With the evolution of architectural form, the notion of the façade and its look undergoes changes as well. The paper discusses modern solutions applied in external curtain walls of buildings and presents new capabilities provided by new construction materials including double-skin façades. The paper presents buildings that achieved high energy efficiency due to, among other factors, adequate façade construction

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.

This paper characterizes the architecture of a new residential complex “On the green waterside boulevard”. It is located in the most prestigious district of the capital city on the left bank of the River Yesil near the Presidential Palace, a circular layout and the “Baiterek” tower. The complex expresses a new era, various tastes as well as different aesthetical and moral values. Therefore, it surprises and dazzles onlookers with its unusual artistic expression and the unexpected technological imagination of its authors. The latest building materials and the applied technologies emphasize the innovativeness of the adopted solutions.

This paper analyzes the development and application of new modern eco-friendly building materials. Owing to innovative architects, engineers found an unusual material: ETFE. It is often called a miracle constructional material characterized by sufficient strength, a special surface, self-cleaning, the ability to withstand sun exposure as well as heat-insulating properties.

In early times and until the 1970s most of the membrane structures built were meant to be temporary. This applies to early Roman shading systems, military, nomad and circus tents, as well as to Frei Otto’s early oeuvres. The global building sector as a whole, is of great importance with regard to a future sustainable use of our planet’s resources: Here, approx. 50% of all primary resources and 40% of all primary energy are used, and 30% of all green house gases are produced. Also, the sector is responsible for up to 40% of all solid waste1. This paper2 provides an overview on the complex aspects of environmental impacts of membrane materials and structures, and how to meassure them using life cycle assessment methodology. It briefly shows where this kind of information is used (e.g., for building assessment systems/rating schemes) and finally indicates the current status in the membrane sector.

The paper focuses on the necessity of using ventilation slots in plinth areas of buildings. The main purpose of these slots is to reduce the amount of the capillary rising of water. At the same time it is important to draw attention to the lack of knowledge in the area of basic physics among construction companies; building renovations conducted by them, not only of historical buildings, but also of new ones, lead to serious failures. The moist air discharge through the  cracks in the plinth areas presented in this article is one of the methods allowing for proper moisture reduction and for making renovations in damp underground parts of historic buildings. Additionally, this method allows to create a proper plinth area in the modern building industry.

School buildings in Gando, Burkina Faso, Africa have been designed by Diébédo Francis Kéré. The architect, who comes from this area, has been designing objects making the most of the available local material and local labour force. The simple architectural forms, clear function and technical solutions stay in perfect harmony with the issues of the climate prevailing there, as all the buildings were based on the idea of natural ventilation. Awarded numerous times, they are an example of sustainable architecture serving the local community.

The energy efficiency of a building has become a superior objective in the processes of design and construction. Rapid development of the wind power industry and the related technologies enables us to use wind systems in modern construction projects. The innovative nature of these solutions however, give rise to various cumbersome issues. They are mostly related to the structure of the building, its influence on the natural environment and interactions between the structure and the wind system on the use of the building. The solution often depends on interdisciplinary cooperation, which begins at the stage of design and construction of the wind turbines. This cooperation is also essential during the selection of wind power devices, designing the building and the construction process itself. As a result, increasingly efficient wind systems are implemented.

Kraków has become the second largest concentration of office businesses in Poland. The modern office building industry is rapidly developing here; by the end of 2012 the total office stock exceeded 600 000 m2. It is estimated that about 50 000 m2 of new offices are being constructed here each year, mostly by developers who specialize in the office market. As the needs of future tenants are unknown at the design and construction stage, office buildings are erected as unfinished and empty boxes. This allows developers to avoid bearing unnecessary risk and labour, and to ensure that the construction is completed, including structure, enclosure and vertical core, prior to the tenant’s finishing touches (furnishing and fittings). The basic challenge for architects in this field is the necessity to harmonize the conflicting needs of investment effectiveness with design flexibility.

