Maitland Lecture 1980

The design and construction of the Hopewell Centre in Hong Kong are described. The buildings comprise a 64-storey office block, along with lower carpark and shopping blocks on a site whose levels vary by 48 m. The major design considerations are reviewed. These include the stability of the site after completion of the excavation, an economical structural form for the 216 m-tall block under its loadings, especially wind, and the arrangements for rapid construction of the reinforced concrete frame. Some aspects of the construction are outlined, including the excavation methods for the site formation, the installation of rock anchors, and the slipforming systems for the walls and columns. The concrete foundations formed on the granite rock, the permanent rock drains, and the protection of the adjacent sites, are described. Reference is made to other design factors, such as the temperature effects on the building, the methods of analysing the structural performance of the frame, and the arrays of holes in the core walls. The shopping and carpark blocks are described briefly. Duncan Michael, Thomas K. C. Wan and James Hannon

Large multibin silo complexes can be designed to dimensions, anatomies, and configurations that give optimum economy. Foundation conditions have a marked influence on this. Generally, the best capital and working returns come from silos that have their bins arrayed in plan roughly square, rather than long and narrow. Civil engineering costs are then reduced too, and the facility lends itself to greater flexibility of operation. John Faber and D.J.A. Alsop

Ringing in the new With the New Year, it may not come amiss for this be-whiskered old philosopher (now feeling his age a little-after all, 2000 years is quite good going, and no doubt a great strain on the pension fund!) to change his style slightly, while continuing to ‘comment’ and ‘query’ as in previous years. Verulam