HOW TO DESIGN AN ECO CITY

HOW TO DESIGN AN ECO CITY

An Eco City helps to encourage future urban redevelopment plans to consider sustainability. Sustaniability will be best achieved using the Mottainai campaign.

Mottainai campaign

Mottainai is an ancient Buddhist term from Japan that means to have respect for the resources around you, to not waste resources, and to use them with a sense of gratitude. The concept is closely associated with the conservation practices that people most commonly recognize as the three R’s – reduce, reuse, recycle – with a fourth R for respect.

In Kenya, the Mottainai campaign was initiated by Professor Wangari Maathai to eliminate waste plastic from littering the natural environment.
The proposed Eco City will include the following key features in its aim to reduce the Carbon footprint in line with the Mottainai campaign.

• Well designed squares, gardens and open spaces which will be landscaped. Existing trees will be preserved where possible. These gardens will act as socializing spaces where people can take a well deserved rest as they socialize with each other. Nooks will be designed within the landscape for additional tree planting.
A target of 20% of the surface to be green should be envisioned.
Developers should be encouraged to include balconies with planters in each floor level to increase the ‘green’ vertically. Mechanisms to ensure this is vertical landscaping is achieved should be well laid out to potential developers.

• Use of renewable energy resources should be encouraged. Use of Solar powered curtain walling on the façade of tall buildings will bcouraged. Companies that manufacture solar curtain walling such as SHARP-SOLAR will be approached and given priority in allocation prominent space at the entrance to advertise their products.
Kenyans pay 4 times the European average for electricity (19 US cents/kwh) – in Europe it is 4 or 5 US cents).
South Africa[2008], Nigeria[2008], Tanzania[2009] , Kenya[2009] and Ethiopia[2010] recently experienced power rationing so this will ensure electricity is available incase of power rationing.

Use of Bio-Gas from the sewage generated should also be encouraged. Companies that deal with Bio-Gas generation such as KENYA PUXIN RENEWABLE ENERGY CO.LTD should be approached and requested to invest in generation of Bio-Gas from the sewage. This will reduce the burden on Nairobi City Council sewage systems.

Recycling of surface run-off should also be encouraged. Side drains will be designed to flow in a controlled manner to enable harvesting.
Surface runoff will be directed to a deep dam that will serve as a water reservoir and as a recreational feature whereby people can enjoy boat-riding and other features such as a pool-bar[similar to Uhuru Park Inn]. The dam should be well positioned near the shopping mall so as to increase the water-front recreational land value. This will reduce the burden on the Nairobi City Council storm water drainage system.

Companies dealing with supply of water should also be requested to invest in rain-water harvesting for re-sale to Nairobi. Currently the water supply for Nairobi City is inadequate hence a ready market for water. This water will be very useful in maintaining the vast landscapes within the scheme.

• Reduction of energy used in Air-Conditioning and Lighting: This is achieved by careful plot subdivision whereby all plots have an open front and back to enable cross-ventilation of air and ingress of Natural Light. The green landscaped areas will also help in increasing air quality.

• Reduction of Car emissions: Some roads within the scheme should be pedestrian only so as to reduce vehicular traffic. Housing units within the scheme will also reduce car emissions since people can now live within the CBD and be able to walk to work.
A comprehensive green transport network, i.e. non-motorized and public transport, should be envisioned in the Eco-city.

Francis Gichuhi B.Arch [U.o.N ] M.A.A.K[A]
http://www.a4architect.com

Cosy Residential Houses: Outdoors is Yours:-Alfrescos and Balconies.

Cosy Residential Houses: Outdoors is Yours:-Alfrescos and Balconies.

Alfresco

An Alfresco is a room that is within the main house but is completely open on more than 1 side. This room is a buffer zone between the living room and the outside. In this room, a fireplace can be fitted in so that people can get warmth during cold nights.
An alfresco creates a very cosy place to relax that is outdoor and yet in close proximity to the living room and also protected from the elements of weather.
For outdoor lovers, this is a very cost-effective architectural design inclusion that effectively brings the outdoors into your house while still maintaining privacy.
A good example is the design of a residential house in Kugeria, near Ridgeways, Kiambu below:

From Residential House,Kugeria, near Ridgeways,Kiambu

Balconies.

