hans hollein: sbf tower

the ‘sbf tower’ by hans hollein in shenzhen, china all images courtesy of hans hollein

austrian architect hans hollein has finished a design concept of a 42-storey office tower in the heart of shenzhen, china. the ‘SBF tower’ is situated adjacent to the town hall and shennan avenue, a major road in the business district of futian. rising to an overall height of 200 m, the building repeats a simple 45 m x 45 m square plan into two different zones: the ‘box levels’, which are six identical office floors stacked neatly on top of each other, and the ‘sky garden levels’, which are five floors of highly flexible work space. from the exterior, this distinguishes two different alternating zones: the box levels follow an unbroken facade line while the sky garden levels have deep setbacks and outreaching cantilevers, overgrown with live greenery and outdoor terraces. by integrating the concept of vertical gardens into the architecture, the tower promotes an alternative, more sustainable workstyle.

rendering of the ‘sbf tower’ in context

front facade

cross section

first floor plan

box level floor plan

sky garden level floor plan

stacked plans

sketch