BUILDING

SUSTAINABILITY:
THE ROLE OF
THE ARCHITECT
SUSTAINABILITY
 Study of Sustainable Development and
Environmental Science
 “To keep the earth continue to support
human life”
 Combines the 3 Pillars
 1. Economy
 2. Society
 3. Environment
HARNESS RENEWABLE ENERGY
 DAYLIGHT
 Facts:
 Free for up to 12 hours a day
 Has luminance value of 450,000,000 foot-
lambert as viewed from earth (40W
fluorescent cool white lamp has 5,000 fL)
 Illumination of 5,000-10,000 foot candles
under direct sunlight (5-10 fc when inside
transient spaces)
 Daylight’s energy can be stored
 Daylight varies from time to time and from
place to place
 Harnessing the sun’s energy is “still”
expensive these days
 Excessive sunlight causes visual discomfort
(glare) when not properly taken into
consideration
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
1. ROOM GEOMETRY:
 “MINIMIZE ROOM DEPTH , MAXIMIZE
CEILING HEIGHT”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
2. SIDELIGHTING
 “ORIENT WORKSTATIONS SO THAT
DAYLIGHT WILL BE ON EITHER SIDE OF THE
WORKER”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
3. EFFECTIVE DISTANCE
 “SIDELIGHTING IS ASSUMED TO BE
EFFECTIVE 2.5 TIMES THE WINDOW HEIGHT
INWARD THE ROOM”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
4. ORIENTATION
 “NORTH –
CONSISTENT
ILLUMINATION
 SOUTH – GREATEST
AMOUNT OF
DAYLIGHT
 EAST AND WEST – HAS
SERIOUS EFFECT ON
BUILDING COOLING
LOAD”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
5. OVERHEAD LIGHTING
“ADMIT DAYLIGHT FROM
THE ROOF BY SKYLIGHTS
AND OTHERS”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
6. ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS

“CONSIDER THE USE OF BRISE

L’ OLEIL (CANOPY, PIERCED
SCREENS, FINS, LOUVERS,
BLINDS ETC.)”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
7. WINDOW LOCATION

“THE HIGHER THE WINDOW

THE , THE BETTER THE
POTENTIAL FOR DAYLIGHT.”
“WINDOW BELOW
WORKPLANE HAS VERY
LITTLE ILLUMINATION VALUE”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
8. ROOM FINISH
“LIGHTER ROOM FINISH ARE EFFECTIVE BUT
AVOID HIGH-REFLECTIVE WHITE SURFACES”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
9. SPACE PLANNING
“OPEN SPACE ALLOW DAYLIGHT TO
PENETRATE DEEPER INTO SPACE”
RULE OF THE THUMB: Role of
the Architect
10. GLAZING AREA

“GLAZING NEED NOT

BE GREATER THAN
25% OF THE FLOOR
AREA”
Sustainable strategies for
Interior Illumination
1. Take advantage on day lighting and
solar power for energy
o Consider fenestration design, size and
orientation
o Practice space planning that enables most
rooms to be naturally day lighted
o Store solar power for night time use
2. Educate people and advocate energy
conservation
Sustainable strategies for
Interior Illumination
3. Promote high-efficient technologies and
strategies
o Use of automated light switches
o Light scheduling and use of correct
wattage
o Multi use system designs
o Use of highly efficient lighting such as LED
lights
 Thank you