Assessing Accessibility of Footpath-Level Walkability in Old Core Cities of India for Promoting Universal Mobility through Architectural Planning Research: Case Study of Central Kolkata, India

In this research, the accessibility in the footpath-level walkability condition of old core cities of India has been assessed, considering Central Kolkata, India as a case. Post-2015, after the implementation of Goal Number 11 of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (i.e. Sustainable Cities and Communities), the significance of universal mobility has globally manifolded in the walkability sector. This research has been done in theoretical, ideological, and methodological patterns using Architectural Planning Research for promoting Universal Mobility in old Indian cities. The variables (categorical) used in this research are related to pedestrian infrastructure. The categorical variables are: 1) Building Typology of Stretch, 2) Footpath Dimensions, 3) Temporary Encroachment, 4) Permanent Encroachment, 5) Bus Stop, 6) Metro Rail Entrance, 7) Railings, 8) Storm Water Drains, 9) Public Toilet, 10) Trash Bins, 11) Street Lights, 12) Flooring, 13) Manholes, 14) Kerb, 15) Pedestrian Crossing, 16) Street Furniture, 17) Safety and Security, and 18) Additional Inclusive Features like signage. This research shows that the footpath stretches in Central Kolkata, India are inadequate in terms of ideal accessibility. In addition to this, the result of this research portrays complexities in the adaptability of accessible walkability-related considerations; thereby suggesting a new accessibility audit format for old core Indian cities for achieving Universal Mobility standards in the future. The authors also propose quantitative methods to conduct future research in the same domain.

Projects of consular facilities of Kazy-Girey in Harbin

The architecture of unrealized projects of consular institutions of the Russian Imperial Consulate in Harbin is considered and analyzed. The projects were part of an unrealized plan to reorganize the consular service of the Russian Empire, the construction of which was never carried out due to the outbreak of the First World War and the subsequent October Revolution. In the course of the study, authorship of the projects carried out by the talented civil engineer Kazy-Girey Nikolai Alexandrovich was established, as well as his brief biography and the main stages of his creative activity. The article also describes the architectural, planning and compositional features of draft designs, such as the building of the consulate, the houses of the consul and vice-consuls.

Study on Wind Environment Influencing Factors and Layout of Urban Ordinary Residence

In the architectural planning and design, the commonly used architectural layout forms are determinant, diagonal, etc. Because of its centralized and symmetrical layout form, determinant architecture has been widely used in urban architectural design. Due to the high density of multi span buildings, the ventilation effect is not good, so this paper mainly studies the influence of multi span building layout on the wind field of urban ordinary residence. In order to optimize the wind environment of the building, a 7-story residential area was modeled and calculated by CFD. Through the analysis of wind field characteristics at different building heights, the results show that the total wind speed in Z direction of the building is the smallest, about 3.354 m/s; At the same time, the overall wind pressure values are within 5Pa of the standard wind pressure difference, but we still need to pay close attention to the possible environmental impact at the outlet of the determinant residence.

Main aspects of environmental protection from urban noise

The main sources of noise pollution in modern cities, that generate significant levels of sound pressure, which significantly, sometimes at times exceed permissible noise levels have been identified. The consequences of the negative impact of noise of the urban environment on the human body, fauna and flora are described. The sanitary-hygienic, engineering-technical, architectural-planning, construction-acoustic and economic-social aspects of scientific researches concerning protection of the environment from noise pollution are singled out. The main methods and ways to reduce urban noise are described, among which are: reducing the sound power level of existing equipment and vehicles, or replacing them with less noisy ones, and during design-taking measures to minimize noise emissions from machines; carrying out timely cleaning, adjustment, repair of machines, mechanisms and equipment, restriction or complete prohibition of noisy works and operation of the most intensive noise sources at night; rational orientation of the noise source or place of noise radiation, taking into account the direction indicator; placement of noise sources and objects of protection – at the maximum possible distance from each other; the use of building structures with improved sound insulation, the use of sound-absorbing materials for lining the enclosing structures of buildings and structures; zoning of sources and objects of protection, application of territorial gaps, noise protection buildings, acoustic screens and strips of greenery. It was found that the maximum possible impact on noise pollution of modern cities and surrounding areas can be achieved in the case of integrated application of methods, means of protection against acoustic blocking of the duration, direction and use of noise emissions in its sources and through noise level on the way to its spread, as well as through the implementation of appropriate organizational and technical measures.

