B4: Week 5 Blog Post - Group B,Voznyak

My team decided to apply and further explore ways in which we can utilize Building Information Modeling techniques to further design, analyze, and present our senior design project to the owner, Terri Matthews, CEO Jaden’s Voice. In its nature, we are working on an extremely interesting and unusual project as we have helped the owner analyze various sites, find the right site, and are now in the process of actual design and communicating and managing "real-world" engineers and builders. We believe that the AJ Drexel Autism Institute (whom we presented the idea to already) and Drexel’s Center for Community Outreach will want to collaborate on the future of this building. Additionally, we in the process of arranging an environmental survey, site survey, subsurface exploration, and will be presenting to City Council Members and stakeholders on February 16!

 Besides simply using Revit to create a simple architectural three-dimensional drawing as the senior design team originally planned, we plan to search for other ways in which we can employ this software to incorporate scheduling, structure, and MEP. As well we hope to explore, learn, and find use in other various interoperable software such as: Simulation, Green Building Studio, Ecotect Analysis, Rendering in A360, 3Ds Max, Navisworks Simulate, Seek, Buzzsaw and Showcase.

 The objective of this senior design project is to “design, develop, and renovate an existing building in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to serve as an educational, social center, and living facility for children and adults with autism and their families”. Our project scope is to create a community center on a series of occupied and vacant sites located at the intersection of North Union Street and Haverford Avenue. The Jaden’s Voice Autism Community Center aims to bring “ASD awareness to the public, provide a space for play and social interaction, provide a temporary 6-10 family shelter, establish affordable and quick medical/psychological/physical therapy diagnostic clinical services to children with ASD, and provide a space for emotional support/educational classes to parents who have children with ASD. The building will also adhere and comply with ADA building codes”.

Our final deliverables for AE510 will aim to include an energy usage model, structural analysis, preliminary Architectural, Civil, and MEP design drawings, total construction cost, a project schedule, and hopefully a 4D video of the construction progress.

Figure 1: Preliminary Rendering of the ASD Community Center