SYMBIOSIS 01 URBANISM

TEAM FOR SOLAR DECATHLON EUROPE 2014

S SYMBIOSIS

SY

MB

IOS

IS\

M O N T H LY M A G A Z I N E “ P L A T E A U T E A M ” J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 4

01 URBANISM

\ J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 4

\UR

BA

NIS

M N

01


PLATEAU TEAM | SDE 2014

“Symbiosis borns from the hand of Plateau Team with the goal of providing quality information about current issues related to

architecture and construction, and always creating a relationship with their project SymbCity developed for the next Solar

Decathlon Europe.”

02EDITORIAL

Symbiosis |02

Plateau TeamNewsletter

The

PLATEAU TEAM

SOLAR DECATHLON EUROPE

Plateau Team is one of the twenty international teams selected to participate in the new Solar Decathlon Europe edition, to be held in Versailles. It is mainly composed by architecture students (UAH) and Building Engineering students (UAH and UCLM) together with the collaboration of other faculties and schools from these universi-ties, which will provide their knowledge in order to cover all the necessary areas for the creation of an innovative solar habitat.

Plateau Team proposes a change in the city model through a sustainable redensification which limits the current uncontrolled consumption of land.

It is an academic competition which is organized by the French Ministry of Housing in collaboration with the European Commission that promotes re-search in sustainable and self-sufficient energy housing development.

The aim of the participant teams is to design and build a house that consumes the minimum amount of natural resources and produces the minimum waste during its life-cycle. Special interest is given to the reduction of energy con-sumption and the generation of the required energy from the sun. During the final stage of the competition the teams will build their houses in Versailles, in a public place named “La Cité du Soleil”.

06

28

10

40

36

“16

2032

0002 The Plateau Team newsletter

Symbi sisSummary

EDITORIAL

06 City and LandscapeARTICLES

10 Symbiosis. Nature and Architecture

16 WikiHouse & the printed city

20 SymCity UrbanismURBANISM

28 The Elevated Park “HighLine” PROJECTS

32 “Rucksack Haus” by Stefan Eberstadt

36 WikiHouse “The Guide”

“40 Meet our TeamINTERVIEW

Edit: Plateu Team for Solar Decathlon Europe2014.

Address: “Press Team”. E-mail [email protected].

Drafting Articles and Projects: Juan José Carretero, Javier Nuñez, Jonathan Juan Ordinola and Santiago Jiménez.

Design and Layout: Sandra Urbaneja and Ana Isabel Urbaneja.

Gratefulness: Angel Cuadrado and Lucia Heras.

Monthly Edition in Spanish and English. January 2014 Free Publication for public use, online.

ARTICLE

06

In that dream hundreds of lovely little houses form

lovely straight streets, and the entire lovely neigh-

bourhood greet each other before taking their Ford

T to go to work, to the hairdresser, to the centre...

In this American dream, every house, like a

dollhouse, had its tree with a swing for chil-

dren, their wooden fence with neatly trimmed

hedges and rural road just at 500 meters from

the house. That was (and still that is) our ideal of a

happy life close to the city (by car, of course) and

near countryside (which we never tread, of course).

It was also the dream of consumerism, not just un-

derstood as economic consumption expenditure

(the Ford T was always waiting at the door to take

you anywhere because everything was too far),

but understood as a brutal land consumption in a time

when everyone demanded their deserved ideal plots of

happiness.

Nowadays that dream has evolved although the basic

concept still remains relevant in our mind: “I want it all”.

We want to be close to town but far enough

away to live a life apparently without stress.

We don’t realize that stress is generated when

you have to take the car to get everywhere,

that is, when the city is expanded to infinite horizons.


City and

“COMPLEXIFYING THE NETWORKS”

Landscape“The American Dream was born in the exhaust pipe of a

Ford T 100 years ago.”


06 Symbiosis |06

Today, the challenge for architects is satisfying

people necessity of having as close as possible all the

city attractions without losing contact with landscape

and Nature.

We need to complexity and create new hybridizations

in the city, in order to generate a network of over-

lapping situations that give to the city a new attractive

way of living within an urban fabric, fusing elements

of the landscape through urban emptying strategies.

All these strategies can come given by concepts such

as urban recycling, agricultural production, densifi-

cation... concepts that respect and strengthen the ex-

isting opportunities and the genius loci that makes to

each element of a network (whether urban, rural or

“rurban”) possessor of unique qualities which also it

is integrated into a much larger complex organism,

working with other elements of that network.

CIT

Y A

ND

LA

ND

SC

AP

E |

Art

icle



“It´s Called THE AMERICAN DREAM Because you Have to be Asleep

to Believe it!”

This model of thinking can lead

us to discard outdated concepts

like the dichotomy between

countryside and city and take

another way of creating a city

where urban and rural are part

of the same network of relations

through the hybridization of

their different properties.

However, this model is diffi-

cult to insert in our society.

It is necessary to change certain

habits and be able to see our ur-

ban environment from another

point of view for this hybridiza-

tion succeeds. We must be able

to detect different parameters at

different scales, ranging from

urban design to the paths that a

person can walk without fatigue.