These are spaces designed to project or indent from a room that is above ground level. Balconies have a wall that is 1.2 meters high which can also be made of steel grilles.
Balconies offer perfect panoramic views and are designed to capture the best views from a house.
These do not offer a very high privacy level so for the extroverts, this is a must-have feature for your house.
Balconies are a great place to relax as you watch the outdoors. Mot tourist class hotels especially the ones located in scenic places such as along Indian Ocean, Game reserves such as Maasai Mara, this is a must-have feature since due to the position above ground level, and this gives a very good view point that is desirable to relax.

Human Conditioning.

Human beings are at some point conditioned like wild animals in their best positions to relax after a hard days work. After a good kill, most canines will climb atop the nearest tree in solitude and rest. From this high point, they are sure to be safe from any attacks and can also survey their surroundings to keep abreast with the latest developments. The same way, humans feel secure and are also able to monitor their surroundings when perched above ground level. This subconscious attraction to high view points is what makes balconies a very desirable feature.
In the early days, castles were positioned at the highest pint due to the same reason.
The direct opposite of these spaces is the basements which are designed for very different reasons altogether. .

Recreational Facilities.

A good example of this is the design of Nomad Hotel in Kitengela by http://www.a4architect.com.

From Hotel Nomad, Kitengela

The first floor lounge area has a long balcony on all three sides. The balcony has been designed to give customers the desired scenic views and sub-consciously attracts more people due to the high quality of space. On any given day, there will be more people on the first floor than the ground floor. These people will almost certainly be sitting along the balcony. This design feature has resulted in the Nomad Hotel, Kitengela attracting very many customers resulting in good profits.
The same concept also works for residential houses.

Frank Gichuhi.
http://www.a4architect.com
+254 721 410684

Cosy Residential Houses: How to make the Outdoors Yours.

Cosy Residential Houses: How to make the Outdoors Yours.

Residential house designs should be as comfortable to the users as possible. If the users enjoy the outdoors a lot, then care should be taken to bring in as much out doors into the house as possible.
This is done in several ways.
1. Windows.

Window design

The windows can be designed to be long so as to take the full length of the wall. This brings in a lot of daylight and scenic views of the outside and makes the users feel in touch with the outside.
A good example of this is the Sagana State Lodge which has long windows as the outside wall.
To increase the feeling of being in touch with the outside, the windows should be designed without the frame. A thick structural glass which is strong enough to support itself-6mm thick and above-should be fitted to replace the wall of the house. A sliding glass door can be fitted in between the glass wall.
Cost comparison.
A normal masonry wall costs around KES 1500 per square meter. Plaster and Keying on both sides costs another KES 500 per square meter. Paint on the internal side will cost another KES 300 per square meter. This brings the total estimate to KES 2,300 per square meter.
A structural glass wall including aluminum frame will cost an average of KES 3,300 per square meter including fitting around Nairobi.
The structural glass walling is more expensive by KES 1,000. This is not much considering the advantages of using glass over stone.
There are several advantages-
[a]The house appreciates in value due to the uniqueness.
[b]The house looks more aesthetically appealing.
[c] The quality of internal light is improved.
The disadvantage is that it looks unsafe in that burglars can easily gain access to the house.
A well-laminated glass with an external window film is surprisingly very burglar proof. If a burglar tries to break in through it, the glass does not shatter but bends and caves in to the shape of the blow. This way, the glass prevents any access into the house.
This is why most banks use glass for the external wall because they know that its very secure.
Another disadvantage is that glass looks like it can let in unnecessary heat from the sun. Glass that is well-fitted with a window film prevents the harmful U-V sunrays from over-heating the internal of your house. The window can also be fitted with a tint of your favorite colour.

