New courthouse at El Ejido

The courthouse at El Ejido has a trapezoid floor plan (47 m x 55 / 26 m) and comprises two distinct volumes that are structurally connected at basement level and by footbridges on the upper storeys. A third trapezoid unit featuring a glazed curtain wall façade cantilevers 8 m off the main façade of the front volume. This façade is a structural diaphragm wall, constituted by nine rows of vertical precast concrete members separated by horizontal cast-in-place, self-compacting concrete chords.

The location of the courthouse in a seismic area and the short number of horizontal supports for the façade make this wall potentially vulnerable. The particularly high risk during construction called for careful planning based on a detailed analysis of the interaction between the structure and the ancillary resources used to build it.