The Diamond unique façade by Twelve Architects - A Distinctive Presence
Credits
Contractor: Balfour Beatty
Project & Cost Management: Turner & Townsend
Structural & Civil: Arup
Fire: Arup
M&E: Arup (stage A - E) & NG Bailey (Stage F)
Acoustician: SRL
Planning Consultant: Montagu Evans
CDM Co-ordinator: RLF
BREEAM Assessment: 3 Planets
Major Subcontractors:
Façade: Sipral
FF&E:Southerns
PT concrete structure: CCL & Moortown
Structural steelwork: Billington Structures
Internal Partitions: British Gypsum & ECI Ltd.
Internal glazing: Moda
MEP Services: NG Bailey
Lecture Theatres: Specialists in Seating
AV: SVN
Spiral Stair: Dean Wilson
Major Suppliers:
Flooring: Interface
Internal doors: European Doorsets
Total Project Value: £81;81 million
Procurement Route: Design and Build contract, Single Stage Tender
Façade: 2780 'diamonds' overall; 691 clear glass 'diamonds'
Photo courtesy: Twelve Architects
At £81 million, this 19,500m2 facility is the largest capital investment in teaching and learning ever undertaken by the University, and the brief called for a building that would support its ambition of becoming UK's leading engineering university and doubling the size of the Faculty of Engineering by 2021.
The external appearance creates a distinctive presence with its anodised aluminium and glass façade. It also references a 'cellular automaton', a discrete model studied in the field of engineering and used by the University to describe how the microstructure of steel changes during processing.
Twelve Architects' design provides a public route at ground floor level and a central atrium that enables people to view the 'showcase' engineering activities being undertaken. Within the naturally ventilated atrium, curved 'pods' house spaces for informal personal and group learning. Classrooms, laboratories and offices are arranged to the north and south of the atrium with full height glazing to maximise internal views to and from the teaching spaces. Rooflights flood the interior with daylight and custom-designed glazed study tables within the first floor atrium allow the natural light to penetrate the ground and lower ground levels whilst creating acoustic separation.
Features
- 21 specialist engineering laboratories
- An integrated 1000 space learning resource facility
- Targeting BREEAM 'Excellent' (certification tbc)
- Regenerates and enhances public spaces around
- Highly flexible and adaptable
- Designed utilising BIM
- Blended informal spaces from cafe to learning zones
- Utilises smart building technologies
- Highly integrated, flexible, adaptable and diverse spaces.
- Lecture theatres from 80-400 seats
- Flexible teaching rooms and breakout rooms
- Individual and group study spaces
- 80-seat café
Brand Communication - CMC Showroom showcases its inherent material with artistic product display
The CMC showroom is a representative of a trade that throws creative ideas for its inherent material with artistic product display and clever lighting effects.
Fact File
Project Name: Classic Marble Company
Project Location: Bhandup Village, Bhandup, Mumbai
Size: 473 sq.mt / 5089 sq.ft
Architects: Drishti Architects & Interior Designers
Principal Architect: Sunil Gambani
Associate Architect: Misha Sharma
Material for facade: KalingaStone Marble
Materials in interiors: Natural marble, granite, KalingaStone Marble, Techlam, Iris
Classic Marble Company (CMC) is an international brand that spans across 40 countries, and is positioned as a living space innovator with its vast range of natural marble, exotic stones, granites, high pressure laminates, engineered marble and quartz stones. The company's facility at Bhandup is a part of the industrial sector. Since it wanted to revamp its brand image, the brief demanded elements that would add a spark to the area.
Ar. Sunil Gambani & Ar. Misha Sharma
Say Ar. Sunil Gambani & Ar. Misha Sharma, "We wanted to design a façade that would tell the story of the brand. So, we pulled out the façade material from their yard and clad the entire building envelope with it. In this age of commercialization where concrete textures, glazed facades and aluminum panels seem to be storming almost every corner of the city, this tinseling façade in solid stone is a pleasant surprise that very effectively conveys the message that the owner believes in what he sells.
We created a square cut pattern, with which the façade reveals various appearances in sunlight, and during night, the LED lights behind the reliefs lit the façade to render an expression reminiscent of twinkling stars.
Lighting scheme here, turned out to be one of the most important tools to draw attention and create a statement. We not only clad the inherent material, but also used it as a light source. The material which CMC utilizes could be made thinner without losing its stability, which made it translucent enough to pass light through it, and thereby, beautifully elaborating the richness and delicacy of the veins of marble. This is a technical innovation for external facades as it was the first time in India that CNC machines were used to cut KalingaStone marble to a thickness of 5mm."
"Every brand has a story and an ideology that its company believes in. Conceptualization of a retail outlet is basically an effort to communicate the same to its visitors as an immersive experience. Planning and layout, design elements and features, colors, materials etc, are a follow up of the product perception and appreciation.
The façade design not only marks an identity, but also proposes the way for new facades to spring up. With its elements of modernism, innovation and endurance, the façade is an easy trendsetter and its use of marble proposes a wide usage in the corporate and luxury sector, to offer endless creative possibilities." Amit Shah MD, CMC
- The discussion area lends space and time to visitors to immerse themselves in the surrounding environment. The 'gold stone' cafe counter placed against a rough granite slab in an almost dark tunnel with tiny spotlights that highlight only the bling of the gold.
- The murals at the entrance and reception table are a highlight of the interiors. Carved out of single piece of raw block of quarry marble, they sit like two majestic pieces in the lobby, complemented by a modular light chandelier in a 3-D form hanging over the reception area, and almost imitating a tree branch that hangs over the solid rock. The Svelto Lounge is where the high-pressure laminates have been used to create a 3-D impact. The play of light is an interesting detail where the surface undulations create dynamic patterns with slim linear profiles.
- The showroom has been conceptualized as a modern-day museum with an understated cover that is effective enough to display the products like paintings in a museum. Since the range of stones come in varied colors, neutral shades of grey and brown on the walls, were chosen to offset the beauty and colour of the products. The circulation is planned to create dark tunnels with a bright streak of flexi light that marks the outline of these tunnels and adjustable art light that highlights only the marbles on both sides.
- The furniture has been kept to a minimal and the lighting scheme is designed to highlight the marble on the walls and floor. The design of the showroom has maximized usage of the company's products that are widely used in the construction industry. The floors, table tops, counters etc, are made using the in-house material. The walls also feature huge slabs of marble that reflect a character like that of a painting. It’s an instant suggestion of the material's design and application potential.
Synergy Between Structure & Design
Fact File
Caregory: Industrial Building
Built Up Area: 15,000 sqm (approx)
Design Team: Sanjay Arora, Founder| Principal Architect
Sanchit Arora, Studio Head Architect
Vandana Arora, Interior Designer| Decor Head
Virender Singh, Studio Technical Head| Architectural Assistant
Nivedita Gupta, Content Writer/Editor/Architect
Manav Dang, Architectural Intern, Photographer, Vibhor Yadav
The HT- Burda-Druck Press in Greater Noida, is a project on the seams of structural expressionism and contemporary industrial design. The heavy orthogonal mass of the existing press building set the contextual tone for the building. Renesa sought to use the beige facade language to its design advantage, creating a facade that could reflect Burda's international and contemporary appeal.
