Adaptive Flexibility in Housing The Whole Life House

Adaptive Flexibility
in Housing
The Whole Life
House
This building formed part of Scotland’s Housing Expo held 2010. The WholeLife house
looks beyond technological understandings of environmental design towards addressing
social and economic sustainability through adaptation strategies over its life. The Whole
Life House won the House of the Year prize at the Scottish Housing Awards 2011.
(Image : Nigel Rigden)
John
Brennan
project
introduction
The Whole Life House
This design addresses the challenges of making resilient and sustainable communities in suburban and
rural conditions. It responds to the fact that over 40% of household relocations in Scotland are because
of the unsuitability of housing stock1.
The householder very rarely has contact with the architect who designs their dwelling. In this sense,
the architect is anticipating and predicting how any dwelling is to be lived in and to quote Stewart
Brand’s adage, ‘all buildings are predictions and all predictions are wrong’. A design framework for an
adaptive methodology in sustainable design lies in Stewart Brand’s ‘shearing levels of change’ model.
In How Buildings Learn, he describes how architecture should not be seen as static, but rather a series
of interconnected systems such as structure, skin and services that change and mutate at different
rates. Jeremy Till and Tatiana Schneider in respect of adaptability, speak of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ modes.
‘Hard Flexibility’ lies in an architectural language of sliding doors and folding partitions, allowing almost
instantaneous changes in function. For the architect, it allows a more proactive, and some would remark,
more controlling role in the way that housing is actually used. Such an approach produces distinctive form,
such as the Schröder House by Rietveld and remains a persuasive design methodology to architects.
More difficult to define is the term ‘Soft Flexibility’. To an extent it is an admission of the obvious that
architects cannot and should not control how a house is to be occupied, but rather to provide breathing
space for change and adaptability. For this to be facilitated a ‘relaxed attitude’ to planning and technology
is called for where adaptability is enabled through the generous provision of space rather than the specifics
of a technological solution.
The WholeLife House, constructed as a demonstration building for Scotland’s Housing Expo, is an
example of how the basics of spatial organisation can produce dwellings that anticipate change through
the application of ‘soft flexibility’. The form of the house is divided into two – a core dwelling with living,
kitchen and some sleeping accommodation along with an annexe block that allows vary degrees of
interdependence with the main building. The functions of the annexe are deliberately not clearly defined. It
can be entered directly from the lobby of the building and has services provided for kitchen and bathroom
facilities. None of the partitions bear load and so it can be opened up or subdivided relatively easily.
Some of the uses of the annexe could include extra bedrooms for a large family, a home office able
to accommodate employees, an annexe for a young adult or elderly relative. The permutations and
combinations of such a building configuration are complex, and are intentionally not predictive as to how
a family would choose to live in such a building.
The building responds to vernacular form, colour and symmetry with a conscious attempt to root the
building in an episodic and sometimes chaotic visual environment that comes with individual exhibition
buildings, no matter how carefully considered the urban design framework. This was recognised in respect
of the whole life house being illustrated as an example of best practice in the Scottish Government PAN 83
policy document on masterplanning. The building includes a carefully considered environmental strategy
that includes passive solar glazing, high thermal mass floors, night shuttering and sunspaces as part of
the design.
In terms of impact, the Whole Life house was a key exhibit at Scotland’s Housing Expo in 2010 that attracted
in excess of 30 000 visitors. In addition, the building was featured in industry webinar presentations as
well as lecture and workshop sessions. The WholeLife House was always meant to address challenges
in the private sector . This was recognised by it being awarded House of the Year at the Scottish Homes
Awards 2011.
Peer recognition and review:
A winner in the Highland Housing Fair Competition [2007] organised by RIAS.
House of the Year. Scottish Homes Awards [2011]
1
Scottish Government Social Research, “Scottish housing aspirations survey”.
Edinburgh. Scottish Government, 2006
project
The Whole Life House
Other references
Brennan, John. “Quantitative and Qualitative Traditions in Sustainable Design.” In The
Aesthetics of Sustainable Architecture, edited by Sang Lee. Rotterdam: 010 Publishers,
2011.
Brennan, John. “New Perspectives on Rural Development” presented at RIAS Seminar,
Inverness, March 2011.
Brennan, John. “The WholeLife House” presented at the SUST Seminar Series, August
2010.
Brennan, John. “The WholeLife House at Scotland’s Housing Expo.” CIC Start Online
Innovation Review 1, no. 4 (2010): 21-25.
Brennan, John. “Learning From Scotlands Housing Expo”.CIC Start Online Conference
Webinar Glasgow, 2011.
Benedict, James. “Scotlands Housing Expo.” Building Design. London, August
13, 2010.
The work was also featured in the following newspapers : The Scotsman and The
Observer
Whole Life House
external views : page 3
4 competition and
context
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
colour photographs:
Nigel Rigden
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 3
Whole Life House
4 competition and
context
competition and context : page 4
PREPARING FOR SOME
HOME TRUTHS
1. Design for life
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
The proposal features a single storey flexible use wing to
the garden. It is able to adapt easily to suit changing family
circumstances including potential sub letting. The design reflects
the rapidly changing ways in which households now evolve.
