Danish architects [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] have won an international competition to design a low-energy tower for the Shenzhen Energy Company in Shenzhen, China.

The 200m-tall headquarters features a folded facade to shade the
interior from the sun while solar panels help to reduce energy use by
60%.

More BIG: see our recent story on [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.].

Here’s some info from BIG:
–
BIG to design sustainable skyscraper in Shenzhen, China.
BIG, in collaboration with ARUP and Transsolar, was awarded
first-prize in an international competition to design Shenzhen
International Energy Mansion, the regional headquarters for the
Shenzhen Energy Company.

The purpose of the international design competition was to find a
sustainable and efficient solution for the Shenzhen Energy Company
office headquarters. Located in the centre of Shenzhen, the 96,000
square meter project will be integrated with the surrounding
environment and designed to withstand the tropical climate of the city.
BIG’s winning proposal was selected by the jury experts from Shenzhen
Municipal Planning Bureau chaired by Alejandro Zaera-Polo and client
representatives.

The headquarters rises 200 meters creating a new landmark visible
from the highway in the cultural, political and business center of
Shenzhen. BIG envisions combining a practical and efficient floor plan
layout with a sustainable façade that both, passively and actively
reduce the energy consumption of the building. The façade is conceived
as a folded skin that shades the office complex from direct sunlight
and integrates solar thermal panels, reducing the overall energy
consumption of the building.

Design Evolution
The skyscraper has evolved as an economically efficient way to provide
flexible, functional and well illuminated workspaces for dense
populations of professionals. It has, however, evolved at a time when
air conditioning and electric lighting are merely seen as modern
solutions to modern demand, without thought being given to
environmental consequences or energy shortages.

Today, the skyscraper needs to evolve into a new sustainable
species. It must retain its highly evolved qualities such as
flexibility, daylight, views, density and general usability while
advancing new and untested attributes such as ways of combining maximum
daylight exposure with minimal sunshine exposure or integrated ways of
limiting the need for cooling.

“We propose to make the Shenzhen Energy Mansion the first specimen
of a new species of office buildings that exploits the buildings
interface with the external elements – sun, daylight, humidity, wind –
as a source to create maximum comfort and quality inside. The Shenzhen
Energy Mansion will appear as a subtle mutation of the classic
skyscraper – a natural evolution rather than a desperate revolution.”
Bjarke Ingels, Founding Partner, BIG.

Curtain wall
The traditional glass façade has little insulation leaving the offices
overheated by direct sunlight. This results in excessive energy
consumption for air conditioning and the need for a heavy glass coating
that makes the view seem permanently dull and grey.

“The towers are based on an efficient and well-proven floor plan
enclosed in a skin specifically modified and optimized for the local
climate. By focusing on the envelope, the façade, we are able to
enhance the sustainable performance of the building drastically.”
Andreas Klok Pedersen, Project Leader, BIG.

By folding the façade in an origami like shape we achieve a
structure with closed and open parts. The closed parts provide a
highly-insulated façade, while blocking the direct sunlight. On the
outside the closed parts are fitted with solar thermal heat panels that
power the air conditioning and provide dehumidification for the working
spaces.

The folded wall provides a free view through clear glass in one
direction creating a condition with plenty of diffused daylight by
reflecting the direct sunlight between the interior panels. Even with
direct sun from east or west, the majority of the solar rays reflect
off the glass, due to the flat angle of the window. The reflected rays
increase the efficiency of solar thermal energy panels. The combination
of minimal passive solar heating and active solar panels reduce the
energy consumption by more than 60%.

SHENZHEN INTERNATIONAL ENERGY MANSION CREDIT LIST:
ARCHITECT: BIG
CLIENT: Shenzhen Energy Company
COLLABORATORS: ARUP, Transsolar
SIZE: 96.000 M2
LOCATION: Shenzhen, China
STATUS: 1st Prize

Partner-In-Charge: Bjarke Ingels
Project Leader: Andreas Klok Pedersen
Team: Cat Huang, Alex Cozma, Fan Zhang, Kuba Snopek, Flavien Menu, Stanley Lung

Posted by Marcus Fairs from dezeen.com