Printing is a highly intricate process, the complexity of which is reflected in the building's multifaceted function. While the lower floor accommodates the machine bay and other working areas, the three upper floors cater to official administration, and operate on an identical spatial configuration. The structural layout of the interior defines the functional nature of the building, with a cohesive grid that encompasses the different pockets of spaces that are used in the printing process. At the core of this layout, is the Gravure printing press, flanked by the ink and water treatment plants, and leading to the final zone of loading and unloading.
Industrial buildings have historically been lacking in architectural experience, having lived up to the stereotype of skeletal sheds with a rational spatial configuration centered around huge printing machinery. Renesa sought to break away from this conventional image with a design that conceals the industrial nature of the space inside, with a contemporary facade and landscape.
Ar. Sanjay Arora, Principal Architect
The striking silhouette of the press building is designed as an aggregation of heights and volumes, the rigidity of which is muted by glass fenestrations of different shapes and sizes across the expanse of the facade. Light floods through these large rectilinear punctures into the expansive space of the shed that accommodates a range of uses under one roof.
What has resulted out of this synergy between structure and design, is possibly one of the biggest modern press set-ups in India.
Team One Architects Takes A Fresh Look at Workspaces
Technology and ergonomics have simplified office design, solved problems of physical connectivity, and have reduced the size and weight of office hardware
Aditya Yamsanwar, Director, Team One Architects
To design is to create a new and better reality. Designing an office space is not just about visual impact, but also pertains to employee health, comfort, flexibility and ease of use. An office space is designed to make employee's life congenial.However, lack of rigorous planning and thorough execution can turn the space planning into a lengthy, expensive, and utterly exhausting process.
Modern designers today have quite a few challenges on their hands as there has been a huge movement over the past 5-10 years. The hardest part is to reach the conclusion that there isn't any generic, "one-size-fits-all" solution, especially when it comes to the increasingly mobile, tech-savvy employees.
Breakthrough ideas emerge from understanding the needs of the people and the company's requirements. Technology and ergonomics have simplified office design, solved problems of physical connectivity, and have reduced the size and weight of office hardware.
Office Design Considerations
Delivering a design that is informed, purposeful, innovative and compelling means encouraging the workforce to higher productivity, greater creativity and innovation along with a positive work culture.
Important points that shape the environment include bringing the outdoor in - Nature is playing a significant role in modern designing; multipurpose workspaces with simple sit & stand workstations; lounge areas with smart boards for collaborative work; and office organized by colors to boost productivity and creativity.
It's the end of permanent layouts as flexible modular components can be mixed, stacked and moved around, for a dynamic and collaborative workplace. Natural light is invigorating, and cuts down use of artificial lights. There should be sufficient storage to keep spaces neat and tidy.
Break out spaces add life to the working environment, as do recreational areas to give employees a little downtime. Large shared tables are making an appearance. The community table is a symbol of kinship which is becoming an important part of the work environment. Other add-on spaces could be a medical/wellness room, collaborative areas, private phone booths, interactive panels, a coffee bar, library, culture wall, soundproof snooze pods, and step seating, modern gathering/training rooms.
Resplendent Yet Elementary
Text by: Kruti Choksi Kothari
Fact File
Location: Prahladnagar, Ahmedabad
Carpet area: 2130 sqft
Lead designer: Ar. Arvind Jain, Endless IDeas
Design team: Tushar Gajjar
Photography: Drupad Shukla
Year of completion: July 2017
Ar. Arvind Jain
The interior design of this residence is a blend of contemporary elements of design brought together to create a warm and welcoming ambiance. The colour scheme was derived as per the principles of Vastu Shashtra, and keeping the décor minimal, we have opted for salient gestures to convey the overall ambiance.
The entrance door is made of glass with iconic arch etching. The prominent symbolic logo of Jainism, carved in copper, adorns the main wall. The door displays an interesting tessellation in PU finish; the entrance wall is finished with charcoal sheet, and the door handle is covered with Corian material. The electrical distribution box at the vestibule is camouflaged by a painting.
The drawing room has a contemporary modern décor, with customised white fabric sofas placed against beige wallpaper. The revolving centre table and corner table are accentuated against the warmly tinted rug. The entire white décor is punctuated with splashes of bright colours of the cushions, wall art, and the green plants. Hanging lamps highlight the translucent stretch fabric ceiling. Motorised curtains filter adequate natural light that brightens up the space. The private living room is segregated from the public drawing room by a sliding transparent glass door and a fixed wooden partition wall with glass slits.
Filled with natural light and fresh air flowing in from the balcony, the centrally located dining space is the heart of the house. It forms the perfect transition zone between the public and private areas. The square dining table has a revolving glass top and folding blades. The storage units beneath the stone wash basin optimise the space utilisation. In sync with the glass dining table, the crockery unit has glass shutters and Corian top. Use of graphical mirror on the wash basin adds depth to the space through reflections. The profile lighting in ceiling and floral-patterned panel curtains are in tune with the overall design.
The use of artificial grass for flooring paired with flex stone cladding on wall works as the apt material palette for outdoor impression, lightweight bamboo furniture, folding iron table and swing, water fountain
In the master bedroom elegance is created through a monochromatic colour palette primarily using white and grey tones. Satvario flooring, Corian sheet in bed, television cabinet and side tables, wardrobe with back painted grey glass shutters, and navy blue wall colour complete the décor.
The furniture in the parents’ bedroom is finished with a sleek combination of veneer and four shades of PU colour coating, Corian sheets for side tables and study table, and a simple ceiling and beige linen curtains harmonize the complete décor.
The kitchen has an open plan, devoid of a confining wall. Green Brazilian stone for the countertop, glossy finished white and yellow storage shutters, and the store room door is made fancy with a cut-out in MDF sheet. Smart appliances from Hafele fill the kitchen with vogue and efficiency at the same time.
The folding bed with adjacent sofa transforms the bedroom into an entertainment room for get-togethers during day. Rectilinear and simple décor permits space for maximised storage. The sofa too smartly allows storage of pillows and bed sheets. The PVC vinyl flooring is in sync with the warmly tinted laminate on storage shutters.
The idea was to create an energetic, vernal and interesting ambiance which reflects the youthfulness without being stereotypical. Bunk bed for accommodating two kids allow more scope of play area. Bold and bright colours like blue, red, green and yellow are splashed against the subtle canvas formed by walls, ceiling and PVC vinyl flooring. Cartoon characters are artistically engraved in switchboards and multi-coloured handles. The night view of sky is printed on the stretch fabric ceiling. The sturdy study table is done in Corian sheet. The colour scheme of the bedroom extends into the attached bathroom.
