The concept of The Vertical Village is hypothetical as of now, so it was hard to find just one case study which could provide all the data necessary for the project. Multiple studies of various projects were to be done in order to get the data required. Various studies done are listed below:
- EDITT TOWER, SINGAPORE– in order to understand the techniques and services involved in vertical farming.
- TATA PROMONT APARTMENTS, BANGALORE: in order to understand modern vertical housing in an urban context and services involved.
EDITT TOWER, SINGAPORE:
INTRODUCTION: The Editt tower in Singapore can be expressed as a tower with a perfect blend of hydroponic farming systems with the commercial spaces in the center of the city and to increase the biodiversity within the city.
- SITE LOCATION: VICTORIA STREET, SINGAPORE
- ARCHITECT: TR HAMZAH AND YANG
- CLIENT: URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
- NUMBER OF FLOORS: 26 TOTAL
- GROSS AREA: 6033SQM
- TOTAL NETT AREA: 3567.16 SQM P
- PLANTATION AREA: 3841.34 SQM
- SITE AREA: 838SQM
FLOOR PLANS AND CIRCULATION: The tower is zoned in such a way that the public is restricted to the gardening areas and the circulation moves from more public to less public from the ground floor to the topmost floor. Various public amenities addressed in the project are auditorium, cafe, markets, etc.,
STUDY OF SERVICES:
The project concept of blending in housing with vertical farming is a very functional aspect involving various different services. Service core in the project plays an important role in order to sustain both farming and the housing aspect. So, here is a brief study of the services in the EDITT tower.
PLANTING CONCEPT: The vegetation areas constitute 3,841sqm, which is a ratio of 2:1 of the gross usable area to gross vegetated area. Carefully selected indigenous plant species ensure that there is no competition with existing species of the locality. Overall, the tower is designed to show how biodiversity can be enhanced despite being situated in a highly urbanized environment.
Sources: https://divisare.com/projects/17296-t-r-hamzah-yeang-editt-tower
WATER COLLECTION AND FILTRATION: Water self-sufficiency through rainwater collection and greywater reuse for both plant irrigation and toilet flushing at over 55%. The design also optimizes recovery and recycling of sewage waste through the creation of compost and biogas fuel.
Sources: https://divisare.com/projects/17296-t-r-hamzah-yeang-editt-tower
SOLID WASTE TREATMENT: Recyclable materials are separated at source by hoppers at every floor, dropping down to basement waste-separators and taken elsewhere by recycling garbage collection for recycling.
- Expected recyclable waste collected /annum: Paper / cardboard = 41.5 metric-tonnes
- Glass / ceramic = 7.0 metric-tonnes
- Metal = 10.4 metric-tonnes
Sources: https://divisare.com/projects/17296-t-r-hamzah-yeang-editt-tower
PHOTOVOLTAICS: Photovoltaics are used for greater energy self-sufficiency and are oriented towards south-east and south-west to capture the maximum amount of sunlight.
Sources: https://divisare.com/projects/17296-t-r-hamzah-yeang-editt-tower
CONCLUSION AND INFERENCES:
- Food production is becoming the next big thing due to scarcity and the project shows how well the issue could be handled bringing in the effective use of technology
- The tower is self-sustained to a large extent and the techniques used in the structure could be easily adapted into the modern day buildings in India too, be it housing or commercial.
- The architect has smartly used the gravitation for various purposes like water management and waste management. And the orientation of the block too is effectively done to improve.
TATA PROMONT APARTMENTS, BANGALORE
Since the design program involved housing to be an integral part, the case study on the community housing project of Tata Promont was taken up. The reason why this apartment is because this housing project is designed for balconies and terraces which become an important aspect of the project. The architect has taken care of the orientation and vegetation.
INTRODUCTION:
Architect: Moshe Safdie- Local architect: Thomas Associates
- Landscape: Terra Firma
- Green bldg consultant: en3
- Area: 14.23 acres
- Total saleable: 20 acres
- Row houses: 4 acres
- Clubhouse/ retail: 0.68 acres
- Parking provided for 1045 cars
ACCESS: The apartment is located on top of a monolithic Hill, renamed as Promont Hill by Tata group. By bus: the bus route stops at 1.8 km from the Site, and should be accessed by means of private vehicles or auto.
MASTERPLAN AND ZONING:
The housing in the complex are of two types, apartments and row housing. The apartments are divided into 4 blocks or towers and are separated by community spaces in between them. The recreation spaces include childrens play area, basketball courts, gardens, etc,.,
INFERENCES:
- The pathways connecting the clocks are facing the north-south direction which might invite harsh sunlight. The issue is taken care by planting lots of trees in that direction
- The blocks are arranged diagonally to the site to capture maximum daylight.
- The blocks are placed far from each other ie, 45 m which avoids Self-shading in the blocks
- The community interaction spaces are placed in between every block Which makes them easily accessible and also makes the community more Interactive.
TOWER PLANS AND SERVICES:
- The various modules are arranged together in order to form a common service core.
- This service core houses two passenger lifts, one service lift and one emergency staircase connecting all the floors.
- The houses have two different accesses to enter, one for the owner and one for the servant.
- The luxury variant house also houses a separate servant quarters inside.
ORIENTATION: The blocks are oriented such that the balconies receive maximum daylight. The balconies are facing the east and the west to capture daylight into the house throughout the day.
INFERENCES:
- On visit to the complex, it was observed that the orientation of the blocks and balconies worked perfectly providing bright daylight to most of the living spaces.
- But, the kitchen received the least sunlight even though the open to sky area next to the kitchen was as wide as 6m.
- In my project, the same concept of day lighting can be used to light up the living areas, but the hydroponic system will be harmed due to the direct sunlight.
- Care is to be taken in order to design the farming areas with diffused sunlight and not direct daylight.
AREA STATEMENT FOR THE BLOCKS:
The apartment modules are arranged around the common service core. Each floor is staggered and rearranged for every odd floor in order to let the floor below receive Good amount of daylight.
CONCLUSIONS AND TAKE-AWAYS:
- The take away from the case study was how urban cities have evolved with the concept of verticality and how it can be done in the suburban region as well.
- The importance of service core in a housing complex and how it can be worked out is understood.
- The effect of orientation of the blocks and its effect on the day lighting factor and the open spaces can be understood through this case study.
Archispills 