BUILDING SERVICES

VENTILATION PROBLEM IN HERITAGE BUILDING

WONG DE­VIN ( 0319814 )

GUNPUTH CHARANJEEV (0323942)

TAN HWEE MIN (0326057)

NURAFIQAH ZARIFUL (0321196)

CHA SHU QING (0326178)

LIM KAR YAN (0325602)

ESTHER CHUAH NING SIE (0321422)

LIEW LI WEN (0324297)

TABLE OF CONTENT

CONTENT

PAGE NUMBER

Introduction 2 ­ 4

Installation Process 5 ­ 9

Advantage and Disadvantage 10 ­ 11

Case Study 12 ­ 17

Possible Problems 18 ­ 20

Recommendations 21 ­ 24

Learning Outcome 25 ­ 27

References 28

Appendices 29 ­ 30

1

Introduction

Whenever we work in an enclosed space, at some point of the day we may feel

suffocated, start to feel the dust and other pollutants in a room. Moreover a rise in temperature

can make us very uncomfortable. This is because the air in the room is stagnant, it has no flow

and eventually start to smell. This discomfort can be eradicated by the use of ventilation.

Ventilation is the process during which a proportion of air in an enclosed space is

continuously drawn out and replaced by fresh air which is drawn in from a clean external

source. Ventilation is important as it is used to maintain air purity in an enclosed space. The

maintenance of air purity can be described as;

1. Preservation of oxygen content in the air.

2. Removal of carbon dioxide.

3. Control of humidity.

4. Prevention of heat concentrations.

5. Prevention of condensation.

6. Dispersal of concentration of bacteria.

7. Dilution and disposal of contaminants.

8. Provision of freshness.

Ventilation is experienced every day; the air­conditioning system in a car, fan in an office and natural wind are few examples. Ventilation can be categorised into two groups, namely natural ventilation and mechanical ventilation.

Natural ventilation is the flow of external air to an indoor space due to the difference

between the internal and external air pressures. Natural ventilation depends on wind and air

pressure or stack effect.

2

Wind and air pressure

When considering wind and air pressure for ventilation, windows and doors are the

mostly used to channel the wind through the building.

Stack effect

Stack effect is the movement of air within a tall building due to a difference in their

temperature. The hot air which is less dense will move upwards and colder denser air from the outside will get inside the building.

Mechanical ventilation

Mechanical ventilation is ventilation provided by machineries such as electric fans and

air condition system. The fan may circulate the air around or remove the used air inside.

3

Heritage building Heritage buildings means buildings that are of historic, architectural and cultural significance.

They must be preserved in order to share their part of history to the next generations to come.

Some buildings may be preserved in their normal state or some buildings are converted into

museums. The three key concepts that are needed to decide whether a building can be

considered as a heritage one or not are; historic significance, historic integrity, historic context. Historic significance is about the role played by the property in history, architecture or culture of

a community, region or nation.

Historic integrity is the originality of a property’s historic identity which can be proved by any

evidence which survived through the same historic period.

Historic context is the information that the property carries with itself about the history of the

community, region or nation.

Heritage sites can be spotted all over the world, some are big in size and some small but all of

them are very rich in history and had an important role for their respective countries.

Some of the most popular heritage sites in the world are Taj Mahal of India, Independence Hall

of Philadelphia, The Forbidden City of Beijing, Westminster Abbey of London and Chartres

Cathedral in France.

Installation Process

4

Forbidden City

1.Ancient traditional windows

Since the glass technology did not apply to the

construction industry in ancient China, kraft paper

or white tissue paper soaked in tung oil is generally

used as window materials , is the use of advanced

clamshell like the so­called " Ming Wa " to make .

This material with a thin piece of shell windows , called

" calabash shell window ," is a characteristic of the

Ming and Qing Dynasties Jiangnan architecture ; shell pieces by hand grinding process more

cumbersome , so there were only wealthy families that could afford it.

Many architectural features of the Forbidden City help

to relieve the summer heat. The Zhizhai window was

one of the great inventions: the upper part could be

tilted by strut for ventilation, while the lower part could

be removed to allow more light in. Due to the

ventilation needs during summer, the upper part of the

window should have a bigger area than the lower part.

Wall window is constructed by excavate a hole or

reserve a hole on a part of the wall, and then add on

some decoration around the perimeter of it to become

window. Actually it is more for decoration than

ventilation purpose.

