Ever wondered how a building could breathe? The Eastgate Shopping Mall in Harare is not just a place to shop. It is a testament to innovative design. This building cools itself naturally.
The Eastgate Shopping Mall opened in 1996. It sits proudly on Robert Mugabe Avenue and Second Street. Mick Pearce designed it. The Eastgate Shopping Mall covers 5600 square meters of retail space. It also has 26000 square meters for offices. Parking is available for 450 cars.
Traditional glass blocks are expensive. They need lots of heating in winter. They also need cooling in summer. These buildings recycle air. This leads to pollution inside. Zimbabwe struggles to import air conditioning parts. Foreign exchange reserves are affected.
Mick Pearce chose a different path for the Eastgate Shopping Mall. Harare’s altitude gives it a mild climate. The daily temperature changes 10 to 14 degrees Celsius. This allows natural cooling.
Passive cooling stores heat during the day. It releases heat at night. The building starts cool in the morning. Machines and people create heat during the day. The building absorbs this heat. The inside temperature rises slowly.
As evening arrives, the outside air cools. Warm air vents through chimneys. Fans help this process. Cool air enters the building’s bottom. Cold air flows through the floor. This cools the building for the next day.
The Eastgate Shopping Mall uses much less energy. It uses only 10% of the energy a normal building needs. When actively cooled, it uses 35% less energy. London’s Portcullis House copies this design. You can see the chimneys easily.
Ove Arup gave Pearce rules for the Eastgate Shopping Mall design. No direct sunlight should hit the walls. The north side windows must be small. Artificial and natural light must balance. All windows had to be sealed to reduce noise. Windows filter light reducing glare.
Deep overhangs shade the windows. These eaves keep the sun off walls. This is a traditional African solution. It shades from the summer sun. It lets the winter sun warm the building.
Termites use passive cooling too. Their mounds have flues for venting air. The mound design catches breezes. Wind draws hot air out of the chambers. Termites control airflow by opening tunnels. The Eastgate Shopping Mall mimics this natural process.
So, as you explore the Eastgate Shopping Mall, remember its ingenuity. It stands as a beacon of sustainable design. It shows how we can learn from nature. The Eastgate Shopping Mall is more than just a building. It is a symbol of innovation.