Traditional Building Techniques Research Articles

The Role and Impact of Traditional Building Techniques in The Sustainable Economy

The Role and Impact of Traditional Building Techniques in The Sustainable Economy

An integrated digital design and construction approach for falsework-minimal masonry vaults

Masonry vaults, mechanically efficient structures, are challenging to build because they require significant tailored falsework as temporary structures for centering, guidework, and scaffolding, which decreases construction productivity and increases financial cost and environmental impact. Traditional building techniques combined with recent digital technologies can eliminate such temporary construction. An integrated digital design and construction approach that leverages the benefits of four construction strategies (namely, thin-tile vaulting, loxodrome tessellation, augmented reality, and prefabricated spine) within a 4D funicular design framework is presented in this paper and illustrated by a large-scale demonstrator, innixAR. This structure demonstrates that the combination of the vernacular craft of thin-tile vaulting with augmented reality technology to produce a digital guidework, informing a 4D funicular design process that considers the entire construction sequence from a prefabricated spine, minimizes the required falsework, making the construction of masonry vaults more efficient and affordable. This approach is benchmarked against alternative conventional vault falsework. Combining thin-tile vaulting and prefabricated spine allowed a reduction of 82% of the falsework mass, making transport lighter. Whereas combining digital guidework and prefabricated spine allowed a reduction of 91% of the falsework elements, making assembly faster. This research contributes to the development of structures that are efficient both mechanically and constructionally.

Life Cycle Assessment Comparison between an Earthbag Building and a Conventional Sahrawi Cement Blocks Building.

Growing environmental awareness has prompted a resurgence in traditional building techniques that rely on natural or recycled materials since many believe that structures made from these resources are ecologically friendly. Using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for construction materials offers valuable insights into the impacts produced during their production and construction processes. This study aims to assess the environmental impacts of two different constructions-an Earthbag Building (EB) and a conventional Sahrawi Cement Blocks Building (CBB). It also determines whether it is more environmentally beneficial to construct traditionally, utilizing local materials and aligning with the principles of the circular economy, which is one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Europe. This study specifically examines a cradle-to-gate LCA, using the software Simapro v. 9.4.0.1. Results show that in 21 out of the 22 impact categories analyzed, the CBB performs worse, in some cases presenting an impact of 70% higher than the EB. The highest impact is obtained for fine particulate matter formation and Global Warming related to Human Health categories, whilst impact categories related to water consumption and eutrophication obtained an impact of less than 0.001 for both constructions.

Earthquakes, sustainable settlements and traditional construction techniques

Urbanization is increasing all around the world due to population growth and big cities receive a high volume of migrants due to economic and social reasons. However, rapid population growth should be prevented in big cities in order to provide comfortable living conditions to the population. When urban planning practices do not catch the speed of urbanization; the tendency towards vertical architecture increases, the amount of green space decreases and problems related to unplanned urbanization come to the fore. These important problems, which have considerably increased recently in Türkiye, may lead greater problems in many respects. The parallel and self-sufficient development of urban and rural areas, which is defined as urban sustainability, is considered as the best-case scenario in urban planning practices. This aim is adopted nowadays by most of the countries in the world as it prevents rapid population growth in cities and depopulation in rural areas. Decisions which are taken to ensure urban sustainability are important for all countries. However, these decisions become even more important in regions with disaster risk. As the majority of Türkiye’s land area is under seismic risk, the problems which may arise due to rapid urbanization during an earthquake should be prevented. The damage and losses which could occur during an earthquake and the security, health, education problems which will arise after the earthquake can be solved by preventing dense housing and uncontrolled migration in urban areas. The connection between urban and rural areas should be strengthened. Besides, the social and economic sustainability of the rural area should be ensured. Settlements should be designed away from fault lines with a holistic approach as “living spaces” which consist components such as; transportation, infrastructure, green spaces and educational spaces. Additionally; the use of appropriate construction techniques and materials should be accepted as a priority. In this context, it can be mentioned that traditional building techniques, which have been developed over centuries and whose deficiencies have been improved during this period, should be preferred especially in rural areas. In this study, the criteria that gain importance in the construction of earthquake resistant and sustainable settlements are evaluated on Türkiye case. The precautions which should be taken to ensure rural sustainability and to prevent the depopulation of rural areas are emphasized. Within this scope, the importance of protecting the architectural texture and regenerating traditional building culture was discussed in constructing earthquake resistant settlements.

