“Jelutong Promenade” is the flagship contribution by IJMLAND Berhad, a huge conglomerate well known for their conscientious and meticulous focus on quality and durability.  Thanks to their criterion for contractors with cutting edge credentials on innovative concrete technology, the project that almost got away was landed with a great splash.

The project is built on 15,100ms of reclaimed land along the southeastern side of Penang Island in conjunction with City Council’s plan for urban renewal in the city of Georgetown.  It comprises highend quality 3-storey homes called, Nautilus Bay, the Spring and Summer condominiums and the commercial hub of Shoplot 28.  Just recently The Maritime has been added to the list.  Bomanite Malaysia had a hand in each of these buildings.  

What was originally haphazard, overcrowded wooden squatter dwellings, are now transformed into a beautiful promenade by the waterfront with landscaped pedestrian walkways, jogging paths, cyclists tracks, planting pits, rest stops and seats and even a landing bay at the fishermen’s wharf to serve the new community’ s recreation needs.

The Promenade traverses the entire length of the waterfront for 2.0 km from the Sungei Pinang (Penang River) estuary southwards along the coast and is divided into sections called Fishermen’s Wharf, The Central Deck and the Esplanade. 

The maritime theme starts at the cantilevered deck with a feature paving of a crescendo of waves. Dramatized by wavy bands of black and white exposed aggregate and Lapiz Blue Washed Sandstone highlighted with speckles of black and white exposed aggregate to mimic the froth. The Slate Textured ‘beach’ installed in  Resort Yellow and Gold Special Colour Hardeners with Light Brown Release Agent Slate Texture is separated by beautifully executed 200mm wide scalloped border from the Fishscale Granite Sett ‘rock’. Customised 1200 mm diameter tops of the circular seats that dot the central deck were installed in 5mm brilliant white pebble finish.   Ramps with Slate Texture in Harvest Amber Colour Hardener were thoughtfully installed for the physically challenged as the central deck is a raised platform.

Due to budget constrains, Bomanite offered a solution to upgrade the unadorned gray concrete Broom Finish panels for the pedestrian walkways and cyclist track, with a steel trowelled, flawless and immaculate border in Harvest Amber Colour Hardener. The owners who were reluctant and only agreed after much persuasion and assurances by the Bomanite team, were in the end so excited by the result and the cost efficiency.  The word on the street when the walkways were completed was, “How incredibly and marvelously straight and well aligned the lines and panels are!”.

When the original design had failed to impress the owners, Bomanite design team presented a mock-up of the “Sunbird” feature The owners were immediately captivated by the “Sunbird” design and the  vibrant colours suggested of Forest Green, Mandarin Orange and Baja Red Colour Hardeners against our Gold Special background. The Sunbird features gave the Esplanade the ‘oomph’ that it needed.  The owners were particularly delighted and welcomed the effect of “Lots of Sun” to the whole development - a Chinese geomancy for positive energy or ‘chi’!

We basked in the opportunity to showcase our design ability and exceptional craftsmanship in the detailed application of the additional formwork AND the client’s satisfaction.

The skill of the our Bomanite craftsmen is again applauded by the level of precision in the lines and joints in creating the Sundial feature pattern in an array of contrasting colours of Golden Brown, Gray, Black and brilliant White.

Having proven their ability to step up, the Bomanite team was assigned the installation and collaboration of the stainless steel pergola with conch shell feature paving at the Fishermen’s Wharf.  The inner spiral concentric rings and the outermost ring were installed in Mandarin Orange Colour and Resort Yellow with Light Brown Release Agent respectively. The paving received a Heavy Slate cum Rock salt Finish. A 100mm exposed white aggregate border outlines the spirals. Triangle stainless steel plates were embedded into the paving incorporated the spiral whirl of the pergola with the conch spiral design.

The large expanse of concrete for the project raised concerns of the adverse effects on the overall environment.  This brought an opportunity to offer Bomanite’s proprietary eco-paving “ECO-CRETE” as the recommended “greening” element to the project.  Encouraged by the architect, the owners approved the ECO-CRETE cast-in-situ paving in Bomanite Integral colours BUCKSKIN, CHAMOIS, LIGHT MELON, MIST GREEN, SIERRA ROSE and SUNSET for the tree pits along the promenade.

The bold and stunning play of strong colours and different Bomanite finishes and systems show off the Promenade as a work of art work that appeals to the senses and attract a sea of people from the new community every evening and into night. A walk on the Promenade promises a visual adventure where every step reveals a new vista!

The owners have recognized and differentiated Bomanite from the competitors.  They have embraced the fact that paying a premium for beautifully designed and installed hardscapes can significantly enhance aesthetic appeal and market value.  The architect and the client were also well pleased and convinced with the professional and objective handling of the project.  Nothing was too much trouble for the Bomanite team, from the initial conceptual design through a series of actual sized mock-ups to get the specified qualities and budgets desired.   

The job was a phenomenal challenge. The collaborative efforts between the architect and the team were commendable in the face of the ever-changing designs and schedules.  From the word ‘Go’ it was evident that every element of concrete technology was to be explored and deployed to equal the architect’s creativity and the client’s expectations for the project.  

We are proud to say that the Bomanite Malaysia team stepped up to orchestrate the entire repertoire of Bomanite products, colours, technology, construction technique, shapes and textures to be used on concrete. Proving, once again, that in skilful and innovative hands, concrete is an effective medium for expressing original ideas and designs that inspire and improves our daily lives.  The final product is a project that everyone involved is proud of.