Skidmore, Owings & Merrill just revealed designs for a new mixed-use skyscraper in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, a rapidly growing metropolis with a population of nearly 10 million and host of the Asian Games in 2022.

The 280-meter-tall, 54-story Hangzhou Wangchao Center makes a strong first impression with its curved facade lines—merging the engineering feat of eight flowing mega-columns with architectural formal expression.

Completion is scheduled for 2021.

Here's more information about the tower from SOM:

"The Hangzhou Wangchao Center will serve as a gateway to the newly planned Qianjang Century Town in Hangzhou. It will add 125,000 square meters of office, hotel, and retail programming to the rapidly expanding region. The tower is directly adjacent to one of the city’s new subway stations, and is accessible from a major roadway."

"The tower's expressive silhouette is the result of an integrated
architectural and engineering solution. An efficient structural system
minimizes wind loads with eight mega-columns that slope outward at the
corners to create large, flexible floor plates. As the corner columns
move further apart, secondary perimeter columns branch out to maintain
equal column bays."

"At the tower's crown, the primary corner columns extend upward to a truss at the top level. The crown consists of hangers and spandrels braced back to the central concrete core with a series of struts. These work in tandem to support MEP equipment, along with concealed building maintenance systems."

"Above the lobby, a Vierendeel transfer truss links the secondary
columns to the corner columns, creating an open lobby space below. The undulating facade is highly rationalized, allowing the entire cladding
to consist of planar glass panels."

Project Details:

Location: Hangzhou, China
Anticipated Completion: 2021
Site Area: 10,418 m2
Project Area: 125,000 m2
Number of Stories: 54
Building Height: 280 m
Last Occupiable Floor (Roof Level): 250 m
Market: Commercial + Office, Hospitality
Service: Architecture, MEP, Structural + Civil Engineering