City: BANGLADESH

SAIDA AKTER
ADDRESS: 3AB, HOUSE 420, ROAD 06, AVENUE 04, MIRPUR, DHAKA-1216
CELL: +8801722129087
E-MAIL : saida.akter@yahoo.com

PROFILE
A conscientious and thoughtful Architect in the realm of the creative arena inspired by the master work of our Bengal heritage innate in our context and guided by contemporary innovation and collaborative rationales, working dedicatedly towards a career in architecture for Environment responsive design.

Software Skills
AutoCAD,ArcGIS& QGIS, STAt•b Material Flow Analysis, ATLAS.ti,SketchUp and V-ray, Adobe Photoshop,Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw,Microsoft Office Package (MS Project, MS Word, MS Excel, MS Power Point etc.

REFERENCES
Dr. Anirban Mostafa
Professor, Architecture Discipline, Khulna University (KU), Khulna
T: +8801730030993
E: anirbanmostafa@yahoocom

EDUCATIONAL QUALIFICATION

2007: Khulna University (KU),Bangladesh Bachelor of architecture (B. Arch)

Professional Status

Architect, Institute of Architects, Bangladesh (JAB), CM No. A-243.

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
(2010 present) Principle Architect and Industrial to consultant MATREEK, A Complete Design Studio.

Extra Curriculum
Manual Illustrations and Rendering, Landscape Photography, Film Enthusiast

Language Proficiency
Fluency in English, (IELTS Test overall band score 7.0), Fluency in Bangla (Mother Tongue)

PROJECT DESCRIPTION : 

Dekko Garments Ltd is an industrial campus for readymade garments (RMG). This is a project where 6000 people are working at a time. It is situated in Gazipur, particularly at a green site surrounded by scenic landscape. One of our principle objective was to give comfort to the users i.e. garment workers and we focused on the environmental quality of the working sections. Passive techniques driven solutions and user-friendly features were therefore applied to achieve the best working environment per standard. We especially focused on the production unit of this project for our maximum innovative input. The garments unit includes designated store for raw material storage, Production Unit for cutting-sewing and finishing work, and Finish Goods Store for packaging and storing finished products. Besides these, there are Central Administration building, Central Amenities Unit for workers dining, day-care, health care, locker and prayer facilities. The Utility Unit is the central power house of the project having generators, power supply equipment and PV panels on its roof-system. Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) and Rain Water Harvesting Units are also there to save water.  

This is a two storied building with composite structure. The foundation, floor-system and columns are made of RCC. The roof-system and beams are designed by steel structure to achieve the desired expression that allows ample of light as well as reduce structural weight. Facades are made of local bricks and 6mm non tempered glass is used for glazing. Low emitting paint has been used for both walls and roof to reduce the heat. Window grills and railings are of Metal bars. Monolithic Floor Crete material is used in factory area and tiles is used for toilet and office zone.

The WAVE is a constructed representation of the surrounding landscape and the emerging manpower or the dedicated ‘APPAREL ARTISTS’. This is a building which is principally designed in passive manner. The natural daylight, air circulation and ventilation is achieved by architectural solution up to 40%.The building is saving 20% of its water consumption through Rain Water Harvesting and STP. 33% of energy is being saved by PV panels and natural ventilation. Roof has its own innovative support system by tetrahedron truss as beam. Central Ventilation Core has been designed for hot air dispatch, rain water and roof drained water storage and sequentially passing to the underground tanks for curing and recharge. And sky lights give the calculated day lighting in the Green Atrium.  The south facing façade is mostly open to natural ventilation and designed with vertical Fins and Wings to defuse direct air-flow and light necessary for production/ machine lines.

Reaz Loft, a G+3 Storied with 1 Basement single-family holiday house at Khanpur, Narayanganj overlooks a community playground that has a deep emotional connection with its owner. Major part of his childhood in 1970s was spent playing there. He still actively maintains relationship with it. The building is generated form that emotion by making the interior spaces extend ,focus and draws towards the field.

