The chancery is an office building with two levels and a basement, designed to fulfill the functions of consular, diplomatic relations, trade commissioner, attache’s, administration and the ambassadorial secretariat. The building is equipped with a cafeteria, basement parking and library as basic amenities within the building. A concrete façade on the south side serves as the perfect curtain. The north façade opens up into to a courtyard that is divided by a landscaped spine. The chancery has been designed to constantly orient the user by providing a double height atrium lobby lined with a magnificent skylight the divides the building. The skylight also negates the use of artificial ambient lighting during daylight hours. The office building has been designed in compliance with NFPA 101 for emergency evacuation and fire suppression standards. All major escape stairways open up to assembly areas that lead out of the site.
The residence is designed to act as a getaway despite its close proximity to the chancery. The landscaped spine was primarily used to bisect the work and recreational areas. The residence is a contemporary living space with layered functions. The ground layer is a formal living space to entertain state guests and delegates. The first floor layer is an open plan family area with bedrooms for the children.
The gym, pool and the tennis court have been designed according to professional standards. The dialogue created between the amenities and the building masses is an attempt to create a resort atmosphere. Here the honorable ambassador can proudly entertain dignitaries offering state of the art facilities in the comfort of his own secure compound.
The Banaue Rice Terraces are considered the eighth wonder by the people of the Philippines. At a height of 5000 ft above sea level they cover around 4000 square miles of mountainside. Each spine of the building is vertically displaced at random points creating a cascading elevation that is reminiscent of the rice terraces. The vertical displacements are readjusted according to the program. The front façade along the thoroughfare is primarily dead as all diffused light is brought in through the back façade towards north.
One Abdullah Khan Architects’ core values is addressing sustainability initiatives in all our projects. For this one, LEED – NC has been taken as the guideline for all sustainability initiatives, in order to address as many parameters of sustainable and green design as possible.
Bicycle spaces have been provided under cover in the basement to provide the opportunity to for workers to bike to work, hence reducing the daily carbon footprint that arises from combustion due to vehicular commute. As per USGBC-LEED-NC guidelines, a 9-bicycle parking has been provided which caters to more than 20% of the total users of the building while green building guidelines recommend a minimum of 5%.
53% of the total site area has been designed with native and adopted vegetation. This action generally encourages biodiversity and cools down micro climate during hot months.
A rain harvester tank has been designed in the basement that ensure a 25% decrease in the volume of storm water. Up to 60% of potable water is saved, thanks to rain water being utilised for irrigation purposes.
Main walkway and spines are non-vehicular and designed such that 50 % if the walking area will be shaded within 5 years of plantation. All landscaped areas, except for roads, have been specified with paviours having and SRI value of above 29. Furthermore, to reduce the heat island effect, 100 % of car parking has been placed at the basement level, shielded from solar radiation.
All plumbing fixtures used in the project are required to improve water usage by at least 10%. This is possible through the use of low flow and dual flush fixtures. The allowable design case fixtures will be approved by the plumbing engineers on site once they demonstrate an improvement of at least 10% from the base line. In addition to the rain water harvesting tank, savings in water are assisted by catchment areas on the roof of the chancery building.
The corridor and basement emergency lighting will be solar or battery procured, thus lowering the power expenditures on site. Renewable energy will be produced using solar panels, placed on the roof, which have the capacity to generate 50 kw.
Vendors Who Worked In
The Benitoz Islamabad
Ground Floor, Khumrial Center, G-8/4, I & T Center, Islamabad.
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