Modules

Module title: Architectural Technology 1
SCQF level: 07:
SCQF credit value: 20.00
ECTS credit value: 10
Module code: BSV07101
Module leader: Jon Stinson
School School of Engineering and the Built Environment
Subject area group: Building and Surveying
Prerequisites

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2018/9, Trimester 2, Face-to-Face, Edinburgh Napier University
Occurrence: 002
Primary mode of delivery: Face-to-Face
Location of delivery: MERCHISTON
Partner: Edinburgh Napier University
Member of staff responsible for delivering module: Jon Stinson
Module Organiser:


Learning, Teaching and Assessment (LTA) Approach:
Research and teaching linkages
The methods are employed by staff who are active researchers for the Institute for Sustainable Construction and Scottish energy Centre within the School or Engineering and the Built Environment. Real world examples, case studies, videos, photographs, etc. are naturally embedded within the module content and shape both the methods and LOs.

Research blending Methods include:
energy consumption, heat, electricity, water recycling and sustainable design calculations. Energy balancing with renewable, low carbon technology from the Scottish Energy Centre research centre

Construction logistics, advancements in modern methods of construction, system benefits and design decisions when considering timber, steel or masonry construction, on-site, off-site, and volumetric systems from the Centre of Off-site Construction and Innovative Structures research centre.

Formative Assessment:
The University is currently undertaking work to improve the quality of information provided on methods of assessment and feedback. Please refer to the section on Learning and Teaching Approaches above for further information about this module’s learning, teaching and assessment practices, including formative and summative approaches.

Summative Assessment:
The module is assessment driven. The students work in small groups to complete a design project. The students remain with their groups, working collaboratively to research, develop and present design solution for an ecological retreat. The students’ progress is reviewed a strategic points through the trimester which includes four main assessment elements. Each of these elements contribute to one component within the module. This affords the students the flexibility to explore and experiment with new concepts in architecture and technology in each element, whilst rewarding personal development with the core soft skills.

The students are placed into small groups. each group is assigned a client brief and a site location. the students must work collaboratively to interpret the client’s wants into a set of clients needs and use the principles of low energy technology and sustainable designs to deliver the project at the end of the trimester. The students are guided through the thought process that simulates the methods undertaken by industry professionals = these are the elements with the assessment.

Element 1: Precedent Study
Students are required to work in small groups to explore, review and discuss the key design and technology features of dwellings which showcase innovation in low energy design, energy efficiency technology and sustainability. The students are evaluated on the quality of their verbal and graphical information as they present their findings. Each student is evaluated on their knowledge and demonstration of the designer’s ethos and the building’s function and form focusing on: the dwelling’s aesthetics; internal spaces and circulation; building materials; construction methods; renewable energy and water technology; cultural relevance and environmental influences.

Element 2: Dwelling’s architectural design
Following on directly from the precedent study, the students are required to work within their groups to design a place to dwelling to meet low energy and sustainability criteria. The assessment evaluates the student’s transfer of knowledge from the first assessment (precedent study); transfer of knowledge from building design technology 1; interpretation of the client’s brief; design solution specific to the site; appearance of the building; the student’s ability to work collaboratively. This provides the student with the opportunity to refine and expand on their presentation, verbal and graphical communication skills.

Element 3: Dwelling’s technological design and energy performance
Following on from the architectural design element, the students are required to work within their groups to select and construction systems and energy technologies to deliver the sustainability criteria of the dwelling they’d designed in element 2: architectural design. The assessment evaluates the student’s transfer of knowledge from the second assessment; transfer of knowledge from building design technology 1; application of knowledge on sustainable building materials; renewable energy technologies; environmentally sensitive design; thermal comfort; building performance; achieving a low energy/off grid domestic dwelling; and the calculation methods to assess the dwelling’s low carbon/near zero energy characteristics.

Portfolio
The students summarise their work on the three previous assessments to create an architectural portfolio. This portfolio affords the students to opportunity to enhance their graphically work from the feed-forward offered for the three assessments, and organise their work into a document optimised for presentation to potential future employers.


Student Activity (Notional Equivalent Study Hours (NESH))
Mode of activityLearning & Teaching ActivityNESH (Study Hours)
Independent Learning Groupwork (Scheduled) 24
Independent Learning Guided independent study 104
Face To Face Tutorial 60
Face To Face Practical classes and workshops 12
Total Study Hours200
Expected Total Study Hours for Module200


Assessment
Type of Assessment Weighting % LOs covered Week due Length in Hours/Words
Project - Written 20 LO1-LO4 3 HOURS= 0, WORDS= 1-A1POSTER
Project - Written 45 LO3-LO5 8 HOURS= 0, WORDS= 1-A1POSTER
Project - Written 30 LO3-5 12 HOURS= 0, WORDS= 1-A1POSTER
Portfolio 5 6 13 HOURS= 0, WORDS= 0
Component 1 subtotal: 100
Component 2 subtotal: 0
Module subtotal: 100

Description of module content:

The module is driven by continual assessments, by which the students demonstrate their understanding of domestic dwelling design fundamentals through presentations and design progress reviews. This is supplemented with weekly lectures to deliver the fundamentals of domestic dwelling design and to elevate the students conceptual thinking from egocentric to allocentric and in a three-dimensional context. Weekly design discussions with students are part of the formative feed-forward between the assessment poster/slides presentations.

The module and assessments are structured to cover the basic principles of designing domestic dwellings, including techniques for presenting conceptual designs:
? Geometric form and shape
? Sizes and scales
? Circulation and flow through and around a building
? Rooms and activity spaces
? Environmental influences and considerations - sun path, prevailing winds
? Building materials and aesthetics
? Historic urban settings
? Modern rural settings
? Balancing heat losses and heat gains
? Building performance evaluation
? Calculations and practical methods to evaluate energy consumption
? Balancing energy demand with energy generation with renewable resource technologies
? Smart home technologies
? Passive and low energy design
? Ventilation strategies
? Interpreting and meeting client briefs
? Fundamentals of presenting technical drawings
? Techniques to visualise technical drawings to showcase conceptual designs
? Architectural vocabulary

Learning Outcomes for module:

LO1: undertake collaborative group work;
LO2: review iconic houses, outlining their design and technology features, form and function;
LO3: understand and explain the principles of energy efficiency and sustainability in building design;
LO4: develop and rationalise design solutions to meet user requirements;
LO5: explain the relationship between the building design and energy demand;
LO6: present, articulate and visualise design work;
Indicative References and Reading List - URL:
BSV07101
 

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