This paper discusses an unconventional final resting place called a burial mound, built in Karniowice near Trzebinia. This is the first such structure in Poland and Europe which fulfils both sacral functions for celebrating masses and predominantly acts as a burial place of the dead. The aim of the construction was to limit the cemetery area, which constitutes a significant worldwide precursor in the field. The burial mound gives, in comparison with the traditional cemetery, a 30-fold saving of space and after special treatment that will mineralize bodies, as much as 100-fold: 1 600 burials in five ares of land. This unique structure can be a good future option to build cemeteries in cities where there is not enough space in the existing ones. Because of its uniqueness and prototype character, only the design basis has been presented, which in the construction phase was partially modified. The changes will be described in detail in Part 2.

Technical development, legal requirements, economic impulses and public awareness lead to increased demand for sustainable buildings. Constantly developing increasingly sophisticated technologies become more and more incomprehensible and unfamiliar to occupants and visitors. Exposing sustainable solutions attractively and presenting corresponding information about them directly in the buildings, will increase the knowledge of sustainability. As a result, acceptance will rise, occupants are inspired to proper use and encouraged to future sustainable constructions. Based on analyses of built examples and planning an innovative model building, new concepts and project recommendations for exhibiting sustainable solutions and techniques have been developed. They are compiled in a bilingual compendium “Educating Buildings”.

Projektowanie wielkoskalowych centrów i pawilonów targowych ma swoją własną specyfikę – „technologie” powiązań funkcjonalnych i uwarunkowania konstrukcyjne, związane ze znacznymi rozpiętościami stosowanych przekryć. Po latach, jakie minęły od pierwszych własnych doświadczeń projektowych w tej dziedzinie1, jest odpowiedni moment na refleksje nt. historii i perspektyw tej architektury. Ciekawym i pouczającym przedmiotem takiej analizy jest niewątpliwie Centrum Kongresowe w Lipsku, będące swoistą kontynuacją światowych tradycji targowych i historycznych przestrzeni handlowych tego miasta. Po 17 latach od rozpoczęcia użytkowania nowych hal targowych Lipska można dziś podjąć próbę oceny ich funkcjonowania i nowatorstwo zastosowanych rozwiązań konstrukcyjno-materiałowych. Porównanie tych budowli z architekturą innych pawilonów projektowanych na historyczne i współczesne wystawy światowe, wskazuje przewagę prostoty, konstrukcji i uniwersalności form, nad wybujałymi ambicjami twórców architektury „jednej wystawy”.

Historic building adaptation connected with changing its use often makes architects apply modern building technologies, including latest materials and furnishing. It should be emphasized that nowadays adaptation of a historic building and introducing a new function into it, is often the only way to save it. This new function frequently requires a high level of finishing and furnishing the building in such a manner that it would fulfill current regulations. Such an investment is the revalorization of the old high school dormitory in Nowy Targ which is under conservation protection because of its location, form and architectural details characteristic for that part of Poland.

New EPB Directive and standards based on this directive in the area of energy performance of buildings generate many changes in the building industry. In the article, the difference will be shown between “classical” and new methodology of design and specification of buildings with required energy performance, where automation systems and technical management use synergy of all technical systems to increase the energy efficiency of buildings.

Searching for harmony between a built and natural environment requires, quoting the demand of the National AIA Convention from 2011, “an innovative approach towards planning, designing and building as well as an evolutionary or revolutionary approach towards practice, cooperation and partnership”. It is possible by the Integrated Design Process (IDP) method, which involves clear specifying of: What (in the context of sustainable development), Who (in the context of team composition and cooperation between its members) and When (in the context of process stages completion) things should be done in the design process. The aim of the paper is to present: the method, basic principles of IDP implementation, co-operation in a team and crucial differences between IDP and the traditional design process, as well as an analysis of general rules to be observed by a design team.

The paper presents the results of the work which inherently makes use of the coherent approach to the process of designing single-family detached housing. In the process of architectural planning, the authors have considered the analysis of the location, environmental and landscape qualities, renewable energy installation as well as construction materials along with the technology of erecting single-family houses. The design concept presented in the paper is of interdisciplinary character and integrates the design parameters belonging to the following fields: technology, landscape architecture, bio-climatics and renewable energy.

