Project overview
This project was the modification of the SLB main office in Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA), Dubai. Wrenze Steel provided full engineering for the works, working for Impart Design Group as client and consultant.
The renders show the planned result: a new entrance with a deep, flat canopy over glazed doors, an arrival area with shaded car parking, open-plan offices inside, and a reception with a sculptural curved stair.
Our scope
Our scope was full engineering for the modification. On an existing building, that work has two sides.
The new elements. Items such as an entrance canopy, shade structures, a feature stair or new openings each need their own structural design: loads, members, connections and supports.
The existing building. Every change touches the structure that is already there. New canopies and stairs are fixed to existing columns, beams or slabs, and openings may cut through existing walls or floors. We check that the existing structure can take the new loads, and design any strengthening or new supports needed.
Full engineering covers both, together with the drawings and calculations needed for approval and construction. For projects in Dubai we also handle Dubai Municipality (DM) approvals.
The structure
Modification work is defined by the building you start with. Unlike a new build, the engineer cannot choose where every column goes. The design has to work around existing grids, levels and services.
A deep entrance canopy is a cantilever. It must be held back into the main structure strongly enough to resist both its own weight and wind uplift, and the fixings to existing members are often the governing check.
A curved feature stair, like the one in the reception render, works as a three-dimensional structure. Its stringers twist as they climb, and stiffness matters as much as strength so the stair does not feel lively underfoot. Our article on steel staircase design covers these issues.
Office fit-outs also bring heavier loads in places, such as storage areas and plant, which need to be checked against the existing floor capacity.
Read about our structural engineering consultancy service, or request a quote for office modification work.