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Mullioned window is installed by arranging the

vertical timber wood within the door frame and also

adding one or two horizontal timber wood in the

middle. This kind of window is widely used by ancient

people during that time.

2. Ancient Traditional Doors

Symmetry production is the main technical point of view for traditional doors. These

doors are usually made by hardwood.The timber plank need to be flattened by placing it on two

wooden stool. After that, draw out all the turnstile, threading, wood pin mortise, and the sawing

linear line symmetrically, to avoid making error during production.The threading must be scewed

with cap iron nail to make sure it is tightened and solid.

Ban Men is made of plank which is approximately 6 cm thick. During the installation,

bearing stone is used as center shaft, and the door frame is fixed with door pin. So that the door

can be opened freely with the supportation of hinges.

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Arched door is built up with bricks and then form a

semicircular arch shape as it’s opening. Some

openings consists of door panels to keep the

certain places being enclosed.

Sliding door can act as windows, doors, and walls. It

provide protection from external environment and

also act as partition wall for the interior part. The leaf

of the door is light in weight, therefore it’s easy to

install and remove. It generally consist of 4 main

part which is the window frame, external frame,

skirting and sash ring plate. It is installed between

the hypostyle column and eave column of the

building.

Westminster Abbey

1. Windows

Clerestory is a kind of high section wall that

contains windows which are arranged in rows. As

the clerestory windows are typically fixed, the main

purpose is to create a solid band of light. But

sometimes these windows are operable to allow

hot air rise and escape. It’s a great invention as

these windows set high on the wall and are

protected by roof overhangs which can protect

home from summer­sun heat and only winter sun

is allowed in.

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The stained windows are handcraft works of art

which are commonly used in churches,

museum etc. This kind of window is visually

attractive and can provide privacy due to the

decoration on the glass. But it limited the

amount of passable light through windows and

hence the room may be darker.

2. Traditional Doors

The oak door in Westminster Abbey has been known as the

oldest door in Britain due to the timber wood of the door which

consists the pattern of the tree rings. It is made of 5 vertical oak

planks and held together with 3 horizontal battens / ledges and

iron straps. Due to the material used, it’s still solid enough for

thousand years.

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Ventilating Lamp ( Sun Burner ) During those days when houses lit by gas especially with open flame burners, the temperature

varied enormously throughout the house and without the gas lighting providing some heat

elsewhere. And so there’s a solution to this problem is to connect the lamp through chimney to

outside air.

Therefore, it form a passage for the hot products of combustion to outside of the room and

became a means of ventilation. Hence, so called ventilating lamp.

This lighting fixtures could perform exceedingly well in their guise as ventilators, as they are

high up to the ceiling level where the temperature is the highest

These imposing fixtures would be the focus of attention of the ceiling with those amazing

design.

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Advantages and Disadvantages

Most of the heritage buildings rely solely on natural ventilation, as mechanical ventilation did not

exist at the ancient time.

Natural ventilation do not have visible pipe­work or duct penetrations hence providing a beautiful

architecture externally compared to mechanical ventilation that has space consuming ventilation

units such as air­conditioners or fans. Hence the use of natural ventilation is more aesthetically

pleasant.

Natural ventilation is also energy and cost efficient, as it does not require mechanical energy

because it uses elements of nature such as wind energy to enable natural air movement within

the building. An addition to it would be the benefit of reduced energy bills compared to

mechanical ventilation system that relies on electricity in the modern days.

Furthermore, natural ventilation systems are highly adaptable. Natural ventilation can be used in

all seasons throughout year. When temperature greatly differs between day and night during

different seasons, the buildings would benefit from stack effect as cooler outdoor air is drawn

into buildings at a lower level and warmed by the sources of heat within the building, and then

rises through the building to vent out through the high ceilings. A positive pressure area is

created at the top of the palace and negative pressure area at the bottom. This process takes

place simply by introducing openings such as doors at the ground floor level of the building, and

openings at the top of the building such as ventilation ducts or ceiling opening.

Besides that, minimal maintenance is required compared to mechanical ventilation, as it will

retain airflow over time, because the stack energy is utilized as part of the very design of the

building. Besides that, natural ventilation system supplies every room with an adequate amount

of warm and cool air to ensure the room temperature remains constant, hence ensuring thermal

comfort among people, reducing possibility of Sick Building Syndrome.

