Requirements for Architectural, Technical and Aesthetic Solutions for Housing

Often there is a need for spaces that are not only large enough but also properly zoned and grouped to meet the above needs.

d. Solutions for organizing traffic connections in the house

- Usually, there are two main solutions: using the front room as a traffic junction to connect to other rooms and using the living room as a common living area as a traffic junction. Of course, with an apartment, it is possible to combine with some internal family corridors to create privacy and secrecy for some rooms in the night area, as well as with multi-storey apartments, the stairs can be arranged in the front room. Then the lower floor is for daytime activities. The upper floors are for night activities.

- The advantages and disadvantages of each solution will be carefully studied when discussing each type of housing in the following chapters.

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- Up to now, housing can still be a rich combination of spaces. Continuous transformation with each room, each space is a separate function to satisfy the rich needs of modern family life, ensuring the right to exploit and use according to the homeowner's preferences, with extremely flexible and rich solutions to combine interior and exterior spaces, the spaces can be interwoven, dynamically transformed...

- Thus, housing is a product created by humans that is always being perfected and improved with experience in conquering nature, exploiting nature, taking advantage of scientific and technological advances and following the increasingly improved life of social civilization, so there will never be a housing model that is always ideal for everyone, at all times.

4.3.2 Solutions for modern apartment interior space combination

- Creating separate rooms by connecting through the entrance hall and corridor, a solution often applied to cold countries, countries with high lifestyle and personal living requirements. Organizations allow us to create privacy and facilitate local climate. Inside the apartment and family life is a bit rigid, cold, lacking the mutual care of a true oriental home.

- Use the common room, living room to combine other rooms around it, create a warm space for the family, create a rich interior and architectural space for the external space while creating the necessary isolation and privacy for night activities, however in cold countries, air conditioning and heating the common room will be very difficult to do economically and effectively.

- The continuous circulation space according to this solution, the rooms have no partitions. The entrance doors are clear and neat, creating private corners by means of standing cabinets, screens, light and mobile walls...

- In short

In these solutions, the interior space will be extremely diverse, always creating surprises, there are interweavings of space but still have the necessary isolation while allowing people to change the organization and divide the space as desired to meet the needs of the family's demographic fluctuations. However, it also needs to create privacy and confidentiality for the activities of each member, not thoroughly ensuring a suitable climate in the interior will be costly (air conditioning consumes energy).

4.4 Requirements for architectural, technical and aesthetic solutions for housing

4.4.1 Requirements for architectural solutions

- When designing housing, attention must be paid to climatic conditions, population structure, ethnic customs and other local conditions.

- In houses, bedrooms are arranged on the floors above ground. In high areas, it is allowed to arrange rooms on two floors at the foot of the wall. In this case, the floor level of the room compared to the sidewalk next to the house must not be lower than 1.2m, and the room's windows must be at least 3m away from the edge of the walkway.

- In residential houses, the floor height (from the floor of the lower floor to the floor of the upper floor) is regulated to be 3m, the clear height of the room must not be lower than 2.7m. (If the bedroom uses a bunk bed, the clear height of the room must not be less than 3m).

- The depth of the room (calculated in the direction of direct natural light) receiving light from one side must not exceed 6m (clear) and must not be greater than twice the room height.

- When the house faces the street or the square, it is allowed to be located on the first floor or at the foot of the wall of technological stores, public services serving life. In this case, the rooms of the above enterprises and agencies must ensure soundproofing and prevent odor pollution to the house by appropriate technical solutions. When there are stores in or adjacent to the house, it is not allowed to design the entrance to the house directly to the yard.

- In the house, the living rooms and kitchen must have direct natural light.

- Water pumps and boilers must not be installed in residential houses; transformer stations inside or adjacent to the house; automatic telephone stations (except for those serving the house; headquarters of city and district administrative agencies); medical clinics (except for gynecological and dental examinations); dining rooms with more than 50 seats; public toilets; parts containing or using flammable materials; parts that generate noise, toxic fumes and toxic waste exceeding the permitted limits; specialized fish shops; construction materials, chemical and grocery stores that, when operating, pollute the environment around the house.

4.4.2 Staircase in multi-storey apartment building

- The public transportation requirements in an apartment building are also directly related to the quality of living. People living in an apartment building require that the traffic intersections (lobby, elevator, stairs) be bright and should be naturally ventilated, the corridors leading to the apartments should be short, almost no corridor, but only the entrance to the apartments.

- Staircase is the vertical traffic junction of a house, has great importance for the quality of use, so when designing, it is necessary to pay due attention. Staircase ensures vertical connection functions and people escape in case of an accident.

