NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering, Architecture, & Technology

Architecture Department

TOWER OF POWER:
“A Proposed Regenerative Tower Complex of Makati”

A Research Proposal presented to

Ar. Analiza A.Arcangel ,UAP,M.Ar.U.D.

In partial fulfillment of the course requirements in

Design 9: Thesis Writing

For the degree of

Bachelor of Science in Architecture

Submitted by

Michael L. Garcia

On

October 24, 2019

1. INTRODUCTION

The “Tower of Power” is firmly described as a sky craper in Makati City incorporated with

the form of harnessing alternative electricity.

The Researcher’s idea of the “Tower of Power” will help reduce the use of common

electricity that sometimes decrease in supply as a result of the extensive consumption of

people in running gadgets, home appliances, and other power consuming things at a daily

basis.

Communities nowadays are slowly getting power shortages and interruptions which

directly affect the usual daily routines. It is a thing that leads to another that is why humanity

is continuously looking for solutions in addressing these issues, the Proposed Tower of Power

included. The Proposed Tower of Power will be one of the self-sustaining structures in terms

of power consumption.

Sustainability in Architecture seeks to minimize the negative environmental impact of

buildings by efficiency and moderation in the use of materials, energy, and development space

and the ecosystem at large. Sustainable architecture uses a conscious approach to energy and

ecological conservation in the design of the built environment. The current standard of a

building requires very little in terms of environment and the standard that is set for what is

considered as a sustainable building is extremely low.

The Dynamic of Architecture with respect to the environment, expects little to be deemed

as successful. When a structure is built, it is celebrated if it employs any level of environmental

acknowledgement. It is embodied in material selection, reduced energy consumption, and

intelligent design. More profound piece of regenerative architecture is the treatment of

environment as an equal shareholder in the Architecture. It is a practice that employs a full

and comprehensive understanding of natural and living systems in the design of a structure.
It is the Architecture that embraces the environment and uses the millions of years of

engineering and evolution as the foundation for a regenerative design. Regenerative design is

based on the premised that everything human builds has the potential for the integration of

the natural world as an equal partner in the field of Architecture. This paper introduces

Regenerative Architecture as a means for architectural design. The techniques on

regenerative designing of a building such as green roof and skins, waste water treatment,

capturing rainwater, energy consumption and production, and thermal efficient construction

will be the primary techniques for this research.

Architecture is defined as “the art or practice of designing and constructing a building”.

This is a common definition of architecture and is incomplete. The breadth of possibilities for

regeneration and integration are non-existent as the definition limits us to Architecture being

solely a building alone. Building exists as a part of a site or a place which the definition of

Architecture does not account for.

“Why do humans remove a building from the site in the definition of Architecture?” The

Researcher firmly believes that the building and the site shall coexist for they make up the

what is called “Architecture”. With this, the definition of Architecture can be expanded to

“the art or practice of designing and constructing places, through the integration of the site

and the building”. This definition is more precise for including the site in Architecture is the

only way for a building to be beyond sustainable and regenerative.

Regenerative Architecture is the practice of engaging the natural world as the medium

and generator of Architecture. It responds to and utilizes the living and natural systems that

exist on a site that become the building blocks of Architecture. Regenerative Architecture has

two focuses; it is an Architecture that focuses on conservation and performance through a

focused reduction on the environmental impacts of a building.

 Architecture is regenerative when the term architecture incorporates more than just the

building and the opportunities are limitless. The Architecture is the place, the site, the

systems, the energy, the building, the fauna, and the flora. These exist as one piece, one

system that co-evolves as one complete entity. The balance of the ecosystem is improved and

the Architecture shall produce more than it consumes which implies the what is called

“generation”.

The expansion of our built paradigm allows human and the environment to peacefully

coexist. It allows human to return to a place of equilibrium and regeneration of life places.

The upward spiral of environmental can begin, which ultimately increases the health of the

human species as well as the environment. Needless to say, it is the best interest to adopt a

process of regeneration and integration. Regenerative Architecture is conceived when the

production output from the system is greater than the net input of resources into the system.