The Minimalistic Effect
The apartment is filled with light through arched windows, and two terraces. A giant mirror enlarges the space. The open-plan living area with an exposed staircase, bring spaciousness.
The characteristics of the Margeza style can be found everywhere: joyful, energy-filled colours, unique furniture pieces, and a Budapest-shaped carpet with a small red dot showing the location of the apartment.
The stark white apartment is punctuated by red, yellow and Nature’s green, colours which make the apartment energetic and lively. In the living room, the living green wall (which is fed by an automatic irrigation system), brings nature indoors, and the glass wall gives panoramic views of the city.
The apartment provides extraordinary views of the city, the Danube River, and the utterly beautiful Hungarian Parliament building, from its spacious balcony and even from the bath.
Free Flowing Spaces
The square module is used to create seating at different levels. Grey floor, wooden carpet & grey shades of fabric in the custom-made sofa create an interesting element in the formal living area
Fact File
Stylish lamps hang from the wooden ceiling
Built-up Area: 8986 sq.ft
Architect: Sunil Patil & Associates
Interior Design: Sunil Patil & Associates
Landscaping: Sunil Patil & Associates
Structural Consultants: S.S. Patne & Associates
HVAC: Shree Samarth Refrigeration & Air-conditioning
Plumbing Contractor: R. K. Dhavale Plumbing & Consulting
Civil Contractors: Patil Engineers & Contractors.
Photo Credits: Sanjay Chougule
The sleek wooden staircase is embedded with ss pipes as railing
Glass: Saint Gobain
Paint: Asian Royal
Furniture: Fusion Furniture
Furnishing: Mahajan Furnishing
Flooring: Grafitti, Harmony, Kajaria, Somany, Shera Gray Granite, Black Lapat Granite, Ego Engineered Wooden Flooring
CP Fittings / Sanitaryware: Grohe, Kohler
Air Conditioning: Daikin
Lights: Philips
Besides the family spaces with three master bedrooms, two children’s bedrooms and a guest bedroom, the house has a home theatre, gym, library and a hobby room. Since Ichalkaranji falls in the hot and dry climate zone with warm and humid monsoons, the design is based on climate responsive architecture with courtyard planning and high thermal mass walls. The open plan layout allows natural ventilation through large openings covered by large overhangs, diffused light and ventilation, while blocking solar radiation.
Ar. Sunil Patil
The house has ample green features due to the climate responsive architecture. There is ample daylight and the common areas are naturally ventilated. The courtyard planning and landscaping are as micro-climatic modifiers. Large overhangs protect the house from solar radiation, and thermal mass has been created through stone masonry
The public and private spaces are segregated within the house. The idea was to create boundary-less spaces which flow into each other and then into the landscape. Interior decor complements the idea yet creates defined spaces keeping the flow of the spaces intact. Public areas like living and dining are designed around the courtyard. The double height living and courtyard allow visual connection between the spaces at the upper level, and glass railings help in enhancing the effect.
The palette is grey stone and ceramic flooring, and white painted walls enhanced with wood, which brings warmth in the décor. The materials, used with surface variations, create subtle patterns as per the design theme.
The walls have been cladded with tandoor stone to achieve high thermal mass in the hot and dry climate of the city. The strip pattern enhances free standing walls and continues from exterior to interior forming elements of the interiors. The windows are of teak wood to match the rustic appeal of the house and complement the tandoor cladding.
The double height mural in the courtyard is an artwork inspired by the pattern. The wooden piece of art continues from ground floor to first floor. Wooden strips have been used forming patterns inspired by nature.
Timeless Ethnicity
This restaurant in Ahmedabad is a part of Shreekunj Mandapam - a ceremony venue, known for its hospitality and for creating an environment for cultural ceremonies.
Once you go down through the transition of Toran - an ethnic element of the region, which reflects the rich past of its architecture, you reach the restaurant through a richly green path which acts as a buffer zone and helps create a micro-climate for that space.
A wall made of antique stone blocks one side and screen inspired wooden blocks on the other, is the most striking design. The flooring uses different types of natural stones. All light fixtures are custom made and local craftsmen have worked in the entire project. The wooden ceiling is inspired from the traditional ‘Pol’ houses of Ahmedabad
Basic principles of architecture have been applied to the house and use of traditional art pieces bring a timeless quality to the spaces. Since the architecture, interior décor and landscaping were all done by HPA, the project’s design elements are well synchronized with each other.
To maintain the ethnicity and the essence of the region was a challenge throughout the process of designing and execution; however, the client’s vast knowledge of the culture, history and values helped us a lot in the designing.
– Ar. Hiren Patel, HPA
Wholesome Indian Setting
Name of Project: Too Indian
Area: 3000 sq.ft
Location: Rajouri Garden, New Delhi
Cost: 1.5 crore
Client: Viva Hospitality Pvt. Ltd. by Varun Puri
Design Team: Kanika Suri & Abhigyan Neogi
Architecture/Interior Firm: Chromed Design Studio
Completion: May 2017
This 100-seater restaurant-cum-retail space is conceived to celebrate Indian-ness; the name “Too Indian” is crafted with the intent to denote the characteristics of a modern Indian, while providing the visitor with an experience of slow-moving time and the vernacular as imbibed ethos.
The idea conceived also explores the spatial quality around and inside the space, which does not claim to be a prototype design. Fusing modern culture into the choice of decor and design; creates a story that is told through the wholesome Indian setting. The entrance through the glass door encased within the complete glass wall with steps leading to it; is dominated by MS sheet and wrought iron railings. Visible amply from the outside, is the distinct green feature - a large wall at the entrance filled with planters from top to bottom.
The retail shelves run straight in line with the columns and bronze mirror running bands on beams, which accentuate the interiors, while intimacy and sharing is highlighted by communal seating. The mix of seating spaces including bar chairs, tri-seaters, four seaters and booth seating, are all in sync.
Too Indian is an amalgam of tradition and modernity. A dialogue is attempted through the translations of flooring patterns shifting from one of Bharat Tile’s Heritage Graphic collection to retro black and white pattern tiles to wooden chevron flooring. Equilibrium is achieved through the combination of elements of a homogeneous palette - Indian Marble & Black Granite both with leather finish, bar front with silver Indian frames and reflective mirror on the ceiling, teak wood on kitchen front, and a series of circular glass windows of coloured and fluted nature.
The colour scheme accentuated is through Asian Paints colours, namely Ironic (Bronze), Morning Glory(White) and Elm Groove(Blue) in the indoors, where a relaxing dining space is dotted with custom-made furniture procured by the client, the bar installation is by Vishal of Hookah Pani, and the bespoke lights are by Ritika of MGM (Mother Gone Mad) Studio.
With a heightened ambience of India and its appeal, Too Indian is designed using intrinsic design features, devoid of extraneous decorative elements, therefore, creating a classic space, symbolic of simplistic, elegant design.
