courtesy Raed Abillama Architects

Architectural program
The space is functional and serves different purposes: the aim is to create a polyvalent layout to accommodate different market needs. The top floors are dedicated to the headquarters of Mitsulift (an elevator company), the ground floor for retail and a few office floors in between offer an open plan space that can be layout into different configurations. The building needed to be cost efficient. For this, RAA endeavored to find smart ideas for using cost efficient and maintenance-free materials, such as GRC (Glass Reinforced Concrete) panels for the façade.

© Géraldine Bruneel

© Géraldine Bruneel

Façade
A building that works efficiently and in a sustainable manner is one that has a carefully thought-out space from the inside, not that just looks good from the outside: the façade is an external translation of the internal efficiency not just an aesthetic frame.

RAA main concern is the living quality of the users and the efficiency of the construction by minimizing direct sunlight and heat intake. To optimize this effect the ceiling height was raised, and high, deep recessed slit windows were created so that the openings are in the shade on the east and west. This proportion of high windows gives more natural, homogenized light into the deep end of the office.

© Géraldine Bruneel

© Géraldine Bruneel

Passive green
The windows are not operable in order to enhance the insulation properties of the façade in terms of thermal, sound and dust pollution. The air exchange is through filtered heat recovery machines, hence minimizes thermal consumption. The building being located on a highway, the idea was easy to implement; the result is a better quality of spaces in urban environments.

Ecological solutions are not always technologically driven. Sun is extremely efficient in Lebanon: it is an available energy. The architect must cater to the local climate and adapt to local lifestyle and culture. Other passive approach is the usage of thermal mass to absorb heat during the day and release it at night. Efficient technological systems such as solar heating for hot water, VRV air-conditioning machines, LED and fluorescent lighting, energy recovery, and variable speed elevators are also used in Mitsulift Headquarters building.

+ Project facts

Project: Standard Invest – Mitsulift HQ
Architect: Raed Abillama Architects | www.raarchitects.com
Location: Lot 105, Dbayeh, Lebanon
Footprint: 604 m² | Built-up area 3322 m² | Land area 1510 m²
Year: 2012
Photographs by: © Géraldine Bruneel

+ All images and drawings courtesy Raed Abillama Architects

Frappisimo is a new Mexican coffee shop that currently has three branches in the state of Campeche, this being the most recent one. It is located in Galerías Mall in the city of San Francisco de Campeche in southeastern Mexico.

This new coffee shop is located in one of the most important points of the mall, as it is the only double-height space and where the two main wings of the mall converge. This makes the room a very important focal point, located almost in the center axis of Galerías.

courtesy Workshop

The architectural design of the top view is primarily ruled by the shape of the space this in an effort to take advantage of it. The counter area is located at the side where the most important and predominant visuals of the place are displayed because of it the front of the store can be seen from different angles of the mall.

courtesy Workshop

In order to exploit this visuals, two walls were created that have the dual function of “containing” the ceiling and its structure and holding two company logos, one on each side of the shop in addition of one located at the front, resulting in a much better promotion of the brand.

courtesy Workshop

The formal design is based on creating a simple space adopting the company's color palette, this to respect the integrity and identity of the existing branches. The ceiling is inspired by the idea of abstracting Frappisimo's colored fringes, (which can be observed on the mural located on the stand's back wall and that are recurrent in the other stores) and creating the colored “boxes”, having a volumetric game in the space, balancing the sobriety and simplicity of it with a dynamism based on shapes and colors.

courtesy Workshop

These boxes that give the impression of being suspended in the air are supported by a metal frame located within them. The frame has been anchored to the side walls, which are covered with carved stone from the region.

The main goal of this project was to transform Frappisimo's image into architecture resulting in a dynamic and functional space that promotes itself and takes advantage of everything the space it's located in has to offer.

+ Project facts

DESIGN: Workshop ( Arq. Francisco Bernés Aranda / Arq. Fabián Gutiérrez Cetina) www.workshop.com.mx
LOCATION: Plaza Galerías Campeche, Campeche, México.
CONSTRUCTION: Arq. Rafael Aranda Alpuche
DIMENSION: 75 m2
YEAR: 2013
PHOTO CREDITS: www.workshop.com.mx

+ All images courtesy Workshop

The design by H Architecture for the multi-unit housing of Block 2-2 M2 in Sejong Korea has been chosen as the winning scheme in the nation-wide open design competition organized by LH Corporation. Reflecting on 50 years history of Korean housing, H’s design proposed an innovation paradigm of housing with open organization of master plan, multicenter community model, and new types of building and units. H Architecture developed a non-hierarchical, multi-dimensional and multi type housing scheme, which not only provides various indoor and outdoor areas with enormous spatial values, but also promotes the spontaneous happenings in dweller’s community from personal encounters to public events. This type of community spaces in housing has been overlooked from the existing housing concept, and it projects a new perspective for the next century of community in Korean architecture and society. The project was designed in collaboration with Haeahn Architecture.

courtesy H Architecture

courtesy H Architecture

courtesy H Architecture

+ All images and drawings courtesy H Architecture