November_1965 — Page 21

storeys, with central corridor access to flats on either side. Inside the site, on a higher level, are three L- shaped 12-storey blocks in which are located the two 24-classroom primary schools and an assembly hall for estate community use.

At the back of the site, along the foot of the Kowloon hills, is a long 16-storey building, with two very at- tractive kindergarten in the lower floors, and in the centre of the scheme, adding punctuation and pull- ing the estate together architecturally, are five Y-shaped point blocks.

In common with most forms of buildings in Hong Kong, and conse- quently in the Authority's estates, the So Uk scheme used reinforced con- crete built from bamboo scaffolding, the structure being designed to with- stand wind loads of 60 lb. per sq. ft. to cope with typhoon wind speeds of

160 miles per hour.

This load factor substantially in- creases the cost of the structure which at the So Uk Estate accounted for over 60 per cent. of the total cost of construction, but which, with more careful planning and design, has now been reduced to 50 per cent. in more recent schemes.

An active start was made on cons- truction work in December 1958, with the letting of a piling contract for the first phase, followed by 82 other contracts and sub-contracts from that date until final completion in 1962/63.

The total cost of the So Uk pro- ject was in the region of HK$52 mil- lion. The estate attracts many visit- ors to the Colony, particularly those with a technical or social interest in housing, and it always proves an ex- citing and worthwhile study.

Soil Stabilization

All projects of the magnitude of the Authority's estates pose problems in construction. These vary from scheme to scheme: all are different, interesting, and accepted as a chal- lenge by the designers and builders. So Uk was no exception, and across the centre of this site was found a geological gulf within the limits of which it was not possible to form foundations on natural ground which would take the required loading

stresses.

Consequently a system of soil stabilization had to be employed. It is possible that in a territory_less tight for building sites than Hong Kong, such a piece of land would not be built upon, but every effort in the Colony is made to use whatever land is available.

One of the Authority's estates, the Wo Lok Phase II scheme, has been constructed on an extremely steep hillside. Another project, now in the planning stage, is on a site rising out of the sea at an angle of about 45 degrees and appears to be all solid

One of the 16-storey Y-shaped blocks at So Uk Estate

TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION EXPENDITURE

EXTERNAL WORKS

3.06%

3.17%

2.73%

INTERNAL SERVICES

13.54%

764%

10.89%

F -ÉSTATE AMENITIES, PLAYGROUNDS PLANTING O 87% EZ-ROADS AND SERVICES 0.77%

J

L-DRAINAGE 1.42%

LIFTS

ELECTRICAL

PLUMBING, SANITARY FITTINGS & WATER SUPPLY

MISCELLANEOUS – PRELIMINARIES, DISBURSEMENTS,

SCREEDS, SKIRTINGS,

HANDRAILS. METAL RAILINGS.

EXPANSION JOINTS

S-REFUSE CHUTES AND CHAMBERS O 16%

-ROOFING: 0.76%

-PAINTING: 54%

-PERMANENT EXTERNAL FINISH

ETC., ETC

WINDOWS * LOUVRES

2.13%

CARCASE

AND FINISHES

33.18%

2.50%

---INTERNAL WALL TILING -VITCHEK, CORRIDORS, ETC

3.82%

3.45%

JOINERY AND PRESSED STEEL DOORS

793%

PARTITIONS AND PRE-CAST WORK

Far East Architect & Builder November, 1965

INCLUDING

STRUCTURE

50.22%

REINFORCEMENT

AND FORMWORK

IN LILI STE NIM BIL HAL ET DIETARIUSI NINTH TIT

36.38%

SUPERSTRUCTURE

5.76%

8.08%

PILE CAPS AND GROUND BEAMS

PILING

BIZ. BIE BIL BULI

79