2. Incorporate an internal Garden.
Your Architect can incorporate an internal garden somewhere inside the building. A space of around 8 meters by 8 meters can be designed inside the building whereby a beautiful flower and rock garden can be created.
If your house is near a river, a part of the river can be creatively diverted to pas right inside the house. In this design, care should be taken to place the path of the river farther away from bedrooms and other habitable rooms to avoid creation of low temperatures in these rooms at night.
A good example of this is a tourist lodge in the Mount Kenya region which has been designed on top of a very deep gorge that has a river flowing several meters below. Guests can enjoy the serene view of the river flowing and the hotel stores cold drinks inside the river. They use a rope and pulley to retrieve drinks which have been cooled by the cold waters flowing below.
Another example is the International Fund for Agricultural Development [IFAD] offices in Soilo, Nakuru designed by http://www.a4architect.com.
http://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf
In this design, a beautiful flower garden has been incorporated inside the middle part of the IFAD offices to create a very beautiful view inside while maintaining the scenic outdoor views to the office occupants.

From IFAD offices, nakuru

Frank Gichuhi.
http://www.a4architect.com
+254 721 410684

Rental units on a 50 by 100 feet plot: 1 Bedroomed vs 2 Bedroomed.

Rental units on a 50 by 100 feet plot: 1 Bedroomed vs 2 Bedroomed.

.
In areas that have a very high young population, such as areas near Universities – around Juja[JKUAT University] , Lower Kabete[University of Nairobi-Lower Kabete Campus], or Kahawa[Kenyatta University],1 bedroomed units will have a very high demand due to the large influx of parallel degree students. These are also in high demand near major towns and tourist locations such as Mombasa whereby holidaying tenants can rent for a short period of time.

Comparison on Rent.

In a 50 by 100 plot, you can put up to 7 No. I bedroomed units per floor for 5 floors=35 units.
At a modest rental income of minimum KES 8,000 per month this brings the amount to 8,000 x 35=KES 280,000.
The same area can contain 4 units of 2 bedroomed each x 5 floors =20 units.
At an average rent of minimum 12 k per month this brings the total to 12,000x 20 =240,000 per month.
These rental incomes are on the lower side-it you put quality finishes, the rents can double.

Comparison on cost of Construction.

With high quality finishes, the construction cost also increases significantly. With modest / low cost finishes, the construction cost per square meter is KES 17,000.
The average size of a 1 bedroomed unit is 35 square meters.
For the 1 bedroomed units in the 50 by 100 feet plot, this will be 17,000 x 35 units x 35m2[floor area of 1 unit] =KES 20,825,000.
The average size of a low-cost 2 bedroomed unit is 60 square meters.
For the 2 bedroomed units within the 50by 100 feet plot, at a construction cost of KES 17,000 per square meter, this brings the total to 17,000 x 20 units x 60m2 = KES 22,100,000.

Conclusion.
So for roughly the same cost of construction, the 1 bedroomed houses will offer more rental income.
However, 2 bedroomed units have a higher demand than 1 bedroomed units hence a more stable income.

Frank Gichuhi
http://www.a4architect.com

+254 721 410684

Points to consider in making maximum return on Investment on a 50 by 100 feet plot: A comparison between Bungalow and Maisonette types for sale.

Developers are busy putting up bungalow type houses for sale in the 1/8th 50 by 100 feet plots in towns such as Kitengela and Ongata Rongai in Nairobi, Kenya..
These houses are going for between 3.5 million to 5 million each, depending on several factors such as the floor area of the house and quality of finishes and workmanship.
Most of these houses are 3 bedroomed with an average floor area of 100 m2.

Definition.

Bungalows are single dwelling residential houses that have only 1 level-ground floor. Maisonettes are single dwelling residential houses that have two levels-ground floor and 1st floor.

Bungalow

Savings on Land.

In the construction of a bungalow in the 50 by 100 plot, the floor area is spread laterally on the ground. For example, a 100m2 house will have all the floor area on the ground floor level. This means that I the 50×100 plot, there will be less out-door space since the house covers a large space.

Maisonette in Nairobi

In the maisonette type design, the house floor area is spread vertically. If the total floor area is say 100m2, 50m2[living room, kitchen, dining room] will be on the ground floor and the rest of the 50m2[bedrooms] will be on the 1st floor.
This means that there will be more ground floor space in this design. This saving of space can be utilized to either give the unit more garden space or to construct a similar unit. If the house is for an individual for his own use, he can use the extra saved ground for garden space or for future development. If the house is being constructed by a developer for sale, the developer can construct a similar sized house and sell it. This way, he will have reaped more benefits since in the single 50×100 plot, he has developed 2 units as opposed to the bungalow style which can only accommodate 1 unit.

