UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI
BACHELOR OF CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
MWANIKI G. PETER
REG. NO: B76/3596/2011
BCM 413: DESIGN STUDIO
DESIGN BRIEF FOR THE PROPOSED CONSTRUCTION OF AN ALUMNI CENTER WITHIN THE UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI.
INTRODUCTION.
• BACKGROUND INFORMATION.
Universities all over the world establish centres where their alumni conduct their business while at the same time providing a focal point for linking them to their alma mater. Being a world class university, it is for this reason that the University of Nairobi Alumni Association set toward a project to put up an alumni centre. The alumni centre targets the over 130,000 alumni who are envisaged to be a potential source of income to make the project a reality and a ready market for its activities. The centre is a good project that alumni will identify themselves with and act as a means of pooling their resources towards development activities at the university through partnerships.
• PROJECT OVERVIEW.
This Project Brief outlines the Association’s requirements and the project scope. It should be read in conjunction with the Association’s Expression of Interest documents issued in 2010.
The association looks forward to the alumni centre to play the following major roles:
• Provide venue for alumni events including conference meetings.
• Provide recreation facilities.
• Generate revenue to sustain the centre and cater for future expansions.
• Social network support to the university.
• Self-sustenance of the association.
The successful Consultant will be required to critically review previous studies and concept plans to use as a starting point for the development of the concept design. It is expected that the final design will allow for construction of a vibrant and welcoming community facility for the students and alumni of University of Nairobi, offering services and opportunities not currently available.
• PROJECT FACILLITIES.
The centre is envisaged to house the following facilities which will benefit the alumni, university and corporate world:
• Association offices- to serve as headquarters for association departments.
• Library- well-archived library and reading chambers to facilitate research and mentoring.
• Recreation centre- critical outlet for excessive energy, the alumni will benefit daily on the hour workouts. Featured are hot baths, spa, sauna, steam room, gym, salons, swimming pool, snooker and a squash.
• Hotel facilities- a four star hotel for dinning and catering facilities with a pub attached for afternoon and weekend drinks.
• Guest rooms- regular and deluxe guest rooms to accommodate out of town guests and alumni.
• Banqueting area- for special banquets, annual meetings, weddings, networking events among others.
• Conference and meeting facilities- to host alumni conferences and meetings. Will also generate income when hired out.
• Business centre- teleconferencing facilities, cyber, office support, equipment, photocopying, translation facilities and temporary office space for rental and small alumni and friends’ meetings, shower and day lockers will be available.
• Parking lot- for staff, students, alumni as well as other visitors to the centre,
• Courtyards- for both day and evening events organised by the university as well as the centre.
• Banking services- spaces for financial transactions to be carried out. The in-house bank will serve as the banker for the centre.
• Shopping mall- the centre is strategically locate between Kileleshwa and Westland along the newly constructed Westland-Yaya centre road and therefore provides a convenient location for shopping.
• Alumni gift shop- to sell soveniours, memorabilia and other gifts to the alumni such as master rolls, alumni directors among others.
• Hall of fame- for those alumni who have made significant contribution in the society.
• Vice chancellors court- a special reminiscence dedication court for all vice chancellors who will have greatly impacted growth and development of the university.
• PROJECT COST
The Center is estimated to cost ksh. 900 million according to the draft design and will take 2-3 years to complete (2013 to 2015). The University of Nairobi Council has donated 2 acre land as their contribution to the Alumni Centre project. The association has set aside ksh. 36 million towards the construction of the Alumni Center.
• PROJECT DESCRIPTION
• LOCATION
The Alumni Center will be located in a quiet and serene location with ample parking space, green split level lawns, and superb surroundings at at Arboretum Drive/Chiromo next to UNES headquarters. Musongawai River passes through the plot. The river basin will be utilized for outdoor recreational facilities and sitting garden spaces. The Site is a 5 minutes’ drive away from Nairobi’s CBD, is approximately two acres in size located off State house road between the UNES consultancy and the university clinic. The parcel is fenced and faces state house road to the south west. The road will offer easy access to the site which is neighboured by high income Westland, Riverside and Kileleshwa estates.
