Programme

• Bachelor's degree programme in Architecture (01.09.2008)
• Master's degree programme in Architecture (01.09.2008)

Focal area
Sustainable Design

Focal area
Sustainable Design

Lecturer
Prof. Dipl.-Arch. ETH/SIA Dietrich Schwarz
Paul Körner, MSc Arch
Dr. Roman Banzer
Dr. Pia Scherrer

Modules

• Architectural Design III
• Architectural Design V
• Sustainable Design - Design Project I
• Architectural Design IV
• Architectural Design VI

Content
The unit projects typically include the design of buildings, their sitting, energy use, choice of construction, materials and processes, as well as the quality of their internal environment and micro-climate focussing the issues of sustainability and the performance of the building envelope. These projects are the vehicles to hone creative design skills integrating sustainable building technology. They are supported by highly integrated, specific theory courses that lay a strong foundation to build upon. The scale from analytical and research work to architectural design projects ranges between 1:200 and 1:1.

Aims
The goal of this design course is to help students to develop critical positions in the field of sustainable design and to further their ability to root these positions in the theory of building construction and technology, as well as in the political, sociological, and cultural context of contemporary architecture and society. The acquirement of such positions should enable the future architects to develop their personal architectural design processes and to contribute to a sustainable building culture.

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the module each student should have the ability to demonstrate and/or work with:

• Knowledge that covers and integrates most of the principle areas, features, boundaries, terminology and conventions of the discipline of architecture focused on the issues of sustainability and the performance of the building envelope.
• A researched understanding of sustainability in order to take a position as a designer reflected in the ability to devise and implement strategies for sitting, energy use, choice of construction, materials and processes, as well as for the quality of the internal environment and micro-climate.
• A critical understanding of the intellectual, aesthetic and technological content of self-selected buildings that supports architectural judgement.
• Researched and critical evaluation of the briefing and performance of buildings.
• A researched and integrated knowledge of building construction and materials, structural design and energy transfer mechanisms synthesized in coherent design projects that express architectural intentions and considerations of a sustainable environment.
• The ability to define what type of research is relevant, what questions to ask, and which formats to record the findings to best serve as a springboard to design decisions.
• A sense of direction and be able to develop and sustain a line of inquiry - being able to identify and develop design ideas thematically as well as undertaking sequencial problem solving.
• Undertake strategic thinking - exploring options, setting parameters and objectives and testing design ideas against them and comparing likely outcomes in order to make critical judgments about the likely effect of design decisions.
• Execute complex defined and self-defined projects of research, development or investigation and identify and implement relevant outcomes.
• Ability to plan and compose buildings exhibiting complexity in terms of function, scale and context.
• Research and critical evaluation of how a strategic choice of construction, materials and environmental approaches can determine the character of an architectural design project.
• Critically identify, define, conceptualise and analyse complex problems and issues relevant to contemporary discipline of architecture.
• Communicate and articulate ideas and informations fluently in english language and work comprehensively in visual, oraland written forms.
• Make formal presentations about specialist topics to informed audiences.
• Exercise autonomy and initiative in carrying out set project briefs and self-directed programme of study.
• Demonstrate ability to manage time and physicalresources in relation to set project briefs and self-direct programmes of study as an individual and a group member.
• Development of critical position as an individual designer and contribute this to the on-going studio debate. Deal with complex ethical and professional issues.

Methods
Studio delivered and project based, with students being tutored individually and in groups. This is supported by lectures that explain the principles that underlie sustainable design and provide the intellectual cultural and technological context for the study in achitecture.

Requirements

• Admission requirements for the Master of Science in Architecture Degree Program

Literature
Project briefs, reading lists, subsidiary documents and bibliography of the lecturer.

Assessment
The course has to be passed with a sufficient grade (minimum grade of 4.0).
The module grade will be determined from the weighted average of the single course grades.

Project Studio Sustainable Design 1 82%
Compact Project 1 18%