The fascinating facade of the 6 Star Green Star SA Office v1 design rated Nobelia building under construction in Kigali, Rwanda was an answer to a crossword puzzle that needed solving says architect Carlos Arroyo.
The towering mesh screen reduces the import of building materials, ensures the building is screened from the sun, and provides a visually appealing and pleasant facade.
The metal screen will stand about one metre from the main structure, leaving space for cleaning and maintenance. It is lightweight and can collapse to fit into a single shipping container. In Rwanda, building materials are scarce, and the desire on this project was to keep imports low as these increase the building’s cost and carbon footprint. The screen also lowers the requirement for expensive imported glass. The windows do not require any special profiling and will be encased in a wooden framework, which can all be locally manufactured.
Once established, the facade will conjure images of paradise. The plants growing along the facade (a combination of passion fruit vines, Lablab Purpureus, and Clerodendrum Splendens) will provide shade for occupants and bursts of beautiful seasonal blossoms, but could also produce food. The mesh facade provides a framework for the creepers to grow from locally made clay planters at each level.
Eloshan Naicker, sustainability consultant at WSP, the accredited professional on the project, says the facade is the most striking and holistic sustainability aspect of the project. “It’s like a human skin if it performs properly. It influences almost every aspect of the project, such as energy, water, materials and the indoor environmental quality of the building.”