Journal articles on the topic 'Covered atrium masonry building'

The amount of construction waste (CW) at building sites is highly variable, for instance the CW generation index ranges between 50-300 dm3 per square meters of gross floor area. Today there is still a lack of knowledge about variables (building design, construction process, construction technologies, etc.) affecting the CW generation. The objective of this paper is to analyse the influence of multi-storey building design and some construction processes on the CW generation indexes. The CW generation was analysed for two groups of buildings with two different construction processes; one with plumbing and electric services installed inside the masonry element and the other with plumbing and electric services installed onto the masonry element and covered with water-resistant drywall system (reducing the construction waste generation). The gross floor area directly affects the amount of executed construction works in a building site. Since the most important works (concrete, masonry and cladding) for CW generation is related to gross floor area, gross floor of buildings is also directly related to CW generation. For buildings with gross area varying from 20,000 to 80,000 m2, there is a reduction of approximately 18% of construction waste only changing the plumbing and electric services installation system, from embedded in the masonry element to installed onto the masonry element and covered with water-resistant drywall system.

This paper deals with an actual problem of covered historic building atriums in Slovakia and their adaptation to the new function concerning building physics parameters. The aim of this contribution is to quantify the parameters of the new covered atriums regarding the sound parameters. The executed measurements in selected atriums were compared with the standard values (reverberation time, flutter echo) considering their new function (cultural, social, health).

Millions of non-engineered constructions in Indonesia are vulnerable to earthquake. Therefore, a simple, affordable and replicable method to strengthen the existing non-engineered construction in Indonesia is introduced. The retrofitting method described in this report is based on the principle of sandwich structures, having a masonry wall as core and covered on both sides with ferrocement layers. Numerical analysis result and shaking table test is included in this paper.