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In a building in which the doors and windows have been strategically positioned, it is easy to

achieve airflow throughout the building without the use of mechanical ventilation that has

relatively high price.

However, there may be problem to achieve the desired indoor environment consistently with

natural ventilation. The openings must be constantly altered according to the modulation of wind

speed, wind direction, and outside temperature to ensure proper fresh air distribution and

satisfactory fresh air exchange rates within the building. If the openings are not properly

adjusted in response to weather changes, the humidity level will vary due to extreme

fluctuations of indoor temperature. Orientation has to be carefully planned for naturally

ventilated buildings so that it is exposed to prevailing winds during the hottest part of the year. If

the building is improperly oriented relative to warm­weather winds during the summer, it would

be under ventilated, resulting in extreme humidity levels, hence causing the Sick Building

syndrome.

Not just that, the building requires more land space in order to take advantage of warm weather

winds which includes surrounding free space. The basic requirement of it is to have

unobstructed airflow around the building. Obstructions such as trees, buildings and other large

wind­deflecting obstacles may affect wind patterns and reduce wind energy available to

ventilate a building.

Taking all these factors into consideration, it would be a laborious work to build a high rise

building in an urban area which depends solely on natural ventilation because there are too

many obstructions that limits surrounding airflow. It would be advisable for houses or buildings

in rural areas to undertake natural ventilation whereby there is minimal surrounding obstruction

as it provides greater benefits compared to those within the urban state.

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CASE STUDY 1: The Forbidden City

History The Forbidden City was the palace of the Chinese emperor from the Ming dynasty to the end of

the Qing dynasty—the years 1420 to 1912. It is situated at the centre of Beijing, China, and

now houses the Palace Museum. For almost 500 years, it was used as a home to the emperors

and also used as ceremonial and political for the Chinese government.

It was constructed in 1406 and consisted of 980 buildings covering an area of 180 acres. The

palace is an example for traditional Chinese architecture which influenced cultural and

architectural developments in East Asia and many other places. In 1987, The Forbidden City

was declared a World Heritage Site and UNESCO listed it as the largest collection of preserved

ancient wooden structures in the world.

Since 1925, the Palace Museum has taken charge of the Forbidden city,which has an extensive

collection of artwork and crafts inspired by the imperial collections of the Ming and Qing

dynasties.

The reason why we have chosen this place to use it as our case study is simple. It has nearly a

thousand buildings in the amazing heritage site and it is built for the royalties, emperors and

kings back in the chinese civilization. Simply because of that we can find out what has been

made to make sure the ventilation is good and comfortable and which part of ventilation can

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they improve in their building since there was not any surveyors to measure the perfect

ventilation made back then.

As the picture showed , this was one of the main type of

ventilation used back in the chinese civilization. The

problem with this kind of windows and doors are they

cannot be able to trap heat in the building, even though

when the weather is hot and warm, it gives better

ventilation and cool air comes into the building easier

and hot air can leave the building easier but when it

comes to winter, the people inside of this room will find

that heat is hardly being trapped and easily leaked out of

the building.

Another problem is that if there happens to be rain or snow, the snow and storm water can enter

the building as it is not properly sealed and only blocked by a sheet of bamboo blinding.

In the big event halls and gathering points in the forbidden

city, it can be noticed that the ceiling are all pushed to a

very high point and there are ventilation windows placed

all around the highest point of the walls. This is made to a

minor stack effect as hot air can rises during summer and

exits through these windows and cooler air can enter the

building by the windows at the bottom and also through

doors. This also provides sunlight for extra brightness and

vision into the building but the problem to it is the hard access to the high windows and open

and close it. These concept cannot be found in the smaller rooms like bedrooms as the ceiling

are not built high enough to allow a passive stack effect to occur.

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If anyone have been to forbidden city or any ancient chinese cultured

buildings, it can be noticed that this kind of humongous wooden door

are used almost in every entrance. The main reason of this huge solid

timber door is because it is very strong and can withstand a very high

impact or even extreme weathers. The doors are built so big that if it is

opened, it can allow chill air from outside to enter the building in hot

days but in the winter, it is mostly shut to prevent heat lost in the

building and therefore there is a smaller door always built next to it for

access during winter and also to prevent rain or snow to be blown into

the building.

