A tower was built as high as possible using wooden blocks. We started of by building a square base and continue to make the structure more rounder and smaller as we go up. The wood blocks are arranged in a way that they are not vertically aligned in any two successive courses to ensure that it is stable and the forces are equally distributed.

Half way of building the tower we started pulling out some blocks to make a door that can fit a toy dog. The tower didn’t collapse although a large number of blocks were pulled out. This is because the force acting on the wood blocks were distributed across a wider area in the next successive course.

If the wood blocks are arranged in a manner that they are vertically align, all the blocks on the same vertical will fall when a block is pulled out and may end up with the whole tower collapsing.

WEEK 1: COMPRESSION

WEEK 2 Frame

We started of by building a base. The base consist of triangles connected at mid-points.

Next, 3 poles were glued on 3 points of the center triangle. Another triangular identical to the base is glued onto the poles to connect them. The process of gluing poles and triangles continued until the sticks ran out.

As the tower got higher, it got harder to balance and poles started to sway. Braces was then added to overcome this problem. The end result is a quite stable and strong tower which can be held up horizontally by only holding the base.

WEEK 2: FRAME

Every group discovered that base is very important in stabilising the tower. Flex-ibility and light-weight material makes the construction of tower much easier. Flexible tower can absorb force better than rigid tower.

Different method was used by different groups. There were two towers that has large base and become smaller as it gets higher. The centre of the gravity is ensured to fall in the middle of the base. This sort of shape enhance the stability of tower.

WEEK 3: CASE STUDY SITE VISIT & ON SITE

EASTERN PRECINT STUDENT CENTRE (LINK BETWEEN BUILDINGS)

Potential construction constrains Spacing, cost, use of space, access, transport of material to site.

Access to the existing entrance of the ERC need to be considered in construction

Links to other buildingFloor to floor, wall to wall and roof to wall.

Construction typeType 1 - major building elements constructed of non-combustible material such as concrete and steel (Ching 1943).Frame construction - exposed structure, structural frame, bearing walls

Structural SystemsCantilever structure supported by retaining wall, columns and beams.

Other relevant comments

Materials

Use of joints and bolts to connect roof to wall. Off site concrete slabs for flooring.

Concrete, steel, glass, bricks

Example of roof to wall connection using joints and bolts.

Cantilever structure of the roof supported by a retaining wall.

Example of floor to floor connec-tion.

Use of off site concrete slab for flooring.

Exposed structural frame.Use of light weight glass as roof.

Dimension3-storey building. Height : 10m, Width: 11m, Length: 34m

MSLE BUILDING (LINK BETWEEN BUILDING)

Potential construction constrains Access, footing, existing pipes and windows

Links between buildings

Links to other buildingFloor to floor, roof to walls

Construction typeType III, have non-combustible exterior walls and major interior elements of wood and other materials permitted by the code (Ching 1943).

Structural SystemsConnection plate, bolted connection, columns, beams, low bearing walls

Other relevant comments

Materials

Roof is made of timber and concrete as the existing wall is low bearing. Window sill of old building is covered

Timber, concrete and bricks

Structures are hidden. Existing pipes as the construction constrain.

Floor to floor connection between new and old building.

Use of steel joist and bolted con-nection to fix floor to the wall.

Pipes and windows as construction constrain.

Window sill are covered with bricks to solve construction constrain.

Use of light weight timber as roof as it is supported by the low bearing wall.

Dimension2-storey building. Height : 7m, Width: 4.5m, Length: 7m

QUEENS COLLEGE EXTENSION

Potential construction constrains Access, space, distribution of space

Galvanised steel column welded to the roof frame.

Links to other buildingFloor to floor, wall to wall and roof to roof.

Construction typeType 1 building. Major building elements - walls, columns - made from non-combustible materials such as steel and concrete. (Ching 1943)

Structural SystemsOff site concrete slab walls with timber insulation. Galvanised steel columns welded to the steel roof frame. Timber joist to connect new building to the old ones.

Other relevant comments

Materials

Small addition to the existing building. A lot of space is left exposed.

Concrete, galvanised steel and timber

Off site concrete slab wall insulated by timber.

Access solution to the building.

Timber joist connecting old building to the new one.

Dimension1-storey building. Height : 3m, Width: 4m, Length: 5.5m

ORMOND THEOLOGY CENTRE RECEPTION

Potential construction constrains Heavy in-situ concrete pouring, cost, limited concrete formwork.

Possibly galvanised steel columns covered by concrete

Links to other buildingFloor to floor, wall to wall.

Construction typeType1- major building elements constructed of non-combustible materi-als such as concrete and steel (Ching 1943)

Structural SystemsSteel frame, tensile structure, hanging con-crete beam, cantilever, columns

Other relevant comments

Materials

Concrete are poured in-situ required a lot of time due to limited form-work. Shear force on the formwork by steel and bolts to keep the form-work in shape.

Concrete, steel, glass bricks, timber and concrete brick

Tensile structure supporting load.

Non-bearing cantilever.

In situ concrete walls with visible holes from the formwork.

Concrete brick column

DimensionHigh-ceilinged. Height : 7m, Width: 3m, Length: 6m

Oval Pavilion

Part of the heritage building is kept and will be refurbished to incorporate to the new design as well as to meet the requirement given byIbuilding and planning council.

Agri drain to flow water out the underground structure area. Clay soil tend to store water and cause water pool which is undesired in construction stage. Good drainage is crucial to keep the water out to ease construction work and keep water out of the basement after com-pletion

Other than the agri pipe, waterproof membrane is fix to the basement exterior to keep the water out from the basement.

The construction of the Oval Pavilion is at the ground slab construction stage. Stumps are made out of concrete and timber suitable for simple construction. For safety of builders, temporary frame are placed around the working site to avoid falling.

REFERENCEChing, F 1943, ‘Types of construction’, Building Construction Illustrated, John Wiley & Sons, United States of America, pp. 2.06