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AREN 3080 | Architectural Design Studio 1
Jay Arehart
Lecture 8: Site & User Analysis
Learning Objectives
By the end of this class, you will be able to:
1. Describe the components of a site and user assessment.
2. Develop a plan for your own site and user assessment.
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Site Analysis
Why might you carry out a site and user analysis?
What types of information would we need to collect?
How might we collect this information?
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Site Analysis
A site analysis is the activity of evaluating a location's characteristics or features such as:
Neighborhood context: where is the site in relation to other buildings? What public
transportation links exist?
O Natural physical features: these include trees, topography, rivers, ponds, drainage
considerations, key features (positive and negative), exposure, flood plains.
O Access and Circulation: including both vehicle and pedestrian movements in, through,
and around the site. Consider also the timing of circulation and its future evolution.
Climate: what is the sun pattern? Is there shading from other buildings? Are there
prevailing winds, if so, which direction do they come from? How many days is heating, or
cooling required? Are there limitations to building orientation to consider?
Views: how does the site connect to the surrounding buildings or area from a visual
perspective? Consider both private views out, and public views in.
Other Sensory: what other visual, audible, or tactile aspects of the site exist? Is there
noise that needs to be considered?
Human and cultural: in what historical and cultural context does the site exist?
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A user analysis is the activity of evaluating the needs and patterns of building occupants:
What types of users will be using the building?
Access and Circulation: including both vehicle and pedestrian movements in, through,
and around the site. Consider also the timing of circulation and its future evolution.
O
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Program: what types of spaces are needed? These are often defined by the owner of the
building, and refined by the architect, asking the questions:
What types of activities occur?
What are the space requirements of each?
When and where do these activities occur?
How do these activities relate to one another?
While some of the program is given in the project description, some elements will need to
be developed by each of your groups in MOD IV
Site Analysis
Preparing for the design of a
new Architectural Engineering
building, site characteristics
from locations on the North
West corner of Discovery Dr.
and Colorado
analyzed. We have considered
typical wind paths, sun paths,
e were
flooding areas, walking paths,
noise issue
traffic fl
of access, and possible views
from the new location.
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Summer
Sunset
Winter
Sunset
(A)
flow, ease
100 ft
Astrophysics
Research
Lab
User Analysis
Architect
Aerospace Engineering
Building
Discovery Drive (Ligh
Colorado Ave. (Heavier Traffic)
Examples
Sustainability)
Energy, &
Environment
Building
Campus architecture is most
commonly defined by sand-
stone walls, red tile roofs,
and limestone trim. That
being said, this style has not
been strictly followed on East
Campus thus far.
Summer
Sunrise
KEY
Winter
Sunrise
Traffic Routes
New Building Footprint
Existing Building Footprints
Sun Path
Typical Wind Path
- Walking Path
■Creek
-Flood Line
Road Noise
View Facing South
View Facing West
View Facing South
Sunrise in the summers
will reach the building from
the North East, while in the
Winter it will come from
the South East. The sunset.
patterns will follow suit,
in
setting in the North West in
the summers and in the
South West in the winters.
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Student Preferences
Study Spaces
40%
Due to the current hybrid course
schedule, more students drive to
campus than used to. While the
majority of students walk or drive to
campus, it is still important to
design pathways that accommodate
bikers and those that take the bus.
Accessibility
Ease of Use
21.1%
Aesthetics.
21.1%
Flatiron View to
the South West
When asked what they valued most in
campus facilities, 40% of students
valued comfortable study spaces.
While fewer responses of ease of use
or aesthetics were collected,
complaints about campus facilities
most commonly involved these two
categories.
Students reported that their favorite
study spaces off-campus included
cafés or student apartments. Overall,
students communicated that they
enjoy comfortable seating and the
availability of drinks and snacks when
picking a study space.
Examples
course
for
The average
architectural engineering students is 16
credit hours; that means that each
student could potentially spend 16
hours in our building every week. A
typical school day lasts from 8am -
6pm but students can be found
studying on campus late into the night.
SITE ANALYSIS Architectural Engineering Program
Colorarado Ave.
Examples
Water Boundary
Vehicular Access
Pedestrian Access
★Site Choice
Discovery Dr.
ARXE
User Analysis
Due to the specificity of
programming requirements, data
collection focused on occupancy
data as well as the priorities of
future occupants when describing
campus buildings.
