Self Evaluation

This assignment has been of great help to me as its seen me grow in my research and writing skills, and also helped me prepare more towards my thesis proposal title which is that of Adaptive reuse of abandoned buildings.

The blogs took some getting used to in the beginning but that to the great guidance of our lecturer I quickly got what I think is the hang of it. The last four weeks where just focusing on our title and how er are getting to the actual hypothesis, I included my case studies in the middle of both semesters which helped me have a better picture of what I wanted to do.

The whole actual hypothesis was abit of a challenge as I have never done such literature and also had some problems with plagiarism in the process as I used the same case studies as my literature review once I uploaded the document it started to take plagiarism from my literature review so I was set with the task to re construct the whole thing again which caused a big problem.


Overall this assignment was of great help and was of great importance for our preparation of next year great task which is that of the thesis proposal and project. This assignment was also good as it was spread onto two semester which gave us ample time to focus on our tasks which included the debate which was something that ought us a lot and was a fun experience doing as it got the class going on some constructive arguments which where very interesting to hear what their opinions about certain things are. Also we had ample time and help to focus and learn about our hypothesis and I had fun doing this assignment mainly because of the time we had to do it so we had the liberty and chance to focus bit on it and think before we actually did things.

hypotesis structuring

This week was full of preparation and structuring of my hypothesis which is based on a minimum of 2000 words . I had some problems with the structure as I was confused onto how a hypothesis is usually structured. I got some help from my peers and started by structuring my hypothesis.

I wish to keep the word count between 2000 - 2200 and decided to structure the hypothesis into 3 sections which starts off with an Introduction about the hypothesis and what i will be talking about, the aim of this literature, Why it will help and how I intend on doing such project. I plan on keeping it short with around 300 words allocated to all this. Then the second part focuses on the main points of my literature review as the titles are the same and could be of great help to proving my question, this is also the section where I will point out most Pros and Cons of the study . Then I will introduce my personal case study the Jerma palace hotel and talk about what i would like to do and the possibilities I have. I would like to allocate 500/700 words to the main points and around 700/800  words to my case study.finally i'd like to leave the last 500 words to my conclusion and results, this is where i prove my question and state how I have proven it and how I intend to work into a future proposed idea.

All in all I think that I am moving in the right direction and will have a strong case to prove and also something that could be very beneficial for both our generation and future generations to come as if we start off with one project I am positively sure that many investors will be inspired.

hypotheses Site proposal

Il Jerma Palace Hotel :

Finding a location locally was bit of a problem as I wanted to focus on big abandoned projects and not ones that where small projects in order to utilise all that is possible. I had 3 options which where The old power station, Doc number 1 and il Jerma. All locations are located in the south side of Malta and that was also another thing i wanted to do was to focus on the south side as an attempt to make it more habitable. After some research I discovered that the only option I had was il Jerma as the Power station project has already been started and Doc number 1 has been given to the American University that has been in the spotlight late last year. 

Il Jerma Palace Hotel also known as the only four star hotel in the area and one of the best of its kind as to its prestige location which is found on the seafront of Marsacala. The hotel first opened back in 1982 under the great leadership of the chain of the Corinthia hotels group. Unfortunately the hotel was closed back in 2007 and the land has changed owners multiple times since then. There where many discussions on rebuilding and making use of such land but due to it's derelict situation investors are not ready to do such works. Back in 2016 Times of Malta stated that "it would cost €1.5 million to demolish the present building".Whats to my advantage is that I could try focus as much on the sustainability of such potential project and try design and make use of the 38,745 square meters of land which is available rather than digging up new virgin land or demolish other old residence buildings. 


References :
Allied Newspapers Ltd. 2017. Times of Malta ‒ Jerma Hotel site valued at €20.8m, to be sold at judicial sale by auction in October. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20160822/local/jerma-hotel-site-valued-at-208m-to-be-sold-at-judicial-sale-by-auction.622742. [Accessed 6 May 2017].

hypothesis reflection

Adaptive Reuse Of Abandoned Buildings :

This week I decided to come up with my hypothesis title and question as I had not yet come up with a question. It was a bit of a challenge as I did not know my exact title yet as I wished to link it to my proposed thesis title. For my title i wanted to focus on the adaptive reuse of industrial buildings. Which consists of finding abbandoned buildings that have been abandoned run down and in an inhabitable state.

