PA Mix2 Flashcards
What is three phase electric useful for?
Three-phase power is used in some small commercial applications for higher efficiency, especially with certain large motors and other heavier electrical loads.
A three-phase system may be arranged in delta (∆) or star (Y) (also denoted as wye in some areas).
What is a microclimate of a site?
A microclimate refers to the specific local conditions of the site. It’s affected by the vegetation, elevation, slope, water, solar exposure and any manmade structures. The macroclimate includes information on prevailing wind patterns as well as existing site features such as trees and water.
What is a sundial used for?
A sundial may be used to evaluate the effects of existing site conditions, the impacts of building massing alternatives, the extent of sun penetration into buildings and the effectiveness of shading devices.
What is a sun path diagram chart?
Sun path diagrams are a convenient way of representing the annual changes in the path of the sun through the sky on a single 2D diagram. Their most immediate use is for finding the solar azimuth and altitude that can be read off directly for any time of the day and month of the year.
(looks like a circle, with cardinal lines shown, degrees of the on various sun paths from east to west)
What is a wind rose?
The wind rose gives detailed information about wind direction and frequency for specific time periods.
What are the windward and leeward sides of the mountain located?
windward-prevailing winds
-high pressure
-precipitation towards the top
-cool and wet
leeward- dry decending air
-low pressure
-lack of rain causes dry and warm climate
-"rain shadow"What is an Aliquot?
The description of fractional section ownership used in U.S. public land is referred to as its aliquot. A parcel is generally identified by its section, township and range. The aliquot specifies its precise location within the section (for example, the northwest quarter of the southeast quarter).
What is magnetic declination?
also called magnetic variation, is the angle on the horizontal plane between magnetic north and true north. This angle varies depending on position on the Earth’s surface and changes over time.
What is a plat plan?
also called a cadastral map, is a map, drawn to scale, showing the way a piece of land has been sub-divided.
What is the equation for slope?
g=(d/l) x 100%
g=% slope (in a percentage)
d=vertical Distance
l=horizontal Length between two points
Divide vertical distance by Horizontal length and multiply by 100 to get slope in a percentage
What the difference between a detention pond and a retention pond?
Detention ponds are designed and placed on-sites in an effort to slow the flow of stormwater due to increased impermeability of paving and structures on a site. A detention pond will hold water temporarily and slowly discharge to another area.
Retention ponds are permanent structures designed to hold water flow for a short period of time, similar to a dam. In response to a storm, the pond’s water level fluctuates, reducing risk and saving the community from potential flood damage and costly repairs.
What is a check dam?
Check dams are often used in washes or swales and are earthen, rock or log structures that are installed to reduce stormwater velocities and promote sediment deposition. They can enhance infiltration into the soil and reduce erosion.
What are the Ahwahnee Principles?
The Ahwahnee Principles for Resource-Efficient Communities, written in 1991 by the Local Government Commission, paved the way for the Smart Growth movement and New Urbanism. These principles provide a blueprint for elected officials to create compact, mixed-use, walkable, transit-oriented developments in their local communities.
What is the specific consultant that researches the distribution, circulation and physical properties of underground and surface waters. He or she may help environmental scientists and other scientists preserve and clean up the environment or may search for groundwater.
Hydrologist
Note: not Hydraulic Engineer (machinery)
What are the basic soil types?
clays silts sands gravels cobbles boulders rock
-and any combination of the above. Most soils usually contain more than one soil type. Not organic soil.
In a soil report, how is the material noted?
Example:
What does GW stand for?
C is for Clay
M is for Silt
G is for gravel
L is for low plasticity-compressibility
H is for high plasticity-compressibility
W for well-graded
P for poorly-graded
Example answer:
GW= well graded gravel
How can bearing capacity of soil be increased?
through:
surcharging,
adding engineered fill
or compaction.
What is a proctor test?
A Proctor test evaluates the native soils in both dry and wet conditions to determine the potential negative qualities of the soil. It is performed by dropping a hammer on a sample of soil several times and then drying for a period of time.
What does a “Boring” test determine?
TYPES of soils
What does a Brownfield redevelopment specialist do?
He/She specializes in environmental cleanup and restoration of the site and soils.
What is a sociopetal space?
