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SPACE PLANNING

ENGR. MARK ANDREW M. ALINGOG

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

A master plan is defined as a visual presentation of conceptual ideas

supported by mathematical calculations aimed at giving convenience and
comfort to the users or occupants. A good plan however, are those that are
functional and economically designed adhering to the principles of "Form
Follows Functions".

Sound Planning Considerations Include:

1. Distribution 2. Circulation
3. Light and ventilation 4. Sizes, areas and shape
5. Orientation 6. Zoning Laws
7. Height 8. Electrical and mechanical
facilities
9. Location of doors and windows 10. Superstition

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PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Distribution. Refers to the placement, location and arrangement of each

room unit in relation with each other as to functions and coordination. One
particular example is the interrelation between the dining and the kitchen
which primarily requires accessibility on food servicing. These area units are
interrelated and should not be far from each other.

Circulation. Like roads and highways with traffic problems, traffic is also
present inside the building that must be considered in planning. Circulation
and movement of the occupants inside the building should not be hampered
by any obstacles nor be detoured as a result of poor planning. In short, the
design of the floor plan, be it residential, commercial or industrial type, must
address the traffic condition inside the building without the necessity of using
red and green lights signal.

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Light and Ventilation. There is no substitute for a good daylight and fresh
natural air entering and circulating inside the building. Artificial lighting and
ventilation is very costly to those who cannot afford, but others prefer it for
maximum comfort regardless of costs. The design therefore, depends upon
the likes and preferences of the owner.
Sec. 808 of the National Building Code on windows opening state that:
"Every room intended for any use and not equipped with artificial ventilation
system, shall be provided with window or windows with a total free opening
area equal to at least ten percent of the room floor area, and such window
shall open directly to a court, yard, public street or alley, or open water
courses"

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PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Sizes, Areas and Shapes. All rooms are intended for human use, and
therefore, should be planned according to human scale. Good design always
provide ample areas to accommodate furnitures, appliances, and other
related facilities, including the most critical and important lanes or pathways
for routinary movements inside the house. The shape as to plan and eleva-
tions should be strictly functional, not fancy in character.
Sec. 806 of the National Building Code on Size and Dimensions of rooms
provides that:
"The minimum size of rooms and their least horizontal dimensions shall be
as follows:
a. Room for human habitations shall be 6 square meters with a least
dimension of 2.00 meters.
b. Kitchen shall be 3.00 square meters with a least dimen- sion of 1.50
meters.

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

c. Bath and toilet shall be 1.20 square meters with a least dimension of 90
centimeters.
When we say least dimension, it does not mean to limit the additional length
or width the owner may want.

Orientation. Refers to the position and direction of the sunrise and sunset. It
also includes the prevailing wind directions in the area for the year round. A
brief nap or rest at mid day or in the afternoon is normally done in the
bedroom. Thus, bedroom should not be oriented facing the afternoon sun.
The kitchen laundry and bathroom is better oriented west for sunlight kills
many types of bacteria.

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PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Zoning Laws. The zoning ordinance should be consulted first before

deciding on the final site of the house or building. You might be constructing
your residential house on an industrial or commercial zone. Of course, the
family would be very happy if their house is constructed in residential areas
provided with the right facilities like; market, school and playground for
school children, church, etc.

Height. A moderate high ceiling allows fresh air circulations, comfortable

atmosphere, and preserved aesthetic value of the room. Room with low
ceiling, has warm atmosphere that requires artificial ventilation.
Sec. 807 of the Building Code on Air Space Requirements in determining
the size of the room states that:

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

"The minimum air space shall be provided as follows:

1. Habitable room... 14.00 cu. m. of air space per room.
2. School room..... 3.00 cu. m. with 1.00 sq. m. of floor
area per person.
3. Office workshop and facilities... 12 cu. m. of air space per person.
Sec. 805 of the Building Code on Ceiling Heights provides that:
a. Habitable Rooms with Natural Ventilation shall have a ceiling height not
less than 2.70 meters.
b. Habitable Rooms with Artificial Ventilation shall have ceiling heights not
less than 2.40 meters. For buildings more than one story high, minimum
ceiling height of the first floor shall be 2.70 meters and 2.40 meters for the
second floor, 2.10 meters for succeeding floors.
c. Mezzanine Floors shall have a clear ceiling height not less than 1.80
meters above and below it.

