Capacity Analysis
How many students can be served in a school building? The answer to this question is harder than it seems. Ask the architect, the fire marshal, the superintendent, the principal, and the teachers and they will all have a different number.
The architect determines a “design capacity” or the maximum number of persons a school is designed to hold based on the building codes and types of spaces.
The fire marshal divides the square footage of each room or space by the square footage required per person. This square footage varies significantly depending on the type of building. For example, classrooms require 20 SF per person.
School personnel tend to look at scheduling, number of classroom teachers vs. number of classrooms, and class size.
What we recommend is developing a “functional capacity”—how each space in the school is used and to what extent. Additionally, the functional capacity considers how spaces may be used in the future to accommodate evolving teaching and learning methods.
The functional capacity addresses not only the design with its building and fire codes, but also how the school is used based on its educational program and delivery. Schools with the same design and square footage can have completely different functional capacities based on its programs and services.