BUILT BY ASSOCIATIVE DATA has been awarded the commission by Hassan Hachem to construct a mixed used, environmentally responsive building in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.  The project will add approximately 5,000 square meters of office and furnished apartment spaces to the Malabo Dos development, on the island of Bioko.  Construction is set to begin in the second quarter of 2013.

9º is a modern, mixed use (office, residential) project in the city of Malabo, Equatorial Guinea designed through the careful observation of environmental data. The unique localization of this project, only 3.7º north of the Equator, meant that orientation and form were crucial to obtaining optimum climactic performance and a reduced energy footprint.  Once constructed, the 9º project will set the standard for designing and constructing high quality environments in this African region.

BAD_RX, the research unit at Built by Associative Data, established a series of benchmarks to test various design strategies.   These benchmarks included computational models to test the effects of winds, temperature, humidity, and solar radiation on the project.  This process ultimately yielded the simple elliptical shape we see in the 9º project, oriented 9º from East in order to reduce solar exposure and maximize the potential to receive the prevailing winds from the south-west. The data study was complemented by an architecture language which responds to all sustainable aspects and gives its tenants access to the great views of the surrounding nature and new development.

The 9º project adds quality spaces for conducting business in a zone which is undergoing rapid economic change.  Furthermore, all aspects of the design, from the orientation, to the facade treatments, to the interior finishes, have been designed and implemented to ensure the most optimum environmental performance of the project at its opening, and for many years to come.