Caricin Grad, Justiniana Prima, urban planning, fortification, settlement, aerial photography, geophysical surveys, LiDAR, photogrammetry, excavations, GIS. Thanks to the application of modern non-destructive sensing and detection methods, in recent years a series of new data on urban planning in Caricin Grad was obtained. For the most part, the current research programme studies the Upper Town?s northern plateau, wooded until recently and hence the only previously unexplored unit of the city. In the course of this programme, the classical research method - the excavations started in 2009 - is for the first time combined with the systematic application of airborne and terrestrial sensing and detection techniques. The analysis of historic aerial photographs and topographic plans proved to be very useful as well. Along with them, LiDAR-derived DTMs, photogrammetric DEMs, different geophysical and orthophotographic plans are stored in the GIS database for Caricin Grad and the Leskovac Basin. In this way almost 80 percent of the plateau area was defined, and the obtained plan is hypothetical only to a small extent, which particularly refers to the unexcavated northern rampart of the Upper Town. Each source provided relevant information for the reconstruction of both the rampart and the settlement, which points to the value of a holistic approach to documentation from various dates. The first source to be studied were archival aerial photographs of Caricin Grad from 1938 and 1947 (Figs. 1, 2.1). The latter one was originally processed by Aleksandar Deroko and Svetozar Radojci}, who drew the plan of the town after it, labelling the unexplored Upper Town?s northern plateau as ?a probable habitation area?. The route of the northern rampart was aslo rather precisely determined by the authors (Fig. 2.2). Recently, these photographs were rectified and georeferenced in the GIS. The 1938 shot reveals the position of some towers as well, and it is also indicative of the way of construction of certain buildings. From the spatial layout of whitish zones, originating from mortar scattered along the slope, it can be deduced which buildings were constructed in opus mixtum - the horreum and the so-called Building with Pillars east of it. Traces of mortar can be observed along the route of the rampart too. These archival images are particularly important because they record the topography of the site before it was filled with heaps of earth from the excavations. The topographic mappings of this area were conducted in 1981 and 2006 (Fig. 3). The first plan was drawn after an airborne stereophotogrammetric survey of Caricin Grad, and in 2006, after the wood was cut down, this whole area was surveyed with the total station, with a density of nine points per square meter. This survey also resulted in a 3D terrain model (Fig. 3.2) indicating the layout of the buildings, which was to be proved by geophysical surveys and archaeological excavations. In the course of the Serbian-French reaearch programme, in 2007 geomagnetic surveys were carried out by Alain Kermorvan of the University of Tours. Thanks to the application of this method the remains of collapsed stone structures could be observed, and in 2015, in cooperation with the Roman-Germanic Central Museum, Mainz, and the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute from Vienna, the middle and eastern parts of the plateau were scanned with GPR (Fig. 4.2). Precise plans of the buildings were obtained in the areas in which LiDAR scanning and photogrammetric and geomagnetic surveys failed to produce clear images. Within the framework of the ArchaeoLandscapes Europe project, in 2011 we managed to organise an airborne LiDAR survey of the wider area of Caricin Grad. With its density of some 20 points per square meter, this scanning proved to be crucial for our comprehension of the town. The standard DTM provided numerous important data, especially its version calculated in the focal statistics function of the ArcGIS software package (Fig. 5. 1-2). These models show not only the route of the Upper Town?s northern rampart, the position of its towers and the layout of the buildings, but also the line of the Outer Town?s western rampart. Visible only in the DTM, this entirely new aspect of the Caricin Grad fortification has been attested by the excavations. Highly important plans of the town, and of the northern plateau of the Upper Town in particular, were obtained by UAV photogrammetric surveys. The first drone survey was conducted in 2014 within the scope of the same project. It resulted in a cloud with up to 1,600 points per square meter (Fig. 6.1-2). Unlike the LiDAR technology, photogrammetry cannot penetrate vegetation; therefore the preliminary clearing of the ground proved to be a most important step. After the 2015 campaign was finished, the excavation area in the Upper Town was documented again in the same manner. Regular photogrammetric surveys make possible the control of the works and reliable visual monitoring of the progress of exploration (Fig. 9). After the wood was cut down in 2006 and enormous heaps of earth from twentieth-century excavations and restoration works were carefully removed by machinery in 2008 and 2010, without disturbing the original layers of debris, wide excavations could begin. At first only the humus layer was removed from fifteen-meter squares, which was followed by technical drawing. In 2009 and 2010 we did not explore the debris or the cultural layers (Fig. 7.1-2). The additional two squares were opened and documented in the same fashion in 2011, when previously recorded buildings 11 and 15C were explored in detail, together with the part of the corridor between them where a bread oven was found. These buildings were oriented south-north, cascading along the mild slope towards the northern rampart of the Upper Town. Fragments of pithoi and carbonised fruits were found in the buildings, allowing for an economic interpretation. Judging by coinfinds, the buildings ended in fire after the year 602. Some of the buildings on the northern plateau were oriented differently, following the route of the northern rampart of the Acropolis in the east-west direction. In 2012 building 18 was excavated, leaning on the rampart. Rectangular in plan and some 12 by 7.5 meters large, it had a storey and a 7 by 5.5 meters spacious paved atrium in the west. Parallel to building 18 is building 20, the only one on the northern plateau constructed in opus mixtum. The two buildings are separated by a four-meter-wide street, running from east to west. This street, corridor 4, was partly cut in the rock. In some sections it had a substructure of fragmented debris. Building 20 has been carefully excavated for several years now. After the initial documenting, the surface layer of debris was removed, but not the collapsed structures with characteristic construction details; to the east of the building a collapsed wall was uncovered, containing as many as eight successive rows of stone and brick. Beneath these layers are the occupation ones, so far investigated only to a small extent. Building 20 is rectangular in plan, covering 25 by 12.5 meters. In its central axis there is a row of masonry pillars, dividing the building into