-describing environmental conditions that PROMOTE social interaction, such as circular seating arrangements and a comfortable ambient room temperature. A physical environment with these characteristics is termed a sociopetal space.
What is a sociofugal space?
-describing environmental conditions that discourage or prevent social interaction, such as rows of seats facing the same way (e.g., church pews) or ambient noise that interferes with communication. A physical environment with these characteristics is termed a sociofugal space.
What is a conditional use permit?
A permit that grants the ability to use the building for a proposed use even though the Zoning Code normally would not allow it. These are typically granted with certain restrictions, and they may not be transferrable to a new Owner.
How is the 100-year floodplain defined?
1% probability of occurring in any given year
The 100-year flood is also referred to as the 1% flood, since its annual probability of exceeding this level is 1%. For river systems, the 100-year flood is generally expressed as a flowrate based on the expected 100-year flood flow rate.
What are the 5 types of construction?
Type I (one - can also be IA or IB)-Fire Resistive With this type of construction, walls, partitions, columns, floors, and roofs are the most noncombustible when it comes to fire-resistant ratings. These structures are usually easy to spot based on their height. Fire-resistive buildings are more than 75-feet tall and made of poured concrete and protective steel. They are designed to withstand the effects of fire for a long period of time to prevent a fire from spreading. Ventilation in these types of buildings is not an option because the roof must also be composed of noncombustible materials.
Type II-Non-combustible
Non-combustible buildings are similar to the fire-resistive type where walls, partitions, columns, floors, and roofs are noncombustible. However, they provide less fire resistance and do not withstand the effects or spreading of fire as well as Type I. This type gets its name “noncombustible” not because of its resistance to fire, but because of the fuel the building contributes. Newer school buildings are common examples of this type of construction. These buildings typically have a metal floor and metal roof with masonry or tilt-slab walls. They are the least stable in terms of collapse when exposed to fire.
Type III-Ordinary
These buildings are also called brick-and-joist structures. This type of construction has brick or block walls with a wooden roof or floor assembly which is not protected against fire. All or part of the interior structural elements (frame, floors, ceilings, etc.) is combustible/wood. Verticle ventilation in these types of buildings is possible. You will see ordinary construction in both old and new buildings.
Type IV-Heavy Timber
Type IV buildings have noncombustible exterior walls and interior elements. These buildings are made out of solid or laminated wood. All wooden members must meet dimensional requirements. Wood columns, beams, and girders must be at least 8 inches thick. Heavy planks for floors and roofs must be at least 6 inches thick. If these types of buildings catch fire, they require large volumes of water to extinguish, but they hold up well against fire and don’t collapse easily due to their structural mass.
Type V-Wood Framed
Wood-framed buildings are the most combustible out of all the types. They are the only construction type that allow combustible exterior walls. Type V also allows a combustible interior (structural frames, walls, floors, and roofs) made entirely or partly out of wood. This type is commonly found in modern homes. They often have exposed wood so there is no fire-resistance. It ignites significantly but is reasonably resistant to collapse unless it is a lightweight construction, in which case it will fail within minutes.
You are reviewing a building project to redline, specifically focusing on ADA requirements. What resource would you use to reference ADA standards?
The ICC/ANSI A117.1, Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities,
is a nationally recognized standard of technical requirements for making buildings accessible.
Who are the ADA guidelines enforced by?
The US Department of Justice
ADA is a civil rights law that covers employment, public entities (and public transportation), public accommodations (and commercial facilities) and telecommunications. ADA is a national law, not a code, issued and enforced by the Department of Justice.
What are the Building occupancy classifications?
(A)-Assembly (B)-Business (E)-Educational (F)-Factory (H)-High Hazard (I)-Institutional (M)-Mercantile (R)-Residential (S)-Storage (U)-Utility and Misc.
What is a PUD?
A planned unit development (PUD)
is a community of homes that could look like single-family residences, townhomes or condos and can include both residential and commercial units. It has a zoning designation that allows mixed land uses, including residential, commercial and recreation, all in one area.
Which local agency would most likely confirm the proper setbacks for a project?
The local Planning Department would be responsible for zoning and setbacks.
(Building Department is not the NCARB answer)
Which agency would define if and where a fire zone would be needed in a project?
A Fire District,
with notice to the Chief of Police, may request or require that a public or private Property Owner establish fire zones on their property where the health, safety and welfare of the public requires it.
