Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the new King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia will serve as a key interchange on the new Riyadh Metro network for Line 1 and the terminus of Line 4 and Line 6.
The 45,000-sm complex will include four above ground levels and two below ground (car parking) and will be integrated within the urban context of the financial district. The most striking feature of the new metro station is the façade, meant to represent patterns generated by desert winds.
Courtesy ZHA.
The façade is design-engineered by Newtecnic to reduce solar gain and produce air currents that help cool the building. The firm’s research team had to develop new algorithms to achieve this level of performance. Additionally, Newtecnic had to invent new adjustable building components and fixing methods for the structure’s self-supporting, 650-foot-long concrete-composite walls and roof.
The result of this world-first-façade and the new techniques used to create it is an undulating, futuristic building that will be delivered for the price of a more traditional structure and last twice as long.
Courtesy ZHA.
The KAFD Metro Hub is designed to support Riyadh’s expected 50% growth over the coming years and is part of a new citywide transport system that comprises six metro line, 85 stations, and more than 100 miles of track.
BACS Consortium is the general contractor for the project, which is slated for completion in 2018.
Courtesy ZHA.
Related Stories
Glass and Glazing | Jun 4, 2015
Construction of record breaking glass-bottom bridge nearly complete in China
Designed by Israeli architect Haim Dotan, the white bridge is meant to look as if it is “disappearing into the clouds.”
Fire and Life Safety | May 27, 2015
7 bold applications and innovations for fire and life safety
BD+C’s roundup features colorful sprinklers for offices, hotels, museums; a fire-rated curtain wall at a transit hub in Manhattan; a combination CO/smoke detector; and more.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | May 20, 2015
Federal Highway Administration releases guide for protected bike lanes
The guide consolidates lessons learned from practitioners designing and implementing separated bike lanes across the U.S.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | May 7, 2015
Salt Lake City on track to build first protected bicycle intersection in the U.S.
The templates are based on those found on Dutch streets.
High-rise Construction | May 6, 2015
Parks in the sky? Subterranean bike paths? Meet the livable city, designed in 3D
Today’s great cities must be resilient—and open—to many things, including the influx of humanity, writes Gensler co-CEO Andy Cohen.
Transit Facilities | Apr 13, 2015
Winning design for Toronto ferry dock poised to become city’s new 'living room'
The winning submission features a spacious complex under a green roof, and is designed to attract all types of visitors, even those uninterested in riding the ferry.
Building Team Awards | Apr 10, 2015
14 projects that push AEC teaming to the limits
From Lean construction to tri-party IPD to advanced BIM/VDC coordination, these 14 Building Teams demonstrate the power of collaboration in delivering award-winning buildings. These are the 2015 Building Team Award winners.
Building Team Awards | Apr 9, 2015
Nation's first LEED-certified bus depot
A bus garage in Harlem shows that even the most mundane of facilities can strut its environmentally sensitive stuff.
Mixed-Use | Apr 7, 2015
$100 billion 'city from scratch' taking shape in Saudi Arabia
The new King Abdullah Economic City was conceived to diversify the kingdom's oil-dependent economy by focusing more in its shipping industry.
Structural Materials | Mar 30, 2015
12 projects earn structural steel industry's top building award
Calatrava's soaring Innovation Science and Technology Building at Florida Polytechnic University is among the 12 projects honored by the American Institute of Steel Construction in the 2015 IDEAS² awards competition.
