T a s k 4: Vi l l a K ogelh o f Principles Of Architectural Structures
Mohammed Amir Amin Architecture Full-Time 2020 . Photograph by Karim Eich, March 23rd 2014
Villa Kogelhof / Paul de Ruiter Architects The Villa Kogelhof was designed by Paul De Ruiter architects in 2013 for client Ton Zwijnenburg. The project is located in Noord-Beveland, Netherlands and the total area of the structure is 715m2. The Villa Kogelhof cost 3.5 million dollars to make with a volume of 2400m3. The building aims to be self-sufficient, having generated its own energy and water. The way in which the build stood on the site was a direct contrast between the barren farmland and the highly advanced technological structure, which causes it to stand out amongst other cantilevered structures (Baumann, 2017). The architects aim for the Villa Kogelhof was to create a house that was a clean, transparent abstract form with no distracting elements. Therefore Paul De Ruiter went for a glass skin surrounding the structure above ground. Leading to the creation of a glass box that was energy neutral (Metz, 2014).
The structural system of the Villa Kogelhof is a concrete foundation and core which supports steel frames and main steel base as a “vierendeel truss”or open-frame girder, supported by vertical and horizontal elements and was manufactured by Maijer Staalbouw (Serooskerke). Other products used were Metal Panels manufactured by Kingspan Optimo, Metal/glass curtain walls manufactured by TG-THERMsun SKN165 Fassades, Thiele Glass,SI-X which created the exterior cladding of the structure. Roofing products used were manufactured by Kingspan Cooltherm who created the Built-up roofing and EPDM manufacturing Elastomeric used. The main entrance Steel support frame behind was manufactured by TG-THERMsun SKN165 glass. The concrete core contains glass panels around the staircase manufactured by TG-THERMsun SKN165 with coating on the inside layer and columns travelling from the basement to the first floor which are hidden within walls (Archello, 2020).
Sketches of Villa Kogelhof
Villa Kogelhof strucuture plans Scale 1:100
The basement floor contains an office, pantry, storage room, bathroom and garage, it spans 58 meters and has a wall height of 6 meters and is supported by deep pile foundations (Griffiths, 2013). The basement also serves as the main entrance for vehicles, it’s able to fit a capacity of 6 cars. In the centre, a stairway is found which can travel all the way to the first floor, serving as the base for the concrete core. Further along the basement on towards the northern side the office area has a window view along the canal on the site. The structure is made from concrete which makes up the retaining walls for the basement, with the exterior cladding of the walls in the parking garage, staircase and pool being made from precast concrete. This helps support the soil which surrounds it. Properties of concrete are grade: which refers to its compressive strength and exposure conditions. Reinforced concrete which is concrete covering steel bars which reinforce it, this is done so that the steel is not exposed to any outside chemicals which may in turn damage and rust the structure. Steel which rusts expands, this will affect the building by weakening the structural performance. Shrinkage: As concrete is poured it shrinks because of loss of moisture which causes a change in volume. These shrinkage causes cracks in the material which can affect its durability and appearance. Creep: refers to the solid material which over time due to the immense pressure of external loads and forces acting upon it, the solid will gradually deform. The Villa Kogelhof’s glass facade and non-load bearing partitions elements are subjected to load which they cannot support (Silver, P., McLean, William, & Evans, Peter. 2013).
Basement floor Scale 1:100
Adapted from Archdaily
Ground floor Scale 1:100
First floor Scale 1:100
The pile foundations are used in the basement of the Villa Kogelhof structure because of the site’s underlying geology and location, making it difficult for the concrete retaining walls to maintain their posture as the marshy farmland and the fact that the basement emerges from the ground to overlook onto a canal. The pile foundations would be very useful to help the weight and carry the load of soil that is used on the walls (The Concrete Society, 1966).