The Architecture, in its new definition, is producing a surplus of food, cleaner water than

it consumes, more energy than it consumes, provides richer diversity than it was before. By

adopting Regenerative Architecture, the questions on how building can be truly sustainable is

being answered and the capability of producing all the requirements that we need for life is

conceived.

The Proposed “Tower of Power” is a high rise (vertical) mixed-use structure with the

purpose of maximizing the site and will harness power through wind and solar. It consists

leisure areas, restaurants, casinos, hotels and rentable offices for investors and businesses.

This development requires the synthesis of systems which demand a constant input of energy

and resources that are disconnected from the site. It is structure that produces energy, food,

captures water, purifies water, produces oxygen and captures carbon dioxide among the

other things. It has the capability of having a positive existence rather than a negative one for

it applies Sustainability.
2. OVERVIEW (BACKGROUND)

Architecture is worth great attention. It is then among the most important arts and it is

desirable to introduce taste into an art which shows so much (Jefferson, 1778). A love of tradition

has never weakened a nation; indeed, it has strengthened nations (Churchill, 1944). The main goal

is to create a work of architecture fortifying the attachment to and broadening the knowledge

about Makati City’s culture and traditions.

Culture and traditions are components of the identity of a nation. Due to innovation and

introduction of modern technology, the people of Makati City lifestyle has rapidly changed

throughout the time. Through following the design process. This thesis research will be an

attestation of architecture’s capability to showcase and strengthen a city’s culture and traditions.

The final output for this research is expected to be an organized, intricately conceptualized and

technically regenerative attainable architecture that will not only provide a creative, convenient,

functional and visually pleasing work of art for the people but also an attestation of architecture’s

essentiality as a factor to promote Makati City’s culture and traditions.

The aim of the research is to provide an attraction that showcases Makati City in authenticity,

strengthen the City’s culture and traditions to promote the beauty and progressiveness of Makati

City through a regenerative and environment friendly high tower.

3. RESEARCH FOCUS

Makati City is the richest city in Philippines because of its boastful and continuous

increasing development. Due of its rapid development, more structures are built as time passes

by . Skyscrapers make up the skyline of Makati City. So, the main problem, structures continuously

raised without prior to existing built environment and nature. Massive and tall structures tend to

consume high power to generate its functions that may cause power shortages that which is a big
interrupt and other demands. Tower of Power mainly focuses on sustainability and regenerative

design. This structure will compress leasers, offices, businessman, and businesses in a one tall

structure to prevent from increasing horizontally. This structure will be design in accordance to

the need of the environment. Tower of Power consumes energy and in the other hand it also

generates and produces back energy which will be used to utilize the structure. The research aim

is to increase investments of the city, compress small lease structures to give way for open areas

to develop for the community mostly on its central business district, provide an eye-catching

structure that may also serve as the landmark of Makati and also to attract tourists and lastly to

help the environment by the use of less manmade energy supplies.

3.1. RESEARCH PROBLEM

PROBLEM 1:

Lack of open spaces and greeneries.

PROBLEM 2:

Less/Non-conformant to building laws.

PROBLEM 3:

Address to the enormous utilization of power.

3.2. RESEARCH QUESTION

1. What are the factors that may affect the people of Makati City towards their living?

2. What are the positive impacts of this research to the community and economy of Makati

City?
 3. Will Tower of Power help to lessen the consumption of the city when it comes to artificial

power source?

4. What design and structural type will appropriate to embody the Tower of Power to the

environment of Makati City?

3.3. RESEARCH AIM

This research aim is to attract and persuade other existing structures and to the future to the

development of the city to prevent from different unnecessary type of architectural design and

techniques on how to promote and apply sustainability and regeneratively. Also, the Tower of

Power will help the city to increase the development of its economic industry.

OBJECTIVES:

1. To strengthen the culture and tradition of Makati City.

2. To promote more the city as the richest city in the Philippines.

3. To preserve the integrity of Makati City.

4. To generate more job opportunities to the people of Makati and its neighboring cities;

and

5. To generate more income for the city of Makati.

6. To add more beauty to the City.

4. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Desk research and thorough reading was the starting point of the researcher in conducting

the study. An Ocular inspection on the existing site will be further conducted.
 After establishing the theories related and connected to the topic, the methodology of the

research will be divided into three major phases:

1. Architectural Programming
2. Design Translation
3. Design Evaluation

During the Architectural Programming and Design Translation Phases, the following

systems of inquiry will be used:

 Ocular Site Inspection and Documentation to further establish the strengths and

opportunities of project location.

