THAILAND ARCHITECTURE IN STEEL VOL. 5

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Contents

preface

01 I DYNAMIC TRANSITION

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02 I O – ART – IM HOUSE

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03 I LADPRAO 80

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04 I U38 HOUSE

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05 I URBAN OASIS

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06 I BIG SISTER HOUSE

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07 I 3PH WAREHOUSE STUDIO

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08 I X-FLOAT

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09 I METRO FOREST

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10 I BAAN HUA RIN CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER

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11 I D23 DEPARTURE LOUNGE

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12 I BAAN LOY LOM

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13 I KRAAM SUKHUMVIT 26 (SALES OFFICE)

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14 I DIAMONDS & RUST

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29 I FOOD VILLA MARKET

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15 I GOD OF PLYWOOD

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30 I THE COMMONS

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16 I YELLOW SUBMARINE COFFEE TANK

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31 I SUAN PLERN MARKET

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17 I CHEEWIT PATTAYA SALES GALLERY

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32 I OER’S GARDEN AND PAVILION

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18 I THE HONOR CLUBHOUSE

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33 I STARVIEW BY EASTERN STAR

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19 I AIR SPACE

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34 I THE LUMPINI 24

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20 I THE SUMMER HOUSE

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21 I CORO FIELD

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22 I STARBUCKS FOOD VILLA

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23 I KING POWER PHUKET

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24 I SAENG THAI RUBBER HEADQUARTERS

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25 I SOLO WAREHOUSE

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26 I SRITHAI SUPER OUTLET

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27 I SIAM SERPENTARIUM

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28 I CENTRAL PLAZA WESTGATE

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SOOK Architects

O – ART – IM HOUSE 02 18

Location: Huai Khwang, Bangkok Client: Nuntaporn Leelaryonkul Structural Engineer: Pakanut Siriprasopsothron Area: 261 sq.m Year: 2016

O-Art-Im House is located in the Sri Nakorn housing estate, which was established in 1969.

The client has been living in this house with her family since she was young, and later on, her father bought the adjacent land for her new house after marriage.

The site clearly defines a distinct neighbourhood. The access road is only 4.5 metres wide, which dictates one-way traffic, and every house was built with an eight to ten-metre setback for a front yard with a large shading tree. Seen together, these yards create a green corridor where one can typically find neighbours gathering and kids playing under the trees.

The owner decided to keep an open green space at the front of the house. The whole setback area is designed as a multi-purpose space that can accommodate up to four parked cars.

Grass pavers are installed to absorb rain water. Next to the parking, a sliding lath fence invites a friendly atmosphere by allowing ‘eyes on the street’ to maintain a visual connection between inside and outside.

The first floor of the house is used as a food design studio that consists of a large kitchen, a baking area, and a multi-purpose area for teaching a cooking class. These spaces are primarily placed to the north so the southern part of the house can be used for growing organic plants.

The second and third floors are similar to one-bedroom condominium units in their arrangement of a living space, a bedroom, a closet, and a bathroom. This provides flexibility for future expansion.

A gable roof and a wooden wall imitate the old house's style, but the massing reflects a more modern aesthetic. By shifting each floor horizontally, the space becomes wider to accommodate a terrace, and the resulting overhangs can be used to protect the lower floors from the rain. Renewable materials such as fiber cement board are used due to their potential for later reuse.

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The shifted massing and the gable roof show a combination of traditional and modern design.

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The staggered massing provides overhangs for shade as well as extra space despite local setback restrictions.

Ground Floor Plan

Elevation

Section

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Second Floor Plan

Third Floor Plan

Roof Plan

Expansive kitchen and dining areas can accommodate multiple guests

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Spacetime

3PH Warehouse Studio 07 60

Location: Mueang, Nonthaburi Client: Sahavat Family Structural Engineer: Taweemongkol Area: 1,000 sq.m Year: 2014

This project is a continuation of a private residence that the architect had designed for the owner. The client needed additional parking space, playground space for the children, storage space, office space, and music studio space for the family. He then purchased the adjacent parcel of land to connect the spaces.

Based on these requirements, a long span was required to accommodate a ground floor parking area for six to eight cars, motorcycles, and bicycles, and a steel structure proved to be most suitable. The steel structure, combined with the chosen façade materials, help reduce the scale of the four-storey building compared to its residential neighbours.

