Foster + Partners have completed two modular offices for Moroccan bank BMCE Rabat and Casablanca, Morocco.
The dome, a recurring element in each bank, is a reference for the design of a number of new schools in Morocco, which have been supported by philanthropic BMCE Bank Foundation.
The interior of the dome is represented in tadelakt, a local plaster technique, while the exterior is covered with tiles, ceramic tile tradition.
The dome-shaped swept down into the courtyard of operations to create a sculptural curved bench.
The design consists of a concrete structure enclosed by glass panels, covered with screens and fact sheet steel cutting blades.
Offices and meeting rooms on two floors in the rest of the building.
Each branch is organized in a modular network to be replicated and adapted according to the location.
The pictures are from Nigel Young, courtesy of Foster + Partners.
Foster + Partners completes first project in Africa, with offices in Morocco BMCE
The first branches to the bank's regional headquarters Moroccan BMCE (Banque Marocaine du Commerce Exterieur) have opened in Rabat and Casablanca, with a branch in full due to poor Fez - are the first buildings of Foster + Partners, to be completed in Africa.
The double-height lobby of each building has a bank of seats connected to the vaulted ceiling of a tape concrete sting.
The interior of modern banking is surrounded by an envelope of traditional energy efficient design is based on a modular system that uses local materials and labor to create a striking new logo for BMCE.
The design is a "kit-of-parts" approach, with variations in color and scale according to the location of the bank. Each building has a concrete frame, with a colonnaded entrance and a series of bays repeated on a modular grid.
The bays are enclosed by glass panels and screens of 200 mm in depth, which provide shade and safety.
The screens are cut from sheets of stainless steel - a special blend of low iron content which is not heated in the sun - which are curved to create a geometric design based on traditional Islamic patterns.
The branches are designed to be highly energy efficient and use of local materials source, such as black granite and gray limestone.
All major branches BMCE have an "earth tube", a free electricity system of cooling: the fresh air is introduced into a vacuum tube that surrounds the building underground, where it cools naturally by the earth and released in the branch.
Lord Foster said:
"The main offices BMCE - our first buildings completed in Africa - to reinterpret the elements of traditional Moroccan architecture, the combination of these with a contemporary interior that reflects the Bank's gradual approach to its customers.
This mix of ancient principles and modern technology is also reflected in an energy efficient design. The result is a series of buildings that are sustainable and one each, singularly out of place. "
BMCE Bank Branches
Morocco 2007 - 2011
Foster + Partners team: Nelson Norman Foster, David, Stefan Behling, Michael Jones, Kate Murphy, Ingrid Solkan, Tommaso Franchi, Carlos Di Piazza, thresher Lara, Giuseppe Giacoppo, Mezher Rana, Susana de Sousa, Artault Benedicte, Kernt Judith Ben Cowden
Cost Managers / Project: Cap Advise
Structural Engineers: Buro Happold, Ateba
Mechanical Engineers: Buro Happold
Landscape Architect: Michel Desvigne
Lighting consultant: George Sexton Associates
Client: BMCE Bank (Banque Marocaine du Commerce Exterieur)
Collaborating Architects: Mekouar Amine, Karim architect Rouissi-Empreinte
Main contractor: CCGT
