“The podium is its main attraction. No other hotel in the Philippines has a high elevation in the second and third floors at 6.5 meters,” the 27-year-old engineer explained to Philippine Construction and Design. These floors will have several grand ballrooms where top dogs in Chinese politics and Hollywood will converge on its opening night in 2014, according to reports. Had the Air Transport Office hasn’t decided 62 storeys is the maximum height of all structures in The Fort, the hotel could have gone higher. The maximum elevation, according to the engineer, is needed because on top of the posh area is a busy route for planes going to different destinations.
Glass panels
“What people see abroad can also be seen here because if we don’t have the materials we import it abroad,” she said. The materials that will be used for the project like the granites and glass for the upper floors will be sourced outside. One of the subcontractors is Arlo Glass, a specialist in glass installation works. The glass itself is imported. About 90% of the glass used were sourced from suppliers from Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. The all-glass panel design adheres to the “green” aspect of most structures. Green means the structure is environment-friendly, minimizing reliance on electricity produced from fossil fuels or battery and uses more sunlight and wind for everyday use. There are portions of the hotel in the upper floors with no air-conditioning units to allow guests the option to experience fresh air.
“
No room for mistakes. Shangri-La will not allow it that’s why they don’t want us to finish this in just 14 months
”
---Engr. Joyce Eugenio, 12,000 square foot floor foundation
The hotel is built on mat foundation and not footing. Eugenio said the mat foundation alone is six times the amount of the putt foundation. Likewise, Skidmore Owings and Merrill, the chief designer-architect-planner of all Shangri-La Hotels around the world, said that the adobe beneath is non-bearing and there will be no floating involved. Cement will be poured on the foundation and not pre-cast. Cement is sourced from LaFarge, one of the biggest cement companies in the country today.
Monolith Cranes However, she didn’t mention how much was spent for the mat foundation of the hotel. “Ask Shangri-La I don’t want to lose my job,” she said smiling. The mat foundation means the entire floor area of the hotel is buried three meters under. “So you can imagine a whole 12,000 square-foot floor submerged under with 200 columns and mostly made of 36-inch steel. That’s how solid, tough and durable this structure is,” Eugenio said without batting an eyelash. The 200 columns represent more than double the prescribed number for such edifice, according to Eugenio. Each column has a range of strength from 8,000 to 10,000 psi. Each floor of the entire building has strength of 6,000 psi capable of carrying load capacity equivalent to 10,000 people at any given time. About 150 bags of cement (40-kgs each) are poured in one column and each column is not made of pre-cast concrete. The columns are almost round in shape when viewed from above. Steel used in the foundation are up to grades 40 and 60 while diameters range between 12-36 inches, according to Eugenio. Elevation of other floors, except the second and third, will also be 0.5 meter higher the ordinary 3.2 meters. Less than 30 percent of total steel used is made of 10-inch diameter steel and 70 percent using either a 32” or a 36”. The strongest portion of the hotel is its 4-storey basement up to the 8th floor, the engineer said. “With that number of columns and strong PSI who will worry about an intensity 10 earthquake,” Eugenio said. Another engineer of the project, Engr. Teresa Tolentino, said all structures built by their company starting 2002 had used the Autocad system in computing all the loads needed to ensure strength and stability. The sway of intensity
10 earthquake is equivalent to passing of vehicles through rough road at 40-60 kph. “Before that year, computation for quake load, wind load, live load and dead load were not included that’s why many structures were weak and may not withstand even an intensity-7 quake," Tolentino explained. Aside from having an adobe support underneath, the area is approximately 75 meters above Manila Bay, thus making it comfortably safe against flooding.
Shot crete
When it comes to fire protection, the hotel’s advantage is the shot crete for every division of room. Each floor has 35-40 rooms all divided by shot crete and not CHB (concrete hollow blocks). Eugenio said only expensive structures can afford shot crete because it is thrice the cost of CHB installation. “CHB is just for apartment and projects under tight budget, not for fabulous hotels like this. When you use CHB, you need sand, water, cement then you mix it. Shot crete is just sprayed on slab with 4,000 PSI strength against fire,” Eugenio explained. Water sprinklers are also installed every 10 meters, capable of spilling 50 PSI of water. Each floor has three fire exits to enable guests to escape freely when there is fire. It also has fire detector devices in every floor that can sense fire before it breaks out. “They can escape even before a very small fire occurs as the smoke alone can trigger the detector to ring,” she said. Aluminum cladding with four and five mm sizes is also applied for added protection. “Shot crete and aluminum cladding are both anti-fire devices; they don’t have to worry about any untoward incident,” Eugenio said.
May - June 2013
Philippine Construction&Design
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