Back in the chinese civilizations, it is noticeable that the building were all built with very big

windows and very wide pillars firstly to allow sunlight to enter the building as there were not any

light back then and oil lamp cannot produce enough lighting for the whole building. Secondly is

due to ventilation, large window and wide pillars allows air to enter the building easily when

windows are opened but the disadvantage if it is that it does not have good privacy settings

because it have too many windows. These buildings were only built for the emperors relaxing

area and not his private area.

There are many factors that can affect the ventilation of a building and many architectural

designs have to be considered to prevent sick building syndrome to take place especially to

someone so important to the chinese civilization. There was not any mechanical ventilation back

then so they have to apply only natural ventilation and therefore architecture takes a huge part

in natural ventilation. From this case study, many examples can be taken to apply into our

buildings nowadays in term of its architecture and also how can it reach the comfort zone even

without any mechanical ventilation components taking place. It is spectacular how smart were

the designers back in the days and manage to build humongous palaces for their king and make

sure he is comfortable even there was not any ventilation technology except having slaves to

manually fan their king.

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Case Study 2 : Westminster Abbey

The Westminster Abbey, used to be called Saint Peter Collegiate Church is a huge, gothic

church that is located in Westminster, London. It is one of the most eye catching churches and

one of the most religious buildings in England and it has been the traditional place of burial and

coronation for the English.

Today, the church is still function for tourist purposes and also to use as an event hall for some

royal events. It has been the signature of Britain and it has a long history since the 1500.

The reason why we chose this building as our case study as there are many ventilations

examples that we can learn from this heritage building. The Westminster Abbey has been and

always will be the symbol of churches and England. Until today, the Westminster Abbey is still

opened for tourist, active as a church and houses many remarkable events of England for

example the marriage of Prince William , Duke of Cambridge.

A venue with such important roles, without any doubt it has to have extremely good ventilation

as it was made to house most important people in the world. But, there are also still flaws and

things to be done.

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In every single block and rooms of the Westminster

Abbey, there are tons of ventilation ducts installed in

the roof above the ceiling. As mentioned before, it is

made to have very big events that sometimes involves

the appearance of the Queen, so these ducts is the

make sure there is a way of air exiting the buildings as

quick as possible in order for cooler or fresher air to

enter the building. These ducts works with a

ventilation fan that absorbs air into the duct and pass these ducts, it will be released out of the

building.

This particular church is built with many windows on

the top and also on the ground floor itself, it is simply

because to allow sunlight to enter the building and

also for natural ventilation to occur most of the time.

Back in the days when ventilation technology is not

developed yet, most of this buildings, in fact all

heritage buildings are very dependant on windows

and door and therefore windows back then comes in

many shapes in sizes and play many different roles

even though it runs on natural ventilation. High windows are normally placed in such a way that

a passive stack effect can occurs most of the time as the ceiling as built very high too. The lower

windows are made to allow the flow of air into and also exit the building conveniently.

In the old days there when there was not any mechanical

ventilation yet, these shafts plays a very important role.

These shafts are use to make sure air exit and enter the

building consistently even when the windows are closed in

the building. These shafts are normally built either in the

ceiling and at the bottom of a building and have a

underground channel to send the air in the building far away

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from the building itself. These shaft can be used for safety purposes as well. Some of these

shafts are built big enough to use as an emergency exit route.

These type of windows serve many purposes to heritage

buildings mostly in churches. These windows can be

found everywhere in Westminster Abbey. One of its

purpose is for design purposes but it also allows plenty of

sunlight into the building. These windows cannot be

opened but it can allow heat to enter the building in the

afternoon simply because it is made out of glass and it

can magnify the sunlight and allow heat to enter the

building easily. Therefore it serve a good purpose during

winter and also when there is insufficient of light in the building.

There are many ventilation design and technology can be found in the Westminster Abbey even

though it is made with a very simple way. It is a very good example that we can learn from this

building as it plays a very important role for major events in England and also for tourist

purposes.

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Possible problems The ventilation system in Forbidden city and is basically natural ventilation. Due to limited

resources and techniques, mechanical ventilation is not available at that time. Impacts of poor

ventilation system in heritage building can have on differents parts of the buildings.Now,we will

examine the possible problems that arise from poor ventilation of the Forbidden city.

Existence of moulds and mildews The first problem I would like to highlight is that the existence of moulds and mildews, which can

be spread within the building . The moulds and mildews are normally caused by the

condensation. When the steam touches cooler surfaces around the room ,it will start to

condense. It may peel off wallpaper, create an unpleasant look on the ceiling wall,and even

destroy the structural integrity. Mould on the ceiling wall cannot be easily cleaned without using

any chemical products. The experts need to make sure that the products used is suitable to be

applied on timber as most of the structure components in Forbidden City are made up of timber.

