Analysis of atrium's architectural aspects in office buildings under tropical sky conditions

This paper discusses atrium building typology by analysing the architectural aspects of existing atrium buildings. One hundred sixty commercial office buildings in Klang Valley were identified as the chosen building type for the initial selection process. Thirteen out of 160 office buildings surveyed were further analyzed based on the following architectural aspects: i) atrium spaces that include the description of atrium type, form and shape, physical dimensions, number of floors and height; ii) skylight design and roof fenestration system; and iii) atrium usage/activity and indoor environmental conditions. The atrium designs in these tropical office buildings are briefly described. The results show the most common atrium form is the enclosed central rectangular atrium with 4-storey average height. This study could lead to further research on design considerations for innovative applications to improve daylight performance in tropical office building atrium.