Last semester, the Department of Interior Architecture offered students the opportunity to investigate building systems as a part of their enhanced learning curriculum.
On November 1, 2016 Broward county firefighter and paramedic, Lieutenant James Glaze, visited the Paul L. Cejas Architecture Building to discuss fire safety in the interior environment. Twenty students from Senior Instructor, Katie Rothfield’s Building Systems for Interiors class participated in the lecture and presentation. Following the presentation, students researched historic fire tragedies, learning how and why current fire codes exist, and presented their findings to their classmates.
In addition to the professional visit, students also had the opportunity to experience an active construction site. The class visited the newly renovated STARTUP FIU facilities, located at the MARC building on FIU’s MMC campus. There, they observed and investigated exposed building systems. Representatives from FIU Facilities and the General Contractor of the MARC building provided a tour and conducted a Q&A session with the students.
Using the knowledge obtained in the course, the students completed designs for public restrooms. Each student designed exceptionally creative restrooms while following ADA guidelines, specifying water efficient fixtures, including all applicable building system components, and selecting sustainable and functional materials.
These nonconventional learning experiences lead the students to create more detailed and thoughtful interior designs.
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