Therefore,the selection of the chemical products must be very careful to reduce the degree of

damage to the building in Forbidden City.

Attack of the termites to the building structure As we know, timber is widely used for the construction of the most heritage building,as bricks or

concrete bricks is not yet invented at that time.In Forbidden city, the pillar of the most important

halls were made of whole logs of precious Phoebe zhennan wood., which might be attacked by

termites if the ventilation of the room is poor and the moisture level of the room is high. Termites

are often called as ‘silent destroyer’ and they like to feed on moist wood. Even if the outer

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surface of the pillar looks fine, the termites may be secretly

hiding and ‘eating’ the inner part of the pillar. If relevant

action is not taken immediately, the pillar which acts as the

structure component of the building might be collapsed. In

order to detect the location of the termites in Forbidden City,

high technology devices such as moisture sensor and termites

detection radar are used by the expert. Extra caution are

needed while doing the inspection to avoid any destruction to

the building.

Rusting of the metal components of the building

Failure in having a good ventilation system might also cause rusting. Rusting is the process by

which a chemical reaction occurs between the metal and the elements resulting in the

orange­brown, depending on the metal, coloring on the surface.The moisture produced by the

condensation process will cause the metal components of of the building such as nails,screws

and fixings to rust.The strength of metal components will be weakened and potentially break

which will endanger the safety of the occupants.

The rusted metal components from the roof The rusted shackle for connection purpose

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Excessive Heat / Cold inside the heritage building

Another possible ventilation problems in the heritage building is that the excessive heat cannot

be released in the summer and the cold air will enter into the building in the winter . In the

summer, the heat radiated from the sun to the building will increase the temperature inside the

building. Without a good ventilation system, there is no way for the hot air to be released. The

hot air is now trapped inside the building and it causes the discomfort of the occupants. On the

contrary, the hot air inside the building cannot be kept inside the building in the winter. The cold

air outside will flow into the building and decrease the temperature inside the building. With the

inflow of the cold air, the moisture level in the room will also increase which causes the

discomfort of the occupants too!

Existence of musty odour

Musty odour is the another possible problem I would like to mention about. In a poor ventilation

room, the build up of damp and humidity can create stuffy and uncomfortable odour, which can

spread to other areas of the building. It’s a dilemma, because if you can’t find the source, you

can’t remove the problem and get rid of the musty smells in the room. The use of air purifies and

air freshener can only get rid of the musty odour temporary. Breathing in this smell can affect

the physical well­being of the occupants.

Diseases transmission among the occupants

In addition, disease is the most severe consequence caused by the poor ventilation system. A

lack of ventilation can become hazardous for the health of the occupants. Respiratory and

pulmonary diseases such as asthma and difficulty in breathing can be linked to this problem.

When there is a occupant infected with some diseases such as flu or cough, the diseases might

be transmitted to other occupants easily in a poor ventilation room. Therefore, the ventilation

problem must be highly concerned to ensure the comfortable of the occupants.

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Recommendations Forbidden City is only depending on the natural ventilation and it has already become an

advantage that the Natural Ventilation reduce the energy use and cost. However, they can still

improve the ventilation system without prevailing approach of using mechanical ventilation to

provide acceptable indoor environment quality and maintaining a healthy, comfortable indoor

climate. Since natural ventilation systems rely on pressure differences (temperature or

differences in humidity) and Beijing has a temperate and continental monsoon climate, with four

distinct seasons and big differences in temperature between day and night. Here are some

recommendations on how to improve the ventilation system:

1. Solar Chimneys

This works on cold and relatively cloudy days. It can be useful for locations such as Beijing,

with hot summers and cold winters, by opening and closing vents, we can control the cooling

and heating effect.

A solar chimney uses the solar energy to warm up the air rising and increases the stack effect

thus increasing the entry of cold air inside the building. Solar chimneys need their exhaust

higher than normal roof level, and requires adequate sun exposure. They are efficient for sunny

weather; windy climate on hot days can usually get more ventilation using the wind itself. Below

are diagram examples of different solar chimney designs.

Thermal chimneys can also act as a cooling effect, as shown on the diagram above, the

incoming air like evaporative cooling passes through the openings.

