This thesis focuses on developing a self -sustaining, zero – energy consuming school with
refence to passive design strategies and an activity center for children which will not only
focus on educating the children and teenagers of the age 4 to 16, with sustainable practices
but also provide them with range of activities which schools usually don’t provide. It not only
helps them to start practicing sustainably from childhood, it also helps them to grow with a
different way of living, with minimal damage to the environment and resources, which is the
need of the hour.

NEED OF THE STUDY

Energy conservation has become one of the most important factors in any construction or
design. Energy conservation does not only mean saving of electricity or saving water, it
should start from the most basic stage of the planning; orientation of the building, amount of
ventilation, etc. The study focuses on passive design strategies, which will analyze the basis
on which a building or an institution should be constructed in order to achieve zero – energy.

AIM
To study passive design strategies and design a passive ventilation system with reference to
Zero -energy building of an educational institution.

OBJECTIVES
1) Incorporating passive design strategies.
2) Introducing passive ventilation system into the design.
3) Concentrating on building materials to reduce energy consumption.
METHODOLOGIES
1) By focusing on HVAC system, interior Materials.
2) Analyzing and calculating ventilation for parts of the design and appropriate
placement.
3) Selection of materials using life cycle analysis.

LIMITATION
Although dealing with Zero – energy building which will be sustainable, this study focuses
only on the design strategies and materials, it will not deal with all the elements that are
required to achieve a zero – energy building. It also focuses only on the interior part of the
design and not the exterior.

SITE
a. LOCATION
Location chosen for this study is Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
 b. APPROACH
As the site is located very close to the Gandhinagar main road, there is good means of
transport and the site can be approached through train, as it is close to Gandhinagar
railway station, bus or van, the nearest airport is Ahmedabad airport.
c. SITE
The site chosen for the study is around the Gandhinagar convention Centre, which is
the hub and also the identity of the city. The site is located on the main road of
Gandhinagar. (Gandhinagar sector 13).
d. SITE SURROUDNIG
Around the site there are a few important landmarks such as Mahatma Gandhi
Mandir, Convention & Exhibition Centre, Gandhinagar railway station, the to-be
opened 5-star Leela hotel.

REASON FOR SELCETING THE SITE

Gandhinagar is not of the capital city of Gujarat but also known as “Green City” which
already contributes to the conservation of resources. It is also accessible for me to undertake a
site visit and thoroughly understand the site context.

DELIVERABLES
Research in-depth about zero energy building (ZEB), passive design strategies.
Study similar projects and sites, extensive case studies.
Site selection, site analysis.
Develop a client brief.
Develop a design brief (Creating relevant boards for understanding the design)
Space planning
Technical drawing
Visualization (3 stages – basic sketching, 2D perspectives, 3D model)
Final decisions of the outcome of the design.
Rendered views.
Compilation.

TIME CHART
Task Time required
Initial Research 2 weeks
Case study 1 weeks
 Site selection, Site analysis 2 weeks
Developing client brief 3 days
Developing design brief 4 days
Space planning 1 week
Technical drawing 1 week
Visualization 1 week
Final decision 1 week
Rendering 1 week
compilation 1 week

LITERATURE REVIEW
Literature review will be undertaken on projects which have a similar context or the use of
passive strategies. Initial two case studies will include
 The Torrent Research Centre in Ahmedabad, by Abhikram
 Environmental Sanitation Institute, Sughad
Tentatively the idea of making a part model will also be included in the study.