uniform glass curtain wall, whilst providing
opportunities to thermally control the building in
an optimal way. Glazing specifications and colours
were chosen with these thermal requirements
in mind.
The concrete structure has also been expressed
in the building’s shell. Four stair-core shear walls
run through the façades and it was decided to
express them as the building’s primary supports,
effectively holding the structure up, rather than
hide them.
66
BUILDING STRUCTURE
Seismic Integrity
A hospital is considered a building for which
structural integrity during earthquakes is of vital
importance for protection and refuge. In the
SANS 10160 design code this is ensured through
the introduction of an importance factor which
increases the design earthquake load by 40%
compared to ‘ordinary’ buildings. This requirement
resulted in significant base shear forces that
were far too high to be resisted by the combined
Christiaan Barnard