SOM plans a green military academy for cadets in Kuwait

Aditi JustaAug 16 2010

The young cadets of Kuwait will now be groomed into military officers within a green environment. SOM, one of the leading architecture, urban planning, interior design, and engineering firms in the world have designed the Ali Al Sabah Military Academy in Kuwait city incorporating as many green features as possible. The 2.2 million square foot campus housing three cadet dormitories, two staff dormitories, an officer’s residence, academic buildings, a parade ground, athletic stadium, and helipad is a self-sufficient facility that serves as the primary educational institution for cadets.

ali al sabah military academy 1

ali al sabah military academy 2

Located along Abdaly Road, the academy addresses the extreme desert climate conditions of the site by employing strategies driven from the traditional urban vernacular of the region like physical density, solar shading, wind protection and integrated landscape components. Perforated canopies projecting from and spanning between building structures, provide shade to all building facades from the scorching heat that even exceeds 120 degrees Fahrenheit sometimes.

ali al sabah military academy 3

SOM have proposed five programmatic bands that not only follow the natural contours of the site, but also suggest hierarchies and minimize excavation. The bands namely administration, assembly, cadet life, athletics, and services are placed in a way that they produces a series of discrete outdoor spaces and courtyards. To withstand the frequent sandstorms, the academy will use both the canopy structure and an apron of vegetation shelterbelts.

ali al sabah military academy 4

Via: Designboom

You might also like