FLEXIBILITY CONCEPT IN DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION FOR

DOMESTIC TRANSFORMATION
Siddharth Inani
[email protected]
BF-29, Cautley Bhawan,IIT Roorkee,
Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India-247667
Ashok Kumar
[email protected]
Senior Principal Scientist & Head (Architecture & Planning Group)
CSIR- Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee,
Roorkee, Uttarakhand, India-247667
ABSTRACT
The flexibility is an important concept in the design of housing, particularly for the
economical weaker sections and lower income groups of populations, as most of the of
people that live in multistorey apartments find difficult to accommodate their families
because of the fixed space available in the apartments in mega cities of India. The
problem lies in the severe shortage of land at affordable prices to the group for building
individual houses and forced to choose the available shelter options not designed suiting
to their requirements. During the day time, most of the living space is required for the
daily activities but at night this space can be designed for sleeping. Similarly, the
furniture which is not used 24 hours, if folded, a lot of space can be created. The research
findings reveal that there are gaps in terms of lack of flexibility and multifunctional living
spaces, design and construction of modular units for multistorey apartments suiting to the
requirements of the people and the flexibility concept has not been attempted for such
segments of population in India. This design study has been carried out at undergraduate
level of Bachelor of Architecture, for innovation in Architecture and Construction with a
view to address the problems. The units in modules have been designed keeping in view
the socio-cultural aspects and the requirements of the people. This paper focuses on the
advantages of multifunctional flexible living space and the concept of modular planning
by using multiple units consisting of moving and folding of partition walls and furniture,
transformed into different objects by splitting them for more occupancy.
Keywords: Economically weaker sections, Flexibility, Innovation, Multifunctional.

INTRODUCTION
The concept of flexibility is an important concern in the design of housing. Flexibility
refers to the idea of accommodating change over time. Thus, flexible house corresponds
to a house that can adapt to the changing needs of users (Till and Schneider, 2005, p.
287). The spatial arrangement of individuals and the corresponding potentialities for the
interchange of ideas affect the very nature of knowledge creation and dissemination.
Fixed arrangements imply boundaries and inhibit spontaneous adaptations to new forms

of knowing and communicating. Flexible arrangements help blur boundaries and

accommodate the spontaneous groupings needed to support change and invention.
Flexible Housing is an architectural proposal imagined and coordinated at the room,
building and urban scales. Its basic building block manufactured modular construction
is an old tool yet to be utilized in the important efforts of housing communities around
the country to economically expand access to the quality living. Flexible Housing also
includes reasonable assumptions about the future feasibility of innovative details such as
wall size interactive media surfaces and mutable partitions. The Flexible Housing plan is
a call to think of residential building assets as readily alterable systems with components
capable of shifting, for example, from kitchen to living to bedroom or from housing to
commercial.
Four main themes adopted from the works of Schneider and Till (2005a, 2005b, 2007) to
discuss flexible housing, both from the perspective of users and in terms of innovative
construction and design, are introduced:
Structural system.
Service spaces including wet spaces and access units.
Architectural layout including different configurations of units and spatial
organization.
Furnishing for flexible use.
The aim of this study is to explore the extents and limitations of flexible design approach
in India. The main purpose is to find out how flexibility grants the opportunity to the
designers to produce creative options that will respond to changing demands of the users
during occupancy whether or not these options are exercised by the users.
Within this framework, this study tries to find answers to the questions mentioned below:
How does the idea of flexibility inform a design approach?
What does flexibility offer within the context of housing design?
What are the extents and limitations of flexible design approach in India?
What is the scope of flexible housing in India?
This paper explores the concept of flexibility in the design of multi-storeyed apartments
for the LIG group. The proposed innovative approach to housing design that concerns
flexibility, and aim to bring new perspectives to housing design in two ways: by offering
typological variety and by offering the possibility to change over time. The design
focuses on flexibility, adaptability and typological variety in the context of housing by
addressing/ designing the structural systems, service spaces, architectural layout,
and furnishing for flexible use.

THE STATE-OF-THE ART ON FLEXIBILITY

The flexibility, in the context of housing represents a comprehensive research on cases in
the European context beginning from the early twentieth century. Schneider and Till
(2007) which define and discuss the term flexibility. They introduce flexible housing
by providing a criticism on the current condition of housing in the UK, which they
consider as an outcome of a conventional approach. The study of Schneider and Till
shows the social, economic and environmental benefits and usefulness of flexible
housing.