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PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Electrical Layout. The location of convenience outlet should be planned

simultaneously with the appliances to be placed on. The extension wire for
appliances is the most unsightly obstacle in the room due to improper
location of convenience outlet.
An ideal convenience outlet is installed 30 centimeters above the floor line,
and not more than 1.00 meter away from the appliances to be served.
The location and accessibility of light switches should be installed near the
door of every room for convenience in switching-in and switching-off when
entering and leaving the room respectively.

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

Location of Doors. When a door becomes an obstacle creating

inconveniences to the occupant, that is the time we realized the mistake of
not analyzing its proper position from the early stage of planning.

Superstition. Although superstition has no page in the book of

contemporary Architecture, if your client believes and insist that his life
success depends on luck brought about by his su- perstitious belief, then, as
a planner, you have no choice but to do what your client says, if you do not
want to lose your bread and butter.

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DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN FIGURE

Dimensions and Clearances for Children

Comparatively, the physical proportions of children are different from that of
the adults, especially during their early years. Children height substantially
varies, but their space requirements can be approximated using Table 1-1.

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DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN FIGURE

Dimensions and Clearances for Average Adult

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DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN FIGURE

Dimensions and Clearances for Average Adult

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LIVING ROOM

Living room furnitures are grouped into the following:

1. Primary Grouping.- Chairs and sofa are grouped around a fire place (if
there is)
2. Secondary Grouping.- Chairs and love seat are grouped at end of the
room or at the center.
3. Reading Group - Chair, Ottoman, Lamp shades, etc.
4. Writing or Study Group Desk, lamp, one or two
chairs, book cases.
5. Music Group - Piano bench, storage space 6. Game Group - Game
tables and four chairs.

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LIVING ROOM

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LIVING ROOM

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LIVING ROOM

In planning a Living Room, consider the following recommendations:

1. Separate the traffic from the activity center.
2. Opening should be positioned giving enough wall space for various
furniture arrangements.
3. Provide convenient access to Doors, Windows, Electrical outlets,
Thermostats, Supply grills
4. For simple passage between low objects such as a sofa and coffee table,
the pathway should have a minimum clearance of 40 centimeters.
5. For a single passage between tall objects from the hip height or over,
provide a minimum clearance of 60 centimeters.
6. For general traffic lane, the minimum recommended pathway clearance is
100 centimeters.
7. For the seating area to permit one person to pass at the back of an
occupied chair, a minimum clearance of 90 centimeters is acceptable.
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LIVING ROOM

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DINING ROOM

Planning Considerations:
a. Determine the number of persons to be seated.
b. Compute the required space occupied by the table.
c. Compute the space for the chairs.
d. The space required behind the chairs.
e. The seating arrangement.
f. The size and type of furniture.
g. Space for the storage of china glassware, silverware, and linen.

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DINING ROOM

Recommended Space Dimensions

1. Size of Place Setting. For greater freedom of movement, a
minimum width of 50 centimeters is acceptable, although 75
centimeters is desirable, but 60 centimeters width is adequate and
could permit 45 centimeters wide chair at 15 centimeters apart.
2. For a Place Setting. Provide a minimum clearance of 35
centimeters, allow space for china, glassware, silver and elbow
extension.

Table Requirements per Person

For Crowded Seating - 50 to 55 cm. on table perimeter.
For Comfort Seating - 60 cm. on the table perimeter.