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Aside from the cooling advantages, solar chimneys can also be used for heating. If the top

exterior vents are closed, the heated air is not exhausted out the top; at the same time, if high

interior vents are opened to let the heated air into occupied spaces, it will provide convective air

heating.

2. Effective area of multiple openings

In Natural Ventilation, the amount of ventilation will depend critically on the size and placement

of openings in the building, it is best for the Forbidden City to increase their installation of

openings between rooms such as transom windows, louvers, grills, or open plans to complete

the airflow circuit. Understanding how to bring wind into a building can make a big difference in

controlling thermal comfort inside a building. Strategically placed openings on windward sides of

a building benefit from the pressure of the wind to drive air through the windows. With cross

ventilation, air enters one side, goes through the whole targeted area and leaves on the

opposite side, but the pressure can also

stack effect.

A building section showing multiple

strategies for ventilation. (Image by R.

Thomas Jones)

Design strategies that help to beneficiate from wind pressure and air density to create an airflow

throughout the building.

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1) Place windows at both high level and low level to prevent cross ventilation.

2) Place corridors and chimneys such that it encourages airflow and stack effect within the

building.

The differences in air pressure will create a good airflow if one set of openings is on a hotter

side of the building and another on a cool side.

3. Installing waterproof vents

This is to passively ventilate attic spaces in hot climates. It is an important design strategy that is

often overlooked. On the other hand, to simply the prevention of overheating, these principles

can also be used to actually help to cool a building by using ventilated attics. There are several

types of passive roof vents such as openstack, turbine, gable, and ridge vents, to name a few.

Pictures below shows some of the example of how roof vents look like.

Stack ventilation can also allow the adjustability for the amount of cool and fresh air, operable

windows or ventilation louvers must be equipped with adjustable with inlet openings. Such

systems can be industrialized and controlled by thermostats to optimized the process.

4. Indoor climate cooling

Many of our historical buildings are actually old residences intended for a small number of

people. The primary task is to work with reducing the Instead of installing climate cooling, it is

possible to reduce solar heat gains by using external sun­screens. When installing plant rooms

in attics in older buildings, special solutions are often necessary to reconcile the work

environment requirements with the building’s design. If cooling is still needed in accordance with

the climate calculation, sun­shading should be investigated as an alternative: automatically

controlled awnings can often be the solution.

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5. Intake air via external walls

It is an advantage if you can pre­heat the intake air upon entry. One way is to convey outside air

via an intake air radiator. The air is drawn in through the external wall, filtered and pre­heated

when passing out through the rear of the radiator to be dispersed over the radiator. Another way

is to use an intake air convector that consists of a heat battery where outside air is pre­heated.

Taking in outdoor air via grilles into the radiators is a technically

good solution.

Vent convectors can also provide

pre­heated outdoor air when needed.

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Learning Outcome

It has been shown, therefore, ventilation plays a vital part in dominating the totality of

one building condition. In the older days, as the technology was not that advanced, natural

ventilation is the only way to keep a building in suitable condition for a human being to live in.

Based on the research we have done earlier, windows and doors were mainly used as the

ventilation system during the past centuries, which are being called as the natural ventilation

nowadays. Natural ventilation is the process which supplies and removes air through indoor

spaces by natural means, meaning without using any other mechanical system such as fan, air

conditioning and so on. It uses the physical theory which implies pressure difference between

the building and its surrounding, causing outdoor air flow to provide sufficient ventilation and

space cooling.

As global warming and increasing of high rise building, needs of ventilating and cooling

is amplified, making natural ventilation is not enough supply fresh air and has to be supported

with additional mechanical ventilation. According to the research done previously, natural

ventilation and mechanical ventilation both have advantages and disadvantages. In the

beginning of our research we briefly introduced the definition of the two ventilation system, the

natural and mechanical ventilation system. Next, we moved on to discuss about the methods of

natural and mechanical ventilation systems which acted as the prologue for the following parts

of the research. After that, we concise the features of heritage buildings and briefly introduced

the heritage chose for our case study, which are the Forbidden City and the Westminster

Abbey. Few possible problems are then being established from the case studies done which are

the causation of failures and defections of such ventilation system. Lastly, we provides some

recommendations to improve the existing ventilation system or to reduce the possible negative

effects caused by the system used now.

