The curved roof is probably the most noticeable feature of the Pavilion; its shape and the glazing façade will clearly contrast with listed Mercury House and other existing buildings in the town of Saint Julian’s.

Regarding the choice of structural materials, discussions were carried out between the client, his construction team and the design team. It was agreed that reinforced concrete would be the main structural material, however, the main central column and the elements required to support the edge of the roof and to restrain the glazing façade, are made of steel.

As it is a client request to have a column free space at basement levels, we have designed the piazza level with downstand beams spanning 20m and supported on the perimeter wall. To ensure the adequate structural behaviour and the comfort of the piazza, a footfall analysis was carried out.

Key Engineering Solutions:

- Building over an existing basement structure before the Pavilion design concept was developed – most of the structure was justified apart from a single column to formation level below a new internal column
- Building in a constrained site adjacent to FIMBank, Mercury House, Triq Elija Zammit Street and Triq San Gorg Street
- Creating the curved roof form with limited and varied supports, including two internal columns, rear core walls and slender façade mullions, all with exposed structure and a 60min fire rating
- Creating a large column free area below the ground floor at B2 with 20m span concrete beams between the perimeter walls
- Polystyrene shuttering construction – concrete shell
- Steel spiral staircase wrapped around the main central column with cantilever treads and balustrading