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TOP 10 FINALIST: 2012 national competition project #116 | cafeteria redesign

By mkleva | L Redesign your school Cafeteria | 2012 National High School Architecture Competition

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Welcome to the 2012 DiscoverDesign National High School Architecture Competition!
These are the instructions for entering a design project in the competition.

Design Challenge Background
Cafeterias are often dark and crowded. They are uncomfortable and unhealthy.

Design Challenge Brief
The challenge is to redesign your high school cafeteria and re-think how your school’s cafeteria should, or could, function asas a healthy eating space. What does a cafeteria look like that is designed around a person’s needs?

You may redesign the interior of the existing cafeteria space, expand on the existing space, or design a completely new addition on to your school building. Your design should contain all the spaces and functions required for a typical school cafeteria – a variety of seating options for students (inside and out!), as well as a food storage, space for the kitchen, outdoor eating spaces, serving areas, and places to pay for the meal. You should also consider sustainability issues and the environmental impact of your design.

What should I upload in this Overview step?

Write a short description of the problems you will be trying to solve in redesigning your school library.

What is the Design Process?

How do you start a project? How do you get from the design problem to the final design? Learn more about the design process here.

The goal of this project is to redesign my school cafeteria by making it more efficient, more pleasing for students, and all around a healthier place to eat. A few main issues I will be focusing on are seating arrangements, traffic flow, kitchen area, and food service.

Comments

As a juror for the final stage of the competition, I was particularly impressed with the mastery of projects such as yours in the final design presentation - your drawings show good skills with the computer, and an ability to communicate your design in a way that will be appreciated by architects as well as lay persons. It's important that you can communicate your designs to people who are not necessarily familiar with the conventions of architectural drawings. You did this very well.
Your design development and solutions are very pragmatic, and I applaud you following the program brief and sustainable requirements. Perhaps next time, you might consider taking some more risks in this area - maybe be a bit more inventive - this could help drive your design to another level. You should do this in a responsible way, of course, but in a competitive situation (which this is) this could give you an edge and help your design stand out. As an architect, you are also an artist, and with that comes a responsibility to push the envelope. Do this early in the project with sketches. Look at established architects' sketchbooks - they are very telling (and they may not be as intimidating to imitate as you may think).
But keep doing what you are doing. You look comfortable doing this - so work on adding another layer of sophistication - take risks. Challenge yourself.
Congratulations on an excellent project.
Good luck.
Peter Exley FAIA

By FunArchitect, Architect at 10:01 pm, 19 June 2012

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In the Collect Info step of the design process, you try to gather as much information as possible about your existing school cafeteria, along with the students and staff who will use it.  You can't propose new solutions until you figure out and document what the existing problems are.

Try This

  • Walk around the interior of your school building and take photos or a short video of the existing cafeteria. You can upload those photos or short videos here. Be sure to write a detailed description for every image.

Think About

  • How many students need to be seated in the cafeteria during one period?
  • What types of furniture is used in the existing cafeteria? Does it need to be movable? Why or why not?

Try This

  • Interview students, cooks, and other staff about what they think of the existing cafeteria.  What changes would they make to spaces if they had a choice?
  • Make a list of those features that you really like about how your cafeteria looks and functions.
  • Make separate list of all the ways that your current cafeteria is not so well designed (chairs may be uncomfortable or the light is poor, or there are really great outdoor eating areas).

Try This

  • Take measurements of the overall dimensions of your existing cafeteria.
  • Take interior photos of the hallways and entrances that lead into your existing cafeteria.

Think About

  • What are the different pathways that students use to get into the cafeteria now?
  • What types of food are available in your cafeteria? How are they stored?

 

Try This

  • Visit Flickr or another photo sharing site and search for other types of cafeterias to determine good and bad examples of how cafeterias accommodate user’s needs, especially teens.

Think About

  • Does your new school cafeteria need to look like the same typical cafeteria with long rows of tables?  What other eating spaces around the world are inspiring and interesting?

What should I upload in this Collect Info step?

Consider uploading photos, a short video, and a site plan drawing of your existing school library. Help us understand the existing conditions and the location of this room.

How do I collect Information?

How can collecting information help me with the design problem? Learn ways to collect information that will help you with the design process here.

mkleva's work for the Collect Information step:

Summary
To collect information about my school cafeteria I observed the existing traffic flow, and took pictures of specific areas used in the cafeteria.
This picture is one view of the cafeteria facing the kitchen/serving area. This area is typically...
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This picture is a view from the main cafeteria looking into the Café Annex. For my school this is...
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This is a view from the front of the cafeteria displaying the seating .
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This is the snack area located on the side of the cafeteria.
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This picture displays the entrances to the serving/kitchen area. You enter the door farthest to the...
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This is a view taken from the hallway looking into the Café Annex.
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This picture shows the outdoor area just outside of the Cafr Annex. This space isn't currently...
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In the Brainstorm Ideas step of the design process, you put some early ideas down on paper that show what you've found in the Collect Info step.  You also might take more photos to show specific new ideas you have. 

The simple diagrams you make here will help you understand how the existing cafeteria location and design compare with your new ideas.

 

Try This

  • Walk around the exterior of your school building and take photos of possible locations for your new cafeteria with outdoor seating.

Think About

  • Will this cafeteria replace your school's existing cafeteria or become an addition to a different part of the building? Will it be built in an empty lot or space?  Will it be underground or built on the roof?  You decide.

