No_9_September_1968 — Page 24

50

Site plan

28

ROAD

3-સસર

150

CITY

Detail of main stair tower with service lift for laundry and house-keeper in foreground

maintained, to the gratification of the architects.

The present owners, being the largest investors in the hotel industry in Singapore and Malaysia, intended that this first hotel building to be completed in their chain should have sufficient public rooms to cater for hotel guests as well as to accommo- date the major social functions in the Republic. Accordingly, the ratio of public rooms to bedrooms is higher than usual.

An important factor to be consider- ed at the design stage was the variety of cuisines to be offered. The follow- ing gives some idea of the food and beverage services planned for Hotel Malaysia:

Rajah Room Coffee Shop

style service Orchid Bar

Continental dining 24-hour American-

Banquet Hall (or Lotus Room)

Chinese cuisine

Supper Club Continental cuisine The Pub (in the basement)

The hotel accommodation itself consists of 301 bedrooms (including cabana rooms around the swim- ming pool on the mezzanine floor).

The site

The site is located in Tanglin, just on the outskirts of the city. The en- virons contain trees and vegetation in

SABANA

ROTEL

BEDROC

SUBSTATION

STAFF CANTEEN

ENTRANCE

TANGLIN

KITCHEN AREA

BANQUET

HALL

CIRCUS

רר

NS

TANGLIN

ROAD

abundance, in addition to which the local Public Works Department has constructed a spectacular fountain at the main approach to the hotel.

The terrain is generally flat, al- though some of the surrounding roads are sloped in such a manner as to provide the opportunity of placing part of the car park below road level, thereby giving a fairly unobstructed view of the building from the road- side.

The area of the site is 125,106 sq. ft.

Design approach

Right from the inception of the design, the architects aimed for a sim- ple and clearly defined plan in which most of the public rooms would en- joy clear views of the streetscape. The bedroom floor plan consists essentially of two overlapping blocks, at the inter- section of which is located the main lift lobby.

The large banquet hall is located to the rear of the building so that there is a separate access via Tanglin Road as well as an internal entry from the main hotel lobby. The kitchen and service areas are located on the southern side of the building, at the

rear.

To a very large extent the major public spaces have been designed as an extension of the exterior inwards. For example, the glass windows of the main lobby are designed so that the plate glass is recessed into the marble facing with no protruding frame.

The pergola effect over the gallery leading into the coffee shop forms part of the external pergola over the terrace. The same marble floor in the coffee shop is also extended to the external terrace.

It was also a design intention that the hotel should give visiting guests a strong sense of being in this part of Asia, rather than just any internation- al hotel which could be located else- where on the globe. To this end, a number of materials and finishes were specifically selected; the Onyx marble specified is of a jade-green variety and teak carvings are finished in natural colour and texture. Fairly extensive use is made of Batik murals executed by a Singapore artist, as well as pre- cast stone panels of Ibanese design.

Another means of attaining the de- sired atmosphere is the use of lighting as part of the design element so that the counters in the public areas, for example, are lit at the base as well as immediately above the counter tops so that illumination will be concen- trated where materials and textures can be displayed, while at the same time producing a subdued level of illumination so that other decorative lighting can be shown to maximum advantage.

It was considered that the main lobby should be a large area free from the obstruction of columns. A large span was thus required at the point where the two bedroom blocks above overlap, thereby producing a sizeable area at ground floor level.

Far East BUILDER, September 1968.