Architecture office RSHP has unveiled the design for the Shenzhen - Hong Kong Innovation Integrated Service Centre, a 45-storey tower in the Futian Free Trade Zone in south Shenzhen. The building features an integrated floating podium which provides spaces for retail, cultural events, and green roof gardens. It also connects to the existing metro station and articulates the street-level plaza. The design results from a negotiation between two distinct briefs asking for a tower and a mixed-use podium on neighboring plots. RSHP’s proposal was to merge the briefs by integrating the podium into the south side of the tower, thus creating a distinct identity and creating a better relationship with the surrounding public space.
The tower offers spaces for public offices for state-owned companies. Its amenities include a health center, sports facilities, a library, retail spaces, and double-height art exhibition spaces. The tower’s lobby highlights the structure of the building, with triangular trusses that transfer the load of the tower’s east wing to the building’s central core. The mega trusses connected to the concrete core are placed at every 12 levels, which are dedicated refuge or service floors to free the space on the occupied office levels. This enables flexible floorplates and cantilevered external bays for the office spaces.
The floorplan of the tower adopts a butterfly layout, with curved bays for the office wings. The structural system of the building allows for uninterrupted views of Shenzhen Bay and the mangrove areas. The roof terrace is publicly accessible, transforming the tower’s west wing into a viewing platform and a vantage point for observing passing birds on their migratory path, a popular activity for the residents of Shenzhen. Panoramic glazed lifts capitalize on the views and offer a distinct identity for the building’s north and south facades.
The building is designed to be completely naturally ventilated. The glazing of the façade incorporates vents to allow air to circulate, thus reducing the requirement for air-conditioning. A tenth of the façade surface is also openable. The scheme aims to minimize operational energy consumption to achieve China’s 3-star sustainability certification, equivalent to LEED Gold.
This is not the first project designed by RSHP in Shenzhen, as the architecture office has also won the competition for the Qianhai Financial Holdings HeaHeadquarterswer, a mixed-use commercial building in the center of the Qianhai district. They have also been selected to design Terminal 4 Bao’an International Airport, also in Shenzhen, China.
Project credits:
- Architect: RSHP
- RSHP Project Partner: Richard Paul, partner
- RSHP Project Lead: Marco Tessaro, senior architect
- Client: Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone Development Co., Ltd
- Structural Engineer: CCDI Group
- Local Design Institute: CCDI Group
- General contractor: China Railway Construction Engineering Group (CRCEG)
- MEP: CCDI Group
- Facade Consultant: EFC
- Landscape Consultant: CCDI Group
- Lighting Consultant: PUDI
