Al Bateen Wharf

The Al Bateen Wharf project, located in Abu Dhabi, consists of four mid-rise tower (16, 15, 13, and 17 stories respectively) all connected at the base by a podium. Three of the four towers are residential while the fourth is a hotel. A spreadsheet is used to help manage the unit layout and unit mix, this allows for iterating through various design options all awhile maintaining appropriate unit counts based on the client’s pro forma.

The regular subdivision of the structural grid is taken into consideration when designing the individual units. Each unit is a subdivision of the structural grid, allowing the units to pack against one another. A lot of thought is put into the planning of each of the unit types. Simple translations such as reflection and shifting of the balconies allow for variation in the façade expression while maintaining uniformity on the interior, thus allowing for uniformity for interior design and layouts. The façade modulation is also derived from the structural grid, therefore allowing for modular façade unit types.

A design language is developed for the individual unit types which takes into consideration modular dimensions allowing the units to be easily packaged adjacent one another utilizing space efficiently and maintaining vertical plumbing configurations while fitting within the structural configuration. Each unit type is color coded and placed into a Unit Legend in the spreadsheet. Each of the unique units can be configured in several different ways as seen in the color-coded diagram below. Once a desired layout is achieved, the 3D model is dynamically generated via a custom algorithm that reads the appropriate cells in the spreadsheet and populate units in 3D space, rapidly generating massing studies with various configurations. If the 3D configuration does not satisfy all the project constraints, various units in the model are selected and substituted with alternates. In return the spreadsheet is dynamically updated, creating a circular relationship between the planning data and the 3D model, guaranteeing that both entities are constantly up-to-date. Having the planning data in a spreadsheet allows for quick tabulation of the unity types and comparison against the client pro forma requirements. The custom algorithms allow for fast and accurate design iterations keeping all project data and model in sync. What may look like a random organization pattern is based on a rigorous rule set driven by an algorithmic process. Color coding the units in the 3D model identifies the level of consistency within the unit types.