Key activity 3: Design finalisation
The last activity of the Design Stage is to finalise the design
of the new school building. This task should be carried out by
professionals, including a qualified engineer who can ensure
the design adequately addresses natural hazard forces and
meets the agreed performance criteria. Once the final design
is developed, the design team should present it to the school
management committee and community stakeholders. The
design team should explain each key feature of the design.
They should show how the design addresses the community’s
concerns and the goal of protecting students and staff. As
appropriate, the design team may also discuss the cost and
implementation schedule.
Detailed design may take several forms, depending on the
policy context of the country:
• Template design. In many contexts, the MoE or a
development actor may provide template designs that
mandate specific dimensions and materials. Some even
provide full structural design.
When a project follows a template design, it may be preapproved requiring no additional engineering design.
This can simplify the design task. However, such template
designs generally do not adequately address local site
conditions and are not properly designed for all probable
hazards. Beyond safety, these templates generally do
not create inviting learning environments or appropriate
adaptations for local climates. For example, the same
standardised design could be incorrectly recommended
for cold mountainous highlands and stifling tropical
coastlines.
SECTION III: DESIGN
When templates are available, the design team should
modify the design as needed and seek appropriate
approval. When the template originates from a
development actor, professional engineers should
approve the changes and indicate that performance
objectives are met. Local authorities with responsibility
for overseeing school construction should approve all
designs, whether they originated from development actors
or government agencies.
Considering non-structural
building components
Non-structural building components – like wall
coverings, interior and infill walls, architectural
elements, stairwell guards and signage – are usually
not part of formal structural design. Engineers may not
give much attention to these building details. However,
in earthquakes and high winds, these components
can become loose and fall, or become high-speed
projectiles that endanger students and staff. In high
wind and earthquake zones, the design team should
consider ways to secure these components or eliminate
them from design. The program manager should
ensure the school community learns how to reduce any
remaining risks during the post-construction phase.
67
• Direct design for standard materials. In other contexts,
design teams may separately calculate a new design for
each project. The engineers responsible for design should
ensure their calculations comply with local building codes
and/or structural design guidelines. They should also seek
design approval from appropriate authorities. Where local
codes are inadequate, the engineer should comply with
international codes or guidelines.
• Direct design for non-standard materials. In many
development contexts, building codes may not cover
local materials or vernacular construction practices.
This situation occurs most often in rural and remote
communities, where the construction practices are
different from standard building codes, or where using
materials required by codes is not feasible, impractical
or unsustainable. In these cases, the design team
and school management committee need to develop
innovative designs that suit locally available materials and
resources, with due consideration for structural safety in
hazard events.
Once the design is finalised, the team should develop
detailed construction drawings and specifications. These
drawings and specifications may need to be developed
in multiple formats – including standard blueprints,
artistic drawings or cartoons of key elements – so school
management committees can monitor or take part in
the construction. Even if a local contractor is hired for
the construction, he or she may need simpler versions
of the drawings and specifications. Local communities
may find scale models and cartoon drawings especially
important when they need to use unfamiliar hazard-resistant
techniques.
Key activity 4: Selection of
construction management
strategy
Different forms of construction management allow for various
levels of community involvement. The school management
committee and program manager, in consultation with
the design team, should select an appropriate strategy
and level of community involvement. The design team
should also develop schematic and final designs based
on the proposed construction management strategy. If the
committee and program manager want high community
involvement, the construction material used in design should
be highly familiar so the school management committee and
local tradespeople can easily understand the construction
specifications. If the program manager elects to use a directbuild approach, materials and construction drawings may
not need to deviate as much from international construction
practices.