January_1971 — Page 17

Multi-storey factories

from prestressed, precast units

TEXTILE ALLIANCE LTD. PETER Y. S. PUN & ASSOCIATES LEVETT & BAILEY

YUNG HONG CONSTRUCTION CO. GAMMON (HK) LTD.

FABQUIP, Australia

GREEN ISLAND CEMENT CO. LTD.

HONGSTRESS LTD. JARDINE ENG. LTD.

Low block completed

client

consulting engineers/architects quantity surveyors

general contractor foundations slipforming

precasting (low block) precasting (high block) lifts

Completed low block and high block under construction

By

Peter Y. S. Pun,

DIC, CEng, MICE, FGS

FOR the first time in Hong Kong, multi-storey factory buildings are being constructed by a system which combines slip-formed core walls with prestressed, precast beam and floor units and precast cladding units.

By this means two blocks are being built for Textile Alliance Ltd. at Tsuen Wan - a four-storey low block, al- ready complete, and a 12-storey high block. Each is thus provided with long spans free from interior obstructions and capable of carrying the heavy loading of modern textile machinery.

The advantages of using the system have been a much faster construction time and a better finish than could be produced by in-situ construction. The overall cost is estimated to be some five per cent dearer than conventional construction, but an in-situ method would have given rows of interior co- lumns and much less usable floor area.

In the low block floor beams and cladding were precast and columns were cast in-situ; 60ft. wide floor spans are provided. In the high block there are three 50ft. spans, the end walls being slipformed. The gross floor area of the low block is 45,000 sq. ft., and of the tall block 360,000 sq. ft.

The architectural planning was mainly dictated by the production lay- out and structural requirements, though a further consideration was to provide shade from the sun to reduce the running costs of the air-condition- ing system. An interesting aspect of the design is the method of distribut- ing conditioned air in the low block. Cavities between the prestressed pre- cast floor beams are used as air ducts; this brought a saving in installation costs and also allowed floor heights to

Far East BUILDER, January 1971

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