The main building will be a five-storey-plus-basement complex with a total built-up area of 65,000 sq m. The basement will accommodate the hospital's kitchen, dining halls, pharmacy, medical records, central sterilisation unit, laundry, morgue and autopsy room, personnel and purchasing sections, data processing unit, general warehouses, eletromechanical and maintenance rooms as well as housekeeping and general storage areas.

The ground floor will have separate emergency units, out-patient clinics, physiotherapy and administration and radiology suites, laboratories, nuclear medicine, prayer area, conference suite and auditorium, both for the paediatric and maternity sections.

On the first floor of the hospital are separate surgery sections comprising eight operation theatres for the paediatric and maternity sections, a labour ward, neo-natal and paediatric intensive care units (ICU) and a research lab unit.

Above this are typical floors accommodating wards for women and children and intensive care units.

The building will sit on a raft foundation and will be composed of cast-in-place solid slabs with drop beams.

It will feature a combination of insulated spandrel glass panels which are conspicuously placed at the two main entrances and flanked at both sides with precast panels and aluminium horizontal strips.

Anti-static vinyl flooring will be used for most areas of the hospital, while ceramic tiles will be installed for all wet areas. All exposed concrete flooring will be protected with epoxy paint.

Walls will comprise fire-rated painted gypsum board, with all sensitive areas receiving an anti-bacterial paint finish, ceramic tiles in all wet areas and cement plaster and paint finish for other areas.

Generally, acoustic ceiling tiles will be installed in all areas, with the sensitive areas featuring gypsum suspended ceiling with anti-bacterial paint.

The hospital services have been designed using the latest technology and are as per international standards set for these special nature projects.

Electromechanical systems will include telephone and data, fire alarm and fire-fighting, paging, piped gas, compressed air, central air-conditioning with a chilled water system incorporating Hepa filters. The M&E services will be controlled by a building management system (BMS).

Quality assurance laboratory

Bids have been invited for the construction of what is designed to be a "functional building which has consumer safety and protection uppermost in mind", says Dr Tajuldin.

The central quality assurance laboratory is to be built by the Ministry of Commerce as part of its efforts at maintaining and improving the quality standard of products, he says. East Consulting Engineering Center was appointed to provide comprehensive design and engineering services for this advanced and comprehensive lab facility.

To be located near the railway station in Riyadh, the complex will be built on a 30,000 sq m plot and will offer a total built-up area of about 20,000 sq m on three levels.

The complex will house the laboratory sections dealing in microbiological and chemical analyses, food and drugs, cosmetics, metals, precious metals and jewellery and building materials. It will also have administration and general services departments.

The facility has been designed to:

''After thorough research and consultation with experts, ECEC has drawn up plans for a state-of-art facility with a high-quality and hygienic working environment that is expected of his type of project,'' Dr Tajuldin points out.

''The focus was on ensuring a smooth flow of raw and finish samples coming in and out the complex,'' he explains. ''The laboratory and product-testing areas are kept separate from the administration, sampling and general service areas with clean and tidy corridors controlled by air locks to avoid cross-contamination. Controlled and classified rooms have been introduced, complete with treated and deionised water and other necessary utilities

''In general, the proposed complex is designed according to international codes and regulatory compliance with regard to health and safety requirements. Typical laboratory units are designed with great flexibility for furniture and fixtures, storage, emergency equipment, materials handling, ventilation and other utilities."

A typical laboratory is composed mainly of two sections which are accessed separately by clean and dirty corridors equipped with air locks, supply and return ducts and fume hoods.

Externally, the structure will be clad in a combination of reflective glass and marble, which is accented with longitudinal windows on all four sides.

The complex will feature marble flooring in all public areas, lobbies and corridors, carpet tiles for all offices and VIP rooms, vinyl flooring for all laboratory areas and ceramic tiles for all wet areas.

The walls will comprise cement plaster and paint finish, with an anti-bacterial paint finish to be used in all laboratory areas. Gypsum board suspended ceilings with a paint finish will generally be installed in all areas - with the laboratory ceilings finished with an anti-bacterial paint. Acoustic tiles will be used for the ceilings of the offices.

The complex will be founded on isolated footings and built using cast-in-place solid slabs with drop beams.

Electromechanical systems include telephone and data, fire alarm and paging, gas piping, compressed air system, firefighting system, central air-conditioning, chilled water system with Hepa filters and a BMS.

Hotel

Work is under way on the superstructure of the five-star hotel in Makkah being built by Al Majed Group's Solidarity Company.

Le-Majed Meridien Hotel as it will be called, aims to cater to the enormous demand of accommodation during Ramadan and the Hajj seasons particularly in areas close to Al-Haram Al-Makkah.

ECEC undertook the design of the project which is centrally located just 400 m from the Haram, says Dr Tajuldin. It will be managed by the leading international hotel chain Le-Meridien Group.

Standing on a building footprint of 616 sq m and having a total built-up area of 17,227 sq m, the hotel will house 204 standard guest rooms, 24 executive suites, two Diplomatic suites and one Royal suite

The building comprises 20 floors plus a basement level for storage and water tanks. The hotel entrance, back offices and lounge are located on the ground level. The first three floors have support offices. Above these levels are the hotels facilities incduling the kitchen on level four and restaurants on the fifth and 18th levels.

Typical guest rooms and executive suites are spread over the 6th to 17th levels, the Diplomatic suites are on the 15th and 16th floors and the Royal suite is on the 17th floor. The hotel will have a business centre and shops on the 18th floor; hotel services on the 19th floor and mechanical services on the 20th level.

''Due to the unusual size and irregular shape of the project's site, the architect had very limited options in designing the building,'' Dr Tajuldin points out.

''The only solution to accommodate the requirements of a project of this standard was to go for a vertical mass with extremely careful space management and internal planning in order to put every possible square metre of space to maximum use, given the very expensive price of land per sq m, while complying with the strict statutory regulations of the area.''

He continues: ''The external facade of the building reflects a combination of eastern and western styles. This is particularly apparent at the main entrance which is based on the traditional Najd form of architecture while the use of structural glazing, which mirrors its surrounding traditional environment, renders modernity to the building.

''A combination of reflective double-glazed structural glazing and composite precast insulated panels with white sandblasted concrete dominates the facades of the building. In a bid to create a sense of spaciousness, the entrance is flanked by high and massive stainless steel columns.''

Internally, all public areas, lobbies and corridors will have marble flooring, while all guest rooms and suites will feature custom-designed carpeted flooring - with the Royal suites finished in custom-designed carpets.

The walls of all public areas, lobbies and corridors will receive cement plaster and paint finish while those of all the guest rooms and suites will have wall coverings. The ceilings in most areas will have a decorative gypsum plaster and paint finish.

The hotel will be controlled by a sophisticated building management system (BMS). Other M&E services include a centralised air-conditioning/chilled water system with individual thermostats, centralised hot and cold water supplies, fire alarm, paging and clocking system, firefighting and smoke evaluation system, CCTV system in public areas and telephone and TV systems.

Construction work on the project started in November last year and is expected to be completed by mid-2003. The building sits on a raft foundation.

According to Dr Tajuldin, excavation took a considerable length of time because of the rocky granite terrain of the site. Work is currently at the fourth floor level. Cast in place, one-way joist slabs are being used in the construction of the superstructure.

The main contractor on the estimated SR60 million project is HotelsRS in collaboration with Redwan Contracting Company.