The second floor is a children’s playground, and a high ceiling accommodates activities like trampolining, badminton, and soccer among others. The wall cladding is made from wire mesh to maximise natural ventilation and minimise mass while ensuring sufficient safety for the children.

The third and fourth floors contain offices, storage space, and a music studio. The wall cladding here changes to corrugated fibre cement panels, a low-cost material which is typically used for roofs, but here has been adapted for wall application. Solid and translucent panels are arranged to provide natural light. These two floors also contain balconies in front of the building which serve as outdoor areas for the offices and music studio but also lighten the mass of the building and improve the overall aesthetic.

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Layout Plan

Second Floor Plan

Fourth Floor Plan

Roof Plan

Elevation

Section

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Third Floor Plan

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Rain pipe drain

Wire mesh screen

Section Detail at Column

Wall Detail

Wire Mesh Screen Wall Detail

Stair Detail

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A bright red stair connects the original residence to the new warehouse studio.

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Spacetime

Metro Forest

Location: Prawet, Bangkok Client: PTT Reforestation Institute Structural Engineer: H Engineer Area: Exhibition Building 500 sq.m., Skywalk 200 m. long, Observation Tower 5 m. dia. X 23 m. high.

Year: 2015

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“We should plant the trees inside the peoples’ hearts first, then the people will go out and plant their own forest.” - King Bhumibol Adulyadej PTT has been working on reforestation projects throughout Thailand for over ten years, and their continuing commitment to this initiative is reflected in the establishment of the PTT Reforestation Institute, which will oversee the next 1,600 square kilometres of reforestation and serve as a center of knowledge for the public. Recognizing the significance of Bangkok’s residents in their effort, they dedicated a 19,000-square-metre plot of land within the city area to a ‘Metro Forest Project’. This project will serve as a learning venue for Bangkok’s residents of all ages to experience the beauty and value of the indigenous forest first-hand.

The Metro Forest Project focuses on using the ‘Akira Miyawaki Method’, which restores the forest by using only indigenous species and random planting locations to imitate nature.

The land use has been divided into seventy-five percent forest and ten percent water. The remaining fifteen percent includes a 240-square-metre exhibition room, a small theatre, offices, a plant nursery, and a twenty-three-metre high observation tower with a 200-metre long skywalk.

The project aims to blend in with the environment and serve as an example of green building innovation. The main walls are created with rammed earth, and the building’s roof is converted to a garden. Both strategies provide insulation to reduce the building’s energy consumption.

A wood composite is used for the skywalk, while the rounded steel column supports are painted to blend in with the trees. The observation tower is constructed to be a light element of the landscape rather than a massive intruder. In addition, the project aims for LEED Platinum certification by using locally produced and easily recyclable materials such as rammed earth and bamboo.

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PO-D ARCHITECTS

Bann Loy Lom

Location: Pak Chong, Nakhon Ratchasima Structural Engineer: PO-D ARCHITECTS Area: 580 sq.m Year: 2016

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Baan Loy Lom is located in the Baan Rai Tho Si village where many trees provide welcome shade for a large common area. The characteristics of every house in the village—for example, yard size, building height, and color—are carefully determined so they will not disturb the overall appearance. There are also designated places for practicing dharma. A pavilion provides a space for dharma activities that frequently occur during traditional and Buddhist holidays.

The house is primarily used as a second home for relaxing during the holidays. The owner likes to live simply, close to nature, and with good ventilation. He also practices dharma, so the common areas for walking and meditation are equally important to the bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen.

Baan Loy Lom is designed according to the owner’s lifestyle. ‘Baan’ means ‘home’, ‘Loy’ implies lifting the ground floor like a traditional Thai house, and ‘Lom’ means ‘wind’ or good ventilation. The house is lifted to accommodate a walking or meditation space below, but still looks like a one-storey house from the exterior due to the surrounding landscape. Proper ventilation is required in every area of the house, so the walls are arranged to maximize comfort for the owner. Wherever outer peace happens, inner peace will follow at Baan Loy Lom.

