Zigzag Tower / Atelier FCJZ

closed

Typological analysisThe design of speculative office towers is usually dictated by sets of conventions such as safety concerns and natural light. The project, a high-rise speculative office tower, is located at the Zhengdong New District in the city ofZhengzhou. After studying various precedents, we decided to accept the prototypical, rectilinear plan with centralized cores as a starting point while looking actively for improvements during the design process.FacadedesignPeripheral columns for load bearing and natural ventilation are placed in alternation outside the building enclosure, reinforcing the vertical composition of the volumes. Neighboring columns twist and converge with the descending height for better indoor-outdoor interaction on the lower floors.Floor plan and spaceThe zigzag configuration offers a floor plan with multiple corners for better views and a sense of spatial aggregation brought by the smaller increments. In sectional design, we devised between the cores an atrium that penetrates all floors and spanned by footbridges so the building's dramatic verticality can be experienced from within.Site geometryAn opportunity for improvement was presented by the site itself—a slightly curved rectilinear parcel that is a part of a monumental ring around an artificial lake. We believe the curvature, however subtle, should be acknowledged and so transformed the rectangular plan into a zigzagged configuration. Such move also added a sense of verticality to an otherwise blocky volume.Structure and economyThe beam-free, reinforced-concrete structural system with central cores and peripheral columns creates a total open space flexible for further division. Without beams, we were able to reduce the floor height— but not the ceiling height— to include an extra floor within the building height limit.