.

Foundation.

The foundation for a maisonette is cheaper since the area is reduced by half. For example, for a 100m2 floor area maisonette, the foundation area will be 50m2. For a 100m2 bungalow, the foundation floor area will be 100m2.

Roof.

In a 100m2 floor area bungalow, the room surface area will be approximately 150m2. In a 100m2 floor area maisonette, the roof surface area will be half the bungalow roof area-around 75m2. This means that there will be savings in terms of roof material, ceiling and timber roof trusses.
Cost of construction.

The cost of construction of a bungalow of 100m2 floor area will be the same for construction of a similar sized maisonette

Advantages.

In the maisonette design, there will be extra costs incurred due to the first floor suspended reinforced concrete slab. This extra cost is cancelled out by the savings incurred due to use of less roof material, less foundation floor area, and the saving of ground floor space to cater for an additional house within the same plot.
Maisonettes also give a sense of more security than the bungalows since the bedrooms are located upstairs which is inaccessible by burglars. Most burglars use the soft spots of a building to gain access such as the roof and windows. Since the roof and windows are over 5 meters above the ground, this deters criminals from choosing maisonettes.
Maisonettes look more imposing than bungalows hence a definition of class.
Therefore, maisonettes will give a better return on investment since they still leave more space for further development in the same 50 by 100 feet plot size as opposed to bungalows which use up a lot more ground space, more aesthetically appealing and are less prone to burglary attacks.

Frank Gichuhi.
Architect.
http://www.a4architect.com
+254 721 410684

How to design for a Jacuzzi in your house.

How to design for a Jacuzzi in your house.

The name Jacuzzi originates from a family of Italian brothers who originated from Italy and settled in California,U.S.A in the early 1900s.

the Jacuzzis

The Jacuzzi brothers were aeronautical engineers who designed propeller engines for air-crafts. They left aviation engineering and concentrated on agricultural engineering in the design of agricultural water pumps.

The Jacuzzi whirlpool bath was invented in the early 1940s by Candidi Jacuzzi, a second generation Jacuzzi. His son suffered from Rheumatoid Arthritis and used to receive hydro-therapy from the hospital. He designed a portable pump that could be fitted inside a bathtub to give the hydro-therapy.

In the late 1960s, Roy Jacuzzi, a third-generation Jacuzzi toyed with the idea of marketing the pump-fitted bath tub dubbed the ‘Roman Bathtub’ to cater for the growing need for leisure .
Although the larger Jacuzzi family thought this idea was a little weird, the sales grew and soon the bathtub was designed to be a bit larger so as to fit in 2 people. The designed improved farther over several years and the Jacuzzi s became larger and larger.

The laid-back culture of California became a very good launching pad for the Jacuzzi more so as famous movie stars popularized it further in their quest for opulent and glamorous lives.
In 1979, the Jacuzzi s sold the company to Kidde Inc. which was later bought by Hanson PLC in 1987.In 1996, the company strengthened itself further by purchasing a leading Canadian swimming pool manufacturer, Haugh’s Products Limited and diversified and improved the designs further.

Currently, Jacuzzi is the world’s most recognized whirl pool brand name.

Space requirements.

A standard Jacuzzi comes in dimensions of 1.8m by 1.8m by 0.8m height.
The bathroom area should therefore be large enough to fit in this size and leave enough room for circulation and dressing inside the bathroom.

A bathroom size of 2.8 m by 2.8 m is sufficient enough to fit in a Jacuzzi and leave enough space around it.

Location.

The Jacuzzi can be located next to a large bay window in the bathroom.

Jacuzzi in the bathroom

For a room that has a lot of privacy such as an upstairs room, the window can be designed to be large to bring in a lot of light and give a panoramic view of the outside.
For privacy purposes, the window glass can be frosted or obscured or one-way. Since a Jacuzzi is a place where people spend a considerable amount of time inside, it should have good wide panoramic views so as to avoid monotony and boredom.

