Architects: BIAD UFo Location: Beijing, China Client: Phoenix Satellite Television Project Year: 2009-2012 Project Area: 64973 sqm Photographs: Courtesy of BIAD UFo
Phoenix International Media Center locates in the southwest corner of Chaoyang Park; the site area is 1.8 hectares. The total floor area of the building is 65,000m2 with a height of 55m. Apart from the media office, the broadcasting studios and the production offices, the building provides abundant of open spaces for the public to get interactive experiences, which expresses the unique operation concept of Phoenix Media. The logic of the design concept is to create an ecological environment shell embraces the Individual functional spaces as a building-in-building concept. The two independent office towers under the shell generate many shared public spaces. In the east and west parts of the shared spaces, there are continuous steps, landscape platforms, sky ramps and crossing escalators which fill the building of energetic and dynamic spaces. Furthermore, the building’s sculptural shape originates from the “Mobius Strip”. The sculptural shape provides the building a harmony relationship with the irregular direction of the existing streets, the sitting corner of the site, and the Chaoyang Park.
The continuous integrity and the smooth surface of the building express the topological corporate culture of the Phoenix Media. The elevation difference between the southern and northern internal spaces are able to provide quality of sunlight, ventilation and landscape view to the office towers, meanwhile avoiding glare and noises for the broadcasting room. In addition, the elevation difference also avoids blocking the sunshine to the residential building at the northern direction.
In addition, energy-saving and low-carbon concepts are also applied in the building design. Instead of setting drain pipe on the smooth surface, the rainwater will be collected by dropping naturally along the structural ribs into the collection tank which locates at the bottom of the building. After being filtered, the rain water will be recycled to water the artistic waterscape and irrigation for landscape. Other than the aesthetic value of the architectural shape, during Beijing’s windy winter time, the smooth surface and round shape also mitigate the severe street wind effects from high-rise buildings. Meanwhile, the shell also provides a climate buffer space for the functional spaces as an “Green Coat”.
The double layer exterior of the building can improve the comfort in the functional areas, and reduce the consumption of energy. Digital technology is applied to tailor the physical space of the exterior shell and the inside volume precisely in order to ensure the exact matches between seams. The cone-shaped shared space, which is 30 meters high, generates the chimney effect, which provides natural air ventilation to save energy during transitional seasons.