“Only analysing the different scales that compose

the city we can get a successful and coherent

superposition of networks in regard to the

relationship of the city with

the landscape.”

ARTICLE


Symbiosis |08

If we hybridize these two concepts without changing their associated scales, we will just get an entity with 2 different and unrelated parts, instead of getting a single entity with interrelated parts.

In conclusion, the superposition of two different frames as urban and rural should be done taking into account the infrastructure and territorial needs (large scale) and also addressing issues such as the domestic, the functional and strokes (small scale). This connection at different scales will lead to the new model of overlay networks, complexity and

This is due to the large difference in scale that we face: while an urban environment can be developed in a small area (for example, a neighbourhood) the concept of landscape has always been associated with large territories with homogeneous properties.

CIT

Y A

ND

LA

ND

SC

AP

E |

Art

icle


SymbiosisNature and Architecture

In nature, like Darwin exposed and to a greater ex-

tent proved with his theory of evolution, it’s the strong,

the fastest, the smartest… but especially those with

a greater ability to adapt to the environment and its

changes survive. Similarly we study trophic relation-

ships and how in the food chain it is always the big fish

that eats the little one. Could this last statement be the

absolute truth? I would think otherwise, in particular

ecological niches autotrophs, first order consumers,

predators or even parasites appear. At first glance you

might think that for the benefit of a few, it’s necessary,

in order to look taller, to step lower, however it’s not

always so.

“We understand symbiosis like the relationship between two live individuals by which both will benefit”

In the marine ecosystem we can classify the shark as

the most dangerous predator, all fear him and no one

intimidates him, but what happens when you back

itches and you need to scratch it? The remora is a

fish that meets our question: these esqueneidos are a

family of fish that attach to sharks taking away para-

sites and cleaning them, in exchange, sharks provide

them protection and accept them as fellow travelers.

This swap of interests is what we call Symbiosis. We

a found similar relation between bees and flowers,

where they bee feeds on nectar whilst the flower

achieves reproduction through pollination. Crocodiles

and small herons, clown fish and anemones are other

examples symbiotic relationship in which one side ob-

tains protection and food in exchange for the hygiene

of other.

There are also cases of symbiosis in which it’s not just

a relationship of convenience, but one that is nece-

ssary to maintain life; lichen could not live if the alga,

that provides moisture, didn’t produce the food that

nourishes the fungus.

Returning to Darwinism, from Simbcity, we think that

architecture has to evolve by adapting itself to the

problems left by the old city and responding to today

with inspiration from nature and from all that she can

teach us.

THE REFLECTION OF THE ARCHITECTURE THROUGH NATURE

“Architecture arises from nature and its back towards nature where it’s going.”

Since the time of pre-hominids living in the trees, or

the occupation of the first cave, up until now, where

Voronoi diagrams or biomimetic architecture are a

common the part of the life of man, nature and ar-

chitecture have gone hand in hand. We see in classi-

cal floor plants or elevations such as the Parthenon

in Athens, proportional relationships also observed

in Mies Van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion, or in our

phones or in credit cards, these similarities are not

coincidences but are found in nature and it’s

unconsciously tend related to the canons of beauty.

ARTICLE


Symbiosis

Symbiosis |10

This reminds us of the golden ratio, we can find in the

growth many plants, in the geometric progression of

certain insect shells like dragonflies or butterflies,

and also in the Vitruvian Man drawn by Da Vinci or

updated the Modulor by the Swiss architect Le Cor-

busier, that leads even to the Neufert Manual and

how again it’s nature who guides us on how to do

things right. Voronoi diagrams are another mathe-

matical relationship found in nature, in this case, we

can all find similarities between the organization of

the bubbles in foam, the spots of a giraffe or micro-

scopical image of a leaf of a tree; and easy compare

them to modern Olympic stadiums or “beautiful”

buildings, or even furniture, or jewelry that we un-

derstand as “organic”. Antonio Gaudí himself found

his inspiration in nature, “The tree that is there is my

teacher”, observing nature is how he was able to cal-

culate structures for his buildings, in a way that he

provided the “trees” we understand as pillars. The

last Prizkter, Japanese Toyo Ito also states “My ar-

chitecture is a bridge between nature and people”

and history proves him right for one of his buildings,

based on organic structures, did not succumb to the

earthquake of 2011.

Nowadays green label seems to be popular, but

we must not the focus on brands but on lays be-

yond.

10SY

MBI

OSI

S. N

ATU

RE A

ND

ARC

HIT

ECTU

RE |

Art

icle


The challenge for architects today is to meet the need

for people to have as close to all attractions in the city

without losing contact with the landscape and nature.

SYMBIOSIS IN ARCHITECTURE

“We defined symbiosis as the relationship between living organisms in which both benefit each other.”

Many experts talk about cities or buildings as living

entities, as large biological assemblies made not of

cells as such, but with vital functions. Therefore we

can extrapolate the term symbiosis and introduce it

as an urban and architectural concept. What rela-

tionships of this type can be set in architecture? It is

easier to find it in flows, but looking hard you can

find symbiotic relationship in morphology. One could

argue that the solution for the Maravillas gym by Ale-

jandro de la Sota, is a great example of symbiosis

where the truss meets the coverage the sports and

classroom space simultaneously.

