Al Rostamani Headquarters - Design Development

The objective for this design/development studio project was to select a recent project that was still in its schematic design phase and bring that project into a development/built phase in the form of construction drawings and design details. Working in teams of two, the project was to be analyzed and further designed, addressing materiality, structure, accessibility, environmental, and safety concerns. We selected MAD Architects' design of the Al Rostamani Headquarters in Dubai.

We aimed to maximize the waterfront view of a standard office building by elevating it off the ground and pulling the structural support and circulation back, away from side facing the water, allowing for public waterfront access under the building. We used structural circulation tubes projecting out of the back of the building down to the open park area and parking garage below to create an unobstructed view of the waterfront. The two lowest tubes are both sloped at a 30 degree angle to accommodate continuous escalators and fire stairs inside. The second escalator tube enters into a public park space created by a large cylindrical void in the building, furthering the initiative of a public park space into the building. The park consists of a series of grassy ramped surfaces that spiral up through four levels. Three other, more vertical tubes all contain slanted elevators that allow access the upper floors of the building. A sixth, completely vertical, tube stands within the building acting as a structural and circulation core.