Browsing by Subject "Architecture, Planning and Geomatics"
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- ItemOpen Access3D visualisation of the laetoli footprints on the internet(2000) Taylor, SimonBibliography: p. 84-86.
- ItemOpen AccessA settlement-level perspective of the spatial relationship between economic performance and population change in South Africa between 2001 and 2011(2021) Arnold, Kathryn Anne; Smit, Julian; le Roux, AlizeMigration has long been an important phenomenon shaping the demographic profile of South Africa, and migration and labour are often considered to be intrinsically linked. The push–pull theory of migration, which still tends to dominate gravity-based migration modelling as well as academic thinking, is grounded on the assumption that migration is a functional and inevitable outcome of spatial inequality. Economic drivers of migration are most frequently used to explain population movements in the South African context, given, especially, that slow and uneven economic growth, economic disparities, inequality and unemployment persist as some of the country's biggest socio-economic challenges. Urban living holds the promise of employment prospects and improved conditions, and thus the basic premise of many micro-level models of migrant decision-making is that migration occurs with the expectation of being better off in doing so. The research design of this study set out to empirically investigate the theoretical perspective of the push–pull model of migration from an economic and settlement-based standpoint, and makes novel contributions to the disciplines of Geography, Geographical Information Science, and Urban and Regional Planning. The ultimate aim was to establish a settlement-level perspective of the spatial relationship between economic output (as a measure of economic performance) and working-age population change in South Africa between the Census years of 2001 and 2011. To support the settlement-level analysis scale, special attention was paid to sourcing fine-resolution economic and population datasets covering both the national spatial extent, as well as the tenyear temporal analysis window, and applying advanced GIS methods and techniques to prepare, align, analyse and visualise these datasets. In addition, traditional non-spatial statistical analyses were also employed to measure and quantify the relationship using a correlation-based research approach. Furthermore, the research also proposed a novel way of classifying settlements in South Africa, according to their economic profiles. Based on the research findings, the study identified eight broad settlement types in South Africa, according to an economically profiled settlement classification typology. Population change in the working-age population was found to have a positive statistically significant association with economic performance at settlement level in South Africa. This relationship proved to be multifaceted, given the complex nature of the South African economic landscape at settlement level, with considerable variability (based on the strength of the relationship) between different settlement types. While none of the settlement types exhibited a very strong relationship between economic performance and population change, several settlement types did indicate a moderate to strong association, while other settlement types were shown to have negligible to weak associations. Furthermore, in certain settlement types, some demographic groups, based on age, gender, employment status, and skill level, were found to have markedly higher associations with the economy than others. In its empirical contribution towards evidence-based decision-making, especially in the domain of urban and regional planning, the research findings are valuable in helping to support future policy and development interventions so that development planning can be more successfully targeted and more sensitive to the local South African context, given that South Africa has an intricate history of labour migration, and labour-force participation is a key factor for individuals to improve their socio-economic status. The study highlights important spatial linkages between economic opportunities and patterns of population change in South Africa, and defines and explores a new perspective of this relationship at settlement level. The results of this study further reinforce the literature, that nuanced and dynamic interplays are evident between the push and pull factors influencing population-change dynamics, in that, on its own, economic performance was not found to be a definitive predictor of population change or migration likelihood at settlement level.
- ItemOpen AccessAction and Reaction: Developing an architecture of movement(2014) Emery, Luke; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, MelindaThis dissertation deals with the phenomenon of movement in relation to architecture. What does it entail to create an architecture of movement and what possibilities can this type of design offer us outside of 'conventional' architecture. The research behind the topic bases itself in the theory of Game Design as a tool to structure movement with meaning. Game Design proves itself to be a potent tool in encouraging interactivity, in turn handing over a certain level of control and design over to the players participating. The more control afforded to the players, the more they can affect the outcome and experience of a game. This means games are a medium with the possibility for high replay value as players go back to experience the multiple outcomes of a game. The theory of using Game Design as a tool in architecture is then tested through my own design located on the edge of the Grand Parade in Cape Town. The design aims to create an architecture of multiple outcomes including an 'Everyday' and 'Festival' narratives through the use of movement. Game Design is used as a tool of analysis in order to determine whether the movement is integral to the architecture and its intended function through spatializing the key principles identified in the theory of Game Design. The conclusion drawn is that Game Design is an effective tool in aiding design in architecture. Its value emerges through the fact that it challenges design decisions made within architecture based on how integral they are in relation to the social and programmatic rules and expectations the project attempts to deal with.
