LOCATION

The location of the HPP Visegrad Head office building is situated on the right bank of the Drina River, in the central city area. It is situated between the railway and the Drina River, near the Bridge of Mehmed-Pasa Sokolovic. The position of the lot is located in the axis of the bridge, and in front of the site there is a plan for a future square, to enrich the environment of this highly significant cultural and historical site. The bridge and its immediate surrounding is the center of assembly, the focus of significant events and cultural happenings in Visegrad. The location is extremely important with its historical background and tourist potential. The mere restoration of the Railroad (formerly the railway Uzice - Sarajevo, now Sargan - Visegrad) and its use for the purposes of tourism has a strong influence on the Bridge, its environment and the given location. Having in mind the bridge perspective, the excellent natural environment and historical heritage, proximity to the city accommodation, a conclusion can be made that in the future this site will inevitably become crucial touristic focus of the city.

 

URBAN SOLUTION

The position of the structure at the location of historical and touristic significance influenced its design. Governed by the importance of the location that has strong potential in the future and its functional capability, a solution has emerged for the regulation of public areas around the facility that will allow better integration of the contemporary office building in the historical and cultural environment. In urban solution we tried to unite two very important nearby landmarks, the bridge and the railroad track, and to create a completely new identity in the area. Governed by the fact that near the old Grammar School it used to be a train station, feasible revival of the station has been taken into consideration as well as the connection with the main core of the city, the Mehmed-Pasa Sokolovic Bridge as well as the other planned sights in the region nearby, a square, a hotel, a museum, a gallery. The Bridge axis which intersects the lot is suitable for achieving the opening and forming the continuous “Bridge – Railway station” direction. With the design of new public areas (the piazza and pedestrian tracks) which are greatly needed at the location of this type, and connecting them into one entity, we tried to create a new identity of the urban zone. Out of the urban environment analysis and the immediate inspiration, the concept “Building as a Bridge” derived. With the construction of the passage through the building, a need for green public space emerged that will allow permanent use of the area around the administration building even in the period when the object is not used. By doing this we created effective public areas, distinctive identity and better integration of the object in the national monument setting. The access to the office building is enabled from the main square Trg Palih borca. The main entrance is through the passage up the stairway. Pedestrian track continues to the railway and at the same time connects the administrative part of the building with the landscaped public area adapted for short rest and relaxation among the greenery and water. The access road is determined by the Regulation planning and as such is final since there is no open space for parking on the lot. The building is surrounded by two water surfaces in order to create the illusion "building as a bridge."The free space behind the building is designed as a piazza with the green zone for sitting by the water with scattered benches along the main pedestrian track.

 

ARCHITECTURAL SOLUTION

Visual identity - By searching for a solution that would reconcile the demands and requirements of the investors and the needs of the location itself including its inner environment, the idea of the HPP Visegrad Head office building emerged. Taking into account the character of the given ambience, and by respecting the maximum horizontal and vertical outline determined by the specified Regulatory plan and abiding the functional requirements of the administrative building, a very simple form is established. Solid and unified structure is enlightened by the glass covering. The glass elements emerge from the metal frame depicting the significant character of this company. The stylization of metal elements from which the form of glass elements emerges is inspired by pointed arch, the basic element of the Bridge. The dynamic of the glass contours placed on the side facades is out of sync with the tranquility of the pure concrete surfaces, whose form is parallel with the main inspiring element – the deconstructed arch of the Bridge. The soothing of the aggressiveness of the whole structure is achieved by erecting a so called wall in front of the building which provides coherence of a modern-day building with historic ambiance. Metal network represents a visual barrier between traditional and contemporary. The very shape and size of the object does not impair the visual identity of the environment since they are correlated with the hilly terrain. The use of modern materials, metal, glass and concrete stresses the contemporary architectural expression that does not threaten the dominant horizontal landmark, the Mehmed-Pasa Sokolovic Bridge.

Functional organization - By analyzing the functions of the given task, the two functions of completely different nature appeared, the office building and the museum dedicated to the Bridge. Following the main axis of the bridge and forming the passageway through the building immediately imposed physical separation of these two functions. The intended passage through the building serves as the entrance to the museum and to the HPP Visegrad Head office. The museum as a separate functional unit within the facility operates independently, and the connection to the HPP Visegrad Head office is in the basement. Having in mind the needs of the investors according to the task, different functions are distributed on the floors. The basement which opens to the street and the square is a service floor with parking garage. The ground floor is the main link with office hallways as well as the representative part of the building. The Foyer which binds all levels is fully transparent and illuminated and designed to be the central stream of technology and visual information, communication routes and at the same time reception aula for all visitors. Its main focus is the free standing staircase in the hall, and the green wall inside the hall strives to absorb natural environment in the interior of the building. The Hall itself aims to present the seriousness and importance of the institution through the representation of the business environment. Workspaces are organized by corridors on three floors visually connected by the area of the main hall in one complete entity. Constructed with modern materials and glass panels the walls breathe with transparency and lucidity, which helps in creating a quality work space with sufficient daylight and high-quality view on the bridge and the natural environment. The most representative work spaces which look at the national monument are intended for the executive zone and meeting rooms. In respect to the requirements of the task and taking into the account the future needs of the institution, a flexible organization of the office areas is achieved by placing the glass panels between the offices as well as designing the special “open space” work area intended for the work on studies, researches and hydro power plant industrial units.