Multiple case studies, articles and thesis's about the subject can be found and research has proven to be highly beneficial with multiple pros and cons. Not many big projects of the sort have been implemented locally. Actually to my knowledge there has been some attempts but nothing concrete has ever happened.

My question had to be related to the most important aspect of the topic was that it brings the community together and also helps the housing problem we have locally as to the limited space we have. Most businessmen are currently buying old property as their prices are cheaper then demolish and build up e block of apartments instead. The massive drawback to that is the fact that we re slowly losing our historical value of these houses and also part of our heritage. With all this in mind i decided to choose the question of how could the adaptable reuse of abandoned buildings be of any help to our current housing problem ?

Possibilities Of The Race Track In Malta

The 33,000 metres squared race track which is being proposed could lead to a lot of possibilities in the automotive sport . Having a race track in Malta would benefit us highly as not only would car owners have a space where to test out her cars and test out their upgrades but also the track has alot of positives which could cater for both road safety and motorsport which will include facilities where one can have:

 " Training programmes for all vehicle categories,Training module for braking and swerve exercises, Training module for anti-skid training , Training module for cornering exercises, Handling track(e.g. Economy driver training,vehicle presentations, etc.), Driver education and examination area" and also "Races, Rally cross, Karting, Drift competitions, Race of Champions, Grassroot motorsport activities, Racing Academy "  

The masterplan is one where could expand the knowledge of future drivers and also helps the motorsport scene grow locally and also helps boost the tourism economy with competitors visiting the island to compete with local racers. 

Track being proposed 

References :

Road Safety & Motorsport Facility | Malta Motorsport Federation. 2017. Road Safety & Motorsport Facility | Malta Motorsport Federation. [ONLINE] Available at: http://maltamotorsport.org/motorsport-road-safety-facility/. [Accessed 26 March 2017].

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Race Track in malta

The dream of many car enthusiasts and racers is one of having a track locally. Currently any racer or car owner either has to go abroad or race in the public streets at night to enjoy and compete with their own car, there are roomers that a local race track might soon be found in the Maltese islands. 

 Currently on the island motorsport enthusiasts have the facility of a quarter mile drag racing strip, motor and auto cross circuit but not a proper circuit for racers to race and test their cars. As stated by Times Of Malta there are five bidders for the motorsport circuit. The proposed park will not only be for motorsport recreation but also educational use. A location has not been announced yet as the submission is still to be assessed.

  The government is stating that the "government was promising that together with the involved stakeholders it would identify a site for a motorsport circuit, possibly in conjunction with the private sector." and also "would ensure that every effort would be made to maximise the economic potential of the site selected, especially where job creation is concerned." 

This proposal as everything else that happens on the island has sparked up what is now a really big crisis with the people in the street as many of them say that it will damage the carbon footprint and would also increase the noise pollution. In my opinion I am favour of the Track as not only a car enthusiast but also I believe that malta could benefit from such project as it could save lives and decrease most of the accidents which happen on a daily basis. 

References:

Allied Newspapers Ltd. 2017. Times of Malta ‒ Five bidders for motorsport circuit, sites not revealed. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20160222/local/five-bidders-for-motorsport-circuit-sites-not-unveiled.603372. [Accessed 18 March 2017].

High rise

Although Portomaso is the tallest of it's kind in the near future lets say in around 10 year it will be one of the smallest of its kind on the island. The biggest concern is with the recent go ahead of the 2 40 story buildings in Sliema. These Skyscraper status buildings has raised a massive controversy and alot of concerns mainly from residents, environmentalists local councils and also the average man on the street so basically the majority of the population.Basically the completion of  Portomaso started all this as said by some people. In my opinion I don't think that this is the case as with nowadays policies and seeing who are the investors of these 2 buildings they would have still gotten the permits needed. These buildings not only means a big transformation to the coastline and its surroundings but means that the high end property behind these towers will drop drastically in price as they would not have any views or sunlight to hit some apartments. Another project similar to these is the 36 story Corinthia 6 star Hotel in St Georges Bay in St Julians.The €400 million project is aimed to bring more high end spending tourists to the island. This will be The biggest project in it's industry on the island. There are more examples of potential high rise buildings in malta but if I had to sat something about all of them I will never stop typing... 