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DINING ROOM

Clearances Behind Chairs

The Passage Clearance behind chairs is important for mov-
ability. The recommended minimum space is 50 centimeters
but preferably 60 for convenience. If passage behind chair is
not desired, a minimum of 12 to 15 cm. plus the depth of the
chair is satisfactory table clearance for pushing back the chair
when leaving the table.

Size of Table and Dining Area

The common width of a dining table is 90 centimeters although
the satisfactory width is 95 to 110 centimeters. If a 60
centimeters wide place setting table is seated at each end of
the table, the minimum recommended table lengths are
presented in the following table.
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DINING ROOM

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DINING ROOM

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COMBINED SPACES

Combined Living Dining Spaces

The combination of Living and Dining in a single

room or space has the following advantages:
1. Less space required, but could be used
intensively.
2. Its function could be changed making it more
flexible serviceable space.
3. Adoptable to varied furniture arrangements.
4. The room could be made more interesting.

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COMBINED SPACES

Combined Dining- Kitchen Area

This type of combination is most preferred by

occupants more particularly small houses and
apartments due to the following advantages:

1. It minimizes housekeeping chores.

2. Provides a space for the family's daily activities.
3. The kitchen provides a place for informal family
break- fast, snacks or just serving tea or coffee to
visitors.

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BEDROOM

The Bedroom

The size or area of a residential house could be

visualized imaginarily by anyone based from the
number of bedrooms it has, and the size of room could
be determined under the following considerations:

1. The likes and preferences of the owner whether

large, medium or small room with or without comfort
room.
2. The type and number of bed including other items
that the owner would want to place inside the room.

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BEDROOM
BEDROOM FURNITURES

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BEDROOM
BEDROOM FURNITURES

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BEDROOM
Clearances Between Walls and Furnitures
A good planner has in his mind the following minimum clearances
between walls and furniture.
1. Between wall and furniture 5 to 7 cm.
2. Between furniture units 5 to 10 cm.
3. One side or foot of bed for dressing 100 to 110 cm.
4. Between side of bed and side of dresser, or chest 15 to 20 cm.
5. In front of dresser, closet and chest 90 to 100 cm.
6. In one side of bed for circulation 55 to 60 cm.
7. For major circulation path door 60 to 70 cm.
8. On least used side of double bed 3 to 40 cm.

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BEDROOM
CLOSET CLEARANCES

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BEDROOM

UNIT ARRANGEMENTS

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COMBINED LIVING - SLEEPING

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BATHROOM
Planning Considerations:
A. Convenience
1. Planning bathroom for optimum convenience.
2. For privacy of bathroom functions by all members of the household.
3. Provide adequate provisions for storage of supplies and small
equipment.
4. Consider ease of cleaning.
B. Arrangement
1. Convenient arrangement of facilities giving special at- tention to the
spacing or clearances.
2. The room should be arranged to allow more than one person to use its
facilities at the same time.

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BATHROOM
C. Illumination
1. Provide an adequate lighting.
2. Provide direct light to illuminate the face from all an- gles for grooming.
3. High window, clerestory type window or skylight is sat- isfactory at
daytime.
4. Luminous ceiling is effective for interior bathroom.
D. Ventilation
1. Good ventilation reduces humidity and dispel odor.
2. Exhaust fan in the wall or ceiling is recommended to supplement
natural ventilation.
E. Sound Control
1. Noise is the common problem of bathroom but could be reduced by
proper placement of bathroom in relation with other rooms or areas.
2. Use closets and storage walls to serve as sound barriers between the
bathroom and other spaces or,
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BATHROOM
3. Use sound proof partitions and a tightly fitted doors.
4. Acoustical treatment of the ceiling reduces sound transmission to the
walls.
5. If acoustic tiles are used, it should be moisture resistant and easily
cleaned.
F. Auxiliary Heat - A heat lamp provide warmth atmosphere in the
bathroom.
G. Materials - All surface materials should be moisture resistant.
H. Storage
1. Provide adequate storage for the current and reserved supplies.
2. A closet opening in the bathroom and hallway is convenient for
bathroom linen and cleaning supplies.
3. Medicine cabinet should be large enough to accommodate the
increasing number of toiletries and medicine.
4. Hamper space is necessary for soiled linen and clothes.
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BATHROOM
I. Mirror
Mirror in the bathroom gives an atmosphere of luxury and spaciousness.
Full-length mirror is desirable.
J. Drying Facilities
1. Extra racks for drying women's hose and other light laundry.
2. Racks maybe concealed in a well ventilated cabinet provided with low
wattage light bulb to facilitate drying
3. Provide adequate robe hook, bag hook, toothbrush holders for
convenience.
H. Accessibility
1. If possible, bathroom should be accessible to each bed- room
without requiring passage through another room.
2. Bathroom is desirable near principal indoor living, work and play
areas, and guest room.

