To make sure surrounding, shorter buildings won’t be blocked by sunlight, architects in London’s NBBJ office have designed a scheme that will make tall towers reflect and diffuse sunlight.
But the human brain wasn’t alone in solving the shadow conundrum. Wired reports that the architects used a software called Rhinoceros, which allowed them to input various building requirements, and then used algorithms to generate designs that maximize the light reflected onto the ground. Multiple design options are then displayed for the architects.
“Some are bonkers,” Christian Coop, NBBJ’s Design Director, told Wired about the computer-generated designs. So after a basic design was produced, the architects needed to fine tune it and adjust the requirement.
The final design that was settled on is of a pair of highly reflective towers that are curved at the right places to bounce off light over the other tower’s shadow.
Because the light is diffused instead of projected away, it won’t be possible to fry an egg or melt plastic bags (and burn people).
“It’s definitely high time for this type of design to be baked into the building so it can play well with the environment,” Daniel Safarik, a spokesperson at the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, told Wired. “It should be standard practice.”
Related Stories
Mixed-Use | Aug 30, 2017
A 50-acre waterfront redevelopment gets under way in Tampa
Nine architects, three interior designers, and nine contractors are involved in this $3 billion project.
Codes and Standards | Aug 7, 2017
Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat to create standards to measure floor area
The standards will examine existing codes and regulations to find where they are too broad or contentious.
High-rise Construction | Aug 1, 2017
Construction on the world’s skinniest tower halts due to ballooning costs
The planned 82-story tower has stalled after completing just 20 stories.
Wood | Jun 13, 2017
The first timber high-rise in the U.S. set for construction in Portland
The building’s design, building materials, and commercial tenants are all focused on the key aspect of sustainability.
Office Buildings | May 30, 2017
How tech companies are rethinking the high-rise workplace
Eight fresh ideas for the high-rise of the future, from NBBJ Design Partner Jonathan Ward.
Mixed-Use | May 23, 2017
45-story tower planned for Miami Worldcenter
Pickard Chilton Architects will design the 600,000-sf 110 10th Street.
High-rise Construction | May 23, 2017
Goettsch Partners to design three-building Optics Valley Center complex
The Chicago-based firm won a design competition to design the complex located in Wuhan, China.
High-rise Construction | May 15, 2017
Construction begins on 47-story luxury tower in Chicago’s South Loop
The glass tower is being built at 1326 S. Michigan Avenue.
High-rise Construction | Apr 26, 2017
Dubai’s newest building is a giant gilded picture frame
Despite currently being under construction, the building is the center of an ongoing lawsuit filed by the architect.
3D Printing | Apr 17, 2017
The Tokyo Pod Vending Machine resembles a giant game of Tetris in the sky
The building is designed to print and dispense its own dwellings in vending machine-obsessed Tokyo.