Image Credit : a+ design group
Project Overview
The concept of the project started during the COVID-19 outbreak. Many people worked from home and have not returned to their offices due to social distancing issues. Till today, most buildings are rectangular which can only accommodate for rigid floor plans. As a result, architects nowadays provide the same layouts as in the post-war era with the only difference that the dividing walls are not provided. These layouts are not complimenting the need for social distancing, and therefore new building configurations had to be developed.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Tony Leung, Karen Chow, Justine Aubry, Arturo Castro Alvial, Rohit Lunawat, Eric Ly, Silvia Xing
Project Brief
To change to a post-COVID building, the blueprint has been derived from a series of clouds being connected, to the central core. Each Cloud is an open plan work environment, and by clustering them, the building form emulates the silhouette of a larger cloud. This typology is a direct outcome of the post-COVID era we are moving towards and how people will interact in the work field. The cloud blueprint allows for a flexible office layout where social distancing can be maximized while still working in an open-plan office. The Cloud provides state of the art filter systems which are on par with the current airlines to guarantee safety as much as possible. Clusters can be tracked easily on infections and isolated from other parts of the building. The Cloud skyscraper has been designed to cater for both new and future office designs, where the layout focuses on creating a flexible and communal space. By addressing the change of culture, the Cloud challenges the traditional built form of the office with its fluid shape and highlights how people are working into clusters. The smooth curved walls of The Cloud on the ground level along with retail frontages and planted vegetation promotes fluid circulation in and around the site also provides passive surveillance. With a 6m wide through site link, the design highlights the consideration of the new building’s impact on the immediate social context.
Project Innovation/Need
The form of the building will ensure efficient use of the office space on the corporate levels where interaction and movement between workers will be encouraged. This new office layout will assist with teamwork and allow for a much more fluid workspace than the traditional arrangement. With the rise of information technology, there is a growing presence of IT companies situated in Chatswood.
The innovative design and spatial arrangement of The Cloud will cater to end-users such as Google where workers often cooperate. The office space will further be revolutionised with workers being able to work flexibly on any floor of The Cloud as they will be connected by the network of the Google Cloud Platform.
Design Challenge
The challenge of the design was to create a post-COVID design that is responding to the new social distance requirements. The Cloud intends to challenge conventional modern office spaces and pave the way for more future-oriented designs of all buildings that may cater to traditional program services. Our skyscraper will symbolise the new values of society and empowerment in the workplace environment. By taking into consideration designing for not just the present, but the future, architects will help create more efficient utilisation of spaces within skyscrapers, resulting in longer and sustainable use of buildings for generations to come.
Sustainability
The exterior façade of the cloud incorporates a translucent shading system which is similar to the contours of a landscape. These contours wrap around the outer glass of the building across the whole façade, which provides a passive cooling system through also shading the interior from the sun. Night cooling is also utilised to circulate the air.
Air enters the building on the ground floor and the two upper garden levels, which all have double-height ceilings. The air then circulates up through the storeys of the building with the assistance of vents.
The orientation and shape of The Cloud will attract polluted air into the elevated garden floors, which will then clean this polluted air with filters. The air rises through the stack effect in vents located around the core of the building, and recirculate it into the building, and back into the air.
The site has been chosen to maximise air intake but also allow redistribution of wind flows into the surrounding Chatswood CBD, reducing the building’s direct impact on the immediate context.
Building designed in ripple form to reduce wind velocity across its surface.
Shared car spaces on top basement floors for convenient access along with electric cars charging promoting sustainable usage of vehicles.
Basement also includes data storage for the companies operating above.
Recycled and stormwater harvesting is stored into tanks below and then redistributed.
Architecture - Proposed - Multi Residence (10+ floors)
This award celebrates the design process and product of planning, designing and constructing form, space and ambience that reflect functional, technical, social, and aesthetic considerations. Consideration given for material selection, technology, light and shadow. The project can be a concept, tender or personal project, i.e. proposed space
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