space . The intention with the piazza was to bring nature inside the building , so trees and water were introduced into the landscape design .
The transition continues into the atrium through the main entrance curtain wall . The designers wanted the public to feel this transition before entering the mall and the main atrium skylight was designed to be slightly transparent , controlling the glare but showing blue sky on a sunny day .
In terms of aesthetics and materials , the Architects chose a straight line architectural language and a contemporary modern approach . Simple shapes where chosen in order to be easily identifiable from the highway and following the ‘ less is more ’ approach .
Five entrances welcome you into the shopping mall . These entrances had to be highly visible so 11m tall feature timber lattice walls were introduced and the canopies extended to the exterior , creating generous covered drop off areas . These entrances expose their steel skeleton and raise 9m above ground , creating a double volume space , crowned by high level clerestory windows and thereby allowing plenty of natural light into the space .
Parking The project provides 750 basement parking bays and 1,626 outside parking bays amounting to a total of 2,376 parking bays . Additionally , 6 taxi parking bays were provided .
Architectural Elements and Finishes Certain architectural aspects of the building derived from their function .
Off shutter concrete boxes with recess curtain walls not only look good from an aesthetical point of view but also protect the glass from direct sun radiation . The main atrium skylight is not only a proportionate space for the size of the building but also shows structural sincerity , as it highlights all the different structural elements at work . The trusses were designed using the bow principle , where you find elements at tension , thus reducing the height of the steel beams .
Some architectural aspects of the building were intended to make the space more liveable and welcoming to the public . For that reason , oak veneers where introduced along the entrance bulkheads .
The colour palette chosen for the outside walls was influenced by the surrounding landscape . The North West Province has characteristic ‘ Highveld ’ with grassy and bushy vegetation and dry desert tonalities . Colours harmonious with the surroundings were used , along with some dark brown accents in order to articulate the length of the mall .
Artificial light in the malls was dispersed by the use of floating ‘ light boxes ’ using printed fabrics with motifs .
1,200 x 600mm floor tiles were imported from Italy and give a neutral and light appearance to the mall . Some of these tiles have an off shutter concrete finish and were used for the entrance blade walls at either end of the entrances . Others have a wood-like finish which complements the oak veneer and timber pergolas .
Flow The shopper flow was determined by the strategic position of the major anchors and nationals and carefully determining the tenant mix in the project .
Five entrances for a 65,000 GLA mall provide an entrance for every 13,000m 2 , which is an average number in shopping malls of this type .
HVAC The major tenants are individually air-conditioned in line with their own specific HVAC design criteria , by means of roof top type air cooled air-conditioning units ( ACPU ’ s ). The ACPU ’ s all operate on R410A refrigerant gas and incorporate economy cooling and CO2 modulation functions with the tenants having the ability to control aspects of their air-conditioning systems via local remote control panels .
The smaller line shops are air-conditioned by a combination of energy efficient R410A inverter
440 Matlosana Mall