An innovative method for buildability assessment of 3d printed concrete at early-ages

The field of construction is experiencing a swift advancement in the method of 3D concrete printing (3DCP), which presents numerous advantages over traditional building techniques. Nevertheless, there remain various uncertainties surrounding the implementation of 3DCP in production, particularly with regards to the buildability of a printed structure and the maximum height it can reach before failure or collapse. The aim of this research is to ascertain the load-bearing capacity of a printed structure, in order to predict the maximum attainable height of the printed concrete, while ensuring there are no occurrences of structural failure or collapse. Therefore, an innovative experimental method was put forward to gauge the load bearing capacity of printed concrete in its early stages. During the initial stages of development, experiments were carried out to assess the load-bearing capacity and maximum printing height of the structure. Subsequently, time-dependent properties were investigated through experimental methods with the aim of incorporating them into simulation modeling in a later phase. Afterward, the buildability standard using the Drucker-Prager (DP) plasticity model was established, and its precision was confirmed by experimental and computational evaluations. The employed model displayed adequate effectiveness in precisely depicting the mechanical attributes of material properties as they progressed with time. Furthermore, the simulation model exhibited sufficient proficiency in predicting the early-stage load bearing capacity of printed concrete. In order to improve the future simulation modeling of 3D printed concrete (3DPC), suggestions have been put forward. These proposals entail the inclusion of advanced modeling parameters as inputs, aimed at enhancing the precision and efficacy of the model.

Fjäll, o le altre Alpi: costruire nelle montagne del Nord

Contemporary Nordic architecture is shaped by its relationships with the global architectural practice and its material and cultural ties to the regional context. This essay investigates the specificities of mountain and rural architecture in the Nordic countries over the last two decades, with case studies from Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. Due to their proximity to the Arctic Circle, the living conditions in these territories are very close to those in the Alpine regions, despite the lower elevation. The essay analyses several factors that are currently at play when it comes to the architectural practice in the North: the relationship between landscape and tourism, the reuse of 20th century rural heritage, the resilience of traditional building techniques, and the clashes between local territories, extractive policies, and colonial power.

The construction of the modern factory. The introduction of prefabrication in Terra di Lavoro

This paper focuses on the investigation and understanding of the industrial heritage designed and built in Campania region, between Naples and Caserta, by the most important Italian architects and engineers in the post-war season. The principal aim of this paper is to present the rich and heterogeneous catalogue of factories designed in these years through unpublished drawings and photos from the building sites.
 These examples show a notion of modularity that brings interesting innovations in terms of on-site prefabrication of modular components and construction systems. The construction of these factories is therefore in contrast with Italy’s traditional building techniques based on craft approach and intense use of labour. The project of these factories is the outcome of the effort of famous architects and engineers, such as Lugi Figini e Gino Pollini, Angelo Mangiarotti, Marco Zanuso, Eduardo Vittoria, and Gigi Ghò, who experimented new structural solutions based on the orderly and coherent composition of prefabricated elements. This research stems from the revitalised interest in studies of prefabrication in Italy between the 50's to the 70's of the last century, and about the innovative aesthetic outcomes developed from it. In addition, this paper contributes to evaluate the qualitative connections between construction, geography and labour, assessing the friction between the advanced products and knowledge imported from the North and the agricultural vocation of these regions. The paper will also put in relation the development of prefabrication systems in the less-developed South of Italy in the wider context of the great industrialization boosted by political decisions and state financial helps of “Cassa del Mezzogiorno”.