References :

• "Portomaso | Tumas Group". Tumas.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
•  GmbH, Emporis. "Portomaso Business Tower, Saint Julian's | 136726 | EMPORIS". Emporis.com. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
• Ltd, Allied. "Up, Up And Away: The Tower Economics Of High-Rise Buildings". Times of Malta. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.
• "Updated: Corinthia Group Confirms €400 Million Investment In Six-Star Hotel In St Julian's - The Malta Independent". Independent.com.mt. N.p., 2016. Web. 25 Nov. 2016.

Aesop case study

       

Aesop is a well renowned skin care company which was established back in 1987 in Melbourne.Their objective was always that of formulating skin, hair and body products of the finest quality. Altought their headquarters are in Melbourne the company is spread world wide with having Stores all over the globe including New York, London,Paris, Tokyo Hong Kong and many more… The store i will be researching about is the Aesop ION designed by Snøhetta back in 2015, Snøhetta has designed four of Aesop’s stores which where built all over the world which include: Singapore,Norway and Berlin. 

Concept \ Taught behind the design :

   Aesop Ion was designed to be a “ warm, reflective space that med  iates nature and artifice through local history.” The shop i chose to talk about is situated in Singapore which is situated just off Orchard Road, the project was designed in “collaboration with Norwegian-based architecture and design practice Snøhetta”. There main inspiration and thought behind the design was that to “commemorate Orchard Road’s original incarnation as a nutmeg plantation, which lasted until development along the thoroughfare began in the early twentieth century.” inspired by the past and also an underground location the studio wanted to create the feel of an upside down forest. they managed to get this feeling with intelligent use of “sensitive layering of materials, colours and forms.” 

Forms and functions 

The designer kept the form of the interior very organic and simple. Although they uses square battens for the ceiling they still managed to keep the form as flowing and circular as possible. The advantage to this was not only the fact that it create a form of flow in the  shop but also it works well with the central piece which is used to test all the products. Integrated in it you can find two sinks where the client could wash their hands and either try on another product or just check out. The till is situated at the end to help with the flow of people .  

Layout and User experience 

The layout and user experience is a simple but effective one. the layout is kept simple by showcasing the products on the side but directing all the flow of people to the central panel where one can test  the product and see which one they prefer before checking out. Although the designer never blocked any passages they managed to create a good flow which works well with the customers and instantly gives you a sense of direction.

How the designer interpreted the brand identity

Aesop tend to give their designers the luxury of being free in their design and most of the stores have different designs.  The designer interpreted the brand identity in the way where they kept certain aspects which are very similar to a nearby Aesop which establishes the use of brass in functional elements such as the sales counter and sink The brass counters are all enhanced by overhead lighting.     

Materials and colours  

   Referencing to the orchard the design decided to make the ceilings dark to give the sense of a forest whilst keeping it bright enough for the Timber battens which help forming walls which curve throughout the space and also acts as a feature but at the same time doesn’t take the importance off the product on display. All the Exposed walls where painted pink which is reminiscent of the colour of mace, the other spice which is harvested from the nutmeg fruit which is used in some of their products. 

Shop window design and light strategies 

The facade of the store looks alot like the stores nearby as can be clearly seen from the exterior subtile curved line of the tenancy facade. The use of brass tends to project a burnished glow to passers by. The design of the facade is kept simple and luxurious whilst also showing some of their products. The brass facade instantly gives a big sense of richness, it is kept plain and simple so the passer by could see the products for sale inside the store and also invites you to have a look whats product are found inside the shop.   

