Techniques & principles

Let the outer skin shed rain, then give the water that passes it a clear route back outside.

Carry floor loads predominantly in one direction between supporting walls or beams.

Build with hollow, tapered members by designing around their variability, connections and exposure.

Use wind and buoyancy to move outdoor air through a building when conditions make that air useful.

Transfer an existing building's load to new or improved support while preserving stability throughout the work.

Fit a building onto sloping land while controlling excavation, fill and runoff.

Understand which work must be complete before the next trade can proceed.

See how structure, enclosure and services occupy the same building.

Find a continuous route from an applied load through connections to the ground.

Understand why a slender compression member can bow before its material crushes.

Carry transverse loads across an opening without excessive stress or deflection.

Span an opening using a network of members carrying primarily axial force.

Keep a frame stable when loads push it sideways.

Bridge an opening with masonry working predominantly in compression.

Choose how a building transfers load into the ground.

Create and close an excavation while supporting its sides and the new basement wall.

Spread a wall's load over a larger area of ground.

Arrange masonry units into connected wall faces and corners.

Build successive storeys of a light timber frame.

Support a pitched roof where different roof planes intersect.

Transfer force through truss joints and into the supporting building.

Assemble repeated roof trusses into a restrained roof system.

Keep rain and air under control while limiting heat flow through a framed wall.

Connect floor levels with a coordinated stair geometry.

Provide heating and cooling while coordinating equipment and distribution with the building.

Deliver clean water and remove wastewater through a coordinated pipe network.

Distribute electricity from the service to protected branch circuits.