Emerald House
January 29, 2022
Chris Box
March 5, 2022
Atlantic Lounge
Location: Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital
Floor Area: 360m2
Client: Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital/ First Atlantic Bank
Project team: Architect: IAC
Project Timeline: 2021
Type: Institutional
With striking colors and an eccentric form within its context, the First Atlantic Lounge at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital stands out as an icon in the heart of one of the largest healthcare facilities in the West African subregion.
The project was engendered out of the need to provide decent waiting spaces for visitors at the hospital who previously would linger around in search of seating, resting and sanitary spaces. It was conceived and funded by the First Atlantic Bank in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Ghana.
The design capitalized on the speed afforded by using recycled shipping containers to complete construction in 10 weeks and we proposed a permeable form that allows for natural ventilation as a strategy to reduce energy costs for maintaining the facility that will accommodate 150 people at full capacity.
All the requirements demanded by the client were achieved without touching the existing trees on site that were rather drawn into the general planning to serve as shading for outdoor seating. Particularly, this project was special in terms of social appeal due to its qualitative value of uplifting the spirits of distressed families and friends of patients in a typically somber environment.
