EPM LIBRARY

LOCATION OF THE EPM LIBRARY

EEPPM LIBRARY
The Architectural Project

The EEPPM library is located in the city

from Medellín on San Juan street in the area
from Guayaquil, a sector that during the last
For 35 years it had been deteriorating alarmingly.
It is located in an easily accessible area, where
they converge a large number of bus routes,
surrounded by 3 Metro stations and great
pedestrian flow. This area of Guayaquil is a
place of great importance for the area
Metropolitan and the Aburrá Valley, as it
supplies with representative buildings and of
historical, political, cultural, and of
leisure
 ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

EEPPM LIBRARY A space was designed towards the square

The Architectural Project more open public space with green area,
The volume of the building presents water mirror and a large deck in
openings on the north and south sides wood that serves as a terrace for the
that operate like covered streets that commercial premises and in turn from
allow to incorporate by means of scenario for events. This operation
you break the surface of public space to raise the level of the gallery of
that folds from the new Square of access allowed that after barely
Cisneros. This operation allows to receive a year after the library was inaugurated
pedestrian flows from the four The sector shows a substantial improvement.
sides and prevents the building from This urban strategy achieved that the two
convert into a barrier to be able to cultural realities coexisted without
to guarantee the renewal of the sector of to come into conflict, this decision that
it seemed to contradict the logic of accessing
western side. For the above reason,
decided to locate the main accesses in from the square is responsible for the
the covered balcony created above this positive impact on its perimeter
side, it was necessary to avoid that the immediate.
building turned its back on this sector
highly deteriorated.
 ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

The project contributed to the public sphere.

a vestibular walker of about
1600MT2 that allow to protect the
pedestrians of the sun and the rain, to their
time that provides an ideal venue
for exchange, cohabitation and
the socialization of knowledge.
the function of the library extends to
exterior allowing reading and the
I study under the comfort of this threshold
sombrío. Para ampliar el área de
protection of the pedestrian in the
perimeter of the building, the façades
they move outward with
a sharp inclination achieving a
significant shadow projection
about public space. This
operation that seems at first glance
a formal whim is an instrument
of highly effective protection that
it also avoids visual interruption of
the colonnades of an arcade
conventional. All the angles of
inclination was the result of a
bioclimatic and comfort study
environmental. This decision to cover
public space without the use of
canopies or porticoes I obliged to a
exploration and structural design
quite interesting, able to
meet the high demands of the
large overhangs.
 ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

Due to its demanding urban location not

it could be a building turned inward
as well as not overlooking the need to
concentration and intimacy required by
a library. It was then decided
glazing large surfaces for
achieve a transparency that would allow
a direct relationship between the interior of
building and public space, serve as
showcase for a cultural provocation and
visor for citizen surveillance.
It also serves as an urban lamp over
the space public surrounding
providing enough illumination for
the reading and generating in turn a
notion of security. From all the
library premises can be
perceiving the city, while wandering in its
the interior is constantly paying tribute to the
urban and natural landscape.
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The idea of designing the 'Great Box'

"Flexible" required by specialists.
I discard. The books are not located in
metal shelves in the middle of the
space, on the contrary, adhere to the
structure generating walls of books, the
the library is sustained by the books.
the building, the scale changes and the
spatial connections achieved by the
the richness of the sections contrasts with
the rationality of plants. They achieve
different places to stay but not
by the way, enough to ensure that
the user finds multiple ways to
inhabit the space. Similarly the
furnishing generates a variety of
reading and study positions, that
they allow the user to remain during
long periods of time.
The EPM Thematic Library is a
valuable contribution to the development of new
typologies for future centers
integrals of communication, education and
culture, primarily supported by the
means of virtual information.
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The EPM Library project began in 2003 as part of a strategy

to renew the center of Medellín and reverse the conditions of urban violence in the
city and achieve an opening of public space as a fundamental argument for recovery
coexistence in urban areas.
 EPM LIBRARY

SYNTHESIS OF STRUCTURAL DESIGN

A very transparent building was wanted, with large glass surfaces and spaces.
generous interiors.
The foundation consists of caissons or mechanically pre-excavated concrete piles,
about 10 m long, built on very permeable soil, which required the use of
metal shirts that were recovered as the emptying of the caissons progressed.
As a basic skeleton to support vertical loads, a frame system was chosen.
metallic with I-section, for both beams and columns, 21.8 m of central span and
variable overhangs, reaching up to about 11.5 m in length. Spacing between
variable porticoes between 2.4 and 4.35 meters. Total dimensions in floor plan of
approximately 90 x 35 m.
The system turned out to be very efficient for addressing lateral forces and easily controls the
derivations, resulting from 0.6% of the floor height; thus it seeks to minimize the damages of
the finishes during the earthquakes. They also allowed controlling the stability of the
metallic portals during their assembly and expedite the construction work.
The slabs are made of concrete, type 'steel deck', connected to the metal beams with bolts.
of cutting, to shape composite sections, more resistant than the beams
metallic alone; this also significantly reduces deflections and
they control the vibrations of these beams: the fundamental frequency of vertical vibration
resulted in 4.1 Hz, maximum vertical accelerations due to 'walking excitation' of
0.25% g. The ISO 2631-2 standard accepts accelerations up to 0.5% g for office use.