- Stairs have different types such as stairs with natural light, closed stairs (in the middle of the house), outdoor stairs.

- Stairs with natural light

This type is placed indoors but one side of the elevator shaft is exposed to nature for ventilation, sunlight, and good fire protection; in terms of use, it is also convenient and suitable for human psychology, so it is the most widely used.

- Closed staircase

This type is placed in the middle of the house, without artificial lighting, saving space for traffic to enter the rooms. The floor plan of this type of staircase is relatively tight, favored by cold countries but requires certain regulations (for example, large floors must be designed with two staircases).

- Outdoor stairs

This staircase, in addition to its vertical connection function, also has a great aesthetic effect. In the case of high-rise buildings, for convenience and safety, this type of staircase is rarely designed, but is mainly used as an indoor staircase.

- According to the form of stairs can be divided into

+ Parallel staircase

+ One-way straight staircase

+ Three-sided stairs with right angles, horizontal stairs with diagonal steps at both ends, or circular stairs (less widely used than the two types above).

- Location, quantity and size of stairs depend on floor plan; number of floors; number of people.

- When designing stairs, pay attention to the following specifications:

+ The number of consecutive degrees on one side is not less than 3 and not greater than 18.

+ The width of the ladder body is taken as 0.6m wide for 100 people needing to escape.

+ Clear width of the staircase is at least 1.05m; width of the stairwell is at least 2.2m (clear).

+ Landing and approach height must not be less than 1.2m.

+ Stair slope I=1:2 or 1:1.75. Step size ensures a+2b = 60cm.

Internal family stairs can be sloped up to 45 degrees .

+ Step size I = 1:2 is taken as 15x30cm; in case of adding a bike ramp in the middle, make the slope smaller than I = 1:3.

+ The width of the stairwell in our country is usually taken as the column pitch of the house floor plan, most commonly 2.7m; 2.8m; 3m... sometimes 2.4m.

+ In some countries, the width of the stairs depends on the number of floors; for reference, please refer to the following:

2-3 storey house take 1.1 to 1.2m 4-5 storey house take 1.2 to 1.3m

Houses with 6 floors or more take 1.3 to 1.4m

- The design of the stairs in the house should pay attention to two ways of organizing the entrance of the first floor apartment.

+ Organize the entrance under the stairs (in this case, pay attention to ensuring the height from the floor to the stair beam of the first floor, as well as pay attention to organizing the awning at the entrance of the house outside higher than the floor to the stairs to ensure aesthetics).

+ The entrance to the house is placed in a small hall opposite the stairs through the hallway, this type is spacious but takes up an area equivalent to a living room.

4.4.3 Aesthetics in residential architecture

- Aesthetics is the enjoyment of the beauty of the surrounding world, beauty is always associated with perception.

- Architecture is considered a manifestation of mathematical beauty based on harmonious and rational symmetry.

- In residential architectural design, in addition to the familiar rules of combination and proportion such as rhyme, contrast, main and secondary... we also have to pay attention to the surrounding elements and location. The surrounding landscape element plays a special role in residential architectural design. If in architectural construction, compatibility and conformity between parts is a basic condition to create a unified and harmonious whole, then in housing, it is transferred to another level - the community level.

Question section :

Question 15 : Describe the functions of a modern apartment. Question 16 : Describe the current trends in apartment design.

Question 17 : What are the requirements in modern apartment design? State the design requirements suitable for human psychology.

Question 18 : What are the solutions for designing apartments that satisfy the conditions of comfort and energy saving?

Reference books

1. Associate Professor, Dr. Architect Nguyen Duc Thiem - 2004 - Principles of civil architecture design - Science and Technology Publishing House, Hanoi

2. Ministry of Construction - 1997 - Collection (Volume IV) of Vietnam's Construction Standards - Construction Publishing House, Hanoi

3. Architect Luong Anh Dung - 2003 - Housing quality for urban areas after 2000 - Science and Technology Publishing House, Hanoi

Reference website

www.kientrucviet.com.vn, www.diendanxaydung.vn , www.ashui.com, www.act.com.vn , www.wiki.com ,....

Chapter 5

Trends and experiences in residential architectural design

5.1. Trends and solutions to improve housing comfort and quality

5.1.1 Solutions to create a comfortable microclimate in the home

- Housing in the tropical climate conditions in Vietnam requires solutions to combat the harmful effects of the environment on human physiology. Housing needs to combine three types of spaces: closed, open and semi-closed, with large porches, loggias, and yards to create transitional spaces against heat and heavy rain.

