‘costanera lyon 1’ by eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l., santiago, chile all images courtesy eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.

chilean architects eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l. have created ‘costanera lyon 1’, a prototypical office tower in santiago, chile. the unified structure of this pair of office buildings combines vierendeel beams and scissor columns to produce seismic resistant towers. a single mass exterior creates a thermal mass which is easy to heat and cool without a double skin to reduce energy consumption. currently complete, the first prototype features a portion of the corner which has been removed and placed upon the roof, creating a penthouse floor and pool. the void is visible from the dynamic street and creates a different identity from the second prototype.

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 street perspective

the second iteration features cantilevered slabs to utilize the site area, but required additional support to resist the lateral forces of the earthquake prone region. perimetral walls contribute to torsional rigidity while 21 vierendeel beams carry the building’s dead weight and open the interior for unobstructed outward views. fourteen scissor base columns support the 16 slabs service placed around one core. conceived as a wholistic entity, each element is necessary to retain its stability and without one piece, the structure would not stand.

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 lower two levels are open to the public

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 recessed public plazas

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 visitors enter through bridges which traverse over outdoor areas

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 ground level corridor

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 downward view through atrium

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 pool on roof terrace

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 at night

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 interior rendering

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2

interior rendering

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 exterior rendering of prototype 2

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 site plan

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 section

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 section

eugenio simonetti t + renato stewart l.: costanera lyon 1 + 2 elevation

project info:

project name: costanera lyon 1 and costanera lyon 2 architects: eugenio simonetti t and renato stewart l. design team: juan santa maria, danilo magni. alvaro romero. leed certification (silver): energy arq lighting: oriana ponzini structure: eduardo spoerer. client: inmobiliaria almahue s.a. location: nueva de lyon 145, providencia, santiago de chile year: costanera lyon 1, 2009-2011 (completed), costanera lyon 2, 2011-2013 (under construction) area: 42.000m2 (total floor) 5.000m2 (site) budget: $ 55.000.000 photography: guy wenborne, ana maria pincheira