Concurso Nacional de Anteproyectos Parque y Centro de Exposiciones y Convenciones
This integration into the parks is achieved through various interventions:
The pavilion: The new CEC building is inserted in the middle of the park. Its circular shape reinforces the continuity of the public space and defines it as a compact landmark that enlivens the park around it. It is a gazebo, a beacon, an agora. A centre of activity, encounter and entertainment in the middle of the park.
Landscape concept: The landscape project integrates with the urban structure and surrounding parks through a tree-lined path that serves as a backdrop and connector between the adjacent spaces: Thays Park, United Nations Square, Federal Republic of Brazil Square, and the law faculty surroundings. This linear forest is composed of existing species, trees to be transplanted, with the addition of jacaranda, ibirá pitá and tipa trees, which are part of the native trees incorporated by Carlos Thays into the parks and streets of Buenos Aires. The project proposes low-maintenance landscaping in accordance with the required environmental guidelines. Maximisation of the landscaped area: it is proposed to landscape all areas of the site, both those above the car parks and those on natural ground.
Road reorganisation: The surface road system is reduced to the bare minimum. The redesign of the road layout breaks with the orthogonal system of the urban grid and integrates with the curvilinear layout of the parks (to minimise the surface road system, all car parks, assembly areas and accesses to them are placed below ground level, achieving continuity in the park from the CEC to the law faculty). Pedestrian circulation: The new layout connects the entire new park continuously and runs around the new pavilion. Through the integration of the existing bridge near the law faculty and a new pedestrian bridge connecting to the Palais de Glace, this pedestrian system is integrated into the entire system of surrounding parks.
Public transport: The strategy adopted to dismantle the existing bus station hub is to decentralise the bus stop system. This separates the traffic lanes of the lines that continue along Libertador from those that turn onto Pueyrredon. The terminal station for the three remaining lines is located in the north of the site, revitalising an area that is currently little frequented. This new layout introduces sufficient distance between the traffic lights on F. Alcorta, allowing for smooth vehicle traffic. The new underground station, together with the bus system and cycle paths, gives the site great urban connectivity, which is essential for the massive influx of people that the centre needs.
360º the exhibition centre pavilion: The new pavilion is a circular building inserted in the middle of the park. Its appearance and lightness serve as a counterpoint to the law school building. It is a light, permeable pavilion, floating in the public space. The building opens onto the park along its entire perimeter; it is part of the park. It uses the park as its extension and brings it to life. Its active skin defines the character of the building. It is a light, translucent chromatic membrane that protects the building and serves as a dynamic communication element. Organisation: The project organises all public areas in successive rings from the outside to the inside. The first ring is the semi-covered gallery that provides protection from both the sun and the rain and allows visitors to walk around the entire perimeter of the building. This gallery also serves as the first distribution point to the different entrances. Inside are all the foyers and the cafeteria that run around the perimeter, thus integrating all its activities into the park, generating great permeability and versatility, and enlivening the park throughout its entire length. In the centre are all the exhibition and convention halls, fed by a single service corridor that connects the two stages of the project.
Functionality: Thanks to the layout of the levels, both the public access from the car park and the unloading area are at the same level as the main hall. The car park connects directly to the main hall. The unloading area and assembly yard are located on the upper floor of the second stage of the car park and connect directly to the service corridor. During exhibitions, this assembly yard is used as part of the conventional car park. Services and storage areas are located on the lower level.
Flexibility: All the main spaces in the centre are developed under a single roof with 12 supports. This layout allows for great continuity between all the spaces. The static light from the roof also allows us to have a continuous technical space capable of integrating all the permanent and temporary installations necessary for use. In this way, rooms and halls have the same spatial and technical qualities, providing great flexibility of use. Flexibility of the rooms: the organisation of the rooms allows us to obtain a large plenary room of 5800m2 that can be divided into 5 completely independent rooms by means of a simple system of movable panels. When the rooms are divided, each one has a foyer with cloakrooms and facilities on the lower level, allowing for independent use. The building is very flexible and can integrate a gala system that allows the plenary room to be configured as a true auditorium with a sloping floor, automatically in just 10 minutes.
Structure: To prioritise large, unobstructed areas inside the conference centre and offer great flexibility, the load-bearing system features a ceiling composed of a metal framework with large spans, reducing the number of pillars. The unique circular ceiling is composed of metal trusses arranged in orthogonal axes every 7 metres. This system functions as a truss framework. This structure, composed of small metal elements, allows the work to be carried out in two stages without damaging the structural system of the entire building.
Structural economy: Metal trusses are economical load-bearing elements as all their components can be optimised according to the intensity of their stresses. Thanks to their low weight, the loads transmitted to the foundations are much lower than those of a solid construction, resulting in an economical structure both in itself and in the necessary infrastructure and foundations. Energy efficiency. Compactness: given its high compactness, the building is highly energy efficient. In its construction, through the minimisation of material resources for the development of the work. In its useful life, due to its high thermal efficiency.
Active skin: This skin acts as solar protection for the building and as an energy generator. Through an innovative Graetzel paint system, this skin captures natural light and transforms it into energy (even on cloudy days and south-facing: 360º). The versatility of this technology opens up a space for aesthetic expression. Applied to glass, it creates a translucent surface with colour variations depending on the pigments used. This skin also functions as a dynamic communication element through the LED lighting system.
Thermal conditioning: The building has a CTHI (integral hybrid thermal power plant) system that offers low electricity consumption and the use of clean energy. Clean energy: the system captures renewable energy; this is obtained in winter through solar panels and in summer by dissipating heat through the same panels at night, water sources and exchange with the water table. Energy accumulator: this is a 500m3 water tank (200m3 required for the thermal system) that captures these clean energy sources and allows the heat pump to operate at its most energy-efficient range.
Thermal floor: Heat or cold is supplied to the building through the thermal floor, which gives the building great thermal inertia and creates a comfort zone (2.20 metres high), avoiding the need to air-condition unused areas in high-ceilinged spaces.
Minimisation of air supply: Only the air necessary to counteract the loads of lighting, people, equipment and fresh air is incorporated into each space, as well as cooling to maintain the relative humidity level below the dew point of the floor. This system allows for a 60% reduction in energy consumption for heating and a 50% reduction in cooling. The energies used are renewable.
Green roof: This 150-metre diameter roof has a green covering that provides the building with insulation and thermal inertia. This covering also slows down rainwater runoff. Rainwater recovery and slowing down: the 500m3 cistern, in addition to being an energy accumulator for the operation of the thermal power plant, functions as a rainwater slowing down and recovery system to supply grey water for toilet flushing and irrigation. It also serves as a fire reserve tank.