The construction of the modern factory. The introduction of prefabrication in Terra di Lavoro

This paper focuses on the investigation and understanding of the industrial heritage designed and built in Campania region, between Naples and Caserta, by the most important Italian architects and engineers in the post-war season. The principal aim of this paper is to present the rich and heterogeneous catalogue of factories designed in these years through unpublished drawings and photos from the building sites.
 These examples show a notion of modularity that brings interesting innovations in terms of on-site prefabrication of modular components and construction systems. The construction of these factories is therefore in contrast with Italy’s traditional building techniques based on craft approach and intense use of labour. The project of these factories is the outcome of the effort of famous architects and engineers, such as Lugi Figini e Gino Pollini, Angelo Mangiarotti, Marco Zanuso, Eduardo Vittoria, and Gigi Ghò, who experimented new structural solutions based on the orderly and coherent composition of prefabricated elements. This research stems from the revitalised interest in studies of prefabrication in Italy between the 50's to the 70's of the last century, and about the innovative aesthetic outcomes developed from it. In addition, this paper contributes to evaluate the qualitative connections between construction, geography and labour, assessing the friction between the advanced products and knowledge imported from the North and the agricultural vocation of these regions. The paper will also put in relation the development of prefabrication systems in the less-developed South of Italy in the wider context of the great industrialization boosted by political decisions and state financial helps of “Cassa del Mezzogiorno”.

An Integrated Framework for Preservation of Hawaii Indigenous Culture: Learning from Vernacular Knowledge

Vernacular architecture represents the traditional architecture that developed over time within a particular culture or region that embodied indigenous knowledge. These buildings provide an invaluable cultural heritage, and learning from them is an important way to preserve indigenous culture. However, the negative view commonly held about indigenous knowledge in architectural theory and historical research that developed during the colonial era has not begun to change; the indigenous knowledge embedded in vernacular architecture has been ignored. This article discusses a proposed framework in which we can learn from vernacular architecture to preserve indigenous culture, including studying traditional building techniques, incorporating traditional materials and designs, adapting traditional designs to contemporary needs, involving local communities, and encouraging sustainable building practices. This proposed framework is applied to learning from Native Hawaiian architecture as a way to demonstrate its practicality and necessity. By studying the designs, materials, and techniques used in vernacular buildings, we can gain a deeper understanding of the cultural, environmental, and social contexts in which they were created.

An experimental study for sustaining the architectural heritage value of traditional houses of Bursa

Bursa, the first capital of the Ottoman Empire, is one of the rare historical cities that has survived to the present day without losing its importance. As well as monumental structures such as mosques and Sultan complexes, traditional Bursa houses are also components of architectural heritage that reflect the identity of the city. The traditional building materials of these houses are wood, stone, brick and earth. Today, these materials are known as ecological building materials and their use is very important to ensure sustainability. Especially the application of traditional building techniques based on the use of these materials in restoration works is of great importance in terms of ensuring sustainability not only from an ecological point of view, but also from economic and cultural points of view. In this context, earthen building material consisting of natural raw materials and created by human hands are seen as ecological and renewable building materials. In different parts of the world, many civilizations have used earthen building materials with different usage techniques in the past. This material has not lost its importance to this day. In this study, the earthen building materials used in traditional Bursa houses are examined and their role in sustainable architecture is pointed out. For this purpose, a case study was conducted on traditional Bursa houses in three different historic neighborhoods; Hisar, Tuzpazari and Reyhan regions. Representative earthen building materials were taken from 22 traditional houses and listed with their qualities for experimental studies. Characterization tests were carried out on the samples taken from these houses. The results of the experiments have been used to develop some recommendations for the successful implementation of restorations that will help to carry out sustainable heritage conservation work in Bursa.

Historic timber roofs, a knowledge-based approach to strengthening: the case study of a Renaissance palace in Ferrara

Knowledge is essential to preserve timber roof structures for their historical and architectural value, since it allows to fully understand their cultural significance and actual structural behavior, thus planning specific strengthening interventions. This paper presents the case study of Palazzo Costabili in Ferrara, Italy, to propose a method to plan architectural strengthening intervention on historical timber roof structures based on a detailed knowledge of the structures’ features and state. The palace object of this study is characterized by historical timber structures, an expression of traditional local building techniques, which were partially damaged in the 2012 earthquake. Therefore, an in-depth and careful study of the structure was carried out to identify specific parts that needed to be reinforced. A strengthening of the roof structure was thus designed considering the performances of the timber components and their historical-cultural value. More specifically, the timber roof was first assessed to identify the main wood species, the constructive types, and their related vulnerabilities. At the same time, the parts that showed consistent signs of structural stress were later evaluated by specialists using visual and instrumental analysis. Finally, data collected were critically analyzed to better plan the strengthening intervention, considering both the stress state of the single components and their specific weaknesses, in full compliance with preservation criteria and needs.

