christopher alexander

John King writes in his San Francisco Chronicle Place column;

“When all is said and done, one of the most influential architectural voices to come out of the Bay Area has been Christopher Alexander—not for his buildings as much as his search for humane ways to assemble buildings and communities that can resonate through time.

Now the professor emeritus of architecture at UC Berkeley has another title to add to the list.  He’s the recipient of the 11^th Vincent Scully Prize from the National Building Museum, an award given “to recognize exemplary practice, scholarship, or criticism in architecture, historic preservation, and urban design.”

The $40,000 honor is named after historian-critic Scully, a longtime professor at Yale University; past winners include Jane Jacobs and Prince Charles.  Not a bad crowd for someone who in 2005’s The Nature of Order lay down the simple definition by which buildings should be judged; “the satisfaction people felt when using them.”

For the record, the above work has four volumes and is subtitled “An Essay on the Art of Building and the Nature of the Universe.”  For a more accessible taste of Alexander’s contribution to our architectural conscience—one you can draw from endlessly—I suggest A Pattern Language.”

We are very interested in your comments and feedback, please email us at feedback@aaidesign.com

CITY OF SAN JOSE BUILDING DIVISION

Even in slow times, building department staffs are stretched thin due to severe cutbacks and layoffs.

Big ticket construction projects typically pay the bills.  As is the case in many cities, the San Jose Department of Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Building Division has been heavily impacted

by the real estate downturn and its consequences.  In general, the City is facing the most challenging fiscal crisis in its history.  City revenues have been drying up, with the bulk of construction being commercial tenant improvements, remodels and additions, often with low valuations.

Despite the cities’ grim financial state, currently there are not any plans to change the STI, ITI, or Express   Permit processes.  City sources also indicate that there are no plans to change the permit fee, plan check fee structure or to extend the turnaround time for standard submittal plan checks.  However, as a result of staff reductions, there will be fewer appointments available each day.

To cut costs, the Building Division has further reduced its hours of operation where walk-in submittals are accepted and consultations are held.  This has exacerbated the already long wait times for those without appointments.

Previous estimated wait times ran in the range of 2 ½ to 3 ½ hours. Recent layoffs and retirements have further reduced the current counter staff to two technicians from the previous six to eight, who are available to serve the general public without appointments.  They are only available from 9:00 to 11:00AM, and from 1:00 to 3:00PM.  The same reduced hours of staff counter availability also appear

to apply to Express appointments as well, further constraining and already crowded calendar.

It is reasonable to expect wait times far in excess of 3 ½ hours.  Designers should not consider visiting the Building Division without an appointment.

We are very interested in your comments and feedback, please email us at feedback@aaidesign.com

PERSONAL WORKSPACE DOWNSIZING

In a Wall Street Journal article titled “Office Personal Space Crowded Out”, the author, Sarah E. Needleman notes that workstations have become smaller to save costs, taking a toll on employee privacy. She writes, “many employers are trimming the space allotted for each worker. The trend has accelerated during the recession as employers seek to cut costs and boost productivity. ‘The majority of our clients are moving in the direction of reducing the amount of personal, or what we like to call ‘me’ space’.” says Tom Polucci, group vice president and director of interior design for HOK Group Inc. He says new work stations designed by HOK average 48 square feet, down from 64 square feet about five years ago. Partitions between cubicles also are shrinking, to 4 feet high or less from 5 feet high.

Other design firms report similar findings. They say companies of varying sizes in multiple industries are reducing per-employee office space by as much as 50%, and their total footprint by as much as 25%.  The article goes on to state that some companies are removing cubicle walls to create open floor plans.  Others are eliminating assigned workspaces for employees who primarily work off campus or spend most of their time in meetings. At any given time, Gensler estimates that 60% of employees are away from their desks.

On the downside, tighter quarters and open floor plans also can present challenges.  Open floor plans and low cubicle walls can create discord and lead to increased turnover.

We are very interested in your comments and feedback, please email us at feedback@aaidesign.com

NEC 645

NEC Article 645 might not apply to your IT equipment room according to an article written by Ron Shapiro and Steve Mccluer in “Consulting Specifying Engineer”.  Article 645 does not apply to most IT equipment, and devices listed as IT equipment do not have to be installed in IT equipment rooms.

Most people associate IT equipment with computer rooms and data centers. Most IT equipment is not housed in such locations.  For example, any desktop computer, server rack, fax machine or printer is a piece of IT equipment, but isn’t found in computer rooms, and isn’t directly covered by the NEC.

When a room is full of electronic equipment racks and dedicated cooling equipment, most people call it a data center, server room or computer room.  Designers often look to the NEC and assume that it must comply with Article 645.  Only Chapters 1-4 of the NEC are mandatory.  If they choose to install their equipment in accordance with Chapters 1-4 and do not need the leniency granted by Article 645, then they do not have to meet all the additional requirements spelled out in Article 645.

To avoid misinformed over-reactions from building officials, I recommend that facilities not be named ”server room”, “computer room”, or “data center”, but rather have a room names such as “equipment room”.

The authors emphasize that before designing a room to comply with NEC Article 645, assess the risks and benefits that the article provides.

Note that the additional requirements of, and leniency granted by Article 645 only apply when the following room prerequisites exist; Emergency power off and HVAC stations, personal entry limitations, fire resistant walls, ceilings and floors, automatic smoke dampers, smoke detectors if a raised floor is used, IT listed equipment.

We are very interested in your comments and feedback, please email us at feedback@aaidesign.com