Steel Construction Vol 40 No 4 - Metal Cladding and Light Steel Frame | Page 16

SAISC projects

Mall of Africa Façade
and Parapet Walls
Project Team
Client / Owner / Developer:
Atterbury Waterfall Investment Company
Architect:
MDS Architecture
Structural Engineer:
HAGE
Quantity Surveyor:
NWS
Project Manager:
GHC Africa
Main Contractor:
Group 5 / WBHO
Steelwork Contractor:
Ohlhorst Light Building Solutions
Steelwork Contractor:
Clotan Steel
Cladding Supplier:
Weber St Gobain

The project entailed enclosing of the
building envelope, with LSF and ETICS
(External Thermal Insulation and Cladding
System) cladding, approximately 20 000
sqm. Structural framing included 0.8mm
LSF, 90mm x 38mm cold-formed lipchannel profiles, assembled into wall panels
on site, with typical 600mm x 600mm
CTC grids. Frames placed slab to ceiling,
column to column. Cold-formed thin gauge
steel frames were used for the light weight
design, accuracy and speed of installation.
The architect’s requirement for protruding,
horizontal plaster bands, some more than
100 meters in length, to wrap the building
and be exactly in line, at a height of up
to 25 meters. Furthermore, a high R-value
was required for the external cladding to

achieve the required energy efficiency
(reduced need for heating and cooling).
ETICS with LSF offered the architect
freedom to express his design. It is a clean
and fast process, reducing the need for
scaffolding and allowing other trades
concurrent access to the site. The use
of LSF and EPS (Expanded Polystyrene)
cladding requires less or no crane time,
rapid installation, reduced need for cleaning
operations, and ensures weight reduction
on the super structure resulting in savings
of structural concrete. It provides a durable
external cladding with low maintenance
requirements.
The wind load on the roof parapet walls,
some 3.m meter in height, was overcome
with the reinforcement of wall panels by
using a LSF joist, turned on its side.
This is one of the largest single phase
building projects in the southern
hemisphere and the building pr ogramme
required the building envelope to be
closed within a few months. The required
installation dates were met on time and
contributed significantly to keeping the
project on track. Main contractor and
architect satisfied with time to install,
thermal and aesthetic results.
What makes this project special is the
sheer size, and importance of the project
to confirm LSF as a viable commercial
cladding system for large facades. It will be
visible on the Midrand skyline for decades
to come.

This is one of the largest single phase building projects in the southern hemisphere.
14 Steel Construction Vol. 40 No. 4 2016