18.000 sqm
Russia
2014
Dyer was requested to design a seventeen-floor residential tower with an overall area of 18.000 sqm on top of a three level retail podium, which was already under construction. This late requirement meant we had to carefully analyse the existing concrete frame and together with our engineering team, determine the best solution to erect such a significant building mass. This exercise meant we had to strengthen the foundation and allow movement joints to physically separate the low retail building from the tower, a structural challenge that we found exciting to overcome. The planning of the layout of the apartments was therefore driven by the possibilities allowed by the existing concrete frame.
As a result we created a stepped rear façade allowing optimal sun insulation characteristics for the east facing flats. The external skin was kept simple but elegant, utilising the same terracotta cladding panels used on the shopping mall. Two additional light tones were added to the colour pattern to visually lighten the tower’s imposing presence to the side road and the public piazza in front of the shopping centre. Staggered full floor window bays create vertical movement on the facades, separating the massing into various segments.