Play of Light & Air
Fact File
Project: Anaha Spa at Shreyas Retreat
Design program: Spa block insert in a Yoga Retreat
Location: Bengaluru
Site area: 26 acres
Built up area: 20,000 sqft
Year of completion: 2016
Client: Inner Challenges Pvt Ltd
Photography: Shamanth Patil
Designed as a ‘retreat within retreat’, the 20,000 sqft spa block is a new ‘insert’ at the well-known Shreyas Retreat with its spectacular layers of spaces and experiences. Planned as a sustainable model, the main block disappears into the earth where it is half submerged, with the light and air movement planned from a series of sunken courts. The approach to the main area opens up a plethora of spaces, which are programmatically planned to suit the smooth spatial transitions of the guests.
We believe in constantly exploring the parameters of design and blurring the boundaries between architecture, landscape and sustainability.
– Akshay Heranjal, Principal Architect.
The entire feel is organic with natural light washing the exposed walls and ceilings with a spectacular play of light and shadows. The spaces are further held together with a strong design language of hand crafted jaali screens, solid wood doors and openings. The Guest Lounge opens to a Central Court with a water body on one side, and a sunken Court on the other. Private Consultation rooms are tucked away beside the water body.
The spa block is seen as a semi-detached sequence that utilizes the adaptive approach with each unit fitted to the purpose it serves. Each spa room (of up to 600sqft) offers spectacular views of the surroundings, whilst concealing the guests from the outside with local exposed brick jaali works as the shell. The structure’s porous cell conceals a softer environment inside, and the private areas open to sky lounge spaces (for after-treatment relaxation) bringing in natural daylight into the spaces.
The landscape merges the geometry of network of the surrounding paths to form break-away spaces for the guests to lounge. These buffer zones create smooth transitions from the exterior, to semi covered spaces, and also offer a beautiful play of light.
Rational, aesthetic, with inclusion of natural elements in design, we see a continuous evolution in exploring and being responsive to Nature.
– Aditi Pai Heranjal, Principal Landscape Architect
With each block growing from the sunken gardens into the sky, often blending into a series of greens, the organic approach seamlessly fuses the inherent sense of lightness expected from a space so serene. The feel is further exaggerated on the upper level, in the 2000 sqft Meditation and Yoga pavilion, with large openings on the east, allowing natural sunlight to create a powerful setting. The Large Pavilion opens up further to a series of private Yoga and Meditation Spaces offering beautiful varied settings using the natural play of light and shadows of the sun against the roof jaalis.
Ventilated Facade With 3D Texture in Finland
As part of the overall architectonic project for the factory of Fazer, one of the leading Finnish food companies in Finland, the facade of the existing building was refurbished with a highly developed form of the Creaktive Range in a 3D texture.
The degree to which the polymer concrete ventilated facades can be personalised and textured, among other factors, played an important role in the architect’s decision to use ULMA’s systems for refurbishing the buildings.
A totally exclusive and unique texture, inspired by the triangular shapes of one of the brand’s star products, was developed for the project in close cooperation with ULMA’s technical department.
Said Summannen: “The idea for the 3D texture was to reference the wafers and the famous chocolates made by this producer, although it is still an abstract pattern that doesn’t reproduce any specific shape. The biggest challenge was ensuring that the designed pattern was continuous between the panels so that they would fit perfectly together.”
By working closely and continuously together to overcome the challenges, the architect and the manufacturer have made this 3D texture a reality, creating a unique and spectacular aesthetic for the project. Advantages of using this construction system are energy savings, protection from atmospheric agents, durability and the little maintenance required, as well as the modernisation and revaluation of the building.
Formal, Emphatic & Unified Volumetrics
Credits
Architectural Project: Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos (SMA)
President: Javier Sordo Madaleno Bringas
Architecture Leader: Javier Sordo Madaleno de Haro
Project Leader: Boris Pena
Program: Mixed Use
Construction Area: 57,970 m2
Terrain Area: 4,116 m2
Completion: 2016
Location: Guadalajara, Mexico
Project Manager: Andrés Harfuch
Production Manager: Cándido Hernández
Design Team: Juan Marin de la Plaza, Miguel Baranda, Abraham Gracía, Luis A. Cabello
Engineering Coordination: Marcos Hernández
Engineering Team: ADC Soluciones Integrales para la Construcción
Construction Coordination: ADC Soluciones Integrales para la Construcción
Media & Marketing: Rosalba Rojas, Daniela Cruz, Jimena Orvañanos
Interior Design: Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos
Interior Director: Nadia Borrás, Enrique Ralph
Interior Team: Fernanda Patiño
Structural Engineering: Luis Bozzo Estructuras y Proyectos
Structural Supervision: Alba Proyectos
Electrical Engineering: Fortuis Electromecánica S.A. de C.V.
Air Conditioning Engineering: ICC Aire Acondicionado S.A. de C.V.
Systems & Special Engineering: Teleintra S.A. de C.V.
Hydrosanitary Engineering: Construcciones y Proyectos Hidráulicos y Sanitarios S.A. de C.V.
Lighting Consultant: Sistemas y Soluciones en Eficiencia Energética S.A. de C.V.
Audio & Video Consultant: Teleintra S.A. de C.V.
Landscape Consultant: lantica S.A. de C.V.
Security Consultant: Bravo Sentinelas
Construction: Constructora Anteus
Photographs: Rafael Gamo
Image Credit: © Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos
Certificate: LEED Silver
This mixed-use project for offices and a hotel is located in the heart of the city of Guadalajara. Its formal, emphatic, and unified volumetrics express its iconic nature. The formal concept arises from the mixed-use character, consisting four stacked geometric volumes. Two of these are slightly offset, and exactly aligned on the rear face. These gestures of displacement are designed to interrupt the robustness of the building and express an elegant sense of movement. The lowest volume houses the hotel, and the three volumes above it are allocated to office use by three different corporations, each occupying one volume in its entirety.
As a response to its urban context, adjacent to one of the city’s most significant urban highways, Americas Avenue, the building presents a façade resembling a double skin, enveloping it for its protection. The solar gain the building will receive on three of its four sides, was one of the most significant design challenges. For this reason, the faces respond to this need with recessed aluminum framing, in the style of a curtain wall, specifically designed at the correct angle to create shadows and avoid excessive solar gain. On top of this, the building uses double glazing offering a high degree of solar protection.
The ground floor is conceived as a plaza, a large public space, providing access and transit for the building’s various uses. A triple elevator core facilitates the operation of the hotel, offices, parking lot, and services. The vehicular and pedestrian entrances are set in a large plaza with textures and vegetation giving pedestrians priority over cars. The dominant textures used in the floor surface are natural limestone, which continues the geometry of the façade across the ground, with randomly-placed areas of paving.
As for the scope of the interior design of the tower, the spaces projected by the office were exclusively the office lobby, elevator halls and office bathrooms.
The purity and repetition of the lines of the façade grant it unique and timeless qualities that enhance its iconic character. As a result, it is the first building of this type in the west of the country to receive LEED certification.
