PTT Station, a new gas station with a steel structure that adapts to the user’s needs and the natural environment.
Phutthamonthon Sai 3 Road is surrounded by large village communities, schools, and hospitals, but there is no service station that adequately supports customers’ needs, PTTOR sees an opportunity to expand and build a new gas station in the area. It was designed with an architectural concept that emphasizes the unique style, promoting accessibility, convenience, and safety in various areas while also raising the construction standard to minimize the impact on the environment and the local community. The H-BEAM steel structure, for example, has been proposed as an example of an environmentally benign and low-impact construction. Through the design, material selection, and construction process, this gas station will become more than just a stopover or refuelling station; it will become a gas station with a new, modern style, easier to use, closer to nature, and more vital to both people and the environment. The H-BEAM steel structure is in keeping with the concept and solves the aforementioned problem.
The new service station that is more user-friendly by its design and the H-BEAM steel structure.
This round-shaped gas station with four outlets on an area of approximately 5 rai or 8,000 square meters is located on Phutthamonthon Sai 3 Road, which is a secondary road that connects two main roads, Petchkasem Road and Borommaratchachonnani Road. According to the study and analysis of project site data (PTTOR), this area is surrounded by villages, schools, and communities, but there aren’t enough gas stations to meet the needs of customers. PTTOR, therefore, intends to transform this area into a new gas station both in design and in construction technology to promote this location as a centre of facilities that corresponds to the local Living Community & Lifestyle while also being an Eco-Friendly Building.
As project designers, Mr. Kittinut Thammarak and Ms. Jutiporn Taerattanachai, Senior Consultants from SCG Building & Living Care Consulting, based this project on the main concept of “Green station green solution,” which focuses on environmentally friendly and community-friendly building systems, as well as a unique building design to make this service station a prototype for future gas station construction projects.
According to the architects, the PTTOR’s concept and requirements were clear from the start. As a result, the design of the building layout and the materials used are related to and supported one another. The main building was designed by the architects to be a circular structure that corresponds to the functionality of the car circulation and expresses modernity. H-BEAM steel material, which complies with Green Construction, was chosen as the building’s main structure because it can be designed and manufactured to be bent at a precise angle. When it comes to the installation process, it can reduce on-site installation errors and allow the installation of other related materials to be accurately assembled into the steel structure elegantly and neatly.
Structural steel, the first step of a concrete transformation toward Green Construction
To make this service station environmentally friendly and lessen the impact on the neighbourhood, PTTOR required that both the design and construction be by the concept of a Green station. The concept directs the work in many steps to be clear and straightforward, particularly in the section of the building structure that has chosen SYS’ H-Beam steel as the main structure because steel is the material that is best for the Green solution construction.
Although dealing with the circular shape of the building at first glance seemed challenging, the architects remarked that because H-Beam steel was chosen as the main structure of the building, the starting point of construction was more precise, and subsequent work was easy to manage and errors-free. Furthermore, because it is a prefabricated structure from a quality factory, it allows for immediate installation on-site, reducing the impact on the neighbourhood and efficiently managing waste after the job is completed. It also contributes to the building’s sleeker appearance and neater construction. The design and construction process went more quickly, accurately, and smoothly than anticipated.
Green construction is a concept that encompasses all stages of the process, including client needs, architect design, material selection, construction, and on-site administration, rather than focusing solely on material selection or design. This demonstrates the project owner’s professionalism and responsibility to the surrounding context, as well as the gas station on Phutthamonthon Sai 3 Road, which chose H-Beam steel as the building structure, making the project strong, safe, precise construction, modern shape, and changing the image of a new gas station to be environmentally and community-friendly. With this assistance, Green Construction becomes a tangible initiative that represents gas stations that are more than ever creating new experiences for people.
Nature and usage are the heart of this gas station.
The architects drew inspiration from nature when designing this project, placing trees in the centre of the three circular buildings: gas distribution, restrooms, and Amazon Café. The trees were chosen to represent nature, determining a location where traffic circles around in a roundabout, for example, various monuments that convey the glorification of what is in the center of that roundabout, the importance of virtue that that thing has created, a good deed to society, or the nation. It also gradually introduces nature into the user’s perspective, beginning with the eyesight at the fuel nozzle, progressing to seeing and getting closer around the restroom, and finally accessing and sharing in the café amazon where the exterior is designed to support Universal Design, while the interior is decorated with a shady atmosphere.
Furthermore, the circular shape of the building allows vehicles entering the station to see the gasoline nozzles. Importantly, traffic in the area is naturally streamlined and arriving, exiting, or u-turning gives the impression that the user is still in the gas station area and is a part of it. This provides consumers with a consistent and fluid experience and atmosphere from the minute they enter to the moment they exit the station. The use of a robust H-Beam steel framework that can readily be bent to the desired shape also contributes to the accurate and error-free construction of this main part.
Reimaging a gas station into a venue that fosters fresh thoughts and experiences.
Surrounding communities are generally concerned about the safety and potential impact of constructing a gas station, which is another significant issue that architects must address to integrate this project into the community and influence people’s attitudes around gas stations.
The architect team has brainstormed ideas that are consistent with the project’s main concept, “Green station green solution,” until it settled on a gas station with a gas distribution head, a restroom, and an Amazon café with a consistent circular shape. The design of this circular functional area refers to two concepts: the functionality of the car’s circulation that comes in for service and the matter of a modern architectural experience that differs from what was previously experienced throughout the entire design, materials, and building process. This contributes to the image of a gas station becoming more welcoming and socially responsible.
