Creative Simplicity
Greatwall Construction recently hosted a tenancy signing ceremony of the new Greatwall Office Complex in Wuhan. The complex has attracted a number of Banking & Investment firms and Fortune 500 companies including Datong Global Capital Management, Shanghai Yinlai Asset Management, and FedEx to name a few.
At the ceremony, Greatwall also announced that the project is currently LEED Platinum Pre-Certified for Building Design & Construction: Core & Shell. As Lead Design Consultant, lO worked closely with Greatwall, the local government, and a team of experts including CBRE, CITIC Local Design Institute and other consultants to create this sustainable benchmark in the Central China Financial District.
The project is a twin tower complex. Tower 1 is one of the top ten tallest towers in Wuhan at 242.9m high and is designated for Greatwall’s Headquarters. Tower 2 is trademarked by FedEx, which occupies the top floors of the tower. Together both buildings provide 120,000sqm of premium office space, linked at the lower 4 floors of podium.
The greatest challenge for lO was to successfully secure government approval for a challenging requirement - to enhance the relationship of the tower podium with the surrounding city context by providing an activated frontage to the streetscape, engaging with the existing urban realms, and creating new public space.
Through testing of possible site solutions, Greatwall and lO embraced the principle of extending the pedestrian streetscape, whereby providing F&B terraces, amphitheatre space, and accessible open space for public enjoyment.
Another attractive quality the complex offers is the powerful green performance of the façade. lO created not only an elegant façade but also led the specification process in applying a three layer hollow laminated LOW-E glass for the curtain wall. The effect is a 95% improvement of solar and thermal performance, which in turn helps to significantly decrease utility costs.
lO also created highly efficient floorplates for the office towers by giving careful considerations to tenant needs for functional efficiency and flexibility in their fitout design. The result is a large column free floorplate with a centrally located lift and services core, offering maximum usability of space.
Greatwall and lO have raised the bar in the design and delivery of an exemplary development in Wuhan, which provides a compelling work place, a vibrant public realm, as well as a high-performing and cost-effective building.
10 DESIGN