Dynamics of Industrial Revolution 4.0: Digital Technology Transformation and Cultural Evolution –
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Replacement of Public Area with Service Area as a COVID-19 Safety
House Design
S. Rahardjo, M.K.A. Rahman & A. Safinatunnajah
Telkom University, Bandung, Indonesia
ABSTRACT: The existence of COVID-19 has created many safety procedures when people enter
their homes. The need for immediate handwashing or spraying disinfectant has turned the public
area of a house into a crucial place for filtering unwanted viruses. An adjustment to the house
situation then becomes necessary, but hard to achieve especially in smaller houses. As a response
to this current situation, this article proposes a recommendation in the form of rearrangement
design. Data collection through questionnaires were perfomed to discover the habits that create the
new flow of activities and the design is explored by taking samples from small houses that only
have one access point. In conclusion, it was found that bringing the service area closer to the main
entrance at the front of the house can accommodate the flow of activities that support COVID-19
safety procedures.
Keywords: small house design, house layout, COVID safety, service area
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Residential Re-layout as a COVID-19 Prevention Method
Since early 2020, the world has been facing a pandemic from Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The
disease and threat to public health is so prevalent in all populations that cleanliness in the home has
become one of the major concerns in COVID-19 prevention as the virus might persist on surfaces
for several days (Kampf et al., 2020). As the primary habitat for human beings, a residence needs to
meet the criteria of comfort, safety, and health to support its occupants (Munif, 2009). As a result
of that, the government through the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenkes
RI) encouraged citizens to comply with policies to prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus
from residential areas.
Nowadays, Indonesian houses generally start with a sitting area, a living room, or a common room
that accommodates the whole family as well as a location to welcome guests. Before COVID-19,
house occupants could place their belongings anywhere and directly lay down on the sofa without
worrying about being contaminated with viruses. Now, we prefer washing hands before anything
else and choose to change our clothes or take a shower before relaxing on the sofa. Thus, some
modifications are required to adjust to the new flow of activity, mainly in the form of rearranging
residential spaces and furniture.
Layout changes may not be a major problem for houses with spacious areas as there are flexible
options for rearranging the furniture. However, even a minor furniture change could be difficult to
apply in small-sized houses due to limited space that needs to be spared for movement and circulation. However, new safety and hygiene habits since COVID-19 have increased certain activities in
the home regardless of the size of the house. This is a specific challenge for smaller houses since
there isn’t as much availability of space in which to accommodate those new activities (Schmidt,
2011). Room adaptation must be supported by the design of room layout in accordance with the
needs and activities of these new habits. Therefore, layout changes are very important to support
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-34
183
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Replacement of Public Area with Service Area as a COVID-19 Safety
House Design
S. Rahardjo, M.K.A. Rahman & A. Safinatunnajah
Telkom University, Bandung, Indonesia
ABSTRACT: The existence of COVID-19 has created many safety procedures when people enter
their homes. The need for immediate handwashing or spraying disinfectant has turned the public
area of a house into a crucial place for filtering unwanted viruses. An adjustment to the house
situation then becomes necessary, but hard to achieve especially in smaller houses. As a response
to this current situation, this article proposes a recommendation in the form of rearrangement
design. Data collection through questionnaires were perfomed to discover the habits that create the
new flow of activities and the design is explored by taking samples from small houses that only
have one access point. In conclusion, it was found that bringing the service area closer to the main
entrance at the front of the house can accommodate the flow of activities that support COVID-19
safety procedures.
Keywords: small house design, house layout, COVID safety, service area
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Residential Re-layout as a COVID-19 Prevention Method
Since early 2020, the world has been facing a pandemic from Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The
disease and threat to public health is so prevalent in all populations that cleanliness in the home has
become one of the major concerns in COVID-19 prevention as the virus might persist on surfaces
for several days (Kampf et al., 2020). As the primary habitat for human beings, a residence needs to
meet the criteria of comfort, safety, and health to support its occupants (Munif, 2009). As a result
of that, the government through the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenkes
RI) encouraged citizens to comply with policies to prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus
from residential areas.
Nowadays, Indonesian houses generally start with a sitting area, a living room, or a common room
that accommodates the whole family as well as a location to welcome guests. Before COVID-19,
house occupants could place their belongings anywhere and directly lay down on the sofa without
worrying about being contaminated with viruses. Now, we prefer washing hands before anything
else and choose to change our clothes or take a shower before relaxing on the sofa. Thus, some
modifications are required to adjust to the new flow of activity, mainly in the form of rearranging
residential spaces and furniture.
Layout changes may not be a major problem for houses with spacious areas as there are flexible
options for rearranging the furniture. However, even a minor furniture change could be difficult to
apply in small-sized houses due to limited space that needs to be spared for movement and circulation. However, new safety and hygiene habits since COVID-19 have increased certain activities in
the home regardless of the size of the house. This is a specific challenge for smaller houses since
there isn’t as much availability of space in which to accommodate those new activities (Schmidt,
2011). Room adaptation must be supported by the design of room layout in accordance with the
needs and activities of these new habits. Therefore, layout changes are very important to support
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-34
183