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Dolapdere campus second building of Istanbul Bilgi

Dolapdere campus second building of Istanbul Bilgi

 

The use of steel frameworks in educational buildings is not very frequent in Turkey. However, in the project here described, time constraints led to the decision to employ a metal structure for the construction of this new building of the Bilgi University, at the very heart of Istanbul. It soon proved to be a most adequate decision from a technical point of view, in which the geometry of the metal structure allowed designers to express the dynamism of this educational institution, coupled to a sense of lightness and open and convivial inner spaces.

The five storeys are distributed over three adjacent blocks, one of them with a swimming pool. The classrooms are located in the main building (42 x 27 m), distributed around a central courtyard, where the stairways and the footbridges there erected also act as bracing elements for the construction.

A smaller building, whose external structure is left visible, holds the office premises. The structure is formed by a number of portal frames made of IPE-sections, braced at the angles by alternate counter elements, to optimise earthquake resistance. The courtyard glaze is supported by arched trusses subtended by alternate cables following truss arrangement.

In the same way, the amphitheatre is covered by a framework with asymmetric subtended flanges to alleviate, as much as possible, the visual impact of the ceiling. Floors are formed by composite slabs laid on steel decks, whereas baked clay is the material selected to clad façades.

The approx. 400 t used to erect the structure have been manufactured and assembled in two months. Special attention was given to fire detection and prevention systems, as well as to the evacuation conditions. All these features, coupled to the installation of a network of sprinklers, have allowed the building to comply with all the fire safety standards, while, on the other hand, taking advantage of the marked dynamic effect caused by a structure whose main part remains visible.

Finally, it must be noted that a large part of the Turkish territory is located in an area with high seismic risks, of which the numerous earthquakes occurred in the last years are but an example. This building has been designed not only to provide an efficient response to this risk, but also to be the expression of an architectural concept in all its force.

Text: Bertrand Lemoine