The scheme also features attic trusses to the main wing for loft
storage and a homeworking base within the garden.
Growing up
Family
a winter’s
morning
Expanding
Family
Elderly
Live-in
a summer’s
evening
section through
conservatory
Young
Person
Bedsit
2. Build local
Investing in construction has a potential to sustain communities
at both a local and regional scale. The proposal is based around
a timber frame with established manufacturers in Northern
Scotland. Cladding, floor finishes, furniture can all be sourced in
the Highlands.
Critically the timber frame is easily built by local contracting
organisations. Specialist trades and structure is kept to a minimum.
Hybrid prefabrication techniques allows rapid erection of the shell
with better finishing trades co-ordination.
stone flooring
timber frame
cladding
garden
view to living space
ground floor plan
section through
main stair
Building Construction
Wall Construction: Masonry
Blockwork to south east gable, garden elevation, lower
street elevations.
100mm rendered block, painted white or as masterplan
145 stud infilled with blown cellulose insulation.
75mm battened service zone with sheeps’ wool insulation
plasterboard internal finish. U value - 0.19W/m2K
3. Consume less
Wall Construction: Timber Cladding
100mm slatted larch cladding left in its natural finish
145 stud infilled with blown cellulose insulation.
75mm battened service zone with sheeps’ wool insulation
plasterboard internal finish. U value - 0.19W/m2K
The building proposes simple, robust sustainable techniques. Masonry construction to the southern elevations and solid ground floors
provide thermal inertia to regulate excessive solar gain, taking into account climate change over the design life of the building. The use of
a heat recovery ventilation unit allow exhaust air to the conservatory
to be utilised elsewhere in addition to more traditional bathroom/
kitchen extract configurations. A small wood burning stove to the
ground floor provides heat to the living area.
Roof Construction
Zinc standing seam roof coloured grey.
Timber/Ply lightweight attic trusses
300mm blown sheeps’ wool insulation between ceiling joists.
75mm battened service zone with sheeps’ wool insulation
plasterboard internal finish. U value - 0.12W/m2K
extract
intake
heat
recovery
ventilation
Ground Floor
150mm hardcore
150mm dense flooring grade mineral fibre insulation
125mm concrete site slab with power floated finish c/w
heating coils tied to reinforcement mesh.
caithness stone slabs as floor finish. U value - 0.17W/m2K
stove
flue
preheat
intake to
bedrooms
bathroom
extract
bathroom
extract
maso
to increa nry wall
se therm
inertia to
al
southern
aspect
internal
shutters
to
first floor
simple
pas
living
area. sive sunspa
on slab Exposed ston ce to
as the
rmal mae floor
ss
conservat
passive ory
sunspace
with heat
exchange
r
extract
first floor plan
HIGHLAND
HOUSING FAIR
PLOT 18
1
2
3 4 5
1. Winning competition
entry
2. View of original proposal
showing separate home
office
3. Expo masterplan (image
Cadell2 Architects)
4. Site plan showing
location of whole life
house
5. Scotland’s Housing Expo
August 2010
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 4
Whole Life House
4 competition and
context
the adaptable house : page 5
residential
accommodation
flexible
workspace
5
the adaptable house
shared services
and circulation core
residential
accommodation
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
shared
entrance
lobby
1
3
2
4
shared entrance
lobby to flexible
annexe and core
residential wing
to promote self
contained living and
working
core residential
wing with kitchen,
dining and living
accommodation &
bedrooms to first
floor
1. Adaptibility precedent:
Balmore Housing
development with integral
workspace
2. Adaptability precedent:
Woodbank Housing
for New Lives New
Landscapes with flexible
live work and hybrid
prefabrication
3. Flexibile annexe to Whole
Life house - options
showing different
configurations
adaptable wing
design with
standalone plumbing
and services with non
structural partitions
4. Part plan view show main
disposition of planning
elements
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 5
Whole Life House
environmental response : page 6
4 competition and
context
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
1
2
4
3
1. View down stairs to
kitchen
2. Integral sunspace to
living room and master
bedroom
3. Relationship between
stair lobby and kitchen
4. Environmental response
of building showing key
low carbon strategies
(based on visualisation by
Nick Sharp)
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 6
Whole Life House
record drawings and views : page 7
4 competition and
context
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
1
3
2
4
1. ground floor plan
2. first floor plan
3. section through lobby
and flexible annexe
4. east elevation
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 7
Whole Life House
record drawings and views : page 8
4 competition and
context
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
2
4
1
3
5
1. western elevation
2. north elevation
3. section through living
room and bedroom
4. south elevation
5. section through main
house
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 8
Whole Life House
record drawings and views : page 9
4 competition and
context
5
the adaptable house
6
environmental
response
7
record drawings
and views
colour image:
Nigel Rigden
all other photographs:
John Brennan
John Brennan
ESALA
Edinburgh College of Art
The University of Edinburgh
The Whole Life House
page 9