- The indoor space must be airy, natural ventilation must be handled by the following methods:

+ Choose a suitable house direction to have cool wind in summer (Southeast), avoid cold wind in winter (Northeast)

+ Create gaps that are beneficial for natural cool breezes to blow into the room, using solutions to create air intake bridges through the arrangement of stairs, courtyards, common rooms, etc.

+ Heat-proof the roof by creating a convection air layer in the form of a double roof layer; using waterproof heat-insulating and heat-reflecting materials; heat-proofing walls and windows (combined with rain-proofing); using mobile and fixed sunshades; using climbing plant walls...

5.1.2 Flexibility in design and exploitation of living space

- In residential architectural design, it is necessary to create multi-functional spaces that include many different functions that can be used flexibly at different times. Using multi-functional spaces allows saving space, but still ensures comfort and quality of life.

- To create versatile, flexible spaces, it is necessary to

+ Qualitative space (determine the properties of space)

+ Determine the relationship between spaces in the house

+ Creates space circulation

5.2 Experience of countries around the world

5.2.1 Experience in organizing high-rise apartment buildings in Southeast Asian countries

a. Singapore's noteworthy experiences

- Urbanization is an inevitable path for every country in the process of industrialization and modernization of the country. As a country located in Southeast Asia, the old name of South Island speaks of its special location as well as the scarcity of land here. Singapore is the only country in Asia that has covered its entire 600km2 area with urban areas , with nearly 100% of the population living in urban areas.

- The population explosion, along with the consequences of migration from rural to urban areas, forces cities to expand and develop vertically. The construction of high-rise buildings and apartment buildings is inevitable in urban areas to meet the housing needs of the people.

urban. Singapore, famous for its multi-storey city, with the majority of

Multi-storey apartment buildings (from 16-25 floors), ensuring accommodation for nearly 90% of the urban population.

That also speaks to the efforts of the Government and people of Singapore since the post-colonial period with the implementation of a series of urban development stages, within a long-term development strategy.

- Singapore's urban areas originated from the shabby, cramped Chinatowns, which mainly served business activities. It also had a structure that was relatively suitable for the South Island climate (hot, humid, rainy) and the traditional lifestyle with wide tiled roofs and layers of houses, separated by skylights running from the street surface deep inside. This shows the relative homogeneity of the rice-growing residents in Southeast Asia with its climate and human characteristics. The island-wide planning was divided in 1958, completely eliminating the direction of developing the central urban area radiating outwards, but instead accepting the construction of the first stages of new suburban residential areas, mostly consisting of dense, low-cost high-rise buildings with minimal amenities to relieve the density of the center. This is also consistent with the early stages of new urban development based on the combination of the popular garden city style in the UK with the architectural concepts of Le Corbusier (these concepts emphasize the construction of high-rise blocks "city within the city" interspersed with convenient public service works between trees and gardens). A coincidental encounter of Singapore's architectural history resulted in areas that were completely suitable for the tropical climate overall. However, the quality of the apartments built during this period was not satisfactory in terms of ventilation, natural lighting as well as environmental landscape, due to limited area, few rooms, small auxiliary works, and lack of nature.

- Along with the construction of new urban areas in the suburbs, Singapore has tried every way to reduce the concentration of population in the central area, to relieve the pressure of overload here. By demolishing slums to replace them with green spaces, lakes, and squares, creating small green lungs in the inner city. In the area of interest, there are also construction sites and a healthy climate here, which is also a valuable experience in a period of full development, taking into account the preservation of a clean environment for the center. At the same time, traditional townhouses have also been restored to retain the architectural heritage of the city, control the height, inner courtyards, create a large lake to bring cool breezes to the city.... The large high-rise apartment buildings located far from the street give us the image of development in the spirit of symbiosis, to meet the ever-increasing needs of residents here.

- Recently, the Singapore government has raised the issue of urban quality of life to a new level. The top standard is a clean environment (tourists conclude that this is the cleanest country in the world, with high urban amenities). Environmental and climate indicators... have adapted to finding effective solutions for the whole and construction projects.

- The towers are the highlights of the moderately high buildings (multi-storey) with interwoven and spreading green areas. The area of the apartments increases very high such as 90m², 120m², 180m², creating conditions for designing airy toilets; bringing nature into the house as a factor in evaluating the quality of the apartment.

- In Singapore now there is a trend of choosing high-rise buildings.

Tropicalized architecture is located in central areas to save land, but is planted in the middle of trees, lakes, and open spaces, making the entire urban appearance here very different from Hong Kong.

- In nearly 30 years, Singapore has built 700,000 apartments, currently in the whole country about 87% of the population lives in these houses. This is a miracle that few countries in the world have achieved.

