CENTRAL EMBASSY BY AL_A NEARS COMPLETION

The Central Embassy building in Bangkok is set to open in May 2014, with the hotel tower following next year.

Situated along Ploenchit Road, Bangkok’s primary commercial artery, the 1.5 million sq ft project merges a 7 storey luxury retail podium and a 30 storey 5 star hotel tower into a twisting shape.

The form marks a grand gesture for the city, as the curved mass climbs high into the sky creating an identifying mark for the area. The interiors are flooded with natural light as the form wraps around two vertical light wells, revealing stepped terraces and vertical gardens.

The form splits the programmatic activities, as the private hotel functions face the tranquil gardens of Lai Nert Park, while the hotel bar, reception lounge and sky terrace face the bright lights of the city center.

The tower’s iridescent skin draws upon traditional Thai motifs and patterns that are then manifested in extruded aluminium tiles that create a dynamic layering effect. ”The distribution of tiles creates a moiré-like pattern, articulated by the play of light and reflection along the surfaces of these varying profiles.

This rich and stimulating pattern visually emphasizes the wrapping form of the building as well as providing scale and texture to the extensive opaque frontage at podium level. All glazed areas are designed to merge seamlessly with the aluminium skin,” explained AL_A

Location: Bangkok, Thailand 
Architect: AL_A 
Consultant architect of record: Pi Design 
Project manager: PPS 
Structural engineer: Scott Wilson Kirkpatrick, Arun Chalseri Consulting
Service engineer: MITR 
Facade consultant: Meinhardt Facade Technology 
Quantity surveyor: Davis Langdon Seah 
Lighting: Isometrix/Inverse 
Interior design: Yabu Pushelberg 
Landscape: P Landscape Co 
Main contractor: Italian Thai 
Facade contractor: Permasteelisa 
Area: 140,000 m2 
Year: 2014 
Client: Central Retail Corporation