two naves. On its western side there was a vestibule with a pair of doors matching the main entrances to the building. In the back of the vestibule, between these entrances and in axis with the pillars, there was a staircase. Adetailed analysis of these features led us to conclude that building 20 was a horreum, the first such edifice to be discovered in Caricin Grad. Taking into account the details of its ground plan, pillars, parts of collapsed walls and especially arches, it will be possible to reconstruct the original form of the horreum. Judging by the existing estimate, although somewhat rough, it was 13.5 meters high. It could be observed that in its later phases the horreum was partitioned into several rooms, and some of its entrances were walled up. In the vestibule only these later occupation phases were documented, as the original brick pavement was removed from its northern part. This was followed by a significant accumulation of cultural layers, which were sealed by the debris stratum. South of the horreum there is a spacious courtyard connected with the western street of the Upper Town. The Upper Town?s northern rampart has never been graphically reconstructed, despite the fact that Aleksandar Deroko and Svetozar Radojci} published its accurate (although schematic) ground plan as early as 1950 (Fig. 2.2). This part of the town has gradually been left out of the research focus, mainly due to the vegetation growth. Upon employing all the methods described above, however, it is possible to undertake such an effort. The ideal reconstruction suggested here includes the rampart route, the disposition and the form of the towers, and the possible locations of the posterns. The line of the rampart can be traced following the trenches left by the locals dismantling the walls. Only the section of the northwestern rampart in front of the western postern of the Acropolis cannot be presented, being still covered by massive earth deposits. On the other hand, the recently discovered western rampart of the Outer Town can be traced to its full length in the LiDAR-derived DTM. Its form can be easily reconstructed on the basis of the results of the 2012 excavations and the section of the same rampart uncovered east of the main fortifications in 1955-56 (Fig. 8). Having studied the microtopography of the terrain, we were able to determine the position of a number of towers. They were clearly indicated by bumps, regularly distributed along the northern and northeastern sections of the rampart. The position of the tower below the Acropolis? western postern could be easily determined as well, unlike the position of the tower opposite to the horseshoe-shaped one of the Acropolis fortification. Yet, it is hard to imagine that a hundred-meter-long section of the rampart was left unprotected. The rectangular shape of the towers is suggested because almost all the towers of the town?s outer fortification were constructed in that way. On the other hand, at present we cannot exclude the possibility that some towers were different, horseshoe-shaped in plan, like the ones on the Acropolis rampart. The disposition of the towers along the northeastern rampart of the Upper Town, in the area where the northern street presumably met the fortification, is not clear. This part of the site still lies under massive heaps of earth, and even the 1938 and 1947 aerial photographs are not indicative enough in this regard. However, the tower(s) might have been erected there, not only because the eighty-meter-long stretch of the rampart would be left without protection in an opposite scenario, but because it is likely that the northern street ended in a gate, or at least a postern. It is already known that some of the posterns on the Caric in Grad fortifications were defended by towers. The average distance between the towers of the town?s main fortification extends from 20 meters on the southern to 40 meters on the western rampart of the Lower Town; in our reconstruction the average interval on the Upper Town?s northern rampart is 44 meters. Another argument is that this gate might have connected the Upper and the Outer Towns. The position of the second postern is determined thanks to a depression in the terrain following the axis of another communication route in the Upper Town, leading from corridor 4 and running towards the north along the rows of buildings. Finally, the 3.8 meter width of the rampart in the section adjoining the northern tower of the Upper Town?s eastern gate may only indicate a staircase, the last reconstructed fortification element. On the plateau stretching between the northern ramparts of the Acropolis and the Upper Town fortifications a settlement developed with its radially distributed rows of buildings cascading down the slope. In the eastern part of the plateau there is the horreum, adjoined from the east by another building - the storage called Building with Pillars. Larger than the other buildings and constructed in opus mixtum, the two buildings follow the route of the Upper Town?s northern street, all of which indicates that they belong to the initial construction phase. One should not exclude the possibility that this part of the town was originally conceived as an economic district with storages and similar edifices. By all appearances, the original concept was soon abandoned. Already at the time of Justinian a settlement of numerous smaller buildings was created. With their walls of stone and wattle and daub, the buildings were roofed with tiles. Yet one should underscore that this construction phase, although less sophisticated than the first one, was accomplished according to a previously prepared plan; the spread of the buildings speaks to that effect. Shortly afterwards, if not at the same time, buildings were erected along the outer face of the Acropolis rampart - a clear indication of abandoning urban planning (Fig. 9). Public space was turned into private, in spite of the legal proscriptions of that time. During the last phase of the town?s life the buildings described, whether public or private, were partitioned into small rooms, often with fireplaces and with some of their entrances walled up. Just like the edifices constructed in opus mixtum, some of the more modest buildings from the second construction phase were used to store food - namely buildings 11 and 15C. The plan of this part of the site points to an organised settlement, most probably inhabited by persons servicing a significant clergy and administration. On the other hand, except for some houses - such as building 18 - small buildings along the Acropolis fortification, facing the main street, corridor 4, might have served as shops and workshops. Traces of furnaces, slag and bone working were also encountered in this area. The parallel application of classical research methods and modern techniques of sensing and detection enabled the reconstruction of the northern rampart and the urban matrix of the Upper Town?s northern plateau. Until recently among the least known parts of the town, this unit can now be regarded as one of the best defined. This is important not only for our understanding of Caricin Grad (Justiniana Prima), but also for the study of Early Byzantine urban planning in general.