What would be your best resource for gathering the federal-level regulations and requirements for properties bordering or in a seismic hazard zone?
FEMA
A primary resource that FEMA provides is the NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures (FEMA P-750). FEMA’s companion document, Earthquake Resistant Design Concepts (FEMA P-749), provides a nontechnical background explanation.
How would you apply the Energy Code of the IECC to a project that has both commercial and residential units?
Commercial Code applies to commercial, and Residential Code applies to residential
The IECC addresses mixed occupancies by stating that commercial occupancies must comply with the Commercial portion of the Code, and residential occupancies must comply with the Residential portion of the Code.
What is another name for the “Entitlement Phase”?
Permitting Phase
The process of Entitlements is the legal method of obtaining discretionary approvals for the right to develop and/or construct on a property for its desired use(s). This phase addresses the applicable zoning regulations, municipal codes, General Plan, and neighborhood council/community groups’ requirements, resulting in project approval from a planning commission or city council.
What is a Bulk Plane?
The bulk plane is really a series of planes which limit the allowable volume of space the building can occupy. As with the height limitations, the bulk plane requirements are separated into limits. Bulk plane is a standard that lowers height limits near the edges of a lot by establishing an inclined plane over which buildings may not protrude.
What is cumulative zoning?
allows any use permitted in a higher-use, less intensive zone to be permissible in a lower-use, more intensive zone. For example: Under this method, a house could be built in an industrial zone, but a factory could not be built in a residential zone.
What is Exclusionary Zoning?
the utilization of zoning ordinances to exclude certain types of land uses from a given community. This type of zoning gained prominence in land use regulations throughout the United States in the late 19th century.
What is an Easement of Support?
is an easement acquired by grant or by prescription by which an Owner of a structure on the land has a right to rest or support it in whole or in part upon the land or the structure of an adjoining Owner by inserting beams in the adjoining wall on the boundary. Used in cases of a shared party wall.
What is an Affirmative Covenant?
is a type of agreement in a contract in which the covenantor makes a promise to a covenantee to do some action (affirmative covenant) or not do some action (negative covenant).
Which type of survey would you most likely need to fulfill the requirements of a lending institution?
The ATLA/ACSM Survey
-often used to fulfill the requirements of a lending institution or purchaser. ALTA/ACSM stands for American Land Title Association / American Congress on Surveying and Mapping. This type of survey is one of the most comprehensive types of land surveys and it includes all the features of a property.
What is the minimum required width when planning the accessible routes to circulate a site?
3’-0”
What is a geodetic survey?
a survey of a large land area in which corrections are made for the curvature of the earth’s surface. A plane survey presents the site as a flat plane. Although technically distorted, this is the one used most often.
What is another name for “as-built” survey?
possession survey
What is the test used in order to determine proper compaction and moisture levels in the soil?
Proctor Test
The Proctor compaction test is a laboratory method of experimentally determining the optimal moisture content at which a given soil type will become most dense and achieve its maximum dry density.
What are the characteristics of well graded soil?
A well graded soil is a soil that contains particles of a wide range of sizes and has a good representation of all sizes from the No. 4 to No. 200 sieves. Soil gradation is very important to foundation design. It is an indicator of engineering properties such as compressibility, shear strength and hydraulic conductivity.
Will well graded or poorly graded soil have better drainage?
A poorly graded soil will have better drainage than a well graded soil because there are more void spaces in a poorly graded soil.
What is an Arroyo
-a steep-sided gully formed by the action of fast-flowing water in an arid or semi-arid region, found chiefly in the southwestern US.
Note:
An arroyo on site would represent a fairly major land feature that could indicate major water flow at certain times of the year. Most likely there would be locally required setbacks from these features, depending on their depth.
What are “Adjacency Requirements”?
-requirements requested by the client or owner for certain spaces to be next to other ones. Also know as “Space Adjacency”. Can be shown in a bubble diagram, matrix diagram, or in the written project scope.
What is Programming?
The process that seeks to identify and analyze the architectural problem, and then find and preliminarily test solutions for this problem that are satisfactory to the client.
What is Proxemics?
the study of human use of space and the effects that population density has on behavior, communication and social interaction. It helps us to understand the cultural influences on the spacing between people and territoriality.
