FINAL ARCHITECTURAL INTENSHIP REPORT

As a student of architecture, I got the chance to be an intern of a proud corporate member of the
Philippine Green Building Council, the Ecotektonika, Inc. with three others as part of our curriculum. The
first on the job training will be comprised of office works of actual architectural practice which I was
exposed by my mentor and by the whole company. I was given the chance to do actual architectural
works which include autocad works, planning, revising and refining of plans of one of their design
projects. The project is a three-floors-with-roof deck duplex apartment which I was directed to do the
plotting of floor plans in autocad and first revisions which will be used for their first client meeting where
the first proposed design will be presented.
Aside from designing and planning, my on the job training in Ecotektonika exposed me to a lot of
different aspects/fields of architectural practice specifically in sustainability and green building.
Ecotektonika is a company of sustainability consultants where they aid in BERDE Certification, thus
exposing me to such certifications like LEED, and standards such as the newly passed Philippine Green
Building Code. To understand further how green building works, I and the other intens were first tasked to
sort and organize brochures and catalogues as per specification. After that, we shall identify which
products / materials are green building material. The task gave me a clear understanding of what green
building material is and helped me to fully classify materials to their indicated specification. This new
learning can be very useful in choosing materials and specifications writing. Another activity which
contributed to green building learning is organizing and dividing of BERDE Manuals. I was instructed to
compare two manuals, one for approval the other one is the approved. I shall differentiate the two and
note those differences, with that I shall proceed in dividing and organizing those manuals by adding tabs
for easier use in the future. Due to the process of differentiating I had to scan and read through the
manuals which gave me knowledge on BERDE Certification and what makes a building green.
Other activities which further exposed us to green building and sustainability are researching for
possible PHILGBC Conference Topics where each of us have to suggest three topics. Upon researching I
learned about the different aspects, considerations, barriers, etc. in green building, especially how it is
actually viewed by people. One learning from this is that using wood or green materials doesnt

automatically make a building green but the process and use which completes it. I realized from this
learning that this is why BERDE Certification is made in such a way where not only the design or the
construction is rated but also the provisions on how to use the building itself and also how the building
managers operates the building because after all the users is not only the judger of the building but also
the maintainer of it.
Another green building mind-opening task is doing a comparison between the Philippine Green
Building Code and BERDE Certification Parameters. We were tasked to compare it head-on: Parameter
to Code requirements. The comparison was needed for one of their current project with the need to
comply with the green building code while getting certification from BERDE. Thus, a comparison was
needed for easier designing in line with both. Doing the comparison was very time consuming for, like in
sorting and organizing BERDE Manuals, we needed to read through each to point out their similarities
and contrasts. The comparison will also be of use for the company for their future projects especially now
that the Philippine Green Building Code is in effect.
I was also given a task to measure a Fault Line distance from a site for one of their projects. The
task was very insightful. It made me exercise my knowledge on using google earth and other softwares
for overlaying images and measuring distance in google maps. I was also tasked to do actual BERDE
Report documents like Management Log and Master Checklist for Construction Phase. Graphic works
were also given to me. I have to make photo layouts for Ecotektonikas Facebook page photo uploads.
From this, I was able to learn a lot of photoshop hacks from my mentor which made editing more refined
and faster. The task help to refine my skills on photo editing and making layouts.
One of the most knowledgeable activities done during my on the job training were the client
meetings I accompanied to. It was so exciting and knowledgeable. I was able to learn a lot not only from
my mentors but also to other people during the meeting proceedings. I was exposed to actual client
negotiations, design process and its conflicts, how an entire design team works, and how to write minutes
of the meeting.
The whole internship was a great fruitful experience for me and it helped in realizing my strengths
and where my potential lies. It also helped me to have a wider view of what architectural practice is,
maybe also what I want to pursue as an architect in the future, that it doesnt entirely designing and

planning but it is a whole business where you yourself and your design/service is the product. Most of all,
Ecotektonika made me realize what kind of work environment I want to work in and how important it is to
build relationship. What I learnt in Ecotektonika over the 200 hours will be realized and honed in the years
to come.