While designing new structures in urban conservation areas, one should: respect the context of a place, the character of a building resulting from the urban analysis and a variety of existing urban and historical themes and details. One example of these issues is the newly established facility in Krakow at 4 Smolensk Street. It is the next stage of the expansion of the Holy Padre Pio’s Work Foundation and it will be open for public use. The building is located in a conservation area of the city. Processes: the design and realization of the investment were subordinated to the aforementioned criteria, but in a manner congruent with contemporary design and technological solutions.

Based on executions of contemporary designs in the field of landscape architecture, an attempt has been made in the following article to identify the properties of concrete which can help reduce energy consumption throughout the life cycle of a building and its immediate surroundings. The projects selected for the analysis included such urban public spaces as parks, squares, plazas and passageways, where the basic material, determining their aesthetic appeal, is concrete. To provide the widest possible range of issues discussed, construction works located in different climatic zones have been chosen. The properties of the material described in the text have been compiled with the exemplary executions of designs, depicting a creative approach to issues related not only to functionality and aesthetics but also to energy efficiency of the applied solutions.

This paper concerns technical and technological impacts on the process of the formation of industrial architecture. All the formational factors from the 18th to the 20th century – in the epoch of industrial architecture – are examined with special emphasis on technical and technological aspects. In the course of various historical periods, these factors changed their influence. Some of them had a dominating position while others – only a corrective status. In this way, the evolution of the impact of technical and technological factors is observed.

Modern facades, whether made of glass or including transparent, translucent or reflective elements, let through a particular light spectrum or change its intensity in many different ways. “Filtering facades” may change the image seen through them or change the colour of passing light according to specific circumstances: the angle of observation or temperature. These indicated properties of facades acting as “filters” were made possible due to
the great technological development observed in the last two to three decades, though the general characteristic of this phenomenon of optical filters had already been explored since the XVII century by Newton, and later on by Fresnel, Fraunhofer, Maxwell and Planck. Thanks to material engineering today it is possible to create unique glass facades with great functional properties, yet architects, engineers and artists do not stop at this point. The experiments undertaken in these fields explore transparency, reflection, refraction and diffusion and lead to fascinating effects that are worth examination.

One of the basic guidelines of modern architecture is designing buildings in line with the rules of sustainable development. Architecture and sustainable development refer to the process of planning, programme, design, construction and management of the building throughout the time of its existence as well as its demolition carried out with respect for the natural environment. A building designed in compliance with the guidelines of sustainable architecture is consistent with green principles and uses green solutions. Green solutions contribute to the picture of the building, which apart from proper choice of materials and technologies, its strict inclusion in the context of the place and shaping of the interior space, should also be highly aesthetic in its body. The article analyses the impact of particular green solutions on the aesthetics and the body of buildings.

The projects for the development of suburbs in large cities are technologically advancing. With new solutions to roofing, achieving better energy efficiency is prime. To quote; “the use of the ground twice” focuses on both economical and ecological dimensions, allowing the use of land in an effective manner, so as to invest future goals in environment and energy.

The proliferation of building management systems is limited only by the imagination of their developers as well as by technological progress, which allows for the remote control of all the available systems that aid us in making buildings more energy efficient, due to the fact that energy prices continually rise. The maximizing of a building’s energy efficiency has now become an inseparable component of their design. Due to the comparison of the two constituents of the sum of a building’s use of energy: that of the building itself and that of the user, an optimized energy efficiency scenario allows us to foresee the need for energy and its future costs. On the metropolitan scale, with tens of millions of structures, hundreds of millions of users and distances that greatly affect transportation costs, large amounts of energy are consumed. It is of great importance to pursue the development of intelligent systems that will be capable of minimizing energy use with intelligent building management systems, seemingly predestined for this role.

The idea of modernization and reconstruction of the buildings from the socialism epoque is undertaken in many works. Very often however, the subject divides public opinion. Many people are unaware of the architectural potential of those buildings, considering them mainly as evidence of the communistic system. Unfortunately, there is still no protection policy for the modern architectural heritage, which would include objects from the 50s to 80s of the 20th century (monuments
protection statute). The article presents the results of the research into the present state of the conservation of selected single family housing types from Polish socialism. The types of housing chosen for the research were realized with the Typical Single Family Residential Catalogue. Projects presented in the catalogue were included into a bank credit program. The types of credits were analyzed by the compliance of the final realization and the original project. The result of the research will attempt to establish the direction of a typical single-family building transformation over the last 20 years. The study will also aim to create the criteria for the evaluation process of modernization such as: technical condition of the building and media, the possibility of adapting a functional scheme to the changing social needs, new building regulations and economics.