- ItemOpen AccessAdaptive Healing: Exploring therapeutic architecture and the integration of addiction rehabilitation into the Cape Flats, Mitchells Plain(2014) Basson, Johan; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, MelindaThis dissertation explores therapeutic architecture and the integration of addiction rehabilitation into the Cape Flats, Mitchells Plain area. This project ultimately introduces the concept of an integrated community rehabilitation and wellness centre in one of the most notorious, unhealthy urban environments in the Western Cape, Mitchells Plain. This will demonstrate that a healing environment can be achieved in any context, urban or rural. A rehabilitation centre that engages with its surrounding community, fostering various levels of controlled interaction between patient and public. An integrated facility that gives back to its community through shared facilities. This investigation also unpacks the existing rehabilitation ecology and the gradual transition process in the formulation of a new hybrid system that combines the various stages of rehabilitation within a centralised facility. The project aims to deinstitutionalize the existing rehabilitation programme through the ‘simulation of a real life’ concept, where the facility will incorporate familiar elements, such as the house, neighbourhood and downtown to replicate the variety of environments in our everyday lives. The design uses ‘nature as therapy through architecture’ with the implementation of various concepts, which includes a raised therapeutic platform and a perimeter planter, serving as an urban filter that defuses the harsh urban context of Mitchells Plain. This project also explores the role of Architectural technology in therapy and ultimately introduces the concept of a highly localised adaptive façade system that allows for individual patient control and to filter the interactive visual relationship between patient and public. Our modern healing facilities have been designed to house apparatus for healing but not to be healing instruments in themselves. Architecture should be considered just as significant as the treatments that it houses.
- ItemOpen AccessAnalysis of the impact of location factors derived from different techniques on the predictive accuracy of CAMA models(2004) Musekiwa, Themba; Whittal, JenniferIncludes bibliographical references (leaves 112-115).
- ItemOpen AccessArchitectural modernism and apartheid modernity in South Africa a critical inquiry into the work of architect and urban designer Roelof Uytenbogaardt, 1960-2009(2010) Murray, Noëleen,; Shepherd, NickRoelof Sarel Uytenbogaardt who died in 1998 was, and remains, an important and influential figure in the disciplines of architecture and urban design in South Africa. As a prolific practitioner and academic at the University of Cape Town his influence has been far-reaching. Making use of previously unexamined archival material, this study examines - in detail - the extent of this influence. Importantly the thesis seeks to situate Uytenbogaardt’s work in relation to the rise of apartheid and speculates about the persistence of modernism in contemporary spatial practice. Through examining both the conception and reception of Uytenbogaardt’s buildings and urban plans, the work locates modernist approaches to design prevalent in architecture and urban design as products of apartheid modernity. The controversial and contested nature of Uytenbogaardt’s works provides space for critical analysis and this is evident in the uneven reception of his projects. Architects and urban designers revere him as a ‘master’ while pubic sentiment has very often been strongly negative. This is most strikingly evident in the case of the recent proposed destruction of one of Uytenbogaardt’s most controversial works, the Werdmuller Centre. Constructed in the 1970s after forced removals in Cape Town’s suburb of Claremont, since 2007 architects and urban designers have argued passionately for its retention as an example of ‘timeless’ modernist heritage. Through this and other examples, the thesis explores the complexities presented by professional practice in architecture and urban design in the context of designing buildings for designated publics under apartheid. It argues that the work of practitioners and academics such as Uytenbogaardt is intimately linked to the social crisis of apartheid and that the resultant relationship is one of the complex and interrelated crises of modernist design that persist in post-apartheid South Africa.