Try This

  • Use Google Maps to view and print out an aerial photo of your school. 

Think About

  • Spend some time looking at the aerial photo of your school.  What types of other buildings surround your school?  Homes, businesses, parks, parking lots, or an empty field?  How will these other buildings impact the design of your new library?
  • What types of streets surround your school? Are they busy or quiet?     

Try This

  • On a piece of tracing paper placed over the aerial photo of your school, sketch a diagram showing a large arc around the building to show the path of the sun throughout the day.  This drawing is called a site analysis diagram.  (Remember, the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.)
  • Draw other lines on this diagram to indicate the best views around the building.

Think About

  • Based on the site analysis diagram you've sketched, where is the sun located throughout the school day? 
  • How can the indoor and outdoor seating areas of your new cafeteria be positioned to take advantage of the sunlight for good lighting?

What should I upload in this Brainstorm Ideas step?

Consider uploading hand sketches or a quick study model of all your first ideas. You can scan these drawings or take photos of your model.

How do I brainstorm ideas?

Brainstorming ideas is your first step towards making an informed decision to the design solution. Learn more about that here.

mkleva's work for the Brainstorm Ideas step:

Summary
To brainstorm ideas for this project I had to analyze many different things about our existing cafeteria and what this project was asking of us to accomplish.
In the process of brainstorming I researched a few possibilities of new design elements that I...
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In the process of brainstorming I researched a few possibilities of new design elements that I...
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One major area I focused on while brainstorming was traffic flow and food distribution. One idea I...
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This is a Google Maps picture of my school showing the building itself, roads, and the landscape of...
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This is a quick site analysis diagram I sketched showing the direction the school faces, roads...
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This is a side view sketch of the cafeteria explaining the different levels, location of things,...
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This is my main and most important brainstorming sketch; it is a floor plan and layout of the 1st...
21 comments

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In the Develop Solutions step, your rough ideas come together with drawings and models that can show others your solutions for a new cafeteria.

Important! Since DiscoverDesign is about investigating the design process, the other people viewing your project - other students around the country, your teacher, and the competition judges - want to see how your ideas have changed over time. This means that while you're working on your digital model, you’ll want to be sure to keep re-saving it with a new file name every few days as you work through the steps.

Try This

  • Draw a sketch or use software such as Google SketchUp, AutoCAD, or Revit to illustrate your ideas.  You can upload photos (JPG files) from your SketchUp model, video fly throughs (FLV files) of your SketchUp model, or drawings (DWF files) from AutoCAD.

 

Try This

  • Make sure your cafeteria includes the following types of spaces and furnishings.
    - indoor seating area (tables, seating)
    - outdoor seating area (tables, seating)
    - food storage (shelves)
    - cook desk (place to check out)
    - small office for kitchen staff
    - bins for recycyling

 

What should I upload in this Develop Solutions step?

Consider uploading images (JPG, GIF) of your rough digital model. It's ok if your model is still a work in progress. Show an axonometric or perspective view with people, which will help others understand the scale of your library.

How do I develop solutions?

Look at all of the ideas you gathered in the last step. How do those respond to the needs of the space? Learn more about developing solutions here.

mkleva's work for the Develop Solutions step:

Summary
After brainstorming and research, I began making a 3-D model of my cafeteria in Revit demonstrating all my new ideas. This step basically brought my re-designed cafeteria to life.
In my project I incorperated multiple Low-E Double Glazed windows surrounding the cafeteria & a...
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This is my First Level Floor Plan made on Revit. To begin, students would enter or start in the...
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The main seating area is located on the 2nd level accessed by stairs attached to the main Food...
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This is a 3-D view of the main Food Serving area. This shows the multiple food stops/options, the...
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Here's a view of the School Cafe. I created this as a quiet study area for students with quick...
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This is a 3-D view of the kitchen. There is a large serving counter in front for students that wish...
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Fianlly, this is a view of the Outdoor Courtyard. There are picnic tables, small couples-tables,...
0 comments

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The final step of the design process is to create more finished drawings that illustrate your ideas to others. Remember, your explanation text, and the types of drawings, images, and models you share need to tell the whole story of your project to someone who may or may not have ever visited your school.

You might want to share floor plans, elevations, renderings of your digital model, photos of a physical model, or a video animation of your model.

Continue to collect feedback from your peers, teachers and the online community to help you improve on your final design. Be sure to review and add constructive comments on the work of other students who are solving the same design problem. If your ideas change, be sure to explain your thinking and let others know about the new work you have posted to your account.

What should I upload in this Final Design step?

Consider uploading final hand or digital renderings, images of your finished physical model, or your finished digital model (as a DWF file).

How do I know I have my final design?

Consider all of the design considerations you made in your last step. Use feedback from students, teachers, and mentors to finalize your design. Learn more about finishing your design here.

mkleva's work for the Final Design step:

Summary
In this final design step I brought all my ideas together to create a final product on Revit. I incorperated all my brainstorming, design elements, energy saving ideas into my final design.
This is my final design of my cafeteria demonstrating all my ideas for the floor layout, food...
1 comment
This is a rendering illustrating my 1st and 2nd levels. This mainly shows the Seating Area and...
15 comments
This is a rendering of the main Food Serving area. It basically shows everything I have already...
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Here is a rendering of the Courtyard. Like i have stated before, there are multiple seating options...
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This is an inside rendering of the Cafe Annex. One major thing this section offers is a...
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This is a 3-D view of my final product.
1 comment