The architecture of the elevated station for the Kajang Line is inspired by the traditional concept of wakaf, a type of pavilion commonly found in Malaysia. Historically, wakafs were built for travelers to stop, rest, and seek shelter from the elements. Embracing this concept, the elevated stations along the Kajang Line are designed to provide a similar sense of respite for commuters, with an emphasis on openness, natural lighting, and ventilation.
We have played a significant role in the design and development of eight elevated stations along the Kajang Line, spanning from Suntex station to Kajang Station. These stations feature varying configurations, generally adopting side or island platform layouts. However, where interchanges with other rail networks are required, modifications are made to the standard configurations. Despite these variations, one unifying element across all the stations is the distinctive oversailing roof, which not only adds to the visual identity of the stations but also serves a functional purpose.
The oversailing roof is a key architectural feature that provides shelter from the elements while allowing for natural ventilation. The roof design is derived from two parabolic angles intersecting perpendicularly, resulting in a unique, flowing shape. This distinctive roof form is further enhanced by a central glazed skylight, which runs along the length of the roof. This skylight allows additional daylight to penetrate the station, creating a bright and welcoming environment for commuters.
The structural composition of the roof is based on steel trusses, which are strong and capable of supporting the roof’s large overhangs. To ensure the roof is lightweight yet durable, a metal standing seam built-up roofing system is used. This system, provided by Bluescope, is known for its excellent performance in terms of durability, corrosion resistance, and color fastness.
Bluescope’s innovative steel materials, and their products are particularly well-suited for architectural applications where both aesthetic appeal and long-term performance are critical. The lightweight metal standing seam roofing used in these elevated stations is engineered to withstand the harsh environmental conditions typical of Malaysia, including high humidity and heavy rainfall, ensuring the longevity of the station structures.
One of the advantages of using Bluescope materials is the wide variety of colors available, which allows the designers to customize the appearance of each station according to its district or locality. This ability to tailor the color scheme of each station adds a layer of visual differentiation and helps integrate the stations into their respective communities. The selection of colors is not only a design choice but also reflects the cultural and environmental context of each station's location, creating a sense of place and identity for commuters.
Furthermore, the use of Bluescope's advanced steel materials in the roof construction also contributes to the sustainability goals of the project. The materials are designed to be long-lasting, reducing the need for frequent maintenance and replacements, which in turn minimizes resource consumption and environmental impact over the lifespan of the stations. The lightweight nature of the materials also means that less structural support is needed, allowing for a more efficient use of resources during construction.
In addition to the practical benefits, the architectural expression of the roof aligns with the overall design philosophy of the Kajang Line's elevated stations. The open-sided design, reminiscent of traditional wakaf pavilions, fosters a sense of openness and connection with the surrounding environment. This design approach not only enhances the commuter experience but also contributes to the overall urban landscape, making the stations more than just transit points, but landmarks that reflect the cultural heritage and architectural innovation of the region.
In conclusion, the elevated stations along the Kajang Line represent a thoughtful blend of traditional Malaysian architectural concepts and modern engineering solutions. Through its involvement in these stations, has successfully translated the essence of the wakaf into a contemporary context, creating spaces that are functional, sustainable, and visually striking. The use of Bluescope materials further enhances the durability, aesthetic appeal, and sustainability of these stations, ensuring they will serve the community well for years to come.
This 3-storey 5,000 sm flagship Porsche Center is the first of Porsche’s ‘new corporate identity’ showroom outside of Germany that accentuates the continued elegance of its branding and precision for supercars and clean technology mobility. The exterior façade of the showroom on the ground floor is fully glazed to allow maximum transparency of a full-height glass façade while lifting the strong geometric box above that encapsulates offices on the upper floor. This massing is further accentuated by a signature 3D façade skin-wall which filters natural lighting and refreshes the dynamic vision of the brand. This creates the illusion of a floating showroom above a light and permeable lightbox.
Design Statement
The Porsche conceptual cornerstone are customization of modular Brand Space focusing on creating Showroom that encompasses a complete Destination Porsche experience.
