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Site Analysis Process
Why do we carry out an architectural site analysis?
Why do we carry out an architectural site analysis?
• Prior to starting any design, your client will want to know
whether construction on the site is viable. Carrying out an
extensive site analysis [or context analysis] will assess
wether development is financially feasible, and establish
parameters to implement the best design that responds to
the physical and environmental features of the site.
• A contextual analysis is a research activity that looks at the
existing conditions of a project site, along with any
imminent or potential future conditions. The purpose is to
inform us about a site prior to the start of our design
process so that our initial design thinking about a site can
incorporate considered responses to the external
conditions.
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Why do we carry out an architectural site analysis?
• An architectural site analysis will look at issues such as
– site location,
– size,
– topography,
– zoning,
– traffic conditions and climate.
• The analysis also needs to consider any future
developments, or changes to the sites surroundings,
such as a change of roads designations, changing
cultural patterns, or other significant building
developments within the area.
Why do we carry out an architectural site analysis?
CONTEXT:
• Understanding the context of a site is key to enabling the
designer to weave the new design in with the existing fabric
of the site.
• It allows us to understand the existing opportunities, or
problems in a site, and make informed decisions on how to
respond to our findings.
• This response could be that the designed building reflects
the surrounding context and is designed to be in sympathy,
or perhaps to turn away or eliminate certain unwanted site
conditions.
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Architectural site analysis
Making sure the analysis is thorough
• It is important when carrying out a site analysis,
that we endeavour to research as much as
possible and collect all available data that relates
to the site and our design.
• A poorly executed site analysis can lead to a sub
standard design due to the designer not having
all available information to respond to and
develop solutions for. You can never know too
much about the site.
What kind of information are we collecting?
Our analysis data can be split into two main categories.
Hard data and soft data.
• Soft data looks at site conditions that can be changed. Hard
data looks at more concrete elements such as site
boundaries, site areas, utility locations, contours,
dimensions, site features, climate, legal information.
• Early site investigations should look at hard data. From this,
we are able to establish which elements we consider to
have a negative impact on the site or proposed design and
which conditions have a more positive influence.
• This allows us to create a hierarchy and gives a more
systematic approach to understanding our data and
developing the design.
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What kind of information are we collecting?
The general categories of data we will be looking at as we
carry out our architectural site analysis are:
• Location – where the site is situated
• Neighbourhood context – the immediate surrounding of
the site including data on zoning and buildings and other
impacts on our project.
• Zoning and size – dimensional considerations such as
boundaries, easements, height restrictions, site area,
access along with any further plans.
What kind of information are we
collecting?
• Legal information – ownership, restrictions or covenants, council related
information, future urban development plans.
• Natural physical features – actual features of the site such as trees, rocks,
topography, rivers, ponds, drainage patterns.
• Man made features – existing buildings, walls, surrounding vernacular, setbacks,
materials, landscaping, scale.
• Circulation – Vehicle and pedestrian movements in, through and around the site.
Consider the timing of these movements, and duration of heavier patterns. Future
traffic and road developments should also be considered.
• Utilities – Any electricity, gas, water, sewer and telephone services that are
situated in or near the site, along with distances, depths and materials.
• Climate – all climatic information such as rainfall, snowfall, wind directions,
temperatures, sun path, all considered during the different times of the year.
• Sensory – this addresses the visual, audible and tactile aspects of the site, such as
views, noise, and so on. These again should be considered in time frames and a
positive or negative factor can be attributed to the condition.
• Human and cultural – the cultural, psychological, behavioural and sociological
aspects of the surrounding neighbourhood. Activities and patterns, density,
population ethnic patterns, employment, income, values and so on.
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Data collection : Desktop Study
Desktop Study
• Before you visit the site, there is a lot of information you can gain from a
desktop study. By carrying out thorough research prior to your visit to site,
you will arrive well informed, and possibly have identified specific things
that you want to check or look out for on your site visit.
• Prior to your site visit it may be necessary to obtain an OS map of the site.
From this, and from client information you can clarify the location of site
boundaries.
• Things to look into before you go to site:
– Location:
– Geological maps to discover predominant type of soil or rock on the site.
– Aerial photographs and maps (google and bing have really useful and quite
different aerial images).
– Historical maps can also be interesting.
– Distances and travel times between the site and other locations of importance
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Data collection : Desktop Study
Legal Information:
• Rights of way, rights of access, Town and Country Planning restrictions, is
the site in a green belt?
• History of the site – anything you can use to inform your design. Any
tunnels, disused mines, archaeological interests under the site could
curtail development.
• Historical use of the site – could industrial processes have contaminated
the land?
• If the site sits in a conservation area or close to listed buildings you may
need to go into more detail regarding cultural significance, historic
significance, etc.
• Developmental controls – is the site subject to any specific planning
controls, building control or health and safety?
• Are there any trees on the site? Do they have Tree Preservation Orders on
them?
Utilities:
• Determine whether water, electricity, gas, telephone, sewerage and other
services are connected to the land.
Data collection : Desktop Study
Climate:
• Climate conditions of the site/area.