Sustainable Promotion of Traditional Rural Buildings as Built Heritage Attractions: A Heritage Interpretation Methodology Applied in South Italy

The study describes the methodology implemented to include a rural cultural heritage attraction within an existing tourist route, i.e., the Sicilian Roads of Wine (“Strade del vino”). The aim was to promote a traditional rural building (TRB) as a tourist attraction and diversify rural tourism offerings. By promoting TRB and wine and food, the rural tourism sector offers a significant opportunity to achieve sustainable socio-economic development in rural areas, rural diversification, and landscape preservation. The inclusion of the TRB within the visitor route is based on a detailed heritage analysis approach as an operative process which could enable the comprehension and collective use of the cultural sites. The valorization of a traditional rural building with wine cellars and oil mills, located within the Chiaramonte Gulfi (RG) boundary, will be described. The objective is to make an architectural heritage building made with local materials and following the traditional Sicilian building techniques accessible to tourists. Special attention is paid to restore the building by respecting its identity and relevant building regulations and focusing on a complete, sustainable approach regarding social, environmental, and economic factors.

Adobe Constructions in Albania: Future Application of Earth as A Conventional Construction Material

In primitive societies, houses were built using local materials. In Albania, the highlands often used stone whereas the lowlands and valleys, particularly those close to the coast, were more likely to employ adobe and bricks. In the coastal plain, due to the shortage of stone sources and the ease of accessing mud material nearby, mud bricks were largely used both for urban and rural buildings. Most of the earth architecture in Albania dates back to the Ottoman era. Other structures made of mud bricks were built up to the early 1990s. The majority of them have been demolished, abandoned, and fallen into ruin. Nowadays, traditional adobe building techniques are vanishing, because they are no longer used in modern constructions. Examining the theoretical foundations and structural components of Albania's traditional earthen architecture is the main goal of this study. The classification of earth architecture techniques used in various traditional building typologies is achieved by examining the spatial distribution of housing typologies, the structural components, and construction systems in different geographical locations. This study reports an assessment that is based on extensive in-situ research, including field survey, archival research, comprehensive pictures, recording of various adobe building types in Albania, and a literature review. Based on the collected data and critical assessments, this study intends to offer and document various earthen building typologies in Albania according to their spatial distribution in the plan, volume, construction methods, and material combinations. This knowledge may be subsequently utilized as vital information for new vernacular buildings or temporary structures. It aims to provide specific architectural principles and technical criteria for the use of earth in new structures or restoration of existing historical buildings. This study serves as a starting point for further research with the aim of producing an easy-to-follow guide with plans for earthen buildings, from little dwellings to larger ones, by employing several case studies across Albania. Due to the historical, social, and cultural significance of adobe architecture in Albania as well as its advantages in terms of the economy and environment, revitalizing, restoring, and preserving adobe architecture by improving its construction conditions can be an added value for sustainable future development.

Natural Building Materials and Social Representations in Informal Settlements: How Perceptions of Bamboo Interfere with Sustainable, Affordable, and Quality Housing

Building with natural materials has proven to be a sustainable approach in addressing the needs of affordable and healthy housing and improving living conditions in informal settlements in an era of ecological transition. In view of this, the use of bamboo as a building material is considered a promising practice. However, although many traditional building techniques incorporate the use of bamboo, its application in contemporary informal settlements is disputed. This interdisciplinary study critically explores the social and cultural factors limiting the use of bamboo in a contemporary context by investigating housing perceptions and practices in an informal settlement in Colombia. Results show how the combined effect of cultural globalization, modernization, and the standardization of construction practices have marginalized and are now devaluing traditional knowledge on natural local building materials. Structured observations and in-depth interviews reveal that inhabitants’ refusal of the local bamboo building tradition, their representation of bamboo as an unsafe and temporary material, and their choices of less sustainable contemporary building materials, are better understood by situating these preferences within the complex system of the community’s imaginary. These social representations validate housing behaviors for their symbolic implications rather than for their actual consequences on livability, comfort, and overall dwelling quality. The study also discusses the limits of policies promoting natural building materials in housing when exclusively focusing on technical performance, while neglecting the prevailing impact of the cultural domain on housing preferences and behaviors.