The architectural concept of the Porsche Centre is a modular approach. Each module offers something new to awaken visitors’ fascination and curiosity, and immerse them in the world of Porsche. Interchangeable 3x3m grid modular concept provides a flexible, future-proof construction kit to allow project scalability and customization and ensures brand consistency and recognition across formats.
Destination Porsche is a vision to creating the outstanding and meaningful automotive retail destination clearly recognizable as Porsche, with objectives to;
Accelerate Customer Centricity as modular brand space, and individual customer journeys
Creating a Unique Porsche Experience through multi-sensory architectural design, and activation of personal behavior
Fostering Lifelong Operational Partnership
The Porsche-specific design mirrors the essence of the Porsche brand, it incorporates the Porsche DNA with its integral attributes and characteristics. Similar to the car design, the orthogonal spatial design is dynamic, focused regarding layout and touch points, and ambient in the perception of the visitors, serves as the ideal basis to allow flexibility, making space for main Racing Line thoroughfare, and allows model showcase-focused theme within the center.
The Racing Line forms the main axis of the showroom, becoming the anchor point for visitors with various spaces are placed and switched around this axis. The Racing Line highlights the entire Porsche product portfolio, with additional show spaces presented in the side streets.
From the Racing Line, the visitors will arrive at The Welcome – a combined module with the Porscheplatz and is the first touchpoint to the Porsche Centre, where every journey starts into the fascinating world of Porsche. Other modules around The Racing Line includes Diver’s Selection, Kid’s Area, Werk Lounge and Vehicles Exhibit.
The showroom uses high-quality finishes in reflection of the luxury and performance attributed to the Porsche world, with attention to detail in every aspect of the meticulously-designed interior design to ensure a holistic customer experience.
Exterior Design Façade is inspired by the sleek and dynamic exterior of Porsche’s vehicle design in creating a strong presence and powerful appearance at the entrance. With Bluescope’s design customization for profiles, this Porsche Centre is the first in the world where the exterior cladding adopts the opaque 3D façade that floats the glass curtain beneath implying speed through its horizontally aligned and proportioned panels.
Signature exterior design with red LED stripes, derived from the Porsche vehicles, make the lamellas appear more dynamic while accentuating the dynamic entrance portal, where the lamellas welcome visitors into the Racing Line. The façade panel modules evoke sense of linearity and acceleration, while the transparent glazing ensures a generous presentation are for eye-catching window displays.
The Ascendas Nusajaya Tech Park’s ready-built factory architecture design showcases contemporary industrial architecture while aligning and maintain both local and international industrial sector standards expectations. The design vision was focused on harmonizing the aesthetics and functionality, that enables to optimize operational and energy efficiency particularly through the integration of the Industrialized Building System (IBS).
Sustainability is embedded as the main design concept by introducing the aerodynamic form that exhibit energy efficiency boost. By providing modern features in the curved forms and streamlined profiles, it promotes corresponding ceiling heights based on space usage that optimize operational and well-organized layout of the unit which can accommodate various tenants workspace. The overhangs allowed lower floor to have large windows to maximize natural light and the upper level provided with slanting horizontal louvers, reducing the need for artificial lighting thus lowering energy consumption.
The core technique to deliver this dynamic factory’s design is the innovation of the use of IBS technology. This system was applied to the roof system, steel structure, full height glass and wall cladding –aluminium composite panel (ACP) allows for high precision in manufacturing and quick assembly on-site that significantly reduces construction time and minimizes waste by specifying durable materials that will ensure a long lifespan for the building, further aligning with sustainable practices by minimizing the need for frequent repairs or replacements. Single-skin R670 roof system used to cover every unit and matching metal cladding upholds the sleek industrial look while ensuring robustness and ease of maintenance. Colorbond flashing also installed to seamlessly cover all detailing between ACP and 715/45 Series horizontal corrugated wall cladding.
Bold color scheme –red, orange and yellow derived from the ACP 3000 Series alloy with PVDF coating that represents each unit type was intentional to highlight the building’s form curved edges and angular lines in grey. This approach reflects a thoughtful blend of form and function not only just visually appealing but also enhances the aesthetic quality of the industrial landscape by taking into account to equal with the surrounding neighbourhood. The building’s construction also minimizes disruption as the use of prefabricated components allows for faster completion time, reduction of site labour, cleaner environment and safer construction site. This approach not only benefits the local economy but also fosters a sense of positivity within the community.