 Continued desk and literature research on building standards and codes, to validate

space requirements as aid for space programming.

 Observation on behavioral patterns apparent to the research proposal.

 Consultations with knowledgeable professionals and experts in the field of

architecture to secure that the concepts and architecture design proposals will work

given the current technology.

For the phase of Design Evaluation, the research aims to produce at least two schemes

for the Tower of Power and have the design studied and evaluated by an architecture expert. Also,

it aims to capture the essence of Makati City’s culture and tradition.

4.1. QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Interviews will be conducted on the surrounding area of the site. Following are the

questions will be going on ocular visit:

 1. How was the quality of life of the residents surrounding the area?

2. What are the things to consider traditionally for the resident before to start designing?

3. Will be the said project be helpful on their future daily lives? (hypothetically assumed)

4.2. QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

4.3. DATA COLLECTION

The researcher will use the following tools in collecting and gathering sufficient data

needed for the study:

A. Ocular inspection

B. Consultation

- City Planning and Development Office

- City Engineering Office

C. Books, Journals, Articles, and Magazines

D. World Wide Websites

4.4. DATA ANALYSIS

The data gathered through interviews about the behavior of the site and its nearby will

be arranged accordingly, first, on how deep the problem and or suggestion is and to follow the

least. Data gathered through surveying will be tabulated in linear plot to address the priority

where the respondents suggested.

5. MERIT OF THE RESEARCH AND PROPOSED CONTRIBUTION TO ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN

Regenerative and sustainability has a great impact on a certain building or structure. This

research might be a Net-Zero structure but maybe for further researches. This structure is

mainly built with dynamic components such as also termed as smart panels wherein it follows

the sun path directly to absorb more heat to generate. This structure would be built or made

up with combinations of glass, pollywall interior panels, steel and wood. Power of Tower, a

structure that consumes energy and at the same time it produces back. It would be integrated

more with mechanical and electrical components because of its smart panels and wind

turbines. Might not be something new in innovation but it would be a one of kind structure

here in Philippines most likely in Makati City. A work of art for architecture combined with

smart engineering innovation will be a prestigious one of a kind structure.

6. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERARTURE AND LAWS

HISTORY OF MAKATI CITY

Long ago the area was wilderness where “lipang kalabaw.” a weed whose leaves irritates

the skin upon contact, thrived. The early Spanish asked the natives for the name of the place but
indicated the weeds. The natives shouted. “Makati, makati.” meaning “itchy, itchy,” referring to

the plant and warning the newcomers. The Spaniards took the word to be the name of the place.

The other source is more plausible. The area is bounded to the north by the Pasig river.

When the tide ebbs, large areas of land emerge from the river. The rising and ebbing of the tide

was a practical way of telling the time of day. When the tide ebbed, the people would say “May

Kati na” (the tide has ebbed.) Eventually the “y” was dropped and the two words were contracted

into Makati, where the tide ebbs.

According to tradition, pre-Spanish Makati was ruled by the chieftain named Lakan

Tagkan, and his wife, Buan.

When Spanish arrived, the Makati area was turned over to the Franciscans who

established their first mission here, part of the visita of Santa Ana de Sapa.

The mission was transferred in 1670 to the Calced Augustinians who built the Guadalupe

Church which would become a historic landmark through the years.

When the Spanish introduced the encomienda system into the Philippines, large tracts of

land around the city of Manila were awarded of favored subjects.

In this manner one Captain Pedro de Brito, an important military officer, acquired vast

tracts of land in Makati area. He later donated half of his holdings to the Society of Jesus. The

Jesuits established Makati as e pueblo in 1670 and named it San Pedro de Makati.

When the Jesuits were expelled from the islands in 1767, Don Pedro de Guaraga, Marques

de Villmediana, acquired vast sections of the area. He sold his holdings to Don Jose Col in 1807.