Nature has always known what processes to take in

order to regulate wind currents, the water cycle, the

forest growth or migration of animals. From these

and many other processes the planet is balanced

and it allows life, its spread and its continuity. As citi-

zens of the global ecosystem, we have an obligation

to help maintain this balance, it is through the use

of renewable energy or ecological actions that we

can counteract the excesses of the 20th century, that

challenge the harmonious development of the world

as we know it.

“Nature is wise” we often hear, evolutionary adap-

tation, photosynthesis or symbiosis are some of the

greatest discoveries found in nature. We have had

centuries to live with these processes but it has not

been until we studied and understood them that we

were able to use them to our advantage. We could

say that nature is the “company” that has had more

efforts, time and resources invested in R & D, but the

best part is that all this research and development is

available to us for free, so we can all use it and pro-

mote the natural development, and therefore optimal

efficiently.

ARTICLE


Symbiosis |12

The act of placing advertising on public transport

can be referenced to the drag and the Shark, in

which one adheres to the other, and in the time

that one goes through the cities transporting citi-

zens, the other pays as campaign revenue. From

the London Underground also in this case, we got

the idea of harnessing the heat produced in the

interstices of the network and its wagons to use in

homes and public buildings.

The Danish firm BIG is of the most interested in

the development of this activity in architecture. In

Scandinavia they ahead of the curve (Sweden is

buying trash because the can produce energy out

of it).

One good example by studio BIG, is a desire to

link supermarkets and facilities such as heated

pool. The large stores require high energy con-

sumption in cooling products, lighting, conditioning

center… this output also generates heat that must

be dissipated in the form of ventilation.

SYM

BIO

SIS.

NAT

URE

AN

D A

RCH

ITEC

TURE

| A

rtic

le

The Centre for Smart Infrastruc-ture Innovation (CI3) is a public sector entity, general inter est and non-prof-it whose purpose is to contribute to the develop-ment, promotion and development of information technolog y a nd communications (ICT) applied to infrastructure

A heated pool in turn, produces energy needed to

heat the water to the right temperature. If we es-

tablish a relationship between these two events, we

could harness the energy that we are pulling in cool

the market to heat the pool.

Such buildings are what we call “hybrid building”,

buildings that store more than one program so that

they complement each other; an art school with ex-

hibit space, a center for dance with theater or ele-

vated parking with housing. Everyone gets what they

need and in turn they give back to others, it seems

like such a revolution, however it is the same relation

as the one between the sharks and the remora.

As follows we show you an image from the BIG firm

that expresses in diagrams a complete cycle in which

“living individuals” use as a resource what others

despised as waste.

In conclusion, I would like to emphasize again on

the importance of looking towards nature to achieve

through it a smarter, sustainable architecture, thus

enabling development and ecology as synonyms.

As discussed previously “Architecture arises from

nature and its back towards nature where it’s

going”. In last, we can look at Sou Fujimoto and his

“future primitive” where he seeks a return to origins,

where the human being lived in and with nature,

but especially in his look of architecture to come, ar-

chitecture defined by a harmonic and self sufficient

relationship with nature.

Symbiosis |14

SYM

BIO

SIS.

NAT

URE

AN

D A

RCH

ITEC

TURE

| A

rtic

le


A model library opens for creators and for those who seek out a cheaper and easier way to have and build a house. It is not prebuilt, but it can be repeated infinite times.

It seems interesting from a variety of points of view, maybe the most important one would be the collabo-ration with poor communities, whom the link between architect and client does not or has not existed… Yet! Wikihouse is in itself an upgrade to selfconstruction, taking technology to the next level and putting it to those who needed it more. Take for example the slums of Mumbai.

People live under a roof without the need for an ar-chitect to design it. But, i fan architect is capable of designing a prototype with an easy built, that can be adapted to the reality of the slum, and that takes in account the human conditions, the weather condi-tions, the limits that exist, shouldn’t that be repeated and promoted?

We suddenly have a new kind of slum structure, a slum that is still built by the inhabitants, but also one that has been previously designed by architects, and different planners, a cleaner more capable slum. A PRINTED SLUM, Doesn’t it elevate the slum, doesn’t it make a more decent place to live in? And by making it more decent doesn’t also give decency to those who inhabit it?

& The Printed City


WikiHouse

ARTICLE

“ WikiHouse.cc is an architectural based open source, a library of buildable models. The idea is: you can down-load on to your computer a model, which later you can

print, cut, and build all by yourself. ”

16

It is impossible to stop the global world, so maybe instead of fighting against globalization, shouldn’t we accept what it offers and use it to our advantages?

The city of the second half of the 20th century has brought a type of city not built by architects or urban developers but rather money, and the lack of it, mean-ing those who sought a profit through construction, and those who had no means for construction and used the self-building system. But in the mind of both the main idea is to have lesser cost and bigger reve-nue, so can we as aware architects work in that tactic invisibly? Homes aren’t the only problem within the city, but cer-tainly it is the one that causes more, the lack of diver-sity in uses, the problems with ghettos, the bad distri-bution of soil, etc… come from a non-understanding that cities, or more importantly districts, have to be self-sufficient to work.

