Design and construction of five storey shopping mall complex with two basement floors and two suspended car park lot including pile foundation and substructure.

BRIEF SNAPSHOT OF PROJECT REPORT
The building described in this report is a commercial entertainment hub and shopping mall in two pair structured across five storeys which connect with each other at all floor level. The floor plan distribution provides for club house, concert hall, shops and related services. 

The building area along with the two suspended parking lot floor covers one and a half acres of land with several sectional configuration and geometry which runs the same for all the floors to meet specific customer requirement and needs.  The main entrance at the ground floor leads to a lift and staircase R.C. structure that connect the upper floors for the two building.   

The building is aesthetically structured across two embedded basement floors while two extra superstructure floors are above the natural ground level including the roof top service floor which therefore complete the uniqueness and composition of the building as the commercial edifice being designed for.   

This property has been designed as a rigid frame structure with bias for a monolithic structural joint construction to allow for minimal panel deflection due to its serviceability and usage and has been made to sit on concrete piles to allow for critical load being transferred to deeper subsoil of higher compressibility, gradation and shear strength.

The structural building has been separated from the suspended parking lot to avoid the impact of the lateral dynamic forces being generated as a result of vehicle tractions during movement, on the column of the adjacent structure. Consequently, a couple of hinge or moment release support has been provided following the need as describe above. 

The transition gradient of the suspended car park lot has been revised to 7.8% with a structural barricade wall and a height of 2.5m being selected to serve as a control for higher tonnage vehicle not accessing the car park.    

The selection of all concrete structural member, sizes and section have been carried out in accordance to the stipulated requirement as contained under clause 7.4.1.4  &  7.4.1.5, Section 7.4, British standard BS EN 1992 - 1 - 1 - 2004 which provide for limit of deflection control for concrete beam and slab by the span to effective depth ratio.    

The following critical loadings and input for the structural design of the building are being considered and applied: 

1.  Impose load for club and mall floor area (suspended) = 5,000 N/m2 This has been selected in accordance to the stipulated requirement as contained under Section 6.0, Table 6.2, of British standard BS EN 1991 - 1 - 2002, category C4 and C5, which specifically provide loadings for structure with (1) C4: Areas with possible physical activities, e.g. dance halls, gymnastic rooms, stages. (2) C5: Areas susceptible to large crowds, e.g. in buildings for public events like concert halls, sports halls including stands, terraces and access areas and railway platforms. The permanent load of 5,000 N/m2 for all floors excluding the self-weight of the slab is also provided. This is to allow for permanent fixture, floor screed, furniture and finishes.

    2. Impose load for garage and parking lot floor area (suspended) = 10,000 N/m2 This has been selected in accordance to the stipulated requirement as contained under Section 6.3.3, Table 6.7 & 6.8, British standard BS EN 1991 - 1 - 2002, category F and G, which specifically provide loadings for garage and vehicle traffic area excluding bridge. The actual loadings employed for design in this project have been for maximum of category F and minimum of category G vehicle which interpreted as up to 8ton gross weight of vehicle with axle load not exceeding 4000Kg. A separate verification with a concentrated load of same magnitude has been ascertained as requested under section 6.2.1, BS EN 1991 – 1 – 2002.    

4.     Lateral earth pressure on basement wall = up to 17,500 N/m2 This has been selected in accordance to the stipulated requirement as contained under Section 9.5, British standard BS EN 1997 - 1 - 2004. The pressure on the wall has been designed for both at rest and active condition to properly simulate when active soil is not consolidated and still undergoing transition to allow for a worst-case scenario. Please see the report for full calculation. 

All design, also had been carried out by the European code of practise as enshrined in the following: 

1. EN1990 - Member loading
2. Eurocode 2 - Concrete design
3. Eurocode 3 - Steel design
4. Eurocode 7 - Foundation design