The longest beam spans some 47 ft. supporting 11 floors of walls above and is in the form of a double beam of U-shaped configuration, each half of the U being 46in. wide and 48in. deep.
The bedroom floors are supported on load-bearing concrete walls Sin. thick throughout from the first floor to the tenth, to give clean wall surfaces without projections and at the same time making it possible to have windows opening the full width of the bedrooms.
To provide for efficient servicing of kitchen areas, one underpass on the ground floor and what amounts to a high level bridge was provided at the topmost floor; this latter to service the supper club kitchen at roof level. The servicing of restaurants at high level has always presented planning and circulation problems, and in this case the management considered the exer- cise to be worthwhile since this res- taurant will be the only one in Singa- pore which offers a fine view of the surrounding country for some years to come, until the revolving restaurant syndrome takes hold in Singapore.
The structure*
The whole building is founded on precast concrete piles of two kinds, the larger of 12in. diameter, holding 55 tons per pile, and the smaller 6in. x 6in. precast piles, supporting 15
tons.
The basement is in reinforced con- crete with integral water-proofing, thus the added expense of tanking or sheet pilling has been averted. This is due partly to the site conditions and partly to the fact that there was sufficient area for builder's operations whereby the walls could be construct- ed and the earth back-filled.
Except for frameless glass doors and internal partitions, all external glazing is in grey tinted glass in the interest of reducing sky glare as well as lightening the load on the air-con- ditioning.
The air-conditioning system for the bedroom blocks utilises chilled water. with fan coil units located in each bedroom with individual temperature and fan speed control.
of
The large banquet hall is spanned by structural steel girders producing four coffered roof spaces which are used to accommodate a series domed ceiling features. In between, the spaces accommodate four air-con- ditioning plants which are separate from the main system and can be operated individually when the ban- quet hall is divided into separate ac- tivity areas.
For example, one area may be used for an exhibition, while another is used for dining; each requires quite different cooling effects. This system obviates the use of large air ducts running across ceilings and makes it
*Other details pertaining to the struc- ture are dealt with on page 35 by the structural engineer Mr. D. K. Gudgeon.
Far East BUILDER, September 1968.
Part of Orchid Bar off main lobby. Lighting feature by architects; furniture and counter by Pacific House
possible for the maximum ceiling height to be gained within a given
structure.
Partitioning of the banquet hall is by means of a set of automatic elec- tric folding partitions with a sound attenuation factor of 38 db and the hall itself is planned so that two separate catering services are possible.
Light fittings
The lamp fittings in the coffee shop were prepared from architectural drawings which specified the use of cane combined with an aluminium cylinder which forms the core of the light fitting.
In order to provide a unifying cen- tre of focus in the main lobby, a chandelier was specially designed by the architects and fabricated in Murano, Italy. This chandelier mea- sures some 7ft. x 13 ft. and is com- posed of 1,487 light tubes of amber and smoke grey colours.
Another lighting feature is the back wall of the Orchid Bar which con- sists of precast concrete light fixtures designed by the architect as a wall display. The management subsequent- ly found it attractive for the purpose of high-lighting a variety of bottled liquor.
As an added flexibility in the "mer- chandising" of gourmet repasts, the main dining rooms, namely, the Rajah Room, the Lotus Room and the Sup- per Club, are equipped with dimmers so that lighting can be used as a
means of achieving the desired atmos- phere. In the two latter cases, floor shows are envisaged so that control of the illumination level in these rooms is an essential feature.
The interiors of the lift cars, specially manufactured to the archi- tects' requirements, comprise bronze and gold panels and a full height mirror. The indicator lights in the lobbies are designed to light up in upwards or downwards progression in parallel with the up or down move- ment of the particular lift car.
Design changes
During the construction period changes in management policies in- evitably brought in train changes in requirements and these had to be ac- commodated within a structure which was progressively taking shape. The tourist boom of Singapore took a steep upward curve as Hotel Malaysia was half way through and the require- ments for public spaces became in- tensified. As a result a number of unusual steps had to be taken in the form of the underpass and overhead bridge to cater for the additional kitchen areas.
An enlarged sun deck was also in- stalled midway as it became clear that the large number of visitors to Singa- pore are in the majority tourists, with the businessman-traveller coming second.
The job of the professional team is to ensure that where such changes
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