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BATHROOM

BATHROOM CATEGORIES

Bathroom arrangements are classified into 4 categories.

1. The lavatory guest bath type.
2. The larger compartmental bath.
3. The conventional three fixtures bath.
4. The utility bath.

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BATHROOM
The Lavatory or Guest Bath is a two-fixture bath for guest in varying
sizes from a minimum area of about 1.3 sq. meters.

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BATHROOM
Larger Compartment Bath. The plan separates the tub and shower from the toilet by partition
with or without additional lavatory. This kind of arrangement provides greater privacy use of the
toilet. Separate door with small entry is ideal.

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BATHROOM
The Conventional Three Fixture Bath has no separate compartment, designed for the use of one
individual at a time. This type of bath with combination of tub shower has an aver- age area of 3.7
square meters.

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BATHROOM
The Conventional Three Fixture Bath has no separate compartment, designed for the use of one
individual at a time. This type of bath with combination of tub shower has an aver- age area of 3.7
square meters.

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BATHROOM
The Utility Bath. This type provides an area much larger than the minimum size required for the
three basic fixtures for laundering,

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KITCHEN
Comparable Amount of Trip in the Preparation of Food
1. Kitchen sink 43 to 48%
2. Range 14 to 18%
3. Mixing 12 to 13%
4. Refrigerator 7 to 8%
5. Dining room 7 to 8%
6. Dish storage 6 to 8%
7. Serving 3 to 6%

Critical Dimensions
Working operations in an individual work center requires ample space for effective
mobility. The following illustrations shows the minimum clearances required in the
kitchen working area.

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN
The Six Basic Work Centers in the Kitchen are:
1. The Sink
2. The Range
3. Mix
4. Serve
5. Refrigerator (functions related to storage center)
6. Oven if it is not an integral part of the range.

Location of the kitchen work center should allow a continuity of the

activities therein such as:
1. Storage. For gathering materials required of the work.
2. Cleaning and Mixing or initial preparations.
3. Cooking.
4. Serving or storing for future use.
5. Cleaning up.

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN
Type of Kitchen Floor Plan
The common types of kitchen floor plan are:
1. U-Shaped. The U shaped type is the most compact area but has
problem of the door on one side of the three walls.
2. L-Shaped. The L shaped type has the advantage of concentrating
work area in one corner minimizing travel. The longer travel to the
extremities is one disadvantage of this type.
3. Corridor Shaped. The corridor type is satisfactory where the doors
are located at each end of the space. The greater distance along the
corridor is its disadvantage.

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KITCHEN

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KITCHEN
Critical Heights and Measurements
1. Wall shelving Maximum height 180 cm.
2. Counter top height Maximum height 90 cm.
3. Height between wallcabinet & counter top
Minimum height 60 cm.
4. Over range and sink Minimum height 40 cm.
5. Depth of wall shelves Minimum height 10 cm.
Maximum height 45 cm.
6. Base shelving
Minimum height 30 cm.
Maximum height 40 cm.
7. Counter top
Minimum height 40 cm.
Maximum height 60 cm.
8. Exhaust fan ceiling or wall near the range.. Max capacity
15 air exchanges per hour
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