Phutawan Raft Bar

When brainstorming ideas for this project, I wanted to create something that was related to my ethnicity (Thai) and something that involved water. After searching for references, I found the Phutawan Rafthouse resort, which was perfect because it was located in Bangkok, Thailand, the area my parents are from. I came with multiple ideas, but ultimately settled for a raft bar. Attached below are the stl files if you would like to create a 3D model. The 3D model was scaled down using a scale of 1' = 1/2".

Programs:

1. Autodesk Inventor
2. Autodesk Revit

Machines:

1. 3D printer
2. Laser cutter (Able to cut plywood)
3. Table saw
4. Printer

Tools:

1. Hot glue gun
2. Exacto Knife
3. Tweezers
4. Hole Puncher
5. Miter Snips
6. Scissors
7. Ruler
8. Box cutter
9. Bucket
10. My Phone

Materials:

1. PLA Filament in white, red, clear, and black colors
2. Mahogany Colored Spray Paint
3. 1/2" Dowel Rods
4. 1/8" Plywood
5. Clear acrylic sheets
6. Cardboard
7. Small Foliage
8. Tape
9. Plastic Bin
10. Water

I modeled my sketches in a similar way to how the raft houses look in the fourth picture. The main focus of this project would be the interior, so I brainstormed 3 different ideas, a game room, a weight room, and a bar. I ultimately decided with the bar as it seemed more unique compared to the other two.

Once I decided on my project idea, I began brainstorming the back of the raft and the front, which I ultimately modeled the front in a similar fashion to the reference image. For the back of the raft, I sketched out a few designs that I thought would be fitting for the bar, but ultimately decided on the first sketch in the second image.

These pictures show a rough image of how I designed some of the features of the raft. I used the Edit Profile feature in Revit on the walls in order to create the circular curves and shapes of the Phutawan walls and logs. The walls are made of mahogany wood, the logs are made of spruce wood, and the raft is made of bamboo.

Listed below are some of the dimensions for the items modeled in this image.

Raft Floor Dimensions:

Length: 17' 4"

Width: 16' 9 1/4"

Height: 6"

Phutawan Dimensions:

Length (Front to Back): 15' 10 1/2"

Width (Left to Right): 19' 3"

Height: 9' 6"

Log Dimensions:

Diameter: 1'

Length: 19' 4"

I created the site using the Topography tool in Revit. I tried my best to model the site similarly to the reference image used. I created three sub regions, a water region placed at only sea level elevation (0' 0"), a soil level that was placed between sea level and 3 feet, and a grass level that was placed at 3 feet to 5 feet. I created the bridge using a floor that was 6" thick and made of mahogany wood. I added lights and support beams to the bridge to make it feel more dramatic and realistic when walking up to the bar. To give the water a more realistic feeling, I used Revit's 3D pattern tool for the water image to elevate its texture.

After the general site was finished, I added massive trees to the area to add more foliage to the site and bring out more colors. All of the trees were placed at the grass level. The other four pictures attached above are the images and textures I used for the different sub regions.

After finishing adding all the little details in the interior and exterior areas of the bar, I began rendering different views of the bar. To render the views, I used Revit's camera system by going to View in the project browser, clicked on 3D View, then selected "Camera" to get the specific angles of the renders. After I got the pictures, I rendered them in Revit using their rendering system. The renderings give a further in depth look at the raft bar and the little details in place when creating the bar.

Before Christmas break, I printed the pieces I needed to spray paint in white filament to allow the paint to pop out easier. I also created 12 of the barstools and 2 out of the many little detail pieces. The raft floor was made using two 1/8" thick plywood to match up to the scaled down version of the raft and the plastic was painted using mahogany brown spray paint (specifically this brand: https://shorturl.at/vFxvY).

After Christmas break, I cut the dowel rods to a length of 9 2/3" and glued them onto the raft.

The most important step of this project was the small little details. I first started off by glueing together the pieces of the Rafthouse except for the front, which you'll see later. Next, I glued the barstools and countertop to the rafthouse as they were the base for most of the detailing pieces. After that, I printed the many little details out and started assembling them.

If you notice, the wine glass is printed out with no bottom. This is because if I were to try and print the bottom and top at the same time, the 3D print would probably explode. So, using some hole punchers, I punched holes into the clear filament raft layer from the 3D printer to create little stands for the wine glasses that I hot glued onto the wine glasses manually.

Once the wine glasses were assembled, I began glueing the parts together. For some of the glasses and trays, I put them in the space behind the counter to make that area feel less empty, which was why I held off on glueing the front (I also did this for the virtual model but I do not have a rendering for that sadly). Although this was a niche detail and is barely noticeable in the final product, I still think it was a good implementation. For the bar trays, each one consisted of two wine or whiskey glasses along with one bottle of whiskey or wine. The extra glasses and bottles were used for further detailing on the counter top.

To make the plants, I used some of the small foliage leaves and glued them into the plant pots. I snipped away some of the plastic from the pots to add a little bit of variety, in terms of size, to the plants so that they wouldn't be as similar to each other. After the plants and bar trays were done, I began glueing everything onto the countertops to finish 99% of the interior.

For the front part of the build, I glued the TV and Shelf to their respective areas. Next, I began glueing the tiny shelf bottles into the shelf. I used a combination of white and red colors to replicate the same visual effect as the shelf in the virtual model. Then, I glued the white rim onto the front to fully finish the front of the raft. Finally, I finished up by adding acrylic sheets to both the front and back windows and glued all of the parts together to finish the 3D model.

To create the physical Site, I used cardboard from previous packages and cut out a rectangle to model as the bridge. Next, I filled up a bucket of water and poured it into a plastic bin to freeze during the recent snow storm to allow the raft to "float" without needing to use external floating devices. For the foliage, I simply put it next to a tree in my backyard that was able to loosely cover the raft with leaves.

Finally, I combined all of the products together to finish the physical model of the Phutawan Raft Bar. I took some pictures of the bar under the foliage to further represent the virtual model as close as possible.

Overall, this project was very fun to work on. I managed to create a bar big enough to house 12 people at once. The purpose of the bar is to be a chill out place where people can watch Soccer, Basketball, or Football games while enjoying a nice drink. From creating the raft and installing the little details in Revit to building the physical model, it was a great challenge that helped me become more accustomed to the design process. I mainly struggled with time management and getting proper pictures for the design process. I'm happy with the results and happy that I was able to create a suitable bar away from the ground.