Jacuzzi s can also be placed on the out-doors.

Out-door Jacuzzi

Installation.

The floor area is screeded and raised 100mm form the floor level with a bed of cement-sand mortar.
The Jacuzzi is placed on top and screwed to the ground.
The connecting plumbing pipes are fixed to the house’s water pipes and the pump is connected to the electricity point.
Ceramic tiles are then fitted around the wall to a height of 2.1 meters above ground level so as to protect the wall from moisture .
The ceramic wall tiles can be designed to a pattern and colour of your choice.

newly installed Jacuzi

Jacuzzis in Kenya cost around KES 60,000 and are available in hardware shops such as Doshi in Industrial area.The price depends on the size and shape. They come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.

Frank Gichuhi.

Architect.

http://www.a4architect.com

+254 721 410684

How to Demolish a Building after a Disaster-Earthquake.

How to Demolish a Building after a Disaster-Earthquake.

Building demolition has become common now that cases of building collapse due to natural causes such as earthquakes and man-made causes such as poor workmanship are beginning to show up more commonly. Recently, two high-rise buildings collapsed in Kiambu town and currently Haiti has been hit by a severe earthquake.
Lack of Enforcement of the Building Code by the Local Authorities in provision for earthquake design factors in Haiti-2010[7.0 on the Richter scale] and China-Sichuan-2008[7.9 on the Richter scale] is largely blamed for the disasters since earthquakes do not kill people…only badly designed buildings do.

These earthquakes which killed over 100,000 peole when compared to the Loma Prieta earthquake that struck the San Francisco bay area of California in 1989 with a magnitude of 7.1 on the Richter scale[higher than the recent Haiti earthquake-7.0 on the Richter scale], you will notice that only 59 people died as a direct result of the San Francisco earthquake.

You will notice that fatalities were caused by flying debris such as brick facades as opposed to people getting trapped in collapsed buildings as in the Haiti situation.
This is mainly due to the stringent enforcement of the Building Code in U.S.A as opposed to Haiti where the Building Code is not as effectively enforced.

China Sichuan Earthquake-2008

A well-designed building with a good earthquake Load Factor will withstand any typical earthquake without fatalities.
The earthquake loading factor should be high in areas which are seismically unstable and it’s the duty of the Government through the relevant Local Authority to ensure that these Building Codes are followed. For example, the earthquake Load Factor for Nakuru which is in the Rift Valley should be higher than in Nairobi.
Demolition Method.
In such cases whereby people are still trapped in the buildings, careful choice of demolition method is important so as not to injure trapped people.
In the Haiti earthquake, only around 70 people have been rescued alive so far and more than 100,000 dead. These figures show that a quick response to freeing trapped people from the collapsed buildings can go a very long way to save lives.
The method chosen should be very fast to implement, low-cost and should not require specialized labour.

1.Pneumatic and Hydraulic Breakers

These are suitable for demolishing pavements, roads and reinforced concrete slabs.
They can be mounted on the back-hoe Excavator or hand held.
Factors such as the size of the hammer and strength of the reinforced concrete will determine how fast the demolition work will be performed.
The main disadvantage of this method is that it requires specialized machinery,skilled labour and it generates noise, dust and vibrations.

2. Pressure Bursting: Mechanical Bursting and Chemical Bursting

Pressure Bursting has two categories: Mechanical Bursting and Chemical bursting.

Mechanical Bursting:

mechanical bursting of concrete slab

In this method, a splitting machine operating on hydraulic pressure is inserted in a hole inside the concrete slab and forces the slab open to crack it.

Chemical Bursting.