Human-centric design principles are evident throughout the large windows and the provisions of natural light create a pleasant and comfortable workplace, significantly enhance employee well-being and productivity. The covered main entrance, loading and unloading areas protect workers from inclement weather conditions, emphasizing the consideration for their comfort and safety. Additionally, the noise reduction achieved through aerodynamic design ensures a quieter interior environment, contributing to a more conducive working environment. These elements reflect a deep commitment to creating a factory that prioritizes the health, safety, and overall satisfaction of its occupants.
In conclusion, this ready-built factory exemplifies that contemporary industrial architecture likewise able to achieve design excellence, innovation, sustainability, community focus, and humanity. Through the integration of IBS technology, the aerodynamic shapes of the building was made possible through advanced methods of building construction that is both energy efficient and effective while showcasing sustainable materials, the high precision prefabrication perfectly meets practical tenant needs, lower operational costs also enhances the visual and environmental quality of its surroundings. This project illustrates industrial also made available in vibrant colors and large windows that lead to superior building performance, sustainable innovative practices while reducing impact to the atmosphere. Serves as a model for future industrial developments, demonstrating that with thoughtful design and innovative construction techniques, factories can be both functional and inspiring spaces.
PKNS Lakeside Floating Restaurant
Design Vision
The PKNS Floating Restaurant is located in the heart of Shah Alam. It is a single storey, 1,200 sm, building that can accommodate 300 people. The building is a refurbishment of an existing structure on the same location.
Regardless of how insignificant a building is, it is still part and parcel of a city. It embodies culture, heritage and history of a city as well as memories to the city dwellers. Besides that, a conservation effort of an old building ensures the original master planning of a city remains intact to achieve the city’s inception objectives. Due to these reasons efforts must be made to preserve buildings as much as possible. However, in doing so, allowance should be made for creativity of the designer to re-interpret the upgrading exercise to suit the current requirements, available technology and the new challenges in ensuring the preserved and upgraded buildings remain fresh and relevant to the present time.
The existing floating restaurant building was in a dilapidated state due to lack of maintenance. Some of the timber columns had degraded and a portion of the roof was also sagged. The previous haphazard additions to the original structure had also compromised the traditional Malay architecture’s aesthetic. These conditions had affected the overall building outlook and make it not compatible to the surrounding development.
Design Concept
Inspired from a ‘kelong’ concept, the naturally ventilated building adopted a low energy design in response to the tropical climate. The increased internal volume creates large airy open space that funnel prevailing wind to pass through, creating a comfortable condition inside. The large overhang on the lake side protects from rain and shades the open dining deck near to the water edges for a pleasant afternoon seating.
Sustainability
The design approach of this budget conscious project is recycling. Built on the original foundation, the building re-purposes significant amount of building material from the original structure including 40 m2 of timber decks and over 3,000 pieces of clay roof tiles. The building’s high ceiling, naturally ventilated openings and use of natural lighting enhance the building’s low-energy performance.
The large open plan volume gives flexibility to the restaurant operator and users to reconfigure the internal space according their and requirement and event functions. Composting room is also incorporated in the original planning to accommodate anaerobic/aerobic digester equipment for disposal and recycling of garden and organic restaurant waste in the future with fertilizer as by-products.
Reusing of the exiting footings minimizes wet sub-structure construction activities thus reduces pollution to the lake. Carbon footprint was also greatly reduced due to recycling design approach.
The roof is purposely designed to be flat for future installation of solar panels when the budget permits.
Community & Humanity
Commendable effort has been taken by PKNS to ensure this once famous floating restaurant of the city of Shah Alam is being preserved and upgraded as originally intended as a restaurant respecting the original city planning intention. This exercise would ensure that the public can continue to enjoy the benefits of the facilities.
Serenity and Charm
Spectrum House, aspire to transform two separate block into a cohesive home for a family of six. Inspired by the clients’ global travels, they envisioned a home where modern elegance meets whimsical charm, creating a serene yet playful ambience for their children. Known for their warm hospitality, the owner wanted a home that could graciously host guests, while maintaining family privacy.
