ABSA RIDGESIDE
ABSA RIDGESIDE Ridgeside Office Park , uMhlanga
CLIENT Growthpoint Properties
PROJECT MANAGER & PRINCIPAL AGENT Key Projects
ARCHITECT Elphick Proome Architects
QUANTITY SURVEYOR FWJK Quantity Surveyors
CIVIL & STRUCTURAL ENGINEER Escongweni BPH Engineers
MECHANICAL ENGINEER Spoormaker & Partners
ELECTRICAL , FIRE & WET SERVICES AECOM
SUSTAINABLE BUILDING CONSULTANT AECOM
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Land Art Studios
INTERIOR DESIGNER Boogertman + Partners
MAIN CONTRACTOR WBHO Construction
PHOTOGRAPHY Karl Beath
In 2006 ABSA undertook a major refurbishment of an existing building they acquired in Durban ’ s CBD . EPA designed this project which involved a makeover of the somewhat nondescript 1958 mid-city office block , the addition of a 14 storey atrium and 300 bay multi-storey parking garage . A distinctive element in this building which differentiates it in the urban grain is a glass corner tower , foiled by a steel skeleton and capped with a large disc overhanging into the street space . This addition was created to capture harbour views and provide a corner landmark relating to civic buildings across the city square . 10 years later , ABSA outgrew this building and saw the need to consolidate this facility and a number of satellite offices in the city and suburbs into a single office building .
Brief Having procured a site in uMhlanga ’ s Ridgeside Office Park and after a short bid process , Growthpoint were selected to deliver a new office building for ABSA on a turnkey basis . This methodology was successfully deployed by Growthpoint in the development of a new Head Office for Illovo in the same precinct and the core professional team on this project was then engaged to design and deliver the new ABSA Regional Head Office . Stringent design guidelines and precinct controls govern this development environment and with this framework in place , the team undertook a series of design iterations and options to derive an efficient and impactful corporate office building .
Over the decade since the inner-city vertical office solution was completed , ABSA ’ s attitude to both the work environment and operational methodologies shifted considerably , notably from a conservative ’ cellular office ’ mindset to an open , flexible approach to space-planning promoting the integration of a broad range of staff facilities . Contrasting the narrow floor plate and verticality of the city building , ABSA directed the new requirement to accommodate up to 700 people over a maximum of two deep office floor plates . This shift generated a significantly different design model which has precipitated a powerful presence and landmark in the office park .
EAST ELEVATION
586 Absa Ridgeside