BAHIR DAR UNIVERSITY

ARCHITECTURE DEPARTMENT

Course Title: Appropriate Building Technology [Arch 4262]

COURSE MANAGER
Academic year: 2019/20 G.C., 2012 E.C.
▪ Wénďmageñ Geleta Megersa (MSc)
Program: B.Sc. in Architecture Phone no: +251945545241
Year: 4 E-mail: wendmagegngeleta@gmail.com
Semesters: 8
Prerequisites: None
EtCTS Credits: 4

Course Objectives
The aim of the course is to raise the student’s awareness of appropriate building technologies,
crafts and materials in design.
“Appropriate Building Technology” refers to building processes and tools that are appropriate to
the climate, socio-economic conditions and natural resources of an area, and which contribute
to sustainable development.
The result is an “Appropriate Architecture” used for the integration into construction of all the
separate technologies and disciplines involved in the research and promotion of sustainable
solutions.
The course focuses on appropriate building technology: analysis, objective, target population.
Design and construction of earth materials, bamboo, fiber reinforced concrete, solar energy,
wind energy etc. Project: Practical design and construction exercises. Construction of actual
model buildings using experimental materials.

Course Contents
1. Introduction to Sustainable Design

1.1. The Definition of Sustainable Design

1.2. Sustainable Design Strategies
1.3. Green Building Design Concepts
1.4. Green Building Performance Evaluation Tools

2. Appropriate Building Technology

2.1. The Concept and Goals of Appropriate Technology

2.2. Sustainable Appropriate Materials
2.3. Cost Efficient Construction
2.4. Designs from a Low-Tech Approach
Semester Schedule

Week NO Contents Assignments

Week 01 Lecture on Reading assignment regarding

the lecture given and
1.1. The Definition of Sustainable Design
Assignment-01
1.2. Sustainable Design Strategies

Week 02 Discussion and student’s presentation on Assignment-01 Assignment-01

Week 03 Lecture on Reading assignment regarding

the lecture given and Assignment-
1.3. Green Building Design Concepts
02
1.4. Green Building Performance Evaluation Tools

Week 04 Consultation and discussion on Assignment -02 Assignment-02

Week 05 Discussion and student’s presentation on Assignment-02 Assignment-03

Week 06 Lecture on Reading assignment regarding

the lecture given and Assignment-
2.1. The Concept and Goals of Appropriate Technology
03
2.2. Sustainable Appropriate Materials

Week 07 Consultation and discussion on Assignment -03 Assignment -03

Week 08 Lecture on Reading assignment regarding

the lecture given and Assignment-
2.3. Cost Efficient Construction
03
2.4. Designs from a Low-Tech Approach

Week 09 Discussion and student’s presentation on Assignment-03 Semester project

(research part)

Week 10 Consultation and discussion on Semester project Semester project

(about research part) (material selection)

Week 11 Consultation and discussion on Semester project Semester project

(about material selection) (spatial planning)

Week 12 Consultation and discussion on Semester project Semester project

(about spatial planning)

Week 13 Draft panel presentation on Semester project Semester project

Week 14 Consultation and discussion on project deliveries Semester project

Week 15 Final panels submission of all the documented semester Semester project
project design details with given presentation panel
templet before three days of final jury.

Week 16 Final Exam -

Course Assignments
Assignment-01
Study the comfort inside land administration building office by interviewing workers that uses
the building in terms of, thermal comfort inside their office throughout the day, how the day light
behaves at morning, mid-day and afternoon. And also analyze the built environment (office
building), its structure, building material used for construction and architectural design quality
affect the working environment inside and outside of the building in addition how the office
building consumes energy to maintain comfort inside the building. Students will bring their study
for class discussion at the very beginning of the class with possible recommendation to improve
the comfort inside the land administration building by minimizing energy utilization for AC and
other mechanisms or by using passive way of building retrofit.
The assignment is in group of five students, and each student will present at least two slides of
the study for discussion in class.

Assignment-02
Select a building and/or a settlement internationally, designed and constructed with clear
sustainable design strategies, as a case study for best sustainable design and construction
practices (E.g. Villa Flora, Netherlands; Masdar City, Abu Dhabi)
Assignment Guide:
1. The assignment is individual and each student will work on one selection that is not similar to
any other student. If a case is selected by more than two students, they should have to
negotiate and the one will work on selection and the others should find new project never
occupied by others. After all the class representative should submit list of those students
name together with their selection of the case two weeks before submission/presentation
date.
2. Students should identify the sustainable considerations taken during the design, construction
and post occupancy (if occupied) stages. Also, reflect on the sustainability considerations
including the technology’s applied for desired achievement.
3. Findings discussion, conclusion and references of the assignment also must be included on
the final pages of submitted document.
4. Students are expected to submit their work within 12 pages of ISO standard A4 size paper
including cover page for title of the document. Paragraph texts must be Arial font style with
12pts size, 1.15 paragraph line spacing and justified text alignment. If students skip this
criterion, their work will not be assessed properly and irrelevant and excessive use of
pictures is not encouraged.
5. The contents of assignment must include:
➢ Introduction
➢ Project facts (E.g. location, building height, etc.)
➢ Sustainable strategies (E.g. energy utilization, thermal comfort, etc.)
➢ Technology applied (E.g. building envelop, structure, etc.)
➢ Findings discussion
➢ Conclusion
➢ Reference
Assignment-03
Study locally and/or traditionally available materials possibly used for construction inside and
around Bahir Dar city.
Assignment Guide:
1. The assignment is in group consist of three students. Students will engage on studding
locally available construction materials. However, each group will study at least 3 types of
materials in detail, and also its recommended that each group focus of study is not similar to
the other one.
2. During study each group must answer the following questions in their analysis part
➢ What is it made from?
➢ How is it made?
➢ Where is it manufactured?
➢ How is it constructed?
➢ What is its physical property?
➢ How long is it life after construction?
➢ How is it disposed of after its useful life?
➢ How does it function?
➢ How it impacts the surrounding environment when its used?
➢ Does its technologically manufactured locally?
➢ Could it be constructed with local knowledge and human labor?
➢ Does it affordable for local community?

