One of the worlds priminent examples of structures built around the concept of unity. The university, starting from just a handful of buildings, has now grown into a cosmic site of 900+ acres, growing in an urban context with brutalist architecture, it has escaped from the overt dogmas of the past and has renewed focus on the issues of the environment and social agency; with the coherent land use, becoming a ‘self sustaining’ order. The campus binds together all structures and the 30,000+ people inhabiting them in a sublime manner, it seems as if it is exclusively built for every one of them, truly “Transforming Education, Transforming India.
SUSTAINABLE URBAN DESIGN : REGIONAL CONTEXT
LPU provides a safe and healthy environment that improves physical and social environments, strengthens those community resources. After the expansion it has managed to limit an urban sprawl of the city of Jalandhar and unifed it into one core. In a way it has taken up the pressure on Jalandhar and Phagwara by providing the villages nearby, not only with an urban center; but also a reason to stay put by providing employment opportunities. Providing employment to the localities and regenerating the nearby villages, it has also culturally uplifted the fringe areas.
SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT WITHIN THE CAMPUS : LANDSCAPE DESIGN AND UTILITIES
The campus is self-supporting, with its own sewage treatment plant, various water harvesting systems, self operated electric vehicles and a 24 hours energy backup system. A total of 15.1% area is allocated to green spaces within the campus. All these services support the life of over 30,000 inhabitants who live in this small world which also has its own hospital, fire station, shopping mall, skating rink, bowling alley and a playground for almost every sport.. It even has its own helipad. With more than 150 varieties of trees and plants, the university supports a butterfly farm covering 60,000 sq ft. The way the campus is built helps to construct environmental capital by being designed and constructed in a sustainable way that respects and preserves our environment for future generations.
SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURE; SPATIAL OPTIMIZATION, SOCIAL SPACES AND WALK-ABLE TRAILS
The university itself merges into 5 villages at its boundaries, and is still accommodating more area with the passage of time. Thus, the sporadic development pattern of campus aims for detaileds phase wise planning. This ensures space optimization for future expansion. On building scale an intricate network of pedestrian walkways connects various departments such that these connecting spaces always find their way through parks, lawns and walkways which freshen up every last cell of the human body. Small Amphitheaters are also made throughout the campus for esoteric events and interactions.
ECONOMICAL SUSTAINABILITY
PHASE WISE DEVELOPMENT, Optimizing space. The University started with 15-acre land and has grown remarkably over the years to 60 times the original land area and is still growing.Everything seems to blend in which each other. The university itself merges into 5 villages at its boundaries, and is still accommodating more and more area with the passage of time. USE OF LOCAL MATERIAL, Brick and Concrete: The campus site was enclosed by a region rich in Indo-Gangetic alluvium soil (silt, clay, stone, sand, gravel & pebbles) and surrounded by brick kilns. Thus, choosing brick as the main building material not only brought down construction costs and maintenance cost, but also set a precedence to exploit locally available resources.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
RESOURCE SHARING. The planning is done in such a way that these connecting spaces always find their way through parks, lawns and walkways which freshen up every last cell of the human body. Small Amphitheaters are also made throughout the campus for esoteric events and interactions. SOCIAL EMPOWERMENT. LPU provides a safe and healthy environment that improves physical and social environments, strengthens those community resources.. After the expansion it has managed to limit an urban sprawl of the city of Jalandhar and unify it into one core. In a way it has taken up the pressure on Jalandhar and Phagwara by providing the villages near by not only with an urban center but also a reason to stay put by providing employment opportunities.
MATERIAL TECHONOLOGY
CONCRETE TECHNOLOGY
Concrete has a number of performance characteristics like sound insulation, protection from flooding, inbuilt fire resistance promotes air tightness, heavy thermal mass, and low carbon construction along with durability and low maintenance promises a strong and reliable construction. Hi technology concepts – the Bubble, Concrete, Translucent Concrete, Hydrophobic concrete and Carbon tubes are the proposed future additions in the concrete technology.
GLASS/ ACRYLIC
Different types of acrylics have been supplemented with the use of glass, not only due to its exceptional weather-ability, strength, clarity and versatility but also to make the campus vandalism proof. Half the weight with up to 10 times the impact resistance, it has been used in a blue color- a sharp contrast to the rustic color vocabulary on the campus, thus adding a touch of fun and glamour to the otherwise bold and brutal facades. At some places scratch resistance, antifogging coatings have been applied to make it more durable and functional.
SUSTAINABLE BRICK CONSTRUCTION
Brick, a durable and naturally energy efficient construction material, made from clay and shale, some of the most abundant, natural materials on the Indo-Gangetic plain, the site of the campus. Clay brick has thousands of color and shade options that will not fade. Clay brick is actually significantly stronger than concrete, brick as well. Bricks today are subject to much more stringent manufacturing processes than used in the past, which results in a more consistent performing end-product. A non combustible material ensures a safe environment for the users of the University. The high wind protection & superior moisture control offered by this material ensured less maintenance costs, which is most suitable for the site amidst green fields ensured.