The design tries to respect the adjacent old ancestral house on the north. The new building is deliberately set back not to overshadow the old one. This setback also allows an elevated garden in the 1st level and makes the busy front road visually disappear from the living areas at different levels. Height of the building is also restricted to match the scale of the old building.

The lofty internal space at the front of the house generated between two parallel structural walls contain public spaces at various levels. All these levels, connected by various flights of the open metal stair, offer interesting visual connections with the field. The metal stair itself offers unique kinetic spatial experience with in the loft. An enclosed service staircase at the back simultaneously connects the Kitchen with the more public areas up to 2nd floor. Functional spaces at the semi basement level, created to restrict the overall height, also have natural light and ventilation.

Gardens are created at different floors and the largest one at the top level with exclusivity, has a pavilion at the front has a gallery like sitting area with cascading steps that offers a unique framed view of the field through the open pavilion a semi outdoor folly perfect for enjoying our light rain or cool breeze in a moderate monsoon climate. This uppermost level with the master suit is deliberately kept visually disconnected with the loft inside to provide desired level tranquillity.

For a narrow, linear and a relatively small urban site, where functional spaces can be arranged as railway compartments, a single structural bay was an obvious choice. The house was thus naturally conceived as series of functional spaces arranged both vertically and horizontally between two structural walls in concrete. These as cast concrete walls on south and north contain various openings to allow light and air, while the west is more or less solid and the east side facing the field in glass is like a giant frame to visually connect with the field with the interior space. All windows with clear double-glazed panels are operable to facilitate natural ventilation in this otherwise centrally air-conditioned building. VRF air conditioning system, motorized curtains, Solar panels, garden watering system, security features, MRL lift, plumbing and sewerage lines and pits all are designed with meticulous detail to accommodate with in the restricted volume and support the minimalist notion. The open steel staircase with clear glass and metal handrail is custom made at site. Gardens at various levels are created with proper drainage and water supply facilities. The small garden extending from the living through the tall eastern window is placed strategically to almost competently cut the busy road visually from all the levels of the interior and act like an infinity garden to merge itself with the lush green playfield in front. The even smaller garden on the south at the same level comes inside the loft bringing green inside and facilitating a large opening on the south that offers view and allows light and air inside.

The architectural language here is minimalist with orthogonal lines wrapping spaces. Concrete, timber, steel and glass form the timeless material palette. When viewed from the playground, the oblong forms a humble counterpoint to the two mammoth water reservoir towers on the south east, all in exposed concrete.

Project Description

This is a temporary home for foreign construction workmen Who ate involved in an infrastructural development project in Bangladesh. It is about 30 kilometers far from the capital CRY. The site is very close to a river and adjacent to the Highway.

The challenge posed by the client was to finish (design & construction) the project ‘Mth1n 120 days with highly tight budget, We made research on the program. time and budget and offered a solution that not only addressed client’S time specific requirement but also can offer its facilities (as resort) after end of present tenure to a wider range of ordinary people who wants to get away from the city for sorne fresh air.

Our approach initiated with looking at the Bengal’s ancient tradition of hospitality. Here a traveler never needed to 100k for a roadside inn while there was a home nearby, Keeping th1S humble tradition. the basic intention at designing this building was to gwe its guests a feel of home. Traditional dwellings of Bangladesh have more semi covered areas than indoors. These dwellings come together to group around ourtyards. The transition in usage of spaces round the year is liquid. The line between the outdoor and the indoor is blurred. This basic technique has governed the formation of this building Thus the transformation of the nature throughout the six seasons. the play of clouds in the sky, the fragrance Of native landscape can be experienced when walking through the corridors or peering through windows tirne to time.

The project consists of 54 rooms. 2 lounges. indoor & outdoor hot spring, sun deck, gym. dining hall. kitchen. laundry, medical Center, support staffs accommodation etc. It has five major courts for six seasonal experiences. The triangular courts which are same in size and shape but different in orientaton, nature of landscape, shadowsand amount of light  forming a quiet backyard sipping through windows into rooms gives feeling of neighborhood. The heart Of the building is the monsoon court a place for meditation. It excludes one from the outside world, The building is introvert in character. Brick Jali screen and layering of spaces were our solution to solve the issue of localized sound & air pollution. Openings connect the courts with the corridors to create a continuous travel path for air, Every interior places including toilets and service areas are lit by zenithal light. The light sipping through the roof washes the bare handcrafted  wall and creates a warm ambience. The central tank is actually a firefighting water reservoir which is recharged With the rainwater. The inside is visually hidden from the outside for secunty, prrvacy and tranquility.

