- Architecture
- Masterplanning
- Urban Design
- Landscape Architecture
- Interior Design
- Town Planning
- Project Management
- Environmental Services
SkyZED
Date: 2004
A prototype revolutionary concept building
Client: N/A
Living an environmentally-friendly lifestyle in the middle of the city, putting wasted space to good use and making a virtue out of some of the problems with tower blocks; SkyZED is a revolutionary concept that thinks right outside the box on sustainability.
SkyZED is a prototype design for a mixed use residential tower which can be ideally constructed on usually ‘wasted’ space, like roundabouts. It demonstrates how environmental sustainability and high density living can be mutually beneficial.
One of the major problems with tall buildings is the impact of downdraughts. SkyZED actively harnesses the power of downdraughts through its unique petal shape, which funnels the draughts down onto wind turbines set every seven floors. These, together with photovoltaic cells enable the tower to generate its own electricity.
Issues with inner city noise and pollution are also solved by situating residential units at least seven floors up, well above the worst of the car noise and pollution. Triple-glazed windows offer super insulation and reduce heating bills. Three hundred millimetre-thick walls provide additional insulation whilst glazed conservatories and sunspaces maximise daylight and provide additional winter gardens.
SkyZED’s design also allows for ample commercial and retail units including cafés, shops, a gym and communal roof terraces, essential for supporting a vibrant community. A car pool of electric vehicles (powered by the tower-generated electricity) ensures that residents have access to cheap, low impact travel.
The end result is an environmentally-friendly design that works in partnership with its surroundings and harnesses natural resources, right in the heart of the city in one of the most unlikely places.