WIKIHOUSE opens the door to creator to construct models that offer diversity of uses at a small cost, for areas where it wouldn’t be logical to found a store, a hairdresser, etc... with the idea of bringing in econo-mies and investments. The beauty of open source is the debate and dialogue.There is really no limit to the possible exchanges the portal offers, maybe grain storage for small commu-nities in Cambodia, or a children’s library in Peru.

Symbiosis |16

The architect lives within and without the Project. Homes are going to be built even without the archi-tect. It is not about saving the world, it’s about par-ticipation in areas and with people that in otherwise wouldn’t have the contact, the knowledge or the ex-perience of the architect. According to recent studies, the architect only acts or builds with a 1% percent of the world, (obviously the richest 1%).

Another Project based on opensource, debate and dialogue that can be interesting is Cameron Sinclair’s Architecture for Humanity (http://architectureforhu-manity.org/) who has organized networks of archi-tect for extreme situation in localized areas. Through volunteer work, competitions, and collaboration, the organization seeks to answer to difficult problems in as many ways as possible with the right amount of investment.

WIK

IHO

US

E &

TH

E P

RIN

TE

D C

ITY

| A

rtic

le

1


WikiHouseGuide for Designers

The Rules to

“10 DESING PRINCIPLES”

‘Be lazy like a fox’. Rather than solving problems from scratch, adapt other people’s solutions, and then give them credit. Linus Torvalds thought of this phrase.

2Design for materials and com-ponents which are reasonably cheap to buy, low-carbon and fully recyclable or biode-gradable.

3Design is disruptive when it lowers the threshold. Design structures which can be assem-bled with minimal formal skill or training, and without the use of power tools.

4 5 6WikiHouses should be capable of being habitable throughout the year, and as efficient as possible in the use of energy and water. We are working to get to the first habitable WikiHouse prototype built in the near future.

As a general rule, design for the climate, culture, economy and legal / planning frame-work in which you live, and you know best. Others will then be able to adapt the design to suit their environment.

Design in such a way as to offer maximum provision for the safety, security and health (both mental and physical) of the users at all stages of the structure’s life.

ARTICLE


“WIKIHOUSE.cc is an architectural based

open source of prebuilt housing. It seems like

an autoconstruction option that could benfit to

poor communities.”

Symbiosis |18

7Share your work as much and as open-ly as possible, it might come back better. At very least you’ll have con-tributed to solving a common problem. All components on WikiHouse are shared uthors are always attributed.

8“It is easier to ship recipes than cakes and biscuits” - John Maynard Keynes.

9Design to dismantle. The easier it is to dismantle structures or replace individual parts, the better.

10Design for mistakes. Try to design components which either make it im-possible for the assembler to get it wrong or are designed in such a way that it doesn’t matter if they do.

WIK

IHO

US

E &

TH

E P

RIN

TE

D C

ITY

| A

rtic

le

20


“ P l a t e a u T e a m s u g g e s t a n i m p r o v e m e n t o f t h e

e x i s t i n g c i t y . ”

20SymbCityUrbanism

The SymbCity prototype of Plateau Team comes up with a clear intention to solve the problems that the evolution of modern cities present and, specifically, to solve the massive and critical terri-torial expansion issue, at the same time that offers a restoration of those buildings that, by some cir-cumstances, do not accomplish with the energetic demands we have nowadays, since most of them had been constructed with a matter of urgency between the 50s and the 80s.

This way, SymbCity pretends to become a real, social and affordable alternative for building in-dustry, which needs a total renovation in those countries in which economy has been supported in the housing market for the last decades, until the actual crisis meant its inevitable final. There-fore, they intended to get more ecological and sustainable cities and stop their territorial expan-sion through urban rehabilitation.

Symbiosis |20

UR

BA

NIS

M S

YM

BC

ITY

| U

rba

nis

m

“Plateau Team”

HOUSING MARKET IN SPAIN

“Today, in Spain, construction industry faces terrible

challenges and important problems.“

In the 60s and the 70s it was developed a great rise

in the number of house buildings due to the necessity

of creating new homes for the immigrants that went

from the countryside to the European cities. The mass

rural exodus meant a great loss on rural little towns

and a big increase in the surroundings of the indus-

trial cities. Needs arise of adapt the new city; build

quick constructions of houses, infrastructure...

These needs finally became the main business of the

country and it keeps on building and expanding. Pri-

vate banks and, above all, the local Savings banks

(funded with public money), ready to get into debt in

the short term and to invest in the long term, give cre-

dits in so an exaggerated form that the society hadn t

been able to support it with its savings.

This supposes an over-investment that evolves lately,

and that will mean, at the end, the real estate boom

that happened in building industry. In addition, the-

se credit concessions to the housing sector were the

70 per cent of the total investment that had led the

economy toward a specialization in only one market.

The huge number of buildings (25 million houses in

8,5 million buildings) and the demand generated by

the credit loan – for line items of acquisition, rehabi-

litation, building or any other construction service –

added to the monetary politics that happened at the

90s, had led to suppose the m2 price went through

the roof. This had meant a huge “real state bubble”.

