The importance of security is the reason why we have the desire to build. From ancient castles, moats, and hill fortresses, architecture has served the purpose of safeguarding and protecting since its early development.
The application of architecture provides comfort, tranquility, and relaxation for users. It also provides a feeling of safety and security.
Vital factor architects need to consider when they are designing a secure home is how its designs can be workable. It means that they strive to construct buildings that do not cause discomfort or unease. An architect must be creative and able to use the environment and landscape to his/her advantage.
Active and Passive Security in Home Structural Design
There are two significant approaches to home security designs.
Active security is visible and relates more to traditional security. Examples are houses with barbed wires, point-tipped gates, security cameras, tall fences, metal detectors, and armed security guards. These choices openly signal aggression and will sometimes need high costs of maintenance.
Passive security, on the other hand, incorporates home design features that discourage threats while remaining mostly unnoticeable to its consumers. This form of protection is not used or marketable as a product. Instead of existing as specific items and inventions, passive security is more of using good design to add a layer of defense, privacy, and refuge.
Proper security is unified, inconspicuous, and architects should consider passive methods for implementing security concerns.
Issues to be Considered
Provide Security for Building Occupants and Assets
Before designers implement any plan, they should consider the idea from the outlook of potential dangers its inhabitants might face. Elements include the protective magnitude, will it be applied to design the building? The function of the edifice? The popularity of the residents? And its proximity to high-security risk environments.
The Layout
The layout of a property is essential but often ignored for security purposes. Architects can consider the landscape to design buildings surrounded by natural elements like trees, rocks, undulating elevations, and falls in the topography of the land. Also, by reducing the number of blind corners a building structure has, crafting the house in such a way that light reaches further provides an impression of the sanctuary and allows other security measures to work efficiently.
Fire Protection
An architect must plan for the fire protection of a building. It often consists of taking an approach by analyzing all the components of a building, including the materials it will be built with and designing a holistic fire safety package. They will also have to design and implement a fire sprinkler system.
Safeguard Resident’s Wellbeing and Safety
we can connect some distress and sicknesses to hazardous or unsanitary building design and set-up. Preventive building methods that consider issues such as ergonomics, electrical safety, indoor air quality, fall protection, and accident prevention can thwart such occurrences.
Modify houses to Mitigate Natural Hazards
Designers should be conscious of ecological factors. For example, riverine areas, homes must be physically sturdy. Also, in some areas, houses have to be made strategically with sturdy glass or built at least over a story building, or detail fortified roofs and walls to mitigate natural hazards.
Other Issues
Lighting: A central element of any home defense apparatus. Meticulously crafted and synchronized internal and external lighting techniques will provide dissuasion to an extent.
Boundary Security: Consists of features like ramparts, walls, hedges, fences, and environmental barriers that guard entryways. Others are the intelligent placement of windows, entrance points, and avoiding dark spots in the design.
Identifying Incursions: These are the many forms of motion sensors and distress signals. Besides, there is equipment that picks up signals from breaking glass or if apertures and doors are unlocked. Mobility detectors that track movement are also suitable.
Observation and Electric Eyes: These are closed-circuit cameras and espies.
The architect should know beforehand if they will be installing these devices so that they can tailor the house specifically for them. For example, the placement of fiber-optic cables. Besides, they also have to decide if there would be a command center or safe-house in the building plan.
Homeowners should equally understand what identity theft is and how to protect themselves accordingly. Before, these thieves used cyber means (phishing attacks) to steal personal information, but this is not the case anymore as these identity thieves take credit cards, checkbooks, and utility bills from homes, vehicles, and offices.
That said, it’s pertinent that protective devices aren’t suffocating or stifling, but it’s also crucial that these apparatuses are discernible and conspicuous. For example, closed-circuit cameras have preventive functions and also gather information at the same time. So they must be evident and noticeable.
In conclusion, there are several security-related issues architects should be aware of at the outset of design. Nonetheless, here are the important ones. First, good security is always an interaction between three factors: physical and design hurdles, which could be a vegetative plan that hinders access. For example, where doors and windows will be placed, their width and number, security patrols, and electronic protection are achievable due to modern technological advancements. The architect must consider all these while designing a secure house.