Javier Sordo Madaleno Bringas, Honorary Fellow AIA
Torre Américas 1500 is the first stage of development of a whole complex. This first stage is located on a site measuring 4,116 m2, with a built area of 29,461 m2 distributed over 28 floors from the ground floor to the last office level, below the heliport. There are 7 basement levels covering a total of 28,509 m2. The structural design is based on post-tensioned concrete slabs and a central circulation core.
Bringing Order to Randomness
Architect: Moonbalsso (Moon Hoon)
Design team: Kim Jaekwan, Kim Sookhee, Kim Haeree, Shin Jinseok , Jade Narrido, Jason Houliston
Location: Seoul, Korea
Program: House+Commercial
Site area: 68m2
Building area: 40.76m2
Gross floor area: 183.97m2
Building scope: 4F
Parking: 1
Height: 15.8m
Building to land ratio: 59.94%
Floor area ratio: 193.27%
Structure: RC
Exterior finishing: Exposed concrete
Client: Jeon gyeong deuk
In contemporary terms, this building named Dogok Maximum, designed by South Korean architect Moon Hoon, would be considered a mixed-use narrow house, combining a basement studio, a reception area, as well as a residence, and equipped with a compact elevator
I feel uncomfortable whenever I see contemporary buildings with large openings. Such an entrance could be even worse if it is for a residence because personally I think it is often feared that it would only allow too much light inside and violate my privacy. Of course, it can be controlled with a variety of devices, such as curtains or louvers, but they can’t be used as the fundamental solution. Thus, I proposed small and unique windows to my client for this project. At first, they were concerned that it would be too dark inside but it has resulted in a space that has both sufficiently bright spots and dark ones.
While I was blithely dancing along with the imaginary building line, in addition to my habit of desiring ‘to connect things that seem irrelevant with lines’, I also established the order of randomness and this became the basis for designing external appearance of buildings. Virtually projected on the building, the lines were left as decorative marks on the interior walls. The biggest reason for taking on an uncontrollable situation as a designer or handing over the role of designer to random events and chance is not because I am indifferent but because they often present better solutions than I.
The Crafted & The Natural
Civil Contractor: Adhunik Infrastructure
Structural Engineers: BMSF Design Consultants
Other Consultants: Electrical Squaretech Engineers
Plumbing: DSR Engineering Services
Photographs: André J Fanthome
The Outré House in Delhi by Anagram Architects attempts a rediscovery of the singular and distinctive, specifically, in the working of humble materials - onsite and by hand; it attempts to do so by re-centering the bond between making and material
As processes of globalised supply and demand impact construction, fabrication and procurement logistics, greater value seems to be drawn from the extrinsic or exotic in terms of materiality and the machined in terms of form and technology. Ironically, the search for the unusual in contemporary urban architecture seems akin to a walk in a “walled garden” of ubiquitous aesthetics.
– Ar. Vaibhav Dimri
From bespoke concrete formwork and poured flooring to curved joinery and rhythmically notched masonry, the design releases its hand-made construction from the shackles of the straight line, giving it flight. It, thus, allows crafted details to overlay each other and to swarm all over the design rather than be restricted merely to points of material intersection.
Large urban residences are registries as well as articulations of filial, financial and aspirational value. Catering as much to their inhabitants’ needs as to their whims, they are, simultaneously, spaces of private indulgence as also objects of a more socially motivated aesthetic expression. Little wonder then that the luxurious and the exotic are sought in various ways from their design.
– Ar. Madhav Raman
Induced by the city grid and its volumetric controls, the urban residential form most commonly, and perhaps most simplistically, resolves into rectilinearity. This box-form resolution of the program unavoidably results in spatial compartmentalization, on top of which, real estate imperatives encourage apartment stacks of clunky laid out cookie cutter floor plates.
The curvilinearity of the building creates more fluid spatial formations and helps create smoothly transitioning spaces for social conviviality between the members of the resident family.
Outré House also rekindles the relationship between the crafted and the natural. The warp of the hand-made and weft of the verdant further position this design away from the industrial. The interweaving of precisely turned wooden louvres and vertically installed planters allows the vegetal to enmesh with the structural, coalescing into internal and rooftop gardens. This coupling of craft and foliage also underlines the bespoke floral chandelier designed by Mann Singh for the lounge.
Rooted in Regionality
Typology | Architecture & Interior, Hotel
Location: Ranakpur, Rajasthan
Client: Sheevam Comfort Hotels
Principal Architect: Akshat Bhatt
Design Team: Sneha Gurjar, Nidhi Khosla, Stuti Sahni, Debbayoti Dey
Total Cost: Rs.14.5 crore
Site Area: 65000 sqft
Built-Up Area: 65000 sqft
Completion Time: 3 years
Builder: Naveen Construction company
Structural Consultant: Isha Consultants
Project Lead: VP Aggarwal
Landscape: Plan Loci: Project Lead: Gauri Gandhi
Lighting & Electrical: Lirio Lopez. Project Lead: Linus Lopez
HVAC: Gupta Consultants & Associates: Project lead: Nirmal C. Gupta
Plumbing & Firefighting: Deepak Kumar & Associates: Project lead: Deepak Kumar
PMC: Architecture Discipline
Acoustic Engineering: Viren Bakhshi & Akshat Bhatt
Furniture: Architecture Discipline
Lighting: Rahul Singh & Akshat Bhatt
Photography: Akshat Bhatt
In this design by Architecture Discipline, there is a minimal palette of stone, glass, steel, and vinyl to craft an architecture that is both intense and bare-boned. The local and regional forms of expression are explored as vital resources to create an architecture that is eco-conscious and of a progressive disposition.
Location
Sited in the enchanted Udaipur valley in the Ranakpur province, the hotel is conceived to celebrate order and dissonance, continuity, stability, and the vernacular as an imbibed ethos. These values are celebrated through an architectonic intervention, form and material play in a region with a stark change of seasons and landscape, where the forest changes from lush green to bare and arid and the hills turn red during spring as the Tesu trees come to full bloom.
The Brief
Amidst the hills, with a clean, shallow river in the front, a km away from the famed Jain temple and adjoining a reconstructed old haveli, the client brief called for a boutique hotel that offers a unique experience for travelers in all seasons. Through this apparent harshness, extreme weather and striking landscape, the vernacular acts as a bare canvas and forms a stoic backdrop for this dramatic change of seasons. The site was extremely challenging as a reclaimed river bed with the water table at 600 mm. The hotel is fabricated in the frugal stone masonry, which is locally available.
Design Intent
Introducing the design intent of the building to the visitor as it is unraveled, allows for spatial intervention, layering, and repetition is used as a technique to establish the contrast and difference. The site is planned in a manner that upturns the land, as it opens up to the river on one side, while establishing contrast with the old haveli and the temple. The plan is derived from the time-honored 9x9 grid and the site was dotted with points that would then go on to become trees.
