William Mcdonough's Sustainable Concept Design in Nasa Sustainable Base Buildings - Essay Example

Lecturer WILLIAM MCDONOUGHs sustainable concept design in "NASA sustainable base buildings." The fifty thousand square feet innovative office is located at the entrance of the NASA’s main centre for research in California. The structure of the NASA sustainable base building is its most iconic feature. The NASA’s wind tunnels and the satellites images inspired the structure design of the building. The exoskeleton approach of the building increases it performance structurally during any seismic occurrence. This provides the building with a framework for daylight and shading strategies hence creation of a column-free interior space that helps in facilitating flexibility of the working space. The site where the building was designed was mainly to be a net energy positive. Though the strategies that were aiming at demand of energy optimization and the provision of the needed energy supply through sources that are renewable, the goal of the sustainably base was solely to rely on the renewable forms of energy thus becoming cost effective. Despite the fact that the design of the building maximizes on the natural daylight and the forms of energy that are renewable, the building still has heating and cooling systems that are active to maintain a comfort throughout the entire year. The overall goal of water was to create a looping system that is closed allowing water that is falling on the site leave at the same rate, cleanliness and volume of the conditions that were pre-developed. The fixture of water that is used throughout the entire building optimizes the performance including the quality, quantity of flow and the control system automation. The ground water helps in reducing the demand made on the potable water. A facility that is existing to pump and clean groundwater that is contaminated is located near the NASA base building site. Sustainability base make use of this water in irrigating the landscape. NASA has developed a forward osmosis water system of recycling that is to be used in the international space station. The system helps to purify water to the level of drinking quality. The system is currently in use in treating gray water collected from sinks and showers for recycling and reuse in urinal flushing and toilets. This technology is to be monitored and then tested on earth so that its performance can be perfected to its space performance. Native, drip system of irrigation, the design of water system of cleansing and drought tolerant selection of species are what is included in the intelligent design of the buildings landscape. These reduce the demand of water further and help in cleansing the water that runs through the site of the NASA base. The interior of the sustainability base of the building supports actively the health and well-being of all the entire occupants of the building. The building has large floor to floor windows and building floor plates that are narrow thus providing excellent natural lighting into the deep part of the building interiorly. The exterior metal panes are super insulated using high-performance glazing providing a tight warm envelope for the cool bay area mornings. The access floor is raised throughout the area that is open thus allowing users and flexibility of the system. In addition, it is also connected to the outdoor air system that is dedicated to providing fresh distribution of air once the windows of the building are closed. The selection protocol that was used for sustainability base was implemented basing on two approaches. The first approach used was the cradle to cradle certified, in the approach products were only used when they were available and cost effective and only achieved through a tender process that was competitive. MBCDC was then used only when the products certified could not be implemented. To help in achieving the building with high performance, sustainable base incorporates the NASA-developed software. Criticizing WILLIAM MCDONOUGHs concepts in sustainable principles and applications The Hannover Principles are set of statements concerning building and object designs with ideas that are forethought about the impact on the environment, their sustainability growth impact and their general impact on the society today and the future generations. Approximate ten years ago when design for sustainability was in its infancy stages, William McDonough and Partners developed the Hannover Principles. Their desires were basically motivated by the fact that they wanted to move towards a world that was powered by solar, and this had gained momentum among those people who were conscious of the environment. These principles of sustainability were commissioned in the city of Hannover Germany to guide the developments that are associated with the EXPO 2000. The document that was established in Hannover provided guidelines that pertained to water for the benefit of the human generations. Whereas these guidelines were established for the world’s fair, they to date remain very useful to a huge scale. During this time, the ideas of inform ecological designs had already begun manifesting in some of the innovations such as green architecture and technology. Such efforts were just first steps to beginning of a sustainable design. Though humans were striving to identify universal principles basing on natures laws of endurance the human knowledge was not complete. The