Al Hamra Firdous Tower / SOM

Courtesy Turner Construction Co.

Named One of the Best Inventions of 2011 by Time Magazine, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s (SOM) Al Hamra Firdous Tower will be the tallest building in Kuwait. The iconic structure appears to fold into itself, creating an efficient form designed to maximize views and minimize solar heat gain. The commercial complex will be complete early this year and is comprised of offices, a health club and a high-end shopping mall with theaters and a food court. Continue reading for the architect’s project description.

Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

Client / Developer: Al Hamra Real Estate and Entertainment Co., Mr. Abdulaziz Alhumaidhi

Location: Kuwait City, Kuwait

Site Area: 10,000 m2

Size: 195,000 m2

Height: 412 m (74 stories)

Completion Year: 2011

  

Skyline © SOM

Text provided by SOM. 

Rising 412 meters in the center of Kuwait City, Al Hamra Firdous Tower is a landmark tower of iconic sculptural form that offers breathtaking views of the Arabian Gulf. The purity of its form, expressed by a simple operation of removal, will be a timeless, elegant marker in the heart of Kuwait.
SOM | © Pawel Sulima

With the aim of maximizing views and minimizing solar heat gain on the office floors, a quarter of each floor plate is chiseled out of the south side, shifting from west to east over the height of the tower. The result reveals a rich, monolithic stone at the south wall framed by the graceful, twisting ribbons of torqued walls, defining the iconic form of the tower.

SOM | © Pawel Sulima

The building’s appearance resembles a subtle, elegant modern sculpture or an enshrouded figure with its delicate glass veil reflecting the profile of the peninsula. The resultant form will provide transparency on the north, east and west sides towards the Gulf and near-complete opacity side against the severe desert sun to the south.

West and South Elevations © SOM

The solid south wall is generated in order to decrease the solar radiation. Openings are based on the relationship of the envelope and its position in relation to the sun. The geometry of the interior wall is generated and responds to the need to minimize solar heat gain. This wall not only protects the building from critical environmental conditions, but also takes on the role of the structural spine of the building. The point at the apex of the tower not only resolves this complex geometry of the carved flared walls but also implies the continuation of the sculptural form infinitely upwards. On each floor of the tower a skybridge connects the two wings and presents a dramatic spatial experience with deep sculpted windows in the south wall providing dramatic views south towards the city, the peninsula and the infinite desert beyond.
© SOM

The tower will welcome tenants with a soaring 20-meter tall lobby featuring a high articulated lamella structure which supports the tower above and articulates the space below. The geometry of the lobby area is generated by applying the principles of lamella structures. The structure provides continuity from the building to its footing and acts as a strengthening component while being completely integrated with the structure.
Lobby Construction © SOM

Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

Design Partner: Gary Haney, AIA

Managing Partner: Peter Magill, AIA

Technical Partner: Carl Galioto, FAIA

Project Manager: Donald R. Williams, AIA

Senior Designer: Aybars Asci, AIA

Senior Technical Coordinator: Mark Igou, AIA

Designer: Dean MacKenzie

Technical Coordinators: Samuel Ness, Eric Van Epps, James Mallory, Noppon Pisutharnon, Yasemin Kologlu, Souraya Daouk, Tobias Schwinn

Associate Architect: Al-Jazera Consultants

Structural Engineer: Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP

Structural Partner: Mark Sarkisian, Neville Mathais

Senior Structural Engineer: Aarom Mazeika

MEP Engineer: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

Director, MEP Engineering: Roger Frechette, PE, LEED AP

Senior Mechanical Engineer: Philip Sawyer

Senior Electrical Engineer: Ermenegildo Di Iorio

Mechanical Engineer: Michael Scotter

Project Manager: Turner Construction Co., International

General Contractor: Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading Co.

Telecom, Acoustics, Security, IT: Shen Milsom & Wilke

Vertical Transportation: Van Deusen & Associates

Facade Maintenance: Entek Engineering

Fire Protection: Arup

Geotechnical: Consultancy Group Company

Landscape: Francis Landscapes

Lighting: OVI (Office for Visual Interaction)

Traffic: Parsons Brinkerhoff

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Lily Pad Roof to Shade and Power Kuwait’s Sabah Al-Ahmad City Culture Center

Kuwait is planning to build a city in the desert for 2,500 residents, and the Sabah Al-Ahmad Culture Center will be its nucleus. Albeit materially extravagant, BDP. has proposed a design that takes energy conservation very seriously. And in this relentlessly hot and humid seaside environment along the Gulf, that won’t be easy.

Integrated with photovoltaic panels, a lily pad roof hovering over the center will provide both power and shading, while cooling and ventilation towers combined with high thermal massing will establish a comfortable microclimate for what is expected to be a vibrant public gathering space brimming with educational, entertainment, research and exhibition opportunities.

Cool it on the concrete

The new cultural center will be built out of heavy masonry and concrete, which is justified for its high thermal massing. Of course, this is not our favorite aspect of the project, nor are the faced titanium and glass crystalline facades. However, despite failing to incorporate sensible material choices, BDP. has gone to great lengths to reduce the center’s energy load.

In addition to the energy-generating lily pad roof panels, BDP has proposed to build cooling towers on either edge of the site which will use recycled or treated gray water to cool the building. Ventilation earth tubes will facilitate circulation. Combined with narrow streets and plenty of vegetation, these interventions should ensure that the enclosed facility will be cool year round.

