Impact of Design Requirements for Facade Formation on the Functional Performance of the Balcony Space in Residential Apartments

Abstract

Balcony is considered to have two main functions in design process of residential building. The balcony has a function to form important internal space for many activities, which are necessary for the family. This space connects the family in its housing with its surrounding area. Thus, design of balcony space requires criteria and determinants to enhance its performance as a space for residence and as a connection part between the internal and external environment. On the other hand, the balcony is a basic element of the façade composition. Designers usually use it to give the required external formation to residential buildings. This formation adds design requirements, which can be consistent or inconsistent with balconies function. This dual function of the balcony and the homogeneous or contradictory requirements may cause a serious design problem. Designers usually focus on the role of the balcony as a formative element of the building’s façade. This may often lead to the omission of some of its basic functional roles within the housing apartment, and that reflects a whole range of functional disadvantages, especially in the sphere of economics of apartment design. This research aims to measure functional disadvantages in performance of the apartment’s balcony, caused by mono focusing on the aesthetic or expressive factors. These may not correspond with total necessary determinants for balcony’s acceptable functional performance.

To achieve this goal, the Newroz City residential project in Erbil was elected as a sample to conduct the necessary analytical calculations, questionnaire and personal observation to measure the functional efficiency of the balcony space in the various apartments. Obtained results represent the negative impact of omission basic design criteria for balcony space on the functional performance, due to focusing on the aesthetic factors. This may impact on economics of apartment design.