The Foundation of any Architectural Construction - Term Paper Example

Construction technique

Executive summary

The construction technique report has been prepared to comprehensively support the planning and construction of the proposed child care center at 14 George St, Highfields NSW 2289.

The proposal comprises:

The feasibility technical report in regards to the low rise building, child care center, which is to adequately address the foundation aspect of the construction project as well as the flooring system from the available options.

The structure is to comprise:

The realization of the ultimate foundation, which in this case will be suitable for erecting the child care center project. However, prior to the realization of the desirable foundation, the report indicates the significance of examining the geographical aspects that may or will affect the construction process. The building elements adopted in realizing strong foundation are also part of the structure.

On the other hand, the proposal will also address the flooring system and the building elements in achieving a suitable floor for a low rise non-residential building like the child care center project. The proposal also avails two distinct flooring system techniques, which may be adopted in the construction process of the low rise building. In addition, it also compares the two techniques outlining their significance in the respective application process. In general, this report describes the engineering details incorporated in erecting a low rise building including proposals for the foundation and the flooring systems of the child care center. Pictures and methodologies are all provided in line with the set legal requirement.

Foundation

The foundation of any architectural construction is perhaps the most important part due to the crucial role it plays once the building is complete. The foundation determines how stable the building will be in that a strong foundation makes it more stable and a weak one will make it unstable and less durable. In other words, it ensures that even with movement of loads to the ground in the building, there are no movements that may cause damage to the building (Barnbrook, 2013).

The type of foundation suitable for a particular building is dependable on several factors such as the weight the structure is expected to withstand, the kind of ground on which it is being built and so on. The Child Care Center Project should be carried out with much professionalism to ensure that the buildings are stable enough and durable. A foundation of a house, regardless of its type, has some elements that facilitate its strength (Marshall, Brown, & University of the West of England, 2008). In this project, the foundation that the firm will set up will have a trench or holes dug, concrete, and beams.

As said earlier, the kind of foundation to be built for a particular construction is dependable on several factors. From the architectural drawings provided, it is evident that the buildings under construction are not skyscrapers which hold a lot of weight. On the other hand, the walls of the buildings are expected to be a bit thick which means that a lot of weight will be transmitted to the ground. Additionally, the geographical position of the project in Highfields mainly contains the types M and H soils (Berghofer, 2017). These are types which experience moisture movement which is very dangerous to a building if it does not have a good foundation (Ashworth, 2012). As such, the buildings built have to contain foundations which are as strong as possible and with reinforcements to eradicate any risk.

The trench, in this case, needs to be deep enough as the first step of strengthening the foundation. Since the walls are quite thick and therefore carry a considerably high amount of weight, it is important that the foundation is as broad as possible (Bell, & Rand, 2009). This is because those are the factors that should decide the depth and width of any foundation. Due to the moisture content of the soils which may affect the stability of the soil and consequently of the house, the trench should be at least 750 mm because that is a depth which is unlikely to be affected by moisture. The wide trench will ensure that the weight of the walls is distributed uniformly and efficiently thereby enhancing the stability of the houses. The trenches will then be filled with thick concrete and bricks. The function of the concrete will be to hold the weight of the building and form a strong base where the load of the building will rest.

A deep trench will not be helpful if the concrete will not be strong enough and supported by reinforcements to make the foundation stronger. To make sure that the concrete to be used in the foundation is strong to the level required, it will be necessary to avail some important material which will enhance the process. Metal will be needed to reinforce the concrete so that as it dries, it will have more strength and rigidity. Moreover, concrete blocks which are frost resistant will be required to make sure that even if water gets inside, the buildings will not be destroyed (doityourself, 2017). We will have to construct a wooden frame first then pour concrete into it, after which we shall remove the frame and leave the concrete to harden. With those materials, the building will be stable and will for a long time without requiring any renovation or without developing weaknesses in as far as the foundation is concerned.

Two types of foundations could be suitable for the Child Care Center Project in the construction of the buildings. They include strip foundation and raft foundation.

Strip Foundation

This is a type of foundation whereby a strip of concrete is put into a trench to hold the weight of the building and any external weight that is expected in the building.

Img 1 (Log Cabin Hub, 2016)

With regards to the Child Care Center Project, the strip foundation would be suitable because of the nature of the buildings that will be built. Also, it is an easy design to build and has been in use for a very long time and with proven longevity. Due to the nature of the geographical position, however, the trench will have to be about 1000mm, with an absolute minimum of 750mm. It is important to note that the thickness of the strip that is used should not be less than the projection from the face of the wall and that it should be at least 150mm.

Img 2 (diydoctor, 2017)

Other factors that have been put into consideration to arrive at strip foundation include the trees that are in the area around the construction site. Those trees make the ground rise and fall at different periods by drawing water from the ground, and therefore, the stability of strip foundation is important.

Raft Foundation

This is a huge concrete slab which spreads out to the whole building and can hold several columns or walls (designingbuildings, 2017).

Img 3 (Gharpedia, 2017)

Its principal advantage over the strip foundation is that it lowers the contact pressure. Considering that the ground condition of the area is poor and strip foundation may require a lot of excavation, then raft foundation may be the most suitable. Also, the number of strips needed will be many hence making the process tedious. Steel reinforcements will be required so that no cracking can occur.

While the two types of foundations could be suitable for the project, the firm settled on raft foundation. The decision was after consideration of the resources that would be used for the two cases and the ease with each method would be done. Apart from being comparatively more efficient, the raft foundation is less expensive than the strip foundation because less material will be used (Inside Mining, 2013).