Convincing Kuwait to go solar

Given Kuwait’s potent irradiation, BDP. has also proposed an off-site concentrated solar plant that could be used to power the entire city. Whether or not the Public Authority of Housing Welfare (PAHW), which has approved the existing schematics, will take the bait remains to be seen.

After reporting on Dubai’s “sustainable city,” we are beginning to see a trend moving through the Gulf states, perhaps spurred by the widespread popularity of Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City project: new enclaves of “sustainable development.”

Rather than sinking to the modest approach of Britain’s transition towns or Copenhagen’s discipline and self-sufficiency, these projects resemble the high-tech compounds of Margaret Atwood’s dystopic novels, in which wealthy people shut themselves off from the world and rely on technology to artificially sustain them through the apocalypse.

We’re not convinced that technology absent a tangible human scale is an appropriate solution to our development challenges, but we definitely can’t complain that there has been a not-so-subtle paradigm shift along the oil-soaked Arabian peninsula. At last, even the wealthy nations are beginning to acknowledge the inevitability of a post-carbon era.

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Al Hamra Firdous Tower / SOM

Courtesy Turner Construction Co.

Named One of the Best Inventions of 2011 by Time Magazine, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s (SOM) Al Hamra Firdous Tower will be the tallest building in Kuwait. The iconic structure appears to fold into itself, creating an efficient form designed to maximize views and minimize solar heat gain. The commercial complex will be complete early this year and is comprised of offices, a health club and a high-end shopping mall with theaters and a food court. Continue reading for the architect’s project description.

Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Client / Developer: Al Hamra Real Estate and Entertainment Co., Mr. Abdulaziz Alhumaidhi
Location: Kuwait City, Kuwait
Site Area: 10,000 m2
Size: 195,000 m2
Height: 412 m (74 stories)
Completion Year: 2011



Skyline © SOM

Text provided by SOM.

Rising 412 meters in the center of Kuwait City, Al Hamra Firdous Tower is a landmark tower of iconic sculptural form that offers breathtaking views of the Arabian Gulf. The purity of its form, expressed by a simple operation of removal, will be a timeless, elegant marker in the heart of Kuwait.


SOM | © Pawel Sulima

With the aim of maximizing views and minimizing solar heat gain on the office floors, a quarter of each floor plate is chiseled out of the south side, shifting from west to east over the height of the tower. The result reveals a rich, monolithic stone at the south wall framed by the graceful, twisting ribbons of torqued walls, defining the iconic form of the tower.


SOM | © Pawel Sulima

The building’s appearance resembles a subtle, elegant modern sculpture or an enshrouded figure with its delicate glass veil reflecting the profile of the peninsula. The resultant form will provide transparency on the north, east and west sides towards the Gulf and near-complete opacity side against the severe desert sun to the south.


West and South Elevations © SOM

The solid south wall is generated in order to decrease the solar radiation. Openings are based on the relationship of the envelope and its position in relation to the sun. The geometry of the interior wall is generated and responds to the need to minimize solar heat gain. This wall not only protects the building from critical environmental conditions, but also takes on the role of the structural spine of the building. The point at the apex of the tower not only resolves this complex geometry of the carved flared walls but also implies the continuation of the sculptural form infinitely upwards. On each floor of the tower a skybridge connects the two wings and presents a dramatic spatial experience with deep sculpted windows in the south wall providing dramatic views south towards the city, the peninsula and the infinite desert beyond.


© SOM

The tower will welcome tenants with a soaring 20-meter tall lobby featuring a high articulated lamella structure which supports the tower above and articulates the space below. The geometry of the lobby area is generated by applying the principles of lamella structures. The structure provides continuity from the building to its footing and acts as a strengthening component while being completely integrated with the structure.


Lobby Construction © SOM

Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Design Partner: Gary Haney, AIA
Managing Partner: Peter Magill, AIA
Technical Partner: Carl Galioto, FAIA
Project Manager: Donald R. Williams, AIA
Senior Designer: Aybars Asci, AIA
Senior Technical Coordinator: Mark Igou, AIA
Designer: Dean MacKenzie
Technical Coordinators: Samuel Ness, Eric Van Epps, James Mallory, Noppon Pisutharnon, Yasemin Kologlu, Souraya Daouk, Tobias Schwinn

Associate Architect: Al-Jazera Consultants

Structural Engineer: Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP
Structural Partner: Mark Sarkisian, Neville Mathais
Senior Structural Engineer: Aarom Mazeika

MEP Engineer: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Director, MEP Engineering: Roger Frechette, PE, LEED AP
Senior Mechanical Engineer: Philip Sawyer
Senior Electrical Engineer: Ermenegildo Di Iorio
Mechanical Engineer: Michael Scotter

Project Manager: Turner Construction Co., International
General Contractor: Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading Co.
Telecom, Acoustics, Security, IT: Shen Milsom & Wilke
Vertical Transportation: Van Deusen & Associates
Facade Maintenance: Entek Engineering
Fire Protection: Arup
Geotechnical: Consultancy Group Company
Landscape: Francis Landscapes
Lighting: OVI (Office for Visual Interaction)
Traffic: Parsons Brinkerhoff

You have read this article Kuwait / Skyscrapers / Towers with the title Kuwait. You can bookmark this page URL https://moderndeserthomes.blogspot.com/2012/03/al-hamra-firdous-tower-som.html. Thanks!