Tender winners and architectural design for a an R&D campus with ecological office and laboratory buildings.

The Zhejiang Energy R&D Campus aims to create a sustainable environment for the research and development of precision engineering, electronics and telecommunications industries.  The scheme combines two completely transparent office buildings with an exceptionally low energy-consumption at 70 kWh per square mete. The buildings are supported by a rhombic construction system encasing a shaded façade, which allows the building to dispense with pillars. The open office areas as well as the laboratories are divided by movable partitions to ensure a maximum of efficiency and minimize unnecessary construction waste. The triple-layered inner glass façade provides effective thermal insulation, while integrated solar screens mitigate solar ingress, reflect daylight, and lend the buildings a homogenous expression. Inspired by the regional vegetation of Hangzhou, the campus invites the visitor to walk through a composed yet wild landscape. The strategy of agri-tecture, which is part agriculture, part architecture, combines the organic and building materials into a blend, digitizing the landscape surface into a variety of gradients from 100% paving to 100% soft, richly vegetated biotopes. 

LOCATION: Hangzhou, China
SITE AREA: 51,094 m2
BUILT UP AREA: 20.461 m2
PROJECT SCOPE: Architecture, Landscape Design
PROJECT TYPE: Research & Development
CLIENT: Zhejiang Energy Company
AWARDS: Invited Competition: 1st Prize

KLINGMANN was commissioned to design the Zheijang Energy Headquarter in Hangzhou. 

The design team’s objective was to create an environmentally sustainable and user-friendly building while optimizing the allowable floor area for administration and labs. An atrium, a three-story tall indoor garden, and a sunken courtyard, all fitted with a double-layered facade, allow daylight into the building and encourage productive interactions amongst employees while reducing demand on mechanical ventilation. During the heating season, the air cavity between the double-layer façade acts as a thermal buffer. Warm air is returned to the central plant via risers for heat recovery while fresh air is supplied from the raised floor system. During the summer months, the louvers allow for an effective cross ventilation of the building. In the interior, flexible partitions have been used to reduce material waste and to maximize flexibility.

LOCATION: Hangzhou, China
SITE AREA: 51,094 m2
BUILT UP AREA: 20.461 m2
PROJECT SCOPE: Architecture, Landscape Design
PROJECT TYPE: Office and Lab Building
CLIENT: Zhejiang Energy Company