• Sun path and angles.
• Is the area susceptible to flooding, is it considered a flood
risk area?
• Some information is not freely available, but a client or
their legal representative should be able to clarify any
issues regarding rights of way, rights of light, legal
easements and any rights of tenants.
• There are many more things to look at, and each site is very
different, but hopefully this will give you a starting point for
getting the best out of your site visit.
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Visiting The Site-What to take with you
• Depending on the project you will want to consider taking
the following items with you when you go to look at a
potential site, or proposed site for your design project. It is
likely you will require PPE (personal protection equipment)
so make sure you have all the necessary items before
heading to site.
• Camera – essential. Make sure you take pictures of
everything. Also, make sure you get some shots of the site
from a distance so you can use these in your final images,
cgi’s and so on. Also take pictures of what is opposite the
site, so you can use these as reflections in windows of your
design.
• It is so frustrating when you go to the trouble of visiting a
site and come back wishing you had taken more pictures.
Visiting The Site-What to take with you
• Smart phone. If you have any apps that assist with taking
panoramic pictures, take a few of these too. You can do
some interesting stuff when you get to later design stages if
you have a few panoramics to play with.
• Note book. Really important to be able to jot down any
observations.
• Tape measure. Some sites may be close to hazards or
situations where you will need to measure the proximity. If
you have one, a disto, or laser measure could also come in
handy, but not essential.
• Good weather! If you have a choice of when to visit the site
try to pick a day when there is a bit of blue sky around. It
will look better for your site photos, particularly if you are
planning on using them in future presentations.
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What to look out for
Go with a list of items to look out for, and check
off your list so that you don’t miss anything.
Suggested list would go something like this based
on the categories we established earlier:
Site and surroundings
Location
Site location details (road names, address, major
landmarks etc.)
Current context – existing buildings, car parking,
roads.
What to look out for
Neighbourhood context (1)
Look at existing and proposed building uses in the
neighbourhood
What condition are the buildings in?
Are there exterior spaces and what are they used
for?
Are there activities in the neighbourhood that
may create strong vehicle or pedestrian traffic?
Existing vehicle movement patterns, major and
minor roads, bus routes and stops.
Street lighting
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What to look out for
Neighbourhood context (2)
Vernacular context, materials, architectural features,
fenestration, landscaping, parking, building heights
Any nearby historical buildings, or buildings of particular
significance
Sun and shade patterns during the year
Building context – what style, period, state of repair are the
surrounding buildings? Is it a historical/heritage/conservation
area? Will your design need to reflect the existing style?
Is the site close to listed buildings?
Surfaces and materials around the site.
What to look out for
Site and Zoning
Site boundary and dimensions
Any rights of way through the site and the dimensions
Any easements location and dimensions
Buildable area of the site
Any building height restrictions
Access to the site – car parking, bus routes, train stations,
cycle routes, pedestrian walkways.
Access to site for construction – will there be any
obstacles or restrictions that could affect the
construction process?
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What to look out for
Natural Features
• Topography of the site, valleys, ridges, slopes etc.
• Vegetation – landscaping, greenery, shrubs and
trees, open spaces.
• Site levels. How will this affect your design
process? How does the site drainage work, would
there be any potential problems with drainage?
• Soil types on site
What to look out for
Circulation
• Circulation – how do visitors/pedestrians/traffic to or near
the site flow around or within it.
• Accessibility – current provisions of disabled access to the
site and how will this need to be considered.
• Does the existing pedestrian movement need to be
preserved?
• What is the vehicle peak loads and when?
• Public transport close to the site
• Locations of best access to site for both vehicles and
pedestrians
• Travel time to walk across the site
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What to look out for
Utilities
Location of all services: electricity, gas, water, sewer,
telephone. This includes both underground and above ground.
Location of power poles.
Drainage
Sub-stations
What to look out for
Man made features
What was the previous use of the site? Would there be any
contamination concerns?
Are there existing buildings on the site – what is their state of
repair? Is there any sign of subsidence or settlement damage?
Are the existing buildings part of the project?
Any walls, retaining walls on the site, or other built items
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What to look out for
Sensory
• Views – where are the best views to and from the site.
• What are the views of?
• Mark out the positive and negative views.
• Which is the most likely feature aspect?
• Look at views towards the site from different approaches to
see how the site would be seen when drawing near to the
site. What are the best views of the site, and would these
change in the long term?
• Noise, odour and pollution – is the site in a particularly
noisy area? Or near industrial buildings that produce levels
of pollution. Is it near a facility that creates smoke?
What to look out for
Human and Cultural
• Negative neighbourhood issues such as vandalism and
crime.
• What are the attitudes towards the site and the
potential build?
• What are the general neighbourhood attitudes about
the area?
• What is the cultural, psychological, behavioural and
sociological aspects of the surrounding area.
• What is the population, density, family size, ethnic
patterns, employment, recreation activities etc.
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What to look out for
Climate
• Orientation of the site.
• Weather – how does the weather affect the site?
Is it well shaded, exposed?
• How does the temperature, rainfall etc. vary
throughout the year?
