Mixed-use development generates work for KONE, and corporate headquarters take shape in Chengdu.

KONE Outfitting Mixed-Use “Engineering Marvel”

KONE is providing 196 units to Raffles City Chongqing, described as “one of the biggest engineering marvels being built in the world today,” consisting of a mall and eight towers with residential, office and hotel space at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing rivers. Designed by Moshe Safdie and developed by Chongqing CapitaLand Guyuxiongguan Property Co., Ltd., the development will span 1.12 million m2 and include two 350-m-tall towers. KONE will deliver 42 MonoSpace® and 41 MiniSpaceTM elevators, and 113 TravelMasterTM escalators. Special features include a heavy-duty high-rise elevator traveling at 6 mps and 20 escalators that cross expansion joints. One of the largest developments to receive Leadership in Engineering & Environmental Design Gold precertification, Raffles City Chongqing is scheduled for delivery in 2019.

42-Story “Vertical Village” Part of Chengdu Plan

A 42-story “vertical village” that will serve as regional headquarters for one of China’s largest electronics companies, OPPO, is part of a major mixed-use development in Chengdu, designed by a team led by London’s Gianni Botsford Architects, Architects’ Journal reported. Vertical construction had been set to start in September. Located in the Singapore-Sichuan high-tech innovation park, the 100,000-m2 development will also have a low-rise portion with retail, a hotel and a spa. The tower’s design is punctuated by voids with spiral stairs, rather than elevators, aimed at promoting interaction.