Seismic behaviour of rubble masonry: Shake table test and numerical modelling

AbstractThe destruction of Amatrice and the surrounding villages in Central Italy after the 2016 seismic sequence was so impressive that engineers, authorities and local communities started sharing the common feeling that historical stone masonry buildings were too below current safety standards. The severe damage caused by the earthquakes led to a general distrust of traditional building techniques, leading to the conclusion that there is nothing to do but demolish and rebuild, perhaps with a false antique. Is there an alternative? Is there a way to combine safety and preservation of architectural heritage? This paper aims contributing to the understanding of the seismic behaviour of stone masonry by reproducing, through simulation on a shake table, the progressive loss of compactness of a real scale rubble masonry wall up to the ruinous collapse with the separation between the two external leaves. The laboratory simulation allowed to evaluate the decrease of the fundamental frequency with increasing damage and estimate the maximum displacement profile and the amount of cracking that the wall is able to sustain before failing. Eventually, two modelling strategies based on finite and discrete element methods were proposed and applied to verify the capability of simulating the out‐of‐plane seismic response and the failure mechanisms of rubble masonry.

Elemente de arhitectură tradițională într-un fond documentar inedit: răspunsurile la Chestionarul II Casa al Muzeului Limbii Române

"Elements of Traditional Architecture in a Unique Documentary Fund: The Replies to The Romanian Language Museum’s 2nd Questionnaire. The House. The present paper’s aim is to demonstrate the scientific importance of the traditional architecture elements preserved in the documentary fund created during the inter-war period at the Romanian Language Museum; the fund is the result of the indirect linguistic survey led by Sextil Pușcariu. The survey included eight thematic questionnaires, the second of which – called The House – recorded the entire vocabulary and knowledge about the culture of building and housing. As the most complex, the 2nd Questionnaire. The House had 489 questions, from the general ones regarding social aspects of housing, to the most detailed ones about the choosing of the site and a minute description of each of the building stages and techniques used by the community. Tributary to „Wörter und Sachen” („Words and Things”) German methodology at the beginning of the 20th century, which claimed that the study of words – to establish their etymology and history – should be done in close connection to the study of artefacts and their cultural lives, Sextil Pușcariu encouraged the correspondents to the Museum’s surveys to illustrate their replies, offering, thus not only linguistic information, but also drawings, no matter how primitive. The 439 replies to the 2nd Questionnaire. The House coming from all the Romania’s regions after Great Union gathered graphical representations of the housing which were and are at the same time ethnographical proof from the beginning of the 20th century, unique through their genuine expressiveness. Thus, the manuscripts include over 2500 graphical representations among which numerous well-done drawings illustrating the most spread house type in the village, but also gates or wells. At the same time, certain drawings minutely show techniques of vernacular construction, systems used for the closing of doors and windows, or whole traditional households with all their elements, from the main buildings to the outbuildings, fences, gates, fountains, fodder storehouses or livestock. This paper demonstrates these unique documents’ importance to the understanding of the housing universe and rural architecture during the inter-war period, emphasizing their value as a useful resource for the contemporary specialists from various domains, from linguists – for whom the documentary fund was created – to anthropologists and ethnographers, but also to specialists from landscape architecture, creative industry or engineering focused on the knowledge of traditional building techniques. Keywords: living culture; traditional architecture; Romanian Language Museum; linguistic inquiry. "

Mechanical Characterization And Water Resistance Of Raw Earth Materials Made According To Malagasy Traditional Technique

This study aims to contribute to a more responsible world, by stimulating the applications of natural building materials and the enhancement of the prestige of the Malagasy traditional building technique, more respectful of the environment. To this end, preliminary investigations were carried out to formulate the tested samples and to study the preparation processes of the earthen pastes. Three different lateritic soils were studied and stabilized with cow dung and rice straw. The results show that the soils used are rich in SiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 and Fe 2 O 3 . Introducing cow dung and rice straw with fermentation improves sample characteristics. Consequently, the sample density increases from 1728 to 1913 Kg/m 3 . It also increases the dry and wet compressive strengths of our samples. From the 2nd week of the paste maturation time, the dry compressive strength increases from 0.64 MPa to 1.2 MPa and at the 24th week, it is 9 times higher than that of the beginning of the tests (5.4 to 6.5 MPa). Regarding water resistance, the results show that from the 4th week of the maturation time, the samples withstand more than 24 hours of immersion in water and this resistance increases until the 24th week, becoming comparable to that of the Malagasy ancestral walls aged more than 100 years, which is equivalent to 7 days.