Environmental heat stress on buildings through façades contributes to indoor overheating and thus increases demand for energy consumption. The study analyzed the problem, heat gain risk, of modern air-conditioned multi-level office buildings in tropics, for example Colombo. Plan form, orientation, sectional form and envelope were identified and theorized to understand design interventions to reduce the risk of getting heat stress on indoor environments. On-site thermal performance investigations in multi zones of identified three typical built forms, namely; shallow, deep and covered atrium plan forms, quantified the heat stress. Reaching the daytime indoor and surface temperature in peripheral zones of multi-story office buildings during air conditioning “off-mode” up to 38 °C–42 °C was seen as a critical heat stress situation to be addressed through building design. Shading or insulation on façades to control environmental heat gain and manipulation of building section for night ventilation to remove internal heat developed during the daytime are discussed. However, the significance of the plan form depth was found to be a main contributor in dealing with heat transfer to indoor space. Deep plan form was found to be more effective in controlling environmental heat transfer to indoor space across the plan depth.

The development of brickwork technique in ancient Kyyiv dates back to the X- th century. Old Rus` monuments’ masonry was made of large thin bricks called “plynfa” and lime-and-ceramic mortar. The size of the X-th – the XII-th brick sides varies from 27 to 36 cm, its thickness – from 2.5 to 4.5 cm. Different kinds of clay and loess extracted from the territory of Kyyiv and its vicinities were used as a raw material for brick and ceramic addition to mortar. That is why bricks in Kyyivan monuments differ in colour from light yellow to orange and dark red. Some gruss or cut straw were used as addition to fat clay. Limestone was brought to Kyyiv from Chernihiv area and lime mortar was produced in lime kilns situated near building sites. Ceramic addition to mortar called “tsemianka” was of refined clay, and crushed brick waste was used as well. Bricks were burnt under the temperature of 1000 – 1200 degrees C. That’s why bricks were very firm regardless of chink-like pores appeared as a result of hand-moulding of brick. The author took some investigation for the purpose to determine physical and mechanical properties of ancient bricks of Kyyivan monuments. Bricks were picked out of excavations or waste after building repairs. Small cubes were cut out of bricks with the height equal to brick thickness. Those samples were examined concerning their strength by compressing them perpendicularly to the sides the bricks were bedded in mortar. The strength of samples varied from 100 to 200-300 kg per sq.cm, water absorption was 10 % to 20 %. Some bricks taken from the Cathedral of the Assumption of Kyyiv-Pechersk monastery were the most firm. The strength of those samples was about 400-500 kg per sq. cm, their water absorption was the smallest, about 5.6 %. Because of high porosity and water absorption of building materials the surface of ancient masonry was exposed to destruction under the influence of temperature overfalls and precipitation, as it can be seen on the open parts of walls of the Old Rus` monuments. To prevent destruction of masonry, the walls of ancient monuments were covered with fine lime-and-ceramic mortar. Fragments of original plaster can be found on the walls of the XI-th century monuments St.Sophia Cathedral and St.Michael Church of Vydubychy monastery in Kyyiv. High level of well-developed building technique and high quality of building materials caused durability of ancient masonry and constructions in Kyyivan monuments, which preserved until nowadays.

The aim of the paper is to provide information on the defects in the construction of the elementary school in Vodňany. The building of the elementary school dates back to 1973. It is a reinforced concrete columns skeleton with a filling peripheral and internal dividing brick masonry. The object is used by the primary school and is permanently used and maintained. The extent of structural damage is stabilized in the current state and is not an immediate risk to the user of the object. It concerns only non-load-bearing structures (floor and partitions), the vertical load-bearing structures do not show a decrease and therefore the stability of the whole building is not compromised. However, actual damage complicates operation of elementary school and is very non-aesthetic. Concurrent damage to structures is the result of vertical deformation of the foundation soil. Vertical deformation of the foundation soil - sediment is the result of the building construction on a former creek which was not properly excavated and covered with a suitable backfill. Subsidence further strengthens imperfect drained rainwater from the roof of the building and leakage of rainwater drains.

The author investigates the building process of ancient Kyyivan monuments. After the wall foundations were laid, the erection of ground volumes of the edifice began. Wooden scaffoldings were arranged at both sides of a wall. The remains of caffolding preserved in the brick fabric can be seen on the front walls of the Transfiguration Church at Berestove and St. Michael’s Church of Vydubytsky monastery. The height between scaffolding tiers as well as the height of masonry between them varies from 1.3 to 2.2 m in Kyyivan monuments. The situation of red schist cornices in ancient churches is dependent on the abovementioned height of masonry tiers. The cornices are placed at springs of arches and vaults, at the level of the choir gallery floor, at the spring of supporting arches and basement of central dome. The location of cornices hence marked the completion of a certain building period. Being put over brickwork at the end of building period in autumn those cornices protected construction from precipitation during winter season. That is why cornices within the Kyyivan St.Sophia Cathedral have “throats” – grooves which are cut along the underside of cornices as a stringcourses to prevent water from running back across them towards the wall. One can easily determine building periods of the St. Sophia Cathedral according to the cornice levels in it. As far as building period at the times of Old Rus` took approximately six to seven months (from late spring to early autumn), the erection of the St. Sophia Cathedral with its five naves and double galleries was continued through five or six years. Cross-domed churches with three naves were built during approximately three or four years. For example St.Michael’s Church at Vydubytsky Monastery was built to the height of choir gallery during the first year, then to the height of vaults’ and domes’ springing during the second year, after that vaults and domes were completed during the third year. The types of vaults used in ancient Kyyivan architecture were barrel vaults, domes on pendantives and domes on high drums. Widely spread in Byzantine architecture groined vaults were not in use in the Old Rus` building until the middle of the XII century. Also there was a certain consecutive order in erection of parts of a church: at first its central cross-domed volume, then apses, narthex, galleries etc. were built. In a year or two after the edifice was built its walls were covered with plaster and decorated with murals. Building methods applied in the ancient Kyyivan monuments of the XI-th century formed the basis of Old Rus` architecture developed during the following centuries.