Normalcy is achieved through the grid, and deviations are used to break the order. Aligning the grid with the north-south axis through the linearity of the site, a 1.8 m wide sliver is fashioned for pedestrian movement that reinforces the linear planning on the site and brings in a strong order. Settlements happen along these linear walls, crafting straight views to the outside, helping the visitors orient themselves within the site.
Superimposition of these various layers establish a dynamic between architecture (constant) and the landscape (in motion through change). A huge Budh tree on the site with its large spread of about 25-30 m dia, is identified as a focal point; with views and movement orientated towards it, remnant of the tree-chaupal in villages. Some rooms look out into this public space using a modern, glassy interpretation of the traditional jharokha.
Environmental Consciousness
To reduce transportation, only local material was used and what was not available was prefabricated. Local ethnicity is visible in a regional material palette of Stone Masonry and Sandstone floors. For most part, local Rajasthani craftsmen and construction workers were employed.
Structural steel has been used as it is a long lifespan material, reducing dead load, and thereby, overall material consumption. The concrete consumption is insignificant for a building of this type and size. The spanning system is made with locally available Kashia stone - a sandstone that can span upto 3 meters and trusses are used to support it. Being in seismic zone 2, a lean, vernacular method of creating structural stability is adopted that allows for the creation of large spans. The steel joists that hold up the Kashia slabs are visible within the guest rooms. The main load bearing wall of the hotel cuts through the corridor one side, in contrast with the fabric panels on the other side. An acoustic ceiling cut down ambient sound.
Techniques, Technology, and methods of construction that draw from the region and are ‘of the earth’ but get lost in mainstream processes. Within this context, the design of Mana Ranakpur attempts to demonstrate the studio’s agenda of regional expression within a global context while being environmentally conscious, and without adopting predictable construction techniques.
Ar. Akshat Bhatt
Rainwater is harvested and Grey water from the sewage treatment plant is used to irrigate the hardy local trees. During construction, tree-cutting was avoided, and the external hardscape is constructed and recycled from waste materials accumulated during digging of the foundation. An exclusive HVAC system developed, uses Earth Cooling, Thermal Storage and Displacement Ventilation to reduce energy consumption. While conventional air-conditioning systems consume 40% of the energy used in a building, apart from lower energy consumption, this system also ensures better indoor air quality and avoids recycling.
Both water and air circulate in distinct open loops and air is exhausted from in-between the dry, sandwiched roof. Towers that emerge from the ground help to transfer air to the interiors, and work as a means of architectural expression evocative of the traditional forts of Rajasthan. Multiple layers of glass are used to generate draughts of air and to filter sunlight. The minimal heat transmitted through the glass is used to induce the displacement ventilation system. Jaalis with filigree are recreated in vinyl as a notional device to filter light and air for comfort.
Daylight ingress into the building eliminates use of artificial light. Night lighting is from the top with a hint of the sky, the jaali or the clear glass. Landscape lighting is de-cluttered, and is lit with borrowed light from the cottages and the hotel buildings. The overhang roof is used to bounce life from under the cottage and the overall intent is to orchestrate lighting in line with the running cables with no sharp rendering. Light from the west is a dramatic warm yellow, while bright southern light is used to bring luminosity into interior spaces.
Concrete is used to a minimum, hard edges are contrasted with timber warmth, and the structural system / construction techniques are expressed clearly with as little cladding as possible. The solid, minimal furniture in rubber wood and rosewood inlay as inserts reflects the environmental concerns of the hotel. The contrasting circular pattern in the perforations also mimics and expresses itself as an intention in the upholstery, linen and furniture. To blend in the local craft and culture, the furniture is sourced from local artisans and craftsmen.
Quality in Design & Intent
Credits
Client: Spice Board of India
Location: Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra
Total Built-Up Area: 44,684 sq.ft (Basement + 4 floors)
Project consultants: IL&FS
Architects: The Novarch
PEB Structure design: Everest India Ltd.
Electrical consultant: Kirti Consultancy Services
HVAC Consultants; Himadri Engineers
Plumbing & Fire Fighting Consultant: Desarc Consultancy Services
PEB Building Contractor: Everest India Ltd
HVAC Contractor: Hitachi Home & Life Solutions
This Laboratory cum Training Center has been designed as per IS 800:1984 design provisions, IS 875- Parts I,II, III,V for loads & load combinations & IS -1893 -2002 for seismic loads. In order to achieve economy in design, all columns were considered box columns and “moment” frames were considered in both orthogonal directions. All floor slabs are designed as normal decking floors.
The G+4 + curved roof building with front glazing and ACP panels and all other required architectural features were incorporated in the steel structure, and have come out very well in the final finished building. The entire building was erected on site in 10 months.
This structural steel building has greater earthquake resistance and being a pre-engineered building, minimal water was consumed for construction in this drought year.
The detailed drawings of the building were prepared and the entire building was built in the factory and assembled at site. The project was completed within one year, including interior works and services.
The Quality Evaluation Laboratory building has been planned as a dynamic, clean modern building. It is complete structural steel building which has eliminated the conventional messy and time consuming reinforced concrete frame structure method of building.
Key features of QEL building, Mumbai
The building uses structural steel as the load bearing members covered with the flat deck slabs and insulated roof sheeting on top. The key benefits of this construction are:
- Clean factory made Pre-engineered structure designed and built to perfection. The detailed drawings of the building were prepared and the entire building was manufactured in the factory and assembled at site.
- Extremely quick method of building with minimum on site work. The entire project from excavation to the building structure to the services and the interiors has been completed within one year.
- Greater earthquake resistance.
- Larger spans and interesting building profile
- Low E-glasses have been used for glazing.
- Extremely energy efficient VRF system of air conditioning.
Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited Facility in Hyderabad by Tata BlueScope Steel
In November 2015, Boeing and Tata Advance Systems announced a joint venture for manufacturing aero structures and collaboration on integrated systems development opportunities in India. This was a significant step in developing and promoting their ‘make in India’ capabilities for aerospace & defense manufacturing, and for becoming a global exporter in the Defense sector.
Tata Boeing appointed Tata BlueScope Steel for constructing their facility with TBSL’s pre-engineered building solutions. The key requirement of this project was on-time completion.
Scope of work
The scope for Tata BlueScope Steel included design, manufacturing, supply, project management and erection of BUTLER® building in Hyderabad, using the highest quality material with proven technology. On time delivery, leak-proof, functionally superior solutions, and low-cost maintenance were other important requirements. Interconnection of RCC building with PEB at near side wall and provision of future expansion for width of 27 m was the key design challenge.
Solutions offered
For this challenging project, Tata BlueScope Steel recommended BUTLER® Building Systems, which comes with MR-24 roof system, warranted for 10 years of leak-proof performance. The solution proposed by TBSL was able to provide superior functionalities that included higher column-free space, two levels of mezzanine floor inside the building, high value good storage, and an economic design.