The flooring system

The flooring system is as crucial as the foundation in the construction process. This is because it is through the flooring system that the building or the construction work is reinforced and that it facilitates the laying of both electrical and drainage pipes (Right, 2017). However, the kind of floor to be applied varies depending on the kind of structure to be erected as well as the foundation. The latter, for instance, as stated earlier highly determines the kind of materials to be used during the construction process as well as the kind of structure to be supported above. It is thus crucial that prior to the initiation of the projects, through the architectural drawings and designs provided, for instance, the child care design that the engineers accounts and consider establishing a strong and a durable flooring system.

The architectural design guiding the construction of the child care project provides quite a number of the building elements to be adopted in setting up a robust flooring system. These elements include beams, metal decks, and planks. Typically, beams are further categorized into two distinct groups namely simple and cantilever beams. Simple beams have the capability to only offer the vertical force resistance but they cannot offer restraints to the rotation of the beam ends, and thus the beam tends to get curved (Gere & Goodno, 2011).

Cantilever beams, on the other hand, is made up of a single span beam, which in this case has only one end support ((Sankararaj, 2017). Nonetheless, to enhance and boost support when adopting this kind of a beam when constructing a low rise building, for instance, the child care center the beam must be set up as a moment resisting support. In this project, beams will be highly used in establishing a strong flooring system by spanning. Besides, beams when incorporated into the flooring system of the child care center will help and serve to provide a strong sub floor sheathing, which in this case will help it to function as a horizontal diaphragm. On the other hand, metal decking will also significantly aid in developing and constructing a strong flooring system. By incorporating the metal decks in the child care center project, the engineers will be in a position to ensure that they come up with a durable floor. The latter is true because metal decking serves to increase the stiffness and the spanning capacity of the flooring system in its corrugated form.

Besides, the metal decks also serve as a working platform during the construction process especially as a formwork for a site cast concrete slab (Johnson, 2008). Slabs, which in this case is part of the flooring system in the child care center, are manufactured using light weight and normal density materials such as concrete. With this, the engineers in charge of the project are in a position to ensure that the now rise building structure is constructed effectively with reduced weight and with a longer span (AWC, 2003).

Generally, the building elements and materials in this kind of a project, the child care center, upon proper and thoughtful integration will serves to ensure that the flooring system meets the quality standards measures. A quality child care center floor should, for instance, be strong and stable, fire resistant, thermal and sound insulated, and most importantly the flooring system should be dump and ground gas resistant.

Notably, there are quite a number of alternatives that can be adopted in coming up with a desirable flooring system in any construction project. Some of this alternate methods include in situ concrete, beams and blocks, concrete composite, and eventually steel composite. All the outlined alternate methods are suitable and guarantee quality and desirable floors when effectively incorporated into the construction project. Nonetheless, there are only two available flooring system methods in the child care center project. Typically, this is significantly steered by the building structure and its foundation. These methods are composite concrete and steel composite.

Timber Composite concrete

Img 4: (Structecraft, 2017)

Normally, the composite kind of construction is frequently used in the non-residential projects, for instance, the child care center. This is preferred and adopted by many because it can be achieved and expressed in just a simple way through the adoption of concrete, which is a good component of attaining the compression aspect. On the other hand, steel is a good component because it aids in giving the construction project a good tension aspect (Liew, 2012). Therefore, by joining the two components together, the child care center project will be structurally strong because the strength in this kind of a project will be exploited to ultimately result in a lightweight and a high efficient design. The reduced self-weight, of the composite, for instance, has quite a significant knock on effect, which in this case is noticed through the reduced force on the materials and elements supporting them including the buildings foundation.

Steel composite

Img:5 (Cellecta, 2017)

This kind of a flooring system is advantageous in the sense that it aids in increasing the construction speed. The floor depth reduction that can be attained through the adoption of composite construction is also in a position to provide significant benefit to the project funder regarding the service cost as well as the total building cost (SteelConstruction, 2017). For a child care center, this kind of a flooring method is suitable since it offers a good fire protection scheme and its installation does not necessarily call upon skilled labor.

On the other hand, the steel composite is also an important component in the construction process, especially in the flooring system. As pointed out earlier, when steel is effectively incorporated into the child care center flooring system, the engineers in charge will be in a position to adequately produce a quality and a durable floor. The latter is true because, when steel is used in the flooring system the project is developed with the right amounts of tension and thus a strong and a durable, low rise construction project.

Notably, the two alternate flooring system methods have a comparison, for instance, if both are to be adopted in the development of the child care flooring system. First, both methods have an easy installation pattern (Cividigital, 2017). This, therefore, means that the process of installation is done within the shortest time possible. Secondly, because the installation process is simple, the two methods do not require skilled labor. This means that the project funders have a chance of saving quite a huge sum of money or even utilize it in other construction activities in the project (Hendy, 2007).

Thirdly, the two methods when properly incorporated into the child care center flooring development quality is guaranteed. This is because the two methods have the capacity to reinforce the flooring system through, for instance, prestressed beams in composite concrete and the provision of proper and adequate tension by steel in the steel composite (Collings, 2005). The two techniques are thus important and highly beneficial especially when constructing a low rise building like the child care center. Incorporating any of this techniques thus ensures that the project is developed in line with the set construction requirements.

In conclusion, the construction industry in conjunction with architecture has been an iconic feature in the transformation and beautification of the modern day residential and non-residential housing industry. However, this is only attained through a series of competent work right from the foundation to the flooring system and eventually to the roofing system. On the same note, this can only be achieved by properly accounting and considering the geographical factors the engineers are then able to establish the right foundation, flooring, and roofing to be adapted in completing a certain project.