Design Ethos: Living Canvas of Light
Spectrum House explores the emotional spectrum of colors, with each hue meticulously chosen to create a resonant atmosphere. Transcending surface-level aesthetics, the design brings color and light to life as interactive features, enhancing user experience through a dynamic interplay. Adopting the concept of a “Living Canvas of Light,” colorful louvered windows on the facade serve as striking architectural features and conduits for natural light. This ever-changing spectacle transforms the home into a living canvas, where sunlight creates dynamic strokes of art that evolve throughout the day, enriching the interior and elevating the overall living experience
Crafting Space & Experience
The building’s composition masterfully blends scale and proportion, resulting in an engaging and visually striking form and elevation. The design establishes functional zoning that separates leisure and entertainment area from the family sanctuary as intended by the owner. Seamlessly connected by a vibrant transitional space, the journey trough the space transitions from cool to warm tones, from public to private areas, creating a dynamic and immersive experience
Bridging Indoor and Outdoor Harmony
The outdoor area extends the indoor space harmoniously, with full-height sliding doors and timber louver screens blurring boundaries and inviting nature in. Pavilions, balconies and green roofs adorned with lush greenery create a union of indoor elegance and outdoor bliss.
Enriching Vitality in Home & Community
The house design focuses on family-centric spaces by implementing warm and open spaces allowing family bond to flourish within them. The interplay of light and color enrich the residents’ daily experiences, creating a deeper connection between the user and the house. The generous outdoor landscape and water element injects a vitality within the community surrounding, promoting a holistic living experience that embraces both personal well-being and community harmony.
Marvel of Metal Steel
The long hour of sun exposure and the large roof are are crucial elements for user comfort. Thus the metal deck roof is coated in Armor Grey with an SRI of 48 to reflect heat, optimizing thermal comfort. The thin metal deck allows for double insulation within limited roofing space, minimizing thermal transfer. Metal deck also facilitates easier solar panel installation and its durability outlast the solar panels, omitting the concern of removal and reinstalation of the solar panel due to worn down roofing.
Sustainable Living in Style
Spectrum House seamlessly blends sustainability and aesthetics, earning the highest platinum rating from Malaysia GreenRE. Its design optimizes natural ventilation and daylight with fin walls and strategic openings, while courtyards and water elements create a cooler microclimate. Sustainable materials plays a crucial role: Low-e glass glazing resists excessive heat transfer. PEFC-certified timber is used throughout the design. Equipped with 101 photovoltaic panels, the home generates 30% of its energy needs. A rainwater harvesting systems and efficient sanitary fittings further reduce water waste. Spectrum House exemplifies the harmonious coexistence of eco-conscious living and elegant design.
Spectrum House: Vibrant Sanctuary
Spectrum House blends modern elegance, playful charm, and eco-friendly design into a cohesive family sanctuary. Its dynamic use of color and light creates an interactive living canvas. Seamlessly integrating indoor and outdoor spaces with sustainable feature which exemplifies the harmony between aesthetics and sustainability, offering a stunning, responsible home.
The design echoed the manifestation of a new housing typology imbued with strong modern tropical detached housing style concept.
With the primary aim to attain privacy and comfort for each homes, the design aimed to promote expandable living spaces both internally and externally by introducing side garden for intermediate units (compared to the standard terrace house) which created a new quasi-semi public living spaces, as a spillover of internal spaces via generous access of sliding doors. In addition, because of the aforementioned, it allows more natural lighting, cross ventilation and green view for the house.
On the facade, adopting the characteristic of the uniform clean line, simple and timeless detached house, we introduce a meticulous notion of distinct horizontal and vertical lines arrayed throughout the facade and the sides of the building and neatly capped with vertical roof lines formed by metal roof ribs.
Hangar and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) at Jalan KLIA S7, KLIA.
Project Overview and Design Intents
The 20-acre site, strategically positioned between Jalan KLIA S7 and the KLIA runway, has been designated by the client for the development of a state-of-the-art Hangar and Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility. This facility is engineered to accommodate up to 14 nos. A321 aircraft simultaneously or, alternatively, 2 nos. A330neo aircraft and 8 nos. A321 aircraft simultaneously.
