ABSTRACT
Architectural technology is related to materials and construction. Consequently, more attention should be focused on the question of “where to build and how to build”, in order to design a building which is better integrated in the surrounding environment. In fact, a close relationship between architecture and location is obvious, related not only to local characteristics, but also to the climate adaptation of the building. That’s why nowadays an increasing focus is on vernacular architecture.
Nowadays it can be also useful to apply the knowledge of vernacular architecture and the climatic data analysis in order to develop the climatic design of buildings, using passive techniques applied differently according to each climate. The focus is on building design, but urban climate is also considered. Ways to gain more knowledge are presented and illustrated with a case studies.
At the end, two real case studies of climate responsive buildings will be analysed in depth; in particular, they have been selected as close as possible to the assigned locations, in fact one is in the Pacific North-West, near Alaska, and the other one is in Malaysia.
CHAPTER 1 - VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
The expression “vernacular architecture” is adopted to categorise methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs; ancient people used to build according to some local criteria, considering architectural aesthetic, folk-belief, regional culture and geographic. At the same time, vernacular architecture gradually formed its own characteristics over its long history which include functions, practical and economical, environment-friendly and so on, and especially low-technology ecological measures and experiences.
The most important issue in today's world, in which man has a critical role, is the reduction of energy consumption; in particular, according to recent studies, approximately 40% of the global energy is involved in the construction sector. The sustainability concept of a building has focused on possible ways to reduce energy consumption during the service life of a building, reducing the negative effects on the natural environment.
The vernacular architects argue in applying a traditional model that can be useful to inform people of the best ways to deal with local weather conditions; previous studies show that vernacular architecture is an important parameter for achieving sustainability in modern architecture, being a sort of parameter to classify construction method that uses locally available resources to address the local needs.
Since Vitruvius (90-20 b.C.), prominent architectural theorists have often included select climatic parameters as design determinates without being comprehensive. This continues to be appropriate since designs or performances based on broad climatic type are strongly modified by microclimate; according to this, it would be interesting to study from the literature the different maps of the world depending on the climate but also on vernacular architecture, developed by many experts. Dolfus (1954) correlated regional house types identified primarily by roofs, with thermal and precipitation zones: higher roof slopes were used in wet-temperate and cooler zones, flat roofs occurred in hot dry zones, and slightly inclined roofs were found in temperate climates with consistently dry summers. Zones where the roof was more essential than the walls, which may not be needed at all, included rainy equatorial forests and tropical savannas of Africa, monsoon Asia, Australia, Polynesia and the Amazon.