Situated on the Cape Town foreshore, 16 on Bree is set to be the tallest residential building and the second tallest building built in Cape Town in the last 20 years. Zutari’s client, FWJK Developments, conceived the development as an iconic high-rise to meet the market demands for high-end residential apartments.
The main attractions of the development are its height and location; giving residents unrivalled views of Cape Town’s natural beauty while in walking distance from the V&A Waterfront and the central business district (CBD). Zutari was appointed as the civil and structural engineer on the project for the design of the building to harmonise with the architectural and functional intent.
Overcoming engineering challenges
FWJK Developments faced challenges in obtaining the development approvals for the site, specifically because of the historic structure already on ground level and the limitation of parking on street level.
To retain the 12 m historic façade on ground level, Zutari designed innovative construction solutions to fit within the project budget and timeframe.
A steel bracing system with large counterweights on the street side stabilised the façade wall during construction of 16 on Bree. This allowed seamless construction of the building while the wall was kept safely in place. Once the parking levels behind the wall were built, the wall was tied into the concrete floors with movement compensating connections, and the steel bracing was removed.
Retaining the heritage façade creates an eye-level experience that blends in seamlessly with the surrounding area.
Zutari incorporated creative problem solving during the design of 16 on Bree. The team focused on how people would use and interact with the building in collaboration with the client, architect and builder to stay true to the architectural intent but still meet the desired construction methodology.
To achieve this engineering feat, Zutari turned to digital engineering tools to conduct parametric studies.
Engineered for people
At full occupancy, more than 1 000 people will live at 16 on Bree and enjoy two storeys of curated retail space in the building.
To address the restriction caused by traffic circulation on the narrow site, FWJK Architects and Zutari designed a compressed central lift and stair core for the building. The output was retaining the required number of car parks and maintaining the spectacular views from each apartment.
To one action, there’s always a reaction, and designing the central lift and stair core meant that the lateral structural stability of the building had to be re-engineered.
Zutari designed additional stiffening to the building using both conventional and offset outriggers as a means of reducing wind drift and vibrations. This is not a traditional approach to supporting the structure of residential apartment buildings so Zutari collaborated closely with the architect to rearrange some of the apartment levels. This meant that the building could accommodate the outrigger wall locations. Once such change was that the originally-designed circulation corridors on each level were re-designed so that apartment entries faced the lift lobbies instead.
To achieve this engineering feat, Zutari turned to digital engineering tools to conduct parametric studies. This allowed the design team to nominate parameters for evaluation, define the parameter range, specify the design constraints and analyse the results of each parameter variation. These studies optimised the number and position of the outriggers to mitigate the effects of stabilisation and vibration from the central lift and stair core option.
At full occupancy, more than 1 000 people will live at 16 on Bree and enjoy two storeys of curated retail space in the building.
Zutari was able to contribute significantly to bringing this prestigious landmark building to life, to give its residents and visitors a lifestyle like no other in the tallest residential building in Cape Town.
*The Aurecon Africa business has been officially renamed Zutari as at 21 July 2020. Zutari acquired Aurecon Middle East on 20 November 2020.