The external partitions of a building (walls, roof, etc.) in addition to their supporting functions must also ensure an internal microclimate suitable for comfortable human work, recreation and other activities. This article analyzes the thermal characteristics of the external walls of a residential house and thermographically examines the joints of the different structures of the building. Thermographical examination may be performed either passively or actively. In the former case, the object of the examination ir heated up to a given temperature, after which thermographical images of the object are taken and analyzed. In the latter case, thermographical analysis is made of the object in its naturally established thermal conditions. This article examines the thermal characteristics of the partition structures of a residential building. The values of the thermal properties of the materials are taken from the documentation provided by their manufacturers, and in their absence, the data of the technical building regulations is used. Calculated analytically: the wall of the western annex only meets the C energy class requirements, the insulation of the old part of the building raised the heat transfer coefficient of the partition to class A, the thermal characteristic of the eastern annex wall corresponds to the A + energy class. This thermographic examination showed that the facade covered by the fibrous cement siding absorbed less heat compared to the masonry facades. Based on theoretical calculations and the thermographic analysis, it is recommended to additionally insulate the western annex from the inside. If possible, it is also recommended to additionally insulate both facade joints with polyurethane foam and to seal them with waterproofing mastic to prevent the sunrays from reaching the foam.

An effective decrease of investments in additional insulation of buildings could be achieved by insulation from the inside by special building elements with high—thermal resistance. It is suggested by the authors to produce such elements from expanded polystyrene with additives decreasing combustibility. The insulating elements could be of two types: large expanded polystyrene boards (equal to the height of rooms) and 5.5 or 8.5 cm thickness and 18 or 25 kg/m3 density from one side covered by 2 mm layer of polymergypsum plaster and glass fibre with textured surface; insulating combined blocks of 25 cm width and 40–100 cm length and thickness of 7 or 10 cm, where expanded polystyrene board with thickness of 5.5 or 8.5 cm is covered by 0,75 layer of polymergypsum plaster. The description of such combined insulating elements construction is presented in the paper as well as the research data of physical-mechanical, thermal properties and test results on combustibility. The investigation data are summarised in 2 Tables and 7 Figures. As the conclusion, the recommendations for additional insulation blocks of flats from the inside by combined insulating boards and blocks are presented. Then the thermal resistance of external expanded clay concrete walls could be increased up to 2.0–2.1 m2 ·K/W, applying the insulating elements with thermal resistance of 1.3–1.4 m2·K/W and thermal resistance of ceramic brick masonry—up to 3.0–3.1 m2·K/W, applying insulating elements with thermal resistance of 2.0–2.1 m2·K/W. The test results on combustibility which the elements under discussion are recognised as material with low fire spread and could be applied as the insulation inside buildings, are presented. The results of economical calculations are presented too. It is pointed out that the proposed additional insulating blocks of flats from the inside by suggested insulating elements with high—thermal resistance is significantly cheaper in comparison with the well-known external insulation.

The material presented above concerns the research of the concealed course technique used in Kyivan monuments of the Xth the beginning of the XIIth centuries and its origin. The concealed course technique presents the brickwork where the alternating brick courses are slightly recessed from the wall and covered by mortar, as a result, joints appear to be much thicker than they actually are. The earliest known monument where the concealed course technique that occurs in the Desyatynna church in Kyiv completed in 996, as well as the two palaces of the Xth c. nearby. The recessed brick technique is also used in Kyivan monuments of the XIth the beginning of the XIIth centuries: the St. Sophia Cathedral, the Golden Gate, St. George’s Church, St. Michael’s Church of Vydubytsky Monastery, the Assumption Cathedral and the Holy Trinity Gate Church of Pechersky Monastery, St.Michael’s Cathedral of the Golden Domes and some other buildings. The Church of Our Savior at Berestove, completed in the first quarter of the XIIth century is the last known Kyivan monument with the concealed course technique. The following Kyivan monuments – the Church of Our Lady Pyrohoshcha (1130’s) and the St. Cyril’s Church (1140’s) have coursed brick masonry. Apart from Kyiv the concealed course technique was used during the XIth - XIIth centuries in Chernihiv (the Cathedral of the Transfiguration), Pereyaslav (St. Michael’s Church), Novgorod (St. Sophia Cathedral and St. George’s Cathedral of St. George’s Monastery) and Polotsk (St. Sophia Cathedral). Bricks used in Kyivan monuments have their side dimensions 27 to 36 cm with prevailed dimensions 27 to 36 cm. The thickness of bricks increased from 2.5 – 3 cm at the end of the Xth – the beginning of the XIth centuries to 3.5 – 4.5 cm at the end of the XIth – the beginning of the XIIth centuries. The width of mortar strips between protruding brick courses varies from 9 to 12 cm. Walls in ancient Kyivan monuments were 1.1 to 1.3 meter thick. After the edifice was erected its outside and inside walls were covered with fine lime-and-ceramic plaster. Brunov was the first scholar who noticed peculiar masonry technique used in Kyivan and several Byzantine monuments. He considered the concealed course technique first appeared in ancient Kyiv and then was adopted at Constantinople. Some other scholars (e.g. P. Rappoport and P. Vocotopoulos) agree that the technique is of Constantinopolitan origin in spite of the absence of the monuments built in concealed course technique, dating to the Xth c. The fact that no early dated examples have been found at Constantinople should be attributed to the lack of monuments to be dated between 920s, when the Myrelaion Church was erected and the middle of the XIth century when the monastery of St.George at Mangana was founded. The oldest dated example of the concealed course technique known up to now in Constantinople is substructure of the St. George’s Church at Mangana. The other monument with the concealed course technique is the Panaghia Chalkeon Church in Salonika, dated by 1028 and is consequently earlier by approximately twenty years than the earliest dated examples of the technique in Constantinople. A lot of Byzantine monuments with the recessed brickwork dating back to the XIth – the XIIIth centuries could be found at Greece and Balkans. It is obvious that the concealed course technique originated in Byzantium as a result of development of Roman concrete facing of coursed brick. The technique was widely used in Byzantine provinces where brick was prevailing building material. Evidently the technique was developed already at the Xth century or even earlier, before it was adopted by ancient Kyivan builders. It appeared that concealed course technique could not be undoubtedly considered the hallmark of Constantinople but a widely spread medieval building practice.

