The Skycraper, Bioclimatically Considered: A Design Primer.

Ken Yeang has developed courageous ideas about building tall buildings, implementing these ideas as an architect for many projects.

An architect needs to have ideas and then to bring them into reality. This book is part of the process whereby Ken Yeang's knowledge and practice are made familiar and put into context of building at a world scale. The title is modelled on Sullivan's essay 'The Tall Building Aesthetically Considered', 1896.

The idea that buildings should be considered in relation to climate and react to the biosphere is not particularly new, but it is new for practitioners to achieve a substantial body of built design which demonstrates that the idea is not a cliche and that it does influence the form of a building.

Of course, the new idea on its own is not a basis for a building and Ken Yeang calls the book a primer because it does survey the whole process of building a skyscraper. There is a survey of the economics of the development process showing how the prediction of the rent receivable has to produce a return on the development costs. The function of a skyscraper as maximising the space use of a site is put alongside the function as a symbol of achievement.

Clearly the vertical circulation within the building is important. Lifts are not the only item, staircases for standby and fire fighting are also considered. There are tabulated standards for elevator access which can be used as a basis for making good early decisions. The idea of service cores at the perimeter of the building is introduced.

The consideration of the floor plate comes next. Area, depth from core to window are brought in as a pragmatic solution to problems of ventilating and lighting naturally ventilated spaces like escape stairs and providing ventilation when air conditioning is not needed or has failed to operate.

As you read through the book, the Ken Yeang solution becomes recognisable. Service cores as naturally ventilated spaces at the perimeter, sky lobbies extending vertically through the building and vertically landscaped, are taken as part of an accepted concept. All practical issues such as drainage, earth depth, watering and so on are clearly easily solved by an experienced, practical architect.

The book deals with practical building issues chapter by chapter. The problems of wind loading, sway, wind tunnel testing, imperceptibly give way to those of natural ventilation and wind air movement inside the buildings. The very difficult question as to how air conditioning is compatible with natural ventilation is not addressed.

There are useful, authoritative tables of the properties of glass. Structure: steel/concrete, car park/office grid is followed by a survey of M&E services and town planning.

The issues are comprehensively surveyed and solutions are confidently displayed but the important skilful step between understanding the problem and reaching a conclusion is not revealed. It should be left in the capable hands of Ken Yeang.

Ken Yeang's is not an academic book. It provides a reassuring overview of his approach to designing skyscrapers which incorporate humanistic ideas. The writing is clear without the engineering being shrouded in mystique. The book is a good starting point for reviewing the issues but the difficult issues are not developed.

To what extent can a building in the hot, moist tropics be designed so that natural ventilation can replace air conditioning? I think the answer is not much unless the users change their aspirations which they should be encouraged to do.