The Leonardo is a futuristic skyscraper located in the rich suburb of Sandton, the new business center of Johannesburg that also houses the largest Exhange on the African continent. With its 55 floors, 234 meters high, it is currently the tallest building in South Africa, exceeding the previous record holder (the Carlton Centre) by eleven meters.
The construction started on November 17, 2015 and, according to the original design, the tower was intended to reach a total height of 150 meters. Currently the building is for mixed use: 232 apartments and 8 luxury penthouses occupy the first 41 floors, while on the following 11 there are commercial offices.
The last three levels of the building host a 2,100 square meter penthouse with a total view of the city, marketed for 180 million Rand (about $ 9.6 million), a figure that makes it the most expensive property on the real estate market in South Africa.
With a total investment of 2 billion rand (about $ 107 million), the building includes also four levels of underground parking, a large conference center with 9 meeting rooms, a spa with pool, several food services and shops at street level.
As part of the prestigious architectural project, Gruppo Cosentino has provided its innovative materials Dekton® and Silestone® for the different internal and external environments of the tower.
In particular, 30.000sqm of the ultra-compact Dekton® surface were used to cover the large ventilated facade, chosen in the 8mm thickness and in the light and elegant Gada shades, part of the Natural Collection that evokes the typical quartzite combination, with its satin and limestone finishes.
The high resistance to UV rays, thermal shocks, scratches and stains, as well as the excellent low porosity, dimensional and chromatic stability, make Dekton® the perfect solution for complex architectural contexts such as the Leonardo, which required the material fixing on a Curtain Wall.
A skilful mix of Silestone® quartz, in different colors and thicknesses, was used for the coating of the lobby on the ground floor and of various elements of the skyscraper’s internal areas such as columns, kitchen tops, bathroom tops and bar counters, giving it a high stain resistance and a final aesthetic result of great impact.
*credits
- Construction period: 2015 - 2019
- Customer: Legacy Group
- Location: 75 Maude Street, Sandton - Johannesburg (South Africa)
- Architecture & Interior Design: Co-Arc International Architects
- Structural Design: Arup
- Cosentino materials used: Dekton® Gada (on the facade), Silestone® Blanco Orion, Silestone® Cemento Spa, Silestone® White Storm, Silestone® Eternal Emperador, Silestone® Eternal Statuario, Silestone® Eternal Pearl Jasmin
- Thickness: 8, 12, 20 and 30 mm