According to Rabeneck, Sheppard and Town (1974), flexibility is related to the

construction technique and the position of service spaces in housing design, whereas
adaptability points to the architectural layout of the housing. Steven Grok (1992) defines
flexibility as capability of different physical arrangements and adaptability as
capability of adjustments and changes for different social uses. Moreover, according to
Herman Hertzberger (1991), flexibility suggests an open ended solution, which refers to
what is called rhetorical value of flexibility, defined by Schneider and Till (2005). He
introduces a new concept: polyvalence. It also has an overlapping meaning with
adaptability and flexibility (Habraken N. J., 2008). Gerard Maccreanor (1998) has a
different view about flexibility. He says that flexibility does not imply an endless
change and asserts that the buildings which are not originally designed for flexibility,
can be the most adaptable ones. Adrian Forty (2000), on the other hand, deals with
flexibility as an issue that requires long-term thinking in architectural design.
According Schneider and Till (2005a, 2005b, 2007), flexibility as accommodating change
in housing, addresses a number of issues related with the current and future needs of the
users. Firstly, it offers variety in the architectural layout of the units. Secondly, it includes
adjustability and adaptability of housing units over time. And finally, it allows buildings
to accommodate new functions. In order to provide flexibility, architects should consider
the possible future needs of users during the design process.
According to Schneider and Till (2005), one of the basic principles of designing flexible
spaces is to avoid inflexibility. In other words, design of the inflexible parts of a building
play a crucial role in achieving flexibility. Structural system and the service spaces are
the permanent components. The research focuses on the structure and plan of residential
blocks and their use. It also addresses the issue of social sustainability.
There are two controversial methods in flexible housing design, which belong to the
rhetoric of flexibility (Schneider & Till, 2007): a determinate way of design that refers
to movable transformable spaces and an indeterminate way of design that points to
endless changes. These two ways indicate a foreground consideration of flexibility in the
design process, but as Schneider and Till (2005) asserts some of the most successful
examples of flexibility tend to operate in the background, which is another way of
flexible design.
Both Habraken (2008), and Schneider and Till (2007) agree that flexibility and
adaptability have overlapping meanings. The meaning of the other related concept,
typological variety, is more obvious. It points to freedom of choice. To introduce the
technical meanings of these concepts in relation to the context of housing, especially the
meanings of adaptability and flexibility, it is crucial to refer researchers who point to their
changing senses over time.
In architectural discourse, flexibility and adaptability have been defined in different
ways. Some of these definitions are compiled in Table 1. In this table, definitions by
Schneider and Till (2005a, 2005b, 2007) and N. John Habraken (2008), Andrew
Rabeneck, David Sheppard and Peter Town (1973, 1974), Herman Hertzberger (1991),
Steven Grok (1992), Gerard Maccreanor (1998) and Adrian Forty (2000) are included.
The definition of the concept of flexibility may be combined defined as the capacity of
buildings for physical change and adaptation according to changing circumstances.
Flexibility as an inclusive concept covers the related concepts of adaptability and
typological variety and it is achieved by designing the structural system and the servicing
of a residential block in a way to allow change.

Author

Andrew
Rabenek,
David
Sheppard,
Peter Town

Herman
Hertzberger

Steven
Groak

Gerard
Maccreanor

Adrian forty

Tatjana
Schnieder,
Jeremy Till

Year

1973

1974

1991

1992

1998

2000

2007

Flexibility

Adaptability

Flexibility is proposed against tightfit functionalism.

The unsuccessful attempts in flexibility
are criticized for they may lead to what
they call the fallacy of freedom
through control.
Flexible housing should be capable of
offering choice and personalization.
The concept of Flexibility deals with
the constructional techniques and
services distribution.

Adaptability in the housing

context refers to the housing
units that can be easily
altered as the circumstances
changed.

Adaptability is related to the

planning and layout of the
building including the sizes
of the room and the relation
between the rooms.

In flexible design, there is no single

solution that is preferable to all others;
Hertzberger comes with another concept
called polyvalence.
Flexibility points to capability of
different physical arrangements.

Adaptability points to the

capability of different
social uses.

Flexibility is a design idea [that leads

to] the collapse of traditional layout.

Adaptability is a different
way of viewing flexibility
which refers to
transfunctional[ity] and
multifunctional[ity].
Maccreanor emphasizes that
most adaptable [buildings]
were those not originally
planned for flexibility.

Flexibility does not imply the necessity

of endless change and break-down of
accepted formula.

