The document discusses a master's thesis on designing energy efficient garment factories in Bangladesh. The thesis aimed to assess current working conditions in factories that pose health risks due to overheating, and to propose passive design strategies to reduce energy use for lighting and cooling. Through fieldwork and research, the thesis focused on natural daylighting strategies and passive ventilation using hollow core slabs to create suitable working environments without high-tech systems. The solutions were simple, culturally appropriate designs that could be easily adopted and provide guidelines for future sustainable factory construction in Bangladesh.

1. Farah naz

2. Energy efficient garment factories in Bangladesh.
Masters Thesis: Sept 2006 - Feb 2008
Masters in Architecture in Sustainable Environmental Design
Architectural Association School of Architecture
London, United Kingdom.
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3. Energy Efficient garment factories in
Bangladesh.
Objective:
To assess the current working condition of garment factory
and identify how this building typology is becoming a health
risk for the garment factory workers.
Goal is to Propose intelligent passive design strategies that
can reduce extensive artificial lighting dependency and
secondly, to identify simple non high tech approach to create
suitable work environment for future factories in Dhaka,
Bangladesh.
Abstract:
Hand Sketch, Dhakas Skyline showing the existing
factories in the urban skyline. Context: Bangladesh - is the twelve largest apparel exporter in the
world and fifth largest in EU, with an annual retribution of 9.52 billion
US$. With 8000 factories in the country, garment industry is the
economic lifeline of the country, employing 30% of the total
8 KM population.
Issues: Interestingly this industry is often criticized, for being the
largest consumer of electrical energy, where the country faces an
imminent shortage; and secondly, for being the leading health risk
from overheated working conditions.
The rigid requirements for the reduction of lighting demand and the
temperature hazard of the working spaces requires a framework of
Location Map
target conditions to be achieved. After a field work survey and
research on potential options, the dissertation focuses on proposing
intelligent natural day lighting strategies, that can be adapted to
conserve energy and reduce the energy demand of garment
factories. Finally, suggest passive cooling through natural ventilation
and using hollow core slabs, to attain optimum working condition.
The solutions derived are simple and within the framework of the
existing cultural context and can be easily adopted, without requiring
any high tech systems. The solution holds the potential to add a
valuable contribution to this architectural typology in Bangladesh and
can become guidelines for future building construction.
Field work, internal temperature reading of the sewing Field work: Comfort sensation survey overlayed on the logged
and ironing space. internal temperature.
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4. Design Evolution:
Conceptual Analysis:
Double roof and storage space
Vertical circulation
Roof Garden
Social Block
Ironing Space
Sewing South block
Sewing West block
Roof Garden
Loading Dock
Administrative Block
Entrance for the
Spatial organization for the functional and social spaces. employee
Vertical massing and spatial characteristics study.
Right: North Facade. Hand sketch with pen and pencil.
Sewing West
Design Performace Criteria Identification.
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5. Day Lighting Performance:
Goal: To obtain the target illumination level between 800 -2000
lux for sewing space and 300- 500 lux for ironing space.
Roof Storage
Architectural Parameters:
South sewing
Required Lighting Needed: 800- 2000 lux (Sewing) 300-
500(ironing)
West sewing
FloorArea: 10m x 20m = 200 m²
Volume = 1000m³
Volume Orientation: North South
Roof garden &
social space
Elevation from Ground Plane: 12m(seiwng) 2.5 (Ironing)
Ironing Space
Conclusion for Sewing Space South and West:
Administrative
North South Section Environmental Performace Criteria Identification.
1. The sewing floor received adequate amount of day
lighting between 1050-2000 lux in June, which is the month with
the peak working load. South sewing wing with a DF 4%,
received 800 lux above 800 hours, and 1084 lux above 1100
hours.The artificial lights can be turned off during 52% of the
working hours with an average daylight factor of 5.5.
Top: South Sewing -June 21, 12pm
Bottom: Ironing Space- Jan 12th,
12pm 2. From frequency occurrence analysis of the targeted
lux level shows that 2250 working hours above 800 lux, and
1600 hours above 1200 lux is achieved on the sewing floors
(south and west) throughout the working hours of an year.
Both sewing wing(south and west) are well illuminated with an
average DF of 5% .
Ironing Space:
From the test results it was found that, with a 2.2. DF and an
illumination level between 100- 300 lux, 55% working hours the
artificial lightings can be turned off. This adds to energy savings
above 50% of the working hours.
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6. Thermal Performance:
Goal:
1. To identify the appropriate ventilation rate required for
necessary heat dissipation.
2. Identify what materials and construction method can
be utilized for this building typology, without adding any extra
cost or high technology, to stabilize the internal resultant
Left to right: Hollow Core, Sandlime brick with plaster, and concrete block with plaster. temperature within the comfort temperatures defined.
Sewing Space:
Thermal Performance was tested by using TAS.
Results:
From the thermal performnace analysis it can be concluded,
that materiality places an important role in achieving comfort
temperatures during the hottest months in summer when the
internal temperatures were recored as high as 36ºC, from
fieldwork.
Comparative Analysis:
A comparative analysis of the internal resultant temperature for
ironing and sewing spaces, for the three variants traditional
Internal Temperature comparison of the three design options. Internal Temperature frequency of occurence of the three design construction the lime brick, conventional construction concrete
Ironing Space:
plaster, and potential material - hollow core, for the entire year
was compared. The following was observed:
In the sewing space, between 25º- 30ºC hollow core shows
frequency of occurrence of more than 3000 hours, 10% more
working hours, than lime brick.
Between the temperatures of 32º- 34ºC, hollowcore 83% less
hours of occurence than the conventional material.
Same is observed in the ironing space, between 25º- 30ºC ,
hollow core performs 24% more working hours than the
limebrick. During the extreme summer days, hollow core
Internal Temperature comparison of the three design options. Internal Temperature frequency of occurence of the three design
shows, 82% higher performance between the temperatures of
30º- 32ºC, . And above 34ºC the hollow core has 0 hours of
frequency of occurrences.
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7. Portfolio of Farah Naz