Wacław Celadyn

Buildings maintain their original shape for some time after their completion. Thereafter, they begin to deteriorate gradually. Their technical and aesthetical longevity is diverse and depends on many acting factors. First of all, the rules of building art should be obeyed while designing and constructing as well as the selection of adequate building materials is necessary. A very important factor, which determines their durability, is the local climate. The most adverse climatic conditions for buildings are in the coastal localities. One can perceive there best the impact of particular climatic factors on accelerated deterioration of building structures, as opposed to other more advantageous geographical situations. The paper presents the results of observations in situ and the analysis of technical and aesthetical condition of selected buildings in some cities in the Netherlands and Spain, with the aim of elucidating the reasons of their aesthetical and technical deterioration.

Life expectancy in architecture and construction is defined in different ways. Technical durability, which is crucial for the existence and usability of buildings, seems to be the most important of them. Designers and investors’ attitude towards this problem is inconsistent. The paradigm of sustainable architecture brought a different approach to this issue and made it more significant both in professional discussion and practice. The durability of buildings with its relation to embodied energy in technologies and materials has become an important feature of architecture and brought substantial modification to the designing process. This paper presents different approaches to the problem in some countries as well as ambiguities and inconsistencies in pertinent views.

Niniejszy artykuł prezentuje wybór dobrych praktyk dotyczących współpracy środowiska architektów z władzami samorządowymi oraz uczelniami wyższymi. Wyselekcjonowane przykłady prezentują rozwiązania wymagające popularyzacji w celu zbudowania atrakcyjnego rynku dla inwestycji prezentujących najwyższe walory jakościowe czy estetyczne w oparciu o publiczne inwestycje w sektorze budowlanym. Środowisko architektów jest grupą najmocniej zaangażowaną w misję tworzenia wysokiej klasy architektury, odpowiadającej najnowszym trendom.