The following client requirements and design intents have significantly influenced the consultants' architectural approach, construction methodology, and material selection for this project:
Aviation Safety Compliance: Ensuring that the operational safety of incoming, outgoing, and stationary aircraft remains uncompromised, strictly adhering to the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) regulations and compliance standards.
Precision Construction Techniques: Implementing precise construction methodologies to maximize the spatial efficiency of the site, allowing the intended number of aircraft to be accommodated within the limited footprint, particularly given the L-shaped configuration of the hangar.
Time-Sensitive Construction: Adopting accelerated construction timelines due to the site’s proximity to sensitive and restricted zones (airside/landside), necessitating careful coordination to minimize disruptions to airport operations.
Column-Free Spanning: Designing expansive, column-free spans to facilitate unobstructed manoeuvrability of aircraft within the hangar, addressing the need for large, open spaces essential for aviation operations.
Architectural Representation: Crafting a façade that reflects the client’s esteemed position in the aviation industry, with a design that embodies both functionality and the client’s corporate identity.
Achieving the Design Intent
In pursuit of the design intent, and with meticulous consideration to ensure that the outlined objectives remain uncompromised, the materials for the facades and roofs were meticulously selected. The “Swisma-Sanko Speed Deck” for the facades and “Swisma-Sanko Seam Lock” for the roof were chosen, covering approximately 50,500m² of surface area.
The diverse range of Swisma-Sanko cladding options was instrumental in achieving the intended façade design, which emphasizes the sleek and modern aesthetic of the overall structure. Simultaneously, the façade and roofing materials were carefully selected to minimize glare, ensuring the safety of nearby aircraft in flight.
The integration of Swisma-Sanko with the predominantly steel structural framework not only complements the building’s architecture but also accentuates the quality and refinement of the steel structure’s detailing and finishes, internally and externally. This synergy between the cladding and structural elements underscores the sophistication of the construction.
The installation methodology adopted for the facade and roof materials has significantly streamlined the process, allowing the builder to meet the project’s tight timelines effectively.
Moreover, the innovative use of these facade and roofing materials has enabled the project to secure a Silver category certification under the Green RE. The carefully calculated thickness and composition of the materials ensured that the U-value and OTTV (Overall Thermal Transfer Value) targets were not only met but exceeded, contributing to the building’s energy efficiency.
The project has been distinguished by the Malaysia Book of Records for its remarkable achievements in the following categories:
Longest Single Span Pre-Engineered Building (PEB) System Rafter – 153 meters
Longest Locally Designed Single Span Truss Frame System – 183 meters
Longest Vertical Hangar Door (Megadoor) – 143 meters
These milestones were made possible through meticulous material selection and precise engineering. The strategic choice of materials was crucial in ensuring the structural integrity and performance of these record-setting elements, highlighting the importance of alignment between design intent and material specification in achieving such extraordinary feats.
The Detached Factory- Phase i8B:
Elevating the Benchmark of Bukit Raja's Industrial Evolution
In the drive to redefine industrial infrastructure, the vision for this advanced facility is to set a new benchmark in delivering world-class products. Driven by principles of continuous improvement, integrity, teamwork, and innovative design, the objective is to create a cutting-edge structure that surpasses the expectations of today's consumers, who demand swift and efficient service throughout the order completion process.
Modern consumer expectations for rapid delivery place significant demands on logistics, particularly in areas like order picking, loading, and unloading. Given these challenges, design is done to incorporate state-of-the-art logistics technology along with optimized workflows.
Another essential feature that would bring comfort to the users while being responsible for the environment is practicality. The design incorporates a nicely-thought-out passive strategy in bringing comfort and maximizing space utilization. Featuring modern architectural style, the design is flexible catering to various needs. Decorative elements are adopted in a minimalist but effective manner, incorporating visual appeal with reduced maintenance requirements. The use of sustainable materials in the building reflects a concern with environmental stewardship and rings with eco-friendly practices.