In this method, a crack agent is mixed with cold water to form a slurry mortar which is poured into a pre-drilled hole inside the concrete. It reacts chemically [hydration] and starts to swell, exerting pressure of more than 500kg/cm2 which is far much stronger than the concrete’s tensile strength.

holes drilled on concrete ready for chemical bursting

The holes are drilled along the desired cracking line. The holes are usually around 2 cm wide and around 10 to 20 cm apart. This pressure cracks the concrete after a certain period of time-usually between 6 hours to 24 hours.
The cracking time is dependent on the ratio of the chemical to the added water and by the temperature of the surrounding area. The higher the dose and temperature, the faster the cracking.
The advantage of this method is that it does not require machinery, skilled labour and does not create noise and dust.
The disadvantage is that there is risk of blow-out explosion from the holes within the first 3 hours as the chemical reacts if the chemical is the explosive type such as CRACK-AG.
Other non-explosive agents such as BETONAMIT CHEMICAL BURSTING will work without the risk of an explosion.
In earthquake situations such as in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, or in the Kiambu disaster in Kenya, this method would be very effective since in both situations, the financial ability to mobilize heavy machinery is not high due to their being in 3rd world economies.

3. Dismantling

This is done by slicing concrete elements and then removing them with the excavator or crane. This method is good for demolishing part of a building since it does not structurally affect the remaining structure.

concrete slab being broken piece by piece usng the 'crunching' method

By cutting concrete elements, and then removing them by crane, the demolition of an entire concrete structure may be carried out with a minimum of noise, dust, and impact on surrounding structures.

Frank Gichuhi
Architect.
http://www.a4architect.com

NEW BUILDING CONSTRUCTION METHODS- PRE-ENGINEERED STEEL BUILDINGS [PEB]

NEW BUILDING CONSTRUCTION METHODS- PRE-ENGINEERED STEEL BUILDINGS [PEB]

PEB Building

We are increasingly seeing the effects of building collapse due to earthquakes in regions such as Haiti and collapse due to poor workmanship such as the recent building collapses in Kiambu. With rapid urbanization, more high-rise buildings are coming up in major towns creating perfect recipes for disaster as people get trapped underneath tons and tons of concrete incase the building unfortunately collapses –either due to an earthquake or poor workmanship. There are solutions to avoid this kind of disaster by having flexible steel grid supported buildings with light-weight sandwich panel wall infill.

https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf

Several major towns in Kenya such as Nakuru sit right in the middle of the Rift Valley which is a seismically unstable region and earthquakes are not known to give notice before they strike.Measures should be taken to ensure that there are mechanisms in place to give early warning to avoid disasters.

Countries that are prone to earthquakes such as Japan have an average of 40% of new high-rise buildings coming up in Steel structural frames–one of the world’s highest-this is partly dues to steel’s ability to resist the impact of severe earthquakes. Past earthquakes in USA [San Francisco-1906, Long Beach-1933, and Japan [Kanto -1923] during the first part of this century gave engineers confidence in steel as a reliable material for earthquake resistant design.

From Roof

Long Beach Upholstery, private apartments, and Lincoln Dry Cleaners on E. 4th Street, Long Beach. This kind of damage is typical of that sustained by unreinforced masonry buildings, and shows the hazard of falling debris around such buildings.

During these events, there were typically fewer problems observed in steel structures as compared with concrete and masonry buildings of similar size and scale.

“storeyed car park at the International Casino, Museum Hill roundabout, Westlands”

PEB system of construction is based on the U.S.A Building code. PEB system originated from U.S.A which produces over 1 million PEB Structures per year.
In Kenya, we mainly rely on the British Building code and standards for construction. The British Standard is mainly Reinforced –Concrete based as in most structures such as columns and beams are designed to be concrete-based with twisted steel reinforcement of between 8 mm to 20mm thickness in the inside. This is the type of building construction that you will see every day in Kenya and East Africa in general.

The PEB system replaces the concrete columns and beams with I Section steel beams and columns. With the rapidly increasing price of cement for making the concrete, this design is certainly more cost-effective.
The floor surface can be made of concrete or steel.

International Casino Car Park, Chiromo road roundabout.

A good example of this in Kenya is the Car Park at the International Casino hotel next to the Chiromo road roundabout near Westlands.

“International Casino-Museum Hill , Car Park”

This car park has a concrete surface suspended and supported by steel I beams and columns as shown below.
The car park is very strong-it has supported the weight of cars for very man years and it has not a slight sign of failure.

This means that if used to support a building where the loading is mainly human and furniture e.g. offices and residential buildings, the PEB system will work excellently since if it can support the heavy load of cars, then it can support the light load of humans and furniture.