Drawing of Pile foundation & Concrete pad
Apex Connection
Moment Beam Connection
Scale 1:10
Scale 1:10
Adapted from civil-engineering-design.com
The ground floor consists of only an entrance space and a pond with a V-shaped aluminum beam. The V-shaped support is located 25 meters away from the core and supports the cantilevering structure. Likewise, itself is sat upon a concrete pad foundation fitted with pile foundations as well. The use of a pad foundation is done to support the beams which are spreading load to the ground, in which the pad acts as if it were an inverted cantilever carrying the soil pressure and supported by the column (The Concrete Society, 1966). The Concrete core has a height of 12 meters which includes the staircase leading to the first floor. The use of aluminum is beneficial to the design and shape of the Villa Kogelhof as aluminum beams are always straight, quick to assemble. They have a consistent cross-section, eliminating time and cost implications of other materials such as timber and are lighter and easy to handle (RMDwikiform, Australia). The pond has a concrete curb formed from the retaining walls underneath in the basement which surrounds it.
The vierendeel structure supports a glass facade that covers the majority of the building, this was done to provide users in the home an uninterrupted view and experience of nature (Villa Kogelhof / Paul de Ruiter Architects, 2013). The V shaped truss is supported by a concrete base and pile foundations which help distribute load and because of where the Villa Kogelhof is built the ground conditions of the site as the soil is unsuitable for a large structure to be placed upon (Designing Buildings Wiki, 2013). At the point where the beams meet, they are connected by a rigid joint. This helps prevent motion between members and allows for increased stability (McGraw-Hill, 2003). The shear core wall which includes the staircase is made from concrete and this helps cantilever the structure on the first floor acting as a stabilizer for the vierendeel trusses, starting from the basement to the first floor. Shear walls are used in design because of its ability to resist seismic forces such as winds and seismic loads, conventional shear walls were made from wood materials however in Villa Kogelhof the architects used steel and concrete because of benefits like exural stiffening, strengthening of compression elements, improved deformability, fire protection and easy repairs (Phadnis, Punashri & Kulkarni, D.K. & Kulkarni, A.B. & Karjinni, V.V. 2018).
Concrete-Steel Connection Detail
Concrete Shear Wall Detail
Scale 1:10
Scale 1:10
Adapted from constructiondetails.CYPE
Adapted from Journal of Constructional Steel Research
Vierendeel Trusses Connection Scale 1:10
Adapted from Archdaily
First floor plan Scale 1:100 Adapted from SteelConstruction.info
The first floor spans 56m and contains a patio, bedroom, bathroom, living area and a washroom. The structure of the building is a vierendeel truss made from steel, which means it has no internal diagonal elements and all connections are fixed moment connections. This means that it is less structurally efficient as opposed to standard trusses with diagonal members. However this allows for a clear path for services and users. Additionally, properties of steel identify yield strength as its grade, with higher strength steel being of higher carbon levels. The span of the structure is large thus enabling the structure to have fewer columns and larger grids because of it’s long distance span. Furthermore because of its steel frame grid, the Villa Kogelhof weighs less than if the whole structure was made from concrete, this means it carries less load onto the foundation (Davison, B., & Owens, Graham W. 2012). In the interior of the first floor, a grid of columns are hidden within walls which help support the roof structure. Both the floor and roof are made from concrete slabs which are held together by the vierendeel trusses as the beams move further along to help with support of the exterior facade. The climate glass facade is a separate structural component which is held together by mullions and comprises an outer layer of insulated glass with an inner layer of sunreflecting fabric (Stevens, 2013).
Scale 1:10
Beam-Column Connection Detail
Adapted from Journal of Constructional Steel Research
Adapted from Archdaily
The steel structure is made from vertical H beams and horizontal I beams, which are connected by welded joints (Journal of constructional steel research. 1988). The use of welded joints as opposed to others, was done because they are more economical as less labor and less material is required than if they used a riveted joint (Suryakanta, 2015).The use of steel itself doesn’t offer much fire protection, therefore additional measures such as painted coatings were used instead to provide for extra resistance. As the Villa Kogelhof has both steel and concrete construction, reinforced concrete serves as an excellent fire resistance. The concrete slab system used in the flooring of the first floor is connected to the vierendeel truss underneath which helps hold it up (Chudley, R., Greeno, Roger & Kovac, Karl, 2019). Slabs are used because they contain no downstand beams and provide a continuous flat soffit, this fit well with the design and concept that the architects of Villa Kogelhof wanted as downstand beams would have interrupted the peaceful and natural view of the surrounding farmlands which they were hoping to avoid. Moreover, these slabs are easy to integrate systems as there are no requirements to work around when adding pipes and ductwork. This is useful for when beginning construction for the Villa Kogelhof as the aim is for the Villa to be self sufficient and energy nurture would require many different systems and services to be put in place. Requiring simple detailing and frameworks, they are also easier to construct than other forms of concrete slabs such as a waffle structured slab. Although, additional checks would have been required to make sure vibration limits are achieved (Silver, P., McLean, William, & Evans, Peter. 2013).
