ICONIC SANDTON BUILDING GIVEN A FACELIFT
Since 2016 the City of Johannesburg has embarked on an ambitious programme to renovate its iconic but dilapidated buildings throughout its suburbs , and while the 3 Alice Lane building was renovated by its owner , it continued this familiar trend of restoring older buildings . Not only is a restoration significantly more cost-effective than rebuilding , but if properly planned , the building can continue to operate during restoration .
According to Pherdy le Roux , Managing Director at GVK-Siya Zama ’ s regional business in Gauteng , “ We fitted a new glass and aluminium façade to bring the forty year old building , situated in the heart of Sandton , in line with its iconic neighbours . The five-story building was built in the ‘ 80s and the dated precast concrete panelling and flush window design detracted from the value of this prime property in the economic heartland of Johannesburg .
The new façade consists of a full glass wrap of the building with a ventilated tiling system cladding the ground floor . The east elevation facing Alice Lane features a perforated aluminium screen with a design of trees in the panelling . Blue LED lights backlight the screen to highlight the perforated design at night .” The north elevation was divided into three sections with an eyebrow , wing cladding and a tongue frame highlighting these . All three
sections were constructed of powder-coated aluminium to fit in with the design aesthetic of the suburb .
Le Roux pointed out that adding a new façade to an old building is a challenge . “ We do a lot of façades in the normal course of our work , but working on an old , fully occupied building requires additional care and planning . In the end , all kudos to the client and the architects . This new skin has really brought the building to life again , probably
adding a good few decades to its appeal . Renewing buildings presents landlords with a viable option to keep their assets current by adding decades to the life of a building at relatively low cost ,” he concluded . The project was commissioned by the Public Investment Corporation for its tenant Bayport Financial Services , designed by ARC Architects and the renovation took 18 months to complete . www . siyazama . co . za
News Watch 7