Kuwait College of Business Administration

A Public Garden in the Desert

A 40,000 sq ft atrium on a desert campus — 4°C winters, 48°C summers — serving 4,000 students and 820 faculty. The material had to do everything: diffuse light, control heat, and earn LEED Silver. There was only one option.

Project Details Architect CambridgeSeven — Patti Intrieri, Marc Rogers (Principals); Joslin Stewart (Associate Principal); Sumi Fasolo (Senior Associate) Vendor Future Glass, Dubai Client Kuwait University — College of Business Administration Location Sabah Al-Salem University City, Kuwait Year Completed 2018 Campus Size 850,000 sq ft (Women’s & Men’s campuses combined) Atrium Size 40,000 sq ft Occupants 4,000+ students, 820 faculty Product Solera® R-18 / U-0.04 — 1,126 units Application Sawtooth atrium skylight (north-to-south orientation) Certification LEED Silver

CambridgeSeven set out to create a public gathering place — a 40,000 sq ft atrium at the heart of the College of Business Administration’s sprawling desert campus. The vision: white light diffusing deep into the space, imparting the feeling of an expansive outdoor garden, with smart classrooms surrounding the atrium to maximize student and faculty interaction between classes.

The challenge was extreme. Desert temperatures fluctuate between 4°C and 48°C. The campus spans an area the size of New York’s Empire State Building rotated on its side. Any glazing solution had to simultaneously deliver natural daylight, control heat gain, resist condensation, and contribute to LEED Silver certification.

Four Performance Goals, One Solution

CambridgeSeven chose Solera® R-18 / U-0.04 units for the entire atrium skylight at design conception. To validate the decision, Advanced Glazings Ltd.’s research and development team created a daylight model comparison showing exactly how Solera® would perform in the space — demonstrating that using Solera as a separate component on the south would satisfy sustainability goals while creating a visually and thermally comfortable environment for students.

The resulting sawtooth skylight, with a north-to-south orientation, was overglazed for daylighting and cooling balance using 1,126 Solera® R-18 units, creating an aesthetic of crisp lines and a variegated façade.

The Role of Daylight Modelling

Architect: CambridgeSeven   |   Vendor: Future Glass, Dubai   |   Product: Solera® R-18   |   Completed: 2018