110
The Prototype Design
111
SCOPE
111.1
ORGANIZATION
The building system developed for Veterans Administration hospitals is
presented in the form of a Prototype Design supplemented by a Data
Base. The Prototype Design is divided into two basic categories of
components: planning modules and building subsystems.
PLANNING MODULES
PROTOTYPE DESIGN
BUILDING SUBSYSTEMS
BUILDING SYSTEM
DATA BASE
The Design Manual consists of a description of the planning modules and
building subsystems, followed by a discussion of design procedure. The
Data Base is in a separate volume.
111.2
BACKGROUND AND INTENT
111.2.1
A Working Hypothesis
The building system described in this manual was developed in response
to a set of problems the Veterans Administration has been experiencing in
the design and construction of hospitals.
Briefly, these problems are: rising costs, lengthy periods between
programming and occupancy, accelerating obsolescence and inadequate
building performance. The general approach has been the application of
the so-called "principles of systems integration". (For a discussion of
these principles, see Section 610).
The particular method employed was the direct design of a building
system by consultants to the Research Staff of the Office of Construction,
on the basis of building products already on the market. There has been
no attempt to develop new products or a proprietary "kit of parts". The
innovations suggested by the Prototype Design are in the nature of more
or less unconventional ways to use or combine conventional materials and
components.
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