In early September, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) officially opened its new, KPF-designed campus in Nansha, Guangzhou (GZ). The carbon-neutral-ready campus was planned, designed, and built in three years’ time, with a project team comprising over 70 architects and planners across KPF offices in New York, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The project’s first phase includes nearly 6 million square feet (about 550,000 square meters) for over 4,000 graduate students and 400 faculty members. It provides research facilities for subjects such as robotics and autonomous systems, smart manufacturing and transportation, microelectronics, and atmosphere and ocean systems.
Rather than following a traditional academic structure based on schools and disciplines, HKUST(GZ) centers around a project-based learning model that encourages multi-disciplinary interactions. The campus features eight research and lab buildings, connected by shaded arcades, and a full range of teaching spaces, including seminar classrooms, labs, large lecture halls, maker spaces, and collaborative workspaces.
“Landscape and building spaces come together to create an atmosphere where scientists will be energized and inspired to innovate,” James von Klemperer, KPF president, said in a statement.
From day one, HKUST(GZ) achieves a 54 percent reduction of carbon emissions, with a goal of reaching carbon neutrality before 2060. The plan’s environmental and resiliency measures have been designed for Guangzhou’s hot, humid climate and the rapidly urbanizing area’s flooding, seismic, and climate change risks.
When complete, the campus will accommodate more than 10,000 students and faculty. And it will integrate teaching and learning facilities with housing, neighborhood and campus retail, student life programs, administration, hotel, office and incubator spaces, and athletics facilities.
The HKUST(GZ) campus adds to KPF’s portfolio of research, innovation, and academic facilities around the world, including the CUNY Advanced Science Research Centers in New York City, the University of Michigan’s Detroit Center for Innovation, and NYU’s new Qiantan campus in Shanghai.
On the Building Team:
Owner: Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Design architect: Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)
Architect of record: SCAD (Architectural Design & Research Institute of South China University of Technology Co.)
MEP engineer: ARUP
Structural engineer: ARUP
Landscape design: James Corner Field Operations
General contractor/construction manager: central hub: China Railway First Group Co. and China Railway Guangzhou Engineering Group Co.; other areas:
Canton One Construction Group Co. and Guangzhou Construction Engineering Co.
Related Stories
University Buildings | Aug 8, 2017
Student center(ed): Is the student union the key to retention?
Studies indicate that the longer a student remains on campus—and in an academic mindset—the greater their chance for academic growth and success.
Healthcare Facilities | Aug 8, 2017
Kansas’ only medical school receives new 171,000-sf building
The building was designed to enhance the medical campus’ existing facilities, curriculum, and classrooms.
Laboratories | Aug 3, 2017
Today’s university lab building by the numbers
A three-month study of science facilities conducted by Shepley Bulfinch reveals key findings related to space allocation, size, and cost.
Education Facilities | Aug 3, 2017
School of Communication and Media at Montclair State University merges faculty, professionals, and academic programs
CannonDesign designed the facility, which features a 197-seat presentation hall and various control rooms.
Wood | Jul 10, 2017
University of Idaho Arena plans to make timber a focal point
The project received a Wood Innovation Grant that will help spur construction of the Hastings + Chivetta-designed project.
University Buildings | Jun 29, 2017
Duke University’s new alumni and visitors center is a ‘modern adaptation of the campus’ architectural style’
The project will total about 47,000 sf of new construction and renovations.
University Buildings | Jun 21, 2017
Student residence hall in Lisbon takes biophilic design to the next level
The luxury student accommodations will be Collegiate’s first outside of the U.K.
Building Team Awards | Jun 7, 2017
Blurring the lines: University of Chicago North Residential Commons
Gold Award: The University of Chicago’s new Residential Commons is part campus, part community.
Higher Education | Jun 7, 2017
Building for the future: Five trends in higher education projects
Preparing students for life after graduation has become the primary motivator behind construction initiatives at U.S. colleges and universities.
University Buildings | May 5, 2017
'Escape forward': How one public university plans to grow
How can public institutions expect to survive and thrive in Illinois' turbulent environment? The answer, for one school anyways, is to think and act like entrepreneurs.
