The Macau Tower and Entertainment Centre sits on a narrow strip of reclaimed land separating the Pearl River from the Nam Van Lakes. The 338m tower offers breathtaking panoramic views from its 220m high main observatory deck, with a further 110m extending skywards accommodating telecommunications levels and broadcasting dishes.
Previous work on Auckland's Sky Tower saw Beca engaged to provide geotechnical, structural, civil, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, lighting and fire engineering services on this landmark project.
With completion of the structural form originally scheduled to coincide with the handover of Macau to China in 1999, the project was designed on a fast-track basis. Foundation construction, basement excavation and ground retention works started four months after commencement of the design works.
The relatively weak site required a raft foundation with 26 piles reaching nearly 60m through the reclaimed land and weak marine sediments into granite bedrock. Piles supporting the tower included non-standard measures to ensure the foundation system was capable of resisting the extreme typhoon wind loads prevalent at the site. Construction challenges also arose during the basement excavation due to the proximity of the Pearl River.
Building Services were designed for flexibility and cost-efficiency. The varied number of occupants in the building as well as climatic conditions called for efficient air-conditioning, and the design of the Tower meant that specific fire engineering design was needed to allow for safe egress, as well as additional fire protection systems for more rapid fire suppression.