Project: Thip Thani - 4 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on May 29, 2011
It’s been a while since my last post about this project, but all of the floor slabs are now in. The steel roof framework has been constructed and the block work is well nearing completion. We will now begin tiling of the roof and continuing with the block work.
Project: LiveInn Nong Khai
Posted By Alec on May 22, 2011
The “LiveInn Nong Khai” is one of Nong Khai’s newest hotels, however they are already finding themselves full to capacity and needing to expand. We have been commissioned to design a new 6 storey 80 room building to add additional space. The new building will house a new larger reception area to replace the one in the existing building. There will also be a restaurant and conference facility. We are now busy developing our initial concept – I will be posting some 3D renderings of the concept as it develops. Construction is due to begin later this year.
Project: Modern 2 Bedroom 2 Storey Home (Thip Thani)
Posted By Alec on May 22, 2011
We have just begun work on the design for a modern style 2 bedroom 2 storey home, with construction set to begin some time in July. More details to follow as the design develops.
Project: Amoon on the Mekong
Posted By Alec on May 22, 2011
I have not blogged about this project before, however it is one that we have been working on for over a year, now. I enjoy all of our design and construction projects, but this one has been particularly thrilling to have been a part of so far. ”Amoon on the Mekong” will be a luxury guest house in an idyllic setting amongst 13 Rai (5 Acres) of mature trees on the banks of the Mekong River, backed by the rolling hills of Sangkhom and enjoying wonderful views across the river to Laos.
When we were first approached, the design project was well underway. Our client had already been working with an architect in Australia for a number of years developing an architectural concept. This concept has remained largely unchanged, so I can not take credit for all of the architectural design, however we have worked with the client to make tweaks and alterations to achieve a final design. We also carried out all of the necessary structural analysis, electrical and plumbing engineering work to produce all of the necessary construction drawings and documentation.
We are still working with the client to look at additional potential refinements to the final design. The construction phase of the project is due for completion before December 2012.
Project: Modern Style 2 Bedroom 1 Storey Home (Nong Kom Ko)
Posted By Alec on May 17, 2011
We are now up to the roof level with the concrete structure of the modern two bedroom home project. The next stage is to add in the precast concrete slabs for the floor and the roof structure.
Project: Korean Barbecue Restaurant
Posted By Alec on May 16, 2011
I recently prepared an initial concept for a two storey Korean barbecue restaurant. There are a large number of Korean Barbecue restaurants in Nong Khai of which “999″ is one of the most popular. So much so, that they are outgrowing their current location and are intending to move in to their new premises by the end of this year. The restaurant will be spread over two separate plots of land, one of which already has a house on it. I designed the new building to use the existing column and beam structure of the current building and then extend into the adjacent vacant land. The restaurant will be two storey, with the second floor being half covered and half open air terrace. The plot is on the Rim Khong road, which runs next to the Mekong River, so the roof terrace will enjoy excellent views across the river to Laos. Having received approval of the concept, we are now developing this into a final design and complete set of engineering drawings.
Project: Modern Style 2 Bedroom 1 Storey Home (Nong Kom Ko)
Posted By Alec on May 5, 2011
This morning, the site received its official ‘blessing’ in a traditional Buddhist ceremony, so construction can begin. We have now begun pouring the footings and setting the steel column reinforcement structures in place. Meanwhile, some staff are also preparing the steel beam reinforcement structures. Ready for installation over the coming days.
Project: Modern Style 2 Bedroom 1 Storey Home (Nong Kom Ko)
Posted By Alec on April 30, 2011
We attempted to excavate the footings for our latest project a couple of days ago….. unfortunately, we encountered a rocky seam about half a meter down full of huge rocks that proved to be too much of a challenge for the small excavator that we were using. The reason for initially using a small excavator is that it produces much neater holes that require less manual ‘dressing’ prior to pouring the concrete footings. Today we are continuing with a larger excavator that is more up to the task of removing the large rocks!
Project: Modern Style 2 Bedroom 1 Storey Home (Nong Kom Ko)
Posted By Alec on April 27, 2011
In January I posted images of a concept for a modern style two bedroom home. Since then, we have worked with the client to develop this concept into a final design and a full set of engineering drawings. Planning permission has now been granted and today we began clearing the plot of land and marking it out for construction. The lucky Buddhist day for the first columns to be erected is 4th May. Between now and then we shall be digging the footings and preparing all of the column reinforcement structures.
Project: Other Projects
Posted By Alec on April 25, 2011
We recently completed the design of a low cost 2 bedroom house in a 1.5 storey configuration for a customer who has his own construction team ready to build for him. He came with a basic idea of the style of home he wanted and we developed this into a floor plan and exterior in keeping with this style.
Project: Thip Thani - 4 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on March 8, 2011
Having marked out the site, we broke ground on our latest project in Thip Thani late yesterday afternoon. Often the footings would be dug by hand, but the scale of the task on this project required a mechanical solution! By 11pm all of the footings and the large hole for the basement had been excavated. Today, we are busy preparing the holes ensuring that the precise size and depth of each is correct.
Yesterday, we also took delivery of a large quantity of re-bar, so today some of our team are now preparing the footing, column and beam reinforcement structures etc..