Earthquake Loading design.

The structural design of the PEB will depend on the Live loads, Earthquake, collateral and wind loads that are specified by the consultant structural engineer in conjunction with the relevant Local Authority Building approval department.

PEB subsystems

The main building structure comprises of 2 subsystems:-[1]a rigid steel frame including columns,rafters,beams and purlins and [2] wall and roof panels.

The roof and walls are made of Sandwich panels. Sandwich panels comprise of an exterior metal skin, a polyurethane interior core and an interior flat skin made of metal. The core thickness is available in 35, 50, 75 and 100mm.The density of the polyurethane is 35-40Kg/m3.

Design Code.

The design code used is in accordance with the Steel Construction Manual published by the American Institute of Steel Construction [AISC].
All welding is done in accordance with the Structural Welding Code-Steel D1.1 of the American Welding Society[AWS].
PEBs are designed using guidelines published by Metal Building Manufacturers Association of U.S.A which is a world-recognized authority on pre-engineered steel buildings and its guidelines are accepted as standard practice in his industry.
The Universally recognized code is the International Building Code published by the International Code Council of U.S.A.
In Kenya, recently, a commission was formed under he Ministry of Hosing to review the country’s Building Code which was published in 1963 and is out-dated. This code is based on the British Building code and hence effectively discourages other cost-effective methods of construction such as PEB in Kenya. Once the new Building Code is published, we hope that it will include other innovative building construction methods found all over the world especially now that we have seen a few buildings collapsing around Kenya.

Available Suppliers

More technical details and cost estimates can be obtained by contacting Mr. Anis Gafoor of Mabani Steel -Tanzania [+255 688 025125] which is an U.A.E company with a branch in Tanzania. http://www.mabanisteel.com. Mr. Gafoor was recently in Nairobi in the week of January 17th 2010 to January 23rd 2010.

Frank Gichuhi.
Architect.
http://www.a4architect.com

How to Demolish a Building-Haiti Earthquake.

How to Demolish a Building.
Building demolition has become common now that roads are being expanded and earthquakes are beginning to hit cities such as in Haiti.

1.Pneumatic and Hydraulic Breakers

These are suitable for demolishing pavements, roads and reinforced concrete slabs.

They can be mounted on the back-hoe Excavator or hand held.
Factors such as the size of the hammer and strength of the reinforced concrete will determine how fast the demolition work will be performed.

2. Pressure Bursting, Mechanical Bursting and Chemical Bursting

In urban areas where dust and noise are not desired, this is the method of choice.
Holes are drilled in the concrete slab at a spacing of roughly 50 to 100mm wide. The holes are drilled along the line that you want to split.
A mixture of the concrete-splitting chemical and water is then poured in to fill the drilled holes.
The chemical expands and within 24 to 48 hours, will have exerted pressure enough to crack the slab along the pre-set line.

3. Dismantling

This is done by slicing concrete elements and then removing them with the excavator or crane. This method is good for demolishing part of a building since it does not structurally affect the remaining structure.

By cutting concrete elements, and then removing them by crane, the demolition of an entire concrete structure may be carried out with a minimum of noise, dust, and impact on surrounding structures.

Frank Gichuhi
Architect.
http://www.a4architect.com

How to avoid Building Construction Failure in Kenya.

How to avoid Building Construction Failure in Kenya.
PICTURES OF THE RECENTLY [9/9/2011 @ 10.30 AM] COLLAPSED MATIGARI BUILDING ALONG THIKA ROAD NEAR MATHARE NORTH

From MATIGARI MATHARE NORTH THIKA ROAD COLLAPSED BUILDING

https://picasaweb.google.com/s/c/bin/slideshow.swf

Of late, several buildings have collapsed in Kenya.

Kiambu building collapse-picture from Daily Nation

There are procedures and best practices that should be followed to avoid this.

Step 1.

Have the building designed by registered professionals. Architects in Kenya are registered by the Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors of Kenya. The Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors of Kenya is under the Ministry of Public Works. The registration process is rigorous and is a 2- year examination whereby the Government ensures that the applicant has undergone training under a registered Architect for a certain period after graduating from a recognized Architecture School.
After registration as an Architect, the applicant can then register with the Architectural Association of Kenya as a corporate member.