Jose Col sold the hacienda to Manuel Gomez, who in turn sold it to Don Simon Bernardino Velez.

In 1851, the latter sold the property to Don Jose Bonifacio Roxas who married Dona Carmen de
Ayala y Roxas. One of the couple’s children was Dona Consuela Roxas y Ayala who married Don

Enrique Zobel de Ayala. The Hacienda San Pedro de Makati has been in the hands of the Roxas-

Zobel de Ayala family since.

Makati’s foundation was laid when Don Domingo Roxas and Don Antonio de Ayala merged

into a partnership and formed “Casa Roxas” (House of Roxas). The partnership devoted itself to

agriculture and industry. Much of the Makati area at this time was swampland and cogonal. The

sale of fodder was more lucrative since transportation at this time depended on horses. With the

arrival of motor vehicles, Casa Roxas had to seek other sources of income. In 1903, Enrique Zobel

de Ayala opened a ceramics factory in Makati which flourished until 1911.

Led by the patriot and soldier Pio de Pilar, the people of Makati rallied to the revolution

against Spain, and later to the struggle against the American invaders. San Pedro de Makati

became part of Rizal province under the American regime. Act No. 2390 of the Philippines

Legislature of 1914 shortened the town’s name to “Makati”.

After World War II, the Ayalas started subdividing their 1,650 hectares hacienda, parts of

it are converted into low-cost housing projects.

In 1952, Ayala Corporation started plans for the development of a modern urban center.

Streets were constructed and a modern sewerage treatment plant was started. Thirty-five wells

were sunk each costing P100,000, with two reservoirs, to ensure an independent water supply for

residents.

Of the 11 zones into which Makati was divided, five were allocated to residential villages,

classified as “low cost”, “moderate-cost”, “expensive”, “apartment”, and “hotel apartment”. San

Lorenzo village was launched in 1952, Bel Air in 1954, Urdaneta in 1957, San Miguel in 1960,

Magallanes and Dasmarinas in 1962.

(https://twt.com.ph/2018/04/brief-history-of-makati-city-philippine-real-estate/)

Milan’s Vertical Forest is the World’s Most Beautiful (and Most Sustainable) Skyscraper

A splash of green

The building’s name surely sounds interesting, but how exactly does a vertical forest look

like? The two residential skyscrapers, built by the edge of the once quite unpopular Isola

neighborhood, look very much like huge green Jenga towers. Each floor is adorned with large

irregular balconies hosting more than 900 trees and 14 thousand plants. Integrating all of this lush

green into a luxurious apartment complex has an endless list of benefits for the lucky ones who

can afford to live there. Trees filter the light during the summer and let it in in the winter, act as a

shield from wind, absorb fine dusts, and release oxygen and humidity. The main difference

between Bosco Vertical and a city park is space: highly urbanized cities that simply don’t have the

free land to build new parks may have a new way to inject some well needed nature into hyper

polluted environments.

Completely sustainable

The Bosco Vertical towers are a feast for the eyes, with their 110 and 75 m height covered

with all kinds of vegetation. However, what happens underneath the surface is equally impressive.

The buildings are powered by renewables: wind, solar and geothermal energy are combined to

supply both towers with electricity and heat. The towers will have their own wind turbines and

500mq of solar panels on their roofs. Rain and greywater is collected and reused for irrigation.

The whole neighborhood of Porta Nuova Isola, where they were built, was revolutionized before

the Expo to include new residences and office buildings that received the LEED certification –
Leadership of Energy and Environmental Design – for their seamless integration of nature,

sustainability and advanced technology.

(https://www.greenjournal.co.uk/2015/12/milans-vertical-forest-is-the-worlds-most-beautiful-

and-most-sustainable-skyscraper/)

The Hybrid Solar System

Though it does require additional investment in the form of batteries, it is very possible

to get the best of both worlds by building a solar system that only uses traditional utility power as

a back-up. In this scenario, rather than funneling your excess solar energy back into a power grid,

you store it yourself. If you plan well and create enough storage, you can put yourself in a position

of only using the power grid for cases of extreme energy use or very limited sunlight availability.