The construction method is traditional and time tested which is pre dominantly with brick used as load bearing element as well as finish material in walls and floors. Though the machine precision is absent but the affection and care of masons of this soil is evident Each brick is unique and an event here. When sun touches the surface with different shades there generates a narrative a sensitive back drop of life.

The entire construction site lacks green. So, traditional fruit and flower trees are planted Fragrance is the dominant element of the landscape design- Mango blossom in late spring. pomelo and tail grape blossom in summer nights and smell Of the queen Of the night in monsoon nights, All these ingredients are silently mixed in brick and concrete Of the building in a hope that these guests Will take home little memories Of occasional frog croaking. of maddening mango blossom or the dance of the torrent of rainwater from the spout in the central court when a sudden northwester visited the banks Of the mighty river nearby.

Name & Location:

RlZlA POROMPORA 256, Stadium Road, Cox’sBazar, Bangladesh.
Cost of Project: (US Dollar) 685,000
Built-up area: 2250.62 Sq. meter

Description of Project:

This plot has its own potentials of having lush green of Cox’sBazar Government High School at its north. There are some federal lands, Bir Sreshtho Ruhul Amin Stadium, Central Eidgah field, and wide-open landscape stretched to the horizon where the tamarisk tree line of the Bay of Bengal is, due to gradual slope of the topography towards Bay of Bengal. Some tin shed & a 3-storied house in
the south. A 2-storied residential building in the east.

A 3.96meter wide road (7.62 meter as per documents) comes to the plot from stadium road. This building has been designed for 11 siblings.  There are 13 apartments among which 11 will be owned individually and rest 2 will remain common.

A soft court of 12.5mx10.98m was placed in the south west corner of the plot and the placement of 2 unit in each floor in its respect ensures prevailing tropical winds of coastal region of Bangladesh and light sufficiently to each apartment, Thus the court was leaked through the opening of interior spaces and also interior spaces open outside to the court.

Among two common flats one has been placed in ground floor that opens to the courtyard and will take the overall control of the house. The second common flat located beneath the community floor of roof top is also to control the complex and that will merge with the community hall, guest dormitory, gust room/building office & with the open terraces.

 small dormitory for family friends and relatives while visiting Cox’sBazar and a guest room which is now occupied by their fathers’ table could be used as office for family properties documentation as before in their old home. This area in the south part of the roof top was designed with a water court full of aquatic plants & Fish, with an evening terrace stressed endlessly to the horizon.

A large indoor space as community hall was designed in the north roof top; a semi outdoor space and an infinity terrace which could accommodate more than 60 persons together to dine in in any occasion. This multipurpose space presently allows all tenants at their small programs /functions or meeting in exchange of a minimum change. Family members have also started to use it for their iftar party & Eid get-together, Rest of the time this hall opens itself as games room.

Stair case here comes with out-of—the box thinking and provides social spaces (PashchatiVerandah) from its landing areas at 4th and 6th floor. It was placed in such a way to connect the in termediate social spaces, projected verandas, court and also to the horizon even to the tamarisk tree line of Bay of Bengal. It would also be dedicated to different age group, like younger kids for instance, can use that space as their playground, older people can have amenities of their liking. Here every flat of approximately 150 SqM maintains a common spatial sequence. Each has a free-flowing living-dining-family living space that connected to the courtyard & social interactional
space that leaded to the horizon of Bay line.

Rooms here connected to semi outdoor verandas and eventually to the infinity. All together creates a boundaryless character within a very specific boundary.

Each of the flats are composed of having 3 bed rooms, 3toilet, kitchen, 4 verandas.

