In Guangzhou, China, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) has designed the recently completed Star River Headquarters to minimize embodied carbon, reduce energy consumption, and create a healthy work environment. The 48-story tower is located in the business district on Guangzhou’s Pazhou Island.
The tower’s pleated façade ascends in a parabolic taper, which reduces wind loads while creating vertical planes of light and shadow. This design provides shading to reduce direct sunlight while at the same time allowing diffuse daylight to enter the interior spaces. In addition, the envelope’s high-performance curtain wall systems and thermal insulation reduce cooling loads and improve indoor comfort.
Building design features rounded corners, open floor plates
Individual bays formed by the pleats can accommodate both open and closed offices on the building’s perimeter. The building’s rounded corners are free of columns, creating open floor plates with views of the Pearl River.
Mullions that run the entire building height of 259.5 meters (851 feet) integrate operable panels, so occupants have direct access to fresh air. The building’s crown features a latticed structure containing a greenhouse with heritage plants and a pavilion with a reflecting pool.
The building is located on a public plaza with native landscaping and paved areas around the glass-enclosed lobby. The building’s canopy wraps around the base and extends above a retail building, forming a covered pedestrian arcade. This design also conceals the mechanical spaces on the block’s edge. Visitors can access the retail offerings and subway connection below grade.
The building management system includes environmental control standards, plant monitoring, and a user interface that allows for efficient operations.
On the Building Team:
Owner/developer: Guangzhou Star River Commercial Investment And Development Co, Ltd.
Design architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)
Architect of record: Guangzhou Design Institution
MEP engineer and structural engineer: SOM
General contractor: Zhongtian Construction Group Co., Ltd.
Interior design: ChengChung + Design
Lighting design: Leox Design Partnership|
Façade consultant: Shanghai PFT Construction Consulting Co.
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Apr 5, 2021
FXCollaborative selected to create new lobby, amenity space for 3 Times Square
FXCollaborative designed the original building in 2001.
Office Buildings | Apr 5, 2021
Innovation One completes at University Research Park in Madison, Wis.
Valerio Dewalt Train designed the project.
Office Buildings | Mar 30, 2021
WELL Institute certifies a gigantic office complex with its highest health and safety rating
Poland’s Olivia Business Center one of the first to install ion air purification devices.
Office Buildings | Mar 26, 2021
Finding success for downtown office space after COVID-19
Using the right planning tools can spur new uses for Class B and C commercial real estate.
Office Buildings | Mar 24, 2021
JEA Headquarters tops out in Jacksonville
The building has recently topped out.
Energy Efficiency | Mar 23, 2021
ASHRAE’s new headquarters walks the talk about net-zero energy
The conversion of a 1970s’-era building demonstrates how older structures can be made more efficient and sustainable.
Office Buildings | Mar 22, 2021
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Florida unveils design for new chapter HQ
Arquitectonica is designing the project.
Office Buildings | Mar 16, 2021
Perkins&Will unveils design of its New York Studio
The studio supports hybrid work models with agile layouts and integrated broadcast technologies.
Laboratories | Mar 10, 2021
8 tips for converting office space to life sciences labs
Creating a successful life sciences facility within the shell of a former office building can be much like that old “square peg round hole” paradigm. Two experts offer important advice.
Office Buildings | Mar 4, 2021
1905 industrial building set to become Acciona’s new office in Madrid
Foster + Partners is designing the project.