CONCRETE SCREENS - STRUCTURAL RIGIDITY

 EPM LIBRARY

PLANT DISTRIBUTION OF THE SCREENS

DETAIL CONCRETE SCREENS

 EPM LIBRARY

VERTICAL CONCRETE SCREENS

EVALUATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY
With double and triple height spaces.
FORMAL ANALYSIS Durability over time: it has
The design of the library aims to apply thinking of designing a building
some concepts and principles timeless
representative architectural It presents a mixture of uses and
suitable for the object, as follows: spaces; Reading rooms, of
•Education: For people who learning, seedbeds, galleries of
they want to study, read, inform themselves, etc. exhibition, film archive, etc. What
Flexibility: The building is supported by guarantees a permanent use and
the culture. different from that of housing books
The type of furniture contributes to the
flexibility when it comes to reading.
Study of ergonomics: This for
guarantee that a user feels
variety in their stay and permanence,
which can vary from 1 to 8 hours.
Monumentality
EVALUATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS
The project sought to guarantee
the formal dialogue between the
elements that make up the
square and the building of the
library, as much as the
spatial continuity between
one and the other.

Gift to the public space

this kind of vestibule
walker that protects
of the sun and the rain to the pedestrian,
also becoming a
socialization space
living together and exchange
that extends outward the
function of the building.

THE CIRCULATIONS
THE DISTRIBUTION IN A MANNER
PYRAMID
FURNITURE
EVALUATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS
As a design premise for the
interior space was prioritized
the most immediate uses to which
a user wants to attend
library, such as; inquiries,
["reading","cineteca","café","offices"]
administrative.
As levels rise,
zones are not restricted, but already
are occupied by a group that
hopes that your stay in the
library may be extended, it
they have the spaces of
research, seedbeds, rooms of
meeting etc.
EVALUATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

The interior of the building is

functionally resolved to
pyramid style, with five
levels that are leaving
superimposing and balconing
one another and about a great
central open space. In the
lower levels, dedicated to
the city, are found the
public and usage activities
daily, like the rooms of
internet, the spaces for
children, the offices
administrative, the galleries and
the meeting spaces and
exhibition; at the highest levels
highs intimate uses proposed
and private ones, like cubicles
for reading, the booths for
investigators, the auditoriums and
the screening rooms.
EVALUATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT - EPM LIBRARY

FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS
All these areas are interconnected through wide circulations that relate to each other.
visually with the glazed facade, ensuring the connection with the outside and the entrance of
natural light throughout the day. The spatial flexibility of the interior of the library is
complemented by the customized design of each of its pieces of furniture; responding to
diverse functions, such as individual or group reading, work, rest, or the
meeting, these artifacts define scales and tempting and suitable environments.
 CONCRETE EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2006 -ASOCRETO

HIGHLIGHTED ASPECTS OF THE

STRUCTURE:
Novel earthquake-resistant system,
very efficient, made up of screens
of section in H, with steel profiles
at its ends, to create sections
high strength concrete-steel composites
stiffness.
The metal profiles at the ends
from the screens are used as
main reinforcement of these and also
allow to support the metal beams,
what they attend only loads
gravitational.
 EXCELLENCE IN CONCRETE AWARDS 2006 -ASOCRETO

The shape of the screens is integrated.

perfectly with the architecture, to
house the book deposits and the
installations, without sacrificing space.
The use of metal braces is avoided.
more expensive, incompatible with use
required of the spaces and little
harmonious with the project.
If they achieve
environments generous,
open, with great transparency.
The use of concrete slabs type 'steel-
deck, which forms a composite section
with the metal porticos, allows
control vertical de las deformaciones
the vibrations of the floors.
The basic requirements were met
a good structure: safe, functional,
economic, aesthetic and perfectly
integrated with the architecture of the
project.
CONSTRUCTION PROCESS
For greater agility in the process
constructive began the installation of
the central porticoes in pairs towards the
exteriors rigidizing them and giving them
continuity through the screens of
concrete y the tiles.
The reinforcement of these screens was anchored.
in the foundation beams through the
use of bolts with plates for welding
there the HEA220 profiles that conform
the columns of the porticoes.
 EXCELLENCE IN CONCRETE AWARDS 2006 -ASOCRETO

MATERIALITY
The library materializes as a compact volume of rectangular proportion.
clad in stone, with a wide glazed facade that leans over the square. This
inward inclination responds to the need to establish intermediate spaces and
of human scale that encourage and safeguard public use; by retracting to the facade,
an additional urban space is created that formally invites the park user to enter
on a low deck, underneath which there is a series of benches
facing the square.
 EXCELLENCE IN CONCRETE AWARDS 2006 -ASOCRETO

THE STRUCTURE AS AN EXHIBITION AREA THE STRUCTURE AS STORAGE OF

BOOKS

THE STRUCTURE AS LIGHT PANELS – DIGITAL ART GALLERY