- Architectural features of Singapore

+ High-rise buildings account for a large proportion

+ Low-rise houses are mainly for very high living standards.

+ Beautiful and clean green space.

+ Reasonable apartment layout.

- Singapore is a land-scarce urban area, according to preliminary calculations, each person has an average of only about 213m2 , the proportion of high-rise buildings accounts for over 50%. The main houses have different numbers of floors, but the arrangement of the exterior of the house and the overall planning are very well-researched and orderly. Between the high-rise buildings are green gardens and playgrounds for children. The construction density is very high, but when entering the building, one feels comfortable. Living in houses with a wide view, a cool, beautiful green environment, and because of good ventilation, it is very cool in the summer. Areas with large parking lots and attentive staff make residents feel comfortable, relaxed, and convenient. The ground floor of high-rise buildings is often an empty space, so only elevators are arranged; between the stairs is a beautiful, clean, green grassy space, making people within the view not feel that high-rise buildings constrict the space, causing a feeling of being cramped, but like being in an endlessly large flower garden. Here people can sit and enjoy the cool breeze, relax or work.

conduct intimate communication activities. In this spacious lawn, there are some small and pretty architectural works built to serve as a playground for children or a resting place for the elderly. In such a landscape environment, there is no pollution, no noisy noise, only high sky, blue clouds and cool wind, the openness with clean land, green grass, fresh air makes people feel comfortable and pleasant.

- All houses have electricity and water (hot and cold) supplied regularly around the clock. Each household has its own garage, with a separate and public service manager. The garages outside the house are built with perforated bricks, with beautiful architecture and are connected to the green trees outside to form a beautiful and harmonious green strip. Household waste and garbage are contained in plastic bags for processing according to each type in the area.

- The layout of apartments in Singapore's high-rise apartments is very reasonable, usually each apartment is arranged with 3 to 4 rooms and the whole building has two common spaces (common halls) with an area of 120 - 140m2 . The rooms have the following dimensions:

+ Common living area 30m2 .

+ Kitchen 10m2 .

+ Dining room 10m2

+ Master bedroom 20 - 25m2

+ One or two secondary bedrooms 18 - 20m2

+ Can have an extra room for children

- Equivalent to the apartment layout with the above rooms, the bathrooms are designed for the master bedroom, secondary bedroom, and children's bedroom. The area of each bathroom is about 10m2 . All rooms use natural light, bright and airy. Each bedroom has a small warehouse (or wall cabinet) with an area of 1 - 2m2 . In general, the architectural layout of the apartment is quite reasonable, convenient to use and very good living conditions. Singaporean housing architecture is worthy for architectural researchers and urban planning managers in Southeast Asia in general and Vietnam in particular to survey, research and learn from experiments in the conditions of modernization and industrialization of the country.

b. Evaluation of design concepts according to climate characteristics (Malaysia)

- Designers and builders of high-rise buildings need to use local climatic factors to make the building have its own local characteristics, save energy, protect the environment and not create soulless closed boxes that can be placed anywhere in the world.

- In the design of high-rise buildings up to now, to build economically, it must have the largest internal area for each floor, the largest construction area on the land area. The following factors are considered as criteria to evaluate the efficiency of high-rise buildings:

+ Minimum outer wall length.

+ Vertical load-bearing members have the smallest dimensions.

+ Horizontal load-bearing structures have the smallest length.

+ Service core (elevator, toilet...) has the smallest area.

+ Minimum height of each floor.

- The above criteria are related to reducing construction costs. When economic efficiency is considered too much compared to aesthetics and humanity, the poetic aesthetics of architecture will inevitably be violated and the project will only be an ugly shell without any art. On the contrary, high-rise buildings designed according to climate characteristics are often considered to increase construction costs, we need to re-evaluate the synthesis of this point of view, of course, including aesthetic efficiency.

- It is often assumed that the construction of any high-rise building increases the local temperature, while this is only true in the case of houses built in a normal way. High-rise buildings designed according to climate characteristics use less energy, thereby reducing heat emissions into the environment. Furthermore, this design trend increases the planting of trees in the building, thus contributing to reducing the local temperature. Designing high-rise buildings according to this perspective can reduce 40% of energy costs during the operation of the house, because most of the costs are in the exploitation and use process. This is a significant amount of savings, in addition to having a good effect on improving the microclimate, it also creates ecological balance, although it increases the initial construction investment capital. One possible reason is the impact of the solution on users, the project will have better aesthetic effects and at the same time allow them to feel the changes in the outside climate, instead of having to spend long working hours in an artificial environment, year after year.

- Finally, and most importantly, from the perspective of human history and the history of human settlement, climate is the least variable factor and one of the most important factors in human history.

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