Van Brandenburg’s latest design truly on grandest scale

A giant skyscraper designed in Dunedin could soon be towering over the skyline in Shenzhen, China.

The 85-storey Lilium Tower has been designed in the Dunedin office of Damien van Brandenburg, of Architecture Van Brandenburg, and his team of eight designers over the past three months.

At 450m high, the tower would rank among the tallest buildings in China and the 20th-tallest in the world, if built tomorrow, although more mega-structures were already in the works.

And it would also come with a price tag to match, estimated to be worth the equivalent of NZ$1billion or more, Mr van Brandenburg said yesterday.

The design has just been delivered to the client in Shenzhen — a private company which Mr van Brandenburg could not yet name — and had been received ‘‘very positively’’, he said.

The client had to review the details before deciding whether to proceed, after which sign-off would be required by city authorities in Shenzhen, Mr van Brandenburg said.

But, if all went to plan, it was expected construction could begin as soon as next year and be completed in 2025.

If that happened, Architecture Van Brandenburg staff would continue to be involved, working with the project manager and engineer during the construction phase, he said.

The company would also have to take on more staff, both in China and in Dunedin, to cope with the extra workload expected.

‘‘It will be a significant project for us — a big project for us to take on,’’ Mr van Brandenburg said yesterday.

The project was the result of his company’s work designing another mammoth building in Shenzhen, the sprawling Marisfrolg Headquarters being built for one of China’s leading upmarket fashion companies.

The engineer involved in the Marisfrolg was also working on the Lilium Tower project, and his ‘‘connections’’ had led to Architecture Van Brandenburg securing the design work for the tower, he said.

The Marisfrolg complex was being constructed for one of China’s most successful high-end fashion labels and was due for completion next year.

The 120,000sqm complex - roughly four times the size of Wellington's Te Papa - would house a boutique hotel and a mix of restaurants, clubs, stores and a spa centre.

The Lilium Tower was a ''quite different'' project, presenting a different set of challenges, including the structural stresses of gravity and wind-loading on such a tall building.

''That's been one of the things we've had to really work hard on,'' he said.

It was proposed for a ''prominent'' site on the southern shores of Shenzhen, a city of 12million people to the north of Hong Kong.

The design was for a ''conspicuous'' tower visible from vantage points across the city, offering mixed-use spaces for restaurants and lounges, a five-star hotel, condominium residences, offices, gyms and sky gardens.

The plan would include ''dense vegetation'' throughout the building, continuing a link between buildings and nature that featured in Mr van Brandenburg's work.

It would also breathe life into the building - quite literally - by helping to adjust oxygen levels inside, as well as providing social and meeting spaces for occupants and visiting users of the building's range of facilities, Mr van Brandenburg said.

The structural elements also reduced the need for internal columns, opening the building up to better use of floor space as well as to natural light and views.

It was also designed to maximise energy efficiency by orientating the building to make best use of solar heating and to cope with prevailing winds.

Looking ahead, the design even included two ''drone ports'', expected to accommodate the rise of passenger-carrying drones already being developed by companies based in Shenzhen, he said.

''This is something we want to be ready for, so when the building is taking place we can accommodate them.''

Mr van Brandenburg said he already spent half his time in China, working on the Marisfrolg project, and that would continue if the tower went ahead.

But, despite the extensive travel, he was certain Dunedin would remain his base.

''Dunedin is our home, our base ... it'll just mean extensive involvement in China, in Shenzhen, for the years to come.''

chris.morris@odt.co.nz

Skyscraper plan

• 450m-tall, 85-storey skyscraper planned for Shenzhen, China.
• Designed in Dunedin by Architecture Van Brandenburg staff.
• Estimated cost expected to top $NZ1billion if proceeds; finished 2025 or later.
• Would be about 20th-tallest building in the world if built tomorrow.
• Design includes restaurants and lounges, five-star hotel, condominium residences, offices, gyms, sky gardens and even passenger drone ports.
• Architecture Van Brandenburg expects to need more staff in Dunedin and China as a result.