Project: Fao Rai - 2 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on March 2, 2011
The roof is no complete, as is all of the main interior and exterior wall rendering. On the exterior, we are now adding the architectural detailing to the house and adding the four staircases. Inside we are beginning the wiring and ceiling work.
Project: Fao Rai - 2 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on February 15, 2011
All of the block work has been completed and the roof tiling is also almost complete. We have now begun chasing the conduit into the internal walls ready for the electrical first fix and also preparing the surfaces and edges for rendering.
Project: Fao Rai - 2 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on February 9, 2011
The main roof frame has now been added to the house and the tile mounting spars are being added. The roof tiles are due to be delivered in two days. Most of the initial block work is completed and we shall be starting to render the walls in the next couple of days so within a week the house will begin to take shape.
Project: Modern Style 2 Bedroom 1 Storey Home (Nong Kom Ko)
Posted By Alec on January 30, 2011
I have just completed the initial concept for a new modern style 128sq.m. single storey 2 bedroom home.
Project: Fao Rai - 2 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on January 25, 2011
We have been continuing preparations for the casting of the main floor beams in a couple of days by adding all of the shuttering around the steel beam reinforcement structure.
Project: Other Projects
Posted By Alec on January 24, 2011
The owner of a travel agent in Nong Khai asked us to help them with a problem they were having with their office. The problem was that the office was becoming unbearably hot as it had a glass curtain wall frontage and also large windows at the side. Sun streamed in all through the day. Adding blinds inside had not helped as although it blocked out the glare of the sun, it did not stop the office temperature increasing, cause by the sun heating up the air in the gap between the inside of the window and the blind. Whilst they had air conditioning fitted that should have been the correct power for the size of the office, it did not account for the excessive heat that can build up in such a glass box! The problem had become so bad that they had resorted to leaving the security shutters down for most of the time. The problem with this was that passers by then thought that the office was not open!
My solution was to provide a physical barrier to protect the office from the sun. First we applied a sheet of adhesive material to the window that allows you to see out of from the inside, but blocks much of the light coming in. I also designed and printed some sections of this material to promote some of the world destinations that the travel agent offers packages to. I then designed a series of solid facia board constructed from a combination of wood, stainless steel and plastic that incorporated the company logo to be mounted outside the window as another physical barrier to the heat of the sun. These facia boards are all removable from the frame to which they are mounted to allow for cleaning of the windows behind them. The large white board actually has a hinged glass front in a stainless steel frame and can be opened up to allow posters to be displayed detailing the latest promotions on offer by the travel agent. Everything that was installed fits between the window and the existing security shutters so that it is protected when the office is closed at night.
We completed all work with this small project a little over a week ago and are happy to report that it has solved the problem…. the office is now cool and airy, and passers by never miss the office because not only are the security shutters open all day, but the company also has a greatly increased street presence as a result of the new signage.
Here is the office as it was, the CAD concept that was presented, and the final result.
Project: Fao Rai - 2 Bedroom Home
Posted By Alec on January 12, 2011
I have just finished the design of a low cost two bedroom single storey home for a client near Fao Rai, Phon Phisai.
The home is entered via some steps leading up to a covered porch and features a relatively large open plan living / dining room and kitchen area. This leads on to a large covered deck at the rear. There is also another covered area for an outside laundry just off from the kitchen area.
The master bedroom has a very large walk-in closet and an en-suite bathroom. Unusually, at the clients request, the en-suite bathroom then leads on to a walled open-air shower room. There is then a guest bedroom with built in closet and a second bathroom.
We shall be starting construction of this home within the next week, with a scheduled completion date of around the end of May this year. Check back here for updates on the progress of this build.
Project: Thip Thani Project 2
Posted By Alec on January 12, 2011
We completed our second project in Thip Thani in december of last year and handed the keys over to a happy customer, just in time to move in for Christmas.
A client can have as much or as little involvement as they wish with the design of their home. Some like to leave all of the decisions to the designer, whilst some have a very clear idea in their mind of the look they are trying to achieve. With this property, it was a mixture of the two cases in that I was responsible for the exterior design, and the client made all of the interior styling choices around a layout that I had provided. The project was carried out on a fixed price bases, with a set budget for things such as tiles, paint, granite counter tops etc… Our client then chose the interior finishes receiving a rebate if under budget and paying an excess if over the allowed budget. This suited him as it meant he was able to chose exactly what he wanted and also allowed him to find his own savings on certain things and then use that to upgrade on other features.
We had originally bought the land for development and the contract we had with the client was for the land and for the design and construction of the home. Garden landscaping was not something that was covered in this case as it was something that the client wanted to undertake, allowing himself time to live in the property and develop the garden over time to suit him.
Project: Other Projects
Posted By Alec on January 12, 2011
We were recently asked to design the frontage for a new build electronic goods showroom which is soon to open in Vientiane, Laos. The main structure of the building had already been erected and work was ongoing. Whilst some exterior detailing in place, it was not to the owners taste. My brief was to provide a bold, modern and colourful frontage design to add to the existing structure.
Here is the structure of the building that I had to design around.
The design that I provided was largely inspired by the work of the Dutch artist Piet Mondrian, which seemed to fit perfectly with the clean lines, modern and colourful design that I had been asked to provide. The large area of white space at the top of the building and above the ground floor is intended for signage.
