Striking designs.

(From Gulf Construction)

Among the many projects on the drawing boards of Al Awami Planners & Consultants is a medical tower and two mixed-use commercial and residential complexes

Construction work is well under way on a mixed-use commercial and residential in the heart of King Khalid Road in Al Khobar, which will contribute to the overall effort to facelift the downtown area of the city. Once complete, the Al Sheifan building - as it is known - will blend harmoniously and yet stand out as a distinct landmark among the new building sprouting along this busy King Khalid and Ninth streets of Al Khobar

The project proponent Saad Rashed Al Shiefan sought the expertise of Hussain Al Jumaa, vice president of Al Awami Planners & Consultants - an Eastern Province-based firm of architects - to come up with a fitting design concept for the eight-storey building in this prime location over a plot size of approximately 1,200 sq m. "The architectural design of the project had to blend perfectly with the needs of the location as the elevation emphasises a unique combination of post-modern architecture, giving the structure its unique identity," say a spokesman. The basement serves as a parking area for the tenants of the 36 apartments, which will be serviced by two elevators up to the penthouse of the deck floor. The ground and mezzanine floors will be utilised as commercial spaces. From first to fifth floor, the building will house seven high-class three-bedroom residential flats per floor with a spacious hallway and corridors and a well-lit atrium and garden on the first floor

The construction of the project started in January 2004 and is due for completion by the end of this year. Elaborating about some of the challenges on the development, the spokesman says: "Valued at over SR26 million ($6.9 million), the project is situated on a shallow water table that is influenced by sea water during the high and low tides. Excavation to a depth of approximately 5 m below the road level was the main challenge, which the contractors had to face. The contractor opted for a well-point dewatering procedure, drying up to 4 m deep of ground water. "In this process, an adjacent four-storey building had to be protected from settlement that dewatering and deep excavation may have caused. The ground had to be improved by soil replacement with structural select fill up to 1 m deep to increase the poor bearing capacity of the existing foundation area. A raft foundation of 1.1 m thickness has been poured after ensuring a sound waterproofing solution. "The building is designed to accommodate a future extension of two additional floors." "Currently, the structural component of the building is 99 per cent complete with the finishing work under way full scale with only eight months more to go until project hand-over," he points out

Another project that depicts the professional expertise and imaginative building design capability of Al Awami Planners & Consultants is the Dra Sameera Al Bayat Medical Tower - located on Al Quds Street in Qatif. Valued at SR19.63 million, the tower is currently being built by Arabian Turkish Contracting Company

Again, Al Awami Planners & Consultants has created an innovative ...