Souq Al-Hijaz, Jeddah
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The problem. The existing Souq Al-Hijaz needs to be upgraded in order to attract new customers and to make sure that existing customers come back more often ˇ Also the parking facilities must be improved as to offer greater comfort to the customers ˇ
Exterior. The upgrading tasks starts with the experience of the Souq from the Main Road ˇ The facades are outdated and need to be redesigned completely ˇ But this must be done in an efficient way ˇ WE propose to clear the facades from the external decorations but leave intact the existing glass facades and concrete support structures ˇ Then we propose to place a second skin placed at a distance of some meters away from the old facade ˇ This new skin is higher and built up like a lightweight building kit, all the constituing elements to be prefabricated and assembled on site very quickly ˇ The new loose skin will be designed using smooth lines folding back into the interior of the shopping center ˇ The entrances are limited in number and emphasized by LED lighting which is also visible in daylight [think of electronic billboards] ˇ The new skin contains in various densities arrays of LED lights, high density as to communicate words, symbols and images close to the entrances, and transforming gradually into low density areas where the LED is used to form abstract patterns, especially exciting at night ˇ
Interior. Inside the shopping mall we propose to upgrade the bazaar-like organisations by adding electronic surfaces, scatterd loosely around the whole interior of the SOUQ ˇ Electronic surfaces contain in a high density arrays of LED lights, communicating specific advertisements with the public ˇ It must be emphasized here that LED lights are very energy conscious, and that the higher investment will pay itself back after some years of operation ˇ Electronic carpets on the floors lead you through the shopping complex, as do the electronic piles and the electronic clouds attached to the ceilings ˇ Occasionally old surfaces may be removed and replaced by the new electronic surfaces ˇ In this way the shopping center can continue to function properly during the upgrading procedures ˇ
Infrastructure. The parking problem will be solved by erecting a complete new parking garage facility at the back of the complex ˇ Here all the parking will take place ˇ We advise the parking garage to be airconditioned to less then 30 degrees Celsius as an intermediate climate between hot summer outdoor temperatures and up to 21 degrees cooled down interior ˇ Only taxis and delivery of people from private cars are foreseen to park temporarily inside the canopies of the entrances ˇ People are protected from the sun [and rain when it comes] by the canopy ˇ Delivery of goods will take place from the public street between the two buildings ˇ Most of the entrances will be closed, we propose to leave 3 major entrances ˇ The other doors are redesigned to function as emergency exits, and some of them entrances for the personnel ˇ The space around the second skin will be free of parked cars, it will landscaped properly using drip irrigation ˇ
Non Standard Skin structure. The structure of the new skin is designed according to the new File to factory process of mass-customization ˇ In the technical report there is more information on this fascinating new process which allows for complex geometries to be built efficiently and profitable ˇ in fact the File to factory process deals with the assemblage of thousands of different elements ˇ Repetition of exactly the same elements is no longer necessary ˇ What is needed is parametric systematic technical design of the detail in such a way that they can be produced by CNC machines [Computer Numerical Controlled], whereas the data feeding the CNC machines comes directly from the 3d model of the architect-engineer ˇ This File to Factory process is what we have successfully realised recently for a growing number of larger built structures ˇ The architecture which is possible applying the rules of mass-customization is labelled Non Standard Architecture ˇ Non Standard Architecture comes as a pleasure for the eyes because it allows for much greater visual complexity ˇ In the Arabic world the patterns were added in the form of paint or as panels and inlays in an otherwise more simple construction ˇ Now using NSA procedures the decorative pattern becomes the construction itself ˇ This is big technological step forward, and relates very well to the general appreciation of the public for greater and richer visual effects ˇ
Pricetag of information density. The pricetag for the structure forming the new skin excluding LED electronics is around 250-300 EUR / m2 according to European standards ˇ The pricetag for the low density informative electronic areas in the skin is around 25 EUR m2, for the high density information areas it increases gradually towards 1000 EUR m2 ˇ For the interior electronic carpets with even higher information density one must expect the prices to raise up to 5000 - 10000 EUR / m2 ˇ The price can be basically compared with putting together arrays of LCD screens ˇ And we know that prices of LCD and LED are falling dramatically which makes it profitable tomorrow when it is just affordable today ˇ
Credits
Design: ONL [Oosterhuis_Lénárd]
Design team: Kas Oosterhuis, Ilona Lénárd, Sander Boer, Rena Logara, Henrike Michler
Site: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Client: Balubaid Real Estate
Date: 2005