The superposition of a facade in architecture in the early 21st century, is the merit of contemporary marketing mechanisms which function in architecture. The distinct relation between the exterior side of the building and the brand take effect in choosing advanced, already existing and available systems and architectural engineering, which are far from the classic process of project implementation. Investors often decide to make an effort in creating unique, innovative solutions of extreme technical and esthetic features in order to intensify the visual impression.

This article considers the current problems of modern tendencies in the formation of the architecture of new mosques in Kazakhstan. The boldest inclinations in the architectural designs of contemporary Islamic cultural buildings by Sh. Yusupov, T.S. Abilda, Zh.N. Sharapiyev and N.S. Tokayev are described. Pioneering trends are defined on the basis of the architectural image and a planning analysis.

The modern market of construction materials allows a more perfect execution of the external structure of buildings shortening simultaneously the time of their realization; however, the selection of technology is not indifferent to future users, independently of the function of buildings, the manner of their use, technological equipment and the amount of users. Microclimatic requirements aside, the technical reliability of building skins is one of most important issues. The uncontrolled penetration of water through the building skin or the existence of thermal bridges are the cause of the appearance of biological corrosion of building components as well as their equipment. Comparative tests of project solutions relating to analyses of damage in buildings, helps improve the situation and reduces the threats to which buildings and their users can be exposed.

The changes that are taking place in the airport passenger service technology allow for the increase of passenger traffic in terminal buildings. Novel technologies in identification, checkin and security control in passenger service areas impact the way architectural spaces are being shaped. This article describes an algorithm for analysing a terminal building space with respect to passenger service area standards, taking into account new technologies and through putchange assessment.

In the paper a process of designing and assembling complicated steel structure is described. The object is a glass roof over the railroad terminal. The object’s body makes it impossible to assemble elements of the structure on the building site just having a structural 2D drawing. It was essential to create visual animation illustrating the chronology, in what way the particular elements of the structure should be assembled to achieve the effect assumed by the architects. However, the architectonic form of the whole object was so interesting and valuable that it is worth to destine investment means and time to achieve the desired aim.

The beauty of modern architecture and especially its external image, is achieved by various means, but one can venture to say that real beauty is created only in accordance with the current state of technical knowledge. The author specifies elements which characterize contemporary facade solutions, namely: modern, ecological materials, energy-efficient systems of double glass facades, sun shading devices and multimedia technologies, creating desirable features of facades in the modern world, such as dynamics, movement and information transfer. The aesthetical impact of the elements listed above, as well as their utility functions and relationships with the creation of sustainable architecture, was traced on the example of the Museum of Modern Art Building in Bolzano. Remarks and conclusions contained in the paper are based on the research literature and the author’s own observations.

While analysing the available systems of glass curtain walls one can identify potential problems with their use as partitions with fire resistance. In most cases the metal support structure is made of aluminium. Due to its adhesive and separating interlayer made of plastic materials susceptible to the influence of temperature laminated glass, it does not work well in fire prevention. Manufacturers have products with the required parameters to use in fire partitions and qualified in terms of EI. Currently there are post and transom solutions available on the market which possess a certificate to use the whole system in EI60 fire rating. Internal spaces of posts and transoms in metal support structures are equipped with a filling: a reinforcement made of aluminium. Posts, transoms and thermal strips connecting the clamp strip with a support frame and faying surfaces integrating metal structure are subjected to special protection and safeguarding with thermo-expandable material. Additional protection allows for load-bearing parameters of up to one hour on the weakest link in the system. Producers of glass attest their products in classes from E15 to EI 180, so integrity and fire insulation lies within the aluminium support structure in the whole post and transom glass curtain wall system.The analysis of issues related to the use of glass curtain walls in residential buildings will determine the pattern of wall technology selection to the specific fire prevention requirements

Present day universities are modern buildings accommodating new functions, facilitating social interactions, supporting learning by means of informal contacts and promoting interdisciplinary cooperation etc.