A Park in the Shade: Climate Responsive Architecture for an Industrial Village in Palakkad

A Park in the Shade is an undergraduate thesis project "A Park in the shade; Climate responsive industrial village at Palakkad." by Hisham Sulaiman that explores climate responsive architecture as a tool to rethink industrial settlements in the warm–humid climate of Palakkad, Kerala. Conceived as an adaptive intervention within an existing industrial park, the project responds directly to rising temperatures, seasonal extremes, and changing microclimatic conditions that increasingly affect everyday life and work environments.

Rather than treating climate as a constraint, the project positions it as a design generator—shaping form, orientation, spatial organization, and material systems. Through computational methods, environmental analysis, and passive design strategies, the proposal creates a shaded, breathable, and socially active industrial village that balances productivity with human comfort.

Context: Climate and Industrial Landscapes

Palakkad is characterized by intense solar radiation, high humidity, monsoon rainfall, and seasonal wind patterns. Conventional industrial developments in such contexts often neglect microclimate, resulting in heat stress, glare, poor ventilation, and fragmented social spaces.

A Park in the Shade challenges this model by embedding climate responsive architectural planning at multiple scales—from master planning and housing typologies to facade systems and kinetic shading devices. The project transforms an industrial zone into a landscape‑driven environment where shade, airflow, and water become primary spatial elements.

Master Plan Strategy: Designing with Climate

The master plan is structured around existing site conditions, wind directions, and solar paths. Roadways and building clusters follow natural vistas and airflow corridors, ensuring uninterrupted wind movement across the site. Taller structures are strategically placed at the periphery to avoid wind shadows, while lower housing clusters occupy shaded, protected zones.

Key components of the master plan include:

• High‑rise apartments and worker housing arranged for cross‑ventilation
• A centrally located community center acting as a social and climatic anchor
• Markets, artificial lakes, and water‑harvesting systems integrated into daily movement paths
• Landscaped buffers and earth berms to regulate heat gain and noise

The result is a porous, walkable industrial village where landscape and architecture work together to moderate climate.

Housing for Industrial Workers: Adaptive Typologies

Housing units are designed as modular, expandable typologies that respond to both climate and evolving family needs. Each unit is oriented to minimize direct solar exposure while maximizing natural ventilation.

Key architectural features include:

• Courtyards that act as thermal buffers and social spaces
• Compressed earth blocks with low U‑values for thermal insulation
• Wind towers and solar chimneys to enhance passive cooling
• Green roofs and earth berms to reduce heat gain

Sectional studies reveal how sleeping areas, living spaces, and sit‑outs are organized around shaded courtyards, creating comfortable interiors without reliance on mechanical cooling—an essential principle of climate responsive architecture.

Community Center: Microclimate as Social Infrastructure

The community center is conceived as the heart of the industrial village. Designed as a shaded pavilion, it creates a unique microclimate that encourages interaction, rest, and collective activities.

Rainwater harvested from the site is stored beneath the structure and reused for construction and cooling. The roof system filters daylight while reducing glare, and the courtyard below remains naturally cool throughout the year.

This building demonstrates how architecture can function simultaneously as social infrastructure and environmental moderator, reinforcing the project’s climate‑driven ethos.

Automatic Shading Device: Computational Design in Action

One of the project’s most distinctive elements is an automatic shading device developed using computational workflows. The shading system responds dynamically to the sun’s position throughout the day—adjusting in the morning, noon, and evening to provide optimal protection from glare and heat.

Designed using environmental simulation tools and parametric modeling, the device operates as:

• A sun‑tracking canopy
• A microclimate modifier within courtyards
• A prototype for scalable climate‑responsive building components

The physical prototype and control logic demonstrate how computation can translate environmental data into responsive architectural systems.

Facade Design and Environmental Simulation

Facade systems across the project are informed by solar radiation studies and wind analysis. Using tools such as Ecotect and Grasshopper, surface porosity, shading density, and material thickness are calibrated to seasonal performance.

These facades act not merely as enclosures but as active climatic filters—regulating light, air, and heat while contributing to the project’s visual identity.

Architecture as Landscape

Across the site, buildings dissolve into the terrain through green roofs, gentle slopes, and shaded pathways. Water bodies, vegetation, and built form merge to create a park‑like environment within an industrial setting—hence the name A Park in the Shade.

This integration reinforces the idea that climate responsive architecture is not about isolated technologies, but about designing systems where architecture, landscape, and human activity coexist symbiotically.

A Park in the Shade presents a compelling vision for climate responsive architecture in industrial contexts. By combining passive design principles, computational methods, and human‑centric planning, the project demonstrates how industrial villages can evolve into resilient, comfortable, and socially vibrant environments.

In the face of climate change, this thesis by Hisham Sulaiman offers a timely architectural response—one where shade is not just an element, but a strategy; and climate is not an obstacle, but a collaborator.