- ItemOpen AccessThe architecture of learning environments and community integration(2012) Botha, Lezanne; Noero, Jo; Coetzer, NicThis thesis is focused on architectural theories and design concepts which will add to the discourse of the what learning environments should or could be in the 21st century. It is based on the idea that spaces for learning need to be more “alive and that architecture can stimulate positive social interaction between people. The current public education system and its related standards, requirements and policies, with regards to physical learning spaces, does not address the present needs of children as it ought to. Many schools in South Africa are not built and designed to function as sustainable buildings and they often do not cater for the economic, environmental or social needs of current and future learners, teachers and community members.
- ItemOpen AccessArchitecture, dance and materiality : using choreology and sensuous materials to enhance the experience of architecture(2009) Fleming, SarahFor the first semester of this year, we were required to submit two documents, one to do with theory (the thinking of architecture), and one to do with technology (the making of architecture). My theory document, 'Architecture and Dance' and was to do with using the study of dance to enrich the spatial experience of architecture. This project was initially generated by my interest in dance. The technology document, 'Sensuous Materiality in Architecture' was about using sensuous materials to stimulate the haptic senses of the user, and therefore enhance the experience of being in architecture. Since both the documents had similar themes (enriching the experience of the spatial experience of architecture), I have elected to combine these two documents into one. This is now the first section of this project, titled 'Critical Research'. The second (and final) section of this project, titled 'Design Project', is my interpretation of this research in order to design a building. There are three parts to this section, 'Programme', 'Site Research' and 'Concept Design' which will support my final design to be presented at the exam at the end of October.
- ItemOpen AccessAssessing customary land administration systems for peri-urban land in Ghana(2013) Akrofi, Emmanuel Offei; Augustinus, ClarissaCustomary tenure is the predominant land tenure system in Ghana. It has been practiced for many years. Customary land tenure is built on the foundations of an African concept of land, distinguished by centrality of community, spirituality, and mutual dependence of the individual and the community. Colonization, increased population, rapid urbanisation has placed enormous pressure on customary tenure, especially in peri-urban areas. This study investigates customary administration in peri-urban Ghana. Using critical realism and multimethodology, peri-urban customary tenure in Accra and Kumasi, the fastest growing cities in Ghana, are assessed. A model for assessing functionality for peri-urban customary systems has been developed. The results indicate that functional customary systems adhere to the principles of good governance in customary land administration, although a lot needs to be done to improve accountability, transparency and land rights of women. It was also observed that whether the system has patrilineal or matrilineal inheritance does not have any significant influence on functionality. Further research is recommended to investigate best practices from other tenure systems to improve peri-urban customary tenure without compromising good aspects of customary systems.
- ItemOpen AccessAtrium defines form(2011) Claypole, SebastianThe natural environment is deteriorating and electricity demand is outstripping supply partly due to our growing built environment and economy. In response there is a need for energy efficient office space to accommodate economic growth and help with the conservation of the environment. The inner city is a perfect location to achieve this using already deteriorated land and increasing the inner city density to reduce urban sprawl. There is an urgent need for developers to invest into the idea of energy efficiency however this has been restricted because of our economic environment and the need for just usable space. The creation of energy efficient buildings is typically more expensive mainly due to the introduction of new technologies and materials.
- ItemOpen AccessBellville public transport interchange(2014) De Klerk, Stephan; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda; Meyer, TiaanPublic Transport has played a fundamental part in my personal life as it was the mode of transport used to get to friends, part-time work and ultimately university campus over the span of eleven years. Using the South African public railway service on a daily basis for the past six years, it has made me aware of many fundamental architectural problems within this arena, with the biggest concern lying within the public transport interchange precinct; at the coming together of the different modes of public transport. Staying in the Northern Suburbs my entire life, attending Bellville High school and later the University of Cape Town, meant that the Bellville Public Transport Interchange has had a big impact on my idea and conceptions on the functioning of a public transport interchange. Subconsciously studying the Bellville Public Transport Interchange and understanding its functioning over the past eleven years has made me aware of the absence of architectural contribution within its current operational system and has lead me to the investigation of the relationship between architecture and the Bellville public Transport Interchange. The dissertation document that follows seeks to improve the current relationship between architecture and the Bellville Public Transport Interchange through the use of vertical and horizontal architectural layering systems.