The design is to achieve a balance of function and beauty. This building highlights extruded coping feature that beautifies the modern and industrial appearance of the building while gaining practical benefits from it. Large, tall windows have been cleverly located in a way that light naturally seeps in, thereby promoting energy efficiency and a pleasant working ambiance. All these factors merged the visual appeal and functionality, ensuring perfect harmony of form and function. Metal
The roof design plays a significant role in this vision. Metal deck provides an industrial texture that gives cohesion and rhythm to the building. The pitched roof improves heat resistance, allowing passive cooling to maintain constant indoor temperature. Thoughtful provision of openings and glazing provokes both natural ventilation and daylighting. The presence of passive heat-resistance materials and insulation eases the building's energy efficiency.
It also includes some of the major strategies in the design to ensure that there are minimal impacts on the environment implemented to attain sustainability in place. The use of local resources and building materials reduces the 'carbon footprint'. Adaptable spaces are incorporated to reflect sustainability principles in the design for flexibility according to evolving needs. Simple structural lines enhance the building's appearance while simplifying construction and maintenance. The design considers long-term maintenance, aligning with overarching sustainability objectives.
Jet roofs are also incorporated in the design to respond to local climatic conditions by allowing for air circulation and hot air escape, hence stabilizing internal temperatures. The open and direct natural lighting from the external walls highlights key locations such as the staircases. Transitional spaces between the office and the docking provide necessary resting spaces for the users, whether drivers or workers. Covered docking areas offer protection from harsh weather, ensuring safe and efficient operations.
Technological innovations are also taken into account while designing. Rainwater harvesting system, which recycles the water for purposes of efficient utilization. The A/C ledge is hidden but easily accessible for maintenance, balancing aesthetic appeal with functionality. Electric vehicle (EV) car parks with convenient charging stations highlight a dedication to sustainable transportation solutions.
This design integrates efficiency, practicality, and sustainability within a contemporary architectural framework. It combines aesthetic appeal, economic feasibility, cutting-edge technologies, and eco-friendly strategies, setting a new industry standard that meets evolving user needs. The building will serve its intended function effectively while also contributing positively to the environment and the community.
Discovery Park - Project Description
Discovery Park is located within the heart of Gamuda Cove. Gamuda Cove is a new 1530-acre township set next to wetlands and forest reserves in Southern Klang Valley. Within close proximity to Cyberjaya and KLIA, it has direct access from the ELITE Highway and easy accessibility from other major highways. Discovery Park sits on a parcel of land which measures approximately 20 acres. It was conceived as a small and temporary development which would act as a catalyst that would spark the generation and establishment of the new township.
The brief called for an integrated mixed development which could provide a whole range of leisure and recreational activities enjoyed within the backdrop of the existing wetlands and forest reserves. A small mall or ‘The Hive’ would act as the anchor for this development housing a plethora of local F&B delights within a unique building which would act as a landmark to attract the crowds. The Hive taps onto the strong signature imagery of gable roofs which has come to be associated with this Client. This is then given a slightly different twist in its extensive utilisation of steel and reliance on the repetitive use of the hexagonal form to allude to a hive of activity. Southeast Asia’s first ‘Aerobar’ sits in a public ‘Village Square' adjacent to The Hive. This is an observation tower structure which has a rotating gondola. This gondola seats visitors and takes them to an elevated height on the tower enabling spectacular views of the surrounding wetlands and township taking shape.
Wrapping around the circular public square and adjacent to The Hive is the 'Beach Pool Club’. This Club houses the first salt water public pool in Malaysia complete with a deep dive pool and platform as well as sunken lounges. A dining and drinks hall located within the Beach Pool Club looks out onto a vast deck and landscape which evoke the experience of being by the beach. The Beach Pool Club takes on the evocative and curving shape akin to that of the nautilus shell. This shape expresses the nature of the building and is a gentle nod and gesture to its intimate relationship with the public square and The Hive.
A little further down is the ‘Drift Kart Building’ which is home to the first stand alone drift kart facility in Malaysia. The building is designed like an aircraft hangar with a spacious internal hall which accommodates the first raised and purpose-designed karting track in this region. The copious volume of the structure allows unobstructed views to the track from the viewing decks and promotes natural light and ventilation to invigorate the space. The building also acts as the base for the ATV vehicles which will allow another facet for exploring the local terrain here.