In a time in which Spanish economy must be refor-

med and building industry needs a new way, the city

should be thought as a unique functional system and

we must avoid the mass construction.

URBANISM


TEA

M F

OR

SO

LAR

DE

CAT

HLO

N E

UR

OP

E 20

14

Symbiosis |22

UR

BA

NIS

M S

YM

BC

ITY

| U

rba

nis

m

SIMBIOSIS

“Of those 8,5 million housing buildings, most of them

are 4 or more floors blocks, built between 40s and

80s in the suburbs of the most important cities”

These represent the 51% of the amount of housing

stock in Spain. Almost all of these houses had been

constructed without energetic technique and with not

enough efficiency and accessibility.

This is why Plateau Team suggest an improvement of

the existing city and, above all, of the quality of their

citizens life by the refurbishment of these housing

buildings and increasing the height of the city, doing

a re-densification of the existing urban fabric, using

the covers of those buildings as new urban floor.

For making this possible, the project suggests the co-

lonization of those covers, mostly flat roofs, creating

a symbiotic relation between the existing building

and the new addition, in which both of them would

benefit from each other.

The prototype or added building would benefit from

a consolidated and compact urban fabric, from its

public spaces, commerce and equipment. It would

also benefit from a functional existing infrastructure

with water, electricity and transport services.

TEA

M F

OR

SO

LAR

DE

CAT

HLO

N E

UR

OP

E 20

14

URBANISM

“In Spain it does exist a large stock of houses and a

big land offer, but a huge part of them is outside of

the cities or in isolated urbanizations, and most of

them doesn t have the necessary infrastructure.”

This situation makes the new neighbourhood quality

of life not the best one. To equip these areas, the

public administration would have to invest a lot of

money, a huge investment very hard to achieve. So

it would be necessary to build new roads, parks,

connections to the public transports, health care cen-

tres, educational buildings, etc.

Plateau Team considers that density is an essential

tool to make city and to get an urban sense of self.

Increase the population concentration in one speci-

fic place is an opportunity for the citizens to join for

common good and take advantage of a better use of

space. For these reasons, the main use of the inter-

vention would be residential.

PLATEAU TEAM | SD 2014PLATEAU TEAM | SDE 2014


URBANISM

However, our re-density concept allows us to supply

the existing city not only with houses, but also with

commercial, equipment and any other use. In this

way, the symbiotic relation is also moved to the ur-

ban field, supporting the existing urban fabric with

the possibility of adding, in a finished space, new

and varied functions that would came to solve the

urban demands and that would update and invigo-

rate the economic, labour and social potentiality of

these urban areas that would require a major scale

renovation.

Additionally, promoting vertical housing would also

mean an improvement of the public space as, by the

densification of some areas, we would be able to

substitute these old and smaller buildings with public

spaces that would be at the end, parks, green areas

or new equipment in the ground floor that would be

better for the old city.

The project looks for these objectives trying not to

have obstacles in economic issues, by achieving

them with the minimum cost for administrations and

particulars, so SymbCity could be materialized in a

simple way for everyone.

Symbiosis |24

Public administration would be saving money, becau-se this urban growing does not need to invest more in new infrastructure because of settling on consoli-dated areas in which we have already all the services and transport infrastructures needed.

With this saved money and thanks to the new house selling, we could also make the project with mini-mum cost for the hosting building s neighbourhood association.

Moreover, as they are similar buildings, and most of the times repeated, it would reduce the expenditure and the constructions times, making the viability of the project even more possible. Using industrialized techniques based on low-cost concepts, we could launch the houses at an affordable price and also with high performing conditions, fitting for potential middle class.

And it would not only be viable in construction costs but also would mean an important environmen-tal and economic saving in the future as is a zero consumption house that also add its surplus to the hosting building, reducing the energetic price, and it would minimize its thermal lost and would increase its comfort, as Symbcity provides a new thermic effi-

cient façade.

UR

BA

NIS

M S

YM

BC

ITY

| U

rba

nis

m



URBANISM

PLATEAU TEAM | SD 2014

FIRST APPROACHES

“To find the areas that would be susceptible to receive the new houses, it has studied the housing estate of the communities at which the universities

which form Plateau Team belong: Madrid (UAH) and Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM).”

It has searched city areas and districts with houses

built between 1941 and 1980 and that have diffe-

rent problems as insufficient supplies, accessibility or

existence of dampness.

Within Castilla-La Mancha it has studied the six most

populated cities of the region: Albacete, Talavera

de la Reina, Guadalajara, Toledo, Ciudad Real and

Cuenca. In these cities it have founded fifty districts or

built areas during the rural exodus that have 23.282

houses located in lineal blocks, “H” blocks, towers

and semi-detached houses. These are the 10,8% of

the total of houses of these cities.

Lots of districts in the Madrid Community were crea-

ted during those years.

The most prominent neighbourhoods created during

that time are San Blas, Caño Roto, Valverde, Villaver-

de, Palomeras, San Cristobal de los Angeles, Vicál-

varo and Canillas.

These eight districts have 121.555 houses, most of

which are located in lineal, branched or row blocks,

towers or semi-detached houses. These houses are

the 8% of all the buildings in Madrid.

