HIGH RISE
BUILDING
CASE STUDY
SUSHMA RAGI
FOURTH YEAR 'A' 41
Marina BaySands
ARCHITECT: MOSHE SAFDIE
Landscape Architect:Peter Walker & Partners,
Peridian International, Inc.
BUILT IN: 2006-2010
LOCATION: SINGAPORE
Height:195 mts
Floors:57
INTRODUCTION
Marina Bay Sands is a complex of high density, mixed use, the construction reached $
5.7 billion.
Designed by architect Moshe Safdie for Las Vegas Sands Corporation, its facilities
offering a surface of 845.000m2 stand on the boardwalk of Singapore, creating a
gateway to the city and providing a dynamic environment for vibrant public life site.
Safdie was invited to join Las Vegas Sands Corporation for the development of a
competitive project design and present it to the Government of Singapore. The project
has been awarded CTBUH 2010 Best Tall Building Awards, Finalist Asia and Australasia
Region.
DESIGN CONCEPT
CONCEPTUALLY, EACH TOWER IS COMPOSED OF TWO
SLABS OF EAST AND WEST-FACING ROOMS. THE
DOUBLE-LOADED TOWERS SPREAD AT THE BASE
FORMING A GIANT ATRIUM AT THE LOWER LEVELS,
AND CONVERGE AS THEY RISE (SEE FIGURE 2). THE
TOWER SLABS ALSO GIVE FURTHER CHARACTER TO
THE MASSING AND RELATE TO THE SITE CONTEXT:
THE GLAZED WEST SIDE FACES THE CITY CENTER
WHILE THE EAST SIDE IS PLANTED WITH LUSH
BOUGAINVILLEAS FACING THE BOTANICAL GARDENS
AND OCEAN BEYOND. IN PLAN, AS THE PARCEL
VARIES IN WIDTH, THE CROSS SECTION IS DECREASED
FROM ONE TOWER TO THE NEXT. THE THREE VOID
SPACES ARE CONNECTED BY ONE CONTINUOUS AND
CONDITIONED GLAZED ATRIUM, FILLING.
THE SPACE BETWEEN THE TOWERS WITH
RESTAURANTS, RETAIL SPACES, AND A
PUBLIC THOROUGHFARE. EACH TOWER
SLAB FORM IS ALSO TWISTED SLIGHTLY
IN RELATION TO ITS PAIR, CREATING A
DANCE-LIKE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
THE TWO PARTS AND ACCENTUATING
THE SLENDERNESS OF THE BUILDINGS,
RESULTING IN THE APPEARANCE OF SIX
TOWERS, RATHER THAN THREE
Urban
Structure
Safdie designed an urban structure that
weaves together the components of a
complex program with a dynamic urban
crossing roads and public meeting
place.
Inspired by the great ancient cities that
are
arranged
around
a
major
thoroughfare, Marina Bay Sands is
organized around two main themes
running through the neighborhood and
give a sense of direction, placing
greater emphasis on the pedestrian
street, as the center of civic life.
HOTEL LOBBY
DIAGRAM OF HOTEL COMPONENTS
CONSTRUCTION
PROGRAM
HOTEL: 2560 LUXURIOUS ROOMS IN THREE TOWERS, WITH A TOTAL OF
265.683M2
SANDS SKYPARK: THE THREE HOTEL TOWERS ARE CONNECTED AT THE TOP, AT
195 METERS HIGH BY A PARK OF 9.941M2 WHICH HOUSES A PUBLIC
OBSERVATORY, JOGGING TRAILS, GARDENS, RESTAURANTS, LOUNGES AND AN
INFINITY POOL. THIS TROPICAL OASIS OF 1.2 HECTARES IS LONGER THAN THE
HEIGHT OF THE EIFFEL TOWER AND LARGE ENOUGH FOR FOUR JUMBOS TO
PARK A380S.
CASINO: THE CASINO “ATRIUM” HAS FOUR LEVELS OF PLAY AND
ENTERTAINMENT IN A TOTAL SPACE OF 15,000 SQUARE METERS. ATRIUM
CEILING HANGS A LAMP 7 TONS WITH 132,000 SWAROVSKI CRYSTALS AND
66,000 LEDS.
SHOP OVER 74.322M2 OF RETAIL SPACE AND RESTAURANTS.
SANDS EXPO AND CONVENTION CENTER: 121,000 M2 OF FLEXIBLE CONVENTION
AND EXHIBITION SPACE, INCLUDING ONE OF THE LARGEST BALLROOMS IN ASIA
WITH AN AREA OF ​8,000 M2 AND A CAPACITY FOR 11,000 PEOPLE.