An appropriate mechanism for supporting design management practices at an early stage of project is crucial in terms of adding value over scope, time and total investment strategic decisions. The clients are not only interested in value for money in relation to the investment in project development but costs associated in operation and maintenance over project life cycle as well. These criteria make possible to evaluate design solutions which can be characterized by quantitative and qualitative criteria which possibly have different weight, dimension and direction of optimization (maximisation or minimization). The purpose of this article – is to compare different designs of building or its structure and to select the best alternative using criteria of optimality. Case study is demonstrated by selecting the best facade system to cover the building. For this purpose four alternatives of building facades are under consideration. Two criteria (out of three) indicate that for the case study the most preferable facade‘s alternative is gas silicate masonry, covered by Rockwool and “Minerit” facade plates. Santrauka Tinkamas sprendimų priėmimo mechanizmas projektuojant pastatą yra labai svarbus priimant strateginius investicijų sprendimus. Klientus yra suinteresuotas ne tik projekto įgyvendinimo kaina, bet ir eksploatavimo išlaidomis. Šio straipsnio tikslas – palyginti skirtingus pastato projektus arba konstrukcijas ir pagal tris optimalumo kriterijus parinkti geriausią alternatyvą. Šie trys kriterijai leidžia įvertinti projektinius sprendinius, kurie gali būti apibūdinami kiekybiniais ir kokybiniais rodikliais, turinčiais skirtingas dimensijas ir optimizavimo kryptį (maksimizavimas arba minimizavimas). Skaitiniame pavyzdyje demonstruojamas geriausios fasado sistemos parinkimas pastatui. Jame svarstomos keturios alternatyvos. Du kriterijai (iš trijų) rodo, kad šiam konkrečiam atvejui tinkamiausias yra fasadas, sumūrytas iš dujų silikato blokelių, aptaisytų ,,Rockwool“ mineraline vata ir ,,Minerit“ fasado plokštėmis.

The roof of the so called ‘Pilgrims’ Hall’, Winchester, now dated to c. 1308, has long been recognized as one of the earliest surviving examples of hammerbeam construction. It is somewhat surprising, therefore, that the complete medieval structure, of which the Pilgrims’ Hall forms rather less than half, has not previously been investigated in detail. In its original form it was a six bay building covered by a single roof, which, though of one constructional phase, employed a variety of principal truss types (fig. 1). The three bays at the north end of the complex have masonry walls: they comprise the actual Pilgrims’ Hall, whose most impressive feature is its pair of hammerbeam trusses (pl. XLa). The other three bays had timber framed walls, and were subdivided into a second, two bay hall with a central base cruck truss, and a single bay at the south end of the building. In this paper the term ‘Pilgrims’ Hall’ is used to denote only the three bay hammerbeam hall, while the entire original structure is referred to as the ‘Pilgrims’ range’.The roof and timber framing of the complex must surely rank with those few structures that, in the words of the late R. T. Mason, ‘stand out for their contribution to overall knowledge’. The outstanding significance of the Pilgrims' range in the study of early medieval carpentry is that it included four major ‘aisle-derivative’ roof truss types in a single building: a true aisled truss, a base cruck truss, two hammerbeam trusses, and at least one raised aisle truss. The existence of continuous longitudinal members (arcade plates, cornice plates and a central purlin) and the uniform upper roof structure throughout the length of the range show that the entire roof was erected in a single campaign.

