Selection/Rejection/Intentions

I have now developed several ideas for a solution to my design project. It is now time to sort through my ideas and determine which is the most viable idea to continue to develop. In order to do so, I will judge my ideas against the specifications and limitations in a chart called a specification matrix.


Specifications Matrix
Scale 1(worst) – 5(best)
Specifications
Solution 1:
Solution 2:
Solution 3:
Accommodations for vessels up to 200 Feet on land
5
1
5
75 dry storage spaces for boats up to 200 feet
5
1
5
30, 50 and 100 amp single and three phase electrical serviceUtilities
4
1
5
Complete marine repair facilities
3
1
5
88-ton travel lift and yardBoat brokerage sales and services
5
1
5
24-hour security
3
3
4
Dock Store – gifts, snacks, bait & tackle, and necessities.
3
2
5
Shower and laundry facilities
1
1
2
Attractive entrance with flagpole and signage
1
1
1
Parking for 500, 2% handicapped. 100 staff, 2% handicapped
4
3
5
Vehicular access roads with two entrances from the main roads
1
1
2
Fire Lanes
1
1
3
Catch basin with fencing/Rain gardens
5
1
5
Use environmentally preferred materials
3
4
5

Design for water conservation
3
1
5
Design to prevent discharge of wash or processed water or oil laden bilge water
2
3
3

TOTAL:

49

26

65




For the civil aspect of this project, I designed 3 entirely civil area of the marina located in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey. The top photo is the currently existing design of the marina, and the 3 bottom photos are my improved designs. These designs have been created in order to best deliver the results of an environmentally friendly marina. The aspects of the marina that I have changed should help to make this marina as green as possible.
As you can see by the chart, the best design that I created was solution #3. This alternate solution best fits all the aspects needed in order to redesign this marina, making it “green”. The second best solution was solution #2. It had most of the areas covered that were required, but in the long run it still could not stand up to the criteria of the 3rd solution. Solution #2 is a long shot and did not even come close in the running. I will explain why in the following paragraphs.
For solution #1 I decided that it would be most efficient to leave all the building where they were and build around them. Over to the right you can see I added in a lift, storage areas, and electrical service utilities. Some of the parking lot was removed in the middle to make room for a rain garden and catch basin. The rain garden will collect all the runoff and rain water and funnel it to the surrounding plants and flowers. These small changes were not enough to re-design the marina; therefore this will not be the chosen solution.
Solution #2 was a disaster. I moved all the main buildings at the marina, such as the restaurant, bait and tackle store and senior citizens center, and moved them next to the shore casino. This idea was made to mimic a sort of mini mall type area, in which all of these necessities would be easily accessible in one area. This solution however, does not include the majority of the criteria listed above in the grid, and therefore this solution is by far the worst of all 3 (and that’s being nice about it).
My chosen solution is solution #3. It meets all of the necessary criteria and more. For this solution, I based my design around a park theme. In the center of the parking lot there exists a nature area with trees and flowers, gazebos, and a fountain. Rainwater runoff will all be converged to this area, where it will filter in to catch basins that run into the fountain, so that the fountain will always be running off of recycled rainwater. This “wishing fountain” will also make money off of people who throw their coins into the fountain, and the money shall be used to benefit the environment. Besides that, this solution also has extra storage spaces, and an area for people to winterize their boats. Also, the parking spaces have been arranged on angles to allow for more room for parking. Best of all it matches up perfectly with my partner’s structural solution.