Overview

Description: In 2016 APS were commissioned to re-design and extend the existing VW building (consisting of vehicle show room and service centre) for the CFAO group of companies, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Challenge: The biggest challenge for this particular building project was that full operational use was required for the service centre, showroom and administration offices at all times. The Managing Director Marius Prinsloo, set the design team an incredibly difficult goal to achieve the required square meterage, within a limited budget. In addition the design, layout and construction had to be done to best practice standards as set out in the stringent VW Design Guide as regulated by VW Architects Cappy Juliet in Germany / France.

Solution: Great care was taken to ensure that as much existing infrastructure was maintained in order to keep expenditure to a minimum. The existing show room, reception and sales areas were extended re-using much of the previous structure and glazing, but with new mechanical and electrical service throughout. Interior fitted furniture and signage, as well as exterior composite aluminium cladding was detailed in-house by APS and manufactured / installed by foreign specialists. Additional office, conferencing and kitchen facilities were built on a new footprint, and the secure store, dispatch and receiving areas were modernised and extended. The site plan layout was reviewed relative to optimising storage, parking and service access on site.