Ventilation is crucial for every building to ensure the air quality meets suitable living

standard for occupants of that premises. Firstly, it controls impurities in the air as ventilation is a

process that expels polluted air (probably contains pollutants like bacteria, moisture and nasty

whiffs such as body odour) and replaces it with fresh air. Ventilation system also reduces

possible condensation which may cause mold and rotten surface due to the damp condition of

such spaces where air flow are not directed. Furthermore, ventilation system serves as the key

constituent for controlling the temperature of the building. When the amount of people

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occupying a space is too hot, the environment may become hot and stuffy. At this time, natural

ventilation is not adequate to give continuous supply of fresh air needed, and so, mechanical

ventilation is used to solve this problem, leaving the environment to be more comfortable.

Incapable ventilation system can lead to relevant problem. The most significant is the

stimulation of Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). Sick building syndrome (SBS) is used to describe

situations in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects that appear

to be linked to time spent in a building, but no specific illness or cause can be identified. Hence,

a good ventilated building or space is necessary to keep the occupants in good health condition

and to promote a highly productive workplace for the occupants.

There are few objectives set for this entire research. One of the objectives is to extend

and refine our knowledge relating to the building services technology and the management

system chose which is the ventilation system. Through this research, we are broadly exposed to

different types of ventilation components used previous and now. By comparing the past and

now, we are able to understand current application in construction industry and identify the

benefits of having both traditional and modern ways of ventilating. We also learn that different

ways of ventilating gives different capacity of ventilating strength. Decision of usage of each

ventilation way depends on the demand of the airflow of the space, comprising the factor of

number of occupants and the usage of that particular space.

When browsing through the online materials available as reference for this research, we

are required to filter and interpret what we read to get the relevant points which support the topic

we chose. We tried to gain knowledge which is accurate and may be activated at the

appropriate time which then promotes new learning. We also found that it’s important to

organize the knowledge we got and able to retrieve and apply it effectively and efficiently in our

daily basis when appropriate connections between pieces of knowledge are made. As this is a

team­based assignment, all the work is separated evenly among the team members. We first

had few times discussion after the class to discuss on the assignments and follow up each

progress so that the assignment can be done before the due date reaches. All team members

are willing to spare their time and be active on each discussion session. This is good fact as any

idea can be shared among team members and the best solution can be picked. This

assignment gives a great impact in developing our interacting and research skills which can be

very useful in our future career. We very appreciate each effort and responsibility given by each

member throughout this assignment. Whole process runs smooth as each member able to offer

helping hands to each other when any of us met problems on retrieving information or

26

explanation. Credits also to be given to our lecturer, Miss Lim Tze Shwan who always gives

appropriate explanations in solving our problems met during this assignment. She leads us to

think in different point of views and so, excites our thinking and evaluating skills, which are

fundamental in completing this assignment. We are happy and satisfied working together as a

team and we deeply hope that there may be a second chance that we may work together again

to achieve higher goals. Thank you.

27

Reference

http://zyk.bucea.edu.cn/pub/fczgmc/gzygy/ztmcdgy/index.htm

http://www.chinahighlights.com/beijing/forbidden­city/

http://www.kinabaloo.com/forbidden_city.html

http://hua.umf.maine.edu/China/HistoricBeijing/Forbidden_City/

https://www.wbdg.org/resources/naturalventilation.php

http://www.sfv.se/globalassets/bygg­pa­kunskap/byggnadsvard/ventilation_in_historic_buildings

_b­2.pdf

http://www.i­sells.co.uk/blog/ventilation­for­westminster­cathedral/1707

http://www.dyerenvironmental.co.uk/sectors_heritage.html

http://climatechangeblog.historic­scotland.gov.uk/2012/07/ventilation­old­buildings­and­all­that­h

ot­air/

http://www.geocities.ws/dwetheridge/contents.htm

http://www.westminster­abbey.org/visit­us

http://www.visitlondon.com/things­to­do/place/610825­westminster­abbey

http://www.sacred­destinations.com/england/london­westminster­abbey

http://gbtech.emsd.gov.hk/english/utilize/natural.html

https://www.wbdg.org/resources/naturalventilation.php

http://sustainabilityworkshop.autodesk.com/buildings/natural­ventilation

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK143277/

http://coolvent.mit.edu/intro­to­natural­ventilation/basics­of­natural­ventilation/

http://www.heritagebuildings.com/

https://historicengland.org.uk/advice/heritage­at­risk/search­register/

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Appendices

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30