The incorporation of flexibility into

the design allowed architects the
illusion of projecting their control over
the building into the future, beyond the
period of their actual responsibility for
it. The confusion in meaning of
Flexibility is based on two contradictory
roles: it has served to extend
functionalism and so make it viable
and it has been employed to resist
functionalism.
Flexibility in the context of housing is
achieved by altering the physical fabric
of building.

Adaptability in the context

of housing is achieved
through designing room or
units so that they can be
used in variety of ways.

Table 1: Definitions of Flexibility and Adaptability.

DESIGN FOR LOW INCOME GROUP

Before designing for the specific category families, small researches were done to study
their living pattern as well as socio-economic and cultural requirements of lower income
group population. The size of the family is usually four with two adults and two kids.
Men of the families usually go out to work but most of the women are house wives,
spending their day time with the neighbours helping each other in their daily household
works. Also such families do have a small business to fulfil daily needs which they run
from their houses only. They do need space for such activities. Any kind of solid
furniture hampers their limited space for the work.
Design approach
This study on designing multipurpose flexible spaces has been done keeping in view the
socio-cultural and economical requirements of Lower Income group living in the urban
areas/cities of India. The apartments are designed to maximize flexible space for the
family members to suit their changing requirements. The area of each individual
apartment is 25 sq. m. with a centre line grid size of 3.0 x 3.0 m. considering the concept
of modular co-ordination to make the spaces and components standardized to achieve a
certain degree of economy. The 1bhk apartments have a flexible moving wall which can
be stretched out during night time to separate living room and bedroom (fig. 1). This
complete hall has an area of about 18 sq. m. which can be designed as per the needs of
the resident. The planning of spaces is done such that during day the whole area can be
used as a single space without any partitions in between. The entry to the apartment is
through the corridor but is kept introvert for natural surveillance. And windows are
provided on both the front and the back of the apartment for proper cross-ventilation.
Kitchen is 1.5 x 2.7 m wide, enough for two people to work at a time. The wet spaces of
the apartment are kept in the centre of two consecutive apartments, aligned to the rear
wall to work out the cost efficiency as only one service core can serve both the apartment.
The apartment is proposed as four storeyed (G+3) to avoid the cost of lift. The cluster can
be arranged in any form suiting to the site conditions to form a good layout plan.

(i)

(ii)
Figure 1: PLAN OF MODULE (i) & (ii).

The above two figures are the different flexible layouts that are possible for different
types of requirements. Fig. 1(i) shows the plan of a layout. In this, the left part shows the
flow in the apartment by providing full flexible space for multi- purpose use. Contrary on
the right part it shows the use of same space at night time. Fig. 1(ii) show the
arrangement of space by which 3 bedrooms can be carved out from the same space when
required.
Cluster-Courtyard Planning
The individual dwelling unit has been arranged in the form of a cluster having a courtyard
in centre to provide people a comfortable living environment. The courtyard can be used
as multi functional open space for the children to play, for parking vehicles as well as for
organizing community meetings, particularly during day time by the ladies when the men
are at their working places. The module designed has 11 apartments on each floor. A
typical floor plan is given below (fig. 2). These apartments are arranged such that a
courtyard can be developed within each block. This courtyard is planned to compliment
the climatic aspect of India. India have both hot and humid climate. This courtyard helps
in proper air circulation and day lighting in each apartment.

Figure 2 : FLOOR PLAN OF CLUSTER

Furniture
Furniture for the proposed apartment includes the folding bed, kitchenette and worktops
which can be arranged in various ways. A variety of folding furniture is available now a
days which the residents can choose according to their requirements. Some of the
common example of this type furniture is given below (fig. 3). Also the furniture which is
readily available in market nowadays, designed to serve multiple functions at different
times can be used.

Fig. 3 : Single bed (folding)

Double bed (folding)

CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION

The study has been conducted with a view to explore the concept of flexible living spaces
and the folding furniture for domestic transformation. This concept although have not
been followed in India for the lower segment of the society in urban areas but looking
into the affordability of the targeted group of people and the scarcity as well as very high
cost of land, the concept of flexibility will help in transforming the group to suit their
changing needs and affordability. Although the study has been attempted to work out
various flexible spaces suiting to the socio-economic requirements the concept may be
tried on a pilot scale to validate the concept with feedback. Similarly, more research is to
be carried out further for different income groups by studying their socio-economic and
living patterns.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The study has been carried out as a student of Bachelor of Architecture, at Indian Institute
of Technology Roorkee under the guidance of Prof. Ashok Kumar. The authors are
thankful to the Department of Architecture and Planning, IIT, Roorkee, for providing the
necessary infrastructure facilities to carry out the study.

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