Hannover Principles were then seen as a living document and a set of enduring ideas and an open system of thought that was to be used to propel humans into sustainability. Sustainability is a concept that is complex. In addition, it is very much open to any further interpretation. On a daily basis, we are reminded on the damages in the environment as a result of the human activities including degradation of land, changes in the global climate, decrease in the quality and availability of the water supply. Thus, uncertainties remain about best ways in which response can be undertaken at various levels. Several questions concerning sustainability and social responsibility are being considered seriously by several companies around the globe. Companies are designing and constructing buildings that are related to the fairest ways of representing cities sustainable way of development. The principles are used to spearhead the designing of environmentally sustainable structures that can be endured by the communities for several years. The sustainability concept has been introduced to combine the emerging concerns of the planets well-being with ever-increasing growth and human development. There is great debate on what the sustainability is really suggesting. The word means meeting the needs of the present generation without having to endanger the future generation’s ability to meet their needs. From this concept, the Hannover Principles were created aiming at providing the platform upon which building designers can consider on methods of adapting to their work towards creating ends that are sustainable. The designers in meeting sustainability include all those who change the environment drawing inspiration from the creativity of humans. The sustainable design, therefore, will imply a concept that realizes the needs of humans and their desires. Sustainable designing needs great awareness of the short and long-term consequences of any environmental transformation. Designing for sustainability is the concept and realisation of environmentally responsible and sensitive expression of the parts that entails natures evolving matrix. The society requires great aspiration to integrate its materials, elements of ecology and spiritual factors. Modern technologies, means and processes do separate such facets rather than aiming at bringing them together to connect. Nature makes use of the energy from the sun to create a system that is independent in which diversity and complexity imply sustainability. In contrast to this, societies that are industrialized do extract energy for systems that are designed and made to the reduced complexity of nature. The challenges that humans do phase is developing human design processes that are able to remain in the natural context. Almost in every phase of the human design, construction and manufacturing process, it requires deep reconsideration. The Linear system of thoughts or programs that are of short term measures that justify indifference, ignorance or means that are arrogant are not looking deep into the future to serving the coming generation between their interaction with nature. Therefore, great knowledge and ancient wisdom must be employed in the human efforts to conceive and realize the maintenance, care and the physical transformation of the earth. Owing to this spirit, the Hannover Principles was assembled after an extensive consultation with design, philosophical communities and environmental representatives. The entire world is hoping that they will accept to evolve to adapt to the different cultures and countries concern worldwide. This is so that everyone may find a way to endure and construct a sustainable structure into the future without having to compromise the next generation’s ability to phase and tackle its challenges. Sustainability designing implies that an ecological method is used whose composite fabrics has implications and opportunities for the structure into the future. William McDonough and Partners continue using and publishing the principles in their original form. As every firm is trying to apply the sustainable design processes and use them in guiding everyday life’s decision-making process, new ideas and practices tend to be emerging as a result. What comes out of this is that the principles continue remaining and touchstone endurance, their innovation is driven by rigor and the paradigm of design continues to be going through constant maturation. There is a large body of new methods emerging from the rapid development of what has become to be known as ‘sustainability science’ promoted by a broad range of educational and governmental institutions. References HAVEN C. Stanford Report, (2012) Stanford Libraries acquire the archives of leading environmentalist William McDonough retrieved at http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/november/libraries-mcdonough-archives- 111512.html (Accessed on 10/03/15) McDonough, W. and Braungart M. (2003) - The Hannover Principles: Design for Sustainability. William McDonough & Partners McDonough. W., & Braungart, M (2002). ‘Cradle to cradle: remaking the Way We Make Things.’ Available at: Http://www.contentreserve.com/TitleInfo.asp?ID={A9153443-59B3-4D72- AAB3-D7A069C2802F}&Format=410. (Accessed on 12/03/15) Moxon, S. (2012), Sustainability in Interior Design. Laurence King Publishing. Williams, D. E. (2007), Sustainable design: ecology, architecture, planning. Hoboken, Wiley and Sons ltda. Read More