Regarding lighting strategies the designer focused on keeping the outside shiny and all lit up to attract customers whilst keeping the inside dull with the use of dark ceilings with using LED lightings to branch out on the products which are being sold. The displays inside the store are also made of brass thus the light could reflect greater off the products.   

Refences:

"Aesop ION / Snøhetta". ArchDaily. N.p., 2017. Web. 2 Mar. 2017.

"Home Page". Aesop.com. N.p., 2017. Web. 2 Mar. 2017.

Beginning of semester Two

The beginning of February saw the beginning of a new semester with new assignments waiting for us, this time round we where given some tough but interesting assignments which consisted of: AIDA Stage design, Retail design and Landscape design.

The stage design assignment seems to be the most challenging one as its in collaboration with a company all the way from Holland. Nearly all our assignments are group work which has its up's and down's... the good things about it is when you are more than two people in the group you could have more ideas and the work load could be evenly spread out for a better end result. The problem with such groups is especially times management and some people in the group either do not work well together or some people could also have a lot of different opinions on such things.

The retail design assignment which is a double unit consists of groups of two to choose a shop and design it. The located site is Hamleys in the Pama Shopping Village in Mosta. It's also part of a small group work of 2 people per group. My partner and I have chosen to create a tea shop with the brand Mariage Freres. This french brand is one of the most lush and expensive french teas on the current market. It seems as if it will be a very interesting assignment and will be very beneficial for our portfolio. The Landscape design assignment is really interesting and is the first time we had such assignments, we where allocated the small garden allocated in the area between the workshops and studio 1 area. The assignment consists of another group work and we will be working hand in hand to make things better and have the best result we can have.


All these assignments seem Promising and shall help expand our personal portfolio, would help us work better with time and in groups as in the future we will be working as part of a team to make as many good projects as possible. This semester seems as if it will be a good and challenging one.

Last Semester's Refletion

     Last semester was a really stressful but also very interesting. We had a lot of different assignments which consisted of assignments such as agrivoltiac systems, Residential design, Re designing studio 1 and Critical studies. Most units mainly consisted of us working in groups for most of the duration of the assignment,some of which are also stretched on the whole scholastic year.There where two assignments which where especially very time consuming which where the Designing Principles and Methods and Critical studies, Design principles was a time consuming one as we had to come up with ways how to comply design methods and implement them in our studies. It was challenging and time consuming for the fact that we had to find a various amount of users for our located room to re design and ask for the students and tutors to fill in forms.For the other assignment it was pretty challenging as it was something new and I was abit shaky on as it was about my thesis title. My title was about reusing old abandoned buildings. Now the problem I was finding whilst looking for a location was that recently all building where being assorted other projects so its very difficult to find a location. For both assignments I could have dine different things to they make my life easier and get the same or better results, which was for the re designing we could have based more on online surveys and questioners as we git better response as the students are doing it at there leisure and comfort and also not being forced and pressured by their tutor. Whilst for the other assignment I would have re taught the whole title and maybe choose a different sector instead of old abandoned buildings.

Sustainable spatial design

During the whole duration of the whole assignment we where given the task to come up with a design for an agrivoltaic systems which shape shifts, collects water and protects the crops with still managing to give them as much sunlight as needed. The tutors from the engineering side of MCAST showed us a small animation of what they had so far and explained that they came to us to make the design more aesthetically pleasing. Instead of doing like some people I opted to create  a system which consists of a lot of small single structures scattered around the field instead of having a structure with a square frame. 

    My initial inspiration was from sailing and sails as such systems used are perfect as they make use for my design. After extensive research done i found how such systems are used as canopies for restaurants and public spaces all over the world. This research helped me come up with both an aesthetically pleasing and modular design. A problem i encountered was one of how the supporting pillars are going to open up and how they will fold.Other problems I encountered regarding my individual design was the track that the system was all going to fold as a big problem is that when it rains mud will enter the track and consequence to this the track could get jammed. Aspects I liked about my design was one that all modules work individual, could be rotated to what ever angel is best used to collect energy and also the fact that it is all motorised.