One of a number of enigmatic depictions in the Aegean iconography of the second millenniumbceis the structure painted on the south wall of the Miniature Frieze from the West House at Akrotiri, Thera. This structure covers the slope of a hill and consists of two vertical blue bands on its western edge and four horizontal blue bands, all with features indicating masonry construction. Five rows of black triangles alternate with the horizontal bands. Each triangle has a round opening in its base. Unique in Aegean iconography, it has been interpreted as a dovecote, a shipshed, a storage space, a rock-cut structure with triangular niches, a geological formation and even a stretch of land with terraces and a vineyard. In one very brief reference it has been identified with an apiary.In line with contemporary rules of perspective, certain details suggest this structure could represent an apiary on a terraced area, protected on its western edge by a wall to windward. The triangular elements must depict the vertical-type fixed-comb woven beehives, which were in use until quite recently in Greece. A road leading from the apiary and connecting the settlement with the tripartite building at the top of the hill completes the elements needed for organised beekeeping. Similarly, there is a trapezoidal expanse of blue to the east of it which probably depicts a pond, another essential element of beekeeping. Both the extent of the area covered by the installation and the prominence of beekeeping products (indicated by chemical analysis and references on Linear B tablets) raise questions about the management of the apiary and the function of the building at the top of the hill.

Systematical archaeological excavations at the site Gamzigrad - Felix Romuliana continued in 2007-2008 in the south-eastern part of the fortified imperial palace, in the section of the thermae according to the plan of archaeological research for this site (2005-2009). In 2007, squares L'XXIV, M'XXIV, M'XXIH and M'XXII, which were investigated in 2005 to the horizon c, dated to the end of the 5th and the beginning of the 6th centuries, were completely excavated to the level of the porch of the earlier fortification of Romuliana (Plan 1). The stratigraphy of the cultural layers in these squares is as follows (Fig. 1): Below horizon c there is a layer of construction rubble mixed with brownish-yellow, clay like, sandy soil, 50-75 cm thick, comprising the finds dated in the last quarter of the 4th-5th centuries, layer D; The level of layer D is horizon d, where a structure destroyed in a conflagration, house 1/07, was discovered in squares M'XXII and M'XXIII. It could be dated, on the basis of the preserved household (pottery, metal and antler items, coins, etc.), from the last quarter of the 4th to the middle of the 5th century; Horizon d 1 is a mortar floor discovered beneath horizon d, which presents the earlier phase of house 1/07; Horizon d 2 is the earliest mortar floor inside the house 1/07, covered with a later mortar floor (horizon d 1) and a levelling layer of yellow sand and gravel, which comprises the finds dating also to the last quarter of the 4th to the middle of the 5th centuries; Layer E, 15-40 cm thick, is below horizon d, comprising dark brown soil with rubble and lenses of soot at the bottom, together with finds dated to the second half of the 4th century; Horizon e is covered with layer E, and spread across all the squares which were investigated to the south and to the east of Galerius' bath, where 8 large postholes, which outlined a space 7 x 3 m large and probably some kind of porch, were found along with two furnaces and two pits; Layer F, about 30 cm thick, is the substructure of horizon e and it comprises crushed stone and pebbles mixed with lime mortar, and in places has a levelling of reddish-brown sand. Finds here were dated to the end of the 3rd and the first half of the 4th centuries; Horizon f is a mortar floor of the later fortification of Felix Romuliana at a level of 184.75 m in the west and 184.55 m in the east (an average level of 184.64 m), which was interrupted by a trench running in an east-west direction along the southern section of squares L'-M'XXIV. The trench was filled with soot, small rubble and reddish-brown sand and comprised a large amount of artifacts, such as pottery and glass fragments, metal and bone items and coins dated to the second half of the 3rd century (Fig. 4). Layer G consists of dark brown and yellowish-brown clay with small rubble and soot. It was a levelling layer above the intense construction rubble from the previous horizon and a substructure of horizon f. This layer comprised archaeological finds dated to the end of the 3rd and the first half of the 4th centuries and to the prehistoric period (Early Iron Age); Horizon g is a mortar floor of the porch of the southern and eastern rampart of the earlier fortification of Romuliana. 4 pillars of the eastern porch (pillars 1-4, discovered in 2004-2005), a corner pillar in an L-shape (pillar 5) and one pillar of the southern porch (pillar 6) have been ascertained. From this level the water and sewage canals were dug (Fig. 5). In squares K'XXII-XXIII a trench, measuring 4 x 2 m, in an east-west direction, was opened which aimed to investigate the layers beneath the Roman horizon g. The stratigraphy in this trench is as follows: - Layer G at a level of about 184.53 m; - Layer H, about 35 cm thick, is greenish-yellow clay in which Roman canals were buried, comprising the fragments of the Early and Late Iron Age pottery and fragments of reddish rammed earth (Fig. 2); Layer I, about 20cm thick, is greenish-brown clay, comprising the scarce fragments of the Early and Late Iron Age pottery; Virgin soil consists of yellow clay starting from a level of 184.00 m in the west and of 183.60 m in the east. In 2008, the remains of an earlier building were discovered beneath the floor of the apodyterium of Galerius' bath found in 2002 and below the foundation of the sudatorium and the tepidarium of the same structure, which were found in 2005. Also, for the purposes of conservation and restoration of the thermae, an apsidal room next to the west wall of the apodyterium, so called 'Galerius' dressing room', was completely filled with construction rubble, among which was found a part of an abraded vault (Fig. 6). Excavations proved that the apsidal room had been a pool with cold water, a frigidarium, which was twice renovated and was decorated with mosaic made of black, white and grey stone cubes (Fig. 7). The phases of reconstruction of the frigidarium could also be noticed in its eastern wall (Fig. 8). Also in the rubble inside the pool, glass mosaic cubes of deep blue and golden colours were discovered, indicating the decoration of the vault. In the latest phase, two pillars were constructed to carry the stairs made of stone slabs (Fig. 8). The earliest phase of this room, which had a rectangular layout and a mortar floor, could be part of the building dating back to before Galerius' bath (Plan 2). During the cleaning of the eastern wall of the frigidarium, a semicircular niche with a fresco decoration of geometrical and figural motives, painted in black, dark red, orange and blue on an ochre surface, was discovered (Fig. 3). Under Galerius' bath, a large earlier building was investigated (trenches 1-5/08). Only its foundation zone is preserved. The walls of the Imperial bath were founded on the earlier walls, which were 0.65 m thick and had foundations which were 0.90 m thick (Plan 2). The pilaster of the west faeade of the thermae was also founded on the earlier wall, but it destroyed a water canal (canal A discovered inside the south room of Galerius' bath in 2004), which was constructed after the earlier structure and before the Imperial bath (Fig. 9). It is interesting that the part of the earlier building to the west of the thermae was not demolished during the construction of the Imperial residence. It was adapted and incorporated into the plan of the fortified palace. The original construction was a large public building, probably theprincipia, with a row of rooms around a large courtyard, the atrium. The entrance, which had a porch and a pylon with two square towers and thresholds made of stone slabs, was in the north. (Figs. 10-14) Previously, this building was mistakenly dated to the 4th-5th centuries, because it had been reused in Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods. (Figs. 15-18) However, based on the results of the new research, it could be dated to the 3rd century. .

