October_1967 — Page 14

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West facade of Plaza Building

area-trade centre. The ceiling height is ample and the space is equipped with power, light and air condition- ing, closed circuit T.V. and provision- al plumbing outlets, as well as a floor loading capacity of 150 lb. per sq. ft. to suit any need of world trade ex- hibitions.

The second floor is planned as a community use area to house a theatre seating 150 people, flexibly subdivided meeting and board rooms, as well as offices for organizations re- lated to trade centre activities. The third floor is another "within the building" shopping centre.

ex-

The top two levels of the build- ing contain mechanical installations, screened by solid walls on the terior. Intermediate mechanical floors (14th and 30th) have louvred walls for air intake and exhaust, recessed from the face of the building.

The importance of this tower as a landmark for Sydney and its unique structural problems, being built in concrete, suggested the need to con- sult with a world authority in rein- forced concrete design, Professor Pier Luigi Nervi of Rome. Professor Nervi designed a ribbed floor system for the heavily loaded floors of the tower (first and second floors), using his ferro-cement principle. Interlock- ing curving ribs are poured between mass-produced concrete pans which results in a remarkably strong floor for its limited depth of only 2 ft. In

To Hunter Street

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Shopping arcade under upper plaza with standardized shop front designs and unified illuminated lettering

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Far East Architect & Builder October, 1967