Tue or False?
Building height regulations are a code and Building Department issue.
False
Building height falls under zoning or Planning Department regulations.
Think local municipality table for dimensional regulations.
What falls under “Form Based Zoning”?
Regulates the form that the land use may shape, such as setbacks, building heights, type of density and pedestrian access, rather than the type of land use.
What are some things that can be determined with geotechnical soil tests?
Water Content Specific Gravity Grain Size and Shape Liquid and Plastic Limits (liquefaction and plasticity) Bearing Capacity Foundation Recommendations Unconfined Compression
How is a typical project labor budget estimated?
Find estimated construction costs (sq ft x cost per sq ft)
Subtract:
consultant fees
contingency
and direct expense
Arrive at Project Labor Budget.
What is the result of good programming?
Problem statement
According to the NCARB matrix reference Problem Seeking: The product of programming is a statement of the problem. While many theorists discuss the importance of a clear problem statement, most designers neglect to articulate them.
According to the NCARB matrix reference Problem Seeking: Questions around whether or not utility systems should be centralized or decentralized would fall under what?
Service Groupings
According to the NCARB matrix reference Problem Seeking: Questions around whether or not the project would have a goal of sociability and promoting activity with the neighboring properties would fall under what?
Neighbors
According to the NCARB matrix reference Problem Seeking: Questions around whether or not to schedule phases concurrently in an effort to reduce the Design and Construction Schedule would fall under what?
Phasing
What is Evapotranspiration?
The natural atmospheric process of water entering the atmosphere after plants and soil have soaked up the moisture
What is Eutrophication?
The excessive nutrient enrichment of a water supply, usually due to runoff from agricultural or industrial processes. This enrichment can cause algae growth and disrupt the ecosystem.
What is Lighting Power Density?
A measure of lighting energy density, measured as watts per square foot of illuminated space.
What is GREENGUARD Certification?
A product certification that verifies INDOOR AIR QUALITY will not be harmed by chemical emissions from a product.
What is Risk category?
A code-defined standard of risk assessment based on the hazard to human life in the event of a building failure.
What are Finish materials: Class A, B, C
A classification of interior finishes based on flame spread rating, as discussed in chapter 8 of the International Building Code.
Class A is the strictest.
Class C is untreated wood.
What is Performance path?
Performance path
A type of sustainability certification available to existing buildings that were not originally constructed to those standards. LEED and IECC are two examples of certifications that can be met this way. Typically this certification method will involve the auditing and tracking of actual building performance using several metrics (e.g. indoor air quality, water consumption, energy consumption, etc.) to determine if compliance is possible.
What is a Psychrometric chart?
A chart which illustrates relationships between different thermodynamic properties of air, such as dry bulb temperature, wet bulb temperature, humidity, enthalpy, etc. This chart facilitates the evaluation of environmental comfort zones in different conditions.
What is the Garden city movement?
The garden city movement was a utopian city planning concept founded on the principles described in Sir Ebenezer Howard’s Garden Cities of To-Morrow. The concept is based on the idea that there are three “magnets” of living: town, country, and town-country. Self-contained communities of these three types are surrounded by green belts and have proportionate areas of residential, industrial, and agricultural uses. The nodes are all connected by rail transit.
What is the Public Land Survey System (PLSS)?
A survey method used to divide or plat land throughout the U.S., using sections, townships, and checks as the main units of measure.
What is an Ecological survey?
A study undertaken to determine the impacts of site development on local habitats and ecosystems.
What is a Thermographic survey?
An infrared envelope analysis used to locate thermal bridges or other areas of concern on the building envelope.
What is Conversion of a building?
Changing the function of a building through adaptive reuse.
What is Color Temperature?
Measured in degrees Kelvin, color temperature is a way to quantify the appearance of light produced by a lamp. Lower values indicate warm lighting, whereas higher values correspond to cool lighting. A warm fixture will typically have a color temperature of around 2700K; a cool fixture is closer to 3500K–4000K.
What is IEQ?
Indoor environmental quality: the overall condition of interior spaces, including acoustics, daylighting, air quality, etc.
What is a Construction joint?
Construction Joint
A joint in a concrete pour that allows a newly poured section to move against a previously poured section.
What is a release agent?
