Our worldwide experience creating landmark tall buildings
Chapman Taylor has many years’ experience of working on tall buildings in a variety of conditions around the world. Our basic design philosophy is to combine efficient planning with dynamic forms to create functionally optimised and enjoyable buildings which are also visually impressive additions to their local skylines.
Many of the towers we design are mixed-use developments, and we bring extensive knowledge of the complex planning required to produce integrated and sustainable projects with the ability to provide seamless connections between the various functions. Our bespoke tower designs are always created to appropriately complement the wider cultural and physical context. Below are some recent examples:
Port Baku Tower, Baku, Azerbaijan
Port Baku Tower is a high-rise office complex on the Bay of Baku, with two towers providing 14 and 32 storeys of office and retail space. Designed for Pasha Construction, the office tower has housed their corporate headquarters since 2011. The 120-metre-tall building provides state-of-the-art office space, a large spa, indoor and outdoor swimming pools and sports amenities.
Chapman Taylor took the project from concept to delivery, setting a new standard for office space in Azerbaijan.
M3M Financial Centre, Gurugram, India
M3M Financial Centre will be a 75,000m² GLA retail and office tower development, adding a 180m-tall landmark to the city’s skyline – the tallest office building in India. The scheme, by M3M India Ltd, will create two office buildings served by triple-height shops on the ground floor, more retail on the first floor, with the second floor entirely dedicated to F&B options.
It sits in one of India’s fastest-growing business hubs, surrounded by an affluent residential neighbourhood and close to main routes to and from southern New Delhi and the international airport. Chapman Taylor has designed the architecture for this major commercial centre, which won “Best Mixed-Use Architecture in India” at the 2018 IPAX Asia-Pacific Property Awards.
Global Harbor, Shanghai, China
One of the largest mixed-use, retail-led schemes in the world, Global Harbor is a stunning, 480,000m² GBA commercial complex in central Shanghai, sited above an important transport hub. 400 brands have leased retail units within a 270,000m² shopping centre which incorporates a major cultural heritage component. Two 245-metre-high towers contain offices, apartments and a 5-Star hotel.
Chapman Taylor’s design for Global Harbor won the “Best Retail Architecture in the World” award at the International Property Awards, 2014-15, and was the winning scheme in China’s prestigious Real Estate Design Awards, 2015-16.
42 Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey
An ambitious, mixed-use development on a sloping site in Istanbul, with two 42-storey residential towers at the heart of the development. The project incorporates office buildings, 442 apartments, 16 penthouses, a 42-shop mall and F&B outlets.
The design theme is ‘artful living’ – we incorporated artworks within the architecture and there is an art gallery included. Even the construction vehicles were individually painted, becoming working pieces of art. It has culminated in a revolutionary project where people eat, sleep, live and socialise within a creative environment they can call their own.
Chapman Taylor acted as Principal Masterplanner and Architect for the project. The first office buildings opened in 2013, Tower 1 and more offices in 2014, Tower 2 in 2015, and the retail/entertainment areas are to open in 2017. 42 Maslak is Turkey’s first commercial office project to receive LEED Platinum certification for the Core & Shell category.
Port Baku Tower 2, Baku, Azerbaijan
The architectural design for the 49,000m², office-led Port Baku Tower 2 was conceived as a sculptural completion of the wider Port Baku development. The new mixed-use tower is an evolution of the original Port Baku Tower 1 design, completed in 2011, forming a “bookend” to the eastern aspect of Port Baku and creating a sense of enclosure to the central zone of the development.
The sculptural, curving façades and inclined upper levels create an elegant addition to the Baku skyline, while the angled foyer space at the base of the new tower, with its 16m-high ceiling, creates a strong sense of arrival and an impressive entrance into the office building. The podium to the west of the tower mirrors the tower’s angled base and provides restaurant and retail offers to generate a vibrant circuit to draw people from the popular Fashion Avenue to the west.
The historic brick chimney from the original furnace structure is retained in place and forms the focal point of the public realm and landscaping. The tower’s silhouette is highlighted at night by with LED lighting, which is integrated with the Port Baku Tower 1 control system to enable a flexible, synchronised display on the city’s skyline.
Chapman Taylor acted as Lead Architect on behalf of Pasha Construction for this impressive and memorable Baku landmark, using BIM (Building Information Modelling) technology to deliver a fully coordinated design.
Castle Park View, Bristol, UK
Castle Park View is an exciting and attractive scheme which will regenerate a brownfield site in a prime location on the south-eastern corner of Castle Park – delivering some of the best dedicated Built-to-Rent homes in the city centre. A 26-storey tower, the tallest structure in Bristol, and a 10-storey block will book-end the main building, which fronts onto the park. The strong built form along the northern boundary will be reminiscent of the old castle wall which once stood on the site. The landmark building will provide 375 high-quality homes through a mixture of Build-to-Rent and affordable housing. Car/bicycle spaces and leisure facilities are also provided, along with a 24/7 concierge reception.
