flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

BioSkin 'vertical sprinkler' named top technical innovation in high-rise design

BioSkin 'vertical sprinkler' named top technical innovation in high-rise design

The design approach is based on the traditional Japanese practice of uchimizu, the sprinkling of water to lower ambient temperatures, clean the streets, and keep dust at bay.


By CTBUH | July 10, 2014
All photos:  Harunori Noda / courtesy CTBUH
All photos: Harunori Noda / courtesy CTBUH

BioSkin, a system of water-filled ceramic pipes that cools the exterior surface of buildings and their surrounding micro-climates, has won the 2014 Tall Building Innovation Award from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH).

The initial use of BioSkin was at the NBF Osaki Building in Tokyo, Japan. Based on the traditional Japanese practice of uchimizu, the sprinkling of water to lower ambient temperatures, clean the streets, and keep dust at bay, BioSkin absorbs heat through rainwater evaporation, mitigating the urban heat island effect by cooling the building, as well as its immediate surroundings.

Through this process, the surface temperature of the building enclosure can be reduced by as much as 12°C and its micro-climate by about 2°C. The potential implications of this are substantial: If a large number of buildings in a city used such a system, ambient air temperature could be reduced to the point that cooling loads for many buildings, even those without the system installed, could be reduced.

 


The initial use of BioSkin was at the NBF Osaki Building in Tokyo, Japan. Photo: © Harunori Noda / courtesy CTBUH

 

“This is a remarkable façade solution, both in its concept and how it has been beautifully detailed,” said David Scott, Technical Awards Jury Chair and lead structural director of the Engineering Excellence Group at Laing O’Rourke, London, UK. “I look forward to seeing this being proven by measurement. It is elegantly and delicately detailed, and it is quite outstanding, as it is combined with many other innovations in this remarkable building.” 

The CTBUH Innovation Award recognizes a specific area of recent innovation in a tall building project that has been incorporated into the design, or implemented during construction, operation, or refurbishment. The areas of innovation can embrace any discipline, including but not limited to:

  • Technical breakthroughs
  • Construction methods
  • Design approaches
  • Urban planning
  • Building systems
  • Façades
  • Interior environment

The Awards Jury also recognizes several Finalists in the Tall Buildings Innovation category.

  • Living Walls – as used at One Central Park, Sydney, Australia, also the recipient of the 2014 Best Tall Building Asia & Australia award.
  • Active Alignment – as used at the Leadenhall Building, London, UK.

All award winners will be recognized at the CTBUH 13th Annual Awards Symposium, which will take place at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, on November 6. The symposium will be followed by the awards ceremony and dinner in the iconic Crown Hall, designed by Mies van der Rohe. The 10-Year, Lifetime Achievement, and Building Performance awards will be announced in the coming weeks, and will also feature at November’s awards events.

For more on the 2014 Tall Building Innovation Award, visit: http://www.ctbuh.org/Awards/AllPastWinners/2014Awards/PR_InnovationAward/tabid/6474/language/en-US/Default.aspx.

Related Stories

Architects | Dec 9, 2019

Jonathan Moody promoted to CEO of Moody Nolan

New four-member Executive Team also named.

Big Data | Dec 4, 2019

AEC data's coming out party

AEC firms are finally putting to use project information they’ve been storing in their computers for years.

Building Owners | Dec 2, 2019

What building owners and AEC teams need to know about New York’s Climate Mobilization Act

On April 18, 2019, the New York City Council passed the Climate Mobilization Act, a suite of laws aimed to meet the city’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

| Nov 26, 2019

Steinberg Hart and Holzman Moss Bottino Architecture combine to elevate design, expand opportunities and strengthen client relationships

This union creates a national architecture firm with enhanced design capabilities and expertise.

| Nov 8, 2019

Philadelphia architecture firm EwingCole acquires Baltimore firm Gaudreau

Philadelphia architecture firm EwingCole acquires Baltimore firm Gaudreau.

Multifamily Housing | Nov 7, 2019

Multifamily construction market remains strong heading into 2020

Fewer than one in 10 AEC firms doing multifamily work reported a decrease in proposal activity in Q3 2019, according to a PSMJ report.

Architects | Oct 29, 2019

Top takeaways from the Lean Construction Institute Congress 2019

More than 1,600 Lean experts gathered in Texas this month for LCI Congress 2019. Here are key takeaways from the event.

Giants 400 | Oct 25, 2019

Top 50 Airport Sector Architecture Firms for 2019

AECOM, Gensler, HNTB, Corgan, and HOK top the rankings of the nation's largest airport terminal sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.

Giants 400 | Oct 24, 2019

Top 125 Retail Architecture Firms for 2019

CallisonRTKL, Gensler, MG2, NELSON, and Stantec top the rankings of the nation's largest retail sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2019 Giants 300 Report.

Architects | Oct 11, 2019

SMPS report tracks how AEC firms are utilizing marketing technology tools

With thousands of MarTech tools and apps on the market, design and construction firms are struggling to keep up.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category

Construction Costs

Data center construction costs for 2024

Gordian’s data features more than 100 building models, including computer data centers. These localized models allow architects, engineers, and other preconstruction professionals to quickly and accurately create conceptual estimates for future builds. This table shows a five-year view of costs per square foot for one-story computer data centers. 


Sustainability

Grimshaw launches free online tool to help accelerate decarbonization of buildings

Minoro, an online platform to help accelerate the decarbonization of buildings, was recently launched by architecture firm Grimshaw, in collaboration with more than 20 supporting organizations including World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), RIBA, Architecture 2030, the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) and several national Green Building Councils from across the globe.



Healthcare Facilities

Watch on-demand: Key Trends in the Healthcare Facilities Market for 2024-2025

Join the Building Design+Construction editorial team for this on-demand webinar on key trends, innovations, and opportunities in the $65 billion U.S. healthcare buildings market. A panel of healthcare design and construction experts present their latest projects, trends, innovations, opportunities, and data/research on key healthcare facilities sub-sectors. A 2024-2025 U.S. healthcare facilities market outlook is also presented.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021