Energy Efficiency - Conceptual design of the HPP Visegrad Head office building relies on the principle of energy efficient construction, which came out as a need of modern society which promotes efficient way of producing and using energy and has less impact on the environment and allows future generations to achieve their objectives. Sustainable construction is one of the most important segments of sustainable development and includes the use of building materials that do not endanger the environment, ensure continuity and quality of design and construction with the financial and environmental acceptability. Energy efficiency means reducing heat loss of the building, improving elements of external thermal protection, improving heat gains in a building by a favorable orientation and the use of renewable energy sources (sun, wind and biomass). The advantages of this method of construction are the financial savings, better quality and more comfortable housing, long-lasting of a building, and also contribution to environmental protection. The position of the HPP Visegrad Head office building in the national monument region and outstanding natural environment imposes this type of construction as anecessity.

 

CONSTRUCTION

In a constructive sense, the building is very simple, consisted of unique structural system of reinforced-concrete skeleton. Soil mechanic characteristics of the soil that is composed of pebbly-sandy alluvial deposits are suitable, the ground is stable and the soil has a good bearing capacity. The construction of the foundation is a foundation plate 80 cm thick. The protection from ground and surface waters that flow from the hilly terrain to the facility is carried out by a standard system of drainage channels. On the upper side, the facility is surrounded with gravel in order to make flow of the surface waters to the drainage channels easier. Since the basement is half sunken, a protective wall is built between the basement and the terrain. In the constructional sense, the HPP Višegrad Head office building is made of reinforced concrete skeleton made of columns 40x40 cm connected to each other with beams. The thickness of reinforced concrete slab is 20cm. The equal grid distribution extends through all floors (in the “x” direction 750cm and 900cm, and "y" direction 525 cm and 600cm). To achieve stiffness of the building and to absorb horizontal forces, a reinforced concrete wall, which supports console stairs, is formed as well as the elevator shaft and sanitary installation walls. The building facade consists of primary and secondary steel beams. Primary beams are box girders 20 cm in cross-section which are fixed in certain spots to the ceiling slabs. Secondary beams are of smaller cross-section 10 cm which form the glass pyramids.

 

MATERIALIZATION OF THE OBJECT

Exterior materialization - The exterior covering consists of two fully transparent synchronized facade layers made of glass. In front of the object, the barrier between the old and the new represents the free standing network consisted of steel knitting anchored to the object that forms a wall. In order to create a quality work space, with daylight and great views at the surroundings, in front of the offices there is a completely transparent structural glass facade. The arrangement of the beams and glass panels are derived from the pin pointed arch of the Bridge. The glassing is done with low emission glass. This kind of glassing is in fact a sandwich panel made of three glass layers separated by hermetically sealed spaces filled with argon. The soothing of the aggressiveness of the side facades is achieved with traditionally bonded concrete walls. The roof of the building is a single slope roof oriented to the south-west. The roof above the hall is glassed. Bearing in mind that the object is located in considerable historic context and natural environment, during the design of urban furniture and pavement, we used traditional materials. Wood dominates and it is used for the pavement of the piazza and pedestrian passages. Gravel is placed as a natural barrier towards the hilly terrain. The green zone is designed on the slope and on the part of the piazza and slowly transfers to the vertical green area of the sub-station.

Interior materialization - Due to the overall impression of the HPP Visegrad Head office building, the inner materialization of the building was given a significant amount of attention. The entrance hall is completely transparent and grandiose. The use of modern materials of high quality increases the lavishness of the building. The floor, paved with dark color stone slabs of larger dimensions, offers a complete contrast in interior design. The staircase is paved in bright color stone, and its sculptural identity in space is stressed by green canopy. Both the glass partition walls in the library and the café and the rotating glass panels, which close the flexible space, contribute to the transparency. The elegance of the hall is achieved with contrastive element – the green wall which stresses the main core of the hall – the info desk. The office space is formed by low emission glass partitions even between the corridor and the offices. The partitions are totally flexible for creating new work sections and with their transparency they allow more productive work process. The office floors are carpeted while the ceiling consists of gypsum boards slabs of bright color.