All these buildings form the first phase of Discovery Park and are interconnected by a comprehensive network of covered walkways and are complemented by ample visitor parking. The park is also served by generously landscaped gardens and bicycle tracks integrated into the public facilities. The Discovery Park acts as an appropriate introduction to the main township development. It is designed to draw the permanent dweller as well as the transient visitor in search for a fun and restful respite with a difference. Together, the various components of Discovery Park make for an unforgettable feast for the eyes as well the senses.
One Stop Collection Centre (OSCC), Kota Samarahan, Sarawak
RKD Architects Sdn Bhd
Architect’s Statement
The OSCC building is located in Kota Samarahan, approximately 37 minutes (25.8 km) from Kuching City Centre at an area designated as an industrial zone near the new Batang Samarahan Bridge.
The site sums up to a total area of 3.78 acres and the development area takes 2 acres of the whole site to allow for possible future developments through phases.
The approximately 1300m2 gross floor area were planned by locating areas with high frequency and logical relationships to have the spaces correspond better to one another.
Highlights and Features
The lobby features a retail gallery and a glass-separated production area. The packaging area has a high ceiling for future expansion. The facility includes a product testing lab, two flexible training rooms, a dynamic space for events, a co-working area, and a mezzanine-level office incubator space.
Project Objective
The OSCC supports local cottage industry start-ups, particularly women entrepreneurs, by promoting their products, providing business training, and enhancing product development for international markets. It aims to increase successful local entrepreneurs through networking, marketing, financial coaching, and alignment with Sarawak Digital Economy policies.
Design Approach
The design approach was to assimilate utilitarianism architecture to represent an industrial outlook. The clean-line look gives a strong and definitive contrast between the different elements of the space and it revolves around minimalism to obtain a sleek and functional design. The idea was adopted to abide to the ideals of ‘form follows function’ through simplicity, conspicuous views of structural elements and by eschewing unnecessary design details. A lot of thought was applied on choosing the right materials for the building that are not only long lasting, maintenance friendly and practical but are aesthetically pleasing.
These points elaborate on why steel was chosen as the primary building material which is not only a practical choice but also a material that aligns with the overall design philosophy of the project: -
Versatility in Design: Steel's inherent flexibility allows for a wide range of design possibilities, enabling the creation of long span structure demanded of the project brief, maintaining a sleek and minimalist aesthetic. Its adaptability supports the industrial outlook and clean-line appearance central to the design approach.
Speed of Construction: Utilizing steel as the main material significantly reduces construction time. Its prefabricated nature allows for off-site fabrication, ensuring quick assembly on-site, which is crucial for adhering to project timelines without compromising the integrity of the design.
Structural Integrity: Steel's strength and durability make it an ideal choice for achieving the desired minimalistic design while ensuring structural soundness. This material supports large spans and open spaces, aligning with the design's emphasis on conspicuous views of structural elements.
Sustainability and Efficiency: Steel’s recyclable nature, contributing to sustainable construction practices aligns with modern principles of environmental responsibility, which is increasingly important in contemporary built environment.
Maintenance-Friendly: The choice of steel also considers the long-term maintenance of the building. Steel's resistance to corrosion and wear, coupled with its ease of maintenance, ensures the building remains aesthetically pleasing and functional over time.
Aesthetic Appeal: The sleek and polished appearance of steel in this case enhances the building's industrial aesthetic. Its use in visible structural elements reinforces the ‘form follows function’ philosophy, creating a visually striking yet functional design.
These points elaborate on why steel is not only a practical choice but also a material that aligns with the overall design philosophy of the project.
The seamless roof and façade structure of double volume space adds an extravagant vibe to an otherwise mundane building typology and the height allows the flexibility for additional floors in the future. To accentuate the building, the design integrated primary colours for an interesting unembellished look. The minimal use of red and yellow is the bold side to the generally subdued look of simplicity.
As the project was constructed at the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Project Implementing Agency; JKR Sarawak had requested that contactless & social distancing features be included such as automated sliding doors, biometric access system and facilities for video conferencing and other features to facilitate the new-normal work environment.