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Friday, April 22, 2011

World Tour of Heavy “Masonry” Construction Projects



Look at the countless architectural examples from history, and then study the truly riveting examples of heavy masonry construction from today. It’s this simple: Designing with brick can save energy and reduce fluctuating interior temperatures. 1st Image: The Queens Building @ De Montfort University)

Professor Alan Short MA DipArch RIBA FRSA (Professor of Architecture at the University of Cambridge and Chairman Short & Associates Architecture) delivered a fantastic keynote address at the 2nd Annual BrickStainable Awards Ceremony. An inspiring talk about the historical influences and styles of architecture, bio-climatic design strategies and building performance, and basic design concepts including: thermal mass, stack effect, and orientation were also discussed.

Brick allows you an unbelievable amount of design flexibility in color, size, pattern, shape, detail, and adaptability. It not only promises hundreds of years of durability, but it is manufactured from abundant, organic materials that are typically locally sourced.



Final thought from Professor Short:
“…to return to this chart (Image 2), there is an order of magnitude saving in energy and cost available through careful design. Only at this point should renewable energy technologies be introduced to deliver the residual and potentially much reduced energy requirement for comfort. Don’t apply gadgets to the top bar!”

Click here to download the entire keynote address.


Drawing and advice from Georgia Short, Age 7.

4 comments:

  1. Could you tell me when the next competition will be? I am [finally] ready to submit an entry.

    Also, when will you post links to all of the entries from the 2nd competition? http://www.brickstainable.com/current-winners/2010-complete-list-of-entrants.html

    You did it for the first competition and a lot of great ideas for brick come from the entries that didn't win.

    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This is very good information.i think it's useful advice. really nice blog. keep it up!!!

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  3. Thanks for your interest. We do not have new competition dates determined yet. We will keep you informed if we select new dates. Thank you.

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