Analysis of architectural and planning solutions for visualization systems of medical organizations

Introduction. Currently, visualization is recognized as one of the main criteria for the quality of space of the new model of a medical organization providing primary health care. Purpose of the study to establish the features of architectural and planning solutions for visualization systems of medical organizations providing primary health care. Materials and methods. The object of the study was the visualization systems of 94 medical organizations from seven constituent entities of the Russian Federation, in which all available internal and external visual elements were studied in person. As a basis for assessing visualization systems, the author's checklist was taken according to the ALIDS method of 50 indicators, united by common characteristics in five blocks: architectural planning and design solutions, transmitted information, levels and methods of visualization. The block «Architectural and planning solutions» was represented by 10 parameters. A nominal dichotomous score was assigned for each criterion. Results. The general architectural and planning solutions of visualization systems of medical organizations providing primary health care are at a satisfactory level (6,3±1,8 points). The greatest correspondence among the architectural and planning solutions of visualization systems of medical organizations was found in the characteristics of safety (93%), cleanliness (88%) and ergonomics of the location (79%) of elements, the least — in the presence of general infographic schemes (9%) and routing (3%). The level of architectural and planning solutions for visualization systems of medical organizations correlates with the complexity of the architectural plan of buildings (r=–0,423; p<0,05) and the patients' assessment of the comfort of the conditions for providing services (r=0,345; p<0,01). Discussion. Improving visualization systems by improving the architectural and planning solutions of elements can lead to a significant reduction in the main and additional types of losses in lean production both on the part of patients and on the part of medical personnel. Conclusion. One of the main problems of organizing visualization systems in medical organizations is the lack of common maps with buildings, signs of entrances and other objects of the adjacent territory. The absence of a positioning sign on most schemes leads to a longer orientation in space, and in the case of placing the elements of the visualization system at the decision-making points, the intersection of patient flows and an increase in the risk of security breaches.

Structure and architectural appearance of cruise ports

Introduction. The purpose of this study is to identify principles and trends in the construction and architecture of cruise ports. Presently, Soviet-era seaport buildings fail to meet cruise tourism development requirements and current norms and standards applicable to this type of structures. Today Russian seaports are limited to solely one function, that is, transportation of passengers, whereas abroad such structures have been transformed into multifunctional complexes. Materials and methods. Theoretical analysis of scientific literature, graphic materials, and written sources were used. The research methods include systematic, spatial, and socio-functional approaches. Results. The article presents the history of formation of the architectural appearance and the functional purpose of cruise ports. It specifies principal requirements and design standards for similar structures, as well as their integration into the mo­dern urban environment. The co-authors offer solutions to relevant problems, related to the architecture of seaport buildings in Russia, using a number of selected international design cases of multifunctional marine complexes. Conclusions. By transforming obsolete buildings of seaports multifunctional complexes, we end up with a new level of structures. The competent architectural planning structure will allow urban authorities to create interesting facilities that bring not only transport, but also commercial, recreational and social benefits to the city. The structure and architectural appearance of a cruise port must be designed with regard for contemporary design standards and encompass a wide range of functional, technical, urban planning, artistic and aesthetic requirements.

ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION OF COMFORT OF HOUSING COMPLEXES (DEVELOPMENT STUDIES IN WESTERN UKRAINE)

Architects and urban planners in the process of designing residential areas use building codes that consider the comfort of living only in terms of safety, sanitation and environmental performance. This article highlights the problem of taking into account a number of additional social parameters of comfort that affect the characteristics of living comfort. The structure of a comprehensive analysis of housing is formed by assessing the elements of living comfort. The presented research algorithm includes the consistent use of methods of sociological survey, evaluation and modeling. Having identified socio-psychological factors of comfort of a residential district at different levels of urban assessment (in the context of location in the city system, formation of the surrounding area, spatial and architectural-planning level), 3 residential development projects of Ivano-Frankivsk were assessed. For a comparative analysis, the architectural and planning solutions of residential quarters "Lemkivsky", "Club town 12", "Vidensky" were used, the construction of which began in 2017. This took into account not only the quantitative technical and economic indicators of individual elements of the project, but also qualitative indicators, the measurement of which in normal conditions is a resource-intensive process. As a result of the analysis and the carried-out estimation the graphic model of the complex analysis of a residential quarter is formed that allows to carry out comparison of various design decisions irrespective of size of a site of quantity of housing sections, etc. Using the method of movement to the ideal, a comprehensive analysis of various residential complexes was carried out. The obtained results allow, both at the stage of designing residential neighborhoods and the analysis of operated facilities to assess them in accordance with the needs of people, as well as to balance the indicators of comfort by applying the proposed architectural and planning techniques.