3. With the above question students expected to find innovative solutions that could help those
materials to be modified in terms of unit volumes, dimensions, architectural finishes, usable
functionality, face finishes of materials and any other modifications that could help better
performance of materials during applications.
4. Graphical illustrations such as photographs, tables, charts and sequential diagrammatic
illustrations are very necessary for assignment. And each student should have to study their
cases by means of physical contact where those materials exist and taking observations and
data recordings.
5. Students are expected to submit their work including cover page for title of the document
within 10 pages of ISO standard A3 size paper in landscape orientation. Paragraph texts
must be Arial font style with 12pts size, 1.15 paragraph line spacing and justified text
alignment. If students skip this criterion, their work will not be assessed properly and
irrelevant and excessive use of pictures is not encouraged. Clear and illustrative graphical
demonstration with high quality architectural presentation techniques were expected from
submissions of the assignment.
6. The contents of assignment must include:
➢ Introduction
➢ Analysis
➢ Findings of study
➢ Modification
➢ Conclusion
➢ Recommendation
➢ Reference
Semester Project
Throughout the semester students will work on a design project proposal for rural village near
around Bahir Dar city (yet to decided) for possible transformation in to rural city. The challenge
is to transform the village with compressive main functions useful for the village with locally
available appropriate building materials and construction technique. Students must reflect those
study’s made on previous assignments on their design proposals as well as modifications of
construction techniques and materials to have better architectural finish for required functional
application.
Project Guide
1. The project is in group consist of two students. Each group should engage in one of the
following design projects:
▪ Animal farming (cattle, milk, sheep’s, etc.) + Residence
▪ Vatable/fruit farming + Residence
▪ Bakery and shop + Residence
▪ Metal and wood work center
▪ Processing center (flower, meet, dairy products, vegetables, etc.)
▪ School (elementary or high school for population of no more than 120 students)
▪ Clinic (accessible for 500 residents)
▪ Market center (accessible for 500 residents)
▪ Government workers flat (no more than for 20 family’s)
▪ Meeting hall (for occupation of 200 peoples)
▪ Cafeteria, pub or restaurant (accessible for 100 peoples)
▪ Public services (such as polis station, telecom center, fire station etc.)
2. Student must find solutions how to apply local materials and construction technologies to get
low-tech but high-quality architecture in addition sustainable materials and designing
principles that couldn’t affect the environment. And also, each project will be designed on 500
square meets of land.
3. Students are expected to submit their proposal with four A1 ISO paper size panels in
landscape orientation (templets/presentation layout for panels will be given by the instructor
in future class). Texts on panels must be Arial font style with 12pts size, 1.15 paragraph line
spacing and justified text alignment. Submissions will be both in hard copy and pdf files
named with student name and date of submissions (e.g. Bahir Dar University/Appropriate
Building Technology/ Full name/Assignment name/ YY-MM-DD).
4. Graphically poor or unfinished presentation panels will not be assessed by instructor;
however, students must be carful about their presentation technics and it’s the first
priority by instructor of this course before evaluation of the panels started.
5. Submission of proposal materials are summarized as follows:

1. Presentation panels four A1 papers in land scape orientation (layouts will be given).
2. Not book that describe and illustrate the proposal with A3 paper not more than 20 pages.
3. Physical model with scale of 1:100.
`

Student obligations during the semester

Based on student’s selection on their compressive project title students will work on selected
project throughout the semester and continue developing architectural design with clear and
appropriate presentation techniques including submission of digital and hard printed copies to
their respective instructor. However, project changes after starting of progress will not be
tolerable and students must careful during their selection of project types.

Students must able to submit their project assignments both in continuous consultations and
final presentation panels with the provided dates of submissions. Any inquires based on project
delivery date exchange will not be acceptable and also late submissions will be held with low
grade results or total dismissal of delivery.

Only a maximum of two dates are acceptable for exceptional cases of absence with
reasonable document evidence, however if students are absent more than two days the course
evaluation will be terminate and a student be dismissed from the course.

Warning!!!
Graphically poor or unfinished presentation panels will not be assessed by instructor;
however, students must careful about their presentation technics and it’s the first
priority by instructor of this course before evaluation of the panels started

Course Literatures

-Chris Abel, Architecture, technology and process Solar House by Terry Galloway
-GyulaSebestyebe, Christopher Poling ton, New Architecture and technology
- Horie, Materials for conservation
-Alternate Energy /http:/www.econet.org/awea/
- John Warren, Conservation of earth structures
- R. Chudley and R. Greene, Building construction handbook:

Students Assessment Composition

Assignment-01 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5%
Assignment-02-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10%
Assignment-03-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20%
Semester Project ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 40%
Final Exam ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 25%
Total ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------100%
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