Roof plan Scale 1:100
Forces acting on structure
Adapted from SteelConstruction.info
Mullion diagram
Adapted from Jonathan Ochshorn
The roof is covered with solar panels to generate power for the home featuring two skylights, one above the concrete core and another towards the western side of the cantilever. Structurally, it is held together by the vierendeel steel trusses open frame grider below which supports slabs as the base of the roofing which between the slab, glass panels, slab make up the main building construction of the first floor’s outer facade (Metz, 2014).
Sections Scale 1:100
Adapted from Archdaily
The forces which act upon the Villa Kogelhof like vertical loads being both live and dead considering both people moving around and furniture and lateral loads are resisted by the use of fixed connections in the steel frame. Fixed connections reduce the midspan bending moment and deflections of the steel beams significantly while compared to pinned connections (Silver, P., McLean, William, & Evans, Peter. 2013).
Model Scale 1:100
The Villa Kogelhof was an experimental piece of architecture created by Paul de ruiters architects as it challenged and explored sustainable design and structure in order to create a minimalist home that can experience nature. However, under it’s simple and sleek cuboid shape exterior, underneath holds a complex and challenging steel frame structure supported by concrete. Which was hard to achieve as the architect Paul De Ruiter himself said “took an hour to think up and six years to execute” (Metz, 2014) with various systems and services in place to achieve and create a self-sufficient and carbon neutral home for the client.
1. Archello, 2020 https://archello.com/project/villa-kogelhof-in-kamperland#story-4
Reference List:
2. Alyn Griffiths 3rd December 2013 https://www.dezeen.com/2013/12/03/ecological-house-with-a-glass-box-above-the-landscape-and-a-big-underground-garage-by-paul-deruiter-architects/ 3. Chudley, R., Greeno, Roger, author, & Kovac, Karl, author. 2019 Chudley and Greeno’s building construction handbook. (12th ed.). 4. Davison, B., & Owens, Graham W. 2012 Steel designers’ manual (7th ed.). Chichester [England] ; Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley-Blackwell. 5. Designing Buildings Wiki, 26th January 2013 https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Pile_foundations 6. Janette Baumann 17th November 2017 https://g-pulse.com/villa-kogelhof 7. Journal of constructional steel research. 1988 Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 9(1), I-Iv. 8. McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction, 2003 https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/rigid+joint 9. Phadnis, Punashri & Kulkarni, D.K. & Kulkarni, A.B. & Karjinni, V.V. 2018 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/326394530_Performance_of_composite_steel-concrete_shear_walls_with_encased_vertical_steel_sections 10. Philip Stevens, 3rd December 2013 https://www.designboom.com/architecture/paul-de-ruiter-elevates-carbon-neutral-villa-kogelhof-12-03-201/ 11. RMDwikiform, Australlia https://www.rmdkwikform.com https://rmdkwikform.com/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/2/Aluminium_Beams_8211_strong_but_light_to_handle_RMD_Australia_21088_hi.pdf 12. Silver, P., McLean, William, & Evans, Peter. 2013 Structural engineering for architects : A handbook. London: Laurence King Pub. 13. Suryakanta, 24th January 2015 https://civilblog.org/2015/01/24/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-welding-joints/ 14. Tracy Metz, 16th April 2014 https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/8820-villa-kogelhof