ARTSCIENCE MUSEUM: 15,000 M2, OF WHICH 6,000 M2 CORRESPONDS TO A
GALLERY, 3,000 POND LILIES WITH A PALM TREE 80 METERS, 62 METERS IN
DIAMETER ON LEVEL AND 11 DEEP.
THEATRES: 21,980 SQUARE METERS WITH A TOTAL COMBINED CAPACITY OF
4,000 SEATS
CRYSTAL PAVILIONS: 5,914 SQUARE FEET HOUSING SHOPS AND NIGHTCLUBS,
THE FIRST STEEL AND GLASS STRUCTURE BUILT IN MARINA BAY.
PLAZA EVENT: 5,000 SQUARE METERS WITH CAPACITY FOR 10,000 PEOPLE IN
EVENTS OF LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL.
Diagramatic phasing of erecting the SkyPark
Construction Challenges
Once the project was awarded, teams were on the ground immediately to begin the fast tracking of the
construction.
The first and most critical task was to secure the building footprint. The entire complex sits on 0.56
million square meters (6 million square feet) of reclaimed land – sand infill on deep soft marine clay
deposits.
Marina Bay is a former salt water estuary that is now a fresh water reserve.
Prior to excavation, the site needed to be reinforced. In order to do this, 1.5 meter thick (5 feet) steel-reinforced concrete diaphragm walls
(coffer dams of up to were extended 50 meters (164 feet) into the ground providing an enclosure for excavation.
The key challenge of building the hotel towers was the construction of the partof the towers thatslope at an incline.
Unsupported, they could buckleunder their own weight.
The slopingleg induces an enormous external force ontothe structure, whichneeded to be addressed during construction.
The structural engineer conceived of an approach to build large temporary struts of structural steel to prop up the slopingtowers as they rise
Spaces
Its facilities offer a hotel with 2,560 rooms, a convention center,
shops, restaurants, theaters, museums and a casino.
This new urban space integrates the waterfront boardwalk,
some 74,000 square meters of small arches at various levels
and the iconic ArtScience Museum on the promontory. Located
along the network of public roads there are also two theaters
with 4,000 seats between them, a casino, a convention center
and exhibition of 9,000m2 and 5,000m2 a public square with a
striking hydraulic adjustment, according to events.
Combining internal and external spaces and providing a
platform for a wide range of activities, this vibrant “cardo
maximus” of the century, or large gallery, also connected with
the metro and other means of transport.
THE SKYPARK
IN ADDITION TO THE 0.9 MILLION SQUARE METERS
(9.6 MILLION SQUARE FEET) OF BUILT SPACE, THE
PROJECT PROGRAM ALSO CALLED FOR THE
DEVELOPMENT OF EXTENSIVE EXTERIOR GARDENS
WITH
SWIMMING POOLS, JOGGING PATHS, AND PUBLIC
SPACES. AS ONE OF THE AIMS OF THE PROJECT
HAD BEEN TO MINIMIZE THE HEIGHT OF THE
PODIUM BUILDINGS, SEEKING TO REFERENCE
SINGAPORE’S PASTORAL HILLS MORETHAN ITS
URBAN CORE, THE PROBLEM EMERGED THAT THE
COMPLEX PROGRAM LEFT NO VACANT LAND
SUITABLE FOR THESE AMENITIES. CREATING
GARDENS ON TOP OF THE ROOF OF THE CASINO
AND THE CONVENTION CENTER WAS STUDIED,
HOWEVER, THESE VAST SPACES LACKED VIEWS,
OVERSHADOWED AND OVERPOWERED BY THE
ADJACENT HOTEL TOWERS. THE IDEA EMERGED TO
BRIDGE BETWEEN THE THREE TOWERS IN ORDER TO
RECLAIMEXTERIOR GARDEN SPACE AND CREATE A
2.5-ACRE PARK IN THE SKY.
CONCLUSION
THE PRINCIPLE CHALLENGE FOR THE MARINA BAY SANDS PROJECT WAS THE COMBINATION OF COMPLEX DESIGN
PARAMETERS MATCHED WITH A VERY FAST PROJECT SCHEDULE, FROM INITIAL SKETCHES TO SUBSTANTIAL
COMPLETION WITHIN FOUR YEARS.
THIS MEANT ARRANGING CLOSE AND INTENSIVE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE ENGINEERING, CONSTRUCTION
MANAGEMENT AND DESIGN TEAMS ON SITE, SUCH THAT COORDINATED SOLUTIONS COULD BE QUICKLY
NEGOTIATED AS THEY AROSE.
THE SUCCESS OF THE PROJECT LIES IN THE FACT THAT THE INVENTIVENESS OF THE DESIGN (THE CONCEP- TION
OF THE HOTELS AND THE SKYPARK) WAS MATCHED BY AN EQUALLY INVENTIVE AND NOVEL APPROACH
DEVELOPED BY THE ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION TEAMS