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 | Feb 9, 2023
Post-Covid Manhattan office market rebound gaining momentum
Office workers in Manhattan continue to return to their workplaces in sufficient numbers for many of their employers to maintain or expand their footprint in the city, according to a survey of more than 140 major Manhattan office employers conducted in January by The Partnership for New York City.
Giants 400 | Feb 9, 2023
New Giants 400 download: Get the complete at-a-glance 2022 Giants 400 rankings in Excel
See how your architecture, engineering, or construction firm stacks up against the nation's AEC Giants. For more than 45 years, the editors of Building Design+Construction have surveyed the largest AEC firms in the U.S./Canada to create the annual Giants 400 report. This year, a record 519 firms participated in the Giants 400 report. The final report includes 137 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Codes and Standards | Feb 8, 2023
GSA releases draft of federal low embodied carbon material standards
The General Services Administration recently released a document that outlines standards for low embodied carbon materials and products to be used on federal construction projects.
Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023
2022 Reconstruction Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. building reconstruction and renovation sector
Gensler, Stantec, IPS, Alfa Tech, STO Building Group, and Turner Construction top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest reconstruction sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Giants 400 | Feb 3, 2023
Top Workplace/Interior Fitout Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Firms for 2022
Gensler, Interior Architects, AECOM, STO Building Group, and CBRE top the ranking of the nation's largest workplace/interior fitout architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 23, 2023
Long Beach, Calif., office tower converted to market rate multifamily housing
A project to convert an underperforming mid-century office tower in Long Beach, Calif., created badly needed market rate housing with a significantly lowered carbon footprint. The adaptive reuse project, composed of 203,177 sf including parking, created 106 apartment units out of a Class B office building that had been vacant for about 10 years.
Mechanical Systems | Jan 17, 2023
Why the auto industry is key to designing healthier, more comfortable buildings
Peter Alspach of NBBJ shares how workplaces can benefit from a few automotive industry techniques.
Government Buildings | Jan 9, 2023
Blackstone, Starwood among real estate giants urging President Biden to repurpose unused federal office space for housing
The Real Estate Roundtable, a group including major real estate firms such as Brookfield Properties, Blackstone, Empire State Realty Trust, Starwood Capital, as well as multiple major banks and CRE professional organizations, recently sent a letter to President Joe Biden on the implications of remote work within the federal government.
Sustainability | Jan 9, 2023
Innovative solutions emerge to address New York’s new greenhouse gas law
New York City’s Local Law 97, an ambitious climate plan that includes fines for owners of large buildings that don’t significantly reduce carbon emissions, has spawned innovations to address the law’s provisions.
Fire and Life Safety | Jan 9, 2023
Why lithium-ion batteries pose fire safety concerns for buildings
Lithium-ion batteries have become the dominant technology in phones, laptops, scooters, electric bikes, electric vehicles, and large-scale battery energy storage facilities. Here’s what you need to know about the fire safety concerns they pose for building owners and occupants.