The Architectural association of Kenya also registers students-student membership, architecture graduates who are not registered-graduate membership, draftsmen-virtually everyone with an interest in construction.
The Kenyan Law is very clear on the certifications that are necessary to offer Architectural service in Kenya. This service can only be offered by persons holding a practicing Certificate from Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors of Kenya[BORAQS].

This begins the confusion in that a would-be developer will approach a quack who is not registered to give Architectural services in Kenya. The quack will then prove to the innocent developer that he is registered to offer Architectural services by producing a registration certificate from Architectural Association of Kenya as a technician member.
What the developer doesn’t know is that only Corporate and Fellow members of AAK have the Board of Registration of Architects and Quantity Surveyors certification as a must have requirement.
I also noticed that potential developers seeking architectural services in Kenya still can not differentiate between the Board of Registration of Architects and Quantity Surveyors of Kenya certificate and an Architectural Association of Kenya certificate.
What they don’t know is that the Architectural Association of Kenya certificate is open to a wide variety of applicants such as technicians and students-except the Corporate Membership certificate. Technicians and Students are not certified to offer Architectural services in Kenya under Kenyan Law.
This is the trick that is used by most quacks to confuse innocent developers and Financial institutions that they have certificates to offer architectural services since none of the developers will insist on Corporate Membership certificate or BORAQS Certificate because they don’t know about the categories of membership.
If a law is established to create one centre of reference for Architects-such as with the Law society of Kenya, we will be one step ahead in ensuring qualified personnel offer Architectural service to Kenyans.
The Law should also make it clear on the correct Licences that Kenyans should seek to ensure that people offering them architectural services hold as in the case of the Law Society of Kenya that has no ambiguity.

Step 2.

Once the developer has maneuvered their way into getting a licensed Architect to offer the service, drawings are produced and lodged for approval at the relevant Local Authority.
The Local Authorities indemnify themselves from building failure and collapse by having it mandatory that a registered architect who has authored the drawings sign the indemnity form thereby taking full responsibility of supervising the construction to ensure that there are no chances of building failure through out the construction period.
The Local authority is also supposed to check that the plans have been produced by a registered architect.
Of late, local authorities have been insisting on the architect’s registration-registration from the Board of Architects and Quantity Surveyors of Kenya.
This is a good step but the quacks have found a way of going around this by attaching a ‘real’ architect’s certificate on the drawings produced by the quack. This can be easily stopped by ensuring that all buildings being constructed should have a sign-board showing the name of the professionals who have been involved in the design.

Step 3.

After the developer getting the necessary approvals to commence construction, he is supposed to contract a registered building contractor for construction services.
Building contractors are registered by the Ministry of Public Works.
The developer can either single-source a contractor or request several registered contractors to quote or the building construction and choose the best.
The registration of the building contractor is supposed to show that the contractor has proved that he understands building construction and has agreed to adhere to the best practices as stipulated by the Government.
In Kenya, most developers do not use the building contractors. This requirement is again not enforced in private developments. In Government, Parastatals and corporate developments, this requirement is fully followed to the letter.
The Architect who has been contracted by the developer is supposed to offer periodic supervision of the building construction until completion of the building whereby he is supposed to certify that the building is complete and ready for human habitation. These processes are enforced by the local authority who as we said earlier, are understaffed and don’t have enough technical personnel hence this step is rarely taken unless when the developer wants to insure his building and the insurance company insists that they need to see the completion certificate.

In corporate sector projects, all these processes are followed to the letter-that’s why we never hear of the 20 –plus storey buildings collapsing in Upperhill, Kilimani and other areas where the corporate sector develops even though the buildings are approved by the same local authorities and constructed within the same laws that govern the individual-owned buildings which are prone to collapse. The building construction collapse is mainly on the individual-owned constructions who do not follow the laid –down procedures and whom the local authorities are too overwhelmed to cater for. If all the laid-down procedures are followed regardless of the size of the project, collapse of houses will be a thing of the past.

Frank Gichuhi.
Architect.
http://www.a4architect.com