Indoor Thermal Comfort Analysis: A Case Study of Modern and Traditional Buildings in Hot-Arid Climatic Region of Ethiopia

Indoor thermal comfort is an essential aspect of sustainable architecture and it is critical in maintaining a safe indoor environment. Expectations, acceptability, and preferences of traditional and modern buildings are different in terms of thermal comfort. This study, therefore, attempts to evaluate the indoor thermal comforts of modern and traditional buildings and identify the contributing factors that impede or facilitate indoor thermal comfort in Semera city, Ethiopia. This study employed subjective and objective measurements. The subjective measurement is based on the ASHRAE seven-point thermal sensation scale. An adaptive comfort model was employed according to the ASHRAE standard to evaluate indoor thermal comfort. The results revealed that with regards to thermal sensational votes between −1 and +1, 88% of the respondents are satisfied with the indoor environment in traditional houses, while in modern houses this figure is 22%. Likewise, 83% of occupants in traditional houses expressed a preference for their homes to remain the same or be only slightly cooler or warmer. Traditional houses were, on average, in compliance with the 80% acceptability band of the adaptive comfort standard. The study investigated that traditional building techniques and materials, in combination with consideration of microclimate, were found to play a significant role in regulating the indoor environment.

Evaluation of Reinforced Adobe Techniques for Sustainable Reconstruction in Andean Seismic Zones

This research presents a methodological process for selecting the most appropriate construction technique for the reconstruction of housing after a seismic disaster in a rural and heritage context. This process, which is applicable to a large part of the Andean region, incorporates sustainability criteria to guarantee the economic, social and environmental balance of the intervention. The methodology was developed on a case study: the Colca Valley in Arequipa, Peru. In 2016 an earthquake affected this zone, where traditional unreinforced earthen buildings suffered serious damage. The objective of this research focuses on comparing six traditional building techniques strongly related to self-building: four techniques for adobe housing—reinforced with cane (CRA), wire mesh (WMRA), geogrid (GRA) and halyard ropes (HRRA)—and two techniques for masonry buildings— confined (CM) and reinforced (RM). For this purpose the authors used the Integrated Value Model for Sustainable Assessment (MIVES), a Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) model used to compare alternatives by assigning a “sustainability index” to each evaluated construction technique. This research study includes two types of variables: quantitative, such as economy ($/m2) and environmental impact (kgCO2/m2), among others, and qualitative, such as perception of safety, respect for the urban image and popular knowledge. The research results show that reinforced adobe techniques are a viable and competitive option, highlighting the cane reinforced adobe technique (CRA), with a value of 0.714 in relation to industrialized materials such as masonry. This technique has the same safety characteristics, but at almost half the price, with the additional advantage of using traditional materials and construction methods, having less environmental impact and showing better thermal performance in cold climates.

Return to the Native Earth: Historical Analysis of Foreign Influences on Traditional Architecture in Burkina Faso

Learning from the sustainability of traditional architecture, as a solution to the current ecological crisis, seems more challenging in societies where a cultural imposition has occurred. In Burkina Faso, vernacular architecture has experienced a process of transformation, still in course, relying heavily on foreign resources and losing its adaptation to environmental conditions. As in other contexts, the dynamics of transformation are being examined. Joining this line of work, this research aims to explain the causes of the current local perception of traditional building techniques in Burkina Faso in order to consider how a sustainable development of its architecture would be possible. To this end, a historical analysis is conducted by reviewing the literature, consulting historical documents and collecting data during two stays in 2018. The study shows how earth has ceased to be appreciated by progressively becoming associated with “non-definitive constructions”; this perception is due to the narratives put forward by foreign agents since the end of the 19th century. The sustainable development of architecture in Burkina Faso seems to demand a return to the use of earth, local resource par excellence, but this will only be possible if the devaluation of this building material is reversed.