• SITE INVENTORY.
INVENTORY ITEM / INVENTORY ANALYSIS / PROPOSED ACTIONVegetation on site:
i. Shrubs and bushes
• Trees / -sparsely distributed towards the SW and densely distributed on the NE region.
- mainly small bushes of up to 2m high.
-large trees densely distributed on the NE region.
- around 30 in number with height up to about 30m and up to 1m diameter / - Site clearance of all shrubs, bushes and large trees.
Slope of land / -land gently rolls in the SW region and slopes steeply towards the NE of the site.
-terrain is smooth in the SW region but becomes rugged towards the NE region.
- height difference between highest and lowest points is about 6m. / -Terrace land.
- Cut and fill land.
Existing buildings on site / • 3 buildings on site ;
• UNES consultancy and Ariziki restaurant to the west occupying around 300m sq.
• Residential homes at the centre of the site occupying around 200m sq.
• DSQ(servant quarters) at the NW region occupying approximately 40m sq. / -Clear site.
Nature of soil / -proposed site mainly consists of red soil.
- large graded particles and small rocks are also evident on site. / -Cut fill and ram, excavate foundations and remove all rocks.
Nature of neighborhood / - Site is surrounded by high income residential estates and the university recreation ground. / -uphold environmental sustainability.
Boundary wall / - 300m boundary wall existing on site. / - Retain boundary wall.
Water supply and sewerage systems / -water mains are located to the NE of the site.
-there exist a sewer tank, three inspection chambers and four manholes. / -adjust design to fit water supply and drainage layout
-retain sewer tank and demolish inspection chambers and manholes.
• PROJECT SCOPE AND DELIVERABLES.
• OFFICE BLOCK.
Gaining independence from the university is desired for alumni association officers and the office block will harbor the association headquarters. Design should ensure easy access by officers and others and embrace the modern concept of office sharing. The office block will occupy the first 3 floors (ground, first and second floor) and will have the following facilities:
NAME OF SPACE / FACILLITY DESCRIPTION / AREA• Reception area / Central desk where building visitors report and seek assistance and direction. Will include a small archiving chamber. / 16.5M2
• Chairman’s office / The alumni association chairman will execute his duties in this office. Will include a small boardroom for attending committee meetings and briefings. Will also include a small chamber to host the secretary to the office.
• Deputy chairman’s office / The deputy chairman of the association will execute his mandate from this office.
• Charter offices / 20 charter offices hosting each of the 20 association charter officers and members. / 18M2
• Finance office / This will serve as the accounts department where association and other treasury records are monitored and preserved.
• Alumni rep. office / This will host the alumni representative’s officer who attends to alumni registry and issues.
• Security office / Special department that will address security concerns within the entire alumni centre. Will be an extended wing of the university security framework. / 36m2
• Boardrooms / 2 boardrooms for hosting committee meetings.
• Kitchenette / A small kitchen facility where association officers’ meals and drinks will be prepared. Equipped with a kit store and small laundry area. / 20m2
• Store room / Small room for storing cleaning equipment and workers’ changing room,
• Washrooms / There will be 3 wings of washrooms strategically located to suit design.
• LIBRARY.
The library is essential to the centre to avail information and knowledge resources such as books, journals, magazines and newspapers, internet and networking facilities among others. There will be space for English style reading chambers where alumni and other visitors can read, browse or meet for morning or afternoon coffee. The library will occupy two floors above the office block (third and fourth floor) and will have the following facilities:
NAME OF SPACE / FACILLITY DESCRIPTION / AREAReception lobby / Central desk where building visitors report and seek assistance and direction. Will include a left luggage zone and a small catalogue chamber where library visitors will search for their preferred books electronically.
Library area / Space consisting well-arranged book shelves in streams, circular, block and/or other configuration. Will contain reading resources such as books, journals, magazines, newspapers among others.