Reduction of Embodied Energy and Construction Cost of Affordable Houses through Efficient Architectural Design: A Case Study in Indian Scenario

Embodied energy and cost of construction of any building depends upon the consumption of resources, more specifically construction materials. In housing clusters, the spaces provided for horizontal and vertical circulation of occupants such as corridors and contribute in the built-up area of individual unit without any increase in the usable/carpet area. Thus, an efficient architectural planning of common circulation spaces plays a major role in lowering the built-up-to-carpet area ratio of individual housing unit in clusters. This may, thus, result in lesser embodied energy and maximum area availability for occupant usage. In the present study, 30 clusters of Indian affordable housing units (IAHUs) of similar typology and different architectural designs are analyzed. The built-up and carpet area of each IAHU are estimated, and the ratio of the built-up to carpet area is calculated. Detailed estimates of construction materials for each IAHU is prepared, and cost of construction and embodied energy is calculated. The calculations of embodied energy and construction cost are done for major construction materials, viz., cement, steel, bricks, sand, and coarse aggregate and compared with different built-up-to-carpet area ratio. The study of IAHUs concludes that a variation of 1.30 to 1.62 in the built-up area-to-carpet area ratio results in variation in construction cost (INR 13,425.00 to 20,138.00 per m2 carpet area) and embodied energy (4–6.5 GJ per m2 carpet area). Analysis suggests that the IAHU with a lower built-up-to-carpet area ratio exhibits reduction in the cost of construction and embodied energy simultaneously. Thus, an efficient architectural design plays a major role in improving the sustainability of IAHUs and built-up-to-carpet area ratio is an important indicator of sustainability.

De las bellas artes a la composición arquitectónica

El proceso compositivo en la proyectación arquitectónica puede ser considerado como uno de los mas complejos de abordar y uno de los mas complejos en argumentar, existen diversas teorías de diseño en arquitectura, principios ordenadores, de composición y de diseño, sin embargo, el resultado muchas veces no es el esperado, no es la representación del sentir y la esencia de quien y a quien lo proyecta. El bloqueo comúnmente llamado “papel en blanco” al abordar una composición está dado por diversas condiciones, una de ellas es considerada como bloqueo emocional[1], el no poder materializar la idea; dentro del proceso compositivo se establecen unos lineamientos basados en teorías, ellos ayudan a materializar la idea a partir de argumentos técnicos, sin embargo, la primera línea se produce antes de dibujarla[2] El ser humano es muy perceptivo a los estímulos exteriores como la música, la danza, la pintura, el cine, Las Bellas Artes, ellas reviven experiencias, conocimientos, momentos, que permanecen en la mente representando una idea. ¿Entonces porque no hacer una sinergia de estos estímulos con la técnica arquitectónica? Esta es la búsqueda en la investigación: establecer si las bellas artes como parte del proceso compositivo son una alternativa proyectual. [1] Carlos Churba, ‘Desarrollo de la Creatividad’ <http://blogsdelagente.com/carloschurba/> [accessed 22 April 2018 [2] José María de Lapuerta, El croquis, proyecto y arquitectura: scintilla divinitatis, 7333, 1st edn (Madrid: Celeste Ediciones, 1997) <http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/6617>. The compositional process in architectural planning can be considered as one of the most complex to address and one of the most complex to argue, there are various design theories in architecture, computer principles, composition and design, however, the result is many Sometimes it is not what is expected, it is not the representation of the feeling and the essence of who and to whom it is projected. The blockage commonly called "blank paper" when approaching a composition is given by various conditions, one of them is considered an emotional blockage, not being able to materialize the idea; Within the compositional process, guidelines based on theories are established, they help to materialize the idea from technical arguments, however, the first line is produced before drawing it The human being is very perceptive to external stimuli such as music, dance, painting, cinema, Fine Arts, they relive experiences, knowledge, moments that remain in the mind representing an idea. ¿So why not make a synergy of these stimuli with the architectural technique? This is the search in research: to establish whether the fine arts as part of the compositional process are a project alternative.