A chemical applied to a concrete form prior to pouring which prevents the cured concrete from adhering to the mold.
What are the two types of concrete reinforcement?
Ties and stirrups
Ties keeps vertical reinforcing bars positioned in the right location prior to pouring. (in a column)
Stirrups provide structural reinforcement for beams. (in a beam/header/girder)
What is the measure of a brick thickness in a wall section called?
Wythe (pronounced width)
The dimension is equal to one continuous vertical section of brick that is one unit in thickness. “Solid brick” is the term used for double wythe brick, or two layers of masonry providing the wall structure. Older houses (pre-1940s roughly) may even be more than two layers thick. The double wythe brick can be identified by the short ends of the brick. Wythes can be different masonry materials (cmu/brick wall).
What is Glvanic action?
The electrochemical process that occurs when dissimilar metals are immersed in a conductive liquid and an electrolyte is applied. Also called galvanic corrosion
What is FSC certification?
Forest Stewardship Council certification: a guarantee that the wood content of a product is sourced from either certified forests or from recycled waste.
What is Annealed Glazing?
A typical window glass that has been cooled slowly during manufacturing to avoid internal stress. This results in a product which is more stable and resistant to cracking, but still cannot be used in places where tempered or laminated glass is needed for safety.
Not a substitute for tempered or laminated glass.
What is an IGU?
Insulated glazing unit:
two or more lites of glass combined as one assembly but separated by an air space.
What is Low Iron glass?
A type of glass in which the amount of iron is reduced and the green and blue color tinting is lower, improving clarity. Also commonly found in solar panels.
True or False?
A Fan Coil Unit is a stand alone unit.
True
The unit contains a heat exchanger (coil) and a fan to circulate air over the coil. Commonly used to condition air in small, controlled zones, such as individual hotel rooms. Can do both heat and cool.
What is a gearless traction elevator?
A type of high-speed traction elevator typically used in high-rise buildings or where speed is required. Capable of reaching speeds up to 2000 feet per minute, and heights up to 2000 feet. They employ a gearless motor, and typically have higher installation costs and maintenance costs than geared alternatives.
What is a shunt trip?
A device that allows an external trigger to remotely activate a primary circuit breaker.
What is a Machine-room-less (MRL) elevator?
A type of hydraulic or traction elevator that does not require a machine room for equipment on top of the hoistway.
What is a Project alliance?
A form of multi-party agreement used in integrated project delivery which brings the entire project team into a special contractual relationship. This can include the creation of a single-purpose entity which exists solely for the purpose of designing and constructing the project.
What’s the difference between Anodic and cathodic metals?
Anodic metals are least noble, and most susceptible to corrosion.
Cathodic metals are most noble, and least susceptible to corrosion.
This is a categorization of a metal’s susceptibility to corrosion.
What is a Diagrid?
Diagonal grid:
a structural system of beams or other elements that intersect in a diagonal pattern.
What is “hot rolled steel”?
One of the main methods of fabricating steel products. This fabrication process takes place on a heated press, produces a slightly weaker product, and is slightly less precise, meaning it is better suited for applications that have wider tolerances.
What is “cold rolled steel”?
One of the main methods of fabricating steel products. This fabrication process takes place at room temperature, produces a slightly higher-strength steel, and is better for precision work.
True or False?
A “shear wall” is designed to be a structural component.
True
A shear wall, or shear panel, is a panel component of a building’s structural system designed to carry lateral loads.
What is thermal expansion?
The change in dimension a material experiences as its temperature increases, given by the following formula:ΔL = L * α * ΔT
where: ΔL - change in length L - original length α - coefficient of thermal expansion ΔT - change in temperature
What is TPO?
Thermoplastic polyolefin: a single-ply roofing membrane typically used on flat or low-sloped roofs.
What is a “dry standpipe system”?
Fire sprinkler system in which pipes are fixed in the building and filled with compressed air. They are not filled with water (by the fire department) until needed, which makes this a good system for areas subject to freezing.
What is a “wet standpipe system”?
Fire sprinkler system in which pipes are always filled with water and pressurized at all times. They are the most common system, with a low initial cost and a quick response time, but they are susceptible to freezing.
What is “cradle to cradle” belief?