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LOWER FLOOR PLAN

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GROUND FLOOR PLAN

LOWER FLOOR PLAN

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MEDITATION WALK WAY MEDITATION HALL MULTIPURPOSE ROOM FAMILY LIVING ROOM GUEST BED ROOM MASTER BED ROOM GUEST BATHROOM KITCHEN GARAGE

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MEDITATION WALK WAY MEDITATION HALL MULTIPURPOSE ROOM FAMILY LIVING ROOM GUEST BED ROOM MASTER BED ROOM GUEST BATHROOM KITCHEN GARAGE 2

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CROSS SECTION

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LONGITUDINAL SECTION

Ground Floor plan LONGITUDINAL SECTION

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LONGITUDINAL SECTION

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NORTH ELEVATION

WEST ELEVATION

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NORTH ELEVATION

EAST ELEVATION

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Second Floor plan

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EAST ELEVATION

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CROSS SECTION

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thingsmatter

Diamonds & Rust 14 114

Location: Takhli, Nakhon Sawan Client: BTT Construction Team Structural Engineer: Sumate Assavavimol Area: 150 sq.m.

Year: 2016

BTT Construction Team is a steel fabricator specializing in power plants, grain silos, factories, and other large-scale structures that few people see and even fewer appreciate aesthetically. When the company’s office space outgrew the windowless box on its factory floor, its owners wanted a bespoke administration building that was functional and beautiful. Thingsmatter‘s solution capitalises on the builders’ expertise, using steel as a convenient structural material, but also maximising the expressive potential of its fabrication.

The new office is a cousin to the massive factory buildings around it. Its exposed skeleton of painted H-beams and trusses is wrapped in a skin of silvery metal roofing. While the larger buildings are generic and repetitive, optimised to enclose the largest possible space with the least amount of material and labor, the small building is deliberately idiosyncratic, irregular, and intimate.

Offices and meeting rooms are capped by separate roofs, supported by sloping bow spring trusses which cross each room diagonally. Folded ceiling planes reflect sunlight from clerestory windows, which offer cropped views of the factory roofs outside. A lower volume containing a reception area sits in front of the main building.

An outer wall made from folded panels of weathering steel faces the factory floor. Ribs cut from the same four-millimetre thick plate stabilise the folds and create a distinctive texture for the interior of the wall. The entire folded wall hovers above its reflection in a fish pond below.

Prismatic windows of various sizes penetrate the steel at irregular intervals, framing views across the yard to the factory.

The folded wall is the most elaborate example of steel fabrication on display, but subtler custom-designed components and details appear throughout, like doorknobs, counterbalanced sliding doors, and chains for plants to crawl up and rain water to trickle down. The resulting experience is less polished than most commercial buildings. To visitors, everything is slightly unusual, and as a result, they become aware of details that normally go unnoticed.

For workers, these peculiarities create an increased sense of ownership as they had a hand in making them.

A sculptural rusting steel wall with diamond windows is not typical of Nakhon Sawan’s architecture. Easy to dismiss as alien to the local culture, a closer inspection of the building shows that it isn’t a misplaced artifact of trendy parametric design but rather a form born from the materials, machines, and above all, the people who made it. It’s right where it belongs.

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Prismatic windows puncture a folded weathering steel faรงade.

Unconventional details enhance the visitors' awareness of the possibilities of steel fabrication.

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SECONDFLOOR ARCHITECTS

YELLOW SUBMARINE COFFEE TANK 16 130

Location: Pak Chong, Nakhon Ratchasima Structural Engineer: Picharn Rojratsirikul Area: 300 sq.m.

Year: 2015

This project is located in the Pak Chong district, near the edge of Khao Yai National Park, one of the country’s most visited weekend destinations. This blossoming vacation town consists primarily of two types of architecture—buildings with large window openings and access to the hillside view, and buildings with a western architectural aesthetic. The Yellow Submarine Coffee Tank, however, proposes something different.

The owner considered using architecture to create new value for the 1,600-square-metre Indian mahogany plantation to facilitate future expansion. Architecture could enhance the gentle slope of the forest and the unique ambience of the landscape to create one of the area’s most prominent places.

A series of three-metre-high walls encloses a 300-square-metre area, underlining the different scales of the structure and the vast landscape that surrounds it. The thirty-eight-metre length of the dark wall situated on the gentle slope accentuates the differences in the slope of the site.

To access the coffee tank from the parking area, visitors follow a walkway parallel to the building as they experience the coexistence of architecture and nature. Only one-third of the coffee house’s space is air-conditioned, which gives occupants the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in the natural environment as it changes through the seasons.