- ItemOpen AccessBuilding walls, breaking boundaries : a study of difference and inclusion at Deer Park, Cape Town(2014) Jankes, Taryn; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda‘Building Walls: Breaking Boundaries’ is based on the manner in which difference and diversity meet in the city and how architecture and the built environment can be used as a tool to either facilitate interaction or hinder it. Cape Town is a vibrant multicultural city, endowed with a monumental natural landscape that defines its edges. Despite this, the visual language of the city is one of spatial separation; a result of the enduring legacy of Cape Town’s colonial past and modernist city planning, and further perpetuated by the segregationist programme of the Apartheid regime. Cape Town is a place where a variety of natural features and diverse landscapes and persons are concentrated, but each remains isolated and segregated, resulting in the potential of this diversity being lost. My interest lies in the exclusion of both people and animals from the city. Through contradiction and confrontation, this dissertation investigates what happens when these previously excluded groups are reintroduced back into what society deems normal or acceptable. It explores what changes occur when our neatly compartmentalised lives are injected with the unfamiliar, where the boundaries we define are traversed, and where the walls we built to keep ourselves separate are broken down. In this dissertation report, I will explain how people with mental illness and nature are included through an architectural intervention that reconciles the contrasting programs of a halfway house, a sanctuary for neglected city animals and a gateway building as a public interface for Table Mountain. While I have chosen a specific site and designed a building particular to that site, several other comparable sites have been identified within the city where this concept is relevant and can be applied within site specific opportunities and constraints. However the focus of this dissertation is not an urban scaled intervention but an architectural solution to a site which allows the fullest exploration of the conceptual framework underlying this project.
- ItemOpen AccessChurch - Club: A study in cross programming as a means of survival for the church in the contemporary urban environment(2014) Welz,Thomas Marcel; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, MelindaThis dissertation sets out to discover a new of mode of being for the Pentecostal church which will ensure its survival and continued existence in the contemporary urban environment of the Claremont Central Business District. It is argued that the institution of the church is under threat in the urban context. The church is in decline and urban land is in demand. The dissertation argues cross-programming the church will ensure its survival within this context by introducing new and diverse revenue streams which reduces dependence on dwindling membership contributions, opens up new dialogues between the church and its context, thus justifying its place within the context by filling gaps within and building on the existing contextual programmatic mix. Central to this programmatic problem the space of the church still needs to hold onto and express the essence of what it is that makes it a sacred space. The initial data gathering was done by site, programmatic and statistical analysis; this data was gathered on site and through various publications. In addition, theoretical and technical research was gathered through various peer reviewed texts and publications. In the process of gathering information, common themes, patterns and connections between the different analyses were made which in turn led to further research or conclusions which assisted the argument and informed the design development of the project. In conclusion, it was found that the central idea of cross-programming the urban church was workable. Here there would undoubtedly have to be some compromise as each programme presents different requirements, but ultimately the application of the key theoretical theme of verticality brought unity to the scheme. Additionally, there was also need for some unconventional construction techniques to achieve comfortable internal environments. Finally, the result of the incorporation of diverse programming proved to yield greater and more diverse interactions between the church and its context which ultimately ensures its place, role and survival in the contemporary urban context.
- ItemOpen AccessThe combine harvester: defining a new food retail typology(2014) Kuiper, Sarah; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda; Beattie, JenniferThe project developed out of a theoretical inquiry into the use of food as a design tool to facilitate urban regeneration. The need for change arises from the loss of public space due to corporate control over food and food retail taking place in privatised environments. This socio- spatial polarisation becomes visible when mapping the change from historic marketplace to supermarket. The two primary concerns which arise from this socio-spatial polarisation are that of food being viewed as a utilitarian commodity, which allows routine shopping to take place in a supermarket rather than a market, and an evacuation of the public realm with the disappearance of food from public marketplaces. Spatial and infrastructure analyses of existing food retail models within the existing food system in Cape Town identify an appropriate supermarket-market hybrid that facilitates the flows of people and produce while regenerating public space.
