Shanghai, Shenzhen see big plans, completions.

Otis Completes One-Of-A-Kind Modernization in Shanghai

Otis Elevator (China) Co. Ltd. recently completed the modernization of the elevator system at the 468-m-tall sightseeing attraction Shanghai Oriental Pearl TV and Radio Tower that included adding an inclined elevator that is the first of its kind in China. Revitalizing a famous landmark, the job began in 2017 and is Otis’ largest modernization project in the country, including 14 Otis elevators. Three sightseeing elevators were upgraded to Skyrise® double-deck units to increase capacity at the attraction, which welcomes more than five million visitors annually. The inclined elevator was installed in a 60˚tunnel, presenting challenges that were met by a team of local and international Otis engineering and service experts who “worked day and night for two months to complete the complex installation.” The elevator travels at 2.5 mps in a 102-m hoistway and has a capacity of 3000 kg and a slant range of 85 m.

Distinctive Design Selected for New Shenzhen Landmark

Hengli Investment Group Co. Ltd. has selected a design by Gerkan, Marg and Partners for a new complex in Shenzhen’s Super Bay City business district that includes sky gardens, public space and a 250-m-tall office tower, ArchDaily reported. Part of a master plan that will have towers up to 600 m tall, GMP’s design was the winner of an international competition. It consists of the office tower, a 36-m-tall conference center and an 80-m-tall cultural center linked between the ground and sixth floors. Two of four underground floors will house a shopping center. Three-story sky gardens will be located at every eighth level of the approximately 75-story structure.

Tokyo Project Finally Coming Together With 65-Story Towers

A plan in the works since 1993 to redevelop a portion of Tokyo’s Shinjuku ward is coming to fruition with the ward approving the Nishi Shinjuku 3 Chome West District Redevelopment, which includes a pair of 65-story skyscrapers, Japan Property Central reported. A venture of Nomura Real Estate, Tokyo Tatemono, Sumitomo Corp., Maeda Corp. and Greater Tokyo Funenkousha, the 235-m-tall towers will house approximately 3,200 apartments and become the tallest purely residential towers in Japan. They will sit on a 4.8-hectare site across from the Park Hyatt Tokyo and Shinjuku Park Tower. Construction is tentatively slated to begin in 2022, with completion by 2029.

Textile-Inspired HQ by Dutch Firm for Hengli in Shenzhen

A bronze-and-metal grid inspired by the textiles for which the Hengli Group is famous will envelop its 238-m-tall HQ in Shenzhen designed by Dutch firm Mecanoo, ArchDaily reported. In addition to housing offices for the “world’s largest weaving enterprise,” the development will offer three floors of cultural facilities, a shopping mall, and spaces for concerts and restaurants. The stepped, approximately 72-story building features landscaped terraces. It will be joined by a significantly shorter structure with which it will connect at the fifth and sixth levels.

KPF-Designed Sculptural Tower Debuts in Shanghai CBD

SOHO Gubei, a 38-story office tower with a 12-story retail podium inspired by Constantin Brâncuși’s “Endless Column” sculpture, debuted in the Shanghai central business district (CBD) in February, architect Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) announced. The client was SOHO China, and Chairman Pan Shiyi and KPF President James von Kemperer were among approximately 1,000 in attendance at the grand opening that included the unveiling of Shiyi’s personal photography exhibit. von Kemperer compared the building to a “giant piece of public art.” Its design consists of four stacked volumes and a series of shifted grids that create a density of wall surface to reduce glare and enhance shade from the sun.

Kuala Lumpur’s New System to Improve Lift Performance

Kuala Lumpur has implemented a system called E-Logger that allows the city’s nine elevator maintenance contractors to monitor and repair problems in 412 of the 528 units serving its public-housing facilities, The Edge Markets reported. Once a complaint is received through the system, the contractor must arrive within 20 min. if there is an entrapment and 30 min. if there is another issue, or face a fine the equivalent of US$49. The city says it receives up to 1,200 complaints each year about elevators, primarily related to vandalism. E-Logger is able to keep records on faulty lifts and promises to ease the burden on the short-staffed city.