As an
interior designer it is our job to help educated and engage our clients on a
design. When designing sustainable interiors interior designers must be
educated upon many different strategies to integrate this into their design.
There are two main types of design I will touch upon: commercial and
residential. Both of these types of interior designs are done inside buildings,
so it is therefor important to understand different approaches to sustainable
buildings to better understand and apply sustainability to their interiors.
There are four basic approaches for the treatments of properties, which can
conserve resources, materials, land, and energy all while diverting waste to
landfills: preservation, rehabilitation, restoration, and reconstruction. Preservation,
“ places a high premium on the retention of all historic fabric through
conservation, maintenance, and repair. It reflects a buildings continuum over
time, through successive occupancies, and the respectful changes and
alterations that are made”. For example an old building on a plantation would
have an interior decorated using the same fabrics and furniture it did when it
was first built. Rehabilitation, “emphasizes the retention and repair of
historic materials, but more latitude is provided for replacement because it is
assumed the property is more deteriorated prior to work”. Rehabilitation focuses on keeping the
historic character of a building by maintain the floor plan for example and the
drapery, however the drapery many need to be mended and or replaced. Buildings
may also fall under adaptive reuse projects meaning the building is
rehabilitated into a building for new use. An example in Laramie including the
Civic Center that was once a school but is now used for offices and businesses.
Restoration “focuses on the retention of materials from the most significant
time in a property’s history, while permitting the removal of materials from
other periods”. Reconstruction “establishes limited opportunities to re-create
a non-surviving site, landscape, building, structure, or object in all new
materials”. For example in Green River a historic school caught on fire and
burned down so the building could be reconstructed back to its original
structure. When considering the optimal strategy for a buildings reuse one must
take into account the importance in history, physical condition, proposed use,
and the mandated code requirements.
Commercial
interiors are important to include sustainable practices in as these facilities
are impacted and used by large amounts of people. Offices have a significant impact of millions of workers, the
environment, and financial viability of an organization. As many performances
are being held in an office a flexible floor plan is necessary, especially in
the fast changing environment we live in today. Spaces should also be designed
to serve multiple purposes. As businesses are focused on productivity lots of
daylight should be incorporated to increase productivity. Floor plans must also
accommodate for changing technologies. Schools
are significant buildings that use large amounts of energy and light. It is
therefore important to provide controls for mechanical systems like this, as
schools are not used all of the year. Daylight should also be incorporated into
the design to increase productivity and decrease energy consumption. Room
acoustics should be brought into consideration as well to increase productivity
and comfort. Anther strategy to include in schools is the educational aspect of
the sustainable building. Like the Business building here on campus, the
building should provide education material towards how it is helping the
environment. Healthcare facilities are
another significant structure that impacts the environment, especially when it
comes to energy consumption due to heat loss/gain and electricity. Facilities
should be up to date to ensure the most effective use of energy and include
water-reducing fixtures. Efficient use of space is also important as the
healthcare industry and its technology is frequent to change. Hotels,
restaurants, and retail stores are unique in that the relay on customer
satisfaction. Hotels, in order to
engage the owner to incorporate sustainable practices they must be convinced
that the consumer will expect or appreciated these practices. Interior
designers can share to the client that customers are interested in
environmentally friendly practices. Also since the majority of customers are
ones who frequently travel it is safe to say they have already been exposed to
sustainable design and therefor the design will become standard to them. Restaurants have a very large concern
towards energy consumption and durable materials, furnishings, and finishes. It
is important to consider an entrance vestibule to reduce heat loss or gain and
to provide daylight in breakfast and lunch spots. Retail Stores are another location that uses an excessive amount of
electrical light and therefor uses lots of energy and is prone to high heat
gain. To find a niche retailers may want to consider environmentally or
ecologically focused retailing. This would me recreating the retail experience
with more natural daylight, education about the buildings sustainability, and
areas for more accurate separating and collecting of recyclables.
Residential
interiors are other very important spaces to take sustainability into account.
It is important for the interior designer to first understand the scope of
clients they will be working with. Many people in the United States find it necessary
to go bigger in terms of square footage. However when taking sustainability into
account it is important to remind your client to invest in residencies with
quality finishes and furnishings, rather than spaces with unnecessary large
square footage. One important element of designing a sustainable residence is
to make sure the floor plan is flexible and adaptable. As many people will live
in a home for an extended period of time their family may increase or decrease
and it is important to have a home that will adapt well with the changing
seasons. Adaptable rooms also do not have to serve a specific purpose, similar
to Japanese interiors; they can be large open rooms with dividing screens or flexible
rooms in general. Residences should also be designed to encourage sustainable
lifestyles. Well-designed and accessible recycling areas, easy to use compost,
and easy to use grey water systems are something to consider when designing a
space. To reduce the use of transportation the location of the building should be
considered as well as including spaces with bike storage. Sustainable energy
practices can also be incorporated into residential interior design. Controllable
thermostats, energy-efficient lighting, low-flow water systems, and the reducing
or elimination of convenience appliances should be considered.
Renovating
residential interiors is a great way to incorporate sustainability into ones
life style as well as updating a house that uses too much energy. When
renovating one should try to use all finishes like built in cabinets or tiling and
furniture that still has a usable life span. Updating the HVAC systems and
implementing prevention methods to reduce mold are necessary to increase the overall
life span of a building and will help improve the IEQ.
*Information received from Winchip, S. (2011). Sustainable
design for interior environments . (2nd ed.). Fairchild Books.
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