Unlike other projects which we are usually exposed to during out main semesters, this short yet compact practicum session fully tests our self- diligence and our cohesiveness as a group. Despite the huge uphill task that was placed before us given our lack of manpower, our perseverance and determination was crucial in enabling us to see this project through.

 

Many of us undermined the difficulty of the architectural drawings that were expected out of us. The requirements that were established by our tutor forced us to be critical and meticulous when churning out the drawings.

 

At the start of the project when we were assigned the Kuala Lumpur Textile Museum, we were definitely overwhelmed by the scale of the building and how much ground in terms of measuring we had to cover during the site measurement week. Despite the meticulous planning and exhausting most of our manpower to cover as much of the building as possible, that one week of site visit was not sufficient for us. We had to organize an additional five days to return back to site to collect the necessary measurements that were still missing. In addition to the mounting problems that we were all experiencing such as measurements that do not tally as well as dimensions that do not fit, there were also portions of the building that were not accessible due to security and safety reasons. As a result, we had to perform calculated approximations for certain parts of building. Also, the use of different measuring tools proved to churn out measurements that were slightly off. Thus, precautions were taken to minimize the amount of errors that were made. That were even occasions when certain lengths and dimensions had to be measured and re-measured up to half a dozen times.

 

Given the building’s architectural style and long list of past ownerships, the number of facade changes as well as interior space alterations that were performed on the building have resulted in inconsistencies in certain elements in the building.

 

We also had to ensure that all the important elements in the building such as the arches, columns, arched windows and split levels are all accounted for. All of us also had to be meticulous in the materials that are being used. Given the abundant use of plaster walls within the building’s interiors, we had to extrapolate and estimate the column positions and distances between each other especially for those that are situated in the galleries and are covered up by these plaster walls.

 

Since the building is fully-furnished, care had to be taken when recording measurements for different parts of the building especially for places that hold valuable artifacts as well as for places where most visitor activity is observed.

 

Interacting with the building’s staff also proved to be of assistance to us as that has enabled us to understand the architectural layout and the historical background of the building better. The curator who gave us a tour of themuseum was able to provide us with significant information for the different elements or layouts that are represented in the building.After the entire site visit session, armed with measurements which we have collected on site, these measurements were then to be translated into comprehensive architectural drawings. Issues relating to measurements that do not tally as well as lineweights were just few of the many problems that we faced up till the day of submission. We were constantly on a track to improve the quality of our drawings so as to fulfil the aims of this project.

 

Also, one had to partake in careful planning to ensure that these drawings were to be completed given a specified dateline. The completion of our drawings with each consultation session with our tutor sees our drawings improving further. The architectural drawings are a huge and crucial part of our project not only to obtain a positive outcome out of this but also to benefit us as individuals during our remaining semesters. Hence, this task was indeed a good test of multi-tasking between learning and working at the same time. Given the numerous datelines and interim sessions which we faced, we had to acquire CAD-ing skills swiftly.

 

Juggling manpower between model-making and constant re-editing of our drawings, we had to ensure that each of us was working on any one thing every single day so as to build on our progress.

 

All in all, apart from the inevitable sleepless nights which we faced, this entire practicum session was indeed a valuable one for all of us.