The Grade A corporate HQ office buildings designed by RMJM Dubai are located within the central Misk Forum district adjoining Al Mishrak – a significant mixed-use development in the heart of the city. The precinct is situated in a prime location to attract selected global corporations to occupy Misk City as their new HQ for the KSA.
Open and integrated at street level, the innovative 26,398 sq.mt development comprises three office buildings which step down to a public realm. The site provides direct views and accessibility to the various features of the site: the wadi, the promenade with convenient pedestrian connections to the Misk foundation HQ & Conference center and the Ilumni museum via the forum pedestrian bridge and is a short walk to an upscale lifestyle hotel & serviced apartment building.
The conceptual approach was to create a ‘family’ of buildings bound by common design elements. The office premises are laid out in a way to create visual connections between the ground level and offices above while drawing greenery deep into the site. The use of glazing, and perforated aluminum panels unifies the scheme.
The distinctive façade has a strong vertical emphasis in consonance with the surrounding area’s prominent views. Its careful, environmentally friendly design is composed of three main elements: blades, screens, and a glass envelope for the ground floor level. The optimized geometry responds to structural efficiency, minimizing energy and material consumption.
The lighting on the buildings subtly enhances the jutting waves in the façade by placing lights at the step. The lighting features at the tops of the fins provide a sense of the mass of the structure. To emphasize the repetitive fins, a 360° luminaire is placed in the window, without glare entering the space.
The fluidity of the internal spaces contrasts with the building’s structured exterior. The expressed circulation along the internal edges of the development adds to the vibrancy of the internal spaces, with communal spaces for informal meetings and break-out areas.
Like the configuration of the project’s basic plan, the technological and environmental elements of the development are highly adaptable and energy efficient. The thermal envelope performance follows the LEED rating requirements and the architectural design intent. The building’s façades, with glass envelopes, provide further passive environmental control.
Location: Riyadh, KSA
Client: Mohammed Bin Salman Nonprofit City
Sector: Commercial, Mixed Use
Size: 26,398 sqm
Scope: Architecture, Interior Design
