Design Thesis

Desktop study

Sendai mediatheque

K.Giridhar
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SENDAI MEDIATHEQUE

Sendai mediatheque is a center for activities in the fields of art and film,srving as a
public facility to help people freely exchange information with each others through
various media .
The sendai mediatheque was in the very first planning stages, conceived as an
amalgam of different programs.
•A new building for the sendai civic gallery
•A replacement for sendai public library

The aim of the project is to build:

-An ‘intelligent environment’ equipped with information technologies to meet the
demands of the times
-Network sharing capable services to replace static in building services.

Basic Data:

Architect : Toyo Ito

Location : sendai city, japan
Site area : 3,948.72sq.m
Built -up area: 2,933.12sq.m
Height of the building : 36.49m
-2 floors below ground+ 7 floors above
ground+roof top
Structure : steel with R.C.C construction
Construction duration : 1997-2000
Construction cost : 13 millions

Sendai mediatheque complex includes:

•Mediatheque
•Library
•Art gallery
•Information service center and
•Visual image media center
the primary effort was on demolishing the archetypal ideas of an art
museum or library to construct a new idea of architecture called
"Mediatheque" utilizing the state-of-the-art. The proposal has
always been prototypic and conceptual rather than formalistic from
the very beginning. It consists of three elements:
PLATE
TUBE
SKIN

PLATES: plates means six square slabs, which he attempted

diagrammatically express different modes of communication
between people and things that may vary depending on the media
used.
TUBES: tubes are 13 tree-like elements that vertically penetrate the
plates to organize and integrate the latter.
They are the flexible structural members acting also as the vertical
traffic line and as the space here engines ( light, air, water, sound
etc) and information flow. presence of the tubes creates
movements of natural elements and of electrons in the
homogeneous spaces defined by the plates.
SKIN: by skin, he means the elements that separate the inside of the
building from the outside. particularly refers to the skin that
surrounds the machine spaces located at the top and the bottom of
the building and the double-skinned façade facing the main street.
SERVICES OFFERED[ BARRIER-FREE ]

visually impaired persons 

Textured floor block
 Voice guide system
Tactile models
Recorded books

auditory-impaired persons
Public fax machine
Magnetic loop
Body sonic chairs
Flash lamps

STRUCTURAL SYSTEM: The building is composed of 13 independent steel-ribbed shafts

(tubular columns: mainly steel tube truss construction) and 7 steel-ribbed slabs .giving
each floor a different floor plan that define building.
Steel honeycomb slab structure (400mm depth: 1.000m grid span) and lightweight
concrete(170mm thick) are combined to make a steel sandwich panel (50mx50m). Use of
thick-walled pipes as single-layer truss structure realizes a highly transparent and tough
main structure .while assuring structural integrity and rigidity.

CLIMATIZATION SYSTEM: The double-skinned facade on the south facing the main street
breathes like the human skin. During summer, the upper and lower opening mechanisms
are released to generate ascending air current inside the double-skinned wall to cool the
wall surface temperature to thereby reduce the need for forced air conditioning. During
winter, the opening mechanisms are closed so that the double-skinned wall can function
as a highly insulating layer of air. Thus reducing the heating needs. These mechanical
technologies are combined and integrated at different levels to make the building as a
functional structure.
LIGHT WELLS, DUCTS, VERTICAL MOBILITY:
The system may be compared to the biological activities of a tree. The tubular column
structures serve as light wells, with rooftop devices to reflect sunlight down the tubes into
the building. Also as connector "pipelines for network cables, wiring, elevators and
stairways.
Natural light is effectively taken into the building by means of an optical mechanism, light
is diffused into the inside spaces on each of the floor by means of prisms and lenses (light
outlet). Artificial lighting means are also arranged inside the tube.
Each orientation is treated differently, to deal with the conditions of light throughout
the day. The south façade is composed of a double glass skin that acts as both
acoustic barriers to the busy street, and as protection against excess solar gain during
the day.
On the west façade , a large braise soleil (sun breaker) is implemented that reduces
the impact of the direct afternoon sun.

DESCRIPTION OF ALL FLOORS:

BASEMENT 2ND FLOOR:
This is an area to store various equipment and supplies for sendai mediatheque,
such as book conservation stacks, a repository, exhibition equipment and a machine
room.
Surface area: 3,017.46 sq.m
BASEMENT 1ST FLOOR: The basement of sendai mediatheque is divided into three
areas. They are the management section on the north side, a pay parking lot in the
middle and an area on the south for preparing workshops.
Surface area: 1,017.40 sq.m
GROUND FLOOR:
area: 2399.13 sq.m
-Entry
-Open square
-Administration office
-Cafeteria and book shop
-Way to parking
Ground floor: Cafe, shop,
information desk, “open square” multi-
purpose event venue
First floor: Multimedia library,
children’s library, inquiries for sight and
hearing impaired, meeting room,
current newspapers and magazines
Second and third floors: Reference library,
lending library, reading room .
Fourth floor: exhibition gallery for the citizens of sendai.
Fifth floor: Exhibition gallery displaying plastic arts.
Sixth floor: cinema, meeting rooms,
administration, viewing and lending library
of cassettes and DVDs.
PARKING:
there is a pay parking lot for visitors to the mediatheque with a capacity of 64 vehicles
BARRIER-FREE FACILITIES:
information on facilities, equipment and appliances
Multi-usage toilets designed to best meet the needs of physically impaired persons.
INFERENCES:
-The spaces have their own identity by having different colors, flooring and lighting.
-Variation in floor heights is to create different volume of spaces and segregate them
according to their usage
-Integration of services in the structural system to have maximum utility of interior
space.
Usage of double skin façade to create micro climate conditions
-Segregation of heavy sound areas from the silent areas by placing them in different
levels
- Integration of interior with the exterior by using the concept of transparency.
-Provision of barrier free facilities for the easy access and usage by the physically
challenged people.
-The double height entrance space adds to the aesthetic appeal

AREA ANALYSIS FROM THE DESKTOP STUDY:

• Entrance space - 500sq.m
•Library- 600sq.m
•Exhibition space - 400sq.m
•Multimedia library - 450sq.m
• Administration - 100sq.m
•General services - 350sq.m
•Toilets - 50sq.m
•Child care- 100sq.m