Pearl Academy of Fashion

• Program: Programmatic requirements enabled the conception of a whole level of functions in the underbelly which would operate in a passive environment without the employment of any mechanical means of heating and cooling. This enabled the elimination of a complete storey which would otherwise use artificial techniques of cooling thus making the building extremely efficient in its energy consumption
• Form Optimization, Morphology, and Orientation: An industrial site context along with Form Optimization led to the formation of a perfect rectangular Volume with minimum exposed surface area. The site was excavated to a depth of four meters, to create an underbelly and the two stories of classrooms, studios and offices were raised on pilotis above this void. Being a fashion design institute, the underbelly, which is thermally banked on all sides, has a ramp designed to be used during fashion shows and forms the anchor for the entire project. It also serves as a large recreation and exhibition zone, houses the cafeteria and spill out areas for the student population and is in active use throughout the year including the summer months, given the significantly tempered environment created.
• Evaporative Cooling: The entire building is raised above the ground and a scooped out under belly forms a natural thermal sink which is cooled by water bodies through evaporative cooling. The underbelly is a microclimate generator, and the step well section cools the building from within and the air coming inside.
• Courtyards and Stepwells: The scheme relies on self-shading sliver courts to keep the solar ingress out and control the temperatures of internal spaces and open stepped wells while allowing for sufficient day lighting inside studios and classrooms.
• Daylighting, Ventilation and Structural grid: The courtyards get indirect light into classrooms and helps in the creation of naturally ventilated and lit singly- loaded corridors. The entire building is on a 9m grid, single bay, naturally lit and cross-ventilated. The configuration of this grid allows for day lighting, ventilation and alongwith a flexible system of partitioning for the years to come.
• Insulation: A traditional Indian technique of thermal insulation was employed: Earthen pots (mutkas) about 35 cm in diameter are placed on flat roof, 2.5 cm apart, and the spaces between are filled with sand and broken bricks and covered with a thin layer of concrete. The fill and the air within the mutkas provide insulation.
• Shading: The building is protected from the environment by a double skin which is derived from a traditional building element called the ‘Jaali’ which is prevalent in Rajasthani architecture. The double skin creates a thermal buffer between the building and the surroundings. The density of the perforated outer skin has been derived using computational shadow analysis based on orientation of the façades. The outer skin sits 4 feet away from the building and eliminates the direct solar ingress through fenestrations, yet allowing for diffused daylight. The jaali thus, serves the function of 3 filters- air, light, and privacy. (Attached Diagram)
• Landscaping: The water body which is fed by the recycled water from the sewage treatment plant helps in the creation of a microclimate through evaporative cooling. Green spaces and water bodies are designed as per orientation to be in shaded areas in order to lower the water evaporation and aid evaporative cooling. During the night, when the desert temperature drops, this floor slowly dissipates the heat to the surroundings, keeping the area thermally comfortable.

Types of services offered. (Architecture, Structural, Services, Project Management, Contracting, Green Rating Facilitation, Energy Performance Simulation, Energy Audit…) Architecture, Interior design, master planning , Urban design, Landscape design and Environmental design consultancy