Addressing construction challenges
Tata BlueScope Steel’s construction team played a vital role in shaping the project for Tata Boeing. Due to dependency on various external factors, the construction team faced numerous challenges while managing the site.
- Erection of mezzanine structure below the main building structure was the main challenge which our construction team executed safely by advance planning
- On-time handover of the entire project was carried out through effective implementation and erection step plan methodology
- Extra efforts were taken by project management team to deliver the material according to the erection sequence.
Tata BlueScope Steel delivered a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with on-time completion in June 2017. It is one of India’s marquee projects for the Indian Defense sector under the aegis of “Make In India”. With superior quality material, skilled workmanship and advanced technology employed in the areas of engineering, project management, fabrication, roll forming and construction; Tata BlueScope Steel was not only able to meet the targets but even exceeded the expectations of Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited.
Tata BlueScope Steel through its customer-centric products and solutions has found its presence in India’s prestigious projects spanning various applications. The business is backed by a strong parentage of Tata Steel and BlueScope Steel, Australia, where quality and commitment are paramount. Tata BlueScope Steel is poised to deliver best-in-class coated steel products for the construction industry in India. Australia’s tried and time-tested products along with Tata Steel’s manufacturing expertise, has made TBSL the first choice for its customers.
Verticality in a modern residence
The north facing residence has the maximum number of openings on the façade to allow ample light and ventilation. The vertical structure is artfully balanced with use of Jodhpur stone and earthy toned materials for a contemporary façade.
The residence is an inclusion of 30 different kinds of stones and materials used in a combination for the wall cladding and flooring Jodhpur stone and Silver travertine stone justify the streetscape, while incorporation of contrasting tones of granite, wood and designer tiles, add drama in the transition between the outdoor and the indoor spaces.
The ground floor has a large hall, kitchen and other utility areas. The first and second floors feature three bedrooms, and the top floor is a recreational space with a library, gym, jacuzzi, home theatre and gaming zones. The terrace above the porch has a pocket garden that brings in a green charm. A lift is the main transition space between all the floors. Technologically advanced systems for light automation, access, HVAC, solar water heaters, multiple flow showers in the bathrooms define the modernity of the house.
The challenge was to design15,500 sqft on an area of 5400 sqft, which led to the building’s verticality on a relatively low residential streetscape.
Ar. Ravi
There are 30 different kinds of stones and materials used in a combination for the wall cladding and for the flooring, mainly Jodhpur and Italian stones.
Ar. Nupur
Optimizing Usable Space
Site area: 45000 sqm
Total built up area: 29300 sqm
Initiation of project: 2012
Completion of project: 2017
The award-winning Stem Cell Research Centre is planned as an addition to the existing National Centre for Biological Sciences campus. The complex comprises a series of laboratories with meeting rooms, seminar halls, administration, library, museum including a large animal house facility.
The various functions are configured around a central triangular sky-lit atrium, predominantly transparent at the lower levels and opening onto a large open space, in association with the natural setting. The laboratory wings are arranged in L-shape with the library wing completing the composition. The adjacent facilities’ blocks with a stepped form, front onto terraces at all levels. The laboratory typology with support spaces of student areas, clean rooms etc. relies on vertical segregation of support facilities within a service floor, thereby, optimizing the usable space.
Additionally, insulation of the spatial envelope with double glazing, roof deck insulation and drystone cladding with an air gap aid in the reduction of energy consumption in the building. Solar energy is harnessed with building integrated photovoltaic panels for emergency lighting and solar collectors for hot water. The building is finished in a combination of rough granite cladding, offset by polished granite. Circulation areas are in rough granite, complemented by alternating strips of polished stone.
The building is inherently green with the integration of passive design features.
Ar. Sanjay Kanvinde
Form Space Relationship
Project: Product Applications Development Center for Indian Oil Corporation Ltd
Building Use: Research Lab & Office Complex
Owner: IOCL
Size: 40,000 sqft
Design Team: Aashish Karode, Sushil Karer, Prosenjit Banerji, Utsav Pushp
HVAC Consultants: Creative Services Consultants (Samir Paul)
Structural Consultants: Charan Bhandari Consultants
Landscape Consultants: Artemisia
Contractor: HS Oberoi Builders
Plumbing Consultants: Krim Engineering
Electrical Consultants: Electro Consultants
The Plastics Application Development Center - PADC, is the Center for Excellence in Indian Oil Corporation’s research development thrust in Plastics Technologies. The Laboratory building is designed to take on an Iconic position in the refinery complex, signifying the focus on research and the future.
The Center is intended to significantly improve on building performance through the sustainable and conservative use of energy and other resources
– Aashish Karode
Conceived as a rock formation on a plain landscape, the building, built on a rock plinth with a glass lined central courtyard, returns the ground and the whole ensemble to the landscape. The double height inclined glass facade generates interest in the outside from all parts of the building connecting the occupants to nature.
The diagonal building parasol roof form orientation responds to allow self-shading from South and West, with larger surfaces on the benign directions of the North and East. It is visible as a presence in the serence landscape as sightlines show the form “in the round”. The entrance is a glass cube set amidst water channels at the base of the building that also collect rainwater.
The symbolism of the landscape, courtyard and the iconic architectural artefact create a unique ensemble of experiences
– Sushil Karer
The open plan scientific work environment is supported by views of the granite garden in the central courtyard, placed centrally in the glass lined interior courtyard. The garden and form can be experienced through all the glass-lined movement corridors and staircase cores. The idea of diverse experience- of graded light and shaded spaces, landscape variations are made at each pause and transition experience. The courtyard serves to relieve the bulk of the form and supply natural light to the floor plates inside.
The complex visual interconnections and interpenetrations of interior spaces are made through glass courtyards, corridors, and lobbies, together with the interplay of light and choices of just a few material finishes.
Key considerations,
- Passive solar
- Courtyard planned with tinted insulated glazing for maximum glare-free natural light
- Insulated roof and walls (double walls used with airgap and cladding)
- Roof angled to receive solar panels for all lighting loads
- Minimal self-shading opening along west/east and south face
- Zoned lighting and HVAC control
- Use of high efficiency low energy light fixtures
- Landscape follows ‘xeriscape’ concept – use of local foliage, minimal water usage
- HVAC - VRV systems used
Merging of Glass and Wood
Almost 11-meter high glass fins support the façade of the exclusive lobby and create transparency and lightness
Construction board
The wood veneers laminated in between the glass layers are perfectly parallel which is mandatory for the accurate and flawless appearance
Standard: green building (LEED gold)
Architects: SOM Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LPP, San Francisco, USA
Façade Contractor: Steel Encounters Inc, Salt Lake City, US
Completion: 09/2016
Sedak Scope
940m2 glass façade (lobby):
Wood-veneer laminates, 7.0 m high (3 x 12 mm)
57 glass units (façade) up to 10.9 m high (2 x 12 mm)
46 glass fins and beams up to 10.9 m high
Nothing less than the perfect symbiosis of glass and wood – is what the architects of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) wanted for a new 24-level office building in Salt Lake City, USA. The wood installed in the façade of the lobby “grows into” the 7 meter high glass elements. Sedak, specialised in oversize formats, to make this architectural vision a reality, developed a lamination technique that allows the German glass manufacturer to laminate real wood veneers in between the glass layers. Hence, the visual appearance is original and the wood permanently protected by the glass.