   My design was not short listed and joined the group which consisted of Raissa , Jonathan and Mariah. Raissa’s design consisted of panels on a rectangular structure. We started off by allocating certain jobs to certain people and as a group tried solving how the mechanism will work. After a lot of consultation we agreed on a system and did the adequate CAD drawings for the structure. I then started building the 3D model and preparing for the animation.During the process we had some strong opinions on certain things but at the end we certainly managed to deliver a strong concept. 

    Our final result of this assignment was a very positive one and all members where proud of what we presented. Regarding some feedback given to us that it looked like a green house we where initially told to keep the structure as was as it was a good point that helped the structure get chosen. I personally think that such projects wont have a good affect in malta and we would have benefitted highly iff instead of having to design agrivoltaics we should have worked on something more useful and try improve the regular household  structure which PV panels are mounted on as at the moment cause a inconvenience and in most cities especially ones in the countryside such as Bahrija tend to cause a big eyesore. All in all i enjoyed working on this project as I learnt a lot about sustainability and PV systems. 

Progress Week

This week has finally arrived. The week of stress and relief.... these past weeks have been tough ones as of the final deadlines which where approaching.In all good the semester has come to an end after a very stressful time. I was looking forward for a week of no school and relaxation.

The last week of assignments was very stressful because we had 4 deadlines and presentation to give about our group and individual work, which consisted of Residential design, Agrivoltiacs, Re Designing Studio 1 and Critical studies. We had a presentation for each assignment during the duration of the whole week.

During this week of relaxation the first two days where just being lazy and catching up on some well needed sleep. The rest of the week was spent in London where I visited some lovely places such as the Tate Gallery which exhibited some beautiful pieces of art. Now I'm back in Malta all prepared for a very challenging semester 2 with some very difficult assignment titles.....

This semester was a very stressful one but at the same time we have learnt a lot of new and important things that would help us greatly in our line of work in the future. Now I am ready and prepared for the assignments that we are going to have next semester.

Adaptive reuse Thesis and Study

  In this thesis of Cristopher Smith he talks about the good aspects adaptive reuse of industrial buildings bring to the community and environment. This is something that is very helpful towards my title. He not only focuses on What is happening in America but decides to focus also on whats happening in the EU and mentions projects such as the Tate Modern in London which use to be an old coal station (power station). Something very related to my title are some main aspects and topics that he talks about. Which are : Keeping expenses to the minimum where possible , keeping out industrial heritage alive and keeping people from excavating new land for property. These are all topics which interest me highly and are also relevant topics on which i could benefit from and would help prove various valid points for why such projects should be implied here in Malta especially. 

In cyprus the authors of a sociology study titled " Questioning the Adaptive Reuse of the Industrial heritage and its interventions in the Context of Sustainability " by Kagan Gunce, Damla Misirlisoy. Both in this study and thesis they both speak about the same thing which all goes hand in hand together. the study mainly focuses on one particular site but in the introduction speaks in general about sustainability, Adaptability and such topics.  

References:

• Smith,C.S,2014,The Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Buildings,Accessed,17/01/2017.

• Günçea,Mısırlısoya, K.G,D.M,2015, Questioning the Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Heritage and Its Interventions in the Context of Sustainability, Vol.5,No.9 Web 19 Jan 2017 
•  

brief intro on adaptive reuse of old industrial buildings

    This blog will focus on the importance and relevance how adaptive reuse of old industrial buildings could work in Malta.I will be explaining this trough other contributions to this topic which are found in the form of previous thesis’s both from America and Cyprus, I will also discuss articles which show similar projects where old abandoned buildings where reused and reborn by keeping their original form and in certain cases extending to the structure. 

     All over the world many industrial cities which once thrived on the industry are now a days abandoned and are slowly rotting away, thus losing some of our heritage and also space. The industrial revolution is on of the most influential movements as thanks to the revolution These industrial areas where built. This was a big factor of massive urban interventions especially during the 1950’s and 60’s. The growth of the automotive industry meant that workers could now venture to new locations and not situate in the less attractive industrial areas. Nowadays such places if not demolished and rebuilt are left abandoned, my title focuses on restoring the run down industrial building and designing it in a way where it could be habitable. This will mainly work better for tree main things which are : Keeping expenses to the minimum where possible , keeping out industrial heritage alive and keeping people from excavating new land for property. 