The hybrid option is more and more realistic with the onset of new storage technology including

the Tesla Battery.

The best system size for you

Determining the best system size for your property and situation is not necessarily

straight-forward, as there are so many variables involved, and some come down to personal

preference. Our system sizing tool is a great way to ascertain the system capacity needed to power

your electricity needs as well as explaining more about the variables that will lead to your decision.

Shading

Shading is another consideration when positioning your panels, but even more so when

evaluating a system potential. It’s best to avoid any shaded areas. If your property is shaded at

different times throughout the day, you can plug this information into our solar power calculator

and you’ll get see the effect of shading on your potential installation.
Roof tilt

Household and commercial rooftops come in many shapes and sizes. The pitch of your

roof will have an impact on the performance of your solar panels. Any performance loss is

generally pretty minor, below 5% unless your roof is flat. If it is flat, you may consider installing

your array on a tilt or possibly even have your panels track the movement of the sun. We can

recommend expert installers to assist you with these issues.

REGENERATIVE ARCHITECTURE BY ARCH. RONNIE M. YUMANG, UAP

Green building

The building industry is responsible for the huge share of materials consumption and

greenhouse gas emissions. Buildings account for 18 percent of global emissions or an equivalent

of 9 billion tons of CO2 annually.

Projected emissions could double by 2050, according to United Nations Environment

Program. The need and desire for more energy-efficient and environment-friendly construction

practices led to a global effort to establish the Green building or sustainable design.

Architecture and the environment

While sustainable design limits or minimizes bad effects of construction, regenerative

architecture optimizes the good effects of building while minimizing its bad impacts. It heals the

earth.
 According to Jacob Littman’s Master theses, “Regenerative Architecture: A Pathway

Beyond Sustainability,” it is the practice of engaging the natural world as the medium for, and

generator of architecture.

It responds to and utilizes the living and natural systems that exist on a site and become

the “building blocks” of architecture. Regenerative architecture focuses on conservation of

resources and reduction on the environmental impacts of building.

The second most profound piece of regenerative architecture is the treatment of the

environment as an equal shareholder in the architecture. It is a practice that employs full and

comprehensive understanding of natural and living systems in the design of a structure.

Regenerative architecture embraces the environment and uses the millions of years of

engineering and evolution as the foundation for a structure. Regenerative design is based on the

premise that everything we build has the potential for the integration of the natural world as an

“equal partner” in architecture, according to Littman.

By engaging the architecture and co-habiting humans into the ecology of the site, it does

not destroy other living communities.

We often ignore the billions of living organisms on the topsoil every time we see land

being scraped to give way to new developments.

And thousands of centuries old native trees home to native and endemic wildlife are cut

down to give way to new roads and human settlements.

We innocently plant beautiful exotic invasive trees wherever we wish to do so thinking

these will better serve the environment. But the truth of the matter is these can kill an ecosystem.
 These are the primary reasons we unknowingly destroy the habitat of local species. They

get displaced and the ecological balance is disturbed. Thus, a biogenesis of much harmful species

continues to evolve due to hostile environment.

7. RESEARCH PROTOCOLS
 8. REFERENCES

BOOKs

 Regenerative Architecture: A Pathway Beyond Sustainability by Jacob A. Littman

 Sustainable Architecture by Issue One

PDF’S, WORLD WIDE WEB, JOURNALS, AND ARTICLES

UAP - https://www.united-architects.org/news/regenerative-architecture-423

Regenerative Architecture Principles: A Departure from Modern Sustainable Design

- https://hmcarchitects.com/news/regenerative-architecture-principles-a-departure-from-
modern-sustainable-design-2019-04-12/

HISTORY OF MAKATI CITY

- https://twt.com.ph/2018/04/brief-history-of-makati-city-philippine-real-estate/

- https://www.greenjournal.co.uk/2015/12/milans-vertical-forest-is-the-worlds-most-

beautiful-and-most-sustainable-skyscraper/

Green Architecture: A Concept of Sustainability (Publisher: Elsevier)

- https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291419457_Green_Architecture_A_Concept_of_
Sustainability

- Google Scholar