The scheme takes advantage of the site’s proximity to the city centre and nearby floating harbour to create a desirable place to live in Bristol. The complex will transform a vacant area of the city centre and will form the basis of a vibrant and sustainable community, bringing great social and economic benefits to the city. Chapman Taylor’s Bristol studio, acting for Linkcity/Bouygues UK, created the concept design for Castle Park View.
Global Harbor, Lanzhou, China
Our successful competition design for the 900,000m² Lanzhou Global Harbor will create a mixed-use city centre development facing Lanzhou West mainline railway station. The project consists of a shopping centre, vibrant shopping streets, offices, apartments and a hotel within a built environment characterised by a blend of themed and contemporary architectural styles.
The development will include two 350-metre-high landmark towers which will incorporate office, residential and hotel uses. In addition, an office building will sit to the west side of the scheme, with apartment buildings of varying heights to the east - all combining to create a gateway to the city from the high-speed railway station.
Chapman Taylor's competition-winning design concept for Yuexing Group follows on from our successful collaborations with them on the award-winning Jiangnan and Shanghai Global Harbor projects.
Rattanathibet Residences, Bangkok, Thailand
This scheme comprises three towers of over 45 storeys with a combined total of 1,500 residential units. At the heart of the project is lifestyle and leisure, with the amenities including a retail/F&B offering. The focal point of the scheme is the central park that connects the three towers while providing the venue for an array of activities for its residents, including a cycling/jogging track, yoga areas, Muay Thai, Badminton, reflection pools and a vast open green space.
Aimed at a younger demographic, the architecture subtly references modern trends and pop culture with a bold material palette and stylish architectural elements.
Shangyao Mansion, Shanghai, China
Chapman Taylor’s redesign transforms a 20-year-old office building in the Huangpu district, used as the headquarters of the Chinese pharmaceutical giant Shangyao. The 11,300m² GFA development stands immediately adjacent to Xintiandi, Shanghai’s upscale pedestrianised shopping, eating and entertainment area.
The development consists of a number of different functions, including offices, conference rooms, a restaurant, a gym and associated business facilities. Outdoor terraces and a roof garden provide excellent views and leisure opportunities.
Office spaces will be more flexible, more efficient, more comfortable and more ecologically sustainable, using natural lighting and state-of-the-art energy efficiency technology. The floorspace combines a mix of fixed stations, hot desking, conference spaces and breakout areas, creating a modern and future-proofed working environment designed to adapt to the changing needs of the company and its staff.
Sustainable materials are used throughout, with double-layer internal curtain walls creating a more energy-efficient alternative to traditional air conditioning systems.
USCE Tower Two, Belgrade, Serbia
Tower Two, in New Belgrade, will house Class A office space in a very prominent city centre location, perfectly located for easy access by car, bicycle or public transport. Set within a landscaped park, the project is designed to complement the existing Tower One and to create high-quality modern office accommodation for innovative companies seeking a highly sustainable development.
The double-height foyer provides a striking entrance experience, with naturally lit lift lobbies on each office floor and external balconies offering beautiful views over the city centre to the east and the Danube and Sava rivers. A green roof terrace creates a stunning F&B destination for office users and for special events.
The scheme targets BREEAM Excellent certification for sustainability. A number of strategies have been followed to achieve an energy-efficient and sustainable design, including reduced south-facing glazing and incorporating vertical fins to further reduce solar gains, and a floor-by-floor decentralised ventilation system – this reduces riser space and allows individual control and metering of up to four tenanted zones and one landlord zone per floor. Natural ventilation is also used throughout the building, as is natural lighting – helping, along with a fluid layout which encourages movement, to create a culture of wellness for the building’s occupants.
Chapman Taylor worked with Buro Happold to develop a tightly integrated architectural and engineering concept.
Batumi Riviera, Batumi, Georgia
This development is located in a prime part of city, at a key corner location on the waterfront between the beach and the soon-to-be-redeveloped former industrial harbour. It will create new landmark tall buildings on the Black Sea, marking where the Silk Route, and later the first petrol from Azerbaijan, passed through.
Consisting of six residential and hotel towers, the largest of which (Silk Tower) will be 42 storeys and 130m high, the seafront project includes a yacht club and new marina, a shopping centre, a casino, outdoor pools and restaurants, a multifunctional hall, a congress centre and a landscaped recreational zone.
Phase one will provide 38,000m² of space in a residential tower, The Lighthouse, along with 4,500m² of podium-level retail/F&B and an 11,000m² car park holding 315 parking spaces, along with a rooftop helipad. The Lighthouse will host flexible one and two-bedroom apartments with large, planted terraces, offering sea views from most.
The building will have an exclusive entrance and lobby, common facilities (including a gym and infinity pool) at podium roof level and three levels of overground car parking along with a rooftop helipad. At the seafront, there will be two levels of terraces hosting cafés and restaurants, while small shops will occupy the rest of the podium perimeter around the car parking. A new yacht club and beach club on the seafront will complete the first phase. The green podium will incorporate design references to vine leaves, reflecting the ancient Georgian wine making tradition. The overall development will also include new marina facilities for 50 boats and a 19,000m² municipal park for use by all residents of the city.
Chapman Taylor's Madrid studio masterplanned and designed this sustainable scheme on behalf of The Silk Road Group.