Materials of Construction Details:

All materials used for this project are either locally produced or available

All external walls are of 254mm(127mm+127mm) with gas burn ricks, 25mm gap between 2 walls for bringing down the electrical cables, provisions of ventilation holes to way out the moisture & heat from in-between 2 walls.

All other external surface other than bricks is as cast and premix cement plaster (CP-2), water repellent application on entire surface.
Interior are also kept pointed exposed for those peripheral 254mm(127mm+127mm) brick walls.internal 127mm brick walls are with plaster & paint.

Ceiling remains as cast.
Solid wooden doors for main entrance & flash doors for bed rooms.
MS swing windows with clear glass for all windows allows maximum airflows.
MS I sections have been used for glass roofing & to hold sun breaker fins.
Cement board on MS frames has been used as sun breaker fins.
MS frame & clear glass with casement opening has been used for entire stair case.
Red clay tiles for entire verandah and terraces.
Homogeneous floor tiles for entire floor.
MS box & link chain for all railing.
Tempered sandwiched glass for glass roofing.

 

Special Features:

Scattered distribution of social spaces throughout the circulation like court, Poshchati Verandas, open infinity terraces, water court, where they gather and go back to their soul, culture and tradition, where they interact between siblings; with the next generation and beyond in a traditional extended family; with neighbors who pass through or live beside and so on. And of course, those views rewind them to that time of school life.

That wide spread open front yard of old home, their favorite old benches at verandah (Poshchati verandah), that garden, water-well and showering place, all these has been taken into considerations; but this time in a different way as it will be in a multi storied building and comparatively in a smaller land, scattering the space vertically, uplift the social gathering spaces in different levels by the circulation that must connect each other in their journey.

Hotel Nandini, formerly known as Hotel Nidmahal, was the first of its sort on the city’s southern part of the city. In the past, due to its poor management, the establishment failed to initiate its admiration. As a result, it gradually got converted into a Bank, an Office as well as a branch of a university. The current owner with a long-term lease agreement of the plot has rebranded the establishment by transforming the first two stories as their flagship store, one floor dedicated to their office space and rest of the floors as a three-star boutique hotel of 40 rooms with its necessary facilities. The roof space has been transformed into a beautifully designed dining facility with a view of the urban skyline.    One of the challenging features about this plot is that it has a single access bay for the 14 residential plots at the back, which has been legally approved and settled by court. But with the help of Cornice and screening, they manage to keep the out way of the hotel clean and significant.

This intimate scaled boutique hotel underwent a massive renovation to achieve a significant facelift which added dynamic to the surrounding urban texture. By ditching mechanical procedures, the entire establishment has been manually handing painted to present it with a real texture of manual handwork. The hand work distinctively beautified the appearance of the Nandini Hotel in such a way that it has become a treat to the eyes of people. Once someone get the gleams of such aura of the structure of the Hotel it remains still framed to the mind. The building was built in a 10×10 grid frame structure. The old floor finishes have all been removed and replaced with a minimalistic concrete finish, for getting rid of the added thickness of the floor. Locally seasoned wood Koroi, Gaab, Sea grass and Bamboo have been used for interior work. A small volume of steel has been imported which was locally weathered.

The building was at its optimum; hence further loading was not structurally feasible. Hence the materials selected are all light weight. The building was built in a 10×10 grid frame structure. The old floor finishes have all been removed and replaced with a minimalistic concrete finish, for getting rid of the added thickness of the floor. Locally seasoned wood Koroi, Gaab, Sea grass and Bamboo have been used for interior work.

A small volume of steel has been imported which was locally weathered. The exterior wall has been kept untouched; few interior walls are added as it was the demand of the program. Due to time constrain the wet work has been kept minimal.

What makes the building unique is its positioning; the remarkable setback from the adjacent road. Hence focus has been placed on the entryway. It is a narrow space but has been made grand with a bigger scale ceiling height. One of the major challenges was that the building was exposed to the west. Commonly, in tropical areas solidification is appreciated with screening. The target here was to create a solid plane with tons of points, which is breathable at the same time. The light passing through will create shadow in multiple layers. This guarantees unhindered visibility and cuts off the direct western rays simultaneously.