References:

• Smith,C.S,2014,The Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Buildings,Accessed,17/01/2017.

• Günçea,Mısırlısoya, K.G,D.M,2015, Questioning the Adaptive Reuse of Industrial Heritage and Its Interventions in the Context of Sustainability, Vol.5,No.9 Web 19 Jan 2017.

Projects regarding adaptation reuse of old industrial buildings

    This project is one of much world wide that struck me most and helps me highly in the way I could re design my allocated site .


   This project was an old furniture factory which was now converted into a family home in Japan. The house is located in the city of Okayama. It's previous use was to store raw materials for a "made to order furniture company."The upper floor was transformed into a large living space with a balcony and they made use of the ground floor into a home and carpentry workshop. The original inner structure which contained of timber pillars and steel beams have been kept on site. there is one aspect about this project i particularly didn't like about it was the fact that there was a crane in the top level which was used to move the wood. This structure was removed instead of incorporating it in the design.

















  This Building in New York was a big inspiration to my title. At the moment the in thing that a lot of people are doing is keeping that industrial theme and re using old things. I was thinking and said instead of imitating objects from the past why not use the actual thing and give the building its own twist?

  This building is about making full use of our space which is left empty and unused for a long period of time. This run down and unused carpark in New York will be brought back to life and above that a residential and commercial building will be built. The thing i liked most about this project was that the designers and architects chose not to demolish the old structure but emend and customise the building to meet their requirements and start the process.






Resources :  Baird-Remba, Rebecca. "Garage To Luxury Apartment Conversion At 152 East 87Th Street Gets A New Rendering - New York YIMBY". New York YIMBY. N.p., 2017. Web. 13 Jan. 2017.

references : Jones, Jessica. "TT Architects Transforms Furniture Factory Into Family Home In Japan". Dezeen. N.p., 2017. Web. 12 Jan. 2017.

MEPA merger

The MEPA a.k.a Malta Environment and Planning Authority was responsible for land use planning and environmental regulations on the island. According to the "Times Of Malta " back in July 2015 the government published 3 bills regarding the split of MEPA. The split was proposed that instead of one MEPA their will be two entities, the PA and the ERA.

The PA stands for Planning Authority as stated by the PA website the entity will :

"-The New Planning Authority secures a balanced and sustainable environment for our community and provide a better quality of life through a sustainable land use planning system.

-The Authority ensures integrity, fairness and transparency across all operations through an Independent appeal and review process.

-The new Authority gives greater emphasis to the quality design of new developments and has even setup a design advisory committee to assist the Planning Directorate when evaluating development projects in Urban Conservation Areas and for Major projects.

-The New Planning Authority is giving a voice to residents by having a local council representative sitting on the new Planning Board, for major development applications."

They also stated that we will have " better planning for today and tomorrow."

The ERA stands for the ENVIRONMENT AND RESOURCE AUTHORITY. From their website they are stating that :

"Our Mission:

"To safeguard the environment for a sustainable quality of life"

Our Goals:

-To mainstream environmental targets and objectives across Government and society.

-To take the leading role in advising Government on environmental policy-making at the national level, as well as in the context of international environmental negotiations.

-To develop evidence-based policy; backed by a robust data gathering structure.

-To draw up plans, provide a licensing regime and monitor activities having an environmental impact and to integrate environmental considerations within the development control process." 

The separation of MEPA has its good and bad,obviously the government is in favour and says that it is the way forward as when MEPA was running the time was much longer an now with the de merger it takes around 30 days for a permit to go trough.

On the other hand the government said that is divesting itself of all environmental responsibilities. 

Resources :

 Ltd, Allied. "Mepa Split: ‘We’Re All In For A Rough Ride’". Times of Malta. N.p., 2017. Web. 8 Jan. 2017.