Librarian’s office / Office area that will host the librarian from where he/she will execute his/her mandate.
Reading lounge / Will be space for English style reading chambers where alumni and other visitors can read, browse or meet for morning or afternoon coffee.
Bookstore / Separate chamber consisting of the association’s bookstore where books and other materials for sale will be found. Will include a small reception with a cashier docket.
Masters and PHD library / Special library area for advanced studies and research. Will archive masters and PHD research materials.
Networking room / Room fitted with Ethernet cables where alumni and other visitors can access free internet connection through the available university giganet amenity.
Relaxing balcony / Open roof relaxing and reading space where alumni can enjoy sun basking and aerial view of the entire alumni centre.
washrooms / Separate gents and ladies washrooms will be provided an each floor of the library.
• PARKING LOT.
Adequate parking spaces will be provided for the over 30 staff officers as well as alumni and other visitors to the centre. Parking will be provided in the basement of the office block as well as outside parking. Both 60 and 90 degree parking orientations will be used in designing the parking layout. Parking space will be provided as follows:
NAME OF SPACE / FACILLITY DESCRIPTION / AREAOutside parking lot / Will be designed to contain 50 vehicles. Will harbor cars for alumni as well as other visitors to the centre. / 750m sq
• EXISTING SERVICES ON SITE
Dominant services on the proposed site include:
• Access road - The site is served by Statehouse road toward the western edge. The road is a tarmacked highway that connects Nairobi's Central Bussiness District and University of Nairobi with riverside and kileleshwa estates.
• County coucil clean water supply line - There exists a city council's fresh water supply line running along statehouse road to the west of the site.This line marks the source of clean water within the site.
• Overhead power cables - for electric tapping and distribution. Three Phase overhead power cables will be used for electric supply.
• Telephone line running along power lines - there exist telecommunication lines adjacent to existing power cables along the main road that acts as the main communication line
• County Coucil sewer line - This is to the North east of the site where there exists a ity council foul water drainage line.
• County Council sewerage manhole - on the central part of the site.
CLIMATIC ANALYSIS
The Climate in General
Although Nairobi is situated quite close to the Equator (See map of Kenya), its altitude of about 5,500 feet (1700 metres) results in enjoying an equable as opposed to a tropical climate, with temperatures neither uncomfortably low at night. The main features of the climate are the existence of definite wet and dry seasons, and the absence of any large seasonal change in temperature. For convenience the year can be subdivided into four seasons as follows:- Mid-December to Mid-March: Warm, sunny, dry. Mid- March to May: Main rainy season. June to Mid October: Cool, rather cloudy (especially July-August), dry. Mid- October to Mid-December Secondary rainy seasons. The only period of the year when the weather can be rather trying is during the hot, dry period shortly before the rains break in March. At this time mid-day temperatures rise to nearly 32°C, the relative humiditymay fall to 10%, and a moderately strong easterly wind tends to raise the dust.
Sunshine
Although the early mornings are often cloudy in Nairobi the sun nearly always breaks through
by mid-morning and throughout the year there is an average of nearly 7 hours of bright sunshine per day ; 30% more sunshine occurs in the afternoon than in the morning , so that westerly exposures receive more insolation than those facing east.
There is also considerably more sunshine during the 6 months that the sun is in the southern
hemisphere, than when it is in north . Only occasionally during the rainy seasons , or in the
months of June, July and August, do days occur with no sunshine at all. Even in the cloudiest
month, August , there is an average of 4 hours sunshine per day.C
Temperature
Although the average temperature throughout the 24 hours varies only from about 17° during July and August to 20°C in March, the daily range of temperature is quite large, averaging about 10° in May and 15° in February. The human body quickly becomes sensitive to small seasonal changes of temperature, and many people in Nairobi welcomes a fire in their homes during the
evenings, especially in the months of July and August, Many of the residential areas of Nairobi are situated some 300 feet(100 metres) higher than the city centre and temperatures are accordingly some 1° or 2° lower. In the tables that follows the mean maximum and minimum