In order to inform our design of
the new Architectural Engineering
building, our team set out to
better our understanding of our
future occupants. Through CU
Campus Resources and surveys
involving both students and
professors, we are more prepared
to design a welcoming and
functional space for all.
General Service
7.1%
Lecture Hall
7.1%
The Architectural Engineering
program will include roughly 300
undergraduate students. While
students make up the largest
group of occupants, nine specific
AREN faculty as well as other
students within the Civil,
Architectural, and Environmental
Engineering department should
be accommodated. Specific
programming information can be
found below, displayed in a pie
chart. Percentages represent
total floor area in square footage.
Architectural Engineering
Building Program
Other
20.4%
Classroom Space
13.3%
Office Space
31.6%
Collaborative Space
8.2%
Makerspace
11.2%
Site Conditions: The site is already level and prepared for
construction. Despite the surrounding groundwater conditions,
this site is not in the floodplain.
Views: This site provides a clear view of the Flatirons to
the south west. Selecting a site adjacent to Colorado Ave.
makes this building one of the most publicly visible
allowing its spectacular architecture to be seen by all.
Accessibility: This site has easy access by bus
(stampede and bound) or car. It is also accessible for
pedestrians via the sidewalk adjacent to Colorado
Ave, and other paths throughout East Campus.
Sunlight: This site is essentially unobstructed with no
vertically imposing structures around, as shown in the
sun path diagram below..
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USER ANALYSIS Architectural Engineering Program
Students
Population: 214
Activities: class, research, studying
(group and individual), attending meet-
ings, etc.
Desires: easy access to professors
and other students, easy access to food
and recreation, community feel, work-
spaces, intuitive layout, spaces to relax.
or sleep
living/relaxation
CLIMATE
collaboration
TEMPERATURE RANGE
individual work
ILLUMINATION RANGE
WIND SPEED DIAGRAM
LEGEND
Space Use in EC
Outside of Classtime
LEGEND
This climate is suitable for passive cooling
in the summer, but for the most part is a
heating climate. Passive solar is a fantas-
tic option for this location, using 60 degree
cut off shading on south facing glass for the
highest impact. Wind in this area is spurad-
ic and does not consistantly come from one
direction, so blocking it externally is not an
option. We can create a passive ventilation
system that takes the wind speed over time
into account though.
Faculty & Admin.
Population: 12
Activities: teaching, individual work,
attending meetings, office hours, etc.
Desires: centralized location for meet-
ings, easy access to food and recreation,
nice office space, adaptable classroom
layouts, thermal comfort in rooms for
extended periods
living/relaxation
Examples
collaboration
PLAINS COTTONWOOD TREES
STAMPEDE BUS LINE
individual work
Number of classes in session
NIS AN
m
Instruction
Classroom Minimum Requirments
Individual Work
Collaboration
Living/Relaxation
WEST VIEW
Examples
AEROSPACE BUILDING
10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
PM
AM
time
MWF
TTh
Engineering Center Problems
- outdated HVAC system
confusing layout
not enough solo study space
- too little natural light
·lack of access to recreation
-classrooms only set up for lecturing
New Building Solutions
state of the art systems
• experience-focused design
efficient use of space
- daylighting focused design
connection to trails
adaptive classroom setup
NORTH VIEW
SEEC
Weekday
Activities
faculty arrives 7AM
first class starts 8 AM
line for breakfast/coffee
studying/relaxing
peak class time
line for lunch
club meetings
faculty leaves 6 PM
last class ends 9 PM
studying
SITE
ANALYSIS
The site overall is mostly flat. There are
a few hills to the west, but nothing that
would change designs. The ponds and
creeks are not visible from the site. The
building will be outside the floor plane.
The site also is void of any major veg-
etation that would need to be saved but
there is a cotton wood grove not far to
the west that will be visible.
To the east of the building is Foothills
Parkway, a major road with lots of traffic.
Since this building is meant to be a show
stopper, a grand entrace will face that di-
rection. If a parking garage is to be built
there, it will face the south.
PRIMARY
CIRCULATION
High foot traffic
TRANSPORTATION
from Engineering Center to Site
35-40 minutes
NOON
10 minutes
20-25 minutes
9-12 minutes
AM
PM
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