The functions space is divided into three sections—an entrance that introduces the vast emptiness, an area where the architecture functions like a tree, and an area under this tree canopy. Materials with different shades of black create an environment where certain elements reveal themselves through the absorption and reflection of light. The functions of materials can be seen in various forms, such as the brickwork that absorbs moisture, the gravel that amplifies the sound of footsteps, the thick walls that block noise, the exposed-aggregate concrete walls coated with Chinese ink that shimmer in the sun, and the glossy tiles that reflect light. Together, these elements produce a ‘blackness’ that speaks its own language.

While the architectural form seems like a strong contrast with nature, it possesses a clear connection with the surrounding site. The enclosed space allows occupants to see and contemplate what they might have overlooked, from simple human interactions to the humble magnificence of nature. The ambience becomes a key ingredient of the architecture, while the building adds a new awareness to people’s perception of and attitude towards architecture.

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Site Plan

Elevation

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HYPOTHESIS

AIR SPACE

Location: Hua Hin, Prachuap Khiri Khan Client: Penetra Group Structural Engineer: Power Plus Area: 750 sq.m.

Year: 2016

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This project was a collaboration between Hypothesis and PIA Interior. When Hypothesis received the brief to design a restaurant in Hua Hin, they began extensive research into the history of the area and found that Hua Hin, a historic resort town that has always been the popular seaside getaway of distinguished elite and royal families of Thailand since King Rama V, was also the town where Thai aviation originated. Aviation, navigation, and construction thus became the themes of this steel ‘barn’ structure and its interior.

Glass cladding runs along the front façade, exposing the building’s activities to passersby as well as blending the lush exterior landscape with the interior programmes. Wood cladding lines the rear walls of the rectangular building, which is divided into two wings—the cafe and the restaurant—with an outdoor entry courtyard in the centre. The transparent front façade also connects the interior space with outdoor seating areas at the front, as well as a small musical stage in the garden on the north side.

The interior decoration alludes to the Wright brothers’ barn, where the aviation pioneers developed and kept their first gliders and early planes. The team imagined Air Space as a workshop and a hangar, within which a full-scale glider dominates the ceiling space of the restaurant. Mechanical artifacts, machine parts, and construction tools become decorative elements as well as built-in components of the space.

Not only did Hypothesis design the architecture of the project, but also the corporate identity and the branding concept. The company believes that the essence of the brand should exist in every element of the project—not only the architecture or the interior, but also the logo, the menu, the service, etc.—and together they would create a memorable experience for everyone who visits the space.

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Layout Plan

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scale table

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Elevation

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WAS DISH

ICE ILE MOB

ICE CREAM

Ground Floor Plan

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The fully-glazed faรงade provides a visual connection between indoor and outdoor seating areas.

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Site Plan The Jam Factory 41/1 Charoen Nakhon Road Khlong San Bangkok 10600 THAILAND T +662 8609060-4 F +662 8609065 E office@dbalp.com

THE SUMMER HOUSE

FLOOR PLAN

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1. Open Kitchen kkk

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15. Chaopraya River

The Jam Factory 41/1 Charoen Nakhon Road Khlong San Bangkok 10600 THAILAND T +662 8609060-4 F +662 8609065 E office@dbalp.com

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THE SUMMER HOUSE

ELEVATION

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THE SUMMER HOUSE

The Jam Factory 41/1 Charoen Nakhon Road Khlong San Bangkok 10600 THAILAND T +662 8609060-4 F +662 8609065 E office@dbalp.com

ELEVATION

Ground Floor Plan

Elevation

SUMMER HOUSE

The Jam Factory 41/1 Charoen Nakhon Road Khlong San Bangkok 10600 THAILAND T +662 8609060-4 F +662 8609065 E office@dbalp.com

รูปด้าน มาตราส่วน

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Indoor and outdoor seating areas enjoy the benefit of ferns hanging from the long-span steel trusses.

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Architects 49

King Power Phuket 23 188

Location: Mueang, Phuket Client: King Power International Structural Engineer: Architectural Engineering 49 Area: 29,430 sq.m Year: 2015

King Power Phuket, the company’s fourth freestanding duty-free retail shop, respects the corporate philosophy of social responsibility and preserves Thai cultural heritage. The design integrates contemporary local Thai cultural symbols with Phuket’s nickname ‘Pearl of the Andaman’. The area’s historical association with jewels, precious stones, and glass is combined with the design language of existing King Power retail stores in the design of the building’s skin, which is an abstraction of sparkling jewels. Constructed out of perforated aluminium panels, the angled and folded surfaces reflect light resulting in a building that appears to sparkle in the sunlight.