- ItemOpen AccessCommunity participation in the architectural design : a South African perspective with focus on Langa Township, Cape Town(2005) Ullmann, Christoph; Low, IainThe intention of this thesis is to analyse community participation by the example of one particular firm in Cape Town, South Africa. The thesis investigates in a time period between 1989 and 2000. That means that the study considers the planning conventions in "black" Langa Township before, during and afer apartheid. The study accepts the philosophy of one particular author, Henry Sanhoff who is internationally acknowledged for expertise in community participation. His theory is based mainly on the social and economical environment of developed countries and holds therefore the potential to transfer knowledge into the nature of community participation as it is understood in South Africa by one particular firm, SC-Studio architects.
- ItemOpen AccessConceptual design of a GIS-based land inventory model for urban informal settlement land management(2000) Yirenkyi, Samuel Yaw; Barry, MichaelBibliography: leaves 77-82.
- ItemOpen AccessThe Contemporary Cape Winery: A Wine Cooperative for Jamestown, Stellenbosch(2014) Bernard, Anthonie; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda; Beattie, JenniferThis dissertation aims to engage critically with the commercial wine estate typology in the Stellenbosch wine region in the Western Cape. The social problems faced by farm workers in the region calls for a re-interpretation of the winery typology to ensure a more socially sustainable future for the viticultural industry in South Africa. In order to achieve this, the general state of the commercial wine estate in the region will be read in relation to aspects such as heritage, social responsibility and spatial relationship to urban areas and farm worker communities. To develop this new typology, a site with agricultural potential and a direct connection to an urban farm workers settlement will be used. The potential of the urban environment will be analysed in relation to the existing facilities in the community to determine a solution for a new typology of winery which will bridge the divide between community and the farm in such a way where it will be beneficial for both and through this create a new social structure for the wine estate. The possibility of an densified wine cooperative will be investigated. The design will consist of a large scale urban framework for the wine cooperative and a detailed design of the winery within the context of the new cooperative.
- ItemOpen AccessContext based detection of urban land use zones(2011) Louw, Johan; Sithole, GeorgeThis dissertation proposes an automated land-use zoning system based on the context of an urban scene. Automated zoning is an important step toward improving object extraction in an urban scene.
- ItemOpen AccessCreating Connections in the City: From road to street; and buffer zone to landscape: Residual highway space as a tool in stitching segregated neighbourhoods into the urban fabric(2015) de Beer, Christine Caryl; Fellingham, Kevin; Fraschini, Matteo; Silverman, MelindaThe fractured form of the post-apartheid South African city, created by city planning laws based on racial segregation, sustains inequality. Under apartheid, neighbourhoods were designed to exist in isolation. This isolation was created and reinforced by infrastructure and large areas of open space. This project recognises that residual space created by the highway could be an opportunity to stitch together the urban fabric. The project aims to address these spaces by using program to create connections. It finds its program in a sports centre on the border between Bonteheuwel and Langa. By understanding how our cities came to be fragmented globally, and its impact in South Africa, this project unpacks case studies that have created connections, extracting strategies that are useful and can be adapted in the South African context. It reviews literature that highlights new thinking about the city and the shift in the planning agenda from separation to integration. The project aims to address the separation between the two neighbourhoods of Bonteheuwel and Langa. It does this by transforming a road that divides, into a connective street; and by inhabiting the buffer zone with program in order to create an active landscape. The strategic choice of site is at an intersection of a new connection made into Langa, and presents the opportunity to address both these conditions of road and buffer zone. By creating an active street edge, the urban fabric becomes continuous between Bonteheuwel and Langa. The precinct has been designed so that the landscape offers the potential of connection by being programmed with urban agriculture, sports facilities and recreational space. These two predominant ideas prompted the conceptual understanding that the building becomes the transition between urban edge and landscape. A ramp is used as a mediating device to negotiate level changes both from inside to outside, as well as navigating the internal topography of the building. By recognising the opportunity of these residual spaces alongside the highway, these sites can be used to stitch together the isolated neighbourhoods in our city.
- ItemOpen AccessCrustal deformation and geodetic site stability determination using GPS(2001) Combrinck, Willem Ludwig; Nicolson, GeorgeBibliography: p. 160-167.