In particular, Manoteras area has 2439 houses loca-

ted in open quarters that need new equipment, like

a civic centre, a kindergarten, a workforce training

centre or a primary social attention care centre.

SymbCity arises as the solution to an urban area with

the above characteristics as a vision for the future of

cities.




Symbiosis |26

UR

BA

NIS

M S

YM

BC

ITY

| U

rba

nis

m

“Plateau Team considers that density is

an essential tool to make city and to get

an urban sense of self“

Elevated park

28

PROJECT

HIGH LINE

The

“The High Line is a new 1,5-mile long public park built on an abandoned elevated railroad stretching from the Meat-packing District to the Hudson Rail Yards in Manhattan. ”


Inspired by the melancholic, unruly beauty of this post-industrial ruin, where nature has reclaimed a once vital piece of urban infrastructure, the new park interprets its inheritance. It translates the biodiversi-ty that took root after it fell into ruin in a string of site-specific urban microclimates along the stretch of railway that include sunny, shady, wet, dry, windy and

Principal-in-charge: Ricardo ScofidioProject Leader: Mathew Johnson

sheltered spaces. Through a strategy of “agritecture”

-part agriculture, part architecture- the High Line

surface is digitized into discrete units of paving and

planting which are assembled along the 1,5 miles

into a variety of gradients from 100% paving to

100% soft, richly vegetated biotopes.

The High Line is a public park built on a historic freight railline elevated above the streets on Man-hattan’s West Side. lt is owned by the City of New York, and maintained and operated by “Friends of the High Line”. “Friends of the High Line” works to build and maintain this extraordinary public park on the High Line. They seek to preserve the entire histo-

ric structure, transforming an essential piece of New York’s industrial post. They provide over 90 percent of the High Line’s annual operating budget and are responsible for maintenance of the park, pursuant to a license agreement with the New York City Depart-ment of Parks & Recreation.

28 [“Friends of the High Line ”

[Symbiosis |28

TH

E E

LEV

AT

ED

PA

RK

| P

roje

ct

The paving system consists of individual pre-cast concrete planks with open joints to encourage emer-gent growth like wild grass through cracks in the side-walk. The long paving units have tapered ends that comb into planting beds creating a textured, “path-less” landscape where the public can meander in un-scripted ways. The park accommodates the wild, the cultivated, the intimate, and the social. Access points are durational experiences designed to prolong the transition from the frenetic pace of city streets to the slow otherworldly landscape above.

The High Line is a public park built on a historic

DNA OPEN CLASS WITH FUNDING FOR PROJECTS SUPPORTED BY

CIVIL SOCIETY“ “

ABOUT GOTEOCrowdfunding + distributed collaboration

Drip is a social network for collec-tive funding (monetary contribu-tions) and distributed collaboration (services, infrastructure, and other resources microtareas) from which encourage self-development ini-tiatives, creative and innovative, contributing to the development of the commons, free knowledge and / or open source.

A platform for investment “irrigation capital”, in projects whose purposes are social, cultural, scientific, educa-tional, journalistic, technological or ecological, generating new oppor-tunities for continuous improvement of society and the enrichment of goods and common resources.

They provide over 90 percent of the High Line’s annual operating budget and are responsible for maintenance of the park, pursuant to a license agreement with the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Through stewardship, innovative design and programming, and excellence in opera-tions, they cultivate a vibrant community around the High Line.

“Friends of the High Line” is the non-profit, private partner to the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. “Friends of the High Line” works with the City to make sure the High Line is maintained as a great public place for all New Yorkers and visitors to enjoy. In addition to overseeing the maintenance, operations, and public programming for the High Line, “Friends of the High Line” is currently working to raise the essential private funding to help complete the High Line’s construction and create an endow-ment for its future operations.

“Friends of the High Line” was founded in 1999 by two neighbourhood residents, Joshua David and Robert Hammond. The non-profit association advo-cated for the High Line’s preservation when the struc-ture was under threat of demolition.

Symbiosis |30

TH

E E

LEV

AT

ED

PA

RK

| P

roje

ct

http://www.thehighline.org/

Rucksack Haus“Stefan Eberstadt”

The

“The Rucksack Haus, the “Backpack House “, of the German artist Stefan Eberstadt, whose name is inspired by the cables that allow hanging on the facade of the building which parasites, like

the tapes of a backpack. ”

PROJECT


32


Rucksack Haus 32

It was hanged in September 2004 on the facade of a residential building in the city of Leipzig, Germany. The box dimension is 2.50 m x 2.50 m x 3.60 m, with 9 m2 of space, it is a sculpture but it could also be a room.

The Backpack House is mobile and the resident can take it to the next house, providing additional space instantly. In 2004, the Backpack House was in Leipzig, then in Cologne in 2005 and then moved to Bamberg in 2011. Given the definition of symbiotic architecture, we could suggest that it is an example of mutualism, since the structures are mounted on existing build-ings, using their existing infrastructure, gaining space and visibility.