To reinforce the brand’s image, the façade pattern is meant to appeal to customers, while also alluding to East Asia’s cultural heritage. The design of the exterior is simple but luxurious, in keeping with the products inside the store. The entrance is designed to be taller than the retail area, and its twelve-meter height is fully glazed to maximise transparency. The external jewel-like façade balances the building’s energy consumption by providing effective sun shading. Prefabricated silver-finished aluminium sheets are folded in an alternating pattern that glistens like a jewel from the interior and the exterior. These folded sheets, combined with the diagonal pattern of the steel structure, reflect the aesthetic of Thai arts and crafts.

This pattern is also applied to the building crowns that are meant to evoke lanterns for the building. The design utilises prefabrication and modularity to expedite construction and reduce costs.

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Folded, perforated aluminium panels provide a screen for sunlight during the day, and allow the building to glow at night.

FACADE DETAIL 192

SKIN DIAGRAM

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I LIKE DESIGN STUDIO

FOOD VILLA MARKET 29 236

Location: Taling Chan, Bangkok Client: BT Group Corporation Structural Engineer: Kor-IT Structural Design and Construction Area: 4,000 sq.m.

Year: 2015

The Food Villa Market project is located on Ratchapruek Road in an area that links Bangkok’s central business district with a residential zone. Food Villa Market serves the needs of the local community by providing a new standard of marketplace, one that avoids the dark, muddy walkways and improper ventilation typically seen in Thai markets.

The project started in 2013 and opened in early 2015. The design concept aims to relate the building to the community by combining a modern department store with a more traditional Thai market.

The project covers approximately 25,000 square metres and consists of four main volumes— a 4,000-square-metre marketplace for 400 stalls, a two-storey restaurant with life style shops, a twenty-four-hour supermarket with a Starbucks drive through, and a pet and plants zone.

The architect adopts the shapes of barns and farmhouses for each volume and merges them together. Wide flange steel is used as the primary structure, while translucent metal sheets are used for the façade to receive natural light during the day and create a glow from inside at night.

Air ventilation is addressed with a gap at the top of gable roof and with openings in the façade between the split roof levels.

The interior creates a clean, cosy ambience for the community. Shop owners in the marketplace can arrange their spaces however they choose, which helps to recreate the atmosphere of a local Thai market.

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Site Plan

Elevation

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Ground Floor Plan

Section

A translucent faรงade allows the building to glow at night.

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THE COMMONS

DEpARTMENT oF ARCHITECTURE

30 244

Location: Vadhana, Bangkok Client: The Commons Structural Engineer: Jet Structural Area: 5,000 sq.m.

Year: 2016

For many modern cosmopolitan cities, living conditions and spatial forms continue to evolve.

One example is Bangkok, where people are seeking new possibilities for outdoor living space that effectively responds to the tropical heat and urban density of the region. The Commons, a small retail development in the city centre, creates a new active outdoor space that people can comfortably enjoy any time of year.

The Commons proposes a vertical open-air public space known as ‘The Ground’, that folds upward as the backbone of the building. At the street level, a landscape of steps and ramps integrates with platforms, seating, planting, and small kiosks. The area is protected from the sun and rain by the third and fourth floor structure above. ‘The Ground’ opens on the upper floors, connecting to a large public open-air space that occupies nearly thirty percent of each of the third and the fourth floors. ‘The Ground’ also addresses the challenge of drawing people to the upper levels of a multi-storey retail building by positioning the floor openings in a way that allows people to see the shops above them.

This space contains gardens on all levels as it flows through the entire building and facilitates natural ventilation. Two sets of industrial fans are incorporated into the ceiling screen below the skylight. One set draws hot air up and out of the building, while the other blows wind down to increase air movement on especially hot days. The building becomes an active vertical urban living area, perfect for strolling and relaxing at any time of day and any season of the year.

The building uses a thin sheer steel mesh over the façade that provides a consistent surface for transparency, natural ventilation, and a light exterior appearance. It also reduces the visual fragmentation that typically results from a wide array of shop signs.

The ceiling of ‘The Ground’ is carefully lit from below to create a floating effect for the mass above. Furthermore, the exterior light on the mesh façade fades in and out slowly, alternately concealing and revealing the skin and the building’s contents as if the building were breathing.

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