• What are the prevailing wind directions
throughout the year?
• What is the sun path throughout the different
times of the year, and day.
Wind direction is reported by the direction from which it originates. For example,
a north or northerly wind blows from the north to the south.
Wind direction is usually reported in cardinal (or compass) direction, or in degrees.
Consequently, a wind blowing from the north has a wind direction referred to as 0°
(360°); a wind blowing from the east has a wind direction referred to as 90°, etc.
Wind direction for Chennai
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Wind direction for Chennai
What to look out for
• Take some time to walk around the site as much as
possible. Take note of the general topography of the site,
and any significant changes in level. Also note any
indications of what is underneath the surface, for example,
– any marsh grasses could suggest that there is a high water table,
– if the soil is sticky it could indicate the subsoil on the site is clay.
– If there is any rubble on the site, it could suggest there has been
previous development, or possibly landfill on the land.
• Many of these site issues (particularly services) would be
picked up on a topographical survey or other professional
report, but it would be good to demonstrate that you have
considered the hazards that could be on or around the site.
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Diagramming your findings
• The best way to present much of the data you have collected is
through diagrams.
• There are varying approaches to expressing the features of the site,
some prefer to include as much information as possible on one
diagram, while others will produce a number of smaller diagrams to
demonstrate particular site conditions or features.
• Both options work, but if you decide to present all the data on one
drawing, it is important to make sure it doesn’t become muddled
and difficult to interpret the information. So a single diagram
demonstrating many of the site conditions will be a larger drawing
than numerous individual diagrams demonstrating one site factor.
• It is also important that the hierarchy of the drawing is clear - using
your pen thicknesses to demonstrate the different aspects.
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Diagramming your findings
• You can represent data from your site visit in plans, elevations and
sections, isometrics or perspectives. Be sure to choose the best
option for the date you are trying to explain.
• Make sure the diagram is simple, and clear, with the data that are
presenting graphically bolder than the referent information. You
want the emphasis to be on the information you are
communicating, for example a path through the site, or the position
of trees on the site.
• If you choose to create a series of drawings, ensure that the site
drawing is always the same orientation, and preferably scale, so
that the reader can easily understand the drawings.
Evaluating Your Site Visit
So you have collected all this information and taken a shed
load of photos, now you’ve got to evaluate this information
and consider the implications to your design process.
As well as considering all the points below you also have to
integrate the requirements of the brief.
You are slowly putting together the pieces of the puzzle in
order to come up with a great design.
Your diagrams and data collection will be starting to build a
picture of the site, helping you to evaluate what you have
found and begin to consider solutions.
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Evaluating Your Site Visit
When looking at your site and considering your design think
about the following:
The Site
• Movement and circulation within
• Street patterns and around the site
• Street section • Vehicle vs. pedestrian
• Scale and the • Access
hierarchy/form/space
• Public space vs. private space
• Land use
• Open space
• Typologies
• History
• Neighbourhood relationships,
formal street variation • Climate – sun angles and sun
shadows
• Perspective relationships, views
• Negative and positive spaces –
• Edge conditions, surfaces and we move through negative spaces
materials and dwell in positive spaces
• Natural and man made
Evaluating Your Site Visit
Think about how your proposal is going to link in with the site, and how the site will
connect with the building. Make a few notes about each of the points below about
what you are looking to achieve.
The Building
Massing
Light quality
Structure
Rhythm and repetition
Circulation
Views
Axis
Geometry
Symmetry
Hierarchy
Scale and proportion
Enclosure
Balance
Space/void relationship
Regulating lines
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Evaluating Your Site Visit
• During your evaluation of the site, it may be useful to
create a model of a particular aspect, or even the site itself.
• A model may demonstrate something better than a
drawing or photograph, particularly three dimensional
situations.
• Land contours, are often demonstrated using a simple site
model. This base model could then be used as part of your
concept development.
Presenting your Site Analysis
• It may not be a requirement to present your site analysis
information, but in many cases it is. Whether you are putting
together a couple of plans with your findings, or a full report, here
are some tips and ideas to help you get the information across.
• Give an overview of the site and the information you have found.
• Show some of the key photographs of the site.
• Give more detail about the elements of your site analysis that you
feel will be important in your design process.
• Make sure you include images. There are various ways you can do
this:
– Sketches from site
– Photographs from site
– Annotated photographs
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Presenting your Site Analysis
• Present any relevant data found (climate, sun paths etc). Keep data
clear and concise, don’t bore everyone with complicated graphs
and tables. Instead, make your own chart or table that picks out the
important information.
• Present your sun paths and angles as some sort of annotated
drawing. Sketch up can be a useful way of presenting sun path
drawings.
• Depending on what has been asked of you, sometimes it is useful to
present a couple of overlay drawings showing some initial ideas you
have worked on. This will demonstrate your understanding of the
site.
• The most important thing when presenting your site analysis is to
ensure that the information is clear, and the reader can understand
what you have found.
Refer book:
SITE ANALYSIS- DIAGRAMMING INFORMATION
FOR ARCHITECTUREAL DESIGN
– Edward T White
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