It’s a new way to expand the living space; it is de-veloped between art and architecture, form and function. It is an illuminated space, a combination between temporary scaffolding and the minimal sculpture of one of his works. It is an empty bucket by which light enters a free space of connotations, open to the need of users.

Although it gives the feeling of being in a private space, one has the impression of floating outside the confines of the house, over a public space.

Symbiosis |32

TH

E R

UC

KS

AC

K H

AU

S |

Pro

ject

windows systems

The reference in Sustainable Insulation“

“

The European leader in prof ile

systems for windows and doors[ [

“Install quality window is critical to achieving good insulation. KOMMERLING you will keep with you the ideal temperature in your home with the maximum energy saving. You will enjoy being at home”

“The sectors of the building and industry, should accept their share of responsibility and influence in global warming and the preservation of valuable energy resources.”

Symbiosis |34

TH

E R

UC

KS

AC

K H

AU

S |

Pro

ject

In collaboration with the engineer Thomas Beck, the artist hung by cables made of steel a habitable con-tainer on the facade of 14th Street Federkiel Stiftung / Halle, in Leipzig (Cologne, Germany, 2004-2005), within the exhibition “Xtreme Houses”. The structure was presented again in Cologne in September 2005 on the occasion of the International Conference of Ar-chitecture “Plan05 - Forum of Contemporary Archi-tecture”.

The wall sections are developed with the help of hidden magnets, into a desk, shelves, and a plat-form for reading or sleeping. The Rucksack House is suspended by steel cables that are anchored to the facade of the existing building. The construction is a welded steel cage with birch plywood as inner lining. The exterior coating is made of grade plywood with a resin absorbent surface, with emphasis on the connections from the sheets of plexiglass.

The new space hangs over an existing space by a perfectly simple, clear and easy to understand method. This option reacti-vates the idea of a tree house built anarchic character and self, although in this case the structure is placed more prominently and presents a more studied structural engi-neering. The default perception must be challenged. Currently the work of art is to influence the design and aesthetics of the structures of our environment. Art cannot be seen as an isolated factor, but his duty is to challenge and interact with other fields including architecture and design. In order to exist, must participate in art alien to their own fields.

36

PROJECT


& GUIDE

TheWikiHouse

“The following is proposed not as a fixed set of rules, but as a basic introduction to the design standards

for WikiHouse.”

“WIKIHOUSE.CC OPEN SOURCE ARCHITECURE”

SYSTEM

The WikiHouse construction system is based on plywood fins, spaced evenly apart according to the selected gauge of the con-struction grid. Those fins can vary in size and shape. Once connected together and clad they form a robust timber frame structure.

36“WIKIHOUSE.CC OPEN SOURCE ARCHITECURE”

Symbiosis |36

TH

E W

IKIH

OU

SE

| P

roje

ct

GAUGE

The gauge of the grid (labelled above as ‘g’) can vary depending on the desired standard construction module in different countries. A 550mm gauge is provided to accommodate plywood sizes of 2400mm x 1200mm where CNC machines cannot cut to the edges of a sheet. In countries using Imperial mea-surement systems, where plywood sheets measure 2440mm x 1220mm, a gauge of 600mm is standard. Intermediate gauge siz-es of 450mm and 900mm (for one-off piec-es only) are also accommodated.

A GUIDE TO SERIES

Wikihouse components are categorised into series, according to their width. The widths follow a modular grid of 1200mm.

FORM

The roof profiles of these series can follow more or less any form, provided it is structurally viable. Equally, footings can respond to slop-ing topography. One of the future aims of the project is to develop and test two-storey structures.

Theoretically there is no limit to the width of a section, A, B and C modules can be combined in any sequence.

A SeriesSection 1.2m wide.

B SeriesSection 2.4m wide.

C SeriesSection 3.6m wide. This is the longest span module.

CA SeriesFor sections wider than 3.6m, compound series are used, such as this one.

CBC Series


DESIGN STANDARDS

The following is proposed not as a fixed set of rules, but as a basic introduction to the design standards for WikiHouse. All design-ers are invited not only to use these rules, but to develop and change them as they improve.

MATERIAL

WikiHouse uses only one basic material, 18mm structural plywood, in international standard sheets sizes of 2400mm x 1200mm (approx. 8’x4’). There are a number of different sheet materials to choose from, but they must have sufficient structural strength. Parts are cut from these sheets using a CNC milling machine.

DOG BONES

All inside corners must have a ‘dog bone’ indentation, to accommodate the fact that the cutting head is circular. Mark these ‘dog bones’ out in SketchUp by drawing an indentation 5mm deep and 10mm long (as shown). When cut, this will form the required ‘dog bone’ shape.

FIXINGS

At present, WikiHouses uses only three kinds of fixings, M8 mild steel bolts (often BZP) which are, if possible, full threaded, and 4mm x 50mm and 4mm x 30mm woodscrews with a cross-head.

FINS

Each fin comprises two layers of plywood in an identical profile. Fin members are 200mm deep.

S-JOINTS

At the moment, a basic S-joint is being used. The aim of future versions will be to develop an all-plywood wedge joint, making the system much less intensive on bolts. S-joints are distributed around the fins. There are 3 basic rules for doing this:1. No piece may be longer than 2370mm.2. S-joints should not be located on corners, as these are the areas under the most stress.3. S-joints on each layer of fin must be staggered and mirrored.

