The Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) has won an international competition to design the Greenland Group Suzhou Center, in Wujiang, China. The 358-meter supertall tower will become the defining visual landmark for both the new Wujiang lakefront development and for the city as a whole.
The 75-level building is designed to accommodate a complex mixed-use program including office, service apartments, hotel and retail on a 37,000 sm site. Sited prominently along Taihu Lake in the Jiangsu Province of China, the building's curved, tapered form unifies the office, hotel and residential uses within a single volume. The tower features a 30-story tall operable window corresponding to the hotel and residential floors, that helps drive the environmental performance of the development.
The tower's form is optimized to harness natural forces in and around the site to maximize its performance. High performance design engineering has been integrated into its design.
The Wujiang Greenland Tower's composite core and outrigger structural system use proven cost-effective construction techniques, while its unique split-core configuration of the upper floors increases the efficiency of the building structure. By placing half of the building core program on each side of the lobby and interconnecting them with structural steel braces, the combined core becomes more effective than a typical center core system while also creating a dramatic tall lobby space within.
The atrium is a key design feature of the building. It maximizes daylight penetration, facilitates mixed mode ventilation in the lobbies and public spaces, and acts as a fresh air supply source for the tower. The building is oriented to harness both the stack effect and prevailing winds via the east and west façades of the atrium.
Major high performance energy saving strategies include a high performance façade, utilizing cooler outside air at higher levels for natural ventilation of the atrium, natural light harvesting using daylight responsive controls, lighting energy optimization using efficient fixtures and occupant controls, energy recovery systems, demand controlled ventilation, and an onsite energy center with combined heat and power plant to capitalize on the overall load diversity of the development. BD+C
Related Stories
| May 15, 2014
'Virtually indestructible': Utah architect applies thin-shell dome concept for safer schools
At $94 a square foot and "virtually indestructible," some school districts in Utah are opting to build concrete dome schools in lieu of traditional structures.
| May 15, 2014
First look: 9/11 Memorial Museum opens to first-responders, survivors, 9/11 families [slideshow]
The 110,000-sf museum is filled with monumental artifacts from the tragedy and exhibits that honor the lives of every victim of the 2001 and 1993 attacks.
| May 14, 2014
New study shows employees aren't happier working in green buildings
People working in buildings certified under LEED’s green building standard appear no more satisfied with their workplace environments than those in conventional buildings, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Nottingham.
| May 14, 2014
Construction growth looking up: Gilbane Spring 2014 Economic Report
Construction spending for 2014 should finish 6.6% higher than in 2013, with nonresidential work contributing substantially.
| May 14, 2014
Prefab payback: Mortenson quantifies cost and schedule savings from prefabrication techniques
Value-based cost-benefit analysis of prefab approaches on the firm's 360-bed Exempla Saint Joseph Heritage Project shows significant savings for the Building Team.
| May 13, 2014
First look: Nadel's $1.5 billion Dalian, China, Sports Center
In addition to five major sports venues, the Dalian Sports Center includes a 30-story, 440-room, 5-star Kempinski full-service hotel and conference center and a 40,500-square-meter athletes’ training facility and office building.
| May 13, 2014
Drexel University case study report: Green Globes cheaper, faster than LEED
GBI’s Green Globes certification process is significantly less expensive to conduct and faster to complete than LEED certification, says Drexel prof.
| May 13, 2014
Steven Holl's sculptural Institute for Contemporary Art set to break ground at VCU
The facility will have two entrances—one facing the city of Richmond, Va., the other toward VCU's campus—to serve as a connection between "town and gown."
| May 13, 2014
Universities embrace creative finance strategies
After Moody’s and other credit ratings agencies tightened their standards a few years ago, universities had to become much more disciplined about their financing mechanisms.
| May 13, 2014
19 industry groups team to promote resilient planning and building materials
The industry associations, with more than 700,000 members generating almost $1 trillion in GDP, have issued a joint statement on resilience, pushing design and building solutions for disaster mitigation.