The entire building’s nighttime illumination is so spectacular that it appears to be shimmering like thousands of enormous stars in the night sky. Moreover, such aesthetic executed idea of indulging the glass and the use of wooden crafting has not been presented to people before and it also became eye catching to every passerby. On the left side of the hotel the branding work has been done using raw wooden crafts. 2.5 feet of wooden sticks has been placed at a distance of 8 inches from each other in the form of cross which is attached with screws creating a kind of wooden rowing illusion. The rooftop restaurant on the top floor is known to be the reason of getting more clients attention as it is decorated with greenery by holding the traditional wood crafted accessories so enhances the Bengali tradition. It is consisting of two parts. One side is covered with glass and air-conditioned, and the rest of the space is open to sky dining. The only setback is its orientation. Because the mass is facing west and located beside one of the busiest primary roads, the heat and the noise pollution often get overwhelming.

Nandini Hotel gives a comfortable, homely atmosphere to the guests. Everything in this hotel that is visible was handcrafted, allowing us to see a reflection of our culture everywhere we look. To maintain an authentic feel of traditions, both the interior and exterior show the application of native materials.

Name & Location: Friendship Centre, Gaibandha, Bangladesh

Cost of Project: (US$) 731,700 (including cost of land)

Built-up area: 2,897 sqm
(In case of Public Building, minimum built-up area should be 1000 sq. meter)

Description of Project:

The Friendship Centre is located near the district town of Gaibandha in Bangladesh, in a low-lying land which is under threat of flooding. An extensive program with a very limited fund meant that raising the structures above flood level (a height of eight feet) was not an option: nearly the entire available fund would be lost below grade. The design relies on a mini-embankment for flood protection while building directly on existing soil, in load-bearing masonry. Rainwater and surface run-off are collected in internal pools and the excess is pumped to an excavated pond, also to be used for fishery. The design relies on natural ventilation and cooling, being facilitated by courtyards and pools and the earth covering on roofs. An extensive network of septic tanks and soak wells ensure the sewage does not mix with flood water.

The Centre serves and brings together some of the poorest of poor in the country and—by extension—in the world, yet in the extreme limitation of means was a search for the luxury of light and shadows; of the economy and generosity of small spaces; of the joy of movement and discovery in the bare and the essential.

Materials of Construction Details:

From the very beginning, design inspiration and precedence came from the ruins of Buddhist monasteries and settlements in the region, dating back to the 3rd century BC and not more than seventy kilometers from the site. These structures were entirely in brick and it was inspiring to refer and use a material which has been in continuous use in the area for more than two thousand years.

The culture of brick construction is omnipresent in Bengal. Thousands of ruins and thousand-year-old mosques, temples and monasteries testify to this tradition. As the complex will be used by people from varied socio-economic backgrounds, including some of the poorest people in the country, the general acceptance of brick as a ‘common’ building material and the humbleness of the visual impact has delivered the Centre as ‘for the people’ and ‘of the soil’—thus gaining early acceptance and popularity in the area.

Only locally produced hand-made bricks were used. This was to encourage local manufacture and create additional jobs for local brick masons, assistants and labour generally associated with the brick industry.

Special Features:

The requirement for a training and meeting centre for the NGO Friendship was extensive albeit to be constructed at a near-impossible low budget. Secondly, as participants for conferences and training would be staying and working at the complex for up to a week at a stretch, it was important to have sufficient open, gathering spaces for people to move about. It was also estimated that the operational budget for the complex would be similarly low and therefore it was important to keep materials and surfaces as maintenance-free as possible as well as to adapt natural ventilation and other means to keep running costs low, even in hot summers.

Although the area experiences very hot summers, it was possible to avoid the use of air-conditioning by careful placement of windows, courtyards and shafts to ensure cross ventilation and air draughts using stack effect and mini-tunnel effect. This was aided by the introduction of pools of water, which themselves helped at micro-climatic levels by localized cooling. The use of natural stone flooring keeps the interiors cool, again aided by the extra thermal mass in the form of earth and green covering on roofs.