The structure must be bolted around the S-joints. Bolting holes are modelled as 9mm squares in sets of six at the locations shown. This is a guideline only, not a strict rule. S-joints are staggered around the structure, so usually neighbouring S-joints will ‘share’ sets of bolts.

PROJECT


TE

AM

FO

R S

OLA

R D

EC

AT

HLO

N E

UR

OP

E 2

014


Symbiosis |38

TH

E W

IKIH

OU

SE

| P

roje

ct

PRIMARY CONNECTORS (C1)

Holes for primary connectors must be located at key strate-gic locations around the section. Primary connectors are inserted into slots, and join in re-mote, ranch grabbing tight and strong structure areas. The slot in the primary connector is designed so that no matter how to collect it, dovetailed.

SECONDARY CONNECTORS (C2)

Secondary connectors are located at key positions where they serve as lintels for windows and other openings, as well as lateral bracing for the structure as a whole. Secondary connectors are designed to slot into place. Note that most secondary connectors, like most primary connec-tors, have a 60mm diameter hole in the centre. This is to al-low services (pipes, wiring etc) to be run through the house. The notches in the side allow access for a screwdriver, so the sides of the secondary connectors can be fixed into the fins. These screws do not do any significant structural work; they just hold the secondary connectors in place.As well as an 18mm wide and 30mm deep notch, 3mm squares must be drawn onto the fin as pilot holes for these screws.

HOOKS AND TABS

Hooks and tabs for cladding panels protrude outside the fin profile.

PANELS

External panels are designed to slot over the hooks on the main structure. Note therefore that the holes have to be large enough to allow the hooking-on and slotting-down movement. The hooks on the main structure can then serve as fixing points for cladding if required.

“The purpose of the WikiHouse construction set is that the end structure is ready to be made weathertight using cladding, insulation, damp-proof membranes and windows. WikiHouse is still an experiment in its early stages, and these have not yet been prototyped or developed further. All the information shared on Wiki-House.cc is offered as an open invitation to architects and designers who are interested in putting open source solutions to these problems in the public domain.”

Dav

id P

eña

Stud

ent T

eam

Lea

der

INTERVIEW


Our Team“PLATEAU TEAM”

Meet

S: What is the relationship between urban plan-ning and sustainable development?

D: The origin of the city was the rational dis-tribution of resources to enable the im-provement of living conditions for the human being. Today, with the depletion of the planet, the resources are again scarce, and urbanism has the difficult challenge of making cities sustainable, so that both concepts have become insepa-rable.

S: Are the existing infrastructures designed to support the growth of the city, as is the one proposed by Plateau Team?

“The city is not only ready for, but needs

projects like SymbCity to be a reality energetically

and socially.”

D: City infrastructures are currently oversized with respect to the reach of the city, in that they are designed to serve the suburbia.

The compact city model of Symbcity requires the review of road networks to enhance public transport and clean vehicles, including bicycles; the introduction of renewable energy sources, and promotion of activity in the center instead of the suburbs.

The city is not only ready for, but needs projects like SymbCity to be a reality energetically and socially.

S: What are the benefits of the re-densification of the existing city?

D: With the re-densification approach that Symbcity stands by, the need for road in-

frastructure would be reduced due to a reduction of journeys that ideally

will be by public transport, and self-sufficient energy generation would be done at the district level and not at user level.

However, the most important benefit that Symbcity is offering to

users of “old housing” is a rehabilita-tion that increases energy savings and it

takes in account the current crisis to be eco-nomically accesable.

40

40

Symbiosis |40

ME

ET

OU

R T

EA

M |

In

terv

iew

S: Is the SymbCity house designed for a sin-gle type of building or could be implemented on any type?

D: SymbCity is an intervention methodology based on symbiosis between old and new homes, and on respect for the existing ur-ban structures, but envisioning a re-newal of these structures.On its design we have sought integration of a wide range of housing types. To do this, we have developed a versatile modular construc-tion system that does not overload the old building.

S: How viable is the SymbCity project today?

D: The re-densification based on the in-crease of buildability is a tool that until now was not possible with the legislation of our cities. However, following the crisis and the need to rehabilitate, it begins to take hold in the Spanish law that there is a need for new bills and new general plans for cities such as Madrid.Furthermore, the project is fully economi-cally viable as it poses a balance between public investment and tenants, minority, and private investment, making the opera-tion profitable.In addition, the industrialization of housing construction SymbCity allows quality homes at moderate prices.

“SymbCity is an interven-

tion methodology based

on symbiosis between

old and new homes”

Sponsors



“Plateau Team”“We are looking for companies that would like to sponsor us. Feel free to contact our financial team for more info or down-

load our sponsor dossier. You will find it in our webpage: plateauteam.com.”

The


PLATEAU TEAMTEAM FOR SOLAR DECATHLON EUROPE 2014

TECHNICAL BLOCKMAIN SPACE

GREENHOUSE/COURTYARD

SYMBIOSIS 01 URBANISM

Documents

Transcript of SYMBIOSIS 01 URBANISM