SPACES     

The ultimate expression of our two sides, fusing the built environment with smooth lines and warm textures. Our studio takes on projects from full architectural ventures such as the Crown Bake facility in Beirut, to interior design commissions and temporary spatial explorations. Most recently we have completed the first phase of Crown Bake facility.

For our full architecture & interior design profile, please contact us at studio@roulasalamoun.com.


 
  
  

Suspended Villa


The premise of designing this 800 sqm duplex apartment in Beirut is to offer the privacy of a villa within a building in an urban landscape. The interior defies the urban context with a material palette reflecting an earthier terrain.
The central tiling is composed of mid-tone grey stones, and rests as an organic carpet in the centre of the space contrasted with the surrounding walls alternating white paint and light-colored stone cladding.
The ceiling features custom-made copper lighting fixtures that morph them into warm-lit inverted landscapes throughout the house.
A wood and copper skin wraps parts of the interior of this “suspended villa” in different configurations to create different social moments. This modular skin alternates to create a bookshelf at one instant, and then becomes a punctured surface at the bar area, covers some walls as cladding and transforms into a discrete storage system around the chimney in the family area.    
The design of the apartment emphasizes clear separations between private and public, family and guests. This is mediated by the interior skin and reflected in the material selection envisioned as an internal landscape where different natures coexist seamlessly.
Built Up Area: 800 sqm duplex
Program: Residential 
Status: Under construction


Scope of work
- Interior design and electrical engineering
- Design and supervision

- Design phases from Concept design to Final Design 

Staircase structural study: Antoine Bouchedid
Electrical consultant: Roger Njeim  



Tiling Plan

Plan overlay

Ceiling Plan


     

MJ Residence


The project focuses on raw materiality. The juxtaposition of natural materials such as Chiaro Travertine, white washed Oak and sharp architectural lighting is used to create a warm environment which enjoys unobstructed visual relation and access to the outdoor.
Program: Residential  
Status: Completed

Scope of work
- Interior design and construction supervision

- Design phases from Concept design to Final design drawings
- Assistance in the Tendering phase
   

Mar 26


Despite being partly inhabited and previously renovated after the war, the Marfa’ building was rundown and the façade was in need of some repair.
This project was a hands-on renovation that focused mostly on upgrading the building’s material specifications. The work was guided by two factors, adapting what is available to comply with the requirements of Solidere as well as choosing the material that respects the character of the building.
The opaque wooden louvers were removed to be tinted so the original veins of the wood could be visible. The exterior wall, made of limestone, were also cleaned and restored.
The renovation involved recruiting a team of contractors, coordinating with Solidere, and submitting to site checks with Solidere to respond to any comments while the work is being done.


Program: Commercial & office building 
Brief: Facade Renovation
Status: Completed


Scope of work
- Architectural supervision
- Coordination with solidere





             
         
        
          
            
         

Crown Bake Facility


The project is production facility for Crown Flour Mills, a seven-decade old company, and exceptional mill in the region. This new facility houses their most recent product line, Crown Bake, which comprises of specialized flours and mixes. 
The key feature of the building is the double-skin façade on the south orientation. While the outer skin provides comfort by creating shade to the inner glazed and fair-faced concrete façade; its design promotes the forward-looking approach of the company. The glass-fiber-reinforced concrete skin, is entirely customized and creates variety while using only four panels. Shifted components in the seemingly orthogonal panel design break the grid and introduce movement in an otherwise static composition.  
At the engineering level, the building management system integrates differential environmental controls across spaces ensuring optimal conditions for production, making the state-of-the-art facility unique in the country. The principal challenge was designing a facility to be built on an existing basement and entailed adapting to legacies from the structural columns’ layout.
At the circulation level, the different access points channel visitors, administrative staff and operators to the proper circulation route aided by an integrated access control system. It also provides controlled movement of the flow of raw products, produced goods, and sterilized goods ensuring compliance with the appropriate food safety norms and regulations. The interior space allocated for sanitation stations at all access points to the production areas, taking into consideration future expansion of the activity.

Built-up area: 3500 sqm
Program: Industrial facility

Status: Phase 1 completed

Scope of work
- Architectural design and construction supervision
- Electro-mechanical & structural engineering coordination
- Design phases from Concept design to tender documents
- Assistance in the Tendering phase 
- Assistance in management during the construction phase

Consultant:  Riad Salamoun engineers & architects
Structural engineer: Elie turk
Mechanical engineer: Bachir Saadeh
Electrical engineer: Roger Njeim
Technical control: Apave


Photography by Ieva Saudargaite Doueihy



Programs behind skin


Types and dimensions of panels


Unfolding the panels of the skin







   

CM Offices


This renovation project is an extension of the Crown Flour Mills and consists of transforming the neglected building adjacent to the firm’s factory into office spaces. The approach for this renovation is to unify the different buildings by selecting elements from the existing structure and adopting them in the design of the office building. 
The exterior of the building incorporates a system of vertical louvers that reflect movement onto the façade while doubling as a shading mechanism for the interior offices. The generative idea behind the design of the façade is to give the building a unique new identity while blending it in with the site.
As for the interior, the intervention proposes a more efficient, comfortable and aesthetically compelling design. The renovation takes place on the first three floors of the building and aims to make the most of the existing wasted space. With this design, expansion onto additional floors with new offices can be implemented in the future if the need calls for it.


Built Up Area: 1450 sqm
Program: Office building
Brief: Facade rehabilitation and interior design

Scope of work 
- Architectural and interior design
- Electro-mechanical engineering coordination
- Structural assessment coordination
- Design phases from Concept design to tender documents

Structural consultant : Charles Khoury
Mechanical Consultant: Bachir Saadeh
Electrical consultant: Roger Njeim

 
Programs behind skin

Facade intervention


Types and dimensions of skin elements