The church of St Mary at Pula was rededicated to St Nicholas in 1583 when it was handed over for the use of the Greek Orthodox community of refugees from Crete and the Peloponnese. During the seventeenth and eighteenth century, various structures (the bell-tower, the narthex, the sacristy) were added along the eastern and northern sides of the church, several door and window openings were walled in, and the lintel and jambs of the main portal were replaced; however, the main architectural core has remained well-preserved. It has a single-cell structure of square ground plan with an eastern apse, which is semicircular in shape in the inside but polygonal on the outside. The dimensions of the church are based on a module of ten Byzantine feet (c. 31.25 cm); the church is 20 feet wide and 30 feet long, while a 10 foot square can fit into the apse. In the interior is a well-preserved triumphal arch. It is composed of a pair of marble columns with capitals which carry a large, central arch. The composite capitals possess an interesting detail: the centres of the capitals on opposing sides were left undecorated and so it can be concluded that these capitals were intended for insertion in a multi-apertured structure which was screened off with a transenna. Such capitals can be seen on large early Byzantine structures, and two similar capitals are placed in the atrium of the Basilica of Euphrasius at Poreč (mid-sixth century). This detail provides evidence about a technique used in the church’s construction, which made extensive use of prefabricated, often even imported elements of architectural decoration. The same type of marble used for the columns of the triumphal arch was used for the parts of the small trifore window set on the façade. In the scholarly literature to date, this trifore has been considered late medieval, but the carving details are identical to those on the parts of the triumphal arch and altar posts at the church of St Nicholas. The masonry of the wall also points to the fact that it had not been inserted in the sixth-century façade at a later date. In the centre of the apse is a marble block which belonged to an altar base, having four holes which still bear the lower parts of the small posts which originally carried the altar table. The remains of the altar can be seen on the photographs which document the restoration works in 1962. The altar remains were subsequently covered with a new altar structure which was removed during the works in 2000. In 1962, when the filling of the window in the south wall was removed, B. Marušić discovered a part of a marble post with a simple capital which he recognized as belonging to the aforementioned altar. Based on this data, a reconstruction of the altar has been proposed in a drawing. B. Marušić also discovered two stone transennae in the walled in-windows of the south wall, which were smaller than the original structure of the window opening and for this reason he suggested that they belonged to a later intervention. The transennae were removed and transported to the Archaeological Museum of Istria for safekeeping. During the 2000 works, fragments of identical transennae were also found in two apse windows, while a complete transenna was discovered in the walled-in window on the north face which was obscured by the addition of the bell-tower. Similar and identical transennae are found on the nearby chapel of Santa Maria Formosa, the remainder of a large basilica which was built in the mid-sixth century by the archbishop of Ravenna Maximian. In the vicinity of Pula, at least three more examples of similar transennae were found, all of which can be compared to the shape of a wooden window frame from the church of Sant’Apollinare in Classe at Ravenna. A number of arguments suggest that the aforementioned transennae belong to the first phase of the church of St Nicholas.