An ethos (and product certification) that seeks to reuse and repurpose products and materials at the end of their useful life, reducing waste.
What is SHGC?
Solar heat gain coefficient:
the total quantity of solar radiation absorbed by a glazing assembly, including both direct transmittance through glazing and absorption by the frame. A lower value indicates lower total transmittance.
What is a “skin load” dominant structure?
A structure whose thermal energy requirements are determined largely by the climate and solar conditions of its region, rather than internal loads such as machinery or occupants.
What is XPS?
Extruded polystyrene:
a rigid, closed-cell, extruded foam used as insulation. Possesses good durability and dimensional stability due to the extrusion process.
What is thermal bridging?
Transfer of heat through materials, usually from outside to inside the envelope or vice versa. Occurs when poor insulation materials come in contact with each other, allowing heat to pass between them with little resistance. Separating materials or wrapping with insulation is the most effective way to mitigate thermal bridging.
What is a thermal break?
A material that is chosen for its low thermal conductivity and used to decouple exterior elements from interior elements. This improves the thermal performance of windows, doors, and other areas where there is a large temperature difference between the exterior and interior.
What is a “free body diagram”?
A diagrammatic way to show all forces and their reactions on a body. Used to find moments and force vectors in statically determinate systems, such as when undertaking structural calculations for a beam.
What is a soil stack?
The vertical pipe which collects sewage from fixtures at different levels within a building, and conveys it to a municipal sewer system or other treatment system.
What is a stack vent?
The exterior extension of a plumbing stack which vents to the atmosphere.
What is the invert?
The lowest elevation of the existing public sewer line. It should be determined early during planning because any new building sewer lines will need to slope down to reach this elevation.
What is the stormwater line?
A component of a municipal plumbing system devoted to stormwater management.
What is Alternating Current? (AC)
An electric current which rapidly reverses the direction of flow of charge.
What is Direct Current? (DC)
An electric current which does not alternate the direction of the flow of charge.
What is Ohm’s Law?
A law of physics which relates voltage, current and resistance using the formula V = I * R (where V = voltage, I = current, and R = resistance).
What is a Panel resonator?
A type of low-frequency-mitigation trap which converts sound waves to heat energy through a damping material.
(sound proofing)
What is the Coefficient of Utilization (CU)?
A ratio of the amount of light leaving a luminaire to the amount that reaches the intended location, called the work plane.
What is a “sabin”?
Sabins
The unit of measure of sound absorption, used to evaluate the effectiveness of acoustic treatment materials or strategies.
What is the Zonal Cavity Method?
A simplified method of calculating light level in a room by dividing the total number of lumens by the area of the space. Also called lumen method.
What is a Lumen?
The SI unit of luminous flux, which measures luminous energy per unit time.
What is the Document management systems (DMS)?
Document management systems (DMS)
Used by the architect to track and manage communications with consultants, the owner, and the general contractor during and after the contract documentation phase. These systems improve the accountability of all parties, provide a verifiable paper trail, and enable better collaboration among the project team.
What is the definition of Architectural Programming?
-an early part of the design process where you identify and organize the architectural, functional, aesthetic, operational, and budgetary needs of your client.
Name four ways programming information can be gathered?
- in person interviews
- visiting similar types of facilities
- direct observation of your client
- research of case studies of similar projects
What is the maximum slope allowed for a ramp?
1:12 (1’rise for every 12’ run)
1/12 x 100 = 8.3% slope
Name the 5 phases performed during programming?
- gather data
- establish goals
- map functions
- set priorities
- research requirements
Name 4 items that should be considered during programming?
- building function
- building form
- project budget
- project schedule
What should programming do if done correctly?
- clarify the owners intentions
- set a mutually agreed upon direction for design
What are the 4 different climatic zones in the United States?
- Cool (northern states)
- Temperate (west or east coasts)
- Arid (midwest and desert)
- Tropical (southern states near the gulf)
What are Riparian Rights?
- a system of rights and duties that determine the reasonable use, duties, and allocations of water to owners of waterfront property (includes bottomland, beach, and upland-but not the water itself).
Owners can use water adjacent to their property, but cant infringe upon the rights of others to use the water.
What priority to do you give stackable items or elements within your programing diagrams?
First or top priority.
-examples are bathrooms, fire stairs, chases, atriums, or escalators.