The architects had a clear vision of the office skyscraper’s lobby, which would have precious wood components that merge with 7 meter high glass elements. However, something like that had never been done before. The first suggestion was to use a photorealistic print, but was quickly rejected because the result of a print seemed not real enough to the architects. Therefore, the solution was to laminate real wood veneers in between the glass units’ layers. Then, integrating a natural, organic material in a glass unit without causing any damages during one of the production steps (e.g. tempering furnace), or losing visual quality almost sounded like a Herculean task. Thanks to a lot of experience and know-how in laminating glass, and a close cooperation of everybody involved, sedak found a way.
By letting the wood appear as if it was inserted within the glass, the building evolves its own effect. To manufacture such glass units, several challenges had to be met:
The raw material wood – eucalyptus in this case – is organic. It reacts to climatic changes like humidity and temperature and could shrink, become wavy, or burn. The lamination process (100° Celsius) had to be fine-tuned to be adjusted to the raw material.
The wood components meet the glass and appear going further into the laminates
Wood veneers are only available in upto 3 m. For the 7 m high glass units, horizontal joints were therefore necessary.
The inspiration for the transparent façade was the Apple Cube – a perfect all-glass structure. The client demanded a transparent supporting structure for the project. Glass and wood define the appearance of the entire lobby. The required glass fins reach a height of nearly 11 m.
Steel Encounters Inc., Salt Lake City, US Wood in a glass unit. Eucalyptus is a relatively hard kind of wood, and is well suited for lamination
For logistics, the 7 m glass units were shipped in special wooden crates. In Salt Lake City, the temporary storage was located nearby which was perfect because they partly had to block traffic lanes for the transport to the site – but not only for our glass.
Ventilated Façade
It was in 2001 that the Ulma Architectural Solutions plant opened. The construction of the plant coincided with the launch of the new business line of Ventilated Facades, a new construction system that was beginning to take hold in Europe given its sustainability and energy saving capacity.
When it was decided to tackle the project with the facade renovation, the first intention was to convey a more organic feel through the textures, shapes and chosen colour, bringing it up-to-date with the present architectural development and the possibilities offered by ULMA’s polymer concrete.
It was important to show the versatility provided by the construction system and by the material for the re-composition of existing gaps, since there was the need to maintain the original support structure.
A double skin was placed on the curtain wall to protect the south-west facing area of the building from solar radiation. A lattice filters the light as well as provides a very innovative style to the facade. The primary structure of the Ventilated Facade has been maintained, while improving the thermal envelope by placing additional thermal insulation for energy saving and increased comfort.
The textures chosen were “paper” in a light colour that simulates organic cotton and “sandpaper” texture (black coal) for the main zone. The lattice has a design in line with the texture of paper; a bamboo plantation which is enhanced with night lighting. The renovation was carried out in two months, working only from the outside of the building.
The new facade shows the choice of colours, shapes and textures from the ULMA product range. The versatility of textures and the possibility of lattices allow different design and environment requirements with the same material requirements, reducing solar radiation as needed.
Creating A Sense of Community
Credits
Project: Unilever Headquarters
Location: Jakarta, Indonesia
Design and Project Architect: Aedas
Interiors: Aedas Interiors
Graphic and Signage: Aedas
Client: PT. Unilever Indonesia
Gross Floor Area: 50,477 sqm
Completion Year: 2017
Project Director: Kevin Jose
Project Design Director (Architecture): Steven Thor
Project Design Director (Interior): Steven Shaw
Unilever Headquarters located in the BSD Green Office Park, Jakarta, is the country’s first green office district which was master planned by Aedas. The office houses all employees from four separate offices in Jakarta under one roof. Aedas architectural and interior designs embody the global company’s vision, values and European heritage within the Indonesian context.
The new building is designed with the concept to support the spirit of community, collaboration, engagement, and agility. Referenced to the traditional village planning in Indonesia, it has a ‘square’, ‘main roads’, and ‘streets’ to create a sense of community. The planning is focused on engaging group and individual work into zones to induce collaboration while maintaining privacy.
The top four floors are office spaces with break-out areas; while the ground floor is dedicated to public and shared facilities. Surrounding the central, light-filled atrium that serves as a large event space, are common facilities including a mosque, staff dining area, daycare centre, fitness centre, beauty salon and a multi-purpose hall.
All community spaces are well connected to encourage interaction and embrace diversity. Indonesian batik fabrics, recycled teak timber, furniture and imagery of Indonesia used throughout the headquarters.
The building curtain wall system maximizes daylight penetration. The façade is clad with grey aluminum blade louvers of varying depth to provide shading and reduce heat gain. There are no enclosed offices in order to provide best access to natural light and views for all staff. Enclosed meeting rooms are placed around the core.
The indentations on the facade create indoor and outdoor green pockets. Each of the four building wings are connected by piazzas which are located where the building is indented. There are also outdoor landscaped decks and rooftop for staff and guests to enjoy.
Eye_Beacon, Amsterdam, Netherlands
The inspiration for the design of the Amsterdam Light Festival info booth pavilion originated from the theme of this year’s festival, biomimicry: the imitation of natural phenomena for the purpose of solving complex human problems. Focused LED projections present gradient color changes on the inside of the tensile structure, resulting in a constantly changing composition of light and colour.
The design is specifically inspired by the deep-sea world, where living organisms counteract the darkness of their environment by employing bioluminescence - often hypnotic pulsating light - as an attraction and communication mechanism. This magical vivid world formed the starting point for the sculptural, yet functional pavilion. The Eye_Beacon serves as both an attraction point and a ticketing/information booth for people visiting the festival. Located on the western side of the ‘Blauwbrug’, next to the river Amstel, the pavilion acts as a connection between the ‘Watercolour’ canal route and the ‘Illuminade’ land route.
For the structure, two cube forms are connected to one another by twisting surfaces. This results in 316 panels with uneven dimensions and therefore required the parametric optimisation of these surfaces to ensure efficient fabrication and installation.
All surfaces of the pavilion are constructed from tensile textile modules that together create a pattern of openings and reveal glimpses of the interior. MDT-tex designed 2D and 3D textile units which enable the twisting connection of the two cubes, resulting in a sculptural form strengthened by its components. The MDT-tex’ facade system is already designed for the future use of lighting and water harvesting systems.
MDT designs, manufactures, and supplies innovative, high-quality sun protection systems, membrane constructions, and custom-made products for textile outdoor architecture to customers all over the world